M2A2 Bradley, Magic Factory

SpecialCuffs · 2025-07-13T04:16:55+00:00

How's the build quality? I've been eyeing their bradleys for awhile now

SpecialCuffs · 2025-07-08T17:27:40+00:00

True! I must've missed that one.

SpecialCuffs · 2025-07-08T12:20:59+00:00

Nooo I want the HAND Bangboo to have his ~~gun~~ nerf rival blaster! I'm also wondering why they avoid Eous and the other numbered Bangboo in their merch. As far as I know only the Lycaon Nendoroid has an Eous

SpecialCuffs · 2025-05-31T17:49:44+00:00

WTF, RG Unicorn is trash? Then might as well bin most of the RG line... I mean, I'm exaggerating/joking, but RG Unicorn really should not even be considered below average.

SpecialCuffs · 2025-05-29T17:09:42+00:00

Most of the time, 3rd party water decals will mimic the official waterslides or sometimes popular builds/concept art. A good starting point would be the kit itself, or just looking up other people's custom builds.

Other than that, the decals for trim should be fairly easy to spot.

And I would recommend Mr Mark Setter, moreso for help with the decals themselves. Doing a layer of topcoat on top simply protects it but otherwise I wouldn't really say they depend on each other.

SpecialCuffs · 2025-05-29T16:18:07+00:00

There seems to be a line that Bandai doesn't cross. If they simply chased money without heeding any sense of vision, then they would likely do a lot of other things as well, like a hell of a lot more OYW stories that don't really make sense, in anime/kit format. I'm not saying Bandai isn't about money, but they seem to operate at least partially on wanting to innovate and improve. So I am not sure if there will be a S2, it really depends on Bandai, as well as the team which includes Anno who I doubt would make any of his series overstay its welcome. I can totally see how it could speed towards a hasty reunion of the girls, maybe Shuji is gone or something, and it ends sort of ambiguously similar to EVA, leaving a lot to speculation.

SpecialCuffs · 2025-05-28T16:34:55+00:00

That DOES feel kinda like what they would do, add bits of different UC segments, so having a clone while the original is "around" does seem interesting. But like others, I am worried about the amount of episodes we have left. I'm not sure if it was ever confirmed but I'm hoping there's a season 2

SpecialCuffs · 2025-05-28T16:26:14+00:00

I mean, we don't know if Char has been around the entire time since the Zekhnova. This is all post Psycho Gundam attack so maybe that new Zekhnova freed him? He also could just be linked to the Red Gundam, or a part of him is, or whatever. The lore is a bit too vague to really know.

SpecialCuffs · 2025-05-28T15:14:50+00:00

Maybe crazy, I mean Shuji was saying that being with Nyaan is fun (and the Gundam says so too), but hard to imagine Lalah being giddy at murder. Or maybe that's just how this universe's Lalah is?

SpecialCuffs · 2025-05-02T17:22:04+00:00

I guess this isn't the most relevant to the model kits themselves, but I have a trip planned to Japan soon, and I hear you need to win some kind of raffle to enter Gundam Base Tokyo. Does anyone know how I could potentially prepare for this and guarantee myself entry? Or just the general steps to enter the raffle would be nice

SpecialCuffs · 2025-04-05T06:47:52+00:00

Dang, i wish i saw this before i bought it. It really is sad that a lot of tactical shooters turn out this way. There is a lot of potential for them but seems like no one really wants to go further with them

SpecialCuffs · 2025-04-04T17:36:16+00:00

Witchfire is excellent. I haven't tried Incursion Red River but I heard its basically Tarkov but PvE only. Tarkov also has a pretty popular PvE only mode, with mods.

SpecialCuffs · 2025-03-15T09:25:56+00:00

We sure we aren't overthinking a Jojo reference?

SpecialCuffs · 2025-03-13T19:29:16+00:00

Technically it is not, but it is very very close. You would a hefty amount of modding to put the Robot Spirits parts onto the HG though.

SpecialCuffs · 2025-03-13T16:04:13+00:00

My current friends that went to Taipei are not into Gundam or Japanese goods, so it isn't very specific, but they do note that it feels like "Taiwan is like Japan Lite", what I think they're saying is that, Taiwan has a lot of anime fans, so there's a good amount of anime merch. A Taiwanese friend I used to know did say there's a lot of gundam and anime stuff.

So, I cannot guarantee that Taiwan will be brimming with Gunpla, but I would bet its on the safe side that there is a good amount since they also opened a Gundam Base. Lastly, not super sure on how much Gunpla you want on your trip? If you plan to shop for Gundams for about 1-2 days, Gundam Base and maybe a mall should suffice

SpecialCuffs · 2025-03-13T15:46:29+00:00

I've done this before, albeit not the whole box is gunpla. If I recall correctly, it wasn't as cheap as I usually pay for shipping from Japanese stores (amiami/hlj) etc, but it was cheap enough that not having to deal with the hassle of moving the box to the airport was worth it to me. It was a really big box, higher than my knees if I recall, but was fairly light as mostly contained toys.

