Will vs. The Geno-Gold

I've got too much of this Advanced Grade kits from the Gundam Caravan last month. And by too much I mean I got a total of four kits. This kits are 1/144 scale of the suits in Gundam Age. They are cheap (I got them free), detailed enough, and most importantly a great practice for painting than SD models. This is how I turned AG Genoace into Geno-Gold. I think I'll buy a trophy to stick it in.

So this is the Genoace kit I got from the caravan. I got another one and I still don't know what to do with that one. But for this one I decided that I should make some kind of golden god.

For those who don't know, the Advanced Grade is the spiritual successor of the First Grade.They are not very articulate but they are simple enough for a kid to assemble. They don't even need the cutters usually used in this hobby but using it gives a more polished look. They can be bought in stores for around 300 pesetas or 7 bucks.

Now in the caravan we panel line them with 0.5 pigment pens which is not really an ideal size for this kits but eh, you make do. First thing about painting these things is that you have to wash them to take out the lube used to take them out of the molds. So into the suds it goes!

Now this would also take out the panel lining somewhat. We want that because those inks don't really adhere to the plastic. This is almost a month old ink on the model and I could still rub them out with my finger. Now imagine painting over that. No way paint would stick on that.

A little clean up is needed to take the lines out. You could use a toothpick, a cotton swab, and for the smears, an eraser. Also does wonders on those hard to reach creases.

This is actually the first thing we're gonna paint on those hobo paint stands. I secure some of them with play-doh as I haven't bought the alligator clips needed. They would be primed with Bozny Gray Primer. It's not really a primer but a grey spray paint but it gives something for the acrylic to cling to.

I forgot to take a picture of the pieces primed and them being painted but here's what I did.
1. Painted the white parts with silver acrylic mix. The mix is silver MBGI-WAP acrylic, Jacquard silver pearlex, alcohol, and water.

2. Painted the pink parts with gold acrylic mix. The mix is gold MBGI-WAP acrylic, Jacuard aztec gold pearlex, alcohol, and water.

3. Do two coats and set aside for 8 hours. Repeat.

4. Use Tamiya clear blue, Vallejo Clear Varnish, alcohol, and water for the front and back camera plus the camera on the gun.

5. Paint gold parts with Tamiya clear yellow, water, and alcohol with a bit of Vallejo Clear Varnish.

6. Panel line using a speedball nib with black acrylic.

7. Assemble.

8. Finish with Vallejo Clear Varnish, water, and alcohol.

Here it is without the panel lines and varnish. I just want to see if everything still fits. Notice the front camera on the top of the head.

So here is the finished project.

I got to say that the gold finish here is better than my finish in Sennari Dai Shogun repaint. Note that I won't be using this technique with the Amatsu coming in maybe late this month. That requires a high gloss finish so I might buy a can of metallic gold or something. Great thing that those parts are undergated. But for hand painting it is important to coat gold with clear yellow for that yellowish sheen. I think I could do better with the silver if I know better what I was doing. Oh well. Up the trophy case you go!