Well in Australia, you can wait/order for it in a place called Hobbyco. That place is slow. But expect to pay 1.5x the normal price, and a loooooooooong wait...I paid 51.95 AUD for both the SF and Destiny 1st edition there...

I just finished my MG Aile Strike in Phase Shift Down colors and now I'm starting on my 1/100 I-J. Looks like it'll be a good build. I'm impressed with it's design already compared to earler GSD 1/100's.

Hopefully I can post some pics of the Aile Strike in the next few days.

51 bucks for two kits isn't that bad, IMO.

A friend of mine payed 50 bucks EACH for SF and Destiny. And they weren't even 1st production runs either.

Akyra - where do u live?
If you live in Adelaide, I can recommend a little place where you can go to buy model kits.

Usually though, the prices roughly match HLJ's with EMS shipping, give or take a few dollars.

I'm feeling a little more emboldened after putting up the pix of my S Gundam, so here's my first attempt at painting a model - a 1st edition 1/100 Destiny:

http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f3...a/IMG_1190.jpg
http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f3...a/IMG_1189.jpg
http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f3...a/IMG_1191.jpg

Try Angloz and also I recommend MG grade.. the HG or normal 1/100 are not exactly contenting. But MG only comes in certain models.

Speaking of those, which GSD (not GS) 1/100 would be good (save for SF, IJ, Legend, Destiny)?

I meant I paid 51.95 for each of the two. Bad wording on my part. So that's 100 AUD...for that same amount of cash, I've managed to buy 4 in HK...:eyespin:

Na, I live in Sydney, and tbh, Australia is slow AND expensive when it comes to Gundam models...'

I bought the 1st run IJ in HK, and gonna buy the 1st run Legend there as well. 30 bucks for one of those is already regarded as expensive, but that's because HK people LOVE pushing the prices up because it's limited editions...(yet still cheaper than AUS!)


KCT, i personally think the Sword Impulse looked pretty good. Compared to Chaos.

EDIT: Anyone know where I can get some good quality stands for 1/100 models and doesn't cost a fortune? Bandai's PR department sure knows how to eat into my bank account with the Legend, Amatu and Dendrobium...

Besides the normal MS stands, you can try making your own. All you need is a 0.3 mm rod and a firm base (wooded base are good enough), plus a small drill... presto! you've got your own stand. Plus if you make your own, you can design the base to your liking as well.

OHHHH man. THIS is some hot stuff coming up in July. GOT dibbs on this thing since the NEWS came out :heh:


http://www.hlj.com/product/BAN945071
:eyespin: :eyespin: OHhh Sh~~~TT gold astray mina custom FTW

If you got the bucks, go

*Force Impulse + Sword Silhouette Extra Finish
-Might as well get both silhouettes in one kit.

*Freedom Gundam Extra Finish
-The very first Destiny MG. Get this only if you don't already own the normal SEED MG Freedom and want some extra finish rice

*Zaku Warrior - Blaze + Gunner
-Another multiple platform kit. Lots of weapons, but a little more expensive.



Take note that I don't own any of the kits I listed above. You might wanna take a look at dalong.net and see these kits' potentials before you buy.

Both the Force Impulse + Sword Silhouette Extra Finish and the Freedom Gundam E. Finish are pretty good buys, but the Zaku Warrior.... don't think it's worth it, rather pick one type you like and do that (unless you're into changing the parts).

The 1/100 Blitz is pretty good, as is the Buster. The latest that'll be coming out 1/100 Astray Gold Frame Amatsu is pretty good too.

LMAo so true XD

just wondering, the dendrobium, it's a HG 1/144.... hmmmmm but it's sooo procy >_<!!!

i wouldn't recommend the extra finish gundams. They are badly designed and are not worth the money. Unlike the Gold plated finish on MG Hyaku Shiki and HG 1/144 Akatsuki, the MG freedom extra finish and Impulse have been modelled so that you can still see the little parts connected to the runner.

This means that you will have ugly little chips on your model all over your gundam because it is pretty visibile, and im guessing the only way u can get rid of it is to sand the pieces, but that inturn will mean that u will be scratchin off the extra finish, and if you've got enough money to buy spray cans or acrylics for your airgun go recolour the bits you sanded, you might aswell save like $50-$70 by just buying the normal MG or 1/100 version of it and spraying it manually yourself.

IMO, the extra finishes are way too overpriced and are not worth the money. Check out dalong.net on the MG Freedom extra finsh if you dont know what im talking about. They have a lot of pictures which show the visual cut off's on the runner.

