spaceship model kits

This is the main shmups forum. Chat about shmups in here - keep it on-topic please!
User avatar
Sly Cherry Chunks
Posts: 1969
Joined: Mon Feb 28, 2005 8:40 pm
Location: Colin's Bargain Basement. Everything must go.

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by Sly Cherry Chunks »

https://twitter.com/quesq_info/status/1 ... 1174519809

Its been two years since the first image but QuesQ R-90 Ragnarok might still be a thing?

https://twitter.com/quesq_info/status/1 ... 0526867457

EDIT: Preorders up! Its the 13B/Spectres kit from 15 years ago, prepainted with a nice stand! The Arrowhead (it's a two-seater now??!) has been released so many times, I would have thought that anyone who wanted one would have one by now. Oh well just waiting on that Ragnarok.
Last edited by Sly Cherry Chunks on Tue Apr 27, 2021 4:53 pm, edited 1 time in total.
The biggest unanswered question is where is the money? [1CCS]
User avatar
Sly Cherry Chunks
Posts: 1969
Joined: Mon Feb 28, 2005 8:40 pm
Location: Colin's Bargain Basement. Everything must go.

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by Sly Cherry Chunks »

The biggest unanswered question is where is the money? [1CCS]
User avatar
Sly Cherry Chunks
Posts: 1969
Joined: Mon Feb 28, 2005 8:40 pm
Location: Colin's Bargain Basement. Everything must go.

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by Sly Cherry Chunks »

Triple Post Sage Goes In All Fields!!

PLUM's Vic is getting reissued with some extra decals and oh shit T301 kit finally!!!
The biggest unanswered question is where is the money? [1CCS]
User avatar
pablumatic
Posts: 300
Joined: Tue Jun 03, 2008 6:39 pm

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by pablumatic »

Sly Cherry Chunks wrote:https://twitter.com/quesq_info/status/1 ... 1174519809

Its been two years since the first image but QuesQ R-90 Ragnarok might still be a thing?

https://twitter.com/quesq_info/status/1 ... 0526867457

EDIT: Preorders up! Its the 13B/Spectres kit from 15 years ago, prepainted with a nice stand! The Arrowhead (it's a two-seater now??!) has been released so many times, I would have thought that anyone who wanted one would have one by now. Oh well just waiting on that Ragnarok.
Saw the pre-order go up today. Its available at lots of stores, including amazon.co.jp. Most places are selling it for more than amiami, however.

Now I'm just wondering where to get it from to get the best price + shipping.
User avatar
greg
Posts: 1851
Joined: Wed Jan 26, 2005 4:10 am
Location: Gunma-ken, Japan
Contact:

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by greg »

Image
I saw this at the Yamada Labi1 in Takasaki. I ended up using 2,000 points towards one of the triple-deck carriers from Yamato 2199. I do intend to get this Raiden kit eventually.
Sly Cherry Chunks wrote:Amazing work on the Silver Hawk Greg, too bad about the gun barrel. Can you open her up? I hope they re-release that kit again someday.
I already had to open the kit's body up. Ugh. If I had tried to replace that fiber optic, I would have had to take apart the wing, running the risk of making the kit uglier by stressing the plastic (potentially breaking it) and ruining the paint job. So, I fell forward. I had to remove several the snap fit pegs in order to create channels for the fibers and wires, so it became a glue kit.

A bit of advice for Plum kits: they are snap kits and they come together well, but they are NOT Bandai kits. Once you fit parts together, you will have a hard time separating them! My advice is to sand the snap pegs down so that you can make test fits and pull the parts apart more easily without risking breakage.

Those R-Type Figmas look fantastic. I've been out of the loop since I was permanently banned from Twitter for daring to suggest that people be allowed to think for themselves. And... Holy crap. I saw that Plum is re-issuing the Arrowhead, but I did not know it came with the two bits! Daaaaaang! Just when my coil's reaching the green line. Apparently it has decals too. I've sworn to finally finish my abandoned Arrowhead shelf queen this summer and now they're releasing a brand new one. NICE.

