Layman’s Gunpla Guide

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Layman’s Gunpla Guide – Guide to Glue

Now, 90% of the time, you’ll be able to complete a kit without needing any glue. Unfortunately, that other 10% is filled with broken parts, loose joints, and extremely small pieces. There’s quite an assortment of glues out there and picking the best one for the task can make life a lot easier, and make your kit look better. These all should be available at your local hobby shop, aside from super glue, which is available at grocery stores, pharmacies, gas stations etc.

For simplicity’s sake I’ve divided glues into five basic categories with recommendations based on personal usage. There’s a lot of glues out there and, depending where you’re located in the world, may not have access to the same ones I do.You can search for the active ingredients in most glues online, cross referencing them to what I have here. Though, at the end of the day, nothing beats a bit of old school experimentation. read more

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Layman’s Gunpla Guide – Gundam Line Art Collection

Line art? What do I need line art for? When planning out a custom colour scheme for your build the best way to plan is to take some line art and go to town with an image editor. Take a clean piece of line art, select some colours, and have fun with the fill tool. It’s a great way to get a general sense of what colour combinations look good, and depending on the detail level of the kit/line art, even plan for what pieces get what colour.

I want to call out that I didn’t make any of this line art. Well, some point in the past I’ve cleaned some up, but I couldn’t tell you what I did or when. In general it’s been a group sourced thing going back over a decade. Gunpla fans from all backgrounds have contributed toward this collection. At some point there was a Japanese Seeaa wiki page that had pretty much everything but that disappeared a few years back. What’s listed below is the combination of the collection I’ve saved up, plus others who’ve been archiving images like LightningBW, Gundaml1neart, and Tomo Wise (that’s a NSFW link btw). Some folks have labeled their additions over the years, and where possible I’ve made sure to use those. read more

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Layman’s Gunpla Guide – Paint Types

Discussing paint types is perhaps the most difficult thing I’ve done on this guide. Frankly, I have a limited experience when it comes to working with different types of paint. When I find something that works for me I tend to stick with it rather than risk messing up a kit or investing in paint I’ll never use. While my experiences generally match those of professional modelers I’ve found that those professional experiences at times conflict with each other. All I can do is offer what I believe to be the best, most useful information for a general builder. read more

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Falldog’s Gunpla Projects

Here’s a list of my completed projects in more-or-less order from the most recent completion to when I first got back into the hobby in 2007. You’ll notice various spurts of improvements and, if you’re like me, may cringe at some of my earlier works. Below are all of the projects that I’ve completed. The number of projects currently straight built or in mid-project state are too numerous to count. For a better list of those check out my Flickr gallery.

Don’t forget to check out my overall collect and the kit reviews I’ve done. read more

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Layman’s Gunpla Guide – Gunpla Project Flowchart

This is an idea I’ve been tinkering with since 2012. New friends to the hobby often ask questions about what order to perform some steps, or whether or not one is even necessary for their project. To help answer I’ve created this little flowchart with some of the most basic steps that goes into an average build. Over all I tried to keep it as simple as possible so it’s easy to understand and applies to the greater number of builders. It’s okay to add or remove steps here and there if it fits your personal style or is necessary for the project you’re working on. I’ve added comments below the chart to highlight some key talking points and related tutorials. Make sure you check them out. read more

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Layman’s Gunpla Guide – Paint References

As I mentioned over here, I’ve started to test all of my paints on cheap plastic spoons to get the feel for a colour before applying it to a kit. Instead of just hogging them for myself, I’ve decided to share them here. Granted, there’s no better experience then testing out the colours yourself. The true colour of the paints will vary from the photos due to fluctuating camera settings and even the setup of your own monitor.

Note – The shade of these colors may change based on usage, especially the underlying base coat. All of these paint samples done straight on top of white plastic spoons. Unless otherwise stated there no primer or topcoat has been used. You can read more on how primer effects paint colours here. read more

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Layman’s Gunpla Guide – Sampling Paints

I’d just like to speak briefly about an easy and cost effective way to test your paints.

Traditionally, I would test my paint by spraying some on an unused action base, paper, or leftover runner. Since then, I’ve found that a better way to go about it is to test on some disposable white plastic spoons.

One can usually find 100 count packs of these disposable utensils at the local grocer for less than $5. They provide a nice consistent colour and surface to test upon. (Note – Make sure your spoon’s surface is clean before painting, sometimes there’s dust and other material floating around in the shipping container) If you’re interested in establishing a collection, you can write the paint’s information on the stem for later reference.  You can pull them out at a later date to compare and contrast paints you’ve already tested when planning a colour scheme. read more

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Layman’s Gunpla Guide – Hand Painting Tutorial

Hand painting is the traditional method of detailing up a kit. While it takes considerable patience, one can achieve the same great look as though the work was done with an air brush. It’s also the best way to touch up and detail kits. The Devil is in the details, or so they say.

Brushes

There are many different types of brushes out there, with many different bristle types. While they play an important part in conventional painting, I have yet to experience an issues when working on Gunpla. Instead, look for a size and hardness that suits your need. For small, detail work, a thin stiff head would be most appropriate. If you’re working on a larger area a wider, little softer brush, would probably suit your needs. Brushes can get fairly expensive, especially when purchased individually. Luckily many craft stores sell reasonably priced bundles with various shapes and sizes. With proper care a brush will last you a long time. read more

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Layman’s Gunpla Guide – Kit Photography Tutorial

After all that work, cutting, building, priming, painting, lining decals, weathering, and the top coat, you’re all done. Before you stands the latest addition to your collection. There’s only one thing left to do, and that’s show it off. Now you can’t exactly go traveling the country randomly presenting it to passing strangers (well, if you really wanted to…) so you whip out your camera and snap a few shots. While everyone does kits their own way I feel that getting proper photos should be important whether it’s a straight build or plethora of pla plate craftsmanship. Don’t let anyone fool you, a $80 point and shoot will perform just as admirably as a $2000 DSLR when it comes to this task. Here a are a few basic tips to get you started… read more

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Layman’s Gunpla Guide – Paint Space Prep

Before you start to paint, whether by hand or airbrush, it’s important to prepare your workspace before hand. Proper prep will help keep your space clean as the project proceeds and help facilitate cleanup when it’s all said and done.

Reusable & Washable Drop Cloth

I recommend getting some sort of reusable drop cloth to use while painting. I picked up a fairly large one from a home improvement store for a lot less than I would have thought. It’s protected my floors against unexpected paint drops and particulates (see below). The best part is that it’s washable, making it a lot easier to clean up than my carpet (which already has enough paint on it). read more

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