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Post by jwm on Dec 22, 2004 20:56:44 GMT -5
I’ve built five Perfect Grade models, and complained about every one more than once. They are finicky, difficult to pose; and it’s all but impossible to show off the intricate mechanical parts that you spend so many feverish hours assembling. You put more effort into building a Perfect Grade Gundam model than it takes to pass college algebra, yet the average visitor will find the finished piece indistinguishable from an out-of-the-box plastic toy. PG models seem to have an uncanny ability to impress no one. Why then, did I just spend over a hundred and sixty bucks on the:
1/60 Scale Model Kit O.M.N.I. Enforcer Mobile Suit GAT-X105 Strike Gundam
(Gotta’ love those titles) Before I go any further, let me say this. I am not an expert modeler. There are people on this board and elsewhere who do some awesome work with model kits. They customize parts, and fabricate things that Bandai didn’t think of. They are wizards with airbrush and paint. I am not one of them. I do panel lines with a black marker, and occasionally add a touch of chrome silver, but that’s it. I am satisfied with the look of the out-of-box product. I am writing this to recommend the experience to those who have never done one of these kits. It’s a shameless plug. Building a Perfect Grade model is a load of fun. It is like being a participant in an anime epic. It’s like playing a marvelously intricate and precise game. The first part of the game is panic. The box for the Strike at 23” x 12 ½” x 4 ½”, is smaller than some of the other PG boxes. Nonetheless, when you open it up and look at what you just bought it will probably scare the heck out of you. I mentioned half jokingly in the introduction that PG models have an uncanny ability to impress no one. That’s not quite true. Unassembled the kit is very impressive; in fact, it’s downright intimidating. Take inventory. There is a diagram on the first page of the construction manual. There are 26 racks of parts, three die-cast pieces, an LED, two springs, and a sheet of decals. There is only one screw, no nuts and bolts, and very few polycaps in the kit. The polycaps seem to be made of a harder material than the ones on the older kits. The LED and springs for the eye switch are really tiny.
. Next step: read the instructions. I know this is highly counter-intuitive. It seems like such a girly-man type of thing to do. But if you haven’t built a PG model before, you are probably overwhelmed by the zillions of parts, and you’re wondering if you’ve bitten off more than you can chew. So before you do anything else, read the whole construction book beginning to end even though it doesn’t have any words. You will come to realize that Bandai’s technical writers are geniuses of a major order. They do an incredible job of making a complex task simple. The whole building process consists of completing simple steps exactly the way they are shown in the illustrations. Here’s one thing you will notice on the diagrams. Many exclamation points, and little characters that look like quotation marks appear here and there on various illustrations. Those marks indicate parts that must be assembled facing exactly one way. Get one- Just ONE of those things wrong and you will be in for serious grief. And that’s the nature of the marvelously intricate and precise game of PG Gundam. Like any great game it has rewards and consequences. Play it right and there is a fine reward. Unfortunately, there is no “almost got it right”- the game is simple, yet unforgiving (Well, not completely).
