The MaK Attack Thread

[Real G]

Chromdome35 inspired me to post pics of a kit I have had siting around for some time:



Some potted history in the inimitable MaK lingo:



I had given the model a quick spritz of Mr Surfacer before taking it to a local model meeting:







There is still a lot of big and small cleanup to do, including filling in Hasegawa's good intentioned but misguided attempt to replicate the sink marks in the scratchbuilt original.

I don't think I'll be modding the kit much, just replacing an engine air outlet with some diamond mesh PE screen and adding some wiring.

[tcoat]

That is very cool indeed.

[chromdome35]

Nov 29, 2023 13:52:55 GMT -5 Real G said:

Chromdome35 inspired me to post pics of a kit I have had siting around for some time:



Some potted history in the inimitable MaK lingo:

I had given the model a quick spritz of Mr Surfacer before taking it to a local model meeting:

There is still a lot of big and small cleanup to do, including filling in Hasegawa's good intentioned but misguided attempt to replicate the sink marks in the scratchbuilt original.

I don't think I'll be modding the kit much, just replacing an engine air outlet with some diamond mesh PE screen and adding some wiring.

Looks great!

This kit is on my list of Ma.K that I want to build. How do you think you'll paint it?

[deafpanzer]

Brian can be a bad influence sometimes... I always wanted that kit! You definitely have my attention and you are off to a great start!

[Real G]

Chromedome35, I am leaning towards “Salamader Sieben”, with the dark green forest camo and the weirdly non-handed “eyes”.

Deafpanzer, the Hasegawa kit is relatively straightforward to build, with no real “gotcha” snags to deal with.

MaK can be infectious. But I tried for almost 40 years and have only one convert among my friends to show for it. And he joined in only because he loves mud, dust, paint chips, and rust.

[stikpusher]

This thing reminds me of the Trade Federation tanks on Naboo in The Phantom Menace

[dukemaddog]

LOL! Way back when as a gag gift in a Christmas exchange on another Forums, someone gave me a 1/72 scale model of this same tank. His note did say it was 1/72 scale and it was armor which I had asked for, so he sent it. And yes, I did build it.

[Leon]

That looks really cool! Need to add that to my Sci-Fi collection.

[Real G]

Nov 29, 2023 16:13:01 GMT -5 dukemaddog said:

LOL! Way back when as a gag gift in a Christmas exchange on another Forums, someone gave me a 1/72 scale model of this same tank. His note did say it was 1/72 scale and it was armor which I had asked for, so he sent it. And yes, I did build it.

Dora the Explorer:  "Have YOU ever got a 1/72 sci-fi tank that looked like a shoe?"

Boots:  "I have."

Dora the Explorer:  "Meee tooo!"

[armornutii]

  Pretty cool Neal, may I ask next pic ya have a jar of paint so I can " judge" scale.
  Wondering about what size the finished product will be keeps me from dipping my toes into Mech or KM. offerings are VERY COOL but not sure they are a scale I'm comfortable with. Neat looking none the less.

[chromdome35]

Nov 29, 2023 19:09:46 GMT -5 armornutii said:

  Pretty cool Neal, may I ask next pic ya have a jar of paint so I can " judge" scale.
  Wondering about what size the finished product will be keeps me from dipping my toes into Mech or KM. offerings are VERY COOL but not sure they are a scale I'm comfortable with. Neat looking none the less.

Most of the MaK stuff is in 1/20th scale. There are a few 1/35 kits out there.

If you look at my thread on the Krote, the TET bottle should give a pretty good idea of size.

[Real G]

The little 'Nut is actually 1/76 scale and is small, around 5-1/2".  The big one in primer is around 12".

[armornutii]

  Uh ho I feel a fool and his money might be parted. Noooo mu....sssstttt rrrreeeeessssiiist.

[kyledehart5]

How cool is that? I love it. Fun looking tank, thing hover shoe? Lol

[406 Silverado]

I'm IN!!! Can't wait to see what you're going to do with the paint and weathering on this one Neal!!!

[dukemaddog]

Nov 29, 2023 20:17:04 GMT -5 Real G said:

The little 'Nut is actually 1/76 scale and is small, around 5-1/2".  The big one in primer is around 12".

Interesting. Mine was listed as 1/72 scale. That's why I built it.

[stikpusher]

Now how many of those Matchbox and Airfix armor kits have you built Mark? I believe that those are all actually originally 1/76, or at least the Matchbox kits were.

[dupes]

I did the 1/76 Nutrocker quite a while back...I always wondered why that's the only kit Nitto did in that scale?

[Tojo72]

Now that's pretty interesting.

[Real G]

Dupes,

I think it was a case of "If it fits in the box..."  The 1/76 Nutrocker came in the same size box as the 1/20 powered suits.

When I bought my first MaK kit (SF3D Original back then), I had a look at the Nutrocker and thought "Where are the guns on this thing?  And why does it look like a shoe?"  I bought the SAFS because it looked like the toughest powered suit of the bunch.  The other "German" Strahl suits looked sort of dopey with their enormous glass canopies.  But after I built the SAFS, I did go back and bought a Strahl Gustav suit.  And thus my lifetime MaK addiction began. 

