The Gundams A Go-Go Thread

[Real G]

To keep MZ3 company, I will attempt to build Bandai's Gundam Mk.V.





It's one of those annoying limited "Premium Bandai" kits, available only on-line.  Which is a shame, as this kit is easily one of the best Gundam kits I have ever gotten my grubby mitts on.  Fit is fantastic, seam lines for the most part have been engineered out, and just look at that box art - holy bazongas that is SO cool!  I was about to write that I wished this was a mass-market kit so everyone could buy one, but being that even mass-market Gundam kits are hard to come by these days, that might be a pointless wish.  

The kit is quite complex, like a 3-D jigsaw puzzle with very precise fit.  Therefore, everything needs to be dry fit to determine where paint goes and does NOT go. 



But so far, assembly has been ultra smooth, quite unlike the train wreck of a kit that is the Master Grade Kampfer!



I spent months banging away on this box of frustration and had put it away for several years.











One mod I tried on the Kampfer was to cut the lower leg frames and offset them a bit to the outside.  This helps the big feet angle just a bit more for that cool anime stance.



The mod is only apparent when the legs are straight up vertical - but we NEVER pose our Gundams like that, do we?     Right?

[406 Silverado]

I'll be watching the magic unfold on this one for sure Neal. Off to a good start with the mods to the leg frames for a better stance. Yeah.....standing straight up would make for a boring display alright. lol

[Leon]

This looks like a really cool project!

[mz3]

I really wish Bandai would make a 2.0 of the kampfer. There's a "third party" company that made one and it looks amazing. Bandai is slipping.

That mk 5 is nice! I actually wouldn't mind having one.

[deafpanzer]

Smart to build a friend... you definitely have my attention!

[Real G]

Jun 21, 2023 15:01:22 GMT -5 406 Silverado said:

I'll be watching the magic unfold on this one for sure Neal. Off to a good start with the mods to the leg frames for a better stance. Yeah.....standing straight up would make for a boring display alright. lol

It IS all about the pose with Gundam kits.  The Gundam Mk.V has a wonderful, modern ankle joint that allows pretty dramatic poses, but the Kampfer is a much older kit that suffers from limited mobility.  I have seen many well done kits where the builder simply stands it up with arms and legs vertical and perfectly straight, with the elbows pointing in towards the body (aka "doing the chimp").  And feet not flat on the ground, but strangely tilted up on their outer edges.  Model Graphix magazine did an article where they took some ancient 1980s Gundam kits and just re-jointed them to modern standards.  The transformation of the look of the kits was nothing short of stunning.

[Real G]

Jun 21, 2023 15:46:16 GMT -5 Leon said:

This looks like a really cool project!

Yeah the Gundam Mk.V is most badass!  It's also huge compared to other Mobile Suits.

[Real G]

Jun 21, 2023 16:26:10 GMT -5 mz3 said:

I really wish Bandai would make a 2.0 of the kampfer. There's a "third party" company that made one and it looks amazing. Bandai is slipping.

That mk 5 is nice! I actually wouldn't mind having one.

I know what you mean!  The Kampfer 1.0 is kind of a dumpster fire with a lot of things that could be better, both inside and out.  My kit's armor parts were extremely brittle, with the upper torso exploding into several pieces when I tried to disassemble it after a dry test fit.  The critical high load bearing knee joints are perilously thin, with a tight kink that is just asking to snap after the kit is built.  Parts fit is also not the best, with seam lines everywhere.

We can only hope a 2.0 version emerges.  The 2.0 Alex was head and shoulders above the 1.0 kit in every way.  I was a little disappointed that the Zaku FZ was a Re100 and not Master Grade kit.  I despise polyethylene power cables.

Pee Bandai fortunately re-releases kits from time to time, so I highly recommend grabbing one when you can!

[Real G]

Jun 22, 2023 7:01:54 GMT -5 deafpanzer said:

Smart to build a friend... you definitely have my attention!

Hmm, I'm not sure the G Mk.V is a friend to the RX-78 that MZ3 is building.  In Gundam Sentinel, the story where the G Mk.V appears, the "New Decides" are the bad guys.  The design is based on the Doven Wolf from Double Zeta Gundam, which was a Neo Zeon MS, again bad guys.

