OK, i finally have some time to upload some pics (now that i'm finished).
Unfortunately i didn't get to start on this kit until nearly a week before the contest end.
This was a standard build with hardly any modification.
But, i did add rivets to the shield. I used size 21 sewing pins. I drilled holes with a pin vise and cut the heads off of the pins, with very little shaft left, and inserted them into the holes.
The shield with places for rivets marked with a pen.
I was in such a hurry to get this done, i didn't get to make a YouTube video, like i had planned. Sorry. But here are a few more photos of the ZAKU just after getting a paint job.
I stippled some MS500 on some of the armor to give it a rough cast look. You can see this effect in the following photos.
I also wanted to add something to the backpack/engine thingy on the back of the ZAKU. Unfortunately, i ran out of time before i could add thrusters, but i did add a fine wire mesh to it, just to make it not look so plain.
I cut the wire mesh from a faucet aerator.