I have a pre-order for the R-Type Leo from E2046.
Image
E2046 is a resin recasting company in HK, and their quality is fantastic. Not like those cheap-ass bootlegs from Thailand where they dilute the resin with talc powder and do crappy casting work full of air bubbles and lousy surfaces.
Undamned is the leading English-speaking expert on the consolized UD-CPS2 because he's the one who made it.
User avatar
To Far Away Times
Posts: 1661
Joined: Tue Sep 11, 2012 12:42 am

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by To Far Away Times »

I want to get an R-Type Desk Toy. I don't mind putting it together but I don't really want to paint it. Anyone have any recommendations? I've also never bought one of these things so I have no idea what to expect.
User avatar
Sly Cherry Chunks
Posts: 1969
Joined: Mon Feb 28, 2005 8:40 pm
Location: Colin's Bargain Basement. Everything must go.

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by Sly Cherry Chunks »

Thats a beautiful looking Leo, Greg. Keep us posted!
The biggest unanswered question is where is the money? [1CCS]
User avatar
greg
Posts: 1851
Joined: Wed Jan 26, 2005 4:10 am
Location: Gunma-ken, Japan
Contact:

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by greg »

Oh, I wasn't paying attention. I thought that Plum was reissuing their R-9A Arrowhead with extra parts. Nuts.
Undamned is the leading English-speaking expert on the consolized UD-CPS2 because he's the one who made it.
User avatar
Sly Cherry Chunks
Posts: 1969
Joined: Mon Feb 28, 2005 8:40 pm
Location: Colin's Bargain Basement. Everything must go.

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by Sly Cherry Chunks »

They're doing a 'Final 2' edition of their kit. You never know, there might be some decals and retooling.

https://ameblo.jp/plum-pmoa/entry-12665325382.html

QuesQ and Figmas are nice options for people who dont want to build/paint, especially with a paintjob like that.
The biggest unanswered question is where is the money? [1CCS]
User avatar
MachineAres 1CC
Posts: 792
Joined: Sat Dec 19, 2009 2:20 pm
Location: Seattle, WA

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by MachineAres 1CC »

The Raiden V Azuma model kit just arrived recently, but haven't had time to build. Also not directly related, but also picked up one of Bandai's "Build-A-Saturn" kits where you build the Saturn from the inside out. Hope to dive into these soon and will show results once it's all done.

Image
Image
JUST A COUPLE MORE SHOTS です
Achievements/trophies|1CC List
Twitch|Genesis Shmups project
XBL & PSN: IDOLxISxDEAD
User avatar
Sengoku Strider
Posts: 2203
Joined: Wed Aug 05, 2020 6:21 am

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by Sengoku Strider »

MachineAres 1CC wrote:The Raiden V Azuma model kit just arrived recently, but haven't had time to build. Also not directly related, but also picked up one of Bandai's "Build-A-Saturn" kits where you build the Saturn from the inside out. Hope to dive into these soon and will show results once it's all done.
Very cool. Absolutely love the Azuma design (except for the yellow accents, I'd leave those off). And I didn't even know the Saturn kit existed. I guess my question is...putting it together would be interesting, but once it's done you're just left with a grey box-shaped console, all the detailed bits hidden away forever?
User avatar
MachineAres 1CC
Posts: 792
Joined: Sat Dec 19, 2009 2:20 pm
Location: Seattle, WA

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by MachineAres 1CC »

