Pimp My Zoids

赤豪鬼(Akuma Red): Work In Progress Part III - Paint

2011-06-08T16:01:00.002+08:00

Have been itchy to try digi camo on Zoids for some time...

Preparing the lightest color first....then mask it with modeling tape. I peeled on/away the tape a few time to reduce the "sticky-ness" to prevent it from sucking up the paint :D

Adding the secondary color and mask it again...Finally adding the darkest color and peel off all the tapes... O_o)"

赤豪鬼(Akuma Red): Work In Progress Part II - Construction

2011-06-08T12:48:00.011+08:00

First off... Shopping~!
I need to get the ingredient for this creation...and after a couple of explaining myself to the store owner... i finally hit the jackpot at the local artfriend...
The critical dome for the cockpit turned out to be a Xmas deco ball... :D
And the arms are jewellery metallic beads purchased when my wife went to get her accessories whatsnot...

Next, the silhouette filling...(In order to protect the surface of the Xmas ball, I mummified it X_X)

And the cockpit control panel...
Deathsaurer's parts are modified to become the "hood" of the squid.

With the Singaporean designer seat

Adding it all together
Yes, the cushion are actually broken plastic spoons.
http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
Seeing how transparent the dome can be, the back wall must be well-detailed as well...again, plastic spoons to the rescue :D
This is a tough act as the padded wall must conform to the dome shape...Blue-tac is your best friend here ;)
Once the positioning is achieve, super glue and putty is generously applied :D

Seen next to the padded dome on the previous picture are the dumpling for this Duanwu Festival hehee... they are actually casting mold for the tentacles.

And here's the tentacles

Next is the mantle which is the main body of the squid...
Recycle Pokka plastic bottle and A&W plastic bottle was used to form the shape.
I added two inset on each side of the mantle for the turbine placement.
These were also make with recycled plastic wine glass :D
This picture shows how the inset was "traced" out using embossing tape and the panel line scriber.

Thank goodness for the scriber, as the plastic wine glass was very brittle... using the scriber to slowly engrave the plastic till it can be broken off in the intended direction really make it easy...and without saw dust all over the place is another plus point.

Once that's done, the turbines are next...
Make with plastic spoons and the BZ-017 Laser storm's gatling body.

Posing with the rest of the mantle :)

At this stage, I m tailing behind the competition~
Literally...
Tail option 1
Tail option 2

After deciding on the tail option, i noticed that the putty popped away at the mantle from the plastic.. as the plastic underneath is way softer than the harden putty...
So when implementing tail option 2, i thought up this idea :D
1)Roll the kneaded putty around a rod of blue-tac
2)Insert a stick into the center then rotate and spread the putty around the underside of the hole.
3) Finally gently pull the blue-tac up to make the "spreaded" blue tac press against the wall.
4) Simply pull out the blue-tac when the putty is dried.
Voila, well-supported column for the tail section :D
Finally, to join the mantle and the rest of the head together and covered up with another deathsaurer part ;)
The rectangular part on the right is used as the funnel.

Bring on the paints...
Click here for Part III

赤豪鬼(Akuma Red): Work In Progress Part I - Reference and Concept

2011-06-08T12:34:00.008+08:00

The inspiration for this custom came when I was creating 无(Wu). During the http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifcohttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifckpit design phase, I found a cool design from the Gundam series...
And the other inspiration came from the matrix's sentinel. Being a Zoids fan, the end result must be an organoid... so this is ithttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
Yes, its a Squid :D
But not just any squid, I want it to be the Humboldt squid (Red Devil Squid) as a deep sea vessel.

And to add to the challenge, I wanted to go green and use recycled plastic for this custom ;)

Click here for Part II

Zoidspoison Customization Contest (ZPCC) 2011 Entry

2011-06-08T11:23:00.009+08:00

Category: Sci-Fi, Mecha, Zoids
Scale: 1/24
Modification: Kit-bash from Deathsaurer and recycled plastic.

Type: Squid
Class: Deep Sea Recon

Synopsis
Inspired by the Humboldt squid (Red Devil Squid) thus named Akuma Red, this is a 1/24 representation of the one man vessel for deep sea recon.

The cockpit is fully rotatable 360degree so that the Akuma Red can lay in any 3D position without giving the controller invertigo sickness. With the latest digital camouflage technology and its naturally red color the Akuma Red is almost invisible. (In deep water, red is first color to lose its shade)

Click here for WIP ;)

More pic will be taken later...

