Monday, December 9, 2013

BB Senshi Sangokuden Asurao Moukaku Gundam, Syukuyuu Gundam, Kyoshin Elephant Set Part 11

Tiger, phoenix, and now, elephant

Returning to BB Senshi Sangokuden Asurao Moukaku Gundam, Syukuyuu Gundam and Kyoshin Elephant Set for the assembly of another kit from this bundled Gunpla set after the completion of Moukaku Gundam back in mid September. ^^ Of the remaining two, Kyoshin Elephant (former name is Kongouyaka 金剛夜迦), the versatile support mecha which has its own set of unique features, and is usable by both Moukaku Gundam and Syukuyuu Gundam in combined mode will be rolled out this time. ^^ Its size, non-humanoid design, and gimmicks would be exciting and fun features to examine in this and the next few postings. ^^


All the paper boxes containing Kyoshin Elephant's parts.


Parts of the front legs.


(Left) The front toes which were painted in Part 5.
(Right) A total of eight ball-type polycaps used on various parts of the legs.


Interestingly, despite having a ball-type polycap for the knee, the slot that hold the polycap in place limits the knee to have hinge movement only.


90 degrees of elbow bend.


Major components of the front legs before the final assembly.




The front legs are completed.


The elbow bend as shown earlier on.


The lower leg can swivel around the elbow joint as well.


The black connector arm holding the lower leg can be bent to the front for about 45 degrees. Using the ball-type joint which in turn link the connector arm to the upper leg, the lower leg can be moved from side to side. This articulation point is not important for Kyoshin Elephant in beast or Kongou Tank (金剛戦車) modes, but it will be essential when it forms the Kongou Ashura Armor pack (金剛阿修羅鎧) for either Moukaku Gundam or Syukuyuu Gundam.


The protruding tabs on the polygonal base help to lock the lower leg to the bottom side of the upper leg very securely.


Parts of the hind legs.


Like the front toes, the rear toes were painted in Part 5, the silver area on top of Kongou Ashura Armor's feet parts in Part 3, and the black caterpilars in Part 6.


Major components of the hind legs before the final assembly.


Sliding design to connect the caterpillar block onto the hind leg certainly makes the component easy to remove for the other two modes later on. ^^





The pair of hind legs are completed.


Somewhat flexible swivel movement for the rear feet.


The hock joint can be hinged to the back for about 45 degrees.
Much like the connector arm's joint design mentioned earlier on, the hock joint's limited articulation capability isn't useful for Kyoshin Elephant in beast mode, but it will be needed for the other two configurations.




Done for all of Kyoshin Elephant's four legs.


Parts of the body.
The two large caterpillar blocks are not going to be used for the body module, but for the final assembly of the model instead.


The intricate curvy details on armor plates painted in Parts 3 (silver base) and 4 (red details).


(Left) Interesting trivia: two out of three slots on the polycap attached to the underside of the main body plate are not going to be used at all, while the single remaining slot will only be used in Kongou Ashura Armor form. ^^
(Right) A slit on each joint holder of the hind legs' connector arms, which corresponds to a small protruding tip on the hinge joint is helpful to indicate the correct side the parts should be placed for the assembled.


The top plate needs to be hinged all the way to the front to complete the body's assembly.



Done for the body unit.


In BB Senshi scale, the body unit can be considered huge. ^^


Parts of the head.


The red details on the ears were painted in Part 4.


(Left) Foil sticker is used to realize the eyes.
(Right) The sticker is pressed against the part using a cotton swab in order to obtain the more appealing elevated effect. ^^


Major components of the head before the final assembly.




Done for the head.


Very loose connection between the tusks and the head causes the latter to fall out very easily every now and then.


(Left) Minor forward bend for the the trunk enabled by two hinge joints in that component.
(Right) The trunk can be "retracted" into the head, a gimmick that will be essential in Kongou Ashura Armor form. ^^


The lower halves of the ears can be hinged upward and downward as well, allowing Kyoshin Elephant's face to be concealed/exposed, and movement for the tusks as well.


A gathering of all the components to form Kyoshin Elephant in beast mode.


Pretty straightforward connection between the pegs above the front legs to their corresponding polycaps beneath the body.


The hind legs are attached to the connector arms on either side of the body.


The bottom pair of slots are used to mount the caterpillar block to the upper body.
As the slots bind the front and rear legs, the connection between all the components become more solid, giving the model a more stable stance. ^^


The head is connected to a large peg right in front of the body block.


All done for Kyoshin Elephant. ^^

More images of this unique BB Senshi model kit coming up next. ^^

No comments: