I *SO* want this, but the price ....

[Martijn Meerts]

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10201680

[Tecchan]

Gorgeous indeed!!

But for a paper kit it's a bit expensive imho!! ^^,

[bill937ca]

But at THAT price why only 12 per household? 

[clem24]

Gorgeous indeed!!

But for a paper kit it's a bit expensive imho!! ^^,

 

It's not paper.

 

Gorgeous model and I was floored when I saw it. I have a feeling there will be few takers for this kit. Will wait for it to go for 50% off hehehe.

 

On a somewhat related note, these Ghibli releases are supposed to "limited edition". But is it just me, or do you find these limited kits are actually easier to get then their non-limited kits? Or by limited edition, do they mean that they do only 1 (huge) run and then no more? They just don't seem very limited edition to me. Looks more like a marketing gimmick.

[Hobby Dreamer]

But at THAT price why only 12 per household? 

 

Made my day Bill !  Very funny !!!

[Martijn Meerts]

Gorgeous indeed!!

But for a paper kit it's a bit expensive imho!! ^^,

 

It's not paper.

 

Gorgeous model and I was floored when I saw it. I have a feeling there will be few takers for this kit. Will wait for it to go for 50% off hehehe.

 

On a somewhat related note, these Ghibli releases are supposed to "limited edition". But is it just me, or do you find these limited kits are actually easier to get then their non-limited kits? Or by limited edition, do they mean that they do only 1 (huge) run and then no more? They just don't seem very limited edition to me. Looks more like a marketing gimmick.

 

They do re-runs of them as far as I know.. I have all the Ghibli releases by them so far, and I'm fairly certain 1 or 2 of the older ones came back in stock after several months.

 

I have to say, even at that price, I'm VERY tempted to order it...

[nik_n_dad]

I have to say, even at that price, I'm VERY tempted to order it...

 

We have some swampland  i mean waterside resort opportunities available as well   

[Tecchan]

Gorgeous indeed!!

But for a paper kit it's a bit expensive imho!! ^^,

 

It's not paper.

 

What is it then?

Sankei kits usually are paper and this one is marked as a paper kit.

[keitaro]

i have been wanting to do a good spirited away layout and been waiting for this but ..... for the price it's not going to happen.

 

If it was plastic i'd pay that much i can forr see a world of dissapointment in stuffing that up in construction.

[Martijn Meerts]

What I wonder, is how does it hold up in the long run.. You can't just spray a clear coat because the paper is likely going to warp. I also wonder if it's doable to light it without any light shining through the paper...

 

The problem with a plastic version (which Sankei could easily do considering the can use the same laser cutter and same CAD drawings they use for the cardboard version), is that you'd have to paint it yourself. With the paper version, all the parts are pre-colored and you really don't need any paint at all.

 

I look at the kit several times a day, always hovering the mouse over the 'reserve' button several times :)

[keitaro]

i would most def buy a plastic one.

 

i wouldn't mind painting it.

[Martijn Meerts]

Well.. I caved...

 

Ended up ordering it from HLJ (http://www.hlj.com/product/ske84713), quite a bit cheaper there, although still bloody expensive :)

 

Something I could do (and which I've been considering for other Sankei kits) is take measurements of all the parts and hand build a version from styrene sheet. Lots of work, but might be worth it.

[disturbman]

I'm not sure plastic would really have any advantages over those "paper" kits. I have two kits I must have done 2+ years ago and they are holding very nicely. I'm not seeing any ageing or warping. They look exactly like when I build them.

 

The only difference is that they look much nicer than similar plastic kit, details are finer. Greenmax kits I did at the same time are not in similar shape. I must have blotched up the glue job.

[cteno4]

The sankei kits do have very nice design and the layered nature of their construction makes them very sturdy and much less prone to warping than usual cardstock kits. it also brings in those little details like moulding around windows and doorways that is needed to at N scale as its right at the visual perception edge and printing those details in 2D many times can look flat at N scale.

 

also they use a very nice high density chipboard for this stuff thats is designed for this sort of model use and also lasercutting use. A friend makes architectural models and uses this stuff and says it really holds up very well.

 

only down side i find with the sankei kits is being careful glueing to not get glue on visible surfaces (once its there it wont come off) and painting and weathering is a bit more problematic. ive meant to try and use some very light coats of dull coat to try and seal them up to be less prone to humidity changes and allow easier for weathering and painting if needed.

 

ive made a few little clip clamps (hairclips taped to a block of wood) to hold walls while glue is drying and am working on making a nice set for future projects as i found them really helpful. ill post the results and happy to make a few extra if folks want them. little hair clips are great for these paper buildings where you need just a bit of pressure to hold something while glue is drying. bits of styrene or lego blocks work well to hold stuff as well while glue is drying if using pva glue as it doesnt stick well to the plastic and can be popped off.

 

they look good next to plastic buildings. they are a bit crisper than plastic building (no curved edges), but the layering helps soften this. best if you can do something like a tree to help not have them butt up against each other visually, but with a tad of weathering no problems.

