Bringing the iconic Gundam to life is a craft every fan should master. Putting the pieces together, however, requires a proper understanding of the meticulous process, sticking every fitting part with utmost precision. The final piece, erect and boldly facing you, should connect you with the Gundam universe and give you the satisfaction you crave.
Achieving that, however, may not always be an easy feat. You can leverage expert tips to give the mighty Gundam his warrior’s stance. You should know that it can take hours to bring the Gundam together, frequently spanning hours.
Nonetheless, the silver lining is that it’s always fun, indulging, and worth every second you spend. So, let’s get right into the tips of assembling and detailing the MG Gundam Virtue right away.
1. Organize Your Workspace
Your workspace should be clean and clutter-free. A clean table with a comfortable height and a chair that won’t make your back hurt can add some much-needed convenience. It’s also best to have your dismembered MG Gundam Virtue complete in its set and all parts in good shape.
So, ensure you unbox and remove the parts from their runners using a nipper. That’s especially advisable for novices looking to be more efficient. Assembling the Gundam Virtue from a more organized space can make the processes more effortless and fun.
2. Gather High-Quality Tools
Your GM Gundam Virtue, complete in its setup, should be sharp and well done. That means the tools you use should be of the highest possible quality. The best way to do that is to invest in your tools and pick them thoughtfully.
Ensure you get a sharp hobby knife and some nippers to help cut out asymmetrically protruding edges. Moreover, try getting a fine-grit sandpaper to smooth out the surface and give the mighty Gundam a polished appeal. Other essential tools to include in your assembling arsenal include:
- Tweezers
- Gundam marker
- Panel line markers
- Marking stickers and decals
- Cutting mat
- Workspace lighting
You can also include paints for customizing and setting solutions to make decals conform to the model’s surface.
3. Read Through the Manual
Reading manuals isn’t for novices alone. Expert builders should also take their time familiarizing themselves with the process. Remember, every Gundam grade is different. Super Deformed and Real Grade models differ from High Grade and Perfect Grade, and so does the Master Grade. You could learn more about the process when you read the manual than when you don’t. Please don’t forget to read the manual if you don’t want a real headache.
4. Trim Carefully
It can be too easy to go wrong when removing parts from the runners. Applying excessive cutting pressure or being clumsy when trimming excess plastic could scratch the parts. That can give your Gundam a tarnished appeal; you wouldn’t want that. Therefore, always ensure you cut out any nubs and excess parts using a razor-sharp hobby knife, and please don’t apply pressure excessively.
5. Test Fit Parts
As a rule of thumb, always test your parts before gluing them together. Assuming you won’t make mistakes even as an expert builder could be costly. Here’s thoughtful but tongue-in-cheek advice: dry-fit the parts (Not the individual tiny pieces but the body parts like the limbs, head, etc.) together by assembling them without applying glue. That could be quite a task, but it can be worth the hassle in the long run.
6. Sand and Polish Seam Lines
Seam lines have their way of distorting appearances in virtually every toy. They do on the Gundam Virtue, but you can correct that. Removing the nubs using nippers could do some good. However, they may leave protruding edges and bumps that don’t seem right. Therefore, use your grit sandpaper to smooth out the rough patches. Here, you must be more careful to avoid scratching your toy.
7. Panel Lining
Detailing is essential to giving the Gundam Virtue a sophisticated appeal. It’s more or less about enhancing the details of already existing grooves. There are numerous toy colors to choose from. So whether you love blue, black, or red, ensure you can customize your toy according to how it appeals to you.
Your Gundam marker should be enamel-based; these are the easiest to clean using an enamel thinner. Water-based could only be perfect on paper and may be less practical on plastic since they don’t usually stick. You can still use panel line accent colors or acrylics if that applies.
8. Decals and Stickers
Again, on the detailing, this is the final part of your Gundam building, where you need to rack your brains slightly. There are two options: either with colors and points or decals and stickers. The latter bunch can be more thoughtful since you can precisely place them using tweezers compared to paints that could result in spill out. You can still use solutions to make them conform to the surface, but that would depend on your manufacturer’s directions.
9. Add Custom Details
You still can add more details that make your Gundam stand out. Besides lining your panels and adding stickers and decals, you can be more adventurous by adding custom details for a personal touch. Kitbashing, pla-plate additions, and metallic detailing can improve your Gundam’s feel. Moreover, Infusing LED lighting to illuminate the eyes and thrusters could make your toy more visually striking.
Wrapping Up
Assembling and detailing the MG Gundam can be quite a task. However, you learn a lot, including practicing patience and being more meticulous and observant of the tiniest details. Therefore, always ensure you have the right tips up your sleeves and more of your time creating this masterpiece—the results will be worth it.
