Jennifer Franklin
Taking a seat, this looks ambitious.

Tom Harris
WAY more than I expected, Jennifer! LOL
It's no joke - if you enjoy trying to interpret instruction drawings, matching up part seams and/or sanding, this is the kit for you.

Jennifer Franklin
Sounds daunting, Tom; I'm just trying to complete my first model; that is way too ambitious for me, but I bet you will do a fantastic job.

Roland Damasio
Hi, Nice to see that you didn't give up! I'm big a fan of Macross as well! Keep on going!

Tom Harris
Thanks, Roland! 🙂
I just put on some Minmei/Mari Iijima songs (& Haneda's Macross BGM) and soldier on. LOL
Besides, I promised Kawamori-san completion photos, so there's no chance of abandoning it... Just the occasional alternate kit "break." 😉

CaptGPF
Slide 18 orange peeling could be due to one of three things - airbrushing too far away in a hot environment (the paint dries in mid-flight); paint not thinned sufficiently, or contaminants like mold release on the surface. You can help leveling the paint by misting the freshly painted area with the thinner to help it level out a bit better. If this is only occurring with the insignia white, your mission models paint can also be bad. I stopped using MMPs a while back due to their inconsistent pigment sizes across the colors, as well as the fragility of the paint (easily scratched) - didn't have that issue with Tamiya or AKRC paints, but it could also be due to my skill level.

I love the Macross jets - the VF-1S is a classic, and having built the 1/72 version, I agree that the engineering of the kit is really old-school with terribly placed seam lines necessitating a ton of sanding, swearing and re-scribing. Given the age of these kits, you're also in for some fun re-scribing of the fainter panel lines. Overall, this kit should build up to be a real beauty - especially with the Weapons sets and PE set you are adding - I can't wait to see how this turns out!

Tom Harris
Hi CaptGPF! Thank you for the insight on the funky airbrush results. I'd watched a few videos of Mission Model Paint tips, so was very aware of the distancing issue (I got closer during the same session but it wasn't helping). Given the same paint didn't do this on other parts I'm leaning toward your "contaminated surface" reason. I didn't wash these parts first (I've heard from people who swear by washing, others who say, with modern sprue-making technology, you don't need to do that anymore). But, encountering this headache, methinks I'll go back to washing.

I've also heard very mixed reviews of the Mission paints. I decided to try them because I saw them on Adam Savage's Tested channel on Youtube and I liked that it was a US company. But, I have to say I've mixed feelings after using them on this and the MADOX kit. I used to go with Tamiya (although I used Vallejo for the first time with my Mandalorian and I feel that is one of my best paint jobs ever!).

Ahh, 'tis true, misery doth love company! Have to say, I'm glad I'm not the only one who has suffered through Hasegawa hells of sanding/filling. 😉
I love/loathe that my wife got me another Hasegawa I wanted... the newly released Miria639's Queadluun Rau battle suit from the Macross movie - it's all _curves_ LOL

CaptGPF
We're kinda stuck with Hasegawa for the Macross stuff, but, it could be worse, we could be fighting AMT/Revell/ERTL quality kits…

The good news for you is that their newer releases like the SV-51 come together like a dream - no excessive need for sanding in obvious or awkward places. 😀