Kit Review

Straight build

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Size comparison with a cigarette pack in G1 mode. As the price tag close to ¥10,000 suggests, it'

Size comparison with a cigarette pack in G1 mode.
As the price tag close to ¥10,000 suggests, it's got a pretty solid build. (...no comment)

Size comparison with a cigarette pack in G2 mode (tank form).
Yep, it's a big one.

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Let's start with G2 tank mode. The molded colors are simple, but the sculpt is really nice. (1/7)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Let's start with G2 tank mode. The molded colors are simple, but the sculpt is really nice. (2/7)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Let's start with G2 tank mode. The molded colors are simple, but the sculpt is really nice. (3/7)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Let's start with G2 tank mode. The molded colors are simple, but the sculpt is really nice. (4/7)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Let's start with G2 tank mode. The molded colors are simple, but the sculpt is really nice. (5/7)

Let's start with G2 tank mode.
The molded colors are simple, but the sculpt is really nice.

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Close-up shots of various parts in G2 mode. (1/4)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Close-up shots of various parts in G2 mode. (2/4)

Close-up shots of various parts in G2 mode.

Underside view

The underside, where the arms and legs are neatly tucked away.

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - In G2 mode, there's not really much you can do pose-wise besides rotating the barrel. ^^; (1/4)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - In G2 mode, there's not really much you can do pose-wise besides rotating the barrel. ^^; (2/4)

In G2 mode, there's not really much you can do pose-wise besides rotating the barrel. ^^;

On the rear left, you can choose to attach either a small fuel tank or a large box.

An additional accessory box is also included.

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Two 1/35 scale figures with decent detail are included. They've got that classic gunpla feel to t

Two 1/35 scale figures with decent detail are included.
They've got that classic gunpla feel to them.

There are also some leftover parts.

Transformation (G2 -> G1)

Lift the side covers and remove the pipes,
then fold the rear wheel section down into an L-shape.

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - If you temporarily remove the locking pin in the middle of the rear wheel connector, you can adju

If you temporarily remove the locking pin in the middle of the rear wheel connector, you can adjust the length in three steps.

You need to fold the armor above the rear wheels back and up..

Viewed from the inside, you can see how it folds up like this.

Fold the front wheel connector inward..

Rotate the front wheel connector and extend it downward.

Push the front wheel connector all the way back.

Lower the front wheel section down and let it hang.

Rotate the chest section 180 degrees and lower it, then swing the barrel forward.

Pull out the hidden arm section and rotate it forward.

Arrange the arms into the configuration shown above and the transformation is complete!

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Gunhed G1 mode. It looks like the tank just stood straight up.. ^^; (1/8)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Gunhed G1 mode. It looks like the tank just stood straight up.. ^^; (2/8)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Gunhed G1 mode. It looks like the tank just stood straight up.. ^^; (3/8)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Gunhed G1 mode. It looks like the tank just stood straight up.. ^^; (4/8)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Gunhed G1 mode. It looks like the tank just stood straight up.. ^^; (5/8)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Gunhed G1 mode. It looks like the tank just stood straight up.. ^^; (6/8)

Gunhed G1 mode.
It looks like the tank just stood straight up.. ^^;

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Various body parts in G1 mode. (1/13)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Various body parts in G1 mode. (2/13)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Various body parts in G1 mode. (3/13)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Various body parts in G1 mode. (4/13)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Various body parts in G1 mode. (5/13)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Various body parts in G1 mode. (6/13)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Various body parts in G1 mode. (7/13)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Various body parts in G1 mode. (8/13)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Various body parts in G1 mode. (9/13)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Various body parts in G1 mode. (10/13)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Various body parts in G1 mode. (11/13)

Various body parts in G1 mode.

Both hands have different designs, but they're both articulated.

The front legs, rear legs, and arms can all move at various angles.

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Action pose 1 (1/5)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Action pose 1 (2/5)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Action pose 1 (3/5)

Action pose 1

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Action pose 2 (1/5)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Action pose 2 (2/5)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Action pose 2 (3/5)

Action pose 2

Adapter parts are also included for use with existing Kotobukiya display stands.

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Recreating a scene from the film — the so-called "wall-climbing" pose. The joints are a bit weak

Recreating a scene from the film — the so-called "wall-climbing" pose.
The joints are a bit weak for holding up such a heavy kit, so getting this shot was a real struggle..

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Recreating the final scene from the film. (1/3)

Recreating the final scene from the film.

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED - Actually.. there are supposed to be black wire pipes inserted on either side of the head barrel,

Actually.. there are supposed to be black wire pipes inserted on either side of the head barrel,
but they fall out so easily that I lost them before I even started the review. T_T
So I finished shooting and editing all the review photos without them, and only then found them on the floor.. -_-
I'm just going to post one extra photo to show that yes, those pipes do exist. ^^
(It's a bit too much of a hassle to put the pipes back in and reshoot this kit. T_T)

Kotobukiya, known for turning unusual subjects into plastic model kits, has this time released "Gunhed." It's not something most people would recognize unless they're old-school fans, but for those who were reading Newtype magazine in the late '80s, it's one of those mecha that's both niche and deeply nostalgic.

Gunhed is the mecha from the 1989 SFX film of the same name, though many people might actually remember it more from the PC Engine or Famicom games. It was also adapted into comics and novels by Kia Asamiya, so old-school Japanese animation fans will likely remember it in one form or another. The film itself flopped — the subject matter and concept were just too ahead of their time — but the image of this massive tank-like robot has lived on as a kind of minor legend among fans. I still can't forget the Gunhed images and comics I saw in Newtype back in the day. ^^

Anyway, Gunhed has two modes — the robot-form G1 mode and the tank-form G2 mode — and thankfully this kit reproduces the transformation between them almost perfectly. The scale is 1/35, which has that gunpla-like feel to it, so it's nice and large with pretty solid detail. It's not as fine and delicate as a real military plastic model, but it delivers that thick, complex mechanical detail you'd expect from a mecha model kit.

Opening the large, pricey (-_-) ¥9,800 box, you're greeted with a flood of parts. True to Kotobukiya's style, the part count is high and the assembly process is fairly involved, so it does take quite a bit of time to build. That said, unlike Zoids kits, there aren't that many tiny fiddly parts, so it's not particularly difficult — though there are still a few spots where you'll definitely want to use glue to make assembly go smoothly.

Maybe it's the high part count and large size, but once you finish building it, you get this real sense of weight and presence. In G1 robot mode, the arms and front/rear wheels have a variety of joints that allow for more poses than you'd expect — but even though the joint strength itself isn't bad, the kit is so heavy that poses tend to sag and shift, which is a bit of a shame.

The real highlight of Gunhed is the transformation gimmick. Actually working through the transformation by hand — the same one you'd seen in the film and comics — was genuinely fun. That feeling of "oh, so *this* is how it moves!" The weight of the kit makes holding poses a little uncertain, but with so many moving parts, there's a satisfying hands-on feel to building and playing with it.

Personally, back when I was reading Newtype, I used to think how amazing it would be if this cool transforming tank Gunhed ever got a plastic model kit — a fully transforming one at that. Now, over 20 years later, seeing it released in such a large and impressive form, I'm genuinely moved.

For old fans who remember Newtype and Gunhed, this is absolutely a nostalgic collectible worth owning — a kit where the three-dimensional detail and transformation gimmick alone are more than enough to get you excited. And even if you've never heard of Gunhed before, if you're into this kind of stylish transforming tank mecha, it's a unique kit well worth recommending. :-)

Gunhed Unit No.507 GUNHED | 2012.10 | ¥9,800

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.