[Real G]

Nov 29, 2023 20:40:48 GMT -5 armornutii said:

  Uh ho I feel a fool and his money might be parted. Noooo mu....sssstttt rrrreeeeessssiiist.

Be very, very careful Perry!  MaK can grab ahold of you when you least expect it.  Kinda like the Spanish Inquisition.  And NO ONE expects the Spanish inquisition!!!  MaK's chief 3 weapons are surprise and fear.  Fear and surprise.  And a nearly fanatical devotion to designer Kow Yokoyama.

Particularly vulnerable is the armor community.  Once they start weathering a MaK model, something goes wrong in their brains, and they start...liking it.  Like root beer.  It's so...bubbly.  Just like the Federation.

Insidious.

[dukemaddog]

Nov 30, 2023 15:21:27 GMT -5 stikpusher said:

Now how many of those Matchbox and Airfix armor kits have you built Mark? I believe that those are all actually originally 1/76, or at least the Matchbox kits were.

In truth: All of them from each company. Sometimes I even did multiples if there were captured versions or Lend Lease.

[Real G]

More MaK arrives at the House of Krab:





Ah Olaf, I remember him well.  His service since the early Nitto SF3D days have not been forgotten.

[deafpanzer]

Now that’s pretty cool addition!!!

[chromdome35]

Nice!

There is something about these MaK kits that just resonates with me.

[Real G]

I think their clunkiness and lack of missiles and guns give them a retro charm. But that kind of retro never happened in the anime universe. I think the MaK look bridges the worlds of anime and reality, to bring us a unique experience.

Or perhaps it merges armor modeling with anime designs. Wow, now that I think about it, MaK was really ahead of its time! Because right now, armor weathering has driven a resurgence in interest in anime mecha. But MaK already did it in the 1980s. And all without a single anime!

I think that’s why I like MaK - because it has a unique flavor that no other mecha series has. Plus you can weather the crap out of them!

I’d better get back to scrubbing the Nutrocker’s hull and get it ready for paint.

[Medicman71]

It's become a popular subject. It really hasn't appealed to me as of yet.

[chromdome35]

Feb 9, 2024 22:22:26 GMT -5 Real G said:

I think their clunkiness and lack of missiles and guns give them a retro charm. But that kind of retro never happened in the anime universe. I think the MaK look bridges the worlds of anime and reality, to bring us a unique experience.

Or perhaps it merges armor modeling with anime designs. Wow, now that I think about it, MaK was really ahead of its time! Because right now, armor weathering has driven a resurgence in interest in anime mecha. But MaK already did it in the 1980s. And all without a single anime!

I think that’s why I like MaK - because it has a unique flavor that no other mecha series has. Plus you can weather the crap out of them!

I’d better get back to scrubbing the Nutrocker’s hull and get it ready for paint.

Well said, I think it is that relationship to Armor modeling that drives my interest. I am not that into the Gundam models, but I love the Ma.K kits. Not sure why, but for me, they conjure mental images of alternative WW2 endings.

[Real G]

Right now, it's a golden age for us modelers, as subjects we could never have dreamed about in the past are becoming reality.  While wonderful, it can also be a source of aggravation when you really want something, decide it will never be kitted, then embark on a lengthy journey to modify or scratchbuild a model only for a brand-spanking new injection kit to be announced as you are close to completion.

The first time that happened to me was when I took an old Testors/Hawk V-1 buzz bomb and tore it apart to make it as accurate as I was able.  Upon going to the local model club meeting, I proudly presented my creation to exclamations of "Oh wow, how did you get the Tamiya kit so fast?"  Tamiya kit?  What the heck?!  At least I was not alone in this respect, as one club member in particular seemed to have been cursed.  He built vac-forms and hideously expensive resin kits of aircraft subjects that appeared as injection molded kits mere months after completion.  Maybe he was "that guy" that had to take the hit for the team.  I particularly remember his vac Jill torpedo bomber and resin Tigercat.

Anyway, over 25 years ago I really, really, really wanted a MaK Falke.  A MaK forum that I participated in started a Falke scratchbuild GB, which I eagerly joined.  I was fortunate to secure the two major models required to make the Falke, a 1/24 Toyota S800 and Revell 1/32 P-38.  Having a number of other guys doing the same project helped, as we could exchange information and solve problems.  One guy even offered up CNC machined "fly swatter" stabilizers to the group.  Things were going pretty good for such an ambitious project, but it all came to screeching halt when - you guessed it - Hasegawa announced an injection molded kit!

So now I have yet another Closet of Doom derelict:











At the time of abandonment, I thought that there would be no real reason to continue with the project, but I am having second thoughts now.  Actually, I am trying to get myself to muster up some juju to restart the project.  Some friends are prodding me to make something to take to a model contest, and the Falke seems like "low hanging fruit" since it is substantially finished.   What do you guys think?

[mz3]

Do it!!!