Was at the mall earlier in an import store and they had a bunch of Gundam kits. I've only ever built 2 kits before, one of the small ones way back as a kid, and a Master Grade I built last year (though I did damage the face and lose a ball joint for skirt armor, alas). I've kinda been wanting to get more into the hobby, but I prefer things like Master Grade or Perfect Grade to the Advanced or High Grade, I like the detailed, complex ones.

The place I was at had some kits with a grade I've never heard of before, Real Grade, I'm guessing these are somewhat new? They were 1/144 scale, and looking at the box for the one that most interested me (the Zaku II) it looked more or less like a smaller Master Grade, is that the case? Anyone have experience with them?

 

They're awesome.

Also, there's already a gundam model/toy thread: http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/toyark/126293-lets-see-your-gundams.html

 

They're really awesome and impressive, but they're not kits for beginners. Potentially fragile during construction (mostly due to the internal skeleton pieces. Less worrisome when fully constructed, with parts reinforcing each other), and tons of tiny little parts. And a ridiculous amount of tiny stickers and decals if you want to detail them up in full. But they pack in a ton of detail and features for their scale, and at a fairly inexpensive price.

 

I've been seeing a lot of them around lately for under $30, which is outlandishly inexpensive considering what they are. That is barely more than some High Grades cost.

 

Well, that's roughly MSRP. They go for 2000 Yen, which is ~$30 when converted.

 

2500 Yen, actually.

But either way, a year or so back it wasn't uncommon to see them selling domestically for closer to $40. And how often do you see imported Japanese goods sold for Japanese MSRP with no mark-up?

 

It's the best line Bandai does. It sucks Bandai of America doesn't make stuff like RGs.

 

As others have said, it's essentially Master Grade kit quality (inner frame, articulated fingers, opening cockpits, more sticker details like you'd find on a real military machine etc.) at High grade cost and size. Not recomended for those JUST starting out with Gundams or model kits in general, but if you've built some high grades and feel confident in your ability then a RG kit is a great next step. Only problem right now is that the offerings are sort of limited (only non-Gundam suit right now is the Zaku, both the Char Custom Red and regular grunt green versions) and are mostly just UC and SEED suits at present.

Fixed.