Here’s what is unforgiving- Christmas. I got to open the box and take all the stuff out for inventory, but I have to put all the bags and books back in the box and wrap it up and put it under the tree and wait until Saturday before I can claim the Strike. Worse- I’ll probably have to wait until afternoon when my brother brings the niece and nephew up for Christmas dinner before I can open it and even then I’m gonna have to go, “Wow Look what Santa brought” and act all surprised. Anyway, there are plenty of pictures of beautifully done Strikes out there. Here’s where they all start
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Post by jwm on Dec 28, 2004 18:49:18 GMT -5
Christmas is over. The next step before building this thing is assembling tools. First, if you don’t have one, get a sprue cutter. (see photo) X-acto makes this one. It sells for around five bucks. Helpful too, are an X-acto knife, and a jewelers file. You don’t really need glue, but it’s not a bad idea to have some. This stuff has worked well for me. It’s made by Model Master. Like the cutter, you can get it at most hobby stores. The other thing you will need to get is a CR1220 watch battery. You’ll probably need to find a watch repair place for the battery. I’ll state the obvious; the real first part of the game is to separate the part from the runner. The trick is to do so without leaving a scar on the part. Here is the first place you will encounter Bandai’s incredible dedication to detail. They go to every effort to make that scar as small as possible. Nonetheless, it’s easier to remove material than to fill in a gap. When you cut a part from the sprue leave a little of the extra plastic on the part; then trim it clean with the X-acto knife and file. As I mentioned before, Bandai’s tech writers and illustrators are as superb as their engineers and sculptors. The construction manual is self explanatory, clear, and easy to follow. You don’t need me or anyone else to explain it to you. There are many levels of detailing a Gundam. I am content with the look of an unpainted kit, but I do take the time to blacken the panel lines, and occasionally add a touch of silver. I’ve experimented with several types of markers for doing panel lines. For this kit I’m using the Pigma Micron waterproof markers. I got a .01 (very fine) and a .005 (super fine) at Aaron brothers. They seem to work well, the ink is black, and excess ink cleans off easily with a fingertip or a pencil eraser. The Sanford, and Marks-A-Lot pens that you can get at the super market work OK, but note that the ink in these is purple, not black. It actually looks good on some of the gray ABS pieces. There is a peculiar, almost mystical process that begins to take hold with the first steps of the assembly. You start by building the ankle joints, a critical part of any posing figure. You are putting together pieces of machinery that will be nested within other pieces of machinery that will be hidden behind armor on the finished figure. No matter. Every piece is fine sculpted and detailed as if it were part of the exterior detail and one of the first things noticed on the model. No one but you will ever appreciate this detail. No visitor will ever see it. It is a secret that you share with the engineers, sculptors, machinists, illustrators and writers who created the Perfect Grade. That’s why you detail the inside stuff. And that’s where I screwed up right off the bat. I decided to detail the foot parts with the Marks-A-Lot pen. I’ve used it before on several models, and as I said before, the ink is deep purple, not black. It puts a purple metallic sheen on the gunmetal gray plastic structural parts. But the ink went on all streaky, so I decided to try the Micron marker for comparison. The Micron seemed to leave a high gloss jet-black line, but the ink remained tacky for a long time. I ended up cleaning most of the ink off of the parts and decided to go with minimal black lines using the Micron pens. But by the time the foot was assembled, I realized again that neither I nor anyone else will ever be inspecting the detail on these parts. Nonetheless, whatever you start you should continue. I’ll keep on doing black shading and panel lines, but I’m not going to ‘paint’ areas of structural gray with marker pens like I’ve done in the past. Other than that the assembly of the feet went smoothly. You can see the pictures. I did, however find a minor flaw in the foot assembly. The White armor spats rub against the ankle joint when the foot is bent. It’s not a big deal. It doesn’t prevent the foot from bending; the joint clicks easily over the corner of the armor. A few strokes of the file solved the problem. I only bring it up because it’s the first engineering flaw I’ve ever seen in a PG kit. Tomorrow I’ll start the legs. JWM
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Post by Otaru Ikari on Jan 1, 2005 9:56:58 GMT -5
Personally how do you find the material, more toy than model?
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Post by Omni Existence on Jan 1, 2005 10:09:21 GMT -5
I'd like to know that too.
