Kitsune-Chan, 1/6 scale garage kit

[morpheus]

Yes! I have a one week break away from the insanity of my job. Of course that does not relieve me of the responsibilities that still lie ahead. In any case, this next project is actually commission work so I will have to paint the kit as shown in the picture below.

Yeah, I took the image from another site. Heck, if they can "steal" kits, I don't think that they will mind if I use their image for the purpose of display.



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[morpheus]

Well, the pieces are all present, that is the positive point. There are however, problems that exist. The upper leg area has numerous pinholes to fill, so forget this kit being a fast build. The pose looks pretty sturdy so there is less need for pinning certain parts.




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[morpheus]

Also there are tabs that sit between the leg buckles and the pants -see picture below. I checked pictures of the kit and these are indeed flash. Am I ever going to see a kit whereby the preparation work is "minimal?" Oh well, as to quote Whitesnake: "Here I go again."

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[morpheus]

The leg flashing is gone....or so I hope. I used a conical diamond bit and a rotary tool to grind down the little tabs. Some puttying and sanding are still needed to fine-tune the area. I'll leave that for tomorrow, in the mean time, I'm going to prep the rest of the kit.

Stay tuned tomorrow..............or whenever I get around to continuing this!

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[morpheus]

Another problem was the break in the collar of the arm band. The area (highlighted in green) had chipped off -due in part to a bit of carelessness while sanding. The thin piece is rather tricky, but luckily was in an area that could be repaired without worrying about the details that surrounded it.

I simply used a piece of Milliput and placed it in the inner part of the collar, then spread a bit of petroleum jelly on the connecting piece. Then I pressed both halves together, held the pieces in position, lightly reformed the collar area.

After the putty cured, it was simply resculpted and sanded.

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[morpheus]

Here is the same area, primed and just about ready to paint. Unprimed area in the inset.


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[morpheus]

The repaired piece fits into the designated area as well.


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[morpheus]

All the parts, now primed are now in "idle time" waiting to dry completely.

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[Masa]

Looks great so far

[morpheus]

I decided to give the kit a dark undercoat to start. This will allow a gradual build up of shades. Only the flesh areas have been painted thus far: the face, the torso, the hands, and to an extent the tail. I do not know if the entire tail will be painted with the same purple for the hair, so just the area that joins into the torso was shaded.

The next step will be to highlight the flesh area, mask it off, and paint the large areas around it.



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[morpheus]

The shading for the flesh areas is -for the most part- complete. I may opt to darken certain areas with pastels. Right now I think it is alright.

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[morpheus]

Starting from square one AGAIN! Things have not gone well for me using modeling products from Japan. First it was Tamiya putties (yes, plural) now it has moved to the clear coat from Mr. Hobby. This so-called matte spray is a great final coat, but as far as it being a seal between coats, it has disappointed me greatly. Any kind of over-spray cannot be easily removed with airbrush thinner and a cotton swab. The paint just tends to stick heartily to the surface. What good is that? I am going back to Testor's Dull Cote for the sealant between layers, and use this one dimensional product only when my work is completely done. Thus, for the second time this kit is coated with oven cleaner.

How frustrating!

[Masa]

Yikes.

Sorry to hear about your troubles

What matte clear were you using Mr. Top Coat or Mr. Super Clear?

[morpheus]

Mr Super Clear!

[Masa]

As you surmised, Mr Super Clear is intended to be a final coat. You need to try Mr. Top Coat, especially with acrylic paints as Mr. Super Clear is solvent based and tends to be too agressive. Mr Top Coat works great with their aqueous water-soluable paint line and should work great for your in-between sealing coats