Resin- monkey's Treehouse

Raqel by Vispo

2009-02-23T11:47:00.000-08:00

Just recently finished this great original kit by Vispo. Hope you like her.

Meg by Bome

2009-01-10T14:51:00.000-08:00

This is a 1/4 scale resin kit by the Japanese sculptor Bome. Meg from Burst Angel Infinity. Its sort of like a doodle from the character designer of what a more cynical, older Meg might be like. I opened up the eye sockets and installed 13mm doll eyes by Masterpiece Eyes, just for fun.

Asuka R2 by Vispo

2008-12-02T12:06:00.000-08:00

My new work. Hope you like her.

After A Long Time...an update!!

2008-10-18T13:14:00.000-07:00

Sorry its been so long. Here are some of the things I've been working on. Hope you like.

Menace, Queens Blade

2008-07-06T00:38:00.001-07:00

Just finished another kit. This is Menace from the game Queens Blade. Nice action pose.

Metallic Brat

2008-06-25T12:30:00.000-07:00

I don't usually like the abstract sculpts of familiar characters, but this Asuka had so much attitude I couldn't resist. Metallic and clear laquers were used for her.

Yoko Video

2008-06-04T23:55:00.000-07:00

Ever since I saw Clark Kent become Superman for the first time, or Shane turn from simple farmer into deadly gunfighter, I've loved the transformation of mild mannered character into avenging hero. Its a common theme of Hollywood and anime.
WARNING SPOILERS BELOW.
In this clip, it has been seven years since humans reclaimed the surface of the planet. Yoko has left the life of freedom fighter and dedicated herself to the children of the next human generation as a teacher. But a disaster looms as a prophesy is fulfilled, Armageddon will claim the human population of the planet. In the midst of the crisis rouge Gamen attack and destroy Yoko's school and hold a student hostage.
Her hand is forced, and in a scene befitting Shane or Clark Kent, Sensei Yamako becomes the avenging Yoko once more. In the first segment she is beautifully silhouetted by the glow of her burning school as she enters her humble quarters.
In the second segment she has rescued the student hostage and now positions herself between the giant Gamen and her students. The students barely recognize her and are afraid of the figure before them. But she turns to them with a reassuring smile and asks them to stay back. When asked who the hell she is, she responds she is a teacher and she’s going to teach them something they will be tested on. In the final clip Yoko teaches them not to threaten children, class dismissed, her final line is "you fail".
I just love the episode and look forward to the US release coming next month from Bandai Entertainment.
Almost forgot, my contest model is in the video too! Enjoy!

Competition Yoko on Scooter

2008-06-04T23:46:00.000-07:00

I built this figure for an international contest in the far east. Hopefully it will do well. I call this model "Believe in Me". One of several memorable catch phrases from Gurren Lagann. Sculpted by Vispo. The model was painted with acrylics and lacquers. The model does not include a left sideburn, which may be true to the anime, (she looses it somewhere around ep20 for reasons not clear to me). I found it made the sculpt look too awkward for my taste. I sculpted a new left sideburn and incorporated it into the model, draping it over her left shoulder. I feel it gives more balance to the face and shows less ear. I also sculpted Boota to ride in his favorite place. (comic relief). There is a magnet in her right hand and a corresponding magnet in the top of the rifle scope. She can easily hold her weapon and it can be removed if the model is transported. She sits on a large pin so the figure can be separated easily from the scooter for transport. Two round rhinestones were used for the auxiliary lights on the handlebars. Her jacket is a dark purple that looks almost black in the pictures. The emblems on the jacket were airbrushed to accentuate the flame effect.
The base contains the batteries and flasher circuit (which I built from a simple, inexpensive kit). Two switches on the front of the base control the lighting effects. One for engine and hover domes, the other for lights. There are a total of eleven LED's in the scooter.

2 headlights (white)
4 taillights (two red, two yellow)
2 in the hover domes (blue)
2 in the engine compartment (red flashing)
1 in the dashboard on the handlebars (white)

Saber

2008-06-02T09:07:00.000-07:00

While I was building this figure it occurred to me that this is the same jaunty pose we see her more commonly in her blue and silver armor leaning on her sword. I thought what a come-down this would be for a warrior. Then I thought, Saber would probably be a crumby maid. The comic potential then dawned on me. She's a lousy maid, but hasn't lost any swagger or bravado.
So here's my lousy maid Saber, striking a triumphant pose! Ah, look behind you my dear!

