MG Musha MK-II Step 8: Tying one on!

As this kit is supposed to resemble samurai armour I wanted to do something to the waist area to make it look like it had an obi (belt) of some kind. I detailed here how I modified the waist and chest pieces so now, in this post, I will detail how I got this contraption together.

I had been pondering how to construct it while laying in bed each night (yes, I think about gunpla while drifting off to sleep) so before I even started on it I had a good idea of how I would do it and what I would need.

And all I really needed were some brass rod and a couple of staples.

Step 1: Run the metal spring through the loops as we practiced earlier.

You'll notice the brass rod's length matches the length of the spacing between the belt loops on the side of the waist. I decided to do this because I am going to be hanging the tachi from the belt and if it was just spring the weight of tachi would cause the spring to stretch and sag. This brass rod will be more than enough to support the weight of the tachi.

Step #2: Insert the brass rod.

The 1.5 mm diameter brass rod is just the perfect size to slide into the spring. I had to use a toothpick to push it into the right area so that the belt loops support both ends of the rod. Then I repeated the process for the other side. The Tachi can now hang from either side of the waist.

Step #3: Attaching the spring to the front armour.

This is where the staples come in. I inserted the end of the spring into the hole I had drilled in the front chest armour piece. Then I slid the staple through it perpendicularly so that it acts as a stopper, preventing the spring from coming back out.

Then I repeated the process for the other side.

To get this onto the frame I first attached the front armour to the torso and then attached the waist armour onto the skirt. And Voila! My musha has himself a belt!

Unfortunately, I don't have a good quality pic to show how it turned out. On the plus side, the painting and decaling and assembly is finished. I should have a completed gallery up any day now, although I still have some work to do on the weapons. The construction of the tachi and naginata has been finished and the painting and topcoating completed. I need to tie the sageo (cord) to the tachi and then secure it to the belt and I also need to put the extra-long Naginata together. Hopefully that will be finished tonight!