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RG Zaku II

I thought I had done enough posts on the RG ZakuII over the last week. However, this evening I decided to put together the weapons while watching TV. This led to me also putting together the extra hands.

As anyone who has read my posts before, I am continually impressed with the level of articulation on these models. Not least of all due to a lot of it coming straight from the sprue. My mind truly boggles at how they produce these pieces on the runners/sprues!

So this brings us to the hands! Below is an image of one of the second pair of hands that come with this particular model.

RG Zakuu II hand
RG Zaku II Hand

In the image I have circled points 1, 2, and 3. All of these are round joints allowing those finger parts to rotate on the joint and to move around. Once manipulated into place this provides the hand as shown in the image below.

RG Zaku II Hand put together
RG Zaku II Hand put together

As can be seen these pre-cast joints allow the hand parts to rotate round providing a flexible, movable hand! Below you can see it wrapped around the handle of one of the 3 weapons you get!

RG Zaku II Hand
RG Zaku II Hand

It is this level of detail and articulation that continues to surprise me, and delight me as I build these models. I wanted to share, again, just how fantastic a job Bandai have done with them.

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Next Shipment

I want to update everyone on the next shipment of GunPla into Europe. For anyone who doesn’t know, goods ship in from Japan to the European distributor in Italy, who then distribute out to the relevant retailers around Europe.

Once the goods arrive with the European distributor then they have to unload everything that has arrived before logging it into their system. Only after that will they be able to communicate with the suppliers as to what items they have ordered are available.

The next shipment is due in between the 1st and 3rd of December.

Excited picture
Excited Picture

I believe the process, in its barest form would be:

  • Goods arrive
  • Goods are logged into the distributors system
  • Invoices are confirmed with retailers
  • Invoices are paid
  • Goods are shipped to retailers
  • Retailers get and unpack goods
  • Retailers update stock on their systems

Usually from invoices paid to the goods arriving with retailers in the UK the lead time is about a week or so. It is however dependant on customs etc. as the goods have to pass through and any queries there can delay the delivery.

By my reckoning I think that is likely to make it the last shipment that people will be able to get on the shelves this side of Christmas. So keep your eyes peeled for all the goodies hitting the shelves in 2 to 3 weeks time.

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Small business survival

Introduction

Small business survival is something that I, as a new business owner, am incredibly keen on discovering more about. You often hear about people who setup business after business after business. Originally I thought to myself .. why would they do that? It is only after experiencing setting up my own business for the first time that I have come to understand why. Already, with my limited experience, I can see what I would do differently. The things that I would need to prepare before hand, and the people I would need in my corner to help.

No-one goes into setting up a business with the idea that it is going to fail. Small business owners up and down the country pour their heart and soul into their projects, their products. However, like it or not, ultimately the business will grow and flourish, or it will stagnate and close down. So what to do to help your small business survival chances?

Finding your angle

One of the key things when setting up a business is knowing what your angle is. What sets you apart from everyone else. In my case I see it as the service I provide. The focus that I am trying to keep on the individual, the gamer, the modeller. I am not trying to branch out and have a million different things in my store at the same time. My plan is to do one thing, and hopefully, do it well. I am trying to take the frustrations I have at times had as a consumer, and address them with how I deal with my customers.

KENBU_2
KENBU_2 (Obligatory Awesome image)

My Priorities

For now all I can do is remain focused on my key priorities:

  • You people, the customer.
  • Growing my backlog of stock so that things are available for everyone.
  • Continue to engage with the community to try and help source what people want/need.

As part of that commitment my sales agent (who is awesome) keeps an eye out for me for anything that comes available that hasn’t already been bagged, or becomes free. That lets me try and continue to improve my stock breadth as quickly as possible.

Conclusion

So for the moment I will continue to focus on stock, and the community. Hopefully by giving back as much as I can, the business will build on top of those morals and keep growing.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. If you haven’t already done so please like and follow us on our social media platforms and checkout our website!

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#gundam #gundammodel #model #kit #gunpla

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Panel Lining

Overview

As this is my first attempt at panel lining I should note that I am sure it is far from perfect. I also would imagine there are other techniques for panel lining.

This is just my first attempt, and I will revisit this topic as I learn more, and practice more!

Tools

The first thing to outline are the tools I used.

To do this, I used three basic tools. The first is a Gundam Marker. I picked this rather than any other option as I thought I should start with the basics before trying other techniques. The second item is a double ended cotton bud. It doesn’t have to be double ended, that just makes life easier 🙂 The final item I used was airbrush thinner.

Method

The basic premise of my first technique was this:

  • Fill in the line with the marker
  • Add thinner to one end of the cotton bud
  • Wipe away to clean up any excess marker or overspill
  • Use the end of the bud that doesn’t have thinner on it to clean up

In my first attempts I sort of just wiped the bud “willy nilly” and it took too much of the marker away. For my second attempt I wiped the cotton bud gently across the lines rather than with them. This provided a much better effect. At the moment my technique still requires a lot of work. However once the model is complete I’ll show the whole thing panel lined. Also as I revisit this technique, and other options. I will write follow up posts on changes and tips and tricks as I come across them.

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gundam #gundammodel #model #kit #gunpla

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RG MS-06F Zaku II Panel Lining

This article “RG MS-06F Zaku II Panel Lining” is going to cover my initial steps into panel lining. The models, in my opinion, look fantastic just put together. However, amongst the other options available, is one called panel lining.

In essence this is applying colour (often black) to the parts of the model that have been scribed out (lines cut into them).

Although some people also scribe their own patterns into the models. This is just my very basic take on getting the most out of it, without moving into the world of customisation’s. I decided to have a go at panel lining the RG MS-06F Zaku II to see how it would come out.

