like wat ray mentioned, it's hard to just explain through words. test it...try it first. you won't know until at least u've gotten ur hands dirtied. actually u're very lucky that there's online help to answer your questions. i started by bumping around on my own and searching internet (after it started) on how to build model kits. try ur own method...see if u like it.

go to hobby shops...see their finished products n compare with ur own. then see how u can improve from there. meet up with some of the modellers. as ray mentioned, tonight there's a yumcha session. dun be shy...these fellas won't eat u. worse case scenario...psycho u into buyin more kits (don't fall into that trap )

as for ur questions, no...u don't need to gloss coat dry transfers. in fact, dry transfers work best in flat coat/paint.

mark setter n softer is by GSI aka Gunze. it's for waterslide decal use.

sandpaper...400, 600, 1000, 1200. should be sufficient.

if u dun like to cover seamlines, by all means..don't. i doubt anyone here would kill u for it. although, i haf to say...those who have the basics in modelling would spot the seamline n tell u straight off "build up ur basics. cover those seamlines".

aiyah...just go n build la. u'll definitely F up some kits along the way. when i started, i oso dun cover seamlines. dont even know i need to do so. just build n paint only.

then as u slowly compare ur completed works with others...u'll think, how come that one diff fr mine wan? and at this stage, you'll discover wat u want to do.

u either 1) decide that u want to be just like them n start researching on techniques n test test to improve ur skills or 2) decide to just stay where you are because that nice nice kit is just too much effort. snap fit n play with the kit is faster.

but again, dun think too much. dun worry too much. just start building. if worry u'll F up expensive kits? use cheaper kits. HG's are a good start. but if u really want to build up ur skills, go for old non-grade kits. lotsa seamlines to cover. or buy cheap airplane kits. THOSE can really train u up. if u're up to it...

Ok, airbrush and compressor setup...cheapest would be about RM650 or around there. In the long run, it would be better to get that but if money is a big contraint now...better not. no rush. handpaint first.

those small bottles of paint is that...paint. u can airbrush those, u can handpaint with those. so no worries about buying that. but u'll need to mix some thinner with the paint. chances are, straight fr bottle...the paint would be too thick to handpaint. so u'll need to dilute it a bit. don't ask me what ratio...it depends on how thick the paint has become. if u've painted ur house...u'll more or less figured out on what u'll need to do with that paint. if not...art classes in school would help too...poster color needs to be mixed with water to paint. same scenario...unless u sleep/ponteng thru ur art classes. or have they stopped art classes in secondary school?

Mix the paint with Mr Color Thinner. But it depends on the type of paint you bought fr TM. if it Mr Color...use back Mr Color Thinner. Preferably use Surfacer. as this would make the paint stick better. So it helps in handpainting. If it's the "aqueos" type...u can mix water with those paint. but takes a longer time to dry...water mar, how fast can it dry leh.

The Zaku is handpainted AND topcoated with semi-gloss...but didn't flat coat it. looks a bit glossy becos...if u spray too many layers of semi-gloss..it become glossy.

If you think the paint looks okay after you've sprayed color...then by all means. dun need to top coat. it's your personal preference. but i have to admit...if you top coat it...and let the paint cure properly, you'll less likely to scratch the paint. not full proof...but reduce scratching.

This post has been edited by davelcm: Mar 16 2009, 08:59 AM

Cut...no matter what, would still need to touch up. You'll still have excess sprue/plastic where the joint was. Wat we usually do is, sand the nip down flat.

If you're talking about modding...then use mini saws. Not those big big ones u find in hardware shops. but those mini saws for model kit hobby. www.hobbiescorner.com would stock some. besides the saws, you'll need a blade..and metal ruler. with those, you can cut the plastic sheets for modding. but becareful with the blades. a lot of modellers has cut themselves doing that. and yes, that's part n parcel of the hobby.

if you dowan use gundam marker, you can use those marker pens...use for writing or transparencies. find the thinnest pen available. i believe you can find 0.3mm or 0.2mm. other than that...enamel paint, poster color...can also be used. usually modellers would use enamel paint to do the panel lines. and no, u don't paint enamel over the lines...read up on panel lining...kinda hard to explain it here.