But I LIKE the bad guys.  Once when I was walking around Tokyo with my sister and her friend, her friend mentioned that the hobby shop we were visiting (Mr Craft in Ebisu, now sadly gone) was a regular stop when she and her little brother were going to school.  They used to watch the original Gundam series on TV, so I asked if they liked the Earth Federation (good guys) or Zeon (bad guys).  She looked at me, smiled, and said "Zeon".  My sister's friends rule.

I have always wondered where the name "New Decides" came from.  Was the creator listening to Peter Frampton?  Or was I hearing things wrong all these years?  Like I thought Jimmy Hendrix sang "Scuse me, while I kiss this GUY..."

"Help me."

"Help me."

"Help me..."

[chromdome35]

This is going to be a really cool looking Gundam when your done!

How large (height/width) is a kit like this?
What is the difference in "Grade" on Gundam kit, I've seen several different descriptors associated with them but don't know what they mean. Master vs Perfect etc...

[stikpusher]

Jun 22, 2023 13:04:23 GMT -5 Real G said:

Jun 22, 2023 7:01:54 GMT -5 deafpanzer said:

Smart to build a friend... you definitely have my attention!

Hmm, I'm not sure the G Mk.V is a friend to the RX-78 that MZ3.  In Gundam Sentinel, the story where the G Mk.V appears, the "New Decides" are the bad guys.  The design is based on the Doven Wolf from Double Zeta Gundam, which was a Neo Zeon MS, again bad guys.

But I LIKE the bad guys.  Once when I was walking around Tokyo with my sister and her friend, her friend mentioned that the hobby shop we were visiting (Mr Craft in Ebisu, now sadly gone) was a regular stop when she and her little brother were going to school.  They used to watch the original Gundam series on TV, so I asked if they liked the Earth Federation (good guys) or Zeon (bad guys).  She looked at me, smiled, and said "Zeon".  My sister's friends rule.

I have always wondered where the name "New Decides" came from.  Was the creator listening to Peter Frampton?  Or was I hearing things wrong all these years?  Like I thought Jimmy Hendrix sang "Scuse me, while I kiss this GUY..."

"Help me."

"Help me."

"Help me..."

Now the ladies who like bad boys are usually more fun… 😏

I wonder if those Gundam shows that you describe are the ones that my son showed me. It was on earth and more in our time with tank like vehicles and such. I remember one bad guy character looked like he could be modeled after Jesse Ventura in Predator…

[mz3]

Jun 22, 2023 12:50:02 GMT -5 Real G said:

Jun 21, 2023 16:26:10 GMT -5 mz3 said:

I really wish Bandai would make a 2.0 of the kampfer. There's a "third party" company that made one and it looks amazing. Bandai is slipping.

That mk 5 is nice! I actually wouldn't mind having one.

I know what you mean!  The Kampfer 1.0 is kind of a dumpster fire with a lot of things that could be better, both inside and out.  My kit's armor parts were extremely brittle, with the upper torso exploding into several pieces when I tried to disassemble it after a dry test fit.  The critical high load bearing knee joints are perilously thin, with a tight kink that is just asking to snap after the kit is built.  Parts fit is also not the best, with seam lines everywhere.

We can only hope a 2.0 version emerges.  The 2.0 Alex was head and shoulders above the 1.0 kit in every way.  I was a little disappointed that the Zaku FZ was a Re100 and not Master Grade kit.  I despise polyethylene power cables.

Pee Bandai fortunately re-releases kits from time to time, so I highly recommend grabbing one when you can!

I'd just be happy with some new, non p-bandai mg kits. Like I said, Bandai has been slipping. Deban makes some kits Bandai should be making. The other Chinese companies are starting to make good stuff. Yujiao Land is making a kit from scratch, can't remember the details. Bandai had what 2 mg kits come out last year. I count the 2 Dom kit as 1, which was technically a ver. 1.5. And from what I've seen 3 this year with 2 being p-bandai. Zeta ver. ka, powered GM again and some version of a Kempfer.

[Real G]

Yeah, a friend got this huge Optimus Prime kit, and the fine mechanical details put Bandai to shame. The joints are robust and work well. Bandai’s industry lead has been eroded by years of complacency. Although to be honest, I think it’s more an issue of them having too many product lines.

I thought that the Dom 1.5 was a pretty good upgrade; that’s what the 1.0 version should have been. And I love the Dwage variant, but yeah, Pee Bandai.  My Grail MG kit is the old 1980s MSV Zaku Desert Type, but I'd bet good money it would be a Pee Bee.  