Sengoku Strider wrote:
MachineAres 1CC wrote:The Raiden V Azuma model kit just arrived recently, but haven't had time to build. Also not directly related, but also picked up one of Bandai's "Build-A-Saturn" kits where you build the Saturn from the inside out. Hope to dive into these soon and will show results once it's all done.
Very cool. Absolutely love the Azuma design (except for the yellow accents, I'd leave those off). And I didn't even know the Saturn kit existed. I guess my question is...putting it together would be interesting, but once it's done you're just left with a grey box-shaped console, all the detailed bits hidden away forever?
Not quite sure how "openable" the Saturn kit will be after building, we'll see if it just comes unsnapped fairly easily or if it'll be fairly solid.
JUST A COUPLE MORE SHOTS です
Achievements/trophies|1CC List
Twitch|Genesis Shmups project
XBL & PSN: IDOLxISxDEAD
SF Kosmo
Posts: 18
Joined: Sat May 15, 2021 4:44 am

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by SF Kosmo »

To Far Away Times wrote:I want to get an R-Type Desk Toy. I don't mind putting it together but I don't really want to paint it. Anyone have any recommendations? I've also never bought one of these things so I have no idea what to expect.
Best bet is to hunt down one of the Shooting Game Historica ones I think. The Plum models will probably look okay unpainted but decals and what-not will need some top coat to stick, it's gonna be work either way, and the resulting kit might be a little big for a desk toy. I have a couple of these SGH toys, the Opa-Opa and the Granada. They're decent quality for the gashapon toys they are.
SF Kosmo
Posts: 18
Joined: Sat May 15, 2021 4:44 am

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by SF Kosmo »

MachineAres 1CC wrote:
Sengoku Strider wrote:
MachineAres 1CC wrote:The Raiden V Azuma model kit just arrived recently, but haven't had time to build. Also not directly related, but also picked up one of Bandai's "Build-A-Saturn" kits where you build the Saturn from the inside out. Hope to dive into these soon and will show results once it's all done.
Very cool. Absolutely love the Azuma design (except for the yellow accents, I'd leave those off). And I didn't even know the Saturn kit existed. I guess my question is...putting it together would be interesting, but once it's done you're just left with a grey box-shaped console, all the detailed bits hidden away forever?
Not quite sure how "openable" the Saturn kit will be after building, we'll see if it just comes unsnapped fairly easily or if it'll be fairly solid.
It's pretty openable. I kind of half-assed painting the innards of mine, but if I wanted to show it off by sliding off the top half that's very easy to do.

Image
Image

Cute kit. Would have liked waterslide decals though, as the edges of the stickers are pretty obvious.
SF Kosmo
Posts: 18
Joined: Sat May 15, 2021 4:44 am

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by SF Kosmo »

On topic, I've decided to start building some shmup kits as a bunch of them have been reissued recently or are about to in the near future, so I can get them for retail (or less).

First up, the Ikaruga Nuribotoke got re-released to go along with the newly released Ginkei Nuribotoke. You can still grab this at Plaza Japan and some others for like $40. This version of the kit is the non-canon third version. The main draw of this version is the metallic gold foil decals, which are a little tricky to make smooth but look really cool against a gloss black finish. Beyond that, it's in different colors than the standard black kit, and even includes some repeat runners in a high gloss black finish, but this decision really makes no sense to me because the other runners are in completely the wrong color (brown, when there's no brown on this thing...) and the whole thing has to be painted anyway, so why would I need this brittle glossy stuff anyway? But hey, it means you get a lot of extras of the small and easy to lose parts so, that's definitely a perk.

Since it's a non-canon variant anyway, and since the "official" color choices suggested by the manual are a bit strange, I played kind of loose with my paint job, and leaned into the "black on gold" theme by mostly using different shades of metallics. Pretty happy with how those color choices panned out.

Fair warning, don't build this kit unless you're about that model life. This is really a challenging kit, and the engineering on it is really, really bad. Like ponderous. The two halves attach to the main body at a joint that is just loose and glued down, they don't peg in at all. But then also attached to two kind of stiff joints that are likely to lead the glue to break if you futz with them. Definitely pin and superglue or epoxy this joint because model cement isn't going to get it done. There's also a lot of fragile spindly little things you need to place with tweezers and glue down. And like I said before, nothing is color accurate or color separated, you're going to have to paint everything and mask a lot of stuff. It's just a very, very difficult kit and it's fragile even if you do everything right. This is not one for dabblers who just like the game.