Not that I'll be buying one anytime soon, but who knows.... ;D
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Post by jwm on Jan 1, 2005 18:35:17 GMT -5
I'll have a more detailed post up in a day or so. Judging by the leg and waist assembly, this one will be easier to handle. You won't worry about armor flying off or breaking like on the earlier PG's. The joints are firm, and the articulation is amazing. JWM
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Post by jwm on Jan 2, 2005 15:19:07 GMT -5
It’s about two in the afternoon, and it’s a perfect day for model building- cold, wet, and nasty outside. I’m currently at Leg Assembly, #2, step 11. I’ve been at it since about nine this morning. Building one of these models is as compelling as a great novel, and as addictive as a bowl of pistachio nuts. It’s easy to miss meals and work yourself into exhaustion. You have to force yourself to stop and take a break, which is just what I am doing. (If writing can be called taking a break) I just love doing this stuff. This is why I bought the Strike. There are two ways to go about this phase of assembly: you can build both legs simultaneously, or build them one at a time. I’m building one at a time. Leg assembly #2 is the leg itself. The feet were a good little warm-up exercise, but this is the real thing. Moving parts. Pivots and levers and slides. Lots of them. It’s a complicated set of mechanisms. Every piece of armor moves as the leg is bent. The machinery for the lower leg and ankle is a good candidate for the coolest piece of engineering yet on any toy or model kit. Again, no individual step in the assembly is really difficult, but this is a very long, unforgiving sequence of individual steps. This is a story that you read with your fingers.The process is totally engrossing. Each of those individual steps bears a reward. Each finished part is like winning a prize. This is Science Fiction Theater, and you are the Mad Scientist creating the ultimate weapon in the battle for Earth and Space. The machines that you are building do amazing things, and they do them smoothly and precisely. Leg Assembly #2, step 14 finishes the lower leg, and is as far as I’m going to go today. I’ve come to the conclusion that the Pigma Micron markers were a poor choice for detailing. The ink tends to bead up on the plastic, and it doesn’t adhere at all to the ABS pieces. The markers are OK for black panel lines on the white armor, but you have to give them time to dry. I ended up going back and doing some detailing on the machine parts with the old Marks-A-Lot after all. Live and learn. The finished legs are marvels of engineering. They are capable of pretty much any bend or twist that a human leg can make, and every piece of armor moves as the leg is bent or turned. Furthermore, the armor is mounted firmly on the moving parts. There is little of the fussy, delicate nature of the earlier PG kits. I’ve never seen anything on any toy anywhere that compares to the leg articulation of the GAT-X109 Strike. Here too, is where the addiction really sets in. The legs are complete. Four days’ work. I want to see them hooked up to something. I’m getting really eager to see this thing standing on the desk. It’s 8:30 at night. I could brew a pot of coffee double strong, and stay up all night. But no. The next session is the Waist Unit Assemble (sic). By this time the procedure is no longer intimidating. It’s an orderly routine of locating, cutting, trimming, and mating parts. There’s an interesting feature in the groin unit of the waist.The die-cast post on which the hips are mounted has two locking positions, one for standing, and another rotated 90° forward for kneeling poses. The remaining sore spot in the whole assembly is the detailing. The Micron markers need time to dry. Patience. It’s very difficult to work slowly at this, especially with half of the robot standing on the table. It’s New Year’s Eve. I’ve been at it on and off all day again. I want to skip the party tonight and work. Patience. 