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Well we just had a rather nicely sized Gundam meet up yesterday.

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Roughly a dozen showed up to this one which was a little smaller than our usual 20+

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They had some good kits at the shop we were using for the event, ended up picking up a Gusion/Rebake 1/100 and a Test type dom to build giving us 10% discounts on them as well.
In the end I managed to straight build the Dom but ran into an issue where the red face part snapped when I barely touched it with the clear part. Had to snag someones glue to fix it. I managed to complete it when I got home, panel lined and decaled, I love origin kits!

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We made a lot of jokes about it being a test type and did stupid ass poses and hilarious situations came from it all, so whenever it all got dicked up we just shouted "TEST TYPE!"

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I'd be more interested in that Dom if it were more of an original design. About the only thing unique to it are the backpack and shoulders. Everything else has been borrowed from pre-existing designs, namely the legs/body/arms of the Zaku II prototype from 08MST, the head of an MSV Gouf, and the beam bazooka of the Rick Dom.

It even comes with interchangeable chests mimicking either the Zaku or Gouf chassis.

But I mean, damn if it doesn't look good. I just wish it had had more done to it.

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True. And it IS an easy way to kitbash an RD-4 Zaku, so I'm not complaining... too much. :p Kitbash this with a Zaku II and modify a GM Type C, and I might finally be able to recreate the opening battle of 08MST...

Edited by kajnrig
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Based on the line art, the 08MST GM (officially RGM-79[E] Early Type GM) is the same as the RGM-79C GM Type C save for:

- missing all details on the armor (those divots on the shoulders, armor, legs, etc.) and backpack

- no beam saber on backpack

- no horizontal panel line on lower leg

- no handle bars on the shoulders

- no head antenna

- no hardpoint on forearm for shield

I didn't realize that there WAS a P-Bandai RD-4. Thanks for the head's-up. Looking at it, it is indeed much the same mold as the Prototype Dom. There's also a lot of the Origin Char's Zaku II in there - the head and backpack in particular. Other parts seem to be unique, though:

- The left shoulder armor doesn't seem to exist on any other HGUC/Origin/Thunderbolt kit (the closest that come are the Zaku I kits).

- The shoulder-to-chest joints are either unique or borrowed from the Origins Char's Zaku II; the shoulders themselves still look to be from the Proto Dom. I wonder if the OCZII's unique shoulder joint setup can work with the Proto Dom's shoulders. (I imagine it can to some extent, since they're from the same series of kits and came out around the same time.)

For a more "anime accurate" RD-4, I think you could start with the Proto Dom and add in the HGUC Zaku II for the head and backpack. Replace the left shoulder armor (not the joint) with that of the Zaku II, and attach the Zaku's shoulder armor (shaped to remove the spikes). Cut off the pegs attaching the Proto Dom's shoulder armor to the shoulder joints, then scratchbuild some thrusters onto the Zaku II backpack, and you're basically done.

Either way, kitbashing an RD-4 is still a somewhat involved process. Certainly more difficult than removing detail from a pre-existing kit for the GM Early Type.

Edited by kajnrig
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Here's a line Bandai should have continued. HG Mechanics focuses on 1/550 scale mobile armor kits. Sadly, they stopped on the three MA featured in Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory. Had the line gone further, we would've had a Shamblo or an updated Big Zam.

In the meantime, here are two kits I recently completed: the MA-06 Val-Walo and the AMX-002 Neue Ziel.

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My RG collection is pretty small, as my Gunpla collection is focused mainly on HG. Here are the issues I've encountered on the ones I've assembled:

RX-78-2 Gundam

It's common practice for the first kit to be the most flawed in the line, and none are more obvious than this one. Yes, it's the best-looking among all of the 1/144 incarnations of the Granddaddy and it set new standards for detail and articulation, but it just wants to disintegrate in the worst way possible. The shoulder armor plates fall off at the slightest movement of the arms. The front and rear skirt plates will go anywhere but on the skirt frames. But perhaps the worst of the bunch are the heel armor plates. As I was given the Ver.GFT as a birthday gift last February, I'll probably just strip the Gunpla to its inner frame for display.

Gundam Mk-II

Of all the RG kits in my collection, this has the most solid build. All the pieces stay in place, except for the occasional beam saber holder covers and verniers popping off. My only major issue is the loose ball joint for the head.

Gundam GP01

This Gunpla uses the same MS Joint as the Mk-II, sans the upper torso due to the Core Block System. It's more solidly built than the RX-78-2, but it seems to have a loose spinal joint, as it has a tendency to lean to the left. Also, the shield has a very weak peg connection and the V-crest on the chest needs gluing. Oh yeah, the beam saber holders are a tad fragile; because I had to glue mine in place, this Gunpla will never see its Core Fighter again.

Gundam GP01Fb

Unlike the regular GP01, this seems to have a more stable spinal joint. However, the upper torso has difficulty locking on to the Core Block.

00 Raiser

Surprisingly, I have not encountered any major issues with this Gunpla, other than the loose GN Drive connections. But then again, I haven't played around with it much.

The Zeta Gundam's on my current backlog. Based on other collectors' outputs, it's an engaging build, but a nightmare to pose - let alone transform. Hopefully, I'll have mine ready by the end of the month.

Edited by areaseven
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I would probably buy any rg that comes out if they would just include waterslide decals. I have assembled the og gundam, char's zaku and I have both versions of the 178 and both gp01's to build. I have the after market sheets for those, but I haven't seen any after market waterslide sheets in a while.

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Guest davidwhangchoi

Here's my just-completed RG RX-178 Gundam Mk-II [A.E.U.G.], featuring some comparisons with the HGUC versions.

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rg looks good!

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I'm disappointed that Bandai doesn't continue with the RG Endless Waltz line. After seeing the teaser for the Wing Zero Gundam I was happy that they displayed concept art for the other suites. Maybe the Wing Zero didn't sell well enough to warrant releases of the other Gundams. :(

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