The model I built was actually something as close (at least in my eyes) to the original Zaku II I could find, the HG MS-06FZ Zaku II FZ is the model I went with in this build of mine. Just to throw this out before I post any further, this might be one of the messiest paint job I had done, mainly because it has been a while since I did a fully painted model. I was relatively pleased with how the model was meant to be put together, the articulations as well as the detail on the model. But there were a few gripes I had with certain design aspects, which gladly aren't completely implemented into newer cyclops models. The first one, and also my biggest gripe was the power cables for the Zaku. Sadly, this model uses solid cables, not the flexible kind which are implemented in newer models, as well as a not so solid mounting method on to certain parts, but you might find the most trouble with the power cables on the legs since those face a lot of movement. The second gripe would be the non-movable eye for the Zaku. I did manage to find a way around this, since the sticker for the eye can be taken off and placed back on in a different position, which I think was how the model's eye would be adjusted for certain poses. But it does annoy me that its not easy to pose the model without having tweezers nearby. Everything else was either happily accepted, such as the separable limbs, allowing me to easily paint those separate parts, and others were not really a problem.
This model was kind of a guinea pig as well, my first model partially painted with Tamiya Acrylic paint. I have tried painting a few parts using Tamiya Acrylic paint, such as a few small parts or even weapons for some of my gundam models. And during those projects, not sure whether it was how inexperienced I was at the time, turned out beautifully. However, while painting big parts, like an entire leg or shield, I finally saw a few major flaws, one, they do not turn out as smooth as my paint jobs using Tamiya Enamel Paint. Two, you can't use the thinner to easily clean up bad paint jobs, the paint turns into a pile of sticky goo. Whereas when using Tamiya Enamel Paint, you can very easily rub off the paint using its thinner. Sometimes too easy that if you get some on your fingers, you'll rub off the paint while handling the model if you're not careful. However, Tamiya Acrylic Paint dries extremely quick, as well as requires a very thin layer of paint for it to cover the previous colour, so those are the benefits of using this kind of paint.
Farid
The colours/colour mixtures used :
Brown used on the arm and legs : Tamiya Acrylic Brown
Lighter tone of brown used on arms and legs : Tamiya Enamel Medium Grey
Darker brown used on the body : Tamiya Enamel Flat Brown
Joints, power cable shading and back pack : Tamiya Enamel Dark Grey
Thrusters : Tamiya Enamel Chrome Silver
Innner part of the Thrusters on the back pack : Tamiya Enamel Gun Metal Grey
Black on the feet, chest area and knee guards : Tamiya Enamel Flat Black (3 parts)
Tamiya Enamel Flat White (2 parts)
Grenades on hip armour : Tamiya Enamel Flat Red and Tamiya Enamel Gun Metal Grey.
This is actually my first try doing a camo-ish paint job for my gundam model. At first, this was because of the failed attempt trying to paint on digital disruptive patterns (DDPAT or digit camo) on the majority of the brown parts. However, I tried to make it work, and well, I'm quite pleased with the result. Note that Enamel paint doesn't stick too well on Acrylic, well at least Tamiya's Acrylic Paint using my method of painting. The camo method was done basically covering one part with masking tape, and since it is simply a two tone look, not much precision cutting was required.
The rifle took quite a lot of my time to paint as well, since there were 4 different parts to complete the rifle. The rifle was basically painted Tamiya Enamel Dark Grey, with the barrels as well as some metal parts highlighted using Tamiya Enamel Chrome Silver and Tamiya Enamel Gun Metal Grey. The ammo clip as well as certain parts of the muzzle was painted Tamiya Enamel Flat Black.
One of the worst mistakes I had made. As you can see in the above picture, you can see an "L" written down on the foot. This was basically so that I could know which foot was which but the layer of paint I applied was too this to cover it up completely... *sigh* *weeps slowly*
In the above picture you can see that the power cable was roughly glued and just put in place. Basically a way to remind myself not to continuously assemble and disassemble parts just to make sure they "look okay". *weeps again* The brown weathering was not expected, and I'm not really sure how that got there, but it looks okay to me, a little surprise!
Well, that's pretty much all I have to say about this model. If you want a Zaku II to try and build for the first time, I would recommend the original HG Zaku II, or any other Zaku model which the eye is movable. If you're a little bit more experienced, the RG Zaku II is an amazing kit to put together with all the different shaded parts and looks beautiful even as a straight build. That is all, finish!!
Farid
