The GBWC Philippines Regional Final "Twist"

It's on.  And the deadline's a month earlier than in previous years.  Last year was huge, with a lot of heavily modified entries making it into the mix.

click on the picture to reveal the twist

But, there's a new twist in the rules.  Aside from bringing the box to provide authentication, the manual must also be provided, PLUS, and here's where it can get hairy, kits used as entries MUST be bought from Toys R Us, with receipts.

Okay.  Nothing wrong with that on the marketing perspective since Toys R Us are basically forcing people to purchase kits so people can enter, but, like myself, there are a lot of people who start their entries early, hence have already bought kits.  I doubt this is a drive to prevent bootlegs from making it into the pool, since no one in his right mind would enter a bootleg and present an actual Bandai box, unless of course, he is really that scrupulous a cheap skate and got a box from someone who doesn't even bother painting his kit (someone <anonymous> admitted doing this in a attempt to post a comment on my blog.  The guys was so dumb, he didn't even know I screen and block anonymous comments).

Simply put, unless I get a huge project that will allow me to purchase another The O at TRU (I was planning to, but, for modification purposes), I won't be entering anything this year.  If this was announced way earlier, it wouldn't have been an issue for me.

Oh well.  A lot of people would probably get FGs and HGUCs just to be able to enter (as I might do), but, that <might> significantly reduce the number of viable competitive entries in the mix.

I'll continue working on the O (I actually have an update soon), and would probably consider getting a cheap kit from TRU much later.

Note:  I stress I'm not complaining (I hardly am) because I have to buy an overpriced kit from TRU, but rather, this was announced rather late in the game.  I predict either a significant reduction of entries, or quality of workmanship, or both. 

G-SHOT! Gunpla Photo Contest!

I know I'm a tad late in posting these things, but, Gundam Guy is holding the G-SHOT! Gunpla Photo Contest.

I might enter The Chimera in both the Best Photo and Modification categories.  Judges are Gundam Guy, Syd Sked of HLJ, Sonar of Gundam Australia, Derringer of Bluefin and of course, DonC.

Check it out.

The Angelus and The Chimera: First Glance...

 Photo Finish, both sans their backpack attachments.

See you guys at the BAKWC.

Mishaps, Contemplation and More Kossute Magic

 
As the BACWC draws near and most everyone are doing the finishing touches on their entries, I've also slowed down a bit from painting especially with the weather changing like a woman who can't make her mind which donut to pick.  In my experience, I've been able to "sense" the weather changes and adjust how I paint parts.  The good thing about painting with cans is one can work quickly even with layered colors because of their fast drying properties and most primer-based paints like the Flat Black I adore so much doesn't really care what kind of weather there was (or for that matter, what mood I was in).  With flat black, my layering works still, but with longer drying times since I was going for a smooth finish instead of textured this time off. 

I've had a few mishaps, but, nothing I can't handle.  I've finished the Chimera in less than week, considering that painting that monstrosity was a PAIN to begin with with all the parts interlocking with each other.

Anyways, most people think my entry consists only of the Chimera Diorama, but, to some, it should come as no surprise that the Angelus hopefully will also ascend this weekend.  My previous blog entry, the Sinanju cables, was the clue that I'm cooking up more than just one mythical beast.

It seems that my itch turned rash turned zombie infection of a build called the Chimera superseded the Glory of the Angelus, but I was actually deciding if I'll simplify the Angelus wings further.  While deciding (after completing the Chimera's paint job), I did start painting the Angelus, almost with disastrous results.  The shield basically disintegrated before my eyes as paint trial upon paint trial just wouldn't work.  The red bled through the paint mo matter what I did. I even layered both flat black, and primer gray to shield the white paint (Bosny 40 White and Flat White) to no avail, so, Instead of ruining my momentum and wasting any more paint, I realized I should use that to my advantage.  I shan't be showing the booboo turned "innovation" just yet, though.

Also, I've got a few "negative" reactions from some people about the Chimera's chosen scheme (Owing that I was using the same Nickel Alloy) paint, but, hopefully, they'll change their minds later on.  Sufficed to say, the Angelus and the Chimera, both being mythical creatures, have similar schemes with different accents.

Anyways, here are a couple of snapshots of the Angelus' main back pack frame, painted with the usual flat black then enhanced with Kosutte.  To achieve the effect on the thruster bells, I masked the outer then painted the inner of the bell with my layered red combo.  I left the outer plastic bare and progressively sanded the surface (400-500-2000) for the Kosutte to give it that "almost-metal" shine everyone likes.

I mentioned before that all will be revealed on the 5th of November (as a post-dated entry), but I misread the details of the submission regarding the dates.  Deadline for emailing is on the 3rd, actual submissions on the 5th and 6th, NOT the 4th and 5th as I originally thought.  I originally set it on the 5th because I though that was the second day of submission, and Kisapmata offered me a ride on that date.  Worse case scenario is I will have to submit on the 6th to maximize my build time, because I still don't have a diorama to speak of.

