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Post by chris514 on Mar 5, 2016 22:31:30 GMT -5
So I got to thinking about collecting some of the HMM zoids and finding a nice way to display them and I figured a hangar scene might look great on a shelf. Of course this leaves the question of what to use for the hangar? Well I found this, but it is made to a different scale and personally doesn't quite match the quality of an HMM model at all. Not even close. www.amazon.com/ZOIDS-MD001-Zoids-diorama-hangar/dp/B00D8RWC62Now the quality issue is easily solved by paint and maybe some modifications, but my main concern is could I even use this thing with an HMM zoid seeing as how HMM zoids are at a 1/72 scale and the line this is made for are at 1/144 scale? Or would it only work for the 1/144 scale models it was designed for? If I can't use it for the 1/72 then does anyone have any other recommendations? I see some other similar items listed on the page by Amazon so I will be taking a look at those too. If I could get some advice from anyone who maybe has this particular piece or has already done something similar that would be great. I'd also love to see pictures if anyone has them of how they have their zoids on display so I can get a variety of ideas to draw from. |
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Post by chris514 on Mar 5, 2016 22:36:28 GMT -5
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Post by Hanyoutai on Mar 5, 2016 23:08:02 GMT -5
I don't have the bases but I've got some HMM and MSS Zoids so maybe I can help? Here is the HMM Fire Fox next to the MSS Command Wolf. Long story short: Both bases are too small on their own. The second base is a better choice. HMM Zoids are pretty sizable. Fire Fox is 5 inches tall (at the tip of the gun). A Schneider is 6 at the tip of the blades. So, assuming you want something Liger sized as an average, you should account for about 6 inches of height and 10-12 inches of length. The Koto base is perfect height wise, but would need a second set to be long enough. The Koto base comes in detached squares that you assemble yourself. You can buy multiple sets and chain them together to create whatever dimensions you need. A second base would be long enough to account for most HMM Zoids. You can also build the walls up taller to extend the height. I'm not sure how many walls it comes with? One base may just be the one wall and floor, but someone who has it can give a clearer answer. |
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Post by chris514 on Mar 6, 2016 1:17:30 GMT -5
Hmm... Maybe doing a hanger scene might be easier with MSS zoids then. At least that Tomy hanger can work for two small MSS Zoids or one medium one. Though that leaves the question of how the MSS Zoids compare to the HMM. I doubt very seriously that they would have nearly as much detail or articulation, but I suspect we are talking considerably better than the old Hasbro Zoids. They also have a bit of a different variety of Zoids in that set.
I don't know though. How would you rate them in terms of detail, articulation, and variety of availability? Honestly they kinda look like they offer a wider selection of the more generic and less popular Zoids like the Godos, but not so much in terms of the more popular ones like the ligers and such. I think the Shield Liger, Command Wolf, and Saber Tiger are the only ones of the more popular Zoids that line seems to have.
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Post by Hanyoutai on Mar 6, 2016 5:57:05 GMT -5
You will still probly need multiples, since MSS are around 4-6 inches in length. You can maybe squish some up against each other but it will be pretty crowded on just one block. I like MSS a lot but they have pros and cons like any series. Articulation: Really nice. Link | Link | Link | Link | Link | Loose Parts: An issue shared by MSS and HMM, a lot of parts are loose. Saber back equip drives me insane for NEVER staying on right. A lot of people have complaints about the back legs of their MSS Zoids not staying on. The joints are small so it's hard to avoid. If you don't mess with them all the time, this might not be an issue. I didn't have the problem with my 1st Shieldy, but did with the MK II. A lot of people report the same problems with most of the quadrupeds. HMM has more parts and thus more loose parts, but there's never a concrete consensus with fans over what is or isn't stable. Experience varies too much. Small Parts: Umm ... I mean really small. Not all the parts are this tiny, but a few. Number of Parts: Actually more than most motorized kits. Shieldy has 205, Hammer Rock 109, Saber 170, etc. I think the lowest is Sinker with about 76 and that's still on par with most average motorized. Details: MSS are very detailed for their size. They even include pre-painted details. None of my kits are painted or have stickers, so those pipes and stuff are all details that come painted with the kits. Here are some pics showing off some of the finer details. Link | Link | Link | Link | LinkDiaroma Bonus: Some of the basic Zoids come with diaroma bases to display them on. I think this is just the basics. Like, Shieldy and Saber come with them, but not Shield Liger MK II or Great Sabre. Moooaarrr pics. Link | Link | Link | Link | Link | Link* The Sinker base doesn't come with LEDs ((none of them do)), I just had a flashlight under it for effect. Selection: There are only a few MSS Zoids. The reason they are lacking so many 'popular' Zoids is because they are more focused on the OJR / older models. Back then Ligers were not in the spotlight nearly as much. |
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TFWDraven
Lieutenant
I think you're called Milford Cubicle.
