"BATHALA" - PMX-003 MG The O vMatX Part IX

Taking Flight!  Though I will still be working on the Bathala, this will be the final update of sorts for this project overall, mainly because I have work projects coming in, and I have to decide if I'll even enter this year's GBWC. I might use this improved wing for another kit instead of entering with the Bathala, mainly because it'll be too costly for me to get another MG The O at Toys R Us at mall price just to be able to enter. I'm thinking of getting an Infinite Justice or Sword Impulse (or some other similar kit), but as of the moment everything is frozen, even my budget for any new kit.

Anyways, I've finished majority of the wing, enough to be able to mount it and do a test fit to see if the mechanism can hold up to the weight. As predicted, the weight is rather significant, probably as heavy as the PG Strike Freedom's backpack/wing. The central gear mechanism is able to hold both wings when folded, or even when the main wing is spread, and so does the wing arm. I've made adjustments to the gears of the wing arms, pinning the gears on the receptacles aside from superglue, so that it holds it's place even during high tension. I've also added lock washers to prevent the nuts from slipping out when the wings are being handled.



The wings spread out. The main wings look short because of foreshortening especially since they curve inward. Looking at it at an angle reveals how long the longest "feather" really is (left wing), and how it curves inward (right wing).



Test fit. The Bathala can actually hold the wings up on its own when the Main wings are folded inward towards its center of gravity. I've also added another pair of V-fins, these coming from my PG RFA.



The wings, "fully" spread. I can still spread it further but it would look unnatural. Because of the overall weight, plus, the added leverage when spread, I won't be able to do this kind of pose for the wing (unless I make pose receptacles for them), not that it will be allowed if I enter it in the GBWC this year. In this configuration, the wingspan comes to a kewl ~100cm (~39in). I had to lay this down on the floor and set my tripod up down angle to get the entire thing inside the viewfinder.



That's it for now. Will post another update if ever.

"BATHALA" - PMX-003 MG The O vMatX Part VII

A quick update:

As I previously assessed, overall weight is an issue when it comes to connecting the base of the wing to the back pack. Still, of all the mechanisms I imagined and tested (I even tested the swivel/hinge units of the extra sword arms underneath the front skirts), nothing could hold the combined weight of the wings. I began thinking of crazy mechanisms again, until the simplest solution became obvious.

A single pivot connection won't cut it, unless I use screws and nuts again, which I am avoiding because this is the very same thing that caused my problems with my previous wing designs. I also use a dual pivot system before with the Angelus, but it also failed because of inherent flaws in the design itself.

So, what if, I used a dual pivot system which has parallel connections?



The mechanism is so simple, with nothing more but a pair of sandwiched polycaps that are interconnected by two beams of equal length, working on the principle of a dynamic parallelogram to create angular motion.



Again, simplicity wins. Despite the weight of the wings, the simple mechanism holds it up. I will still need to reinforce this, disguising that as detail later on.



More (much) later. I have a couple of projects coming in, so I won't be able to work on this monstrosity for a couple of days or so.

"BATHALA" - PMX-003 MG The O vMatX Part VI

The Evolution of Design. As an all-around Graphic Designer for the last 20 years, I've seen design disciplines evolve with the times. In those two decades, I've learned that sometimes, if not most of the time, the simplest of designs is often the most effective, especially with logos or corporate identity.

This also holds true with industrial design, an in my case, Gunpla. I have been fascinated with most anything that has wings that, aside from weird and unique designs, I actually tend to lean on those that have wings, or at least, a semblance of it, with a few exceptions (I don't like the Destiny since its "wings" looks forced, and though I did get the MG Strike Freedom at a huge discount, I never really liked it either, not to say that what I'll do now would look okay later on). The designs I like so far are the Kyrios, the Zeta Plus A1, the Epyon and of course, the TV version of Gundam Wing.

I have made several attempts on wing designs, the simplest so far was what I've done for the Ice Queen. This was a "simple" swivel mechanism where the wings are attached on a single pivot point.



Before that was the Impaler Wings (for the MG Sinanju), my first attempt at a fully articulated and multi-joint wing design.



This was plagued with stability problems mainly because of its complicated design, with all the connective parts I tried to include. I abandoned it altogether and simply put it as learning experience (in my case what isn't?).

