Kit Info

Manufacturer: Akohobby
Scale: 1/100
Media: Resin
Parts: 49 + 30 Metal parts
Price: USD49.00

The Mecha

The RGM-79L GM Light Armor was developed for hit-and-run raids and serves as a fast attack unit for the Federation Forces. It mounts the minimum amount of armor giving it better acceleration and maneuverability. Most notable about this variant is the lack of armor on the shoulders and ankles.

The GM Light Armor carries a beam gun that's similar to the RX-78-2 Gundam. It is more powerful than the GM's standard beam spray gun but holds less shots. Many former pilots turned mobile suit pilots favor the GM Light Armor due to its similarity with fighter aircraft.

The Kit

The RGM-79L is part of the MSV line, which was an offshoot series of mobile suits designed by Kunio Okawara (the principal Mecha designer for Mobile Suit Gundam). MSVs are official mobile suit variants that help to expand the metaverse and to help sell more model kits. Curiously though, there never was any model kit for the RGM-79L in any scale. Until now.

I was very excited when Akohobby announced that they were developing this kit. After prototype pictures popped up, showing a conversion kit for the MG RX-78-2 Gundam ver. OYW (which IMO, is one of the best kits in the MG line), I decided I had to have one in my collection.



I pre-ordered the kit so I paid slightly less than retail for it. When it arrived, it came in a plain black thick cardboard box. Nicely wrapped in bubble wrap were:

* 49 cream colored resin parts
* 30 metal thruster and beam gun parts
* Decal sheet
* Instruction manual

As mentioned above, the MG RX-78-2 Gundam ver. OYW kit is required as a base. The conversion changes the following from the kit:

* Head
* Chest
* Shoulders
* Beam saber
* Pelvis
* Legs
* Beam gun

It looks like this when completed:



Molding for the resin parts are nice and flash free. The pour stubs are not located in any important areas and the parts themselves have nicely done panel lines to complement the existing OYW kit parts.





A very nice surprise is that the visor is molded with clear resin but the modeler has to figure out by themselves how to 'glam' that part up. Akohobby used their own 'Aurora' visor sticker for their sample kit. For whatever reason, Akohobby chose not to include a small sheet of visor sticker with this kit.



The metal parts are also very nicely casted and gives the whole kit a more polished look. Interestingly, the beam gun's barrel is also a metal part and is superbly detailed.



The decals are nicely printed. Quality-wise, they are on par with Samuel Decal offerings. The markings come in various colors to suit various color schemes and there are 2 different unique unit markings provided.



While it's certainly possible that Bandai will release their own version of the RGM-79L (with the RGM-79 v2.0 as a base), I have a feeling it will have a very old school look. Akohobby gave their RGM-79L a modern flavor without overly changing the basic look and design. The design is clearly not for everyone, but it will be a unique addition to anyone's collection.

MechaEd
Rocket Punch! & Crossfire Airsoft Group