无: Work In Progress Part III - Transparent Headaches

2010-01-27T23:02:00.014+08:00

Now comes the real deal.
I was able to confirm the outlook using the relatively inexpensive colored regular issue part. Now I have to work on the transparent counterpart...

Only after I make a closer inspection of the part did I release something unexpected in a normal build...

The mold lines on the internal side.... they are visible as the whole piece is see thru...And they are in hard-to-reach corners....I sand them down initially but in the end I just use my micro chisel to scratch them off...Next headache....after I cut off the unwanted part, white stress marks appeared due to the tension....

Again, sand and scratch with chisel...or finger nail~ Another approach is to cut them with a little buffer so that it can be removed with a less tension tool like a chisel or penknife.

As the part selection is so limited, every single bit counts... I decide to get this photo etch saw to make the collateral damage to a minimum.

And lastly, being transparent means that regular putty cant be used to seal up gap/holes... I brought a pack of clear putty but upon hearing poor review abt it, I decided not to risk it... So in the end I used clear silicon which is much cheaper...
Beware tho, try not to handle them using your bare hand. Wear a latex glove or something. If any of those sticky thingy get onto you, try acetone (regular nail polish remover)

Next are the tentacles... After I line up the glass beads, I still find them too blocky and it doesnt match the fluid idea that I have. So I decided to use clear heat shrink tubing to encase them so that they look like a single piece. Now come my blunder... in order to effectively shrink them, my hot hair blower cant really do it without short-circuiting the whole neighborhood power grid. So I used hot water...And it works nicely... but the side effect was if water happen to seep in.... the cheapo $2 wire will rust... no wonder I saw those expensive wire in the bead shop... those must be rust-resistant...

And finally, the paint job....
so... how do you color something that's supposed to be transparent...
Well, you dont... hmmm, then again, you can :D

When you cant see into the future, apply it now.

Try to have at least half of the part submerge into the solution. Keep the movement to a minimum to avoid stirring up too much bubbles... Rotate it around for the future to flood out the trapped bubbles.

See the different? Not only it make it bling like glass, it helps to fill up little scratches. Hehee, so technically I did paint my custom and the color scheme is just that. Transparent.

But its really a dust magnet... so keep it dust free... The new packaging is now called the Pledge with Future shine. This set me back $22SGD... but being a cheapo, I pour back whatever I used.... and now i notice there are now some particle inside the bottle...

And this is it....
Relatively lesser effort than my previous custom but was able to achieve the effect that I wanted :) If I can turn back time and redo this, I will add less tentacle and keep within the silhouette. I find the tentacle positioned too far in-front thus making the main body look short and lost the appearance of a buoyancy ballast compartment look. Overall it was great fun and the end result was worth the cost :)

In the end I spent another $30 buck to get a LED stripe that can change 7 colors to make my display look like those jellyfish tube in the aquarium :D

无: Work In Progress Part II - Construction

2010-01-27T22:33:00.004+08:00

Once I'm happy with the placement, the fusion starts...

First I have to make the red horn feet merge with the body. This is done by slicing off the exhaust vent and leveling of the surrounding area by filing.

Now they flow with the bodyline nicely:)

But the hole for the original fore leg still remain... I tried using a transparent spoon to make the circular cover...

The result didnt turn out as what I expected because the spoon is not in a perfect dome... it is slightly elongated and the final outlook seems like an eyelid...so it was aborted...

After I stick the feet onto the body, I found that the feet joint is prefect for making a turrent mounting :D

Weeee

With the turret built using the existing guns from red horn, I realised that there is a break in the bodyline from the top view. Right infront of the first feet...

So again, I tried to find a solution from the leftover parts and managed to come up with this:

Each cannon will be place right onto of the gap in the bodyline to create a continuous impression.

无: Work In Progress Part I - Reference and Concept

2010-01-26T22:59:00.007+08:00

I have always been fascinated by the transparency of the jellyfish and how it look so unreal and yet so alive with it fluid movement at the same time... So I decided to make a custom based on this same inspiration... Alas, the idea of Man-Of-War pop up... though not a jellyfish, its still nearly as transparent as one.

Thus after some surfing, i found the silhouette of my custom:

Next comes my headache.... how do I make it transparent and leave no marks on it after modification... And it hit me, I can mold them using clear resin.

