OLD Gundam F90 1/100 Gundam F90 P-Type

Release 1991.10

Price ¥1,500

BANDAI BANDAI Japan product info

OLD 1/100 Gundam F90 P-Type - Box side view (1/3)

Box side view

OLD 1/100 Gundam F90 P-Type - Runners (1/6)

OLD 1/100 Gundam F90 P-Type - Runners (2/6)

OLD 1/100 Gundam F90 P-Type - Runners (3/6)

OLD 1/100 Gundam F90 P-Type - Runners (4/6)

Runners

Additional runners for the P-Type

OLD 1/100 Gundam F90 P-Type - You can split the runner in half, flip one side to face the other, and snap the parts together

You can split the runner in half, flip one side to face the other, and snap the parts together right on the runner. It's an old-school assembly method you don't really see anymore.

Stickers

OLD 1/100 Gundam F90 P-Type - Parts diagram (1/4)

OLD 1/100 Gundam F90 P-Type - Parts diagram (2/4)

Parts diagram

OLD 1/100 Gundam F90 P-Type - Manual (1/4)

OLD 1/100 Gundam F90 P-Type - Manual (2/4)

Manual

Straight build + Stickers

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

P-Type weapon packs

OLD 1/100 Gundam F90 P-Type - Configured as P-Type (1/4)

OLD 1/100 Gundam F90 P-Type - Configured as P-Type (2/4)

Configured as P-Type

OLD 1/100 Gundam F90 P-Type - This kit had a system insert molding defect..; There were so many of these defects that the sys

This kit had a system insert molding defect..; There were so many of these defects that the system insert method ended up being scrapped.

Base parts that go unused once the P-Type weapon pack is attached.

Spring parts are used for the power cables.

Shoulder beam cannon articulation

OLD 1/100 Gundam F90 P-Type - Action Pose (1/3)

Action pose

OLD 1/100 Gundam F90 P-Type - To transform, raise the beam cannons vertically, rotate the arms 90 degrees, then spread the wi

To transform, raise the beam cannons vertically, rotate the arms 90 degrees, then spread the wings.

Then rotate the backpack section to cover the head and the transformation is complete.

Transformed into atmospheric re-entry mode

Underside

Together with the previous release, Gundam F90 A-Type.

The second kit in the F90 series is the P-Type, where the "P" stands for "Plunge" — referring to its atmospheric re-entry equipment. The F90 base body uses the exact same runners as the previous A/D/S-Type releases, with only the P-Type weapon parts added on top.

Among the P-Type runners, the wing runners are designed so you can split them in half, stack the two halves facing each other, and snap the parts together while still on the runner. It's a pretty clever idea with the symmetrical runner layout, but it didn't go over well in practice — it was briefly used in the 1/144 V Gundam series before being dropped entirely. Personally, I found it awkward to clean up the gate marks after assembling on the runner, so I just popped the parts off and cleaned them up the usual way before building.

As you can see in the review photos above, I was unlucky enough to get a molding defect on the system insert parts in the torso. It seems like this kind of production defect was pretty common, probably because the process required such precise molding control.

The P-Type armament adds wings to the sides of both arms and legs, a sensor on top of the right shoulder, and a beam cannon on top of the left shoulder. You can go through a simple transformation sequence to put it into atmospheric re-entry mode, but honestly, compared to the Zeta Gundam's Waverider, it feels a bit half-baked. The transformed shape itself has a slightly toy-like feel to it, and it wasn't particularly well-received back in the day either.

On the bright side, the stability in transformed mode is better than you'd expect — though the arm positioning is a bit awkward and hard to get just right. The sticker adhesion is still not great either, with the large wing stickers tending to peel up at the edges, which is a bit of a letdown. Still, it's a series where you can feel Bandai's ambition (?) to offer endless variations through all kinds of different armament options. :-)
[ Updated at 2017.9.9]

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.