This post has been edited by davelcm: Mar 16 2009, 09:15 AM

spray it gloss...that looks glossy to me. not car polish shiny...but enuff.

tamiya masking tape can be found at the following places...
Hobby HQ, AF Hobby.

Hobby HQ is no longer in City Square (opposite Ampang Park). They've shifted to Fraser Business park near Jalan Loke Yew/Sungai Besi roundabout.

Not too sure about Toycity and tamiya masking tapes. as far as i know, toycity already lost their distributorship for tamiya products. but then, u can still try. hobby shops in berjaya times square may carry the masking tapes. if not, XL shop in midvalley but not too sure of that either. Hobby HQ is the best bet...

do NOT apply super glue on the finger while it is joint to another part. put 1 small drop of super glue on the ball joint of the finger while it's disassembled. let it dry. the snap it back on. the additional coat of super glue would make the joint slightly bigger. hence make the connection tighter.

This post has been edited by davelcm: Mar 17 2009, 10:18 AM

...try use Kao Magikleen. much cheaper. i believe it shld remove acrylics just as well...i use that to clean Future.

i believe surfacer fr bottle can be handpainted...just dilute properly. and use the Surfacer 1200 or 1000. if not, go Hobby HQ n buy the enamel surfacer from Humbrol.

as for the gloss...buy semi-gloss...try spray few layers. it may come out to the gloss level u want. my earlier post of green zaku which is a bit glossy...is fr semi-gloss spray can. sprayed too many layers until become glossy liao...

This post has been edited by davelcm: Mar 17 2009, 02:57 PM

yes, it's still glossy even without the flash.


mist coat means...quick sprays over the kit. not press hard on the nozzle n spray thick layer on the kit. that way, would be full gloss liao. so to use "mist spray" on the kit...spray in quick passes. spray outside the kit...draw quick quick across the kit.

jolly roger skull fr hasegawa macross kit...ruined the kit, decided to use decals somewhere else...then zaku being made. so wat the heck

by the way, blue cans are hard to find now. but i saw a few in Hobby HQ. you may try there first.

This post has been edited by davelcm: Mar 17 2009, 05:42 PM

another possible reason for spurts...water is coming through the compressor. check your moisture trap...one way is change the hose to the transparent type...n see if water is flowing through the hose.

my initial hose was black then i got 1 fr Ace Hardware that's transparent...n saw the water flowing to my airbrush...and similar to paint accumulating at the crown n nozzle...when water starts to accumulate after the compressor heats up. so u usually get this after spraying for some time.

This post has been edited by davelcm: Mar 18 2009, 12:26 PM

i don't buy those metallic/"special edition" types. but other than Hyakushiki and Akatsuki, the rest of the "special editions" are just normal kit being coated with metallic paint. so the problem with that is...the nubs will ALWAYS be non-metallic.

how to save that? i dun think u can. reason being, as i've mentioned, they just use a normal kit to coat it with metallic paint. n u can't get that same quality of paint if u were to mix ur own. so best thing you can do...use a good cutter...n cut as close to the main piece as possible. then use a blade to trim off the excess. n then snap fit. that's the only thing can be done. if not, dip the whole thing in bleach for a couple of days...scrub off the metallic coating and spray the kit again. in other words...repaint.

there's bound to be moisture still inside the moisture trap...droplets of it. when it starts to accumulate at the bottom of the trap, that's when you'll need to open it and pour out the water. if not, you'll get moisture escaping fr the trap to your handpiece.

to open the bottle, unscrew it. look at the placement of the lock pattern to see if it's clockwise or counter clockwise to open. then grip tightly, n unscrew it. but dun just use cow strength n force it.

for waterslide decals...i've posted how to do that previously, read that.