Unfortunately when I found my resin and latex... they were all dried up due to my poor maintenance...I have to think of something fast...Thank god for having our community's most resourceful fan here in Singapore, Philip aka APM, I got a bundle of built stuff from him earlier and in one of the goodies bag... I found a built Crystal Red horn and a Crystal molga. Since this is my last resort, I took it upon myself to make the custom using only these...this is the most challenging task to date... to make a custom using only limit model. To make it worst... I must not use any putty or leave any visible modification mark on the final custom since its transparent....

I feel that the most important part of the Man-Of-War is its tentacles... After keeping an eye out for anything transparent, I found this...

Cost me a few red notes to get a tub of them. The wire is only $2 tho... more about this later.

Next comes the main body. Since these Zoids are rare and expensive, I decided to try out my design on the built regular issued Zoids that I have.

I initially wanted to use the Gojulas HT's back fin... but they look too short and stompy.. Heres another arrangement of the buster eagle fin.

In the end... I chose none from the above... I gave in to the Capitalism... the cost of the Zoids will simply be too much... I have to only temporally borrowed a wing from the Crystal buster eagle...the holes on the sides irks me some tho...

So the design of the top fin of the Man-Of-War must be removable...And notice the holes are now covered up by the feet of red horn? Hehee, they are now the extra compartment of the ballast chambers.

To be continue...

Zoidspoison Customization Contest (ZPCC) 2010 Entry

2010-01-26T22:14:00.009+08:00

Category: Sci-Fi, Mecha, Zoids
Scale: 1/700
Modification: Kit-bash from 3 Zoids models.

Type: Man-of-War
Class: Landing craft carrier

Synopsis
Modeled after the infamous Portuguese Man-of-War (aka Blue bottle, Medusa), this Zoids is a huge carrier class Zoids capable of transport small to medium sized Zoids across the battlefield. With it 99% HoloTech (HT)capability, there is almost nothing to be seen, thus its been named 无(Wu) or nothingness.
This carrier class Zoids is truly one of its kind. Its large landing craft body is not only able to float in the air and water depending on the molecule mixture loaded into its ballast, it can also be totally submerged into water.
Look at those firepower mounted all around itself....Try to see if you can...
Because not even the most sophisticated sensor system can pick up them...
New advancements in energy R&D were implemented into the power module to enable the full time employment of the HT ability.
Making it almost impossible to be detected by even its own army...if not for the mechanical cap at the base of its side mounted turrets and its tail.
Shown here is the opened bay door during Zoids deployment. This is the only time the HT will be partially disabled.
Cannot find where it is? Lets zoom in a little...

Just gotta recreate an aquarium experience that inspired me here...

Catch the WIP here...

The dawn of Zoids...

2009-04-19T17:15:00.007+08:00

The dawn of Zoids begins...
11 years in the making...

Look at the similarity between this and EZ-018 Saicurtis?

Look at this too...

World Wide Hobby Store Hunt: Japan

2009-03-22T16:22:00.007+08:00

This is the location of Toy & Hobby stores that I have visited when I was working in Japan. Hope this helps to kick-start your Zoids hunt in Japan~!

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Shown below are the stores with "Street View" available.

Dengeki Hobby Works (Level 2)

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Liberty Store 7 (The 3 storey blue and yellow font building)

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Liberty Store 12 (Pic not updated...)

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Hobbyland Pochi (B1, use the foyer next to the red buidling)

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Mandarake@Akiba

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Kotobukiya (Take the escalator to Level2)

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Mandarake@Nakano (Just walk thru the covered pavement)

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Bellhouse(羽村分店)

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Yamashiroya

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I have only listed those places with more hard to find Zoids related stuff like Vintage/Exclusive release of kits and CPs. I have not listed HMM Zoids and Zoids monthly as they can be found easily in most reputable toy stores. Note that I said Toy stores because its hard to find toys in department stores in Japan but whos complaining :D

Liger Travelogue

2009-03-16T22:39:00.005+08:00

A pictorial travelogue of Liger traveling around Asia countries consisting of Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore.

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World Wide Hobby Store Hunt: Hong Kong

2009-03-07T20:00:00.003+08:00

Got some free time on my hand when I was in Hong kong and decided to make a compilation of toy stores in Hong Kong.
After some googling, these are what I've gotten:
1) kristykwan
2) HkModeler
3）Plamo

Without a doubt, the Mongkok area has the highest concentrate of hobby shops.
So if you only have 1 day in HK, this is the place to bet on.

