Commission EX 1 of 4

Hey guys, I'm back again with another commission project, this time with a series of four EX kits!

Haven't heard of EX kits before?

They're a somewhat limited and neglected range of Bandai model kits, comprising, space stations, ships, vehicles, mobile armors and equipment. 

What are they like?

EX kits are sligthly larger and more complex than a typical HG kit, but they tend to be smaller scales (some as small as 1/1700). Some of the older EX kits typically only have 1 or 2 colors, so you're required to do a lot of masking and painting to recreate the images on the box.

Should I buy one?

That depends on your skill level, they kits tend to take a lot of work to make them look good. They all require paint to achieve a stock look, and some require glue. Also EX kits tend to be more expensive than similarly sized HG kits. Consider a kit from the Hard Graph line if you really want to try a 'Non-mobile suit' kit from the 'gundam-verse'

On to the Model!

Work in Progress:

Assembly & Modification

I'm starting the Gundam See Mecha Set 1 (not sure if they ever released a set 2 or beyond). I decided to start with this kit because it's the largest scale of the four I will be building at 1/144. I started with the Moebius Zero because it's more complex at 5 plates compared to the smaller Skygrasper at 1 plate.

I also happen to think the Moebius Zero is one of the cooler looking designs to come out of Gundam Seed!

Right from the 'get go' I realized this kit was going to require a lot of work.

Each of the spherical fuel cells on the main body was made from two halves. I glued each half to it's corresponding piece and glued them to remove the seam line. I also removed the seam lines along the main cannon's barrel; the cross sectioned fuselage and from the body of each of the 'line barrels'.

Each line barrel features two cannons that 'pop out' of the line barrel when it's ready to fire, but for the purpose of this kit they're part swapped for the different modes. For some reason Bandai left the cannon tips strangely blank, with only a small circular raised section. So I used a pine vice to hollow the interior of each barrel.

Here is the completed Moebius Zero next to the RG Strike. Painting is up next.

 

You can buy EX kits on Amazon!