[Real G]

Jun 22, 2023 19:02:17 GMT -5 stikpusher said:

Jun 22, 2023 13:04:23 GMT -5 Real G said:

Hmm, I'm not sure the G Mk.V is a friend to the RX-78 that MZ3.  In Gundam Sentinel, the story where the G Mk.V appears, the "New Decides" are the bad guys.  The design is based on the Doven Wolf from Double Zeta Gundam, which was a Neo Zeon MS, again bad guys.

But I LIKE the bad guys.  Once when I was walking around Tokyo with my sister and her friend, her friend mentioned that the hobby shop we were visiting (Mr Craft in Ebisu, now sadly gone) was a regular stop when she and her little brother were going to school.  They used to watch the original Gundam series on TV, so I asked if they liked the Earth Federation (good guys) or Zeon (bad guys).  She looked at me, smiled, and said "Zeon".  My sister's friends rule.

I have always wondered where the name "New Decides" came from.  Was the creator listening to Peter Frampton?  Or was I hearing things wrong all these years?  Like I thought Jimmy Hendrix sang "Scuse me, while I kiss this GUY..."

"Help me."

"Help me."

"Help me..."

Now the ladies who like bad boys are usually more fun… 😏

I wonder if those Gundam shows that you describe are the ones that my son showed me. It was on earth and more in our time with tank like vehicles and such. I remember one bad guy character looked like he could be modeled after Jesse Ventura in Predator…

Stik, Gundam Sentinel was one of the coolest series that did NOT get an animated show. Model Graphix magazine ran a photo story for over a year, using scratchbuilt and modified kits. A lot of the action was photographed through a TV display, and the overall production had a very movie-quality look to it. I especially liked the high-contrast lighting of the photos, which replicated the look and feel of being in space. The story takes place entirely in space, so no there was no ground-pounding action like in the 08th MS Team, which took place on Earth.

There are a number of colorful characters throughout the Gundam franchise - Norris Packard from the 08th MS Team had a Mobile Suit equipped with a gigantic gatling gun, but he never snapped "I don't have time to bleed!"  

[Real G]

Jun 22, 2023 17:18:57 GMT -5 chromdome35 said:

This is going to be a really cool looking Gundam when your done!

How large (height/width) is a kit like this?
What is the difference in "Grade" on Gundam kit, I've seen several different descriptors associated with them but don't know what they mean. Master vs Perfect etc...

Chromdome35,

The original Gundam is 18.5 meters tall, or about 60 feet in US dollars.  Most Mobile Suits are around that height.  The Gundam Mk.V is 22.8 meters (75 feet) to the top of its head, and 25.42 meters (85 feet) tall overall.  In 1/100 scale money, that translates to 9 inches and 10 inches, respectively, definitely what I consider to be a "large" robot kit.

Regarding Bandai's various "grades", here's a quick rundown:

Entry Grade - 1/144 - Simplified kits meant for beginners.

High Grade - 1/144 - The "standard" line of kits in this scale, with the largest selection.

Real Grade - 1/144 - More complex, detailed kits meant for experienced modelers.

Master Grade - 1/100 - Similar in complexity to the Real Grade line, but strangely sometimes has less surface detail.

Perfect Grade - 1/60 - Similar in complexity and detail to the Real Grade kits, only more and bigger.  If you like 1,000+ part kits, this series is for you.  I only built one (the GP-01FB) and it kicked my butt.  It also taught me that 60' walking mechs would be impractically complex in the real world.

[chromdome35]

Jun 23, 2023 12:56:23 GMT -5 Real G said:

Jun 22, 2023 17:18:57 GMT -5 chromdome35 said:

This is going to be a really cool looking Gundam when your done!

How large (height/width) is a kit like this?
What is the difference in "Grade" on Gundam kit, I've seen several different descriptors associated with them but don't know what they mean. Master vs Perfect etc...

Chromdome35,

The original Gundam is 18.5 meters tall, or about 60 feet in US dollars.  Most Mobile Suits are around that height.  The Gundam Mk.V is 22.8 meters (75 feet) to the top of its head, and 25.42 meters (85 feet) tall overall.  In 1/100 scale money, that translates to 9 inches and 10 inches, respectively, definitely what I consider to be a "large" robot kit.

Regarding Bandai's various "grades", here's a quick rundown:

Entry Grade - 1/144 - Simplified kits meant for beginners.