Go for the original if you have the money or buy a PG :D

The extra finish kits are for people who don't paint. Not everyone will have air-gun, compressor or able to do spray painting. Gundam Crome markers usally will be able to cover most visible parts. dalong.net only show the ones done OTB, without the touchups.

But I do agree on the PG ;) You can also don't paint it, but'll still look real good.

The shiny-ness of the EF versions turns me off.

Before I go on about my 1/100 ∞ Justice, here's a brief recap of my 1/100 Destiny: http://img301.imageshack.us/img301/9...model016ch.jpg
(this is also unfinished, btw v_v)

Anyways, now for my quick little review of my freshly built ∞ Justice Gundam. I've only just completed it and a lot of work still needs to be done - I haven't painted or done anything to it other than build it.


Overview:
This is my second 1/100 scale SEED Destiny kit. IMO, this was just as exciting and fun to build as my previous kit, however I had not much time to really finish it up. The colour does not match the anime colours as you would expect - it really is some sort of pale pink-ish kind of colour. Proportions are great though, the arms and legs and shoulders are not too fat or thin. The arm joints are more moveable now compared to earlier kits and IMO it was a great improvement over Destiny Gundam (though rather minor, cause Destiny was really good in poseability).

Weapons:

Beam rifle - Looks cool. Nothing really special. I only thing I don't like about it is that there are no stickers for it and you basically have to colour it yourself. It comes stock as grey and white. Can attach to the rear skirt of the Gundam.

Beam sabers - Though rather simple, this is very cool. It comes with THREE hand held beam saber handles - two seperate single beam saber handles and one combined double edged beam saber. However, there are only two blades for them in total, so you'll end up either using two seperate or just the combined one anyway. Still, very cool. The handles need colouring too - The purple bits near the bottom. The head, chest area, and backpack have stickers.

Shield - The shield of this thing is TUFF, even though it's kinda wrong (beam boomerang sticks out to the side). Its light, great size, loads of weapons on it. The beam shield is HUGE on this thing.

Beam Boomerang / Sword - attached to the shield. This is what they got wrong on the shield, but I think that was intentional, so its easier to take it out of the shield. Comes with only one blade, but the blade is HUGE and long. As you'd expect, used as a sword when mounted on shield and can be used as boomerang when taken off.

Grapple Stinger - I like how they've done this. The cord isn't very long and you have to attach/detach it everytime you wanna display it. However, the cord is strong and the grappler doesnt fall down when you display it. Another nice touch. If you wanna store it into the shield, you have to remove the cord and stick the anchor in.

Leg Blades - These are tuff as well. However, they're a little short, so you have to position the feet in a certain way, but it isnt much of a problem. Very neat and adds more to the badass rating when displayed with all the other blades this Gundam has.

CIWS - Who cares

Fortis beam cannons - Yeah, they look cool. Mounted on the Fatum 01.
But as you'd expect, you'd have to remove the head, or twist it, or whatever because the v fin is in the way whenever you wanna deploy them. then can fold back this time and be hidden as well.

Fatum 01 Backpack - You can't imagine how cool this is. First of all, it has a great wingspan and the wings also bend. Very important for various poses. Lots of things to do with this. There are also two more blades that can be fitted on the wings. When detached, the backpack as handles on the bottom for the Gundam to go hang glider on it, while slashing stuff with its legs. The sharp, ramming blade its also kinda cool, but comes with no beam like it does on the anime. Can fold back in storage as well.


Photo:
http://img119.imageshack.us/img119/2...model015fn.jpg
http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/949...model029tj.jpg
http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/1...model037rr.jpg

Kit needs more work, obviously.

I just wanna see how you attach the gundam to the stand...can you post some pics up for that? And can you attach the gundam to the stand with the backpack down?

And what materials did you use for your destiny WoL?

I haven't dealt with the stand yet, but the manual shows it just being pushed into the rear torso thruster. I don't know if it would affect it with the backpack on or not. I'm goign to have to majorly clearcoat the thruster internals to make sure it doesn't scratch the paint once the stand is attached.

My biggest gripe with the IJ is the lack of detail on the beam blades themselves. Seriously, they're just long strips of pink FLAT plastic: no design at all, no ripple effect like they do with even the HG /144's. The beam shield has all the little ripple things, so why not rhe blades? Heck even the IJ's HG 1/144 counterpart has more detailed beam blades :eyebrow:

The entire shield unit on IJ looks like its very heavy. Can you keep its left arm raised?