It is really gorgeous though.

Image
Image

Next up, I found this Xevious kit in the wild for $10 and couldn't resist. Although it's the same designer as the Ikaruga kit (Daishi Iseya), it's pretty much the polar opposite of that. This one is simple, sturdy, and really solidly engineered. You could let a kid play with it and nothing would fall off (other than the roof behind the cockpit, that's the ONE piece that needs glue, oddly, but once you do it's solid).

Despite the simple construction, it's pretty color accurate (including a nice gunmetal metallic), give or take some odds and ends even a beginner could paint (or use the stickers), there's virtually no visible seam lines, and it would look nice pretty much out of the box with a little panel lining. I gave mine the full paint treatment though, with different shades of white to break up the panels and some metallic detailing. Like the Ikaruga kit, they've made the stand look like the boss, which I think is a nice touch, and I liked painting the little candy red details on this. Really lovely little kit, that I would recommend to anyone who wants a little Solvalou.

Image
Image

I have the new Vic Viper pre-ordered, and Kotobukiya has Dodopachis back in stock so I might do one of those next. R-Types are coming back around too, and I also want to do a white Ginkei.
User avatar
greg
Posts: 1851
Joined: Wed Jan 26, 2005 4:10 am
Location: Gunma-ken, Japan
Contact:

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by greg »

SF Kosmo wrote: Fair warning, don't build this kit unless you're about that model life. This is really a challenging kit, and the engineering on it is really, really bad. Like ponderous. The two halves attach to the main body at a joint that is just loose and glued down, they don't peg in at all. But then also attached to two kind of stiff joints that are likely to lead the glue to break if you futz with them. Definitely pin and superglue or epoxy this joint because model cement isn't going to get it done. There's also a lot of fragile spindly little things you need to place with tweezers and glue down. And like I said before, nothing is color accurate or color separated, you're going to have to paint everything and mask a lot of stuff. It's just a very, very difficult kit and it's fragile even if you do everything right. This is not one for dabblers who just like the game.
Hey, I don't suppose you go by "GotNextVideo" on YouTube, do you? I just had someone tell me the same thing about the Ikaruga kit, saying one has to pin it like a garage kit in order to get it to stay together.

Your builds are great-looking. My friend on YT did the Xevious kit and used a smartphone promotional sale stand to make a rather attractive diorama. I helped him with the lighting.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKJt2d7IU8U
Undamned is the leading English-speaking expert on the consolized UD-CPS2 because he's the one who made it.
SF Kosmo
Posts: 18
Joined: Sat May 15, 2021 4:44 am

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by SF Kosmo »

greg wrote:
SF Kosmo wrote: Your builds are great-looking. My friend on YT did the Xevious kit and used a smartphone promotional sale stand to make a rather attractive diorama. I helped him with the lighting.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKJt2d7IU8U
Ah! I saw that build. I was a bit confused by the disconnect between the fact that it had LED mods and the fact that the rest of the modeling was pretty beginner, so that explains a lot. I did like the display, and displaying the kit vertically, although I like the stand it comes with too. The little "jewel" sticker in the andor genesis was a nice touch too.

Yeah, that was my comment. Related: One side of my Ikaruga kit fell off yesterday (the side I did with model cement) while I was trying to tighten the connection point with the stand that had started to loosen. Million pieces. I got it back together, it's fine, but seriously, fuck this kit.
User avatar
Sly Cherry Chunks
Posts: 1969
Joined: Mon Feb 28, 2005 8:40 pm
Location: Colin's Bargain Basement. Everything must go.