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Note: The photos are taken at random if there is any valid reasons to remove them, please kindly leave a comment.

For list of HK toy stores, click here

Note: This list is made based on the above mentioned sources. If there is any valid reasons to remove them, please kindly leave a comment.

Zoidspoison Customization Contest (ZPCC) 2008 Entry

2009-02-24T22:31:00.012+08:00

Category: Sci-Fi, Mecha, Zoids

Scale: 1/72

Modification: Kit-bash from several Zoids models.

Type: Centaur

Synopsis
Based on the form of the fantasy Centaur, Centaurian Avanguard was created by fusing from part moose part gorilla. It is a centaur type Zoids that obtained knighthood through its selfless pursuit of noble virtues.

Valour: Pursuit of Courage and Knowledge
Liberality: Pursuit of Will
Diligence: Pursuit of Ethics
Patience: Pursuit of Peace

Its namesake is a short form of "Advance Guard" that represent only the very best of the Centaurian clan that can hold its own against 100 times more opponents. Due to this, Avanguards are always deployed to the front of the battle (Pursuit of Will and Peace) to reconnoiter and protect the line of march (Pursuit of Courage and Knowledge).

Being a knight, Centaurian Avanguard only uses honorable hand-to-hand melee weapons.(Pursuit of Ethics). The main weapons of choice are the twin Claymores make of composite Iridium that it carried on both side of its body. As for assault charges, it has the Lance of Charity and the Shield of Faith to provide the optimal balance of offense and defense. In additional, there are a pair of Hope system blade built-in into the corner of the front waist armour for blind spot defensive maneuver.

With noble qualities supported by a range of weapons handled by a master of close quarter combat, Centaurian Avanguard is without a doubt the Zoids representation of a knight in shiny armor.

Zoidspoison Customization Contest (ZPCC) 2007 Entry

2009-02-24T15:30:00.005+08:00

Category: Sci-Fi, Mecha, Zoids

Scale: 1/72

Modification: Kit-bash from several Zoids models.

Type: Shark

Synopsis

This model concept has been in my mind for sometime after I saw a white tip reef shark during one of my dives. The perfect balance of grace and ferocity was simply intriguing and I just had to do a shark custom ... As its a Zoids, I had modeled it after the Megalodon.

Look at how graceful it moves:

and look at those teeth....

Movement Profile:
Exact replicate of shark's body and tail movement.
Jaw can be open to reveal the main cannon.

Functional Profiles:
(Top to bottom from left)
a) Tail Booster for lateral maneuver
b) Main Booster for frontal charge
c) Head Armour and Front Weaponary
d) TGT System (Twin Gun Turrets)
e) Remora (Heat Seeking) Torpedo
f) Tomohawk (Long distance) and Cruise (Surface to air) Missles

Zoidspoison Customization Contest (ZPCC) 2006 Entry

2009-02-24T09:13:00.009+08:00

Category: Sci-Fi, Mecha, Zoids

Scale: 1/72
Modification: Kit-bash from several Zoids models.
Type: Lion

Synopsis

This Leo Majestic variant of the Leo Blaze is the basic unit used specially for the Royal family during the last great war. During this great war, as most armies force are deployed to the frontline, enemy started to use a mystery assissin group called Dragon Spirit to eradicate the royal family.

A brilliant engineer come up with an idea of using the smaller zoids to hunt down the Dragon spirit, this is because smaller zoids can ambush the enemy easier and has better maneuverability. As the Leo Blaze was the most versatile amongst the smaller zoids, the engineer remodel the whole zoids to unleash its full potential. And only selected few can pilot this advanced evolution. Of course to differentiate this new unit, its improved armour is repainted in the royal color and its name aptly the Leo Majestic.
This is the basic form of Leo Majestic...
Leo Majestic Hunter
After several confrontations with Dragon spirit, the engineer realised that the firepower of LM is not enough to destroy the enemy. This is when he chanced upon a pile of armour laying in the middle of no where. After careful analyse, he found out that it was the long lost Liger Zero Panzer CAS. Its was jettison when it become over-heated. This can only happen when its host fires all weapon at the same time. Regardless, with the intelligent of the engineer, he recognise this will be a trememdous help in increasing the firepower of LM.

After repairing the CAS, he again unlease the potential within the CAS and he name it: Customise Weapon System Hunter. Unknowingly, he created the ultimate sharpshooter as the Panzer unit fused well with LM giving it a special ability "Hunt" which call target any enemy within 10Km range without missing.