The Chimera Borne Part IX

Clawed.  The storm came in as I added the finishing touches to the main kit.  I felt the weather change as the temperature dropped and the wind started to blow, taking with it much of the humidity that accumulated.  I'm glad that the sudden change did not affect the curing paint, as I really don't want to redo anything.  I've had a few mishaps and misfires which I have easily fixed, and I've noticed that I could work faster with cans even with the changing weather.  I screwed up the shield earlier since I used a paint that smelled like Tamiya Basic Putty and dried/cured just as slow, so I had to forego the effect I was going for with that paint.

Anyways, another snippet.  I decided to sharpen the Lion Claws, for maximum effect and consistency with the Dragon Blade and Ram Daggers.

I also had the idea of making the claws independent from each other for that middle finger action, but decided against it because of stability issues.

Edit:

More sneak pics...

Just in case you're wondering, the pictures are in duotone, and do not represent the actual colors of the kit.

The Chimera Borne Part VIII

Procrastinating.

As the days pass me by,
with Bosny getting me high
I look back to the itch
that started this all.

The deadline looms so close
and I continually scratch my nose
I stop every now and then
And my build comes to a crawl.

I'm almost well and done
and sure do I have fun
but somehow something seems
to make my body stall.

With still a ways to go
there is no way to know
I got to answer that
one last delaying call.


Here's how a jumble of painted parts looks like.

I sure do dig RED.

And here's the RAM SHIELD,

Which should give you an Idea of the color scheme.  As of this post, only the feet, hands and the scratch0built, er, backpack, remain unpainted.

The Chimera Borne Part III

 
Elbow Grease. With the pose I was planning I found it difficult if not impossible to position the arms in a sweeping motion because of how the saber stock was placed on the forearms. Much like some of the mods I've done for the Chimera, I was trying to avoid this modification as much as possible (since joints are trickier to modify owing to the fact that they are high stress points, and a poorly done modification can cause more problems than it solves). The OCness won in the end, and I proceeded in hacking lower elbow joint in two to turn the forearm 90 degrees so that the saber stock is behind the arm.

Much like the Knee modification, this one required a little bit of foresight to determine the maximum area I needed to cut to maintain the joint's overall integrity. I sawed the joint portion down 1mm below the base using the slide lock of the ABS frame as a depth guide.



The resulting parts are rebuilt over one another through a series of overlapping pieces of cut plaplates shaped to fit the resulting crevices. The plaplates provided enough hold area, fitting snugly within the modified part that it holds even without cementing the parts together yet.





Test fit (after only 5 hours of curing).






I've also thickened the collar further with additional shaped plaplates to compliment the layered armor look as well as enhance the overall balance of the shoulders.

The Chimera Borne Part II

Misplacement mishap. I spent the better half of my evening yesterday when I discovered the top chest armor (collar armor) was missing from the rubble of plaplates on my workstation. I was pretty sure I didn't remove it since I was making test fits for the head and the waist, so I turned my parts containers upside down, literally, looking for the part, as well as underneath my couch which I spend a lot of my time whittling away on plastic, and my cutting table. I had a mild panic because it was a semi-critical part that I might have swept at one point when I was tidying up, but I wasn't too worried because I had another unbuilt kit stashed under my bed. I was also considering rebuilding the thing, since I was basically going to make modifications anyways.

I had a sudden burst of realization that it might be somewhere near my computer, so I did a rough search. I breathed a sigh of relief when I found it lying innocently amidst dust and dirt just a few inches outside the lower shelf of my computer stand.

Moral of the story: always keep note of what you are working on.

Anyways, Another "cascade" flaw I discovered and fixed is the front skirt not having enough allowance to flip upwards when the Chimera is in kneeling position. I made modifications on the connections themselves by extending the ball joint and shaving a little from the top of the socket. I also cut about 2mm from the top part of the skirt and rebuilt it with 0.5mm plaplate to maximize the angle it can flip upwards.

Hobby Link Japan's "Playing with Plastic" Competition Winners

DonC already blogged about this, and we both didn't know till someone mentioned it to him, and till I visited the MAC Forums where he posted the results just a few minutes ago.

DonC won the Best Diorama category with The Graveyard, while I bagged the Best Modification Category with the Ice Queen.  I like how HLJ described the Ice Queen as "composed, cold and callous."

The second placers in both Diorama and Modifications were also impressive.  I don't really like the Overflag, but Hadi did a good job with the modifications.

Click HERE or the contest image above for the complete list of Winners.  HLJ's results page is more concise and descriptive, with the gallery of enties, so you might want to check that out too...

Hobby Link Japan's "Playing with Plastic" Gundam Competition

HobbyLink Japan is conducting the Playing with Plastic Gundam competition.  Grand Prize is the impressive MG The-O, with the MG V-Dash and RG RX 78-2 as second and third prizes respectively.

I don't know about you guys, but I want that MG The-O.

Just scoot over their website for more details.