Series: Master Grade (MG) 1/100
Title: MS-05B Zaku I Ramba Ral Custom
Release Date: 09/2000
Suggested Price: ¥ 2625
No. of Parts: 178
Plastic colors: blue, dark blue, gray, dark and light gray
Gimmicks: head opens, cockpit opens, mount points for bazooka and heat hawk, folding weapon parts, rotating monoeye (by hand)

Introduction

Contributor: Warhammer
Date: September 24, 2009

This was one of my first models and I bought it at a bargain price. Little did I know that the bargain was in the seller's favor. At first I thought it was a very cool model with lots of weapons, a cool huge axe and a classic Zaku look. From up close it turned out as a disappointment.

Head

The head is a simple design. There's the Zaku monoeye and the opening hatch for showing internals. A separate part for the air filter (or whatever it is) in its "mouth" and a blade antenna. Nothing special here (well, it’s an old design, after all).

Torso

The torso is made of very little parts although displaying in nice detail the cockpit and some machinery. The torso is monolithic with the waist, which was a bit disappointing. Front and side waist armor plates have a very limited movement and limit the leg movement. The cockpit hatch opens and reveals the pilot on the right side of the suit and the engine/power plant on the left. Shoulders can be raised or lowered a bit and also extended forward or backward.

Arms

The arms are the biggest disappointment in this model. Although they have quite a few movement/rotation points, they have practically no internal frame and have varying colors of joints and fingers. Elbow joints are made of two parts, one blue and one gray. Hands are made of the usual parts – trigger finger, a block of the three lower fingers and the thumb, all made of soft plastic. The problem is that the thumb and the trigger finger are blue and the others are dark blue – you will want to paint those in a nice blue or black.

Legs

The legs have a simple internal frame and joints. The upper armor parts are obviously from the Zaku II models, with cable connection holes that you'll plug with special parts. The lower armor is specially designed for Zaku I and comes in very few parts. The ankle mechanism is very simple, limited in movement and flimsy. It's hard to make the model stand in any position other than simply standing with feet at shoulder width.

Weapons and Accessories

The weapons have a nice variety, a 100mm Zaku machine-gun, a 120mm machine gun, a 280mm Zaku bazooka and a huge heat hawk, which is the crown jewel of the weapons. The problems with the weapons are that the 100mm has a sight with no lens and the axe is all dark blue. I painted it all black, with the blade and the special pointy tip in silver. Now it looks like a real heat hawk should.

Conclusion

To conclude my review, I'd like to say it as clearly as possible, stay away from this model since you're better off with the original Zaku I. This one doesn't even appear in the anime, it's a mere Mobile Suit Variation – another way for Bandai to get our hard earned cash.

Overall Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

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