Anime Model Mix 4 and 5

2008-05-27T22:02:00.000-07:00

New stuff. Finally.

1/4 Yoko by Pearl

2008-04-28T21:53:00.000-07:00

Finally got one of these masterpiece sculpts. A great kit! Lots of painting fun! Great pose, though some may say the face is "off". Enjoy!

Isoroku Yamamoto

2008-04-23T22:42:00.000-07:00

These are links to a nude figure. My latest commission work.

http://img297.imageshack.us/my.php?image=img0970xa0.jpg
http://img174.imageshack.us/my.php?image=img0974iv2.jpg
http://img214.imageshack.us/my.php?image=img0975yb8.jpg
http://img174.imageshack.us/my.php?image=img0976ss8.jpg
http://img246.imageshack.us/my.php?image=img0977pz8.jpg
http://img186.imageshack.us/my.php?image=img0978iz4.jpg

Miku Again

2008-03-27T21:35:00.000-07:00

Here's another nice video I found. Seems to run smoothly. Hope it does for you.

With all my interest in Hatsune Miku, I think you might be able to guess whats coming in the resin kit genre. Wink, wink,

He Is My Master

2008-03-25T21:30:00.000-07:00

Sawatari sisters finished, sorry Anna. Standing figure is sculpted by Bubba and the seated figure is from Cerberus Project.

Izumi Sawatari, Fan Service

2008-03-20T20:49:00.000-07:00

Izumi on a temporary base, I have her sister and plan to put them booth on the same base.

Video Sculpting and Painting Tutorial

2008-03-19T14:22:00.000-07:00

This is a fascinating 9 part Youtube video series on making an anime figure from concept art to painted figure. This is part one from a long running series on Fuji TV. The other eight parts are easy to find on Youtube. This is a great watch of some amazing talent. Enjoy!

Kousaka Tamaki

2008-03-13T23:34:00.000-07:00

1/8 scale fan service. Enjoy!

Doing the Right Thing

2008-03-13T11:23:00.000-07:00

I saw two examples of doing the right thing today. One was buried on the back pages of SI.com and the other,I was told, was the NY governor resigning. One was shoved in my face, the other I stumbled on accidentally.
If they are both the right thing to do, why do I feel good about one and not the other? In one instance I am watching a seasoned politician say" look at me, look at me! I'm doing the right thing and resigning!" In the other I find no fanfare, no credit taking, yet I am by far more moved by the Cleveland Indians than by Spitzer.
The answer is choice. The Indians are not a wealthy baseball team. They will probably be unable to sign their ace pitcher after the '08 season because of money. Yet they CHOSE to re-sign a seriously injured minor leaguer so that they could pay all his medical expenses and get him back to a normal life. The governor's choice came back in his Washington hotel room. NOT at his resignation press conference as his speech seemed to imply.
I learned something today, that is- when I don't feel right about somebody telling me they did the right thing- look at the choices. Doing the right thing means doing it when nobody is watching. NOT when you have no other options.
Don.

Reference:
http://www.cleveland.com/tribe/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/sports/1205397215219180.xml&coll=2

1/4 Belldandy

2008-03-03T22:05:00.000-08:00

Bell in swimsuit.

Miku Reloaded

2008-02-29T19:51:00.000-08:00

Couldn't resist this action sequence. Not a perfect character swap, but most entertaining. For those of you who don't know Miku, she's known for waving a leek, (a type of onion) when she sings. She's cute, computer generated, far from an action hero, but she's probably a better actor than KR. Anyway, I thought this was a hoot. Enjoy!

At Last an Update

2008-02-28T20:06:00.000-08:00

A few kits I've done and a cute Miku video. Some nudity.

Vampirella

2008-02-07T11:19:00.000-08:00

A rare non-anime kit I recently finished.

Sagittarius III, Yuki Nagato

2008-02-01T12:58:00.000-08:00

Admiral Nagato on the bridge. ATTENTION ON DECK!

Fun Little Video

2008-01-29T17:22:00.001-08:00

This is a computer generated voice and character that has become very popular in Japan. Although there is no anime series or manga she is based on. She has spread in popularity pretty much by the internet and word of mouth. Hatsune Miku.

My Newest Video-Anime Model Mix 3

2008-01-22T22:51:00.000-08:00

V1046R

2008-01-22T12:08:00.000-08:00

aka Mahoro. Finished. Original cell from the anime for the backdrop. You may notice the eyes are different from the cell eyes. The eyes on the figure are her calm eyes. The eyes in the cell are her - I'm about to kill my boss eyes. One of my favorite animes, although it has a sad ending. Kit by G-Dome.

Ren

2008-01-18T23:35:00.000-08:00

Sent to me by a commissioner. Maker unknown. Ren from DearS. Enjoy

Priestess

2008-01-13T17:33:00.000-08:00

Just finished this commission. 1/8 kit by T's System. http://members.jcom.home.ne.jp/tssystem

Cloverfield

2008-01-08T13:44:00.001-08:00

Lots of buzz and secrecy about this flick. Hope it lives up to the promotion campaign

Iron Man

2008-01-05T21:16:00.000-08:00

You never know what film makers will do when they get their hands on comic character franchises. I can only pray that they will do better than Batman or Superman. Might be a fun movie or it might be trash, only time will tell. I must admit I like Robert Downey,Jr. I have a softspot for all people who make a come back from unfortunate life experiences.

Iron Man - Trailer

Happy New Year

2008-01-04T10:39:00.000-08:00

This is my first new figure of 2008. I hope you like it. Its a kit by G-Dome that was done for the summer WF 2007 in Japan. They can be found on Yahoo Japan. I use the Rinkya deputy service. Here is G-Dome's website. http://www5a.biglobe.ne.jp/~g-dome/

Happy Holidays

2007-12-21T10:35:00.000-08:00

Been Busy

2007-12-19T21:28:00.000-08:00

Lest ye think I've forgotten my blog..... the workshop in my backyard was built when I moved in to my current house about ten years ago. Its where I do all my airbrushing and rattle can painting. There is a paint booth with exhaust and a natural gas space heater. The one thing it hasn't had was insulation. I finally broke down and invested in some fiberglass insulation and have been installing it. But if you've ever tried installing insulation in a building already in use, you know its a painful tedious process. Thats where I've been spending most of my time lately. I have completed a few small projects, working on several commission pieces, and did a piece for a contest. The contest piece I'm not allowed to show on the internet until after the contest. The other stuff isn't quite photo ready yet.
So in the meantime here's another video I did awhile back, just eye candy for fun. Hope you like it. Enjoy and seasons greetings to all.

Fate Finished

2007-12-02T22:13:00.000-08:00

Here's the result after final assembly.

Parts Painted

2007-12-02T14:52:00.000-08:00

Here are the parts for the Fate kit ready for final assembly. A combination of five minute epoxy and superglue will be used, depending on the purpose.

Final Primer Coat

2007-11-29T12:58:00.000-08:00

The putty was sanded smooth and the final primer coat applied. White was used on skin areas.

Correcting Defects

2007-11-26T22:40:00.000-08:00

Parts for the Fate kit are inspected and a red auto glazing compound is applied.

Festival Beauty

2007-11-19T22:11:00.000-08:00

Sorry I haven't updated in a few days. I've had a commission I've been struggling with awhile. Due to poor castings and poor parts fit this one has been in the works for months. When I finally got her to the point where the finish line was in sight, I sprinted over the last few days. This is the final outcome.

Primer

2007-11-13T23:29:00.000-08:00

All the seam work and parts assembly needed prior to paint have been puttied and sanded. So it's time for the first primer coat. These prep steps seem dull (they are), but they are vital to a successful end result. Generally speaking, I usually spend more time in the prep phase than the actual painting.

This is the Fate Stay Night character. Mahoro is mine and not a commission. So she is delayed.

Since this work is kind of dull, I'll show you another video I did that illustrates the use of LED lighting effects in anime kits. Enjoy

WIP 2 and WIP 3

2007-11-10T10:10:00.000-08:00

The next two WIPs I'll do together. One is a character from Fate Stay Night and the other is Mahoro in combat suit. The washing, trimming and fittting have been done and the parts are pinned together. Next I will putty joints and remove seamlines.

The Finished Figure

2007-11-07T11:38:00.000-08:00

I carefully assembled the figure using epoxy and superglue. Since she is a commission and needs to be shipped, I have not glued her to the seat. That is why she is not sitting squarely on the seat.

