Shipment 6 is IN!

Shipment 6 is IN!

The Japanese are very efficient. I requested shipment on Thursday and got this on Saturday! This time the shipment contains mostly UNCLAIMED kits... Contents: SAFS, Gustav x 2, Krote x 3, Jerry x 2, Fledermaus x 2, Hornise, PKA, Heinrich, Neuspotter, Raptor, SAF, Melusine, Kangaruh resin conversion plus 4 Ma.K books!!! With only the Melusine, AFS, PKA, SAFS and Kangaruh reserved, the rest are fair game... Good news is that Gustav & Raptor prices are coming down, while the rest are pretty much stable.

i will post the prices up pretty soon..

Lobots in My Living Room

This is my shoe cabinet, at the entrance of my apartment.
This is the only place I can put my robots in the living room.
I used to put them everywhere but now that Ashley is around, I cannot put them where she can reach!
(From left to right)
Ma.K Fledermaus, 1/100 Nu Gundam, MG ZZ Gundam, Hobbyfan resin trophy, MG GP03 Gundam, SD Nu Gundam, SD Sazabi, Ma.K Fireball, Ni-Nu gasaphon, SD Underwater Trio. The golden bust is my wife's.

Here's another shot.

My Lobot Room Part 3

More Pictures of my robots...
This shelf holds all my HGUC GMs, I collect all the different variants.
On the left is an MG GP01.

All my HGUC/HG Gundam, Gun Tank and Gun Cannon variants.

Mazinger, old Gundam ZZ, and a Gundam Wing from my friend which started my Gundam hobby...

My wife's collection of Japanese toys

I gave her some shelf space to be fair and so that I can buy these shelves...

house

restaurant

additional furnituretons of dolls

My Lobot Room Part 2

Here's the other-most shelf. I will see it first thing when I enter the room.

Top level: All my smaller Zakus, Goufs and my personal favourite,
the Geara Doga, in their HGUC, SD, and gasaphon forms.
Whenever I like a particular robot, I will try to collect all the different formats.

Middle level: HGUC Titans mechs. I have the O, Palace Athene, Asshimar and the random Hazel gasaphon. Where are the rest of the Titans like the GM and Hazel? They are in the building phase now and all in pieces (for the time being)

Lower level, my Eva collection, Patlabor and the odd Gasaraki kit...
Thats all for today... :)

Dainaka

Dainaka was the first person I got to know (IIRC) thru emails when I just came into the Ma.K forum. He gave me a free Fledermaus (shipping included!) all the way from US to Singapore, as he informed the rest of the forum of the Nadef competition but did not wish to participate in it.
Blew me away with his generousity! He even gve me additional photo-etched screen wipers to use for the Fledermaus and scanned instructions for me to start early.
Helped me alot throughout the build, offering color scheme advice and sharing with me how he'd gotten into Ma.K. Now where on Earth can you find a guy as helpful as him !!

Fantastic guy, I strive to be generous and helpful like him!

Oh, did I mention that he build awesome Ma.K as well? Just take a look at his Snake-Eye bis
and his WIP of the SAFS-R Raccoon and Marine SAFS Kraken.
I have much learn from him...

Dai, Thanks!!!!

My Lobot Room Part 1

I was trying to find old pictures of my lobot room to show Primer but somehow I was unable to find them. And so I decided to take new photos of my lobot room. Pardon the messy room, its kinda like a store room for Ashley's toys and my models.

All 4 Ikea shelves in one corner of the lobot room...
I am still very much a Gundam guy even though I've been deeply poisoned by Ma.K.
I collect mostly HGUC with some MG here and there...

My work table (converted TV console from Ikea). The brown elevated flooring is actually storage for many of my model boxes and magazines.. This room is supposed to be neat! You will recognise the table as the one used in my Ma.K reviews. I don't usually do my models in this room cos there's no entertainment. I do models on the coffee table in my living room.

First shelf Top: Zeta and Advance of Zeta stuff...

First Shelf Top level: Zeta and Gundam Sentinel. Plus 1/35 MaK Figures from Hobbybase.

First Shelf middle level: Neo Zeon and Zeon Mobile Armour.
You can see that I love the Neue Ziel and I have the HGM, SD, gasaphon versions...