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by Sly Cherry Chunks »

The biggest unanswered question is where is the money? [1CCS]
User avatar
Sengoku Strider
Posts: 2203
Joined: Wed Aug 05, 2020 6:21 am

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by Sengoku Strider »

SF Kosmo wrote:On topic, I've decided to start building some shmup kits as a bunch of them have been reissued recently or are about to in the near future, so I can get them for retail (or less).
Thanks for the pics, I love seeing these things. Great job done with the finished products.
You can still grab this at Plaza Japan
This site seems tough to navigate for STG stuff. It appears to be all mashed in with their dozens and dozens of pages of Gundamn/mecha stuff. If you search for a specific game title it's fine, but I couldn't see any way to browse other than sifting through all that.
Sly Cherry Chunks wrote:T301 looking good

https://twitter.com/PLUM_CC/status/1400649373197819907
Yeah, it really is.
SF Kosmo
Posts: 18
Joined: Sat May 15, 2021 4:44 am

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by SF Kosmo »

Sengoku Strider wrote:This site seems tough to navigate for STG stuff. It appears to be all mashed in with their dozens and dozens of pages of Gundamn/mecha stuff. If you search for a specific game title it's fine, but I couldn't see any way to browse other than sifting through all that.
Yeah, I just meant they have Ikaruga kits. Specifically these ones. The white ones are all out of stock.

https://www.plazajapan.com/4934054025466/
https://www.plazajapan.com/4934054031566/
https://www.plazajapan.com/4934054017744/

I am working on a Ginkei now to complete the set. So far it doesn't seem as fragile or hard to build as the Ikaruga, but the color separation is maybe even worse, and painting it involves a lot of challenging masking. It almost feels like working on a resin kit that's all one color. But I don't mind that as much, honestly, painting and detailing is fun for me and I just want the result to be solid.
Sly Cherry Chunks wrote:T301 looking good

https://twitter.com/PLUM_CC/status/1400649373197819907
I want it. Though I do think it has a bit of that thing the Kotobukiya RayForce kit had where the surface detail is a little too busy, but I'd like to paint it metallic and see how it looks.
SF Kosmo
Posts: 18
Joined: Sat May 15, 2021 4:44 am

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by SF Kosmo »

Also, this is apparently a few pre-orders away from going back into production, if anyone wants to help it along:
https://www.e2046.com/p/23187/&title=sa ... rd-british
User avatar
Sengoku Strider
Posts: 2203
Joined: Wed Aug 05, 2020 6:21 am

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by Sengoku Strider »

SF Kosmo wrote:Yeah, I just meant they have Ikaruga kits. Specifically these ones. The white ones are all out of stock.
I found those no problem, was just curious what else they might've had. What's the best place to buy these things?
SF Kosmo
Posts: 18
Joined: Sat May 15, 2021 4:44 am

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by SF Kosmo »

Sengoku Strider wrote:
SF Kosmo wrote:Yeah, I just meant they have Ikaruga kits. Specifically these ones. The white ones are all out of stock.
I found those no problem, was just curious what else they might've had. What's the best place to buy these things?
There's not usually enough of them in print at any one time for there to be a one-stop shop. Generally if you see them, buy them. They tend to get quietly reissued from time to time and then they'll pop back up, and then they become rare again and prices skyrocket.

Right now you can find Ikarugas, Xevious Solvalou, and Dodonpachi Dai Ou Jou kits, and there are reissues of the R-Type R9A, Twinbee, and Gradius IV Vic Viper you can pre-order.

But stuff like the Plum Darius Silver Hawk, or the Sky Girls kits are stupid expensive and hard to get right now.

