Akatsuki Rima - Her colored custom by ~murumokirby360

(RG) Akatsuki Gundam (Oowashi Pack)

Man, not since Seltsam have I had such an unfun time building a kit. Though, while Seltsam was unstable and required heavy paint to make it screen accurate, Akatsuki... well, I suppose we'll talk about that later. That being said, once completed, it is a beautiful looking piece. Not sure it was worth the tedium, but still.

The Good: Again, very pretty. They do a pretty good job of undergating runner connections or putting them in spots that get covered up or you won't notice. And as an RG, it's very posable. It also has a number of gimmicks; the detachable Oowashi Pack, the combinable beam saber that also doubles as a bayonet, and a few other small ones.

The Bad: It's chrome. And dealing with small amounts of chrome on a kit is ok, but in large amounts it is very annoying and tedious to deal with. You can't tackle chromed parts the same way you would normal unpainted parts; I had to use an exactoknife on every piece to subtly clean each runner connection without chipping off too much of the chrome, which was very important on the area they couldn't hide, like the back of the cuffs or the back of the horns. I got a few tiny cuts doing this, too. Take your time, be careful, take breaks, spend a few days, don't do it all at once.

The Details: Because I didn't want to mess with the chrome so it would keep its sheen, I only panel lined the non-gold parts, which weren't a lot. I did also use a few of the silver stickers.