Guess the Model Part 2 Leg 1
Leg Side

In the image above the scribed lines, which you can only see indistinctly, form patterns on the armour. Below are a couple of images of one of the legs after panel lining.

As can be seen from the pictures above the lines are far more prominent giving a lot more definition to the model. If nothing else, panel lining adds a whole new dimension to the model, and it, in its own way quite enjoyable to complete. Especially wheny ou see the finished article!

Thank you for taking the time to read this. If you haven’t already done so please like and follow us on our social media platforms and checkout our website!

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gundam #gundammodel #model #kit #gunpla

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Guess the Model Part 9

Continuing on from yesterdays post “Guess the model Part 8”, we now have the equally inspired Guess the Model Part 9. In this series of posts I will be showcasing parts of the model I am currently building. Partly so people can guess that the model is, and partly to show how fantastic they are!

Well it is pretty much a given now that part 8 had the model together. In guess the model part 9 I am going to summarise what I found during the build process.

In case anyone is wondering. I am going to be building the weapons etc. as well, however, I’m fairly sure you all know the model by now. For anyone in any doubt the model is an RG MS-06F Zaku II.

Overall I really enjoyed building the model. The feet, where it all began, was definitely a high point in the building. I was amazed at the flexibility of the feet, and they provide a solid base for the build. Oddly, the most satisfying part for me was the head. There are only a few parts but it just goes together beautifully. I will say I am not a fan of the small beads, they do have a habit of pinging off. However, I do like the final effect. I preferred the parts where the beads went onto solid plastic pipes than the two leg/hip ones that are on springs. The weakest part of the model, by far, for me are the two flaps either side of the main crotch area. They just aren’t very stable and when posing the model keep coming free.

Out of 10 I would probably give it a 7 for build but a 9 for personality. It is a step up in the build complexity from the HG but not such a step as anyone with a few HG builds under their belt would/should find it impossible. As always do not rush, take your time, and enjoy the build. Now to decide whether to clear coat it and panel line then clear coat and sticker; or paint the beast!

Thank you for taking the time to read this. If you haven’t already done so please like and follow us on our social media platforms and checkout our website!

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gundam #gundammodel #model #kit #gunpla

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Guess the Model Part 8

Continuing on from yesterdays post “Guess the model Part 7”, we now have the equally inspired Guess the Model Part 8. In this series of posts I will be showcasing parts of the model I am currently building. Partly so people can guess that the model is, and partly to show how fantastic they are!

Guess the model part 8 sees the final pieces of the puzzle starting to come together. With the main torso on in the last post, we are now up to the head. It is nice to see the model in all its glory and just needing weapons!

The head was a really enjoyable piece to build. As it came together it formed that iconic look. I managed, for the first time, not to ping one of the small green beads halfway across the room! I did however lose a small clear piece that the sticker was meant to go on inside the visor. I still haven’t found that piece! However I managed to attach the sticker to the post so all was fine.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. If you haven’t already done so please like and follow us on our social media platforms and checkout our website!

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gundam #gundammodel #model #kit #gunpla

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Guess the Model Part 7

Continuing on from yesterdays post “Guess the model Part 6”, we now have the equally inspired Guess the Model Part 7. In this series of posts I will be showcasing parts of the model I am currently building. Partly so people can guess that the model is, and partly to show how fantastic they are!

Guess the model part 7 sees the final pieces of the puzzle starting to come together. With the main torso together (albeit needing some cleaning up to do) the model is finally starting to take shape. After several evenings of building it is nice to start to see the model coming together.

This was a slightly frustrating piece to put together. Some of the parts took a while to fit together. However once together it was a satisfying part to have completed. I should note that again, you will want to be careful with the smaller pieces. I spent considerable time on hands and knees looking for small green pieces that had pinged off! So take your time and enjoy the build. Don’t rush and pay careful attention to the small pingy bits of plastic!

That is today’s clue to the model that is on my building table!

Thank you for taking the time to read this. If you haven’t already done so please like and follow us on our social media platforms and checkout our website!

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gundam #gundammodel #model #kit #gunpla

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Guess the Model Part 6

Continuing on from yesterdays post “Guess the model Part 5”, we now have the equally inspired Guess the Model Part 6. In this series of posts I will be showcasing parts of the model I am currently building. Partly so people can guess that the model is, and partly to show how fantastic they are!

In guess the model part 6 today’s part is the left arm. Unlike with the feet and legs this offers a different look and feel to the right arm.

The first image shows how the arm comes after bring freed from the runner. The second shows the bits that are pulled apart from it, and the third the side pieces folded down and clipped in place! It is amazing to thing that these come like that! All that detail, and move-ability and articulation comes straight from the runner!

That is today’s clue to the model that is on my building table!

Thank you for taking the time to read this. If you haven’t already done so please like and follow us on our social media platforms and checkout our website!

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gundam #gundammodel #model #kit #gunpla

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Guess the Model Part 5

Continuing on from yesterdays post “Guess the model Part 4”, we now have the equally inspired Guess the Model Part 5. In this series of posts I will be showcasing parts of the model I am currently building. Partly so people can guess that the model is, and partly to show how fantastic they are!

In guess the model part 5 today’s part is the right arm. Now this is a bit of a curve ball as I was expecting it to be the torso! See the excitement never ends!

This piece was actually a really enjoyable part of the build. There are a few pieces where you have to pull them apart .. I have no idea how they can cast a ball joint in place with it all working and moving! Building this arm was, for me, a bit of a highlight. I’ve loved this model for some time, and the shoulder pad is quite iconic.

That is today’s clue to the model that is on my building table!

Thank you for taking the time to read this. If you haven’t already done so please like and follow us on our social media platforms and checkout our website!

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gundam #gundammodel #model #kit #gunpla