After being poisoned by the bling bling chrome King-Gs during the last Malaysian Zoids gathering, I decide to try my hand at producing some chrome Zoids myself. After some experimentation, these were the results. I will post some notes later on how I achieved the affect but take not that this is not for the faint of heart. Unless you are not too fussy about the finish or are like me, half blind and unable to pick up the details anymore....
Spray cans offer an economical method for modellers who wish to start repainting their zoids. These days, local hardware shops often stock a huge range of colours and types, so those who wish to express their individuality through their zoids, you now have the option of painting your Deathsaurer bright pink or candy yellow J. On a more serious note, spray cans can be used to great effect and are extremely time saving compared to other painting methods (hand painting or air brushing etc). This is actually how I started off, painting my Gundam Mark 2 Titans Ver via the use of Anchor spray cans.
Take note however, spray painting has its pros and cons and the correct technique must be implemented in order to achieve the right affect. Chief among the pros are that when done correctly, spray cans are an easy, fast solution to getting wide coverage over a large painting surface and is especially useful for those models that have large areas to paint over. Certain colours like chrome paints, come out much shinier, even with the advent of Alclad paints and the rest.
The cons however are numerous. Splatter, streaks and uneven paint are common issues with painting via spray cans. Other issues include loss of details due to the thickness of the paint. Orange peel affect can be caused due to the can being too far from the surface when sprayed. The paint then dries up due to exposure to the air and causes a bumpy, dusty effect on the surface.
The most worrying problem about spray paints are that the commercial laquer paints available are fairly caustic; this can sometimes eat into the plastic model causing it to melt! So one must be prepared to take care when using the sprays.
So how do you do it properly? Here are the steps below:-
Prepare the surface properly.
1) Make sure your models are cleaned well and free of dust and particles.
2) Cut up the parts from the sprues, sand and clean off any sprue marks
3) Wash the parts with dish washing detergent. Use a soft brush to get into the small crevices
4) Wash the parts under the tap and dry it well.
5) Keep in a clean covered container once they are dried
Prepare the parts for spraying
1) Typically, I like to spray each part individually
2) Find some long sticks(I normally use satay sticks) and some blue tack
3) Stick the unexposed section of the part onto the stick
4) Get a placeholder ready, (example; Styrofoam box) where you can shove the sticks into and keep the parts seperate
Prepare the spray can
1) Prepare a container of warm water (not boiling water!) and place the can in for approximately 2-3 minutes
2) Shake the can well, at least 2 minutes
3) Turn the can upside down and spray out some of the initial paint
4) Clean up the nozzle if there is any build up
5) After some time, the can will get cold again, repeat the process so that the paint particles are properly mixed with the thinning solution
Spraying tips
1) Hold the can no further than 1 feet away. Typically, I try to keep within 6-10 inches from the part
2) Spray in one direct only.
3) Start from an empty space at the edge of the plastic part and spray evenly in one direction
4) Let go of the nozzle, return to the original position and start once more
5) Turn the stick so that the unpainted parts face you and spray again
6) Cover the unpainted areas as evenly as you can
7) If there are small sections that remain unpainted, wait until the rest of the paint is dry before spraying again
8) Don’t spray too much into one area, this is a common mistake. It will cause streaks and runs, ruining your paintjob
9) Place the stick into the placeholder and take another piece out, be careful not to touch the exposed paint
Curing Time -this may take 1 hour to 6 hours before the paint is completely dry. I normally try to wait half a day to make sure its dried properly before trying to handle the part. If you touch it too soon, you will leave a fingerprint mark, a big no no in scale modelling
The command Wolf Alternative was a custom I prepared for the 2008 Malaysian Zoids Gathering. This was a project that I was very passionate about. At that time Dekengi Hobby Magazine Japan was running a series of articles featuring Zoid Customs from the Zoids Alternative game. These had a strong military accent and a very realistic bent with heavy weathering and beaten, war weary look. I was especially inspired by the custom Dibison shown above.
