DISCOVERING THE GUNPLA

Hello everyone!

It is sometimes complicated to introduce a loved one to our passion. This is why today we are writing an article which aims to help newbies find their way and veterans to have a solid foundation to show to their loved ones!

But let's not start with a simple question:

LE GUNPLA WHAT IS A FINANCIAL FORECAST ?

Unknown to most people, the GUNPLA is a crossing of GUNdam, a successful animated series in Japan and models in PLAstic, produced by the BANDAI brand

In short: robot models

You should know that in France this has been developing more and more over the past 2 years, after a vain attempt in 2002 at the same time as the publication of the GUNDAM WING series on M6.
Today, a lot of Otaku stores and even some big brands like Leclerc sell them!

I think a video is worth 1000 words:

HISTORY

Le GUNPLA there is something for all tastes, all genders, all ages!

The strong point stated at the time was that they are assembled without glue, and do not need paint.
They were therefore very interesting in a somewhat “aging” environment of fairly elitist “classic” models, where, in people's minds, it was necessary to buy a lot of equipment.

The first ones gunpla, released in 1980, were an immediate success! Although not very detailed and far from current standards, they allowed BANDAI to launch their greatest commercial success.

The first model is a 78/1 scale RX-144

Although totally obsolete now, it was totally revolutionary in its time! It was followed by quite a few models, in different scales (mainly 1/144 and 1/100).

Then in 1990, the “HIGH GRADE” appeared, followed by other ranges.

CONTENTS OF A BOX:

But in practice, how does it look?
It’s quite simple! By opening your box you will in the majority of cases:

• Clusters of parts
• A sheet of stickers/decals
• An assembly manual

All you have to do is follow the instructions and equip yourself with the basic equipment of any good model maker!

LE GEAR NECESSARY 

Well, to get started you need a little equipment anyway.

• Cutting pliers to detach the parts from the clusters
•  Files to sand down marks
• A pliers to apply the stickers

All of this can be replaced by everyday tools: 

• A nail clipper to detach the parts from the clusters
• A nail file to sand down marks
• tweezers to apply the stickers

Of course, the result will be less good, but totally acceptable for first models.
There are different qualities of tools, but we advise you, for a start, to go to this  kind of all in one kits.
Subsequently, other tools can help you with your models, but we will come back to this in another article.

THE GRADES

The range of gunpla is very large!
We will therefore cite the best known here:
For the full article, here the link : 

Perfect Grade (PG) (1/60 scale)

Mega Sizes Model (MSM) (Scale 1/48)

Master Grade (MG) (Scale 1/100)

Real Grade (RG) (Scale 1/144)

High Grade (HG) (Scale 1/144)

Super Deformed (SD)

THE PRICE : 

One of the advantages of gunpla, it adapts to all wallets!
Ranging from less than €10 for certain SD or HG and rising to more than €300 for the largest models!
So I invite you to watch our shop.

CONCLUSION

As with the purchase of all models, I can only recommend choosing a “favorite”. But not trying this hobby would be a shame!

So grab your pliers and files!