for stickers, can't do much there. because basically stickers are pretty thick (compared to dry transfers and waterslide). in fact...the thickness is like this...dry transfer (thin), waterslide (medium), stickers (thick). because of this thickness, most modellers usually dun use the stickers. i know of a "master" that occassionally uses stickers especially those "caution" stickers which are rectangle.

the only way to make stickers less obvious... LOT AND LOTS of topcoat.as each layer of topcoat will slowly build up thickness. multiple topcoats will sooner or later cover up the stickers. once it's covered the sticker (with some spare layers), wet sand the kit. this is to even out the topcoat. reason being...ur sticker area will also have topcoats..so it'll be a micro bulge/lump there. so u need to wet sand down the topcoat to even out the surface. then polish the kit. followed by flat coat to ur preference

This post has been edited by davelcm: Mar 19 2009, 07:05 PM

HHQ stocks polishing compound once a while, if u want...will need to ask Mr Low to bring it in for u.

Another option, if you're not polishing car kits, is to use...Colgate! the white paste type. Better yet, the one cater for smokers. I think Darlie oso can use. Again, not those clear gel type. The traditional white paste type...

Shop hours for HHQ...Monday to Saturday: 11am to 6pm. But usually Low will open around 11.30am to 12pm. Closing time...normally between 6 to 7pm. Sundays open occassionally but better not risk it. Only people who go and ask "tomorrow got open ar?" will know if he does.

Lunch time he's around but occassionally...he'll be out either in the coffee shop in the block behind or at the indian shop down the road. Especially if got regulars askin him go yumcha/lunch.

see this...

ok, guess my bad. shld've just used the phrase "super bling" instead of car kits...

if u panel line after flat coat...it'll hard to wipe off the excess. flat coat is actually microscopically rougher than flat coat. hence less bling factor. whereas gloss coat are smoother. so u can wipe off excess when gloss coated and less likely when it's flat coated.

u can use water color for ur wash too. basically as long as the color dun stick wif ur base paint. enamel works only if the base paint is NOT enamel. usually ppl use lacquer as the base paint. if u use enamel...i think acrylics would be the agent use for wash technique.

go to Jalan Pasar and look for those electronics shop. Go in and ask for crocodile clips. the medium sized one would probably cost abt 25-50 sen each. i dun use blutack so not sure which is better.

tiny tip brushes are never strong. gentle painting is required. u can go find those fine brushes in Art Friend, The Gardens. I bought a couple there.

i use mixture of lacquer n water based paints. water based paints less toxic i believe. anyway, some gunze colors are available in water based n not in lacquer.

i think keita custom mixed that gold out. especially if you're talking abt sprayin off the can, it'll be hard to replicate any nice gold out.

2 possible reasons when waterslide decals dun stick to the surface:-
1) old decals...therefore the adhesive on the decals is gone or very little or something
2) soaked in water too long. reason you soak in water is to moist the "glue" and causes it to be sticky. release agent...chemical reaction kinda thingy. so if you soak too long...the remnant of glue on the decal is less. so it won't stick well. this is worse if the decal is old.

u can make it a habit on using mark setter. not a necessity if the decals are good but yes, it does make it stick better.

http://www.rlm.at/cont/thema11_e.htm

this link should cater for explanation on applying decals
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airbrush usage. the length of time is dependant on the type of compressor. diaphragm/oil-less type heats up quickly, therefore you can't keep it on too long. if not the motor will burn. for that...it'll be max 35 to 40 mins. you can continue to keep it on but my advise, nothing longer than 45 min.

those with tanks on the diaphragm type compressors...u can keep it up longer...i keep it on a regular 45 mins to 1 hr then i off it. by then, watever needs to be painted are done. for both types of compressors, make it a habit to off the compressors when u're not using...i.e. tidying up the kit, mixing paints and preppin things up.

then they r the bigger oil piston type compressors. silent and basically u can just keep it on all the time. the tank handles everything. n since there's oil in the piston...overheating is minimal if not non-existent.