And this is the Hunter Customised Weapon System (CWS)

Leo Majestic Seeker
Dragon spirit realise that with the new LM Hunter, they dont stand a chance. So they change their tactic and begin to "Hit and Run". Once again our engineer gotta remedy the situation fast. He wanted a zoids that will help the republic in a way: "Like a lion with a wing". Inspired by this old chinese saying, he added a pair of wing and a set of powerful claw.

This new zoids proved to be efficient in not only capturing the enemy, it has an additional ability call "Target Seek". This enable the LM to track the enemy without physically seeing them. It works by mentally sourcing for the enemy and it can accurately decipher the location to within 1Km

Introducing the Seeker Customised Weapon System (CWS) of Leo Majestic

Leo Majestic Chaser
After the introduction of the LM Seeker, the war is at its turning point. Republic army is winning but the Empire refused to surrender. The Empire keep sending out high speed zoids to wreak havoc at the border. This time, our engineer who is already the technical director of the Republic makes his most important contribution to the war. Utilising ion fusion booster from other alien civilization, he come up with the supreme speed zoids.

Presenting the Chaser Customised Weapon System (CWS) of Leo Majestic

Named LM Chaser. After a few test run, a strange phenomenon happend. The alien technology begin to evolve! It thus gain a new ability call "Enemy Pursue". This was the ultimate ability whereby it allows the LM recognise enemy heat signature and it will automatically go in pursuit till the enemy is taken down. It outrun each and every zoids that the Empire send out.

Extras
Diorama pictures:

Story of Ah Ang (The garage man)

2009-02-10T22:00:00.005+08:00

Here's the man~! He's proud to be himself~

He builts his own product...wait amin... isnt that the joystick of Kaiten??!?!? Where do you think you are going with those?

He promotes his own product~....hmmm, this design looks familiar....He models his creation~ is that drool on his chin... oh man...hes a sleep...
Just for a laugh....This is what I did to keep myself awake thru the night while making Kaiten...

Kaiten: Work In Progress - Prototyping The Cockpit Part II

2009-02-09T22:26:00.017+08:00

No! The title is not wrong.
YES! The darthing is still ON~!

Immediately after MCON08 exhibition was over, I laid out my tools and roll up my sleeve again :) This time I'm hell bent on working on the interior and what I started out to achieve: The human interface.

Then.....After trying for days, I finally give up to try to access the interior through the opened hatch and the detachable left side armaments. I even tried to cast the interior and succeeded in making the replicate of the side wall... but to create what I had in mind is still too difficult.

So in order to improve the situation... I have to dissect Kaiten into two....after so much had been done....Seen here is the back half undergoing masking for some putty work.

Next comes the exciting part :)
I wanted to create a padded environment like the Ma.k suit to safely cocoon the pilot. So I used blue tac to doll up the side wall.

Originally, all I wanted was just padded side wall but then I started to enjoy myself and moved on to putting panel pieces into the idea. After finalizing the cockpit side panel design, its back to the tappy tray to engrave and accessorize.

After fixing up both side:

Here's after pre shading the padded side panel :)

Then I moved on to make the front of the cockpit. First off is the side pillar that will display strong and sturdy appearance and also house the screen. I started by creating a groove to house the styrene H bar. And to emphasize the submarine vehicle look, I added bolts to the pillar:

Now come the moment of truth.... can this fit my idea of a cockpit... The Head-Up Display spanning 180 degree~! I finally found a part that can do this. And its a plastic soda bottle...Final touch with a little glow in the dark paint to make the screen comes alive :)

For the flooring, I cut a capsule egg into the desired shape and use the remaing bolts to seal up the holes.

And there you have it, the cockpit saga is finally completed.

Kaiten: MCON 08

2009-02-09T00:20:00.008+08:00

Phew, I still remembered I gotta take leaves just to make it and rush to the exhibition on the last day... When I reached the place, the hair on my neck was standing.... Its amazing how many entries there were. The registration, the entry label, the display area, etc... everything was well planned and executed. So this is how official exhibition is... And to see people from all manners of life together in the hall, discussing about models and techniques. All my hard work was worth it just to be able to be in the hall.

In order not to conflict with ZPCC, I chose another name for Kaiten.... Its Hades SDV. Well...there is a 1/24 Neptune so another greek god will make sense :) SDV means Seal Delivery Vehicle. Hee, I wanted to be more military to miggle into the crowd.