 

i agree the detail is on par or sometimes crisper with the sankei chipboard kits than with similar plastic models. only time plastic has a big edge is in a few things that need a lot of texture like roofs or really curved surfaces, but not a lot of buildings need a lot of this and they do a great job of using colors to their advantage to trick the eye. Ive often wondered if sankei would come back with plastic and etched metal upgrade kits to buildings to give them those little extra bits that paper cant. seems like a good niche biz for a garage biz in japan and i bet someone somewhere is doing it and only selling to a couple of hobby shops! with 3D printing its even easier to do this sort of little specialty biz. would be perfect for the spirited away stuff with all its quirky details and fans wanting the uber perfect model!

 

cheers

 

jeff

[Martijn Meerts]

There are clear coats that don't warp paper, if sprayed on carefully. You'll want the higher quality stuff used for paintings. Once that's on, it should be fairly safe to do some weathering.

 

The one thing with these Ghibli kits though, the buildings in the anime usually aren't very weathered, so it'd be quite reasonable to just plop them down as is.

 

I did notice they have most (if not all) the older Ghibli kits still in stock at HS, so I might just give one a go and if I do mess up I can still get a replacement. I just need to find some high quality glue to use, I haven't built anything from paper since kindergarten just about =)

[ianlaw]

I've found that the ordinary glue stick works fine for pasting together large surfaces (if one or both is card) and white wood glue applied with a tooth pick for other things. Wood glue sets fast enough to just hold items together for a short while until there is a bond. I do my sankei kits and scratchbuilds that way.

 

Ian

[Martijn Meerts]

Do you thin the wood glue at all, or just use it as is?

[cteno4]

best to do the dull coats thin even with artist fixatives. my sister in law does a lot of art and has found that her art paper can wrinkle some with heavier coats of fixative, so multiple light coats worked out much better.

 

i had contemplated doing one kit by spraying the parts first on both sides to seal well before assembling. was wondering if it would make it easier to get off any goofs with glue w/o staining the chipboard.

 

I liked using the medium tacky glue (just tick pva white glue) on the last kit i built and liked it. was easier on small edges to get the glue to stay where i wanted it w/o running/dripping. also seems to have a minimum of moisture in it.

 

jeff

[disturbman]

I used plain white carpenter glue and a thin or very thin brush to glue those kits together. I also used small metallic clamps to hold the layer together while drying.

[Martijn Meerts]

Jeff, multiple thin coats is always better than a single thick coat, regardless of which surface you're spraying on. Just gives you a much more even surface. Whenever I airbrush something I usually end up doing 4 or 5 light coats, depending on the colour of the surface I'm spraying. It may sound like more work, but a thin coat dries up within seconds, so in the end you'll end up using less time than when spraying a single thick coat.

 

 

I'm gonna have to try the white glue, never really though of using that for paper :)

[ianlaw]

I don't thin the wood glue. Adding water to paper and card is not a good idea.

[cteno4]

martijn,

 

yeah totally agree and always try to do the same myself, but its just with the paper/chipboard you cant get away with cheating like you can with plastics. sister in law warped a couple of chalks from spraying a tad too much too in a couple of coats. she was learning. luckily most went out when pressed in to frames and glass on the good one, but you can still see a couple of wrinkles!

 

i think i want to try a kit by pre spraying both sides. this may be the best protection for humidity. still something i fear here in dc, we have huge swings. i think the sankei chipboard has a lot of clay in it which helps keep it from soaking up humidity and keeping stiff, but still over the long haul. but hey even styrene can warp with time! i guess the solution is all brass!

 

see if the craft store has "tacky" glue. its just thick white pva glue. much less moisture it seems, drys fast and holds parts in place better than the regular thin white glue. also seems to be fewer boo boos, but that might have been just more experience on my part! i use tooth picks and just tease it along the glue surface.

 

Cheers

 

jeff

[Martijn Meerts]

I really should get a cheap(-ish) Sankei kit to try some things, I want to order a couple of RG Gundam kits anyway :)

 

Humidity here is a problem as well, and up on the attic where the train room is, it can get really warm during summer as well, so some protection would definitely be nice.

 

And yeah, styrene will warp over time as well, and might even warp easier because it's quite sensitive to heat. Some of the baseplates of my TomyTec buildings have warped pretty bad already.. Actually, they just came pre-warped :)

 

 

I read a (machine translated) bit about the Spirited Away kit, it seems like they've made the roof plates 3d as well rather than just print a roof tile pattern on it. That's actually my main issue with the kits I have so far, the roofs look pretty terrible and flat :)

[Hobby Dreamer]

Martijn,

 

Good idea about testing a kit first! 

 

What are your plans for this kit? Will it be part of your layout or a showpiece? If the former, how are you planning to integrate it into the layout?

 

It seems expensive but it probably took a lot of development time and is likely to be a slow seller so you will have an unique piece. I'll bet for warping that you can reinforce part of the structure..

 

Its a beauty with a lot of detail and colour!

 

Rick

[cteno4]

ohhh i wonder how they textured them and if they are still chipboard? guess you could press the chipboard. you can do some laser etching with the specialty chipboards for the laser cutters, but ive only seen pretty geometric things like mortar lines. there was one my friend had that he could change the color it changed by the energy setting on the laser.

 

yeah i started with the little police station as my first just to figure out how they do things. Was great to do this as i found one thing to make sure to label each piece as you remove it as some are just a tad different than others with the wall layering and easy to goof and use the wrong one. layering the walls too takes a little getting use to. im also thinking on a couple of the larger roofs using some popsicle sticks to keep them from sagging in the long term. maybe im paranoid!

 

cheers

 

jeff