The MG Barbatos was everyone’s favorite kit from last year, so when I finally dug this kit out of my backlog, I wasn’t disappointed! For this build, I tried my hand at weathering with a bit of oil staining on the armor and silvering on the weapons. In my opinion, the best weathering (or any technique in general) is done in moderation, so I tried not to overdo it with the chipping. The real highlight of this build is the shot composition where I tried to capture the Barbatos from a variety of dynamic camera angles. Don’t forget that a good photo booth and shot composition can go a long way with the presentation of your kits!
The MG Barbatos is a major upgrade from the 1/100 Full Mechanics kits; even though the frame of those kits was pretty good, it wasn’t custom fitted for the design of each kit. That led to a lot of issues with the kits holding up heavy weaponry or not having enough articulation due to the MS design. This version of the Barbatos has a more proportionate design as a result and is able to hold hold up its large arsenal with ease. My only gripe with it is that the stiffness of the upper shoulders makes it easy for the piping to break if you aren’t careful (which i did posing my kit). It’s been great to see all the custom color schemes people have made for this kit and with the ease of painting previously difficult to mask areas (like the piping and emblems), it’s easy to see why this kit is a popular choice!
I still need to finish up my resin Barbatos Lupus, but before that, I’m putting the finishing touches on my discord contest build: MG Epyon!
Build Details
PROS:
- Inner frame has incredible detail: most of which is visible after assembly!
- Far superior articulation and stability compared to the FM kits especially when it comes to holding its large weaponry
- Emblems on armor are far easier to paint since they are separate parts: no need to reverse wash
- Comes with a good variety of fixed hands
CONS:
- Piping can easily break; stiffness of shoulders makes them prone to breaking if poses are too extreme
- Inner frame gold plating looks a bit on the cheap side
- the 300mm gun is a bit awkward to pose and hold
Paints Used:
- Blue: 70% Gaia Colbalt blue+20% Bright blue+ 10%white. Added white for highlights
- Yellow: Base coat of Orange, then add white for preshade. Then 60% Orange Yellow + 40% Yellow with drops of white added for highlight
- Orange: 60%Orange + 40% Orange yellow
- White: intermediate blue preshade followed by Gaia Ex white
- Grey-white: Intermediate blue preshade followed by 90% white+10% joint grey
- Red: Black preshade then 70% Red Madder+30% Rlm23red. Added yellow for post shade
- Dark Grey: At first used 60% gaia neutral gray 3 40%+ dark seagrey (mr color 331) but was too light. Added 50% gaia flat black to to that mix
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