First Shelf Lower level: All my lovable Zeon underwater mechs... Mostly snapfitted

First Shelf Bottom level: More Zeon and Neo Zeon forces with a lone HGUC NT1 Alex Gundam...
Not enough space ...

2nd Shelf Top: Doms, Rick Doms, Dom Tropen and an MG GM Kai

3rd Shelf Top Level: GP02, Armored Core and my WOOB2 entry, the MG RX78 Ver Ka G3 Colors (won the fabulous LAST place!)

4th Shelf Top Level: I am a Zaku fan... MG Zaku 2 (my first finished MG) and Zaku F2, Pyscho Gundam behind and Kampfer on the side...

Stay tuned for more... Gotta get some sleep... :)

Mass Bidding Service at Yahoo Auctions Japan

See all the shipments of Ma.K models and want to get a box yourself? I
offer a Mass Bidding service at Yahoo Auctions Japan to help you get the Ma.K kit you want, at reasonable prices:

General Requests
1. Email me what Ma.K kit you want and the maximum you are willing to pay for the kit. Please be specific! : )
2. I go for bargains at YAJ, and once the 30 days of storage at SMJ is up or the size of the package is big enough, I will ship back and kits prices averaged out so that everyone will get the same price for that kit for that shipment
(eg. Gustavs will be $XX for this shipment). So be patient and be prepared to wait for your kit.
3. Prices are final/non negotiable.
3. When the items are in and I am ready to ship, I will email you with the shipping amount.
4. (overseas members) I use registered mail and is insured, to ship to you and I will give you the shipping amount to our country before I ship. Use paypal to transfer the amount for the kit + shipping. (SG members meet up at MRT stations after working hours only and can use Cash on delivery exact amount pls)
5. (overseas members) Once I receive the paypal, I will then ship the item to you and give you a tracking number.
6. (overseas members) Shipping is at your own risk, not mine.
7. For kits that are not sealed, cellophane will be removed from all kits and the contents checked before shipment. If you want to leave the cellophane intact, then contents insidare are at your own risk.

Private Auction Requests
1. Email me what you want and the maximum amount you are willing to pay for the kit.
2. If you have a particular auction you want me to watch/bid, you can do so.
3. I have no liability if I lose the auction, I do have a life and dun sit in front of the computer all day.
4. All private auction requests require a 30% deposit to paypal upfront.
5. As soon as I win a kit, i will email you and I expect full payment. Failure to pay within 3 days means the kit goes to the next person on the list or is then up for general sale (offered to the forum).
Even if the request is for everything on the list to be secured before shipment is made.


Finally, I reserve the right to choose whether or not to deal with you.
Once you dishonor any transaction, you will be blacklisted and I will not deal with you anymore.
I take it that 99% of you guys here understand what I am trying to do. This is to protect me from the 1%.

Added:
1. A "non-compete" exclusion for the forum members whom are based in Japan. Simply put, if you live in Japan and are looking at an auction at YAJ that you don't want me to touch, just send me a mail.
2. This service is for fellow modellers ONLY, not for scalpers who buy, then mark up the price to sell elsewhere. If I suspect/find out, straight to the blacklist and I reserve the right to expose you everywhere!

SMJ's rates and sample transaction
To prevent any misunderstandings plus to add transparency, I've added this section.
SMJ's rates: http://shoppingmalljapan.com/generalfees.html

Sample transaction
Winning bid = 5000yen
+ internal shipping 610yen = 5610yen
convert to USD (see rates on SMJ) = $57
+ commission to SMJ $12 = $59
+ wire fee $2.50 = $61.50
Therefore the item will be $61.50 USD
Finally we add the shipping back to Singapore and we get the total cost of the item.
So an item 5000yen does NOT mean $USD50!
Hope this helps!

Why use my services?
1.Save on shipping items together. From experience, shipping from Japan to me per item is around $3 for small Nitto boxes and up to $10 for large Fledermaus. As well as sometimes I get multiple kits in one auction, so we save on internal shipping as well as SMJ commissions.
2.I track prices and shop only for good prices so you don't end up with crazy prices' kits.
3.Same time zone as Japan (relatively) so that I can snipe auctions. It will be tough to stay up for you on the other side of the globe.
4.I average out the prices so no one pays extra...
5.Shipping from me is cheap (just try shipping EMS from Japan to you using SMJ services once and you will see!)
6.I am handsome... (this is OT lol)

I've already sold hundreds of kits since April 2008 and so far everyone whom I've dealt with is happy...
Lastly, my email address is cyberwill75@yahoo.com

Sk362 Oskar (Modelkasten)

Another one of my favourite kits, the Oskar is my only Ma.K kit which is from Modelkasten and has resin parts included inside. Truly a multi-media kit, this features pieces of vacuum formed parts, one for the hull and the other for some parts, resin for the weapons and hull details, Neuspotter head and my favourite Eddy Amsel figure. This kit includes 2 different resin guns for the Oskar, a cannon and a linear gun. Won this kit also after a big fight at YAJ where it surfaces sometimes.
Take note that as the box is quite shallow, the 'bumps' on the main hull are often dented inwards. Fortunately for the kit I won, its only a slight dent. The bottom of the hull is not provided so need to scratch build.

The Strahl came up with the Oskar to save costs as the Neuspotter's anti-gravity unit costs a lot to produce and its also possible to give it heavier armament.

Details
Scale: 1/20
Type of material : injection molded, multi-media, khaki colored plastic, vacuum formed parts, resin parts
Number of parts: ? in many sprues
Decals: yes
Instructions: yes
Overall quality: Very good, virtually no flash
Overall accuracy: Accurate
Date of release: 2003
Release price: 9600 yen (price from HLJ)
Current Running price in YAJ: 11020 yen - 20500yen !!!

Pictures

box

contents

camo card front showing the different types of guns used. I like the top camo more.

camo card back

decals

instructions front

instructions back

Thoughts

I really really love this kit, even more than the Gans or the Krachenvogel. Don't know why, could be the hull which is very cool but I've never built anything like this before. From the Ma.K picture book, it lost a fight with a Gladiator, but I believe its just as powerful. I am saving it until the last to ever sell when I need to sell...

PRIMER

Got to know him when he bought a Gustav from me in my first attempt to sell kits online.
The thing I remembered fondly was that he commented that both of us are Christians and if I didn't ship the kit to him (he paid me in advance), he would bug me in heaven! lol
He is a warm guy and asked me whether the quake in China affected me, as at that time two major disasters, one being the quake in China and the other the typhoon in Myanmar occurred.
We also chatted on our Ma.K hobby and how we should, being Christians, view it in the eternal time frame.I really enjoy connecting with him and getting to know him more.
He is new to modeling (so he says) but his skills are very good, just take a look at his AFS WIP here.

Truly a humble person with incredible photoshop skills ...
And also another fanatic like me, we just compared our stash, and I was the one coming out impressed by his buying power! :)

Well PRIMER, model on and let's keep connecting, brother!

Shipment 5 is IN!

SMJ sent me the parcel on the 4th of July, the Japanese post was very efficient and the parcel arrived in Singapore on the 6th. After a long wait for processing, I finally got the parcel delivered to my house on the 10th. I was not in the house, so they left a delivery advice for me. I got it redirected to the post office near my house and went to collect it with my kid Ashley...

Here's Ashley taking my delivery advice and my identification card at the post office..

She inspects the package to see if its ok and the box is in one piece... So young and such an expert!
Then the child instincts kick in and she starts using it as a drum! Don't worry, the kits are fine! :)

Back at home, here are the contents... its not such a big shipment as the previous two... I will contact the buyers shortly...
Contents: Fledermaus x2, PKA x3, Kauz x2, Prowler, Gustav, AFS, AFS MkII x2, Heinrich, Fliege, Kubrick Mak, Junkyard & Hobby Space HAFS Jerry (resin), SAFS, Manga book with robot battle illustrations inside.

Oskar Review coming up!

Stay tuned for the Oskar Review! Coming up very soon after I finish taking some more pictures of the parts.
Also in the works ...
Fliege, Prowler, and more!