Pretty Kaiten or I meant Hades....

Some Bling Power~! Hee, this is what I meant by "Dark but Shinny~"

Some of my personal favourite:

More MCON08 pic here

Kaiten: Work In Progress - The Paint In The Ask

2009-02-08T23:18:00.008+08:00

The Paint - I wanted something dark but yet shinny...
Well, I finally put my pearl paint brought during my Japan trip into good use.

First, I primed the model with Mr Hobby's 1200 Gray primer-in-a-can. Then I coat it with Gaia's Semi-gloss black.

Finally I poured my unnamed pearly goodness into a dispenser and dilute it with Mr Color Thinner till "milk" fluidity and spread away~. Shown here is the picture of the part after one coat of the diluted pearl paint(Left).

Note: This is just my way of spraying pearl paint as I did not understand the Japanese instruction to get the proper ratio of colored paint vs pearl paint....

Next, I wanted a secondary color to be having the same characteristic as the primary color. Dark and Shinny. So I have to use some clear color to overlay onto the primary color. So I chose clear purple. As Purple is a deep but still vibrant color.

Unfortunately, there is no clear purple on stock... So I improvised and used clear blue + clear red. Yes, that's a bird nest bottle that I recycled to store the mixture. And to make it more air tight, I taped around the cap and the brim of the bottle :)
Tips: Don't throw away your used masking tape! Use them to cover your paint during breaks to prevent dust from settling in.

Kaiten: Work In Progress - Prototyping The Fins

2009-02-08T17:54:00.010+08:00

The Fins: My favorite part of the custom.

After googling for tons of seahorse images, I found my winning ticket in the left-over parts from last years entry's parts pile. The horns of Lanstag (GZ-012:Lanstag).

The origin fixture uses the Blox stub to hold the horn..I mean fins. It works but its too simple... I wanted something that shows control and strength.

While digging my stash of parts, I digged up millions of skinny legs from the Harpers (CBZ-04:Harpers) and decided to get rid of them.

After going through a few fittings, I managed to alter the legs to become piston joints to maneuver the fins. To add in more details, I used metal spring to doll up the hose and insert shorten safety pin into the spring to give it some contour.

Shown here is the comparison between the original Blox stub and the converted harpers piston system.

Kaiten: Work In Progress - Prototyping The Top Cover

2009-02-08T17:22:00.009+08:00

The Top cover: The hardest part in creating this model.
It wasn't easier to decide on which style (Open-Top or Hatched-Top) to go as I was still trying to find the missing pieces in sealing up the cockpit....

Verdict: I did not choose any of the above design as I found that they are most suitable for "open top" concept whereas I wanted a hatched top. Fortunately when I was fiddling around with the last design, I snapped up the connected parts of the horseshoe crab variant (FZ-018:Gairyuki Shin) and hit the jackpot. Its shape allows modification to be done on the center from top to bottom. I used the antenna dish assembly(CP-13 Wild Weasel Unit Customize Parts) as the hatch door :)

Decision: I was out of time ... I had to make a tough call to seal up the top cover without finishing the cockpit or I will miss MCON08... Once the top is sealed, it will be tough to access the interior to work on the cockpit....All my efforts on the cockpit down the drain :'(

Kaiten: Work In Progress - Prototyping The Cockpit

2009-02-08T17:13:00.006+08:00

The cockpit... The functional requirement of the seat began as only a simple personnel transportation. Then it moved on to a control terminal with multiple display and knobs....Seat assembly is using Zoids model (BZ-012:Leo Striker and NBZ-04:Rapto Jaguar)

At this point, I had a inspirational blockage on the top cover design so I was not able to gauge the interior dimension and available space for the seat... With the deadline looming, I had to move on to other parts...

Kaiten: Work In Progress - Prototyping The Tail

2009-02-06T00:56:00.013+08:00

The tail.... the curvy shape of the original selected parts do not fit in with the rest of the more pointy and sharp-edged armor plate. I had to replace it with left over parts from the same Zoids model (BZ-007:Diploguns) that I used for armor plates. In addition, I wanted a booster module in each segment for a flexible and responsive look. And this is what I came up :)

Last portion of the tail is using the tail of Zoids Model (EZ-047:Maccurtis)

And to cover up the hollow inner layer:

The scriber tool comes in a set of 2 photo etch stencils and a scriber pen. I always wanted to get one of this to engrave panel lines on my custom just like those commonly seen on gundams.

