MG RX-78-2 Gundam Ver.3.0 [WIP: Head Unit Complete]

After the highs of attempting to replicate realism inherent in a Race Queen's facial features, my mood slowly leveled out as I worked on the Head Unit of the RX-78-2 Gundam. That's not to say I didn't enjoy the process of painting and putting the mecha's head together. I did. Besides it provides a welcome change of pace, forcing me to vary my usual approach to a project. Knowing myself, I'm pretty sure if I painted human faces all the time then the highs would soon feel like a regular norm. But I digress. Below is the process of painting and building the RX-78-2 Gundam's iconic head.      

Master Grade RX-78-2 Gundam Version 3.0: Head Unit, unlighted

At this fairly advanced stage, the only new paint I had to use was the Tamiya X-27 Clear Red acrylic paint. This time though I used lacquer thinner as a solvent instead of the standard water-and-alcohol thinner mix for acrylic paints. Characteristics of Tamiya's alcohol-based acrylic paint allow for this, and it's suppose to make the paint layers more resistant to scratches and damage. Do note however that it's generally always a bad idea to add lacquer thinner to water-based acrylic paints.   

Pieces of the RX-78-2 Gundam Head Unit all laid out (and painted) prior to assembly

Core of the Head Unit assembled; awaiting the outer armor panels and 60 mm vulcan guns (yellow part)

Here the top half of the Head Unit is still exposed, awaiting final assembly including the iconic 'V' fin

RX-78-2 Gundam Head Unit fully assembled, painted and panel lined

There are two tones of white on the Head Unit. Bluish white on the section encasing the twin 60 mm Vulcan Guns - the only yellow parts on the head. [A bit of Gundam trivia: the Vulcan Guns are the mecha's close-in weapon system that's used against smaller, less heavily armored targets like missiles, vehicles, etc. They are ineffective against other Mobile Suit Armor.] Meanwhile pure white forms the predominant hue of the Head Unit with some red, black, metallic and yellow making up the rest of the color scheme. The eyes comprise clear parts which will channel light from the LED Unit.

RX-78-2 Gundam Head Unit (front view)

RX-78-2 Gundam Head Unit (three quarter view, front-left)

RX-78-2 Gundam Head Unit (left profile)

RX-78-2 Gundam Head Unit (three quarter view, from the back on the left side)

RX-78-2 Gundam Head Unit (back view; note bluish white mid-section sandwiched by white armor)

That segues nicely into the fact that I haven't yet tested how LED lights effect the RX-78-2 Gundam Head Unit. I thought I would leave that one for the final photo reveal. Speaking of lighting effects, I proceeded to hand brush the eye area with black primer paint to prevent light leakage. Although black sticker decals were provided for this purpose, I didn't use them. Well, you should know how I feel about sticker decals by now. If you don't, feel free to revisit my constant whinging about sticker decals in past posts. Anyway, hand brushing black onto the eye piece was a quick and easy process.

RX-78-2 Gundam Head Unit (three quarter view, from the back on the right side)

RX-78-2 Gundam Head Unit (right profile)

RX-78-2 Gundam Head Unit (three quarter view, front-right)

RX-78-2 Gundam Head Unit (front view with head tilted slightly upwards to show a clearer view of the eyee)

Top down view of the RX-78-2 Gundam Head Unit

Upon finishing the RX-78-2 Gundam Head Unit, I was admittedly surprised at its relatively small size in comparison the its Body Unit. In theory I suppose it makes sense as the head isn't truly critical to the mecha's operations in that the Mobile Suit can still function, albeit less effectively, without it. If memory serves me, the head contains the Vulcan Guns as well as the main camera and sensors. But because the pilot is situated in the torso and some secondary cameras and sensors exist on the body, the Gundam can still operate without its head. A blow to the torso however, and it's bye bye Gundam. And with that I bid you farewell for now and end with a totally unrelated quote (apart from the color red) from Pennywise the clown ... Ohhh. Come on, bucko. Don't you want a... balloon?