01/01/05 Between the time I stopped writing yesterday, and when I finally went out to spend the New Year with friends I built almost the whole upper torso. I’ve got it like a fever; I can’t stay away from this damn thing. My shoulders are cramped, my neck is sore and my back is stiff. My wife and I stayed up past midnight with about a dozen friends at a small party. We ate, and drank, and talked, and made jokes about the corny old rock songs on the cable TV music channel. (Who remembers The Raspberries?) Of course, someone asked me what I had been doing. Did I have some amazing tales to tell! All About levers and slides and moving armor and details within details as complex as clockwork, and almost feverish excitement watching the knee joint bend on my Perfect Grade Model GAT X-105 Strike Gundam O.M.N.I. Enforcer Mobile Suit; and no, I did not get a chance to describe the engineering marvel I had been so carefully constructing. I don’t know Robert well. His wife and my wife are friends. “What have you been doing these days, John?” asks Robert. “I’ve been working on a super detailed Japanese Gundam model.” “Gundam?” Robert, 42, is ten years younger than I am, so it’s not surprising that he hasn’t heard of Gundam. “A giant battle robot from Japanese animation.” I explain. My wife makes a joke about the weapons of mass destruction in the den. I’m itching to start going into detail, but the conversation goes no further. Robert’s eyes glaze over. No one has a follow up question. No one sitting nearby says, "Giant Japanese battle robot? Why that sounds fascinating; tell us more…” The talk goes back to the oldies on the music station. Get in touch with your inner geek. This brings up the question. Why do I do this? What is it about building this thing that is fun? I’ve worked my butt off every day for the last six days, and I’m maybe half way done. There is a ton of work yet to do. There is nothing playful about the process. It’s not like learning to jump from cloud to cloud on a video game. Why should anyone subject himself to this much plain hard work? Obviously not for social status or peer recognition. For the finished product? As I said at the beginning I have five of these things already: the RX-78/2, the ZakuII, the HY2M Rick Dom (technically not a Perfect Grade) the Zeta, and the Wing Zero Custom. It’s hard to make a case for the finished piece being worth the combination of time, effort, and money that it took to get it. The process? This is work. This point in the building process feels like swimming a hundred yards out from shore. It’s like bicycling twenty miles with the wind at your back. It’s like climbing to the top of a rock. You may be tired, but you have to get home. This morning was cold and clear after yesterday’s storm. My wife and I walked the long way around through the hills to get to Starbucks for a cup. Later, she went to a meeting and I decided to peck away at this narrative. I didn’t work on the Strike at all today. JWM
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Post by siang81 on Jan 2, 2005 21:20:28 GMT -5
wow, after read through what u wrote, now i really eager to start working on my PG Strike which i just bought 2 weeks ago. Now i'm currently working on my 1/100 Freedom and it is almost finish (working on the wing now yeah~). Although i still have a few Seed 1/100 models, but i like to start PG Strike now, can't wait any longer (aarrrhhhhh~need to do it now ;D). But still need to go to work... dunno when only can finish (or maybe start...) my PG.....
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Post by jwm on Jan 5, 2005 22:45:32 GMT -5
The morning was clear enough to take the long walk through the hills again today. After we got back I messed around the house, and started working on the Strike in the afternoon. I finished the torso, and the head today. I finally gave up on the Pigma markers. I’m sure they work well for drawing, but they were a poor choice for this application. I went back to using the Marks-A-Lot Ultra Fine. I trimmed down the tip on this marker a long time ago, and I’ve used it on several models. It still works really well. I had one ‘first’ today. I actually broke a piece of the model while trying to assemble it. The two tabs on the piece of blue armor between the left shoulder and the cockpit lid broke off when I tried to fit the part to its backing. Luckily the parts could be glued. It was no loss, but still it scared the heck out of me when the tabs snapped. It was a little tricky getting the large blue sections of armor fitted on the upper torso, but once everything was lined up properly the armor clicked into place and stayed firm. Another great improvement over any of the other kits I’ve built is the LED for the eye-camera. The light, switch, and battery are all housed in a single tiny unit that slides like a drawer into the back of the head. Better yet- it works. No fussy, wobbly switch that you sorta’ have to jiggle just right to make the light come on. You click the switch. The eyes light up. Another little observation- No matter how careful you are cutting parts from the runner, it’s still pretty difficult to do so without leaving some sort of mark, however tiny. The head armor Assembly hides those marked points wherever possible. The only drawback is that you have to completely remove the back panel of the head to get to the light switch. (I know- nit-picky as hell) At this point the figure stands