Tips: After scribing a few lines, I realized that its quite difficult for me to stop the styrene from moving. So I come up with a D.I.Y sticky base I called tappy tray :)
Simply use a thick masking tape, reverse it so that the sticky side is facing up, and then cord it around a piece of hard plastic to act as a base for scribing. As both top and bottom of the base are sticky, both base and styrene will not move :)

After all the panel lines are scribed, I used the micro chisel to slow press onto the lines. This is an amazing tool that can get into tight places. Selling separately is the round tip that works especially well for rounded corner. They can both be mounted on a normal pen vice if you are lazy to keep swapping.

Next I proceed to use the photo etch mesh to cover the vent slits and using 2 pieces of styrene L bar, I make square exhaust pipe to fill up the side and putty any gaps left.

After making these panels, I went to modify the tail as I felt that the original design was only cosmetic and did not provide much function. I used the head part of the Hurricane Hawk as the tail for Kaiten and added a pair of blade from the Diploguns to create the Deadlock mechanism that will lock down any enemy vessel's anchor into the seabed.

Kaiten: Work In Progress - Prototyping The Snout

2009-02-06T00:46:00.006+08:00

The Snout.... what I started was to have a lip rimming at the end of the cannon... but somehow it doesnt give the look of authority... flashing back in my mind appear an image of ubber agression... a weapon of mass destruction... the wave motion gun of Space Ship Yamato. I feel that the rifling shown on the edge of the gun is that source of aggression. So I proceed to duplicate that rifling effect on the snout using styrene L bar.

Kaiten: Work In Progress - Prototyping The Chest

2009-02-05T01:15:00.015+08:00

The Chest... its too flat to portrait the armor plated body.
After playing around with the parts of the Zoids model (BZ-07:Diploguns), I finally achieved the form that I wanted.

To fill up the gap caused by the jaggered tip, I used mesh pattern photo etch super-glued on a thin styrene.

Kaiten: Work In Progress - Concept

2009-02-05T00:59:00.012+08:00

Origin Concept

To challenge myself, I wanted to make a custom in 1/24 scale so that there are more opportunity to work on the human interface which is absent in my other customs.

Then as I was surfing the web, I came across an image of a boy riding on the seahorse in Puerto Vallarta. I find that it fits my direction nicely. An underwater transport personnel vehicle.

So for this year entry, I decided to make a manned-seahorse.With this image in mind, I simply grab bit and pieces from my built parts stash to filled up the silhouette so that I can lock the form into my mind. Head and fins are used from Zoids Model (GZ-012:Lanstag)

Prototype

Once I'm satisfied with parts placement, I'll use blu tac to hold them together for some photo taking. At the same time, I'll google intensively on the selected animal form for anything from the Jurassic fossil to the modern skeleton structure as this will help me to create an physically accurate and realistic model. We dont want a seahorse to look like a hippo right (-.-)"'
Parts used: Diploguns, Lanstag, Leo Striker, Brave Jaguar.

Work In Progress will be updated in sequence post.

Zoidspoison Customization Contest (ZPCC) 2009 Entry

2009-02-03T15:04:00.017+08:00

Category: Sci-Fi, Mecha, Zoids
Scale: 1/24
Modification: Kit-bash from several Zoids models.

Synopsis
This is my entry for this year's ZPCC. Its name is Kaiten (Japanese: 回天, translated "Turning of the Heavens" or "Reverse Destiny"). Tracing back to during the World war II (Wiki), Kaiten is a single manned sub converted from a torpedo meant to change the tides of war.

Based on this namesake, this Zoids Kaiten contain numerous deadly weaponry to command its authority in the battle field.

Other than firepower, its modular propulsion segments give it fast and responsive maneuverability even in the roughest seas.

In additional, powerful hydraulic pistons provides precise lateral movement critical for firing its arsenal.

Top hatch style to enable quick personal deployment and enemy territory insertion. And unlike the predecessor, this Kaiten is designed to protect the pilot as seen by the padded environment and ergonomically designed cockpit layout.

Full 180degree Head Up Display (HUB) eliminates blind spot and also provide all necessary information without pilot being distracted.

A New Beginning

2009-02-03T06:41:00.000+08:00

Being my first post, I guessed I should say the motives behind my blog.
Well, I wanted to use this space to share my thoughts, mishaps and humble knowledge in making my Zoids custom.

So a big Yello to all readers and specially Zoiders out there~!