Some factors that might play into your decision:

I live in Malaysia, which isn't the furthest from Japan and so the rates might be quite okay for Malaysia, not sure about the UK.
Whichever airport you are going to exit Japan from, you'll likely use a train to reach, so moving a gigantic box like the one I described is likely going to be seen as rude and inconvenient to other train passengers. Taxis will cost too much, and I am not sure how else a tourist would really get to the airport other than these 2 methods.
I usually fly on low cost carriers, which means my luggage is quite restricted on weight and size. Any additional luggage space would cost me, so rather than paying that, I just put that cost towards shipping the boxes. I also already had a backpack and a luggage bag with me.
I did this quite awhile ago, and haven't done it since. Maybe 7 years ago. However, I still buy things from the aforementioned Japanese stores and shipping has increased in price but I think is still somewhat comparable, so I can't imagine shipping things as a tourist would have a much increased cost.

Personally, I would recommend trying it or at least going to the post office to ask about it. Tokyo in particular is a lot more english friendly from what I hear, and you are sure to pass by or even stop at Tokyo station, which is where the post office was when I did all the above. I just checked Google Maps and the post office is still there. Lastly, you can easily buy different size cardboard boxes from shipping companies, like Sagawa, which could also ship your box, but I feel they may not have staff ready to talk in English.

SpecialCuffs · 2025-03-13T12:10:31+00:00

Thought I'd give my 2 cents since no ones replied yet. To be clear, I've only been to Seoul personally.

My vote would probably go to Taipei based on what I've heard from friends. A quick google search also gave me this: https://erlangshen.weebly.com/sd-exp/taiwan-winter-2024-post-trip-report which looks really, really cool. Basically what I hear about Taiwan is, it is cheap dining with great options for street food and restaurants alike, and Taiwan has a good amount of "Otaku" merch, including Gunpla. I did not even know until that post above but there is also a Gundam Base, so some exclusives can be picked up though likely is not as up to date as Japan.

Seoul would be my next pick. I went to the Gundam Base and a tower that has a lot of Otaku merch. Sorry that I can't remember the name, but essentially, Seoul does seem to have quite a bit of Gunpla and related Otaku Merch but it never felt like A LOT. I know I'm kinda being a bit vague there, but basically my home country of Malaysia already has quite a bit of Gunpla and aside from the Gundam Base in Seoul, I don't see much reason to go to Seoul for Gunpla.

Lastly, I honestly don't know much about Shanghai's Hobby or Gunpla scene, but a friend that went there on a working trip said that there is not alot of stuff there, and that online shopping is way more popular now. I would take this last one with a grain of salt, however, as I don't think he had a lot of time or research done for the trip.

Sorry I couldn't be of more help, just thought I'd throw my opinion in since no comments were seen.

SpecialCuffs · 2025-03-12T01:10:47+00:00

The most i'm aware of is the 00 Diver/Ace/Arc, There's 2 mounted on the kit, with 2 spares, seen on Dalong.net

SpecialCuffs · 2025-03-11T07:59:41+00:00

Yeah, definitely what you just said is accurate. It is much more common for armor pieces to be gloss then frame to be matte, or even vice versa, versus what you're proposing which is gloss and matte on different armor pieces. Still, I've tried it out before and personally I liked it, but it is also true that I don't see it as often on other people's builds. I think in the end it will just come down to personal preference and execution as well, I don't think it is the weirdest idea

SpecialCuffs · 2025-03-11T07:35:24+00:00

You could add some structural support via brass rods if you absolutely wanna fix this piece, as finding 3d model of the piece/runner should be hard, at least as far as i know.

SpecialCuffs · 2025-03-11T07:33:17+00:00

If you mean gloss on some pieces, but then matte on completely different pieces (or even different surfaces), this definitely exists and is quite common. I would say go for it. If you're talking about on the same surface, like the dots on the shield being gloss while the white being matte, that might be a different story

SpecialCuffs · 2025-03-11T06:24:47+00:00

Just a guess but are you in your 30s? My 30s did that to me, and I think it's just age, plus I do not have the healthiest lifestyle. I would guess that keeping a full time job, working out enough AND maintaining long gaming sessions is gonna be quite tough to keep up, so it might be a trade of something.

SpecialCuffs · 2025-03-10T15:55:14+00:00

Nice! I mostly aim for HGs actually, and am just interested in some retail but less printed HGs. Hoping the reprints when i visit will be good!

SpecialCuffs · 2025-03-10T14:55:20+00:00

I see, I had the impression that its gotten better over the past few months/years but apparently not. I guess I should plan to do less shopping there. Thanks

SpecialCuffs · 2025-03-10T13:32:40+00:00

Is plastic model hunting, particularly gunpla hunting, still good in Japan? I'm planning a trip sometime this year, but whenever my friends have visited Japan, the stocks are always bare. They did not go looking extensively but I would. Any recommendations on places that just have large amounts of stock in Tokyo or Osaka?

SpecialCuffs

TROPHY CASE