Category: Crafts

Cannon Bull

June 13, 2020

I bought the above in Japan in January. I vacillated on the purchase since luggage space was tight but I decided in the end to make it fit.

It’s a ZOID! But not a plastic model version; this is a toy version. You still assemble it, but it’s much easier and the pieces aren’t on runners. I’ve done one like this before, but they still make and sell new ones and this one seemed to be a new release.

Assembly was trivial, but I was surprised to see (since I apparently didn’t bother looking closely at the packaging) that it has a battery powered motor in it! I selected this kit for its appearance though, and think it looks quite nifty.

That’s the finished product. According to the ZOIDs wiki this is a medium sized ‘buffalo type’ weapons platform that has a mass of 50.4 tonnes and carries a 9-barreled missile pod for long range attacks!

And there he is attacking! He moves at a good clip and the barrels of his missile launchers click as they ‘fire’.

A fun little toy. Next time I’m in Japan I’ll be picking myself up another one of these I reckon…

Storm Trooper

March 28, 2020

It was time for some craft. He selected, from his stash of things-to-do, an item he had received for his birthday several weeks earlier:

The papercraft kit was unlicensed: a DIY mask of a Storm Trooper which greatly resembled characters in a beloved film series. The box was large and extremely lightweight, he thought as he broke the seal. It was only flimsy card after all:

Forty-seven pieces to be glued together! He’d made – or attempted to make – complex kits before and was immediately hesitant. But this wasn’t just a curio, it was a mask! He vowed to complete it…

At first it wasn’t too difficult and he thought he’d have it done in an hour or so. But the pieces became increasingly complex and the folds insane. He needed three hands and the patience of a saint! His fingers were sticky with glue as the going got harder. His conviction was tested, his mood dark. The hours passed.

And yet… and yet somehow it was piecing together error-free despite his frustration and the complexity. While he hated the tedious task he had to admit he was impressed with the design and engineering. This was vastly better than any other paper craft he’d tried.

The hardest pieces were in the last quarter but at that point he had the measure of the thing. And then, when the last (of over 250!) tabs was folded and glued, his relief was paramount! The Storm Trooper was finally complete:

There was one last challenge. The mask looked the part, but was it just for looks, or would it accommodate his giant head? Gingerly, laser sword in hand, he slipped it on:

Yes he hated making it, and yes he may even burn it to ash in a pyrotechnic extravaganza one day. But in that moment, as he wore it with pride, all was good.

Death Stinger

February 29, 2020

With my birthday fast approaching I figured it was time to catch up on old birthday gifts… like this guy:

That’s a silly-big model kit of a robot scorpion ZOID! Do I know anything about ZOIDs? Not really, but they look cool and this is one of the coolest. I got this kit for my birthday 2 (?) years ago and dedicated myself to completing it before this birthday. So I did!

The box is massive. Here’s what was inside:

So many runners! So many pieces! And yet the instruction manual wasn’t the biggest I’d seen in a kit, mostly since there’s a lot of repetition.

Assembly wasn’t particularly difficult, but took me 4 weekends working maybe 5 hours at a time. As I reach my dotage I find that my developing arthiritis tends to make these tasks a little trickier, and Kotobukiya kits are harder than Bandai ones because they don’t shy away from very small pieces and complex connections.

Luckily I had assistance to help with the complex bits:

I’ll spare you the interim photos and get right to the finished piece:

It’s impressive isn’t it? It’s also quite massive; easily the biggest kit I’ve assembled. I’d say it’s about 10 inches from front to back (with the tail folded up) and wider than my outstretched palm. There’s an insane amount of articulation: not only do all the limbs and guns move but you can even open lots of the flaps and vents (probably to emulate cooling systems) which can make it even bigger than it is here. Here’s the scorpion head when you open up the head armour:

It was a lot of fun to build and looks great in our glass cabinet. I wouldn’t recommend this kit though since it’s a) way too expensive and b) not ideal for a beginner. If you like the look of ZOIDs start with a smaller kit, or even better a toy version since those are much less pricey.

Robot Claw