Hi there.
camui507 wrote:http://www.hlj.com/product/WAVFS-80
I recently bought this Kit at a local hobby store and im pretty sure its not a recast (i dont exactly remember how to tell but the clerk said it was and it looked like an original) Now I've never bought a FSS kit before but I've read plenty of guides (at lest id say so on how to do this) (Also I have modeling experience in GundamWing models 1/144 1/100 and 1/60 although ive never painted)
First off, this is a plastic kit, so you don't really need to worry about it being a bootleg copy. The term "recast" is mainly applied to resin kits these days. There are such things as bootleg knockoffs of plastic kits, but I think it's mostly common when dealing with Bandai Gundam kits found in Asia. As far as I know, there aren't any Wave FSS plastic bootlegs running around.
I don't know if you've opened up the kit or not, but you'll definitely notice it's not very much like the Gundam kits you may be used to. The kit is moulded entirely in one color, so a full paint job is mandatory. Also, it's not built with easy snap-fit... you WILL need to glue it. If you're read some kit building guides, you should know all about glueing, sanding, and puttying if needed. Since this is an older model, you'll definitely need to take special care with the gaps between parts. The parts may not always fit 100% perfectly initially, and it is more than likely that SOME puttying work will be needed in a few key areas. The 2 halves of the lower legs seem to be a common problem spot.
I kinda know about how to test fit and sanding peices down but im not entirely sure on how to or what to use. (Clippers I know but what grain sand paper)
Test fitting is just fitting the parts together without any glue, so that you can see if there will be a good fit, or if there will be gaps between parts that need to be corrected. As for clipping... there are many suitable tools for clipping parts from the sprue. A pair of side cutters, or even a nice sharp and sturdy pair of small scissors will work for the initial cut. There will likely be some sprue left on the edge of the parts after clipping... you can use a hobby knife or some other tool to trim most of it off. Once most of the sprue is off, you can then start with the sandpaper. It's best to buy many grains. Start with a course grain to do most of the work, then switch to a finer grain to start smoothing the surface. And finally end up with a really fine grain to get things as smooth as possible.
Painting is kinda know more about (remember those parts) would it be wise (after sanding and test fitting) that I primer all the peices then paint them the respective colors (with an airbrush right? i heard its the best way, and I think I heard acrilic paint works good too) and then pen all the dark lines and such (I dont know how to do that at all)
If you're airbrushing, then yes, priming is a good idea. It helps paint adhere to the model surface. And a coat of primer can also point out physical flaws that you might want to fix before painting. Thinks like areas not yet sanded smooth, or nicks or gouges in the surface that you'll want to smooth over. Also, if you plan to airbrush, some masking materials will be a must. Since in the case of this kit, some parts will require many colors on the same part. Especially the legs. As for paints, I prefer enamels, but other people like acryllics just fine... it comes down to personal taste I guess. There are many ways to fill in the 'dark lines'. You can ink them with a pen, you can use a thinned wash of paint (thinned watercolors perhaps), and some people even paint in the lines with a very fine tip brush. I use the ink-pen technique myself. You'll need a very fine tip pen though.
[quoteI also know these kits has limited movability so Id have to find a pose I like and then fix the joints so they dont move.[/quote]
Making a fixed pose IS a good idea. I have built a Wave plastic LED Mirage and left it poseable... the joints have become very loose over time and as a result the LED is like a rag doll now. Very floppy legs, it's always falling over. Putting a little epoxy glue in the joints will lock them up nicely, but you'll need to be very sure you are happy with the pose before you lock up the joints...
Thats more or less all I know on the subject, any pointers tips or corrections would be appreciated. I serriously love the L.E.D. Mirage and would not want to screw it up.
Hm. One thing you need to know is that the flight unit parts on that kit are vinyl, not plastic. Vinyl needs a bit of a different treatment from plastic. Enamel paints will damage vinyl, so don't use enamels on the flight parts at all costs. Vinyl parts may sometimes suffer some warping... application of heat will make the vinyl soft, and then you can reshape the part a bit, and then let it cool. Plastic cement won't work on vinyl, so you'll need another type of glue for the flight parts. I've never done much with vinyl, so I suspect someone else can tell you more about the vinyl side of things.
Also, it's not a good idea to paint most parts before assembly. If you paint and then assemble, you'll then have a hard time getting rid of the seams between parts without messing up your paint job. But there are some things that should be painted before building... what you'll need to do is just really study the instructions and see which parts would benefit from being painted before assembly (parts that are hard to get to after assembly) and which parts should be painted after (parts which will have lots of seam lines, mostly)
If you go with enamels... know that they react badly with glue. If you slop plastic cement on a part that's painted with enamels, it may actually melt the piece very quickly. If you use acryllics, I don't think you will need to worry about this.
Erm... that's it for now I suppose. Let me know if you have more specific questions.
by camui507 » Fri Aug 05, 2005 9:41 am 
