The Things I Do For Friends

I had discovered the really nice looking ‘Dragonball Mecha Collection’ from Bandai on ebay. I immediately bought one model for myself, but also thought about my brother’s upcoming birthday. So I went and bought this:

I turned it into a bit of an experimental project. The van and minis were base coated with Vallejo sand-coloured spray primer. I then built shadows with a sepia ink and highlights with white. To reinforce the cartoon look I divided panels with a black ink in the grooves. Then I took yellow ink and used it to create a filter effect. 4-5 layers gave me the saturation I was happy with in the end. I also used Citadel Contrast for the first time on the model, the Black Templar. I also made some direct comparisons with the black ink and must say, I’m not impressed by the contrast paint.  Definitely not worth the money.

I used the inks to mix with normal acrylic colors and create the red-orange seats and the orange robes. Some highlighting in the end, adding the stickers (yes, you get stickers, not decals) and done.

Andy had made the diorama base in the meantime from plywood and balsa. He also made the guard rails and poles from sticks and balsa wood. Painted the road and the grass patch, then we added the tree and flock. At last a good helping of matte varnish, and done.

Before gluing everything in place I made the little smoke puff by picking from a piece of styrofoam, painted with dark grey Vallejo surface primer first, then a heavy wet blend of burnt umbra and beige, followed by a dry brush of white.

Glued it all on and done, ready to be delivered next week.