Subassemblies

2007-11-07T02:01:00.000-08:00

Here are the subassemblies ready to be put together. I have made a simple white base of sufficient size to mount the figure.

Head and Radio Complete

2007-11-05T16:57:00.001-08:00

Face

2007-11-05T00:34:00.000-08:00

These are the steps in doing the face. The eyes and mouth get a gloss coat after they are finished.

Radio

2007-11-04T10:52:00.000-08:00

I wanted an antique look for the radio. I did some careful masking and sprayed MrColor silver and gold. I then used a dark enamel wash thinned with lighterfluid to age and bring out some detail.

Clothing

2007-11-04T00:23:00.000-07:00

After the skin has been painted, we proceed to mask off the skin areas in preparation to do the clothing. Using a painting reference photo, I selected a pale blue and a pale yellow for the base colors. The cushion will get the same colors.

After the blue has been painted I masked for the yellow.

A darker transparent blue and a darker transparent yellow were used to shade the parts. A clear semigloss laquer sealed the work. I also painted the radio. I started with a rust red base color and shaded it darkly with transparent brown. I sealed the radio with gloss laquer. I am going for a 40's~50's antique look.

Flesh

2007-11-03T10:38:00.000-07:00

When painting figures, I paint from deepest layer to outermost layer. By this I mean skin first, followed by underwear, shirt, jacket, etc. Paint as if you were dressing the figure, or dressing yourself.
I select three flesh tones.
A base color.
A shade color.(darker)
A highlight color.(lighter)
The parts that will be flesh are coated all over in the base color. The shade is painted in folds, depressions, and at junctions with other parts (like clothes). Highlights are applied to raised areas, dumps, muscles, cheeks, etc. I then go back to my base color and mist a thin coat of base, to blend the surface. I will sometimes place areas of pinkish tones to indicate blush.
Once I am satisfied with the skin tones, I seal the work with flat laquer.
Here are the skin parts painted. I have used a transparent black on the chest to simulate a see-thru effect.

Next Step

2007-11-01T22:37:00.000-07:00

The first coat of gray primer primarily serves to expose the defects in the surface of the kit. Things like seam lines, air bubbles, pinholes (also small airbubbles), and casting defects need to be exposed and corrected at this time.

For this step I use red auto glazing putty. I keep a jar of soupy putty thinned with laquer thinner for this purpose. I apply the thinned putty to the defects and rub it into the pinholes wherever needed.

Once the red putty has dried, I use 320 wet/dry sandpaper to sand the putty smooth. The parts are now ready for the final primer coat.

The final primer coat serves as a base for the color coats. It provides a uniform surface for the color coats to grip. Without primer, most paints will not adhere to resin. After 24 hours the figure is ready to paint. As you can see, I prefer white primer for the parts that are girl and gray for non-girl parts. The white will allow a brighter more natural looking paint job, IMO.

Anime Model Mix

2007-10-31T13:14:00.000-07:00

Here's a video I did of some of my earlier work. Hope you find it entertaining.

WIP 1

2007-10-31T12:09:00.000-07:00

This is a cool retro/future figure I'll do a work in progress series about. The figure has been soaked in a degreaser for about a week and then washed in Dawn dishwashing liquid and dried. The seams and pour gates have been trimmed and sanded. The parts are fitted together and pinned using nails or paperclips, whichever is appropriate for the part size. Fit problems are corrected at this point. The joints are closed using plumber's epoxy putty (the dark gray stuff you see on the ends of the arms and legs). The parts are washed again and dried. They are now ready for the first primer coat. I will use gray auto primer.

Current Affairs

2007-10-30T11:36:00.000-07:00

I've got about six commission pieces in the works currently. I'm working my way through a stack of commissions that has sadly, and much to my disgust, taken far too long to complete. I took on far too many commissions in my first year of work. Mostly out of a desire to make them all happy. When I get through the current batch I plan to cut back on acceptances, now that I have a better idea of how much I can handle. Here are my last three.

First Day

2007-10-29T21:04:00.000-07:00

Today I'm creating a blog to muse about life and to document some of my garage kit adventures. I primarily specialize in anime, and girl kits. But, I have experience in all areas of garage kit and model making in general. I hope to make this documentation as entertaining and educational as I can, but bear with me. This electronic medium is new to me. Don.