Three of the gunpla kits I ordered came in this past week, and I built my first ever gundams. The first I built was the GQuuuuuuX version of Char's Zaku. I've always loved the design of the Zakus, and Char's the one from all of the screenshots and memes I always see (and also this version was a bit cheaper than any of the other available Zaku models when I checked), so I decided to grab it. Also I kinda wanted a model that I liked, but wasn't meaningfully attached to, to be the first one I built. Something I'd enjoy having around, but I wouldn't be devastated over accidentally clipping the wrong spot on a part and ruining it. Thankfully, I made no (irreversible) mistakes, so the model came out perfectly! (Okay, I put the handle of the rocket launcher on backward, but that can be fixed in under a minute once I go to actually equip it.) I found a few of the joints (especially the hips/thighs connection balls) to be a bit too tight. I slightly bored them out to make them easier to move, and it helped a little bit, but I'm afraid of loosening it too much. Still a little stiff in places, but mostly workable. The little thigh pipes stressed me out a little bit, especially when immediately after snapping it into place, it tells you to unsnap them to put the balls in, then snap it back up! This took me maybe 6 hours, I think? I didn't really time it, but my laptop battery ran out twice during the build. Overall, very happy with how this turned out!
Second build was the Entry Grade Wing Gundam. I haven't watched Wing Gundam yet, either, but I wanted to grab at least one Entry Grade kit in case the HG kits were giving me trouble and I needed something easier to figure out the design language on. That turned out to not be an issue. In fact, HG seems to be right about the perfect level for me to be comfortable building, and EG was way too easy. I feel like EG kits are ideal for either small children to start off with or for any other situation where using the clippers wouldn't be ideal. A few of the joints are actually a bit too lose (particularly the right foot, which is why the gun is kinda being used as a cane in that picture). I can probably figure out a way to thicken the ball of the joint a bit to fix that later, but it's not a priority right now. Pinching out the pieces left one specific spot on my fingertip a bit sore. The build took me about an hour, maybe? Very quick to assemble. Even though I ended up not really needing an EG to practice on, Wing is a very nice looking gundam, and I'm happy to have it. I really like the green piece on the chest!
Finally, Gundam Aerial, the reason I ordered gunpla to begin with! I'm really glad I built the Zaku before this because she may have been a bit too intricate for me to start off with. The wrist and shoulder joints work a bit differently than the Zaku's (I presume because of differences between the HGWFM and HGGQ lines?), so I thought I was doing something wrong with them at first. The wrists a just a bit looser than I'd like, but tight enough to hold up the weight of the gun without drooping, so it should be fine. A few of the parts are really spindly, but I've built Nighthaunt in Age of Sigmar, and it's nothing compared to those, so I was fine. I have no idea why, but her knees broke my brain. I assembled them backward, then when I tried to fix it, they were still half-backward. Once I finally got them correct, putting on the white part of her knees had to be done by checking if the parts fit correctly because my brain refused to orient them the way it could orient every other piece in the build. I even put one foot on backward at first because I was using the knees to tell which part of the leg was forward. I have no idea why her knees just broke my brain like that, but they did. Rest of the build went pretty well, but I wish the instructions showed how to assemble each of the individual gundbits without building the shield first. I prefer the Bits On Mode more than the shield, but I'm tired and about to go to sleep, so that'll be something I do later. Overall, took me about half the time it took to make Char's Zaku, so like 3 hours, maybe 4? Very happy with this one.
I thought I had tweezers, but apparently don't, so none of the stickers are on. I'll probably apply them at the same time I'm fixing the small things I messed up. The rest of the kits I've ordered should be coming in the next few months, and I'm already looking forward to building them.