Will

SK602 Land Gans

Finally I've gotten myself around to posting the review of my first Ma.K walker. It was and is still, my favourite walker in the SF3D/Ma.K universe. First caught wind of it in the modeling video and immediately fell in love with it. Realized that it cannot be found in Singapore in 2007, decided to check out Ebay/Yahoo Auctions Japan. Found that the price of one is in excess of 150USD!!! Well, first time I've ever bidded on Ebay for anything, was for this kit, and it went all the way up to 215USD. I gave up at 180USD cos that was just plain crazy. Finally got one at Yahoo Auctions Japan, and that was after a bloody nose fight of a bid which the other bidding parties gave up at 186USD, and that's before shipping.
Anyway back to the review, this is a WAVE issue of the Gans, land version. I read somewhere that only 2000 was made. Not to be confused with the space version. (There is a space version as documented by Ma.k in Action which is even rarer and contains resin parts. Even if you see this in YAJ, you can forget it because it went for in excess of 20000yen)
This kit is basically the Neuspotter head mounted on the Krote body, with a few additional parts and 6 rocket tubes.

The Gans was an AI unit and used by the Strahl for reconnaissance and attack purposes.

Details
Scale: 1/20
Type of material : injection molded, multi-media, khaki colored plastic
Number of parts: ? in many sprues
Decals: yes
Instructions: yes
Overall quality: Very good, virtually no flash
Overall accuracy: Accurate
Date of release: Jan 2005
Release price: 4800 yen (price from HLJ)
Current Running price in YAJ: 8000yen - 14100yen !!!

Pictures

Box

Box opened showing all the glorious stuff (Sorry I did not take pictures of individual sprues)

Camo card front

Camo card back

Decals (I really like the pumpkin head!)

Instruction manual front

Thoughts

I haven't build mine yet, but looking at the instructions, it looks a bit complicated to build. Very happy with the parts detail and such, my only gripe with this kit is the construction of the rocket tubes. Instead of giving us beautiful brass tubes like in the Nitto Krachenvogel kit, WAVE made 2 halves of rocket tubes for us to glue and sand. Imagine the huge ugly seam line to sand per tube. Also, I would appreciate if they could include an Eddy Amsel or some figure which this kit lacks. All in all, this is still THE kit to get and its one of my personal favourite. Hopefully WAVE or some other company would reissue it as one is definitely not enough for me!

Nice people : Igor57

I got to know Igor57 thru the Nadefu competition. We both participated in it and I was a bit late into the competition due to myself being a very last minute person. :)
He was very nice and offered great advice as well as encouragement both in my WIP thread as well as private message (pm).
He shared with me details of his build even though we were both competing, this made me feel that the competition was more of a group-build which was good... Igor prodded me every few days, asking me about my progress as well as sharing to me about his family and background. I dare say I won't have the motivation to complete the kit without encouragement from him and Dainaka (another great person!)
Igor is a fantastic scratch builder, just see some of his works:
Raubwespe (Predator Wasp) for the Nadefu competition
Gustav AG
Banshee
After the competition, Igor brought some Ma.K kits from me as I brought a few extra Ma.K kits for myself. From there he provided me the inspiration to start bringing in kits for the rest of the forum as a form of service... Continued to provide me advice on dong business online and is also currently my biggest customer! lol
Easy going is what I can describe from my impression of this man, and generous too, offering his knives as prizes for the forum competition.
Igor, I couldn't have come so far in Ma.K without you!

Nice people I've encountered in my adventures in Ma.K

For me, modeling is not just about making models. I really enjoy meeting people with the same interests and getting to know them.
In the Ma.K forum, I've encountered this group of people with very diverse background, age group and nationality. Two things they have in common, one is the love of Ma.K, and the other, is that I am really glad that I get to know them. :)
In this series of short entries, I would like to introduce them... It could be you! lol
(I will use nicks instead of real names to protect them from their partners/parents who might not appreciate the hobby.)

Stay tuned!

SAFS MkIII A8/R8 part 2 of 3

SAFS MkIII A8/R8 part 2 of 3
Here is the resin WIP of the SAFS MkIII A8/R8. Unfortunately, I only have part 2 of 3... Enjoy!