Search the Community

This is JPG Production's 1/12 Viper Probe Droid, scaled to fit in with their previous Gonk and Chopper releases, as well as all the Bandai droids. It's a resin garage kit and, as such, is a little rough in places and some of the details are more approximations of the original than exact copies. I swapped the rather crudely formed arm actuators for metal tubing on mine and added some generic details to the arms and body. The ball sensors on the head were re-built using acrylic beads since the kit parts were rather poorly shaped, and the sensor lenses were removed and replaced with red and clear resin ones. It also features one of Warren's excellent lighting kits, available from Tirydium Models. Thanks for looking Andy

Thought I would try out JPG's new Bespin Landing Pad resin kit. It has been designed to complement the Bandai Vehicle Series Falcon so gave me a good excuse to finish one I started a while back. The Landing Pad comes as 4 resin pieces plus a number of greeblies for round the outside and some resin lights, unfortunately they don't light up and the base has not been designed for F/O. There is an electric tea-light and red film for the windows on the round section. I had already started to light the Falcon which now has front running, engines, cockpit and underside landing lights. Need to tidy up the base and paint it then add a bit of weathering to the Falcon. Cheers, Warren

Finally managed to get my Gonk Droid to a stage where I am happy with him (had a slight nightmare during build that is covered in my build thread, but also a very luck recovery). He still needs a proper display base where he can be with BB8, but for now I'm calling the done. thanks for looking, Leigh

A quick weekend build of JPG Productions' new Galaxy Quest 1:72 Scale Surface Shuttle. A simple kit with 13 cast resin parts, the largest being the base. The Shuttle parts are nicely cast and quite thin. The 6 main shuttle parts go together well with only a small amount of filler needed. So after about 2-3 hours of work over the weekend I ended up with this. Thanks for looking.

Star Wars Gonk Droid & MSE Droid 1:12 JPG Productions via Tirydium Models Star Wars – a little known film from the 70s that helped Harrison Ford make a name for himself as Indiana Jones. Yeah, I know, but do I really need to tell you about Star Wars? Didn't think so. Anyway – what's a Gonk Droid? During Star Wars, when Android Laurel & Hardy (Threepio & Artoo) are held captive by the Jawas, you see this weird Icebox on legs wandering about then and in other scenes later on, which makes an electronic sound that's reminiscent of the word "GONK!". Even though it was a rather bit-part character without any other lines, it seems to have become a bit popular along with the little mouse-like droid that Chewie scares the bejeezuz out of when he's on the Death Star in binders, so why wouldn't we want a model of them both? The Kit This is a newly tooled resin kit by JPG Productions that is being imported by a friend of mine, and possibly yours to - Warren Monks of Tirydium Models fame, who creates lighting kits for Sci-Fi and other models, as well as parading about dressed like a Stormtrooper whenever he can find an excuse. He looks quite normal in his civvies, if you can believe that! Moving on… The kit(s) arrive in a cube of a box, with all the parts held safely in a couple of ziplok bags suspended in green foam S shaped snow, the result being a totally undamaged model, despite a trip across the Atlantic, and another by the Royal Mail. Inside are just a few parts, but they're rather nicely moulded and free for the most part of any casting blocks – just a few remainders of the injection gates that will respond to clean up nicely. As usual, take the precaution of wearing a mask when cutting or sanding resin, as the tiny particles are harmful to your health if breathed in. Washing the parts in warm water will also improve the adhesion of paint, as there may still be some moulding release agent on the parts when you receive them. The Gonk Droid is made up from top and bottom halves, with a central flange between the halves that is inscribed with BOTTOM on the lower side. There is a recess in the bottom that accepts an insert with a pair of leg sockets cut into it. The legs are one piece each with a nicely moulded corrugated pattern that hid the operator's legs (yes, they weren't real droids), terminating in a pair clumpy feet that have grooves cut around the outer edge, but not the inner. Here the mould has worn a little and the groove is a little ragged, but that can be cleaned up with a razor saw or similar. There are also a few bubbles in the legs, as you would probably expect, but they can be cleaned up by inserting some rod and trimming that back to flush. A little bit of time that will be consumed, but the rest of the model won't take you long at all. There are two resin hoses that come out of the rear of the feet and go up into the body, and that's everything. Just add paint and weathering for effect. The MSE "Mouse" Droid is similarly simple, with one exception. The body is one part, with two skateboard-like trucks that just glue underneath in a pair of recesses. On top there are a number of short rods at the front and back of the horizontal deck, which are replicated by cutting 3mm lengths from the supplied metal rod. This part is coated with green paint, but it quite strong, so make sure you use some appropriately tough cutters, and sand the ends flat after cutting. Your other option would be to get some similar styrene rod and cut then fit the rod with CA, sanding the tops level when the gluer is set. That's it! Markings No decals are provided, but there don't seem to be any on either vehicle. The Gonk semes to be a grubby and chipped grey/brown, while the Mouse is a very dark grey and a lot cleaner. Of course you can get creative with the colour scheme if you aren't modelling a film prop/suit, but keep a look out for their appearance in The Force Awakens, as they're still in service all those years later. Conclusion A cool and interesting model from the Star Wars background cast, and it should be a pretty quick build, with the painting taking the most time to get right. It won't blow the bottom out of your wallet either, which is good news. Extremely highly recommended to anyone with even a passing interest in Star Wars, and a must-have for any of us with some Bandai 1:12 figures in the cabinet or stash. Review sample courtesy of

Just had the heads up from Jimi at JPG Productions that he and Nicholas Sagan are close to finalising a 1:350 scale version of the EF76 B Escort Frigate which we know better as the Medical ship at the end of Empire Strikes Back and more recently in Rogue One. It will be about 36" long (about 90cm) and consist of about 100 parts. More info here. http://www.modelermagic.com/?p=89268 Cheers, Warren