Anyone into Gundam (or Gunpla)

Raymond Lin · 9 Oct 2021 at 16:27

Anyone here into Gundam model building?

I built an SD one as a kid but that was decades ago, in order to relive my youth

I have just jumped back in, with both feet and order a PG RX-78-2 Unleashed.

Not going to go all the way with spray paint as the plastic are already colour coded in all the right parts. What I am trying to do is doing minor things like Panel Lining, bought a set of 3rd party water decal (£250 kit and it didn't come with it….stickers are just naff IMO).

If anyone is into it, show us what you've built!

Things I already have on order besides the kit.

A SD Gundam RX-78-2 as a trial one.
A Pair of Godhand
Dspiae Sanding sponge set (180 to 800)
Tweezers
Swann Morton scalpel
Mr Mark Setter/Softer
Brushes
Tamiya Panel Accent Liner in Black, Grey and Brown.
Enamel Thinner
Paint cleaner for brushes

I will also post progress as I build it, hopefully I won't embarrass myself lol

Noakesy85 · 11 Oct 2021 at 11:14

Following this for updates, I've seen a few Gundam mod videos on youtube and they always look phenomenal!

Haven't got the funds or the time to do it myself along with all my other ongoing projects but fair play to anyone who has.

Raymond Lin · 11 Oct 2021 at 13:35

Gundam arrived today!

Orcvader · 12 Oct 2021 at 13:02

Built quite a few when I was younger, unfortunately they're all at my parent's as I'm too scared to move them due to how fragile some of them are and I don't have a proper space to display them in my current place. I never really tried modding back then since I was young and didn't have the skills but I do plan to get back into it one day and try at least panel lining.

Good luck on the PG model! I had a PG OO-Raiser and it took a fair chunk of time to build. Can't wait to see the final result.

Jay85 · 12 Oct 2021 at 13:06

Yup use to buy a ton of these whenever i visited family in HK. Don't even know how much money i spent, still have a few but they're in pieces and covered in dust.

Should really clean them up and put them back up on display.

I'll one day want to build a perfect grade but just don't have the time for it right now.

DEL 707 · 12 Oct 2021 at 18:08

Great looking model!
Was thinking of getting something like that for my brother for Christmas, but £200+ is a bit out of my price range.

Raymond Lin · 12 Oct 2021 at 18:20

DEL 707 said:
Great looking model!
Was thinking of getting something like that for my brother for Christmas, but £200+ is a bit out of my price range.

they do cheaper and smaller scale. This is 1/60th, next size down is 1/100th.

DEL 707 · 12 Oct 2021 at 18:37

Can you recommend any models, or a model range to look at?
I'm looking around £50-£60.

Raymond Lin · 12 Oct 2021 at 19:02

DEL 707 said:
Can you recommend any models, or a model range to look at?
I'm looking around £50-£60.

There are so many and honestly i don't know enough to recommend them, what you are looking for if you do a search is "Best Master Grade Gundam" which should narrow it down. Generally speaking, the newer released versions are better than older pre 2000 designed. Some have LED inside them, some don't. One you found the one you like the look of, search for a review of it.

If it is the original design that you are looking for, by original as in the one i got, the RX-78-2, then they make a 1/100th scale of the same one too. £60, right in your budget. Make sure you get Version 3.0.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bandai-Hob...ocphy=1006790&hvtargid=pla-505176743517&psc=1

DEL 707 · 12 Oct 2021 at 19:28

Thanks, that looks right up his alley.

Infiniteey · 12 Oct 2021 at 22:21

Dayum you went all in on your first model.

Last kit I built was a MG Freedom 2.0, was my first fully panel lined and decals with a top coat. Just find them too expensive to buy over here. I would get a new kit every time I went to HK as a kid. They would be dirt cheap from a dodgy stall in a dodgy shopping mall.

Infiniteey · 12 Oct 2021 at 22:22

Also where did you buy the kit?

Raymond Lin · 12 Oct 2021 at 23:57

Infiniteey said:
Also where did you buy the kit?

Amazon uk but from their EU link on it. The prices go up and down, it's as low as £246, high as £279.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B08KR436GF/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Slam · 13 Oct 2021 at 10:40

Hi there

I've bought several kits from Gundam Mad and would recommend them
https://www.gundammad.co.uk/home.php

they have an explanation of the different levels of kits here
https://www.gundammad.co.uk/pages.php?pageid=6

Raymond Lin · 13 Oct 2021 at 11:16

Infiniteey said:
Dayum you went all in on your first model.

Last kit I built was a MG Freedom 2.0, was my first fully panel lined and decals with a top coat. Just find them too expensive to buy over here. I would get a new kit every time I went to HK as a kid. They would be dirt cheap from a dodgy stall in a dodgy shopping mall.

Gundam kits are everywhere in HK, I remember seeing walls of it in Toys R Us. I used to ignore them because partly because the boxes are too large to take home, also I wasn't into making models for the past 20 years. I really liked it when I was a kid living there.

Kur15 · 14 Oct 2021 at 15:32

Thanks for the invite here Raymond.

Hobbylink Japan would be my go to site for Gundams. https://www.hlj.com/gundam little warning that you might need to pay customs (sometimes).

I used to build these when I was younger but picked up on them again since lockdown last year and needing something to do apart from gaming!

Raymond Lin · 14 Oct 2021 at 15:43

Kur15 said:
Thanks for the invite here Raymond.

Hobbylink Japan would be my go to site for Gundams. https://www.hlj.com/gundam little warning that you might need to pay customs (sometimes).

I used to build these when I was younger but picked up on them again since lockdown last year and needing something to do apart from gaming!

I am used to buying things from Japan so custom side of things is not a problem. I normally buy from AmiAmi and Mandarake for my figures. The problem with them isn't so much the list price but the shipping cost because Gundam boxes are quite large and it can cost £50+ to ship by air easy. It's done more on size rather than weight.

What's shipping cost like with Hobbylink Japan?

Kur15 · 14 Oct 2021 at 16:49

Raymond Lin said:
I am used to buying things from Japan so custom side of things is not a problem. I normally buy from AmiAmi and Mandarake for my figures. The problem with them isn't so much the list price but the shipping cost because Gundam boxes are quite large and it can cost £50+ to ship by air easy. It's done more on size rather than weight.

What's shipping cost like with Hobbylink Japan?

They give you a good range from slow to fast shipping, similar to your sites HLJ also varies depending on weight/size of your package. For example 1/100 scale Gundam, they'll usually ship it for around £15 to £20ish on the slow boat.

Carl_Bennetts · 18 Oct 2021 at 09:39

I picked up a few over the last few months, really like the MG range. I'm on the hunt for a PG but unsure what one to get, although i should build the Titanium Sinanju first.

Orcvader · 18 Oct 2021 at 09:47

Huh, reminds me that I do have the MG Strike Freedom kit I haven't built yet sitting in storage. I should probably get around to building that.