Marushin Smith & Wesson M586 6"

There. My first Model Gun Kit:
The Marushin Smith & Wesson M586 6"

I've been waiting for this kit with some growing anxiety as I've never been into model kit before (might have built one Dodge Charger and one Gundam bot in my life. and that's about it.), because it has been held at the german customs and also because of what I've seen and read about it - which means not that much, except for fascinating Momocampo's topics and a couple of japanese blogs -.

Anyway here's what I got on monday:


Even though it is written on the package and on the box, I had to explain what it is, why and how it is harmless to the customs... cause they seriously freaked out!


For those who are yet to try these kits, here's what you get:

(the gun assembly is actually done here, but I re-acted the unboxing moment for the photo review)
You have:
- the gun base, unpainted with the cylinder and the grips loosely on (not bolt or whatsoever)
- 2 plastic bags: one with the big metal parts, and the other one with everything else. There are very tiny parts like pins and springs, so be really careful when opening the bags, and all the excitement is not helping.
- instructions in JAPANESE. You can figure out, just be careful and don't mix up parts (springs and pins). Parts measurement does help a lot.


The M586, pieced together:



Markings:




Here you can see the painted metal parts difference with the bare HWABS:

My plan is to cover the HWABS with soem gloss black Tamiya spray asap.

But I will have to sand these molds and junction crap first:


Meanwhile I admire what's done right on the model:


And despise what they screwed up:


And here's a weight comparison:

left to right:
Tanaka M29 8" HWABS, Marushin S&W M586 6" HWABS, MGC Colt Python 357 full metal, Kokusai M29 HWABS 6".
All loaded.

What I've learned from this very first experience:
-press the pins firmly (I even used a pinch on some parts wrapped with a thick piece of cloth)
-grease all of the sliding parts with sewing machine oil.
-be really careful with the springs and the pins. They easily fly over the room.
-don't think you're clever enough to figure out what's written in japanese without help from forums, videos (youtube s&w disassembly vids are really helpful cause the Marushin is built exactly like the real steel version) and... a ruler. You have different size of pins and springs and the only think you can do when you don't read Japanese, is read the numbers.

The parts need some work - adjustment, sanding, painting etc.. The assembly requires some tools, a phillips screwdriver, and a narrow flat one as well, a pinch, a ruler, (and/or Japanese friend), some machine oil, and last but not least, some perseverance, and last but not least, a lot of attention.
It can be very depressing when the clock doesn't tic, but when everything works the clicks are very satisfying.

I messed up when I did the assembly and the logo on the grips were aslant.
So here's a tip to fix this:
Take the grips apart
drill a hole inside each grips
push the logo chip
Redo until you're satisfied.

And here's the Tamiya TS-14 gloss black work in progress second pass:




The barrel still needs some work and I should have sand more! But I'm impressed with the quality of the paint!
Guys, I'm waiting for your feedback before the next step: BUFFING LIKE A CRAZY

Thanks ^^

Group Shot:

After some week end buffing: