Kit Review

Straight build + Seals

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

RG Zaku Mine Layer - Various angles (1/6)

RG Zaku Mine Layer - Various angles (2/6)

RG Zaku Mine Layer - Various angles (3/6)

RG Zaku Mine Layer - Various angles (4/6)

Various angles

Detail shots

Same weapon loadout as the original

Mine deployment gimmick in action

Leftover parts

Articulation is the same as before.

RG Zaku Mine Layer - Mine laying pose (1/3)

Mine laying pose

RG Zaku Mine Layer - Poses using the standard weapons (1/8)

RG Zaku Mine Layer - Poses using the standard weapons (2/8)

RG Zaku Mine Layer - Poses using the standard weapons (3/8)

RG Zaku Mine Layer - Poses using the standard weapons (4/8)

RG Zaku Mine Layer - Poses using the standard weapons (5/8)

RG Zaku Mine Layer - Poses using the standard weapons (6/8)

Poses using the standard weapons

Together with the standard release RG Zaku II mass production type.

RG Zaku Mine Layer - Alongside the old 1/144 Zaku Mine Layer released in 1984. You can really feel the 34-year gap in bot

Alongside the old 1/144 Zaku Mine Layer released in 1984.
You can really feel the 34-year gap in both time and grade.

RG Zaku Mine Layer - Together with the MG Zaku Minelayer released as a standard release in 2008. The molded colors and co

Together with the MG Zaku Minelayer released as a standard release in 2008.
The molded colors and color scheme have changed completely.

This kit is the RG Zaku Mine Layer released as a Club G (Premium Bandai) online exclusive. It's based on the standard release RG Zaku IIwith changed molded colors and newly tooled parts added. Unlike the MG Zaku Minelayerthat came out in 2008, this one features desert-colored molded colors with a colorful Minelayer backpack.

The basic construction of the main body is almost identical to the existing RG Zaku II, but the highlight here is the newly tooled Minelayer backpack. Some of the head parts were changed to accommodate the power cables connecting to the backpack, and there are a few parts changes on the torso as well. The Minelayer backpack is elaborately sculpted with great color separation, and the overall build quality is excellent as you'd expect from an RG. The deployment gimmick for dropping mines from the lower section is faithfully reproduced too.

The weapons and accessories are otherwise the same as the original kit, and it still shows decent articulation with tight joint strength. Being an early RG, it still has that slightly fiddly feel reminiscent of the RG First — once you start posing it, it takes a lot of fussing around, and the joints are stiff relative to the kit's size so it's not the most comfortable to work with. That said, the small but excellent detail is still outstanding, as you'd expect from an RG.

This kit is significant in that the Minelayer backpack has been beautifully rendered in new tooling at the RG scale. If you're a fan of the Zaku series or have always had a soft spot for the Minelayer, this is definitely one you won't want to miss. :-)

RG Zaku Mine Layer | 2018.5 | ¥3,000

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.