I’ve been in love with Gundam modeling since I build my first hot pink SD model in 2010. Since then I’ve built a whole lot of High Grade models, but I’ve never had the courage to take on a Master Grade that wasn’t a team project with John.
When I saw MG Strike Rouge at Katsucon early this year, however, I knew it was time to level up. John and I had recently done a rewatch of Gundam Seed and I fell in love with the suit. My first SD and HG Gunpla builds were both pink. Now, my first MG would be, too.
Here’s my review of this build and how my experience went:
- Overall, this took me about five nights total, and I’d guess seven hours. I am not a fast builder! I estimate I took more time than the average builder would need. I definitely was nervous since it was my first solo Master Grade project.
- I used my Tamiya Basic Tool Set, my hobby mat, and no other materials. I did not panel line this model. I just built it straight out of the box. The majority of my time went into filing down nubs with my X-Acto knife. Looking at these macro shots, I didn’t spend enough time doing that! I also got a few cuts, oops.
- I did have to use my trusty super glue for one piece. I noticed I put one of the Ootori’s wings on backwards, and tried to take the missiles off, ironically, to keep from breaking them while i flipped it. That’s how I broke it! Read more about how I repair Gunpla.
- There were a LOT of stickers on the Ootori, and they all had to be lined up very carefully. Eventually I gave up using my tweezers and just applied them with my hands (not recommended since fingers are oily!) out of frustration.
- With the Ootori and sword on her back, Strike Rouge is very top heavy and can’t stand up by herself without a really wide stance I’m pleased this model came with a stand so I could give her a cool pose instead of a wobbly one.
This was a fun first Master Grade that really showed me what makes an MG Gunpla so special—increased articulation, cooler accessories, and parts that fit precisely. I’m already making plans to build another one soon (I’m thinking a Version Ka since they’re oh so flashy), and this time I won’t shy away from panel lining!
16 Comments.
Its actully fun sometimes to go back after a few years and then do pannel lining. It really does bring out the model and shows how far youve come. It sounds like fun that you had with this model. Any plans on what model youll do next?
@milkykou:disqus that’s a great idea! And when I do it, I can also file down those nubs I missed. And maybe even do the water transfers, too. Like everyone ever I think Sengoku Astray looks really cool, and might do that next. Then again, I love the purple details on the Ver. Ka Hi-Nu from Char’s Counterattack!
Hi-Nu Ver. Ka has decals that are extremely difficult to get right. HLJ tv has an episode on how to apply them.
@disqus_G7Mtd1Tvah:disqus thanks for the tip! Is this the video? I will check it out! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RO3fQzJeftI
Yes, thats it.
Grats on your first MG. Looks amazing!
Magnificent building, even without panel lining and painting. unlike me who have built ten MG haven’t done any panel lining and painting on any of them. looking forward for your next MG!!!
Actully im curious, what kind of camera do you guys use for taking photos of this?
@milkykou:disqus I use a Nikon P7000. It only has one lens so I use it on the macro setting with the lowest possible aperture and highest possible shutter speed. I need to build a light box for better photos!
There is a gundam Model in master grade form i reccomend. I do highly reccomend the Turn X gundam MG although it is a much much easier model than other MG its a good start and so much fun to put together.
I finished my first master grade recently! I’m still rather new to Gundam, so I decided to build the first Gundam as a master grade, and the RX-78-2 Ver. 3.0 looks amazing! Do you have any suggestions for which mono-eye Zeon suit I should build in master grade?
@peter_va:disqus I tend to think Master Grades are all of similar quality, so there’s not one I would say is a better Zeon suit than another. Which one is your favorite? Even if it’s a little tougher than I’m used to, building a suit I love is really motivating. Happy New Year!
I went for Char’s Zaku II as my second MG build. It turned out really well. Zaku’s are a good choice for Zeon stuff, as well as Goufs and Rick Dom’s
This was my very first MG and gunpla. Spent countless hours until late in the evening building this. Like you, I didn’t panel line or put the decals on the kit. All I did was cut and put together the pieces. The last thing I did was put stickers on them using tweezers. I haven’t gone back to fixing those other things. I’l get back to it when I think I’m skilled enough to ‘finish’ the kit the way it deserves to be. 🙂 Glad to see more female modelers with blogs about gunpla. Happy building! 🙂
@alenpareja:disqus Since I wrote this, I have gotten brave enough to put a couple of details on the kit =) You can read about it in my Decals 101 article on this site.
Your MG Strike Rouge looks great for your first MG. This is my first MG the MG Burning Gundam and it took me seven minutes shy of eighteen hours to build, panel lining, and putting on the decals of which weren’t many if you’re following the manual. My overall experience with this kit was shorter than I expected for build time and fixing parts that I’ve placed wrong, like I did for one of the elbow joints. The parts are now in the right places and everything is now moving smoothly.