Sairou Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 This came in the post today, after I paid a £25 import VAT to Parcelforce to receive it. I'd been waiting for these kits to come back into stock on HobbyLinkJapan (I also got another larger kit). Overall, I'm impressed. Some parts of the instructions will be translated using Google Translate, but generally these Bandai kits are a pleasure to build, so I might not even need the extra information. A nice instruction book, with drawings. A very comprehensive painting guide. In my opinion, a good instruction booklet can really make a kit. I miss the older Tamiya-style instructions, where they'd have drawings of uniforms, and diagrams of the vehicle. The car parts... ...and a very blurry photo of the figures. Included is a digital camouflage decal, which can be cut on provided templates and used on the uniform of one of the soldiers. As with most Bandai kits, there are multiple plastic colours on the sprue. I will of course be painting them. The faces are nicely moulded, and should paint up well. The equipment sprue impressed me. I love the Wehrmacht style. Also, all of the weapons have slide-moulded barrels, even the pistols. Considering some modern kits don't even do this, this is pretty good. here is the other kit- I couldn't be bothered to take photos of the sprues, because the box is seriously packed with them. This kit is similarly high-quality, and the vehicle itself is huge. I'm excited to get started on these kits. I'll start with the smaller one, though. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LotusArenco Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 It doesn’t have the translated instructions for this particular kit, but this site is worth having in your favourites list. http://www.mech9.com/p/translated-model-kit-color-guides.html Mart 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete in Lincs Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 Lucky you. I love the hover truck, it works out at about 35 pounds so not too bad. I'm tempted. I've only built the Zeon scout a few years ago and I don't think I needed to use glue at all! The hover truck was shown on BM rebuilt as a multiple rocket launcher a while ago and looked fabulous. Good luck with the builds. I'm not jealous at all. Well, maybe a bit. 😄 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sairou Posted May 1, 2018 Author Share Posted May 1, 2018 1 hour ago, LotusArenco said: It doesn’t have the translated instructions for this particular kit, but this site is worth having in your favourites list. http://www.mech9.com/p/translated-model-kit-color-guides.html Mart Thank you Mart, this should be useful. 57 minutes ago, Pete in Lincs said: Lucky you. I love the hover truck, it works out at about 35 pounds so not too bad. I'm tempted. I've only built the Zeon scout a few years ago and I don't think I needed to use glue at all! The hover truck was shown on BM rebuilt as a multiple rocket launcher a while ago and looked fabulous. Good luck with the builds. I'm not jealous at all. Well, maybe a bit. 😄 Ah, I remember this build- very impressive. I did a bit of research into this kit, and had it backordered for about a year. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sairou Posted May 1, 2018 Author Share Posted May 1, 2018 Couldn't resist working a bit on this model. It goes together very nicely indeed. The figures were interesting to build. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thud4444 Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 Great work. It's weird to see the team without Bernie or Al. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sairou Posted May 1, 2018 Author Share Posted May 1, 2018 2 minutes ago, Thud4444 said: Great work. It's weird to see the team without Bernie or Al. I am by no means well-versed in Gundam at all, and haven't seen the OVA this set is from. If you can point me to any resources, I'd be thankful. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thud4444 Posted May 2, 2018 Share Posted May 2, 2018 (edited) I'd be happy to. Unfortunately this series isn't available via Gundam Info. It is on YouTube, just with subtitles. While technically a prequel, it is a stand alone story so you should be fine. BTW this was the first Gundam series I ever saw way back in the 90s on VHS. My wife refuses to rewatch it, she says it's too depressing. To qoute Forbes, " Its a heartbreaking masterpiece." Here is an English translation of the Japanese trailer. Here is the slightly more spoilery US television ad: Here is the first half of the first episode : Edited May 2, 2018 by Thud4444 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thud4444 Posted May 2, 2018 Share Posted May 2, 2018 The other kit you have is from a less soul crushing story. The Japanese love Shakespeare, so why not Romeo and Juliet Gundam? It's actually a lot better than it sounds. This was one of the first shows to focus on grunt units. While 0080 was the first to show the war in shades of gray instead of black and white. Orginal Japanese trailer in English American tv trailer 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Rose Posted May 2, 2018 Share Posted May 2, 2018 Nice! Those Hard Graph kits are really cool, will be watching with interest 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sairou Posted May 2, 2018 Author Share Posted May 2, 2018 Thank you Thud, I'll check those out when I have a spare evening. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sairou Posted May 2, 2018 Author Share Posted May 2, 2018 More progress. I hope to get this airbrushed over the long weekend. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted May 3, 2018 Share Posted May 3, 2018 Great looking vehicle 👍 ... But why do i see traces of Kubelwagen or VW Thing in the lines of the car. Again great work. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete in Lincs Posted May 3, 2018 Share Posted May 3, 2018 Form follows function? I've only seen this in the artwork, so nice to see it in the plastic. I'm looking forward to the painting stage. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sairou Posted May 4, 2018 Author Share Posted May 4, 2018 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Misrule Posted May 4, 2018 Share Posted May 4, 2018 I love these kits, go together well, look great and scale with conventional military kits If you can score the M61 Tank for a reasonable price I highly recommend it, absolute joy to build. They are not cheap, but they are massive when finished. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sairou Posted May 5, 2018 Author Share Posted May 5, 2018 On 03/05/2018 at 19:40, Corsairfoxfouruncle said: Great looking vehicle 👍 ... But why do i see traces of Kubelwagen or VW Thing in the lines of the car. Again great work. I got that too. I might have to pick up a Swimmwagen to display alongside it... 14 hours ago, Misrule said: I love these kits, go together well, look great and scale with conventional military kits If you can score the M61 Tank for a reasonable price I highly recommend it, absolute joy to build. They are not cheap, but they are massive when finished. It certainly looks good. I've found the cheapest way to get these kits is to order via HobbyLinkJapan, and even when shipping costs and income tax gets you, it works out less expensive. Buying in bulk is the way to go. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted May 5, 2018 Share Posted May 5, 2018 On 01/05/2018 at 17:22, Sairou said: This came in the post today, after I paid a £25 import VAT to Parcelforce to receive it. I'd been waiting for these kits to come back into stock on HobbyLinkJapan (I also got another larger kit). Just a quick question about the £25 import charge. I recently ordered a load of Armoured Cars from HOBBYJAPAN - via AMAZON. I got a note from the post office saying there was a £17.45 import charge to be paid. I paid it - but contacted Amazon to say there was no mention of this anywhere during the order process. HOBBYJAPAN came straight back and said 'oh sorry about that - send us a photo of the documentation and we will issue a refund'. I nearly didn't bother - but I did feel a bit 'cheated' - so I did. Were you aware you would need to pay this charge when you ordered... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sairou Posted May 5, 2018 Author Share Posted May 5, 2018 12 minutes ago, BIG X said: Just a quick question about the £25 import charge. I recently ordered a load of Armoured Cars from HOBBYJAPAN - via AMAZON. I got a note from the post office saying there was a £17.45 import charge to be paid. I paid it - but contacted Amazon to say there was no mention of this anywhere during the order process. HOBBYJAPAN came straight back and said 'oh sorry about that - send us a photo of the documentation and we will issue a refund'. I nearly didn't bother - but I did feel a bit 'cheated' - so I did. Were you aware you would need to pay this charge when you ordered... No, I wasn't. Last time I didn't have to pay the charge, only that £17 charge because Customs rifled through it. The charge came from Parcelforce. Do you think I should email customer support? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LotusArenco Posted May 5, 2018 Share Posted May 5, 2018 There’s a bit hidden away in the Amazon deliveries help area about ‘the recipient being responsible for fees’. Never been ‘caught’ myself, but it’s something to keep in mind when ordering from overseas. Amazon should perhaps make it a bit more obvious, and highlight this during the checkout process. Mart Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted May 5, 2018 Share Posted May 5, 2018 49 minutes ago, Sairou said: No, I wasn't. Last time I didn't have to pay the charge, only that £17 charge because Customs rifled through it. The charge came from Parcelforce. Do you think I should email customer support? I must state it WAS THROUGH AMAZON and HOBBY JAPAN - not 'Hobbylink' Japan - if there is a difference... If you still have the paperwork I would make a claim - basically saying you feel 'cheated' - 25 quid is another decent model after all. As I said - they put up no excuses or tried to blame Amazon - they just coughed up and issued the refund to my Amazon account within a few hours - as if it is something they have 'experienced before'. BTW - I would have been paying Parcelforce - but I wasn't at home - so I had to go to the post office to pick up... just found my filed claim on Amazon... "No disclosed customs charge- : -I ordered these items in good faith and at no point during the order process what it mentioned that a customs charge would be levied on delivery. I have had to pay an extra £17.45 to the post office to receive my goods. This extra charge - on top of the order value makes these items ridiculously expensive. Frankly I feel 'conned' by this transaction and blame Amazon for not making it clear at the point of order." ...rant over 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sairou Posted May 5, 2018 Author Share Posted May 5, 2018 5 hours ago, BIG X said: I must state it WAS THROUGH AMAZON and HOBBY JAPAN - not 'Hobbylink' Japan - if there is a difference... If you still have the paperwork I would make a claim - basically saying you feel 'cheated' - 25 quid is another decent model after all. As I said - they put up no excuses or tried to blame Amazon - they just coughed up and issued the refund to my Amazon account within a few hours - as if it is something they have 'experienced before'. BTW - I would have been paying Parcelforce - but I wasn't at home - so I had to go to the post office to pick up... just found my filed claim on Amazon... "No disclosed customs charge- : -I ordered these items in good faith and at no point during the order process what it mentioned that a customs charge would be levied on delivery. I have had to pay an extra £17.45 to the post office to receive my goods. This extra charge - on top of the order value makes these items ridiculously expensive. Frankly I feel 'conned' by this transaction and blame Amazon for not making it clear at the point of order." ...rant over Seems like good service on their part. HLJ do explain in their FAQ that most countries have import taxes. I was just surprised mine was so high. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Misrule Posted May 6, 2018 Share Posted May 6, 2018 As I read it if your stuff is less that £20 you don't get charged, or if it is marked as a gift. Though I guess if you order from a business it'll be hard to say it's a gift from a friend or relative. If its more its a 20% base VAT on whatever you have, plus a rather unfair charge for checking. Been about £8-9 for my last couple but it could go up to £11 I think if you are unlucky. If you are buying a few small things it may work out better to send them separately so the total value is less than £20 per package. More postage but no customs charges so can work out cheaper. If you buy big things I just group them, its an expense but at least it is only once. HLJ does a private warehouse service which helps a lot when it comes to grouping items for postage, good sturdy boxes too! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sairou Posted May 6, 2018 Author Share Posted May 6, 2018 19 minutes ago, Misrule said: As I read it if your stuff is less that £20 you don't get charged, or if it is marked as a gift. Though I guess if you order from a business it'll be hard to say it's a gift from a friend or relative. If its more its a 20% base VAT on whatever you have, plus a rather unfair charge for checking. Been about £8-9 for my last couple but it could go up to £11 I think if you are unlucky. If you are buying a few small things it may work out better to send them separately so the total value is less than £20 per package. More postage but no customs charges so can work out cheaper. If you buy big things I just group them, its an expense but at least it is only once. HLJ does a private warehouse service which helps a lot when it comes to grouping items for postage, good sturdy boxes too! I also used the Private Warehouse, I will make sure my next order is large enough to justify shipping/customs fees. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sairou Posted May 6, 2018 Author Share Posted May 6, 2018 Finally got this primed today. I painted the underside Field Blue, which I like, the body JGSDF Olive Drab, and some other interior parts Khaki Drab. With the basecoats laid, I assembled a few parts, ready for some highlights on the OD. The picture quality on this is awful, sorry. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now