Posts: 322
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Post by TFWDraven on Mar 6, 2016 7:56:17 GMT -5
 Kotobukiya chain bases are perfect for displaying Zoids. This uses 6 of them. |
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Post by chris514 on Mar 6, 2016 11:35:24 GMT -5
Yea the chain based do look really nice, but I see they don't make them anymore (or at least I saw them listed as discontinued in a few places) and they are still stated as being designed for models between 1/144 and 1/100 scale.
I am keeping an eye on the Kotobukiya bases, but I want to explore more options before I settle on one.
I would love to find something like this actually designed with 1/72 scale models in mind and maybe some 1/72 scale bits to add on like maybe fork lifts moing crates of ammo or parts around or something.
From what I remember of the show and box art for all the old models it always looked like apart from the actual Zoids the rest of the technology used by the humans in planet Zi seems fairly comparable to what we have in the real world apart from a few things like the cloaking device on Bit's truck. So I would imagine a zoid hangar would have a lot of the same kinds of things you would expect to see in a real hangar. Except maybe for some robotic apendages dimming out of a wall or two.
So I imagine they used things like fork lifts on planet Zi still.
I think the only reason the Zoids can have such high tech weapons and equipment compared to all of planet Zi's other technologies is likely because they can draw power from the Zoid's core. We actually do have some of these technologies in the real world, like railguns, lasers, and charged particle weapons but nothing actually functional or practical back when the show was made because they would have pretty much require their own dedicated power plant to function. Well that and charged particle weapons would actually be practically useless in atmosphere.
So presumably a Zoid core is the most powerful energy source available to the humans of planet Zi which is probably why Zoids are used so heavily by them.
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Post by Maethius on Mar 6, 2016 13:58:31 GMT -5
Well, there's the 50-base option (at $10usd a pop for a whopping $500 investment) or there is dressing up and repurposing: My large photography background was an old server shelf, the backing is a piece of foamcore, with an old modem, medicine bottles, zip ties, plastic spoon handles, empty printer cartridges, and old printer parts:   |
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Post by Illandrasen on Mar 6, 2016 21:18:55 GMT -5
Where do you get your 1/72 workers? I can't find any good ones whatsoever.
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Post by chris514 on Mar 6, 2016 22:26:53 GMT -5
Oh I found a few. You can just do a search for 1:72 scale flight deck crews and you should turn up some useable results. Mostly from kits intended for aircraft carrier scenes. Which is probably as close as it gets to a Zoid hangar crew.
The tricky part is trying to find a 1:72 scale forklift or cherry picker for the crew to use for moving people and equipment about the hangar.
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Post by Maethius on Mar 7, 2016 2:43:00 GMT -5
Where do you get your 1/72 workers? I can't find any good ones whatsoever. Yep; this is a US Navy aircraft carrier flight crew; they even came with a flight deck fire engine and a pair of HAZMAT dressed firefighters. |
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Post by ericmd on Mar 7, 2016 10:57:48 GMT -5
This crew set is cheap on ebay. Hasegawa 1/72 crew  |
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Post by chris514 on Mar 7, 2016 17:08:05 GMT -5
You can also use H0 scale figures usually used for model train sets. They aren't quite 1:72 but close enough that almost no one will know the difference. There is a lot more variety to them too.
I even just saw a set of H0 scale cats and dogs at my local hobby shop. One was urinating on a fire hydrant. You can pretty much find just about anything.
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Post by chris514 on Mar 7, 2016 22:06:46 GMT -5
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Post by chris514 on Mar 7, 2016 22:20:16 GMT -5
You can also use 00 scale figures which are actually even closer at 1:76.
Here are some 00 scale cars that even have LED headlights and wires conning out of the bottom to go through the base you mount them on.
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