Global TopIdeas: Build your own unique dinosaur!
Tamiya’s wooden dinosaur models can be customized in countless ways – their parts can be painted, colored with markers and even shaped with abrasive paper, not to mention decorated with colored paper and stickers. If you’re short on ideas, why not use some of the models on this page for inspiration, and let your imagination run free?
Click on the links below to see the individual product pages.
⇒ Item 70264 Walking Tyrannosaurus
⇒ Item 70265 Walking Triceratops
⇒ Item 70266 Walking Brachiosaurus
The children's book artist Mitsuhiro Kurosawa made these Tamiya dinosaur kits!
This page also includes models made by the renowned Japanese writer and artist Mitsuhiro Kurokawa, who painted his models with a special paint called acrylic gouache. He achieved this vibrant finish straight from a picture book by starting with a base color and – after it dried – applying the finishing touch with watercolor pencils and the like, making sure not to overlook any parts.
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Kurokawa’s creation is a vibrant combination of sky blue and orange, and uses different patterns across the model. Shading in areas like the line from the back of the neck down to the jaw gives a further 3D effect.
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This realistic looking model was airbrushed with acrylic paint, and before that was sanded down to help the paint take to the parts and thereby give more authentic colors. The sharp teeth were painted one by one with enamel paints.
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This colorful creature was decorated with watercolor paints and crayons, after first having had its parts rounded off with a knife. The watercolors provided a solid base, with the crayons used to add layers of color, including light green spots.
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This cute dinosaur initially had its edges rounded off with a modeling knife and abrasive paper, and was then given a coat of varnish. *Always take the utmost care when working with sharp tools such as knives.
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This beast looks just like a walking fossil! The wooden parts were chiseled to make them look like skeletal parts, before being painted with white acrylic paint and then painted blue in the recessed areas to add depth.
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Not a woolly mammoth, but a woolly Tyrannosaurus! The wooden parts were painted with dark blue watercolors, then had double-sided tape applied with wool stuck on top of that. One key point is to make sure the wool stays inside the parts shapes.
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Kurokawa’s model has a hexagonal pattern a bit like that of an alligator, which gradually gets smaller toward the feet and the tip of the tail. Details like the nostrils and eyes add extra character.
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This creation was airbrushed with acrylic paint, featuring delicate gradation on the frill and spine. Parts were sanded down to help the paint get into the wood, and therefore are smooth to the touch.
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This Triceratops is all dolled up with fabric tape, stapled into a frill pattern and used together with plenty of ribbon. 3D stickers look just like jewelry and add some bling!
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Kurokawa’s Brachiosaurus has a light green base with darker green patterns and spots. Darker tones on the back and lighter ones on the belly evoke present-day members of the animal kingdom.
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This model’s use of different colors on individual parts gives it a toy-like look. Watered-down acrylic paints were applied by cloth, with stronger colors the more layers are applied.
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Stickered almost from head to toe and with fluffy balls stuck along its neck and spine, this is a colorful creature. The goggle eye stickers add a cute touch.
Start with a picture!
Get your ideas down on paper first
It can sometime help to have a picture in hand before you start on your project. You can color in or even sticker these outline drawings to help bring your ideas into focus!
⇒Click here to download the PDF!
Recommended tools and materials
⇒Tamiya Craft Bond is a water-based bond can be used on paper, wood, cloth, leather, styrene board, foamed polystyrene and more! It dries clear, so it won’t get in the way of your colorful designs.
⇒The sandpapers in Tamiya Finishing Abrasives (Medium Set) are great for sanding down wooden parts pre-painting, and general re-shaping. The set includes three different grades of paper: #180, #240 and #320.
⇒Tamiya Color Acrylic Mini products are low-odor, water-based acrylic paints. Over 50 different colors are on offer, including gloss and matte paints. They can be washed off with water before they dry.
⇒The handy Tamiya Modeling Brush Basic Set includes three commonly used brushes with horsehair bristles and wooden grips.