Then, there were the Angelus Wings, a "simplified" version of the Impaler Wings, but worked on a similar joint concept. Though it worked wonderfully, it was still unstable. Also, there were the Chimera Wings, which has a solid design, but failed while I was setting it up during the 2010 BMWKC. I was so frustrated back then, I already knew it wasn't going to win anything by the time I got home.





I realized then that any wing design that has multiple points of articulation with screws will have this problem, so I had to do radical rethink.


The Bathala Wings. This is a takeoff from the Angelus wing design, but I simplified it further by reducing the swivel point of the main wing design to one.  I've also added a lock nut to keep the swivel firm. I still wanted the main wing to spread and fold like a fan, but instead of using "gear points" which will limit how the wing spreads and will require holes and pegs located at certain angles (as with the Impaler), or actual gears to automate the wing spread or fold by pulling one out (the Angelus), I used what should have been most obvious from the start.

Instead of a single piece, each "feather" of the main wing is made of two pieces, cut and attached at a certain angle as such the lower layer "catches" the movement of the higher layer thereby creating a natural angle limiter between layers.



I made two prototypes, then decided to use the design of the larger one (keeping the prototype untouched, just in case) to match the Bathala's height. I then encased the joint portion with a simple "box" that follows the shape of the wing. The main wing's span is already at 29 cm, so this thing is going to be huge and heavy. I used all my remaining 1.0mm HIPS for these, since I noticed that even the 1.0mm tends to grow stiff and brittle over time.



Unlike in the Angelus, the Bathala has a lower compound wing with "feathers" that also fold in and out slightly. The feathers are compounded in a 4-3 configuration, each with its own articulation point.



A very "dry" test fit. This is how it should look like when the main and lower wings are attached.



Joining the Wings. Initially, I decided on a simple swivel mechanism to connect the main and lower wings, but that basically limited the Wing's swivel in one direction. I wanted the wing to swivel in several directions so that I can pose it folding over the shoulder of the Bathala somewhat, similar to that of the WingZC. I thought about this a lot, and the only way I can achieve this without making the joint too complicated was to use 8mm Revoltech Revolver ratchet joints. These joints are rare and very difficult to procure, and I got a few of these from R10 via M1Gs a couple of years back and haven't been able to use them, well, until now.





With the Bathala's wing becoming heavy, I had to make sure that that joint's pegs can handle the weight (they're thin and actually soft, being made with High Density Polyethylene, a plastic similar to polycaps), so I made peg modules by encapsulating polycaps with HIPS and WHIPS. These not only hold the polycaps but reinforce them as well. I'm still deciding if I'll mount them permanently on their respective sections or have them removable.

Addendum (18 July 2012):

Lightning update. Though it's main purpose is to hold the main wing up, the lower wing also has semi-articulated compound feathers that swivel out for a full spread pose. This combines weight support functionality with wing aesthetics, so if I was thinking the same way I did before this would be very complicated.

Instead, I drew inspiration from the main wing of a jumbo jet. The mini-wings will be encased in a wing-shaped "box," and that in turn is constructed in such a way that it it becomes solid in itself without additional reinforcement. The final assembly has potential to be very heavy, so I had to reduce weight by removing material inside the "box." This is easily hidden with the layered armor, in which I also removed material covered by the overlapping layer.





I worked on the connective modules of the joint between the main and lower wings I'm still struggling with OC tendencies to make everything removable. The 8mm Revolver joint holds the wing in place at that angle, but I would have to deal with it spinning somewhat on the "axis" of the peg because of the overall weight.





With this simple configuration, I was able to do the entire wing assembly in roughly 4-5 days, whereas, my previous (and somewhat failed) attempts took weeks, if not months, just figuring out the mechanisms.

"BATHALA" - PMX-003 MG The O vMatX Part I

I started modifying this kit after taking a break from the Raptor (which burnt me out).  Thus begins my cycle of unfinished builds (which will later be revisited and finished) and a finished one. 

Overview of initial modifications done:

1) Neck lengthened. Cap/cone is cut, reversed and swept back.

2) Collars are cut from the front and back piece, then cemented together to remove the seam. The Chest piece is cut out on certain sections to reveal the inner frame.

