Fodder weapon parts?

[visher]

I'm planning on upgrading a few of my zoids with some new weapon parts, guns, missiles, etc., and was wondering where one could obtain such fodder material.
Are there any sets that are cheap and come with lots of weaponry? Not just within zoids, but any model kit franchises that are 'zoid-sized'?
If not, are there any ways to make them yourself? I have a vague idea on making gattling guns, but other kinds of weapons?

[Chuckles]

I won't say it's cheap, but EX Garantula definitely has a nice assortment of weapons to choose from. Guysack and Godos have a smaller selection of extras, but they're definitely more affordable. Elephander's extra equipment is also a lot of fun. Also, most of the small blox kits serve as additional weapons for larger zoids.

Outside of the zoids CPs, I know Macross and Gundam models tend to sell additional weapons kits.

[Maethius]

There is an eBay store or two that specializes in Warhammer 40k bits, and several of those kits contain excellent large and small weapons for Zoids. Also, you can find kits such as 1/72 through 1/144 scale ordinance kits for modern aircraft, or built or damaged Gundam models. One source that can't be overlooked (well, it can...) are toy lots with handfuls of small parts and weapons. Recently I started looking into G.I. Joe weapon lots; some work well with Zoids (watch the scale, though!) but other can require quite a bit of work to build something compatible.

Oops! I have to add another source I neglected... thrift and dollar stores! If they don't have old and used toys for pennies on the dollar, you can always buy yourself a set of super cheap pens from the office isle. Some of those pens have very interesting shapes or contours that make excellent heavy artillery systems (pens are pretty large, about the size of a CP-07). I've used several pen tips for booster engines, as well... I can get 10 pens with chrome plastic or steel tips for the price of a single Gunam milled steel booster online.

[visher]

Thanks for all the help, I'll look into these .
The CP-03 Beam gattling unit seems pretty nice, although the cheapest I could find was $30 on eBay. Are there any cheaper places to get them?
So how about missile pods? Are there any specific sets that come with lots of them, or are there any ways to make them cheap yourself, like with guns?
For a size reference, I'm planning on adding the weapons to my Berserk Fury.

[Chuckles]

Sorry, but most CPs are getting harder to come by since they are no longer being produced. That said, the CP-16 Assault Gatling can give you both a gatling AND a large missile pod. Other plentiful missiles can be found on the CP-06, CP-26, and CP-23. The 06 and 26 should still be kinda cheap, while the 23 is most easily obtained with a Fuzors Kongi Wolf MkII, if you can get a good deal on one. The Buster Eagle is also a good source of individual missiles, rockets, and bombs.

Oh, and I forgot to mention it earlier, but the Armored Core model kits also have upgrade packages with nifty weapons and shields, and they come in 1/72 scale, just like the zoids.

[Maethius]

/agrees with Chuckles

Armored Core are expensive, though, like HMM Zoids (go figure... same manufacturer, quality, and size!)
You can get parts-only kits like Kotobukiya's M.S.G. line: Hobby Tool Store, or Rakuten. But for Zoid weapons they are still kinda limited. There's always sheet/tube styrene, too. And never underestimate your local hardware store.

As for creating easy missiles... I suppose that depends on what level of detail you are looking for. I missile launcher is just a big box for missiles to stack in until they are launched... not much detail there. Open ended so you can see individual rounds of ammo? You could use a Lego and sand the name off, making the pegs smooth, then paint. That's some detail. Lately I can't make a missile box without having the ordinance completely removable... that's a LOT harder!

Here are a few of my customs using missile launchers:

Siege Tortoise build link


Dreadwing build link


Storm Heron build link

Each of these has a different style of missile; Siege Tortoise has missiles in a box (internal), Darkwing holds missiles on pylons, and Storm Heron secures them directly to the wings with hard points and torpedoes are held in cradles. My latest build has an actual externally mounted 5-shot heavy missile launcher, it it was a minor pain in the butt to make.

For the missiles themselves, there is also some variety; Siege Tortoise uses ballpoint pen tops with articulating fins, Dreadwing just has painted Ray Kong missiles, Storm Heron has Buster Eagle missiles (the supports cut out so each of the double missiles becomes two stand-alone missiles) and some heavily customized Cannon Spider rounds, and my latest build uses slightly modified Salamander rounds.

[zodd]

^ You make me sick.

<--jealous.

[visher]

I guess I don't really mind if the missiles aren't removable I just need missile pod etc. So some pen parts would work well for missiles? How about if I want to make smaller pods? Are there any other small sized household items that work well as missiles?
I've been finding those Kotobukiya Weapon Unit sets on AmiAmi, and they seem pretty cheap. However, idk what the scale for those are. Most seem to be 1/144, but I've been reading around and some people say they work on 1/100 kits as well. Does anybody have any of their own, or know more about these?

[Maethius]

Visher-
Scale is what you make it; people use 1/144 missiles and cannons on 1/72 Zoids all the time. Heck, G.I. Joe 1/18 weapons make it onto Zoids... just change the scale. Armored Core weapons are VERY common in Zoid customs these days; the scale seems to work well. For smaller missiles you can get creative with a little work. If you have a Dremmel tool, it can be fast and easy, but you could try smoothing those thick, round toothpicks. If you get those cheap boxes of 20+ pens from an office supply store, you can go through the (very) messy process of using pliers to yank out all of the brass ballpoint nibs, which make excellent missiles. However, have some paper towels nearby, some toothpicks, and some mineral spirits or thinner. You'll need all of those things to scoop out the ink from the nibs and wash them out. I've also been using tiny capacitors from blown circuit boards (provided by a local repair shop) for missile clusters:


Hellstorm build link. Capacitor missiles are in the wing pods in the right photos. They can be set individually or, in this case, the cluster was Crazy Glued together. I left them unpainted because I liked the raw metal look, but I might paint them in the future. My current custom in progress has a recessed rack of these as well.

Zodd-
After about a thousand hours of building customs, I hope my skills have improved somewhat.

[Xehn]

armored core weapons on zoids, the scale works because the scale is the same to begin with.