Monday, March 17, 2014

MG Psycho Frame Double Funnel System (BTF)




Hi there :)  I'm back, and this time with the MG Psycho Frame Double Fin Funnel System from BTF.

I am pretty sure that most of us would feel that the fin funnels by Bandai is a little plain as oppose to the highly detailed MG Nu Gundam ver Ka, and this would be your solution instead of having to modify the existing funnels ;)

This package comes with Double Fin Funnel... so be prepared for a torturing repetition of 24x :D


Section 1: Instruction Manual

Nothing special to mention :P








Section 2: Runner 

As you can see here... instead of 4 pieces per fin, it has been separated into multiple smaller pieces! The good thing is that the parts separations are very nicely done :)

One effort deserve a special mention is that, BTF uses "undergate" for all the pieces, which means you would not need to worry of scratching the surface when trimming nubs ;)











Section 3: Effect Parts

This package does comes with the funnel beam effects ;) Sadly, the stand and posing arms are not included :P





Section 4: Assembly

Below are the pieces for a single funnel system... see the repetition? I do panel lining with gray color instead, as using green would be overkill ;)




Work in Progress: Psycho Frame Deploy/Undeployed








Section 5: Fin Funnel, Psycho Frame Not Deployed 








Section 6: Fin Funnel, Psycho Frame Deployed 








Section 7: Fin Funnel System

BTF actually addressing the funnels combination issue by introducing more inter-funnel locking mechanism, as well as an external locking piece that doesn't spoil the overall presentation so KUDOS to BTF!

--- Pending pictures ---



Quick Review

This is a very matching add-on for the new MG Nu Gundam ver Ka as oppose to the original Fin Funnel System. Parts separations are fantastic and BTF is using "undergate" for all the pieces, which I felt Bandai should employ that for all new releases instead.

The detailing are very good as you could see from the pictures, but the flaw is on the plastic itself... the plastic is a bit soft and feels cheap... it would not be nice if plain straight build, but you can easily resolve this by applying a layer of top coat after completion.

I do hope that BTF would include the stand and posing arms, and some decals :P (am I asking for too much?)

Anyway, if you want to take your MG Nu Gundam ver Ka to another level of beauty, do get this.


Fin ;) 



Tuesday, March 11, 2014

HG Customization Campaign Sets - Weapons Review (Bandai)




Hi guys :) 

It has been a long time since my last blog due to being busy with work. As a restart in 2014, I am going to do this hot things, the customization sets that are given out as premium items for the duration of Bandai's Customization Campaign ;)

In where I from, you can acquire these items in various way, such as: -
  1. Buy any HG (as stated in the campaign, especially the HGBF series) from Japan online merchant and get 1 of these for free;
  2. Buy a certain amount of gunpla from local merchant and get 1 of these for free;
  3. Buy this from certain local merchant.

Section 0: Runners

Here are the runners of set A to set F.

For each set, there are a weapon made up from 3 to 4 parts, and a variety of customization parts to connect various HG parts. In this review, I will only demonstrate the 6 weapons and leave the customization pieces to your imagination :P









Section 1: Set A - Bazooka

This bazooka is a 4-piece item. I actually stuck a piece of crystal deco into the sensor and it does looks nice ;) However, this bazooka is a bit short on Kampher Amazing tho :P

Before we move on, do observe the holes on the left and right side of the barrel... you can somehow equip this baby onto your kit using certain connectors.









Section 2: Set B - Beam Gattling Gun

I don't read Japanese, but I would call this 3-piece a Beam Gattling Gun :P

This is a 4-barrel Gattling Gun that most HG can hold with single hand. Simple assembly but good detailing.Do you observe the holes on the left and right side of the barrel? You get the drill ;)









Section 3: Set C - Beam Rifle

This is a 4-piece Beam Rifle with nice detailing :) No hole for mounting on this weapon but you can observe from the pictures below that I actually mounted the Set-A Bazooka and Set-B Beam Gattling Gun on Kempher's back ;)







Section 4: Set D - Beam Bazooka

This 3-piece does resemble the Astrea's Beam Bazooka thus I call it that ;) As you can see, detailing are pretty nice and lots of potential for further modification.


There's no foil sticker so you would have to color the sensor with marker or create your own sticker. Mounting is possible with holes on the left and right side of the body ;)








Section 5: Set E - Twin Sabers

This set comes with a pair of Sabers that resemblance the Gouf or Zogok Heat Saber. It also comes with a pair of connectors that can combine the sabers into a long one as you can see below, thus making a 4-piece weapon :P

Decent size as wielded by Kamper :)









Section 6: Set F - Heavy Gattling Gun

The 2nd Gattling Gun, this 4-piece comes in 6 barrels :) This Gattling Gun also with a handle for dual-hand operations. As for mounting purpose, there's a hole towards the tail-end of the weapon for your imagination ;)

On Kampher Amazing, this seems not so heavy :P








Overall Review

The weapons are simple, but with good detailing. The more important are the joint parts from each set that gives nearly unlimited potential to further customize you own HG kit... Now everyone can customize ;)

If these are available at where you stay, GET THEM! Get 2 sets or more if you can afford ;)


Till Next Time ;)