I have no idea what I’m getting into with this build, but maybe a peek at the runners will clue us in:
A few quick observations:
- Based on the number of runners and their content, this doesn’t look like it will be all that complicated, even with the Strike Freedom’s crazy wingspan
- I spy a standard sized Beam Shield
- All of the pieces for the partial inner frame are molded in that cheap looking gold plastic that never looks good. I may have to try and repaint it
- The decal sheet is tiny, and I have a feeling it is incomplete (meaning that there will be some spots that need to be painted because of a lack of enough color correcting stickers)
Gold Paint
I did indeed end up painting all the gold pieces in, well, gold:
This may end up backfiring. These are almost all joint pieces, and all the paint may introduce too much friction. If so, I’ll have try to scrape some of it off - assuming, of course, that it doesn’t come off all on its own (for whatever reason, metallic paint tends to be the most scrape prone).
Beam Shield
This is the same kind of beam shield used by the Gundam F91 and others. It’s such a simple, effective design that it can transcend different Gundam universes. I will say that I like this blue tone.
Beam Sabers
The beam saber handles are very simple, and quite long too:
I have no idea how these compare to other beam sabers from the Cosmic Era. The most I can say about them is that they somehow manage to be different than Universal Century designs, despite there not being all that much to them.
In what appears to be yet another attempt to ape Star Wars, these beam sabers can be equipped like Darth Maul’s double bladed lightsaber:
That seems to be the right amount of Edgelord for Gundam SEED.
Beam Rifles
The Strike Freedom also gets two beam rifles, and they too can combine into a bigger one. However, they are not exactly identical. They have slightly different parts:
Which lead to slightly different bodies:
Though once assembled, they mostly look the same:
It turns out that most of the color correcting decals are used on the guns. As usual, my policy in these cases is to try using the decals first, and then switch to hand painting if they don’t work out. In this case, no painting was necessary.
Like the beam sabers, the guns can also combine:
One of the guns (we’ll call it the “front gun”) has an end cap that swivels out to the side, which allows the “rear gun” to plug into it from behind. Then you extend the length of the front gun’s barrel, extend the stock of the rear gun, and you’re done:
It’s a cool idea, but it really does just look like two guns stuck together. Maybe it will look better once equipped, but right now it’s kind of goofy. Once separated, however, I think the two rifles look pretty cool. I like how colorful they are, which isn’t something we typically see.
Hard Plastic
Some of the runners are made out of what feels like extremely hard plastic. I want to say it is similar to the plastic used for clear parts. I could feel the pressure it was putting on my nippers, so rather than risk breaking them, I swapped them out for a full blown tool out of my toolbox:
I know this is going to lead to some gnarly nub marks, but this is one model where I’ll definitely allow it.
Conclusion
This is a pretty standard set of accessories, but I admire the fact that they try to do some unique things. No one can say the Strike Freedom isn’t swinging for the fences.