Kit Information :
Scale : 1/100
Grade : Master Grade
Made by : Bandai
Completed : May 2010
Box Art :
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MS06 Zaku II : The Zeonic Knight
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When I started building this kit, it had been a long time since I did a Master Grade Gundam kit - in fact the last one I did was the Shin Musha and I finished that early 2009 so it's been nearly a year and a half since I built a MG kit.
I had many ideas what to do with this kit, but the one theme that stuck in my mind was a rusty, steam punk look with a touch of medieval about it. To get the look I wanted I needed to do something a little different to what I usually do.
I began by cutting small square shapes from thin styrene sheeting. These were attached with Plastruct styrene glue and were to act as small raised panels on the outer armour of the Zaku. Each of these panels were then topped with various different angled and circle shapes to add random detail to the panel. Some areas have been cut open and thin styrene sheeting placed behind the armour to act as sunken panels. These panel areas were treated the same as the raised ones and filled with random shapes cut from styrene rods and the like.
Mesh was added on the backs of the legs as well. I used the panel lines on the inside of the armour to mark where I needed to cut it open. I drilled holes along the outer edge of the intended opening so it would make removing the piece easier. A knife and saw were used at this point to cut the remaining plastic away. The edges of the now open opening were cleaned up with a hobby knife and needle files. The mesh was cut a little bigger than the opening and then attached to the inside of armour using CA glue.
Spikes from the HGUC Marasai kit were added to the shield as added 'weaponry' and to add a sort of medieval chain mail look, chain was added to the shoulder armour. To fit this chain, I made several small holes around the base of the piece all evenly spaced. Thin wire was then threaded through the holes and attached with CA glue. Once the glue was dry, it and the excess wire was cut and then filed back until the internal armour piece fitted correctly once again. Chain was cut to the lengths I wanted (all different and some are doubled up) and the last link was split open and hooked around the wire on the base of the shoulder armour. The link was reclosed using pliers and then the chain was tested to see if it held in place correctly.
The kit was given a texturing all over the outer armour pieces using Plastruct glue and a toothbrush to give a cast iron look. This added to the overall steam punk / medieval theme and it also helped to hide some of the flaws I had created by adding the styrene details.
The hairspray technique was used to weather the kit in such a way as to show it was well worn and had seen a battle or two over the years. A base coat of NATO Black was put down first via air brush and then topped with random patterning of Brown (to act as rust). After it had cured, everything that needed to be weathered was coated with hairspray and then given a top coat of Sky. A wet brush was then used to loosen some of the top coat and show the brown and black underneath.
Clear coating and decals came next and then followed by a thick wash of Burnt Umber using low odour turps and artist oil paints. The excess wash was wiped away and what was left was a dirty looking mech.
The base was simply painted black and then topped with green and brown flock and some grey ballast to add a little contrast. The kit was attached with brass rod threaded into the feet and into the base, both end being glued with CA glue.
Overall, it was a refreshing change to go back to Gundam kits proper. I really need to do some more and knock over a few more kits in my stash!