The Plan
Picked this one up in person at the USA Gundam Store — which, if you haven’t been, is an experience worth having if you’re in the area. My son’s favorite Mobile Suit is the Barbatos Lupus Rex, and when I saw this bust modeled after it, the decision was easy.
This is a father-son build. We’ll be taking our time — think less “weekend project,” more “ongoing father-son tradition.” Somewhere between faster than the Dragon and slower than either of us would like. The goal isn’t speed. It’s the time spent building together.
Build Log
May 1, 2026
Cracked open the box and immediately recalibrated expectations. This is a significantly more involved build than either of us anticipated — my son took one look at the runners spread across the table and delivered what may be the quote of the year: “Why are there so many runners?!”
We got about an hour in today, which felt about right, and worked through the first several steps of the manual. A few early impressions: the plastic quality is excellent, and the design is genuinely well thought out — color separation is crisp right out of the box and it’s already clear this is going to look great as it comes together.
This is also one of my first builds with a kit not made by Bandai, and there are some interesting construction techniques I haven’t run into before. A lot of parts attach with slots instead of round pegs, which takes a little getting used to but feels intentional. Different, not worse. I think this one’s going to be a really fun build — worth every one of those runners.
