Inspired by the white colour scheme of Takara Tomy’s Convoy (Optimus Prime) speakers for iPod, I decided to paint and assemble my own interpretation using Yolopark’s 12 cm Optimus Prime model kit.
The entire model was airbrushed with a base coat of GSI Creos Mr. Color No. 13 Neutral Grey. After allowing the base coat to dry, I applied airbrush weathering using Mr. Color No. 107 Character White, creating a predominantly white finish while retaining some of the underlying grey for depth.
Once all the paint had fully dried, the parts were assembled to complete the model.
Finished on 5 October 2026 — fifteen years after the passing of Steve Jobs.
The white Convoy aesthetic feels particularly fitting here, recalling the distinctive white-and-metallic design language of the iPod era.
This model was completed on 17 September 2026 to mark the 40th anniversary screening of The Transformers: The Movie, originally released in 1986.
After unpacking the box, I gave all the parts on the runners a base coat of Mr Hobby Mr Color No. 13 Neutral Grey.
I then worked on the moulded plastic parts according to their original colours:
Red moulded parts: Weathered with Mr Hobby Gundam Colour UG10 MS Char’s Pink.
Blue moulded parts: Given a flat coat using Mr Hobby Gundam Colour UG02. No weathering was applied.
Yellow moulded parts: Weathered with Mr Hobby Mr Color No. 109 Character Yellow.
The parts that came pre-painted in the package, namely the gold and silver parts, were left untouched.
For the robot’s left shoulder, I used an ALEXEN MODELS Autobot logo stencil to achieve the desired shape. The Autobot logo was painted using Mr Hobby Mr Color No. 8 Silver.
Once the paint had dried, I applied Tamiya Panel Line Accent Color:
Black on the UG10-painted parts and the pre-painted gold and silver parts.
Light Grey on the UG02-painted parts.
Assembly
Assembly was generally straightforward. The main drawback was that some of the parts from runners H1 and H2 could be extremely tight when joining together. In some cases, they were too tight to assemble comfortably by hand.
The tight fit may have been partly due to the additional layer of base-coat paint on the parts. To get some of the pieces fully seated, I used a vice clamp to apply controlled pressure and tighten the joints. Care was taken to avoid damaging the parts.
Lighting Feature
After completing the assembly, I tested the magnet supplied with the kit. Passing the magnet over the designated area activates the lights inside the chest compartment, causing both Optimus Prime’s eyes and chest crystal to illuminate for a few seconds.
The model was completed on 17 September 2026, serving as my personal model-building commemoration of the 40th anniversary screening of The Transformers: The Movie.
YOLOPARK 12cm Optimus Prime — An Unexpected Tribute
A model left unfinished
This Optimus Prime had been sitting at roughly 70% completion for several months.
It is the YOLOPARK 12cm Optimus Prime model kit, officially licensed by Hasbro. Unlike the conventional plastic model kits I normally work with, the parts did not come attached to runners. Instead, they came in moulded positive-negative trays.
When I first started the project, I put on gloves, removed the parts from the mould trays and prepared them individually for painting.
The painting
The model was airbrushed using Mr. Hobby Mr. Color paints.
As this project had been shelved for several months, I no longer remember the exact Mr. Color paint numbers I used. What I do remember is the approach: I first gave the parts a dark base coat, then built up the colours using blue, red or grey depending on the individual part.
The darker base was allowed to contribute to the final appearance, creating a weathered effect rather than a completely clean finish.
Once the airbrushing and weathering were completed, I left the parts to dry.
And then the project was shelved.
At roughly 70% completion.
For months.
An unexpected reason to finish
Peter Cullen passed away on 26 August 2026.
In the hours after work, while catching up with the news, I came across reports of his passing.
The news hit differently.
Peter Cullen was the voice of Optimus Prime, one of the most important roles in the Transformers franchise.
Almost immediately, I found myself thinking about the unfinished Optimus sitting among my modelling projects.
So I dug him out.
This time, I decided to finish him.
Completing Optimus
The first step was to assemble the painted parts.
After months of being left separately, the weathered pieces finally came together as a complete Optimus Prime.
I then used gold and silver markers to highlight the remaining details on the model, particularly the mechanical and armour sections.
There was no major repainting.
I simply continued from where I had stopped months earlier.
And with that, the Optimus Prime was finally completed.
An unplanned tribute
This was never intended to be a Peter Cullen memorial build.
The model had already been started months before his passing.
It was simply an unfinished project that happened to be sitting there when the news arrived.
I did not buy the kit because of the news.
I did not begin the painting because of the news.
I already had an Optimus Prime waiting to be completed.
But after learning that Peter Cullen had passed away, I decided that this particular Optimus should not remain unfinished.
Remembering Peter Cullen
For generations of Transformers fans, Peter Cullen’s name is inseparable from Optimus Prime.
He voiced the character from the original Transformers era, including The Transformers: The Movie, and later returned as Optimus for the live-action Transformers films and other Transformers productions.
His voice became an enduring part of Optimus Prime’s identity and the character’s legacy across generations.
The completed Optimus
This model had been waiting on the shelf for months.
I had no idea that I would eventually finish it under these circumstances.
Sometimes a model project acquires meaning that you never intended when you first opened the box.
This one did.
The YOLOPARK Optimus Prime is now complete.
And it will remain, for me, as a small tribute to the man whose voice helped define Optimus Prime for generations.