armless, but otherwise complete on the table. And here the folks at Bandai reveal a rather peculiar sense of humor. Or perhaps it’s a sadistic streak, or a bad attempt to drive up suspense in this space opera. But the next procedures in the Construction Manual are the weapons and shield. Weapons and shield? Are those Earthside office jockeys crazy down there at Base Control? They don’t know what we’re up against out here. The Gundam has no arms. How can it use the shield or the gun? And what if we are attacked in the mean time? The Gundam must be ready to fight. NO! I will not obey this order even if it means a court martial. Lieutenant Spacecraft, order the crews to complete the arms.And besides, I’m supposed to get this close to seeing the Strike done, and then detour the process two more sessions to build the accessories first? I want my robot, and I want it now. So I’m going ahead to the shoulder assemble. “BUT WAIT!”yells a little voice like a cartoon angel on my shoulder. “Once you’re finished building there won’t be any more fun to have. ‘Patience’, remember? I consider this for some time. Thirty seconds, at least. Forget it. I’m building the arms. The Perfect Grade experience is an emotional wild ride. You go through intimidation, fascination, obsession, fear, joy, discouragement… But here’s one that really sneaks up and bites you in the backside. With the arm assembly you quickly begin to finish off the remaining racks of parts. You suddenly realize that all the racks are as spare and empty as a well-picked bean field. Just like the first reaction, the last reaction is panic. You’re running out of parts. You’re running out of steps. Soon there will be no more model kit. There will be no more sessions hunched over the table with your attention locked in on some tiny moving part. You realize with great dismay that the story is almost over. Soon there will be nothing left to do. No more fun. Ever. Well, what must be, must be. I start assembling the arms. The upper arm features the same sliding armor mechanism as the thigh section, and the arm assembly as a whole is more of the same amazing engineering that you see throughout the kit. One complaint. There is a hinge in the forearm, below the elbow joint that allows the wrist to curl inward. If you bend it with too much force it pops out. Again, this is a very minor problem and one that will not affect the finished piece. But I finished the arms, and after dinner last night I put them on the figure. Except for the shield and weapons the Strike is finished. All five hundred twenty four pieces are in place. And now I understand why the folks at Bandai chose to put the shield and weapons assembly before the arms. It’s a matter of storytelling. You see, if I had followed the directions and completed the accessories first then this story would have ended at its climax. I would have attached the shoulder armor and arms, and been ready to play with my newly constructed toy. As it is, I’ll play for a bit, put the figure through its paces, and then I’ll go back to work in a kind of denouement to the story. Live and learn. But it was a pleasant denouement to the story, assembling the last 41 pieces of the GAT X105 Strike. (565 pieces total by my count) The white, red and yellow shield is a wickedly gaudy implement. The attaching mechanism works. It’s a perfect accent to the Spartan lines of the GAT- X105. The gun is a gun. The big knife thing is kind of useless. Nonetheless, the figure is complete, and the big question will now be answered. Is the GAT-X105 an improvement over previous Perfect Grade kits? Does this kit build a playable toy, or will the Strike be one more finicky, delicate shelf-orchid to be looked at but never ever touched? Was the Strike worth it? I’ll let you know in my next post. Just kidding! The answer to the big question is YES!!! The Strike is firm as a rock. It poses and balances beautifully. Move the arm and shield in any position you like. You can make the figure balance, and the arm won’t sag. There is no fussiness about this Gundam at all. It feels solid. It has heft. It is fun to play with. If the completed Strike had been an out-of-the-box plastic figure that cost a hundred and sixty four bucks, I would say it was a great deal. I’ll say it again. Everything on the completed GAT-X105 Strike lives up to, or exceeds the expectations you would rightly have for an out-of-the-box plastic figure costing over a hundred and sixty dollars. Which is how it should be. So that’s it. The Strike is finished. Well, almost. Some features on this model, like the clamps on the shoulder armor, or the big, rectangular polycap behind the plate in the middle of the back can only be explained by weapon and accessory