I am not exactly a collector (I limit the amount of nerd swag I am willing to clutter my home with in the name of good taste), but I think it'll be fun to do a few of these. I have the Vic Viper pre-ordered and I'm going to probably grab the Dai Ou Jou kit as well. Those plus some of the little Shooting Game Historica gashapons I have might make a cool little shmup shelf.
Zeether
Posts: 1273
Joined: Fri Aug 12, 2005 7:22 pm

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by Zeether »

Plum's rerelease of the Gradius IV Vic Viper also includes a version with a waterslide decal set to simulate the version shown on the config screen. I just ordered it off HLJ the other day because in addition to those it has black decals for the canopy details that you'd normally have to mask off and paint.
<Aquas> EDMOND DROPPED OUT OF HIGH SCHOOL TO SMOKE COPIOUS AMOUNTS OF OPIUM
<Zeether> shoe failed college again <croikle> credit feed
User avatar
greg
Posts: 1851
Joined: Wed Jan 26, 2005 4:10 am
Location: Gunma-ken, Japan
Contact:

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by greg »

RC Berg has made a resin kit of Thexder.
https://www.beep-shop.com/ec/products/detail/528
Undamned is the leading English-speaking expert on the consolized UD-CPS2 because he's the one who made it.
User avatar
Sly Cherry Chunks
Posts: 1969
Joined: Mon Feb 28, 2005 8:40 pm
Location: Colin's Bargain Basement. Everything must go.

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by Sly Cherry Chunks »

Delta Figmas preorder:

https://www.amiami.com/eng/detail?gcode=FIGURE-129975

EDIT: quesQ's beautiful Ragnarok just went up for preorder as well:

https://www.amiami.com/eng/detail?gcode=FIGURE-129958

Slightly disappointed that it's equipped with the standard force. The Spectres kit came with shadow force and looked a lot cooler. What are the odds that if we wait a little longer they'll do shadow force too?

PS: Granzella needs to update the Ragnarok in RTF2 to look like this!
The biggest unanswered question is where is the money? [1CCS]
User avatar
greg
Posts: 1851
Joined: Wed Jan 26, 2005 4:10 am
Location: Gunma-ken, Japan
Contact:

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by greg »

This month a 2P blue version of the Raiden kit will be released. I didn't buy the 1P red version, so I'm going with the 2P version instead.
Undamned is the leading English-speaking expert on the consolized UD-CPS2 because he's the one who made it.
User avatar
Sly Cherry Chunks
Posts: 1969
Joined: Mon Feb 28, 2005 8:40 pm
Location: Colin's Bargain Basement. Everything must go.

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by Sly Cherry Chunks »

Sly Cherry Chunks wrote:They're doing a 'Final 2' edition of their kit. You never know, there might be some decals and retooling.

https://ameblo.jp/plum-pmoa/entry-12665325382.html
Rivet Counters rejoice! R-Type Final 2 Arrowhead went up for pre-order and it's been r-e-t-o-o-l-e-d-!

https://www.amiami.com/eng/detail?gcode=TOY-RBT-6349

Vic Viper T301 has recently joined my ever-growing pile of Kits I Will Probably Never Build Because I Am Too Scared Of Fucking Them Up. It's a great kit, fully molded in colour - even the tiny canopy frame is molded in black separate from the clear orange window. Would probably look awesome with no paints straight out of the box. Some microscopic clear red parts though.
The biggest unanswered question is where is the money? [1CCS]
User avatar
To Far Away Times
Posts: 1661
Joined: Tue Sep 11, 2012 12:42 am

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by To Far Away Times »

That R-9 is awesome. Strongly considering dropping $50 on plastic tat.
User avatar
Sengoku Strider
Posts: 2203
Joined: Wed Aug 05, 2020 6:21 am

Re: spaceship model kits

Post by Sengoku Strider »

Sengoku Strider wrote:What's the best place to buy these things?
In answer to my earlier question, I can't speak to "best," but one spot that seems to have a good STG-specific listing of what's upcoming is 1999.co:

https://www.1999.co.jp/eng/list/1890/0/1?sold=1

I sorted that list to exclude sold out items, but if you really want to feel sad about missing out on the Ketsui models you can undo that.
Post Reply