So I took a week to design the general look of the model, and planned out what the parts that I needed to create this piece. At the end I scavenged parts off a shield liger, a hellcat, a Honda superbike, added extra plaplate and this was the result. The scene is entitled, Victory Cry and depicts a Command Wolf howling at his enemies after a deadly battle, a defeated hellcat faced down in the sand.
Parts modified – exhaust ports extended, front legs modified to create a more splayed out position, gun cannons custom built, extra detail on the backpack, chain and crank built inside the central body, shoulder tubes replaced, custom claws, armour plating and detailing on shoulder shields, guns added to the tail, plating on the cockpit canopy. Techniques used, pre and post shading, oil wash, pastels, salt weathering.
Total time spent, around 32 hours.
Hope you like it.
Zoids have been a part of my life for the better part of the last 3 years. They were not my first choice into the mad world of modelling and toy collecting, but they have certainly been the ones that have consumes the most of my time and the ones that I am most passionate about.
A little bit of history; from a young age, I discovered that I was a little obsessive compulsive when it came to my hobbies. Strike that. Make it very obsessive compulsive. From my massive He-Man collection (now long since gone and donated to some orphanage) to the numerous modifications I made to my racing bicycle, it was safe to say that when I got interested in a paticular subject, I went all out to get as much info and to build on my hobby as much as possible.
In my twenties, I got my first PC, and entered the world of computer gaming. My first fling was with a little game called Quake 2, a game I adore to this day and to whose soundtrack I still listen to when I feel the need to be inspired. I amassed a massive collection of PC games, most of which I dabbled in a little before returning the discs to storage. When I was headhunter abroad, I left my faithful PC behind and spent a miserable month away from gaming until I stumbled upon a games console. This is it, I thought. Perfect for my gaming fix, something that I could plug into my hotel room TV and get my high. That, my first console was not the PlayStation, not the ps2. No it was a humble Dreamcast. To this day, I thank Sega for producing what was and in some ways still is, the perfect state of the art next gen console. Many, many consoles and hundreds of games followed....
A few years ago, while back at my wife ‘s hometown, I was feeling bored so decided to pick up a small toy from the aisles of the local hypermarket. It was a 1/144 scale no grade Freedom Gundam. Not knowing how to build the box of plastic, I pilfered a spare scissors from my mother in law and proceeded to cut away and snap on the pieces. After about an hour, I produced my first model kit a plain nondescript Gundam. I was plain, not many colours but the sight of that little robot awed me. The next day I returned home abs subsequently blew a load buying Gundam kits. After finishing my 1/60 scale force impulse Gundam, I was hooked. This is a great hobby I said. I was so passionate about this new hobby that soon, all other passions were put aside. I even joined the local plastic modellers society so that I could improve my skills.
This reached a plateau soon after when I joined the local Gundam Seed contest and won the new contender prize (actually I tied with another chap who had been modelling for many years).I then tried my hand at many subject matters, building tanks, planes even small dioramas. But Gundams were still the most fun. One eventful day, Litt Tak, the local toys distributor held a warehouse sale I decided to visit thinking I could grab some cheap model kits. I picked up some Gundams and bought some Zoids on a whim since they had some nice discounts. I bought a Command Wolf, a Blade Liger, and a Brastle Tiger. That night, I built the wolf, wound up the engine and let it go. It was magic. I was head over heels in love ( see a pattern?). I went back the next day and cleared their inventory.
My timing could not have been more perfect. I did not know it at that time but Tomy was phasing out the line at that time due to low demand. Litt Tak was getting out of distributing Zoids and was clearing their leftover stock. Over the next few months, I bought a huge volume at significantly low prices. My army grew and grew. I eventually joined a few forums Zoidspoison and the Lowyat Zoids community and made many new Zoid friends.
Today, I can safely at that I am a true zoider. I love these robotic Dinos and can still stare in awe at the ingenuity and brilliance of the toy designers. With the 25th Anniversary of Zoids and the launch of the Rebirth Century Line. I sincerely hope that Tomy continues the line for a long , long while.
