Gunpla/Gundam Model Kits
 

does anybody enjoy building gundam kits as much as i do? if so, do you put special care into making them look better? what are some of your tips that you use on your models?

i like to:
1. use mr. hobby's clear flat top coat on all my parts while they are still on the spurs so i can hit all the parts at once. this takes the shiny off the plastic and gives it a nice solid color look.
2. after the top coat is dry, i fill in the detail lines. this way it is easy to clean up and you have a solid grip on small parts like the face mask. what i detail the lines in with are a mix of mr. color flat black paint with zippo lighter fluid. this gives the paint a watery consistency that when you pick it up with a paint brush, you can dip the edge of a detail line, and the paint actually travels and run down the detail edges. after it is dry, i take a q-tip and dampen it with zippo fluid, and clean up the over drip my paint brush made. now the lines are sharp and looks pro!
3. after i detail the lines in, i hit it with another mr. hobby's clear flat top to seal in the detail lines.

i am currently reading on how to professionally make gunpla, and my brothers airbrush will soon help me become a gunpla master!

You sure take those models seriously. I have never seen a real gundam model for sale in a store i have built other models like cars, planes, and zoids models maybe the latter is similar to the gundams?

Building models is an enjoyable task and you can display your hard work or as i have shamlessly done play with them lol.

hahaha, i sometimes play with them too. i havn't really taken modeling seriously but after every kit i build i take more care into preparing them. soon i'm going to go as far as surfacing each part, prime, paint, detail, and clear coat :) it's really fun! i'm going to start ditching spray cans and start air brushing soon :) woop woop.

I've recently started these but I've probably broke atleast one thing in every one of them :o ...
I just build them out of the box.

what kit did you recently build? right now i built 0 gundam and exia R2 from the 00 series in HG 1/144 scale. they were just 8 bucks here and i'm very impressed by the exia R2, looks like they were based on the 1/60 scale because they are VERY nicely put together for a 1/144 :) get it!!! get it!!! :)

The latest one I built was 1/100 00 Gundam. Pretty nice kit except the waist being one piece. Gundam 00 HG 1/144 models are pretty fun and good looking. Like HG 1/144 00 looks better then the 1/100. I've been looking at the Unicorn Gundam for awhile now but I'm looking for a fix for the knee.
And cool, the 0 Gundam and R2 were just released, and I am going to get it. Top on my list. The place I get them from gets new Gundam 1 month after they release in Japan. Going to Japan would be like a kid walking into a candy store.
Oh by the way, there is an MG Exia Ignition ver. coming out too! :D

I'm also interested in building a gundam model, but is there any shop around that have them in stock ( I live in garden grove). I check ebay, and the price is pretty decent, but I really don't want to wait for the shipping. Also, I'm just starting out, what grade should I start out with? I read about them, and I was thinking of the master grade, but I'm very afraid of breaking them because they are not that cheap.