packs that are yet to come. Page 10 of the Instruction Manual (different from the construction manual) hints of Aile Striker, Sword striker, and Launcher Striker kits so there is something to look forward to in the future. And there are no post-construction blues to deal with either. The finished piece is as cool as anything I own. And because of the effort it took to bring the piece into being it has a meaning to me that no out-of-the-box-toy, however collectible, can ever have. You don’t just buy this Gundam; you earn it. I’ll go over the figure again tomorrow to clean up a few little details, and maybe put a few of the decals in place, or maybe not. I was drawn to the Strike by its lean, hard lines in the first place. I’m not sure I want to clutter it up with lettering. I should probably get a picture up, but it seems kind of pointless. There are tons of pictures of completed Strikes out there, done by people who spend far more time, and do much finer work in detailing than I do. robotjapan.proboards12.com/index.cgi?board=Gundam&thread=1102049241&action=display&start=15 And that’s my point as well. You don’t have to be an expert modeler to enjoy building the Strike, or an artist with an airbrush to put an awesome figure on your shelf. If you’ve been on the fence about getting the Strike, stop wondering. It’s worth it. If you’ve never done a Perfect Grade model kit, this is the one to get. Go for it. Like skydiving, bungee jumping, mountain climbing, or tow-in surfing- (OK, maybe I’m stretching it here.) Nonetheless, you owe yourself the experience. JWM
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Post by ataru on Jan 6, 2005 13:34:04 GMT -5
Great story jwm. The strike's been tempting me- I've never done a PG (although I did the glorious series dom) and this one looks great. The only problem is how I don't really like the MS. I don't like the base design much at all, and I didn't really care for it in the show, or for the show itself at all for that matter. The dom however is one of my big favorites- I have it towering over 12 or so assorted other doms. Man, why can't they do a PG gouf or something. *sobs* Still, the PG strike's design is so different from the original that maybe i could just keep telling myself it's just a cool giant robot and forget about the rest. Oh btw jwm, something I've done that you might be interested in doing is painting the dom's monoeye. I used a monoeye pink gundam marker on it (not clear pink or anything, tho I probably would have done that if I could find clear pink paint somewhere), and guess what, the light shines right through it when it's on, but it looks much better when it's off (most of the time). I painted the scattering beam gun on the chest clear yellow too, but that doesn't make as much of a difference.
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Post by jwm on Jan 6, 2005 13:50:09 GMT -5
Ataru: Thanks. They do make a HY2M Gouf, although I haven't seen too many of them for sale. JWM
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Post by ataru on Jan 6, 2005 14:18:29 GMT -5
Yeah, I know about that one, but the foot design on it puts me off, and I'm still wanting to try a PG. Who knows if they'll ever get around to making another zeon PG.
I guess I'll just have to be satisfied with the small but totally amazing EMIA gouf. Man, got 2 already but I think I might have to get another.
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Post by jwm on Jan 6, 2005 22:24:14 GMT -5
Now that we're totaly OT (It's my thread- who cares? ) What I want to see is a PG Guntank, Guncannon, and a re-issue of the RX78/2 with a more pose-able frame. JWM
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Post by Fugly on Jan 8, 2005 3:13:03 GMT -5
1/18 GOKIN CORE FIGHTAH!!!!!!!! I'm sorry... this is my dream toy...
oh, and JWM I feel your pain. There's this thing called National Novel Writing Month where you write a 50000 word novel inna month... I wrote a terrible sci-fi, MAN is it bad. But I did it, finished with only a couple hours to spare. Just keep up with that Strike (not that I have any ulterior motives, of course ;D ) and once you're finished, you'll feel so satisfied.
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Post by scrapper on Jan 12, 2005 10:00:36 GMT -5
Hey JWM you really described the process of building a PG kit in a great way. I only built one (green zaku) and at points I felt the same way about it. I think the cool thhing about the Strike is that the mechanics are not hidden behind panels, but are out there instead, moving in front of your eyes. I tought my next PG would be the wing zero custom, but this one "strikes" me as a far better robot.
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