3) Shoulder armor is cut to reveal inner frame. The top part is cut from the spherical part, then cemented together, then cut into two sections for easier insertion. The circular parts are also cut away to give the section more depth, revealing the inner frame as well.

4) The abdominal section is lengthened by 12mm. The peg on the base of the waist is cut, then lengthened at the core with 5mm round beam and reinforced with beams.

5) The wrist is lengthened by 5mm to compensate for the abdomen's added length. This one is tricky because the wrist joint is made of two very small pieces, with almost no leeway for cutting and lengthening.

6) The Thighs and Lower legs are also lengthened by 20mm each. These are also tricky because of how the parts are designed. Cutting them is relatively easy, lengthening them is a bit difficult, especially since the cement takes time to "melt" the ABS plastic of the frame.

7) The back skirt armor is cut in the middle, while the inner frame's inner shape is cut around that section then reversed. The peg that the skirt attaches to is also lengthened significantly, and an adapter was made to connect the now separated back skirts.








The Shoulder Armor. I challenged myself with this one by cutting the unneeded parts (the ones that look like a pi) as cleanly as possible, because at the time, I wanted to be sure I have them intact just in case I'll be using them for something else later on.



The Main Body Armor. This is more cosmetic modifications, just to show parts of the inner frame. The pencil marks are planned panel lines and/or plaplate detailing. The functional modification in this are the collars, mainly for seamline removal.



The Lengthened Abdomen. The stock part came in two pieces, which sandwiched a double-end polycap that connects to the chest and waist. This is barely visible when assembled. I cemented the parts together, then drilled 2.8mm~ holes on the "corners" of the completed part, enlarging the holes enough to fit 3mm round beams. These beams extend all the way down to an extension base made from 2 pieces of 1.0mm HIPS, sandwiched together to firmly hold the beam posts. I then slowly bent a 10mm strip of 1.0mm HIPS, the wrapped it around the posts, making sure that the ends meet exactly on the back part.



The Waist/Groin Assembly. This is a straightforward lengthening, though I did have a few problems with the stability of the waist extension initially since the polycap hugs the peg very tightly, twisting the upper body loosened the modification. So, I reinforced the modification with 3mm square and round beams, with the round ones boring into the base of the waist, saturating it later on with thin cement and letting it cure for 48 hours before attempting another test fit. For the rear skirt peg, it's a simple extension with very little reinforcement needed.



The Rear Skirt. Like I mentioned earlier, I've cut around the mid part of the frame (very tricky if you want to cut it clean), and reversed it so that the detailed part is outside. I'll be lengthening and the skirts and will narrow them down to make the waist look "slimmer" from behind.



The Leg. Cutting these was the easy part, since I basically cut across the length of the parts. For the thigh (where the polycap is placed, there is very little space left for the lengthening beams to hold on to, so I had to saturate the joins with cement. I then cemented a strip of 1.0mmHIPS on the outside which serves as the lengthening part of the outside of the frame. It gave way even after 24 hours of curing, so I re-reinforced the joins with strips of 0.5mm HIPS, then re-saturating the joins.



TOTAL HEIGHT SO FAR: 30 CM

1/20 FSB: RMX-000X Raptor X Part 7

Take a Seat

With the relative size of this build, I had to decide whether to leave the cockpit empty, or detail it with a fully-functioning hatch. It got the better of me so I decided on the latter. So, first off, the pilot seat.

The seat assembly will comprise of several parts mainly because of casting considerations. I used a few references for form, but this is basically my design. Using my foot metal ruler as width guide, I cut several slabs of HIPS, then using my smaller ruler centered on the slab, scored parallel lines, and made v-grooves halfway through. Using the same technique on my previous post re: the Shin Saga, I bent the HIPS along the grooves far enough to make a slight angle to simulate the seat form. These will become the seat, back and head rest. Conversely, I made a control module where the HUD, handle bars and pedals will be mounted on. This slide locks onto the seat.


I didn't have my camera with me at the time, so I was unable to take pictures of the other parts as I was building them, so I'm jumping ahead a bit. If this was a simple build, I would have made this as a single unit. Since that is not the case, I made connective parts that joins the main seat assembly.


As always, these parts are modular connect in sequence and partially interlock.




And viola! I'll be adding the control panels, HUD and miscellaneous details later on, and this will swing 90 degrees forward in flight mode.


That's it for now.