Bandai Hobby HGUC #175 02 Banshee Norn Unicorn Gundam Model Kit (1/144 Scale) (BAN189503)

This Banshee Norn Unicorn model kit is, as expected, great. The details are sharp, the pieces fit together nicely, and the articulation is top-notch for a 1/144 scale. If you're a Gundam enthusiast, this one won’t disappoint—especially with that badass armed armor. Just be ready to lose a few hours building it, because once you start, it’s hard to stop.

This was a ton of fun to build and super rewarding. I haven't built any Gundams or any other models before this, so I wasn't sure what I was in for. All the instructions are in Japanese but you can Google the symbols shown on the instructions to get some translation. Most of it was self explanatory by the pictures, but every once in a while it took some thinking to figure out how some parts fit together. This was as a whole more rewarding than frustrating. Just examine the instructions carefully and it's fairly easy. In addition to this, I picked up a kit of tools for these kinds of models, and they were helpful if a bit extraneous. You're going to need wire cutters and some fine and very fine sanding paper at a minimum. Some tweezers for the tiny stickers that come with it are useful too.A few cons:The headpiece/horn on the head as well as some pieces in the wings look cheap. They don't look completely awful, but they aren't nearly as gold or shiny as in the picture. You can pick up some Gundam friendly gold paint if you really want to imitate the look, but the semi-opaque orangish gold look that it comes in was good enough for me.The headpiece and horn are VERY fragile and are kind of hard to fit on. One of the sides on the horn snapped when I was trying to put it in place, and I had to repair it with a bit of super glue, which was a somewhat frustrating experience. If you have any sort of model building experience, unlike me, you will probably be okay though.Overall I'm impressessed with the quality of this affordable kit. If you're brand new and don't do too well with very fragile parts, it might be worth it to start with a simpler model, like the classic RX-78-2.

it is a little more expensive than if you get it from a country that near Japan. This shipping cost is a lot but other than that is good

Fun build, really enjoyed the process and the look of this model is astounding. Love Unicorn-hopefully we see more variations later on! BUT… out of all the gundam models I’ve built this seems to be the least impressive when it comes to quality. Can’t hold a pose very well and the arms/legs tend to fall off if you barely move them. Some pieces like the horns & clear plastic parts of the shield are very fragile to the point of almost snapping when putting together. All-in-all I did enjoy this build and the look is astounding. I wouldn’t recommend getting this model kit though if you’re planning to pose/display it.

This is not an easy HG build. It is very complicated and the instructions are of little help at times since they are in Japanese.But in my opinion, this has been one of the most challenging yet fun HG builds I've attempted. One really needs to have very good techniques when building this, especially for filing down the sprue nubs. If they are not filed cleanly, then many pieces will not fit together very well. Also DO NOT file the clear golden pieces, it will rub them badly and they will not be transparent. Brush up on Xacto knife skills because that is the best way to clean those pieces up. Luckily, most will be fitting in between the dark pieces.Also I recommend getting some Tamiya gold paint (x-12). It really pops when those opaque gold pieces are painted with the metallic paint. The clear pieces are just fine. I also recommend a top coat for the black pieces: personal preference really on matte or gloss. If you want a super shiny appearance overall then go gloss. If you want to clear and gold pieces to really stand out go with matte. Or don't top coat. It looks great without.I would rate this among the better HG builds along with the HGBF Denial Gundam. Fun, challenging, and subarashii awesome! The finished model looks killer. Pictures coming soon (need touch up on a couple of pieces first).

As the owner of about seven different Unicorn Gundam variants, I can definitely say that this one rounds out the collection nicely.The new accessories included really help this model stand apart from its variants.The model is molded in a very dark navy blue, black, gray, clear orange and a dull gold for the head crest, neck area and part of the fins on the back. Once assembled, the new backpack fins give the impression of a powerful golden mane. Parts of the mane are done in rather large stickers, as such, I recommend handling assembly as delicately as possible. The Banshee tends to tower over other models and with the additions to the body, this one is even more impressive.In terms of accessories, the model includes four beam sabers (no pink effect parts), one Beam Magnum with an attachable blue beam jutte effect part, and of course the Armored Armor DE shield that can be held on either arm as well as attached to the back via a new attachment piece.While still suffering from the usual Unicorn problems such as weak knees and weak arm articulation, the model looks very impressive on a shelf, especially next to its other counterparts. Definitely recommended to fans of Gundam Unicorn or Gundam in general.

I loved building this kit it goes together really well and honestly has some really great possibility pretty good price to

Came In Early Which Was Great. Took About And Hour To Put Together Because It's Super Detailed