How I created cast steel texture with my custom RG Zaku II “Kratos”

Read time: 3-5 minutes

Hi there creatives! Kelga Creations of GSquad here! In this blog post, I will share more in detail, how I created cast steel texture on some armour pieces from my RG Zaku II “Kratos”. I would highly recommend and appreciate for you to watch the video first~ I’ll wait for you! :D

1. What is cast steel texture and why for Zaku II?
2. How to achieve this effect?
3. Result

(Disclaimer: Links below are affiliate links, if you are interested in any of the tools I use and purchase through my links, there's no extra cost to you, I will make a small commission and will be highly appreciated. Any little bit will help support me to bring you more and better content in future!)

Cast steel texture is the texture produced from the molding process. In the past, tanks were mass manufactured during wars, and creating armour pieces from molds greatly sped up the process and getting them into battle. Molds were especially used to create armour pieces that had complex shapes such as curves. I felt the Zaku II would be a great fit for some cast steel texture. One, they are mass produced mobile suits. Two, they have a strong military and tank aesthetic to their design. Three, their armour often has complex shapes with curves, so to create them from molds just makes sense on how many we see them throughout the series.

The tools I used are: Tamiya Cement and Tamiya Putty Basic Type, with a stiff brush. You want to use a stiff brush to create the texture effectively.

Apply some cement on a small area at a time, if you apply too large of an area, the cement will dry out before you can work on those areas. After a few seconds, the cement will start to melt and soften the plastic surface of the piece, and dab around the cemented area with the stuff brush to create some texture.

Next, mix a drop of cement into putty, it will activate the putty and make it runny.

Dab on thinly with the stiff brush. Repeat the process of dropping cement, mix and apply. Even thin coverage will do, careful not to cover or apply too much or thick. Also take the scale of the model into consideration, with this Real Grade Zaku II at 1/144 scale, subtle textured effect really makes the kit look and feel larger than it actually is.

Lastly, blend and tone down the effect by very lightly sanding with a fine sandpaper or sanding sponge, with no force applied, almost like gently polishing the textured surfaces. That’s it, nice and simple!

At the end of the project with painting and weathering, the textured surfaces really stand out, especially if you apply to only a few selected areas. I only applied this effect to armour pieces that would make sense to have a mold casting for, one’s with more complex shapes. What do you think of this effect, something you have done or want to try?

Check this link for FREE wallpapers for 4K resolution, tablet and mobile from this kit's photoshoot!

If you have questions on your own builds in terms of techniques or anything, feel free to ask around the growing community that we have on the Studio G subreddit. We have many great builders that can help or give you feedback on your building journey!

Thank you for your time reading this article, I’m Jeff from Kelga Creations, you can check out my YouTube Channel for more build videos and Instagram & Facebook for behind the scenes work in progress photos. Till we meet again, let’s #KeepOnCreating!