High Grade - 1/144 - The "standard" line of kits in this scale, with the largest selection.

Real Grade - 1/144 - More complex, detailed kits meant for experienced modelers.

Master Grade - 1/100 - Similar in complexity to the Real Grade line, but strangely sometimes has less surface detail.

Perfect Grade - 1/60 - Similar in complexity and detail to the Real Grade kits, only more and bigger.  If you like 1,000+ part kits, this series is for you.  I only built one (the GP-01FB) and it kicked my butt.  It also taught me that 60' walking mechs would be impractically complex in the real world.

Thank you for the great response! +1 Karma for you

Other than complexity and larger scale, do the higher-graded kits have a higher fit and finish than the lower grades? Things like mold lines, seams, etc...? Do the higher grade kits require glue vs the snap-together building of the lower grade kits? (I've only ever built one Bandai kit the StarWars AT-ST and it just snapped together)

[Real G]

Jun 23, 2023 14:09:24 GMT -5 chromdome35 said:

Jun 23, 2023 12:56:23 GMT -5 Real G said:

Chromdome35,

The original Gundam is 18.5 meters tall, or about 60 feet in US dollars.  Most Mobile Suits are around that height.  The Gundam Mk.V is 22.8 meters (75 feet) to the top of its head, and 25.42 meters (85 feet) tall overall.  In 1/100 scale money, that translates to 9 inches and 10 inches, respectively, definitely what I consider to be a "large" robot kit.

Regarding Bandai's various "grades", here's a quick rundown:

Entry Grade - 1/144 - Simplified kits meant for beginners.

High Grade - 1/144 - The "standard" line of kits in this scale, with the largest selection.

Real Grade - 1/144 - More complex, detailed kits meant for experienced modelers.

Master Grade - 1/100 - Similar in complexity to the Real Grade line, but strangely sometimes has less surface detail.

Perfect Grade - 1/60 - Similar in complexity and detail to the Real Grade kits, only more and bigger.  If you like 1,000+ part kits, this series is for you.  I only built one (the GP-01FB) and it kicked my butt.  It also taught me that 60' walking mechs would be impractically complex in the real world.

Thank you for the great response! +1 Karma for you

Other than complexity and larger scale, do the higher-graded kits have a higher fit and finish than the lower grades? Things like mold lines, seams, etc...? Do the higher grade kits require glue vs the snap-together building of the lower grade kits? (I've only ever built one Bandai kit the Star Wars AT-ST and it just snapped together)

All of Bandai's modern Gundam kits are snap-fit.  The features and degree of parts breakdown by colors tends to get better as you move up the various grades.  But the fit and finish of all their recent kits tend to be good across the board.

BUT, and there's always a but, the Star Wars kits are a step above the Gundam kits in the detail department.  They really went the extra mile here.  I don't know if it was just a corporate decision to make the best Star Wars kits ever (you know, the now-rare occasion when a company decides to really excel and move the benchmark up), or if the design team were huge SW fans and convinced the suits to spend the money.

Either way, we as consumers are better off for it.  I think there was a trickle-down effect (apologies for using a Reaganism) in the market, as companies like Polar Lights and Round 2 are paying more attention to things like accuracy as well as giving us good quality stuff we actually want.

Ooh, +1 karma?  Thanks Chromdome35!  Where's the dancing taco emoji?

[406 Silverado]

Jun 23, 2023 14:33:44 GMT -5 Real G said:

Jun 23, 2023 14:09:24 GMT -5 chromdome35 said:

Thank you for the great response! +1 Karma for you

Other than complexity and larger scale, do the higher-graded kits have a higher fit and finish than the lower grades? Things like mold lines, seams, etc...? Do the higher grade kits require glue vs the snap-together building of the lower grade kits? (I've only ever built one Bandai kit the Star Wars AT-ST and it just snapped together)

All of Bandai's modern Gundam kits are snap-fit.  The features and degree of parts breakdown by colors tends to get better as you move up the various grades.  But the fit and finish of all their recent kits tend to be good across the board.

BUT, and there's always a but, the Star Wars kits are a step above the Gundam kits in the detail department.  They really went the extra mile here.  I don't know if it was just a corporate decision to make the best Star Wars kits ever (you know, the now-rare occasion when a company decides to really excel and move the benchmark up), or if the design team were huge SW fans and convinced the suits to spend the money.

Either way, we as consumers are better off for it.  I think there was a trickle-down effect (apologies for using a Reaganism) in the market, as companies like Polar Lights and Round 2 are paying more attention to things like accuracy as well as giving us good quality stuff we actually want.

Ooh, +1 karma?  Thanks Chromdome35!  Where's the dancing taco emoji?

Now that, I didn't know about the Gundham kits being snap fit.

Oh ....here's that dancing taco emoji. lol

[Real G]

Hee-hee, thanks for the dancing taco Silverado!  

Bandai has really worked hard to elevate the status of snap fit kits.  When they announced their Star Wars line I was horrified, and expected dumbed-down kits that didn't look great.  I was already building their snap-fit Gundam kits and liked them a lot, but I didn't think Bandai could make credible Star Wars kits in a snap-fit format.  Even after the kits started coming out, I refrained from buying any for fear that they were no good.  But seeing finished kits with my own eyes convinced me to give them a try.  And boy was I impressed!

[406 Silverado]

This sounds worthwhile to look into with the snap fit Star Wars line up.

[Real G]

Silverado,

If you have not tried a Bandai Star Wars kit, I highly recommend it!  There was a lot of flak on the X-Wing when it came out, as western modelers unfamiliar with Bandai kits lambasted it for its "toy-like snap fit construction" and pre-molded colors.  I think they were thinking the kits were at Playskool level.  I initially bought into that hysteria, but after I got my first Bandai SW kit (the Y-Wing), I was sold!

Anyway, this weekend was our monthly get-together.  Because most of the guys got in late, I was able to cut and clean more parts (I usually spend most of my time serving snacks and drinks).



The sprues are emptying fast, most satisfying.  Once I get everything cleaned up and test fit, the primer will go on.  Very few seam lines on this kit.  I think this is one of Bandai's best Gundam kits ever.

[406 Silverado]

I'm going to be keeping that in mind about the Star Wars kits Neal. Your layout here looks pretty dang good so far. Looking forward to seeing the construction and what stance you come up with for the displaying of this one.

[stikpusher]

I'm always amazed at how Bandai can mold multiple colors on a single parts tree in those kits. They truly have some superb engineering.

[Real G]

Jun 28, 2023 18:16:39 GMT -5 406 Silverado said:

I'm going to be keeping that in mind about the Star Wars kits Neal. Your layout here looks pretty dang good so far. Looking forward to seeing the construction and what stance you come up with for the displaying of this one.

I’m not a huge fan of the pew-pew gun, so time permitting, I’m thinking about making a new one.

Looking at build reviews on Youtube, I know the model can do some pretty dramatic poses.

[Real G]

Jun 28, 2023 19:06:12 GMT -5 stikpusher said:

I'm always amazed at how Bandai can mold multiple colors on a single parts tree in those kits. They truly have some superb engineering.

Bandai’s multi-color sprue is pretty commonplace now, but when they first started, it was something called System Injection, where individual parts were molded in multiple colors. I have seen the first kit produced using this technology, and it was nothing short of amazing. It was a Dragonar-1, and its wings and legs had red and blue diagonal stripes molded in. I think doing the kits this way must have been expensive, so Bandai switched to just the multi-colored sprues.

However System Injection allowed Bandai to make some amazing one piece robot internal body frames using multiple materials. Some of them had working hydraulic cylinders!

[robbo]

I love these big robots, never done one........yet

[Real G]

Jun 29, 2023 11:47:22 GMT -5 robbo said:

I love these big robots, never done one........yet

That's right - you haven't built a Japanese robot until you have built a Nippon Sunrise Giant Robot!

[Real G]

The sprues are emptying fast.  Just the gun parts remain to be removed, but I am seriously considering a new one.  I really dislike the design of the gun barrel with its 1950s "space ray gun" fins.  More on that later.



At the moment, I am in the process of cleaning up the sprue nubs, eliminating molding lines, and looking for sink marks (of which there are only a few).

For painting, I plan on black basing like this Zaku I, but will go heavier on the distressing effects.



Regarding Bandai's Star Wars line, they REALLY cram detail into even their smaller kits:

[deafpanzer]

Looks like I missed your last few updates while I was on road. I agree about amazing details on those little Star Wars ships especially the Corvette class!

[stikpusher]

Nice looking Gundams, but I really like that Blockade Runner! I do wish that Bandai would do a larger one than their palm size kit.