Oh the joys of a new battlemech! Mechwarrior 4 and TRO 3067 brought us the Mad Cat MK II, an assault-class upgrade to Battletech’s most famous ‘mech. Tim Fusco, owner of Battlemech Club has sculpted an impressive resin kit of this auspicious Clan Diamond Shark design, bringing the 90 ton design to life in 1/60 scale.Designed from the ground up to be sold as a kit, the Mad Cat MK II is truly a sight to behold once fully built. This kit proves to be on par with Scott’s Catapult and Tim’s past kit the Flea (still working on that one, need to get a pin-vice), though there are two gripes. One is that the arm assemblies are in three pieces, and the rectangular second piece does not slot in anywhere specific, it’s easy enough to discern where it goes, but the housing around it doesn’t conform to the same footprint. The other issue is the missile launchers. The classic battletech design and the MW4 design have very different assemblies for the LRMs, and this one conforms to the MW4 design closely. However, there’s no clear location on either side of the fuselage where the LRM racks are supposed to sit. A small raised section where they sit, or a peg-and-hole section for them to slot into would’ve been nice.
I of course had to add a couple of my trademark modifications to this robust machine. I decided it would be a pirate ‘mech, salvaged from the battlefield and patched up. I used Games Workshop brass etch pieces from a basing kit to provide two beat up panels riddled with bullets, and two skull symbols to denote its pirate affiliation.
This is by far the heaviest ‘mech model I’ve ever worked on. The thing weighs easily 5 lbs in resin (and I’m bad at estimating, it could easily be ten!) It will take some very sturdy support and a display base for this baby to stand upright on its own. I realize how often I say I prefer non-based models…and yet constantly use bases. I prefer active poses for my models, and often I can only do that with a base. I just like my ‘mechs to look exciting, and especially with the Mad Cat MK II, I love the way the machine walks in MW4, that rolling motion makes it look so predatory and powerful that I had to replicate it.
Lastly, compared to my existing Mad Cat model and Stalker, this thing is the PERFECT size. It stands at 10” on the dot at the missile launchers (at least, n the pose I put it), and is easily 50% larger overall than the 75 ton Mad Cat. All in all this is one of my favorite kits to date, and I can’t wait for Tim’s summer program to get more fantastic ‘mechs from him.
Compared to the original Timber Wolf, the Mk II is a beast, it looks huge. I can’t wait to get mine. Very well done on the pose choice, looks awesome.
ReplyDeleteThank ya kindly, I can’t wait to get it based so it stands on its own.
DeleteI did make some concessions to get this kitted. My caster hates the pin and hole set up. I did design the LMSs themselves with a guide to drill a hole but neglected a place on the torso. My bad...oh, and your write up reads like the Flea was Scotts...
ReplyDeleteOh, and the flush mount on the two arm pieces was intentional. If you look at the MW4 version, the front part is supposed to sit lower than you have it. I wanted to make it so you could place it high, like you did, or lower as designed. So a flush mount designed seemed simplest set up. There is also a "build notes" section on my blog.
ReplyDeleteSorry Tim, wasn’t trying to be too critical, just giving an honest impression of the kit, I didn’t mean to offend you. I also edited the post about the Flea, sorry, left that a bit misleading you’re right.
DeleteBe critical. Its how we improve. I do agree that there ended up being some short comings on this kit...things to make it easier to cast tend to hinder the kit's ease of assembly. I am NOT happy with the LRM mounting...but that was my bad.
DeleteHow do I get one?
ReplyDelete