Kit Review

Straight build

HGUC Zeta Gundam ~ Gloss Injection Version (1/2)

HGUC Zeta Gundam ~ Gloss Injection Version (2/2)

Upper body front shot. You can see that glossy sheen, right?

The wings have some reflective sheen too, but they look a bit dull.

HGUC Zeta Gundam ~ Gloss Injection Version - The white molded surfaces are gloss injection as well, but.. it's not that notic

The white molded surfaces are gloss injection as well, but.. it's not that noticeable.

HGUC Zeta Gundam ~ Gloss Injection Version - Since this is a color variant anyway, I'll start by comparing it with the origin

Since this is a color variant anyway, I'll start by comparing it with the original to highlight the differences.

HGUC Zeta Gundam ~ Gloss Injection Version - The left is the Gloss Injection version, the right is the original. You can imme

Left is the Gloss Injection version, right is the original.
You can immediately notice the difference in glossiness on the chest armor.

HGUC Zeta Gundam ~ Gloss Injection Version - The legs aren't drastically different, but you can see the difference better in

The legs aren't drastically different, but you can see the difference better in person than in photos.

HGUC Zeta Gundam ~ Gloss Injection Version - If you look closely at the wings, you can tell the Gloss Injection surface on th

If you look closely at the wings, you can tell the Gloss Injection surface on the left has more of a shiny luster to it.

The red molded surfaces don't really give off much of a gloss injection feel.

HGUC Zeta Gundam ~ Gloss Injection Version - Beam rifle comparison — the bottom one is the Gloss Injection version, and while

Beam rifle comparison — the bottom one is the Gloss Injection version, and while it's a bit shinier, the surface feels a little rough.

Action pose

The Hyper Mega Launcher has a nice glossy sheen to it as well.

Waverider mode.

Overall, it's got a nice glossy sheen all over..

HGUC Zeta Gundam ~ Gloss Injection Version

Together with the normal version's Waverider (left).

This is already the 6th HGUC Zeta -_-

Getting a bit tired of it — they could stop releasing these now.. ^^;

Well, whatever the case, the molded surfaces do look nice ^_^

This kit is the HGUC Zeta Gundam Gloss Injection version, released as a venue-exclusive limited edition at the 2006 Gunpla Expo. The venue price was the same as the regular version — the only difference is the style of the molded surfaces.

Gloss Injection refers to a process where the molded surfaces are given a glossy, reflective finish. Notable examples include the MG Gryphone, MG Qubeley Mk-II, and the MG F91 chest armor. I'm not entirely sure about the technical details (^^;), but from what I understand, additional processing is applied to the mold and material to achieve that smooth, shiny surface.

As with previous Gloss Injection kits, the plastic material used for gloss injection is quite different from standard PS plastic — it's much harder and has a higher rigidity. This makes cleaning up gates a bit more of a pain across the whole kit. It's so hard that shaving it down with a knife is a real struggle;

Since it's basically just the normal version with a different surface finish, there isn't a whole lot to explain. And while it is glossier overall, the difference from the normal version isn't all that dramatic. The white gloss injection parts in particular don't shine much at all — it's mainly through the blue parts on the chest and the wings at the back that you get a sense of "oh, this is a bit different from regular injection." Just looking at the photos, it doesn't give you that wow-factor like the Expo version or clear version does.

It's pretty enough in its own way, but it's a bit hard to call it a must-have limited edition with high collector value. ^^;

HGUC Zeta Gundam ~ Gloss Injection Version

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.