OLD Char's Counter Attack 1/144 Nu Gundam Fin Funnel

Release 1988.7

Price ¥1,000

BANDAI BANDAI Japan product info

OLD 1/144 Nu Gundam Fin Funnel - Box side view (1/3)

Box side view

OLD 1/144 Nu Gundam Fin Funnel - Runners (1/4)

OLD 1/144 Nu Gundam Fin Funnel - Runners (2/4)

Runners

Two Fin Funnel runners were added and the price went up by ¥200.

OLD 1/144 Nu Gundam Fin Funnel - Bolts and stickers. The small screwdriver that came with the standard version is missing fro

Bolts and stickers. The small screwdriver that came with the standard version is missing from the Fin Funnel version.

The manual size is also different from the standard version.

OLD 1/144 Nu Gundam Fin Funnel - Parts (1/2)

OLD 1/144 Nu Gundam Fin Funnel - Parts (2/2)

Parts diagram

OLD 1/144 Nu Gundam Fin Funnel - Manual (1/6)

OLD 1/144 Nu Gundam Fin Funnel - Manual (2/6)

OLD 1/144 Nu Gundam Fin Funnel - Manual (3/6)

OLD 1/144 Nu Gundam Fin Funnel - Manual (4/6)

Manual

Straight build + Stickers

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

OLD 1/144 Nu Gundam Fin Funnel - Unfortunately, there was a molding defect on the right leg armor, leaving the ankle joint ex

Unfortunately, there was a molding defect on the right leg armor, leaving the ankle joint exposed. T_T

Front and rear of the newly added Fin-Funnels

OLD 1/144 Nu Gundam Fin Funnel - All 6 Fin-Funnels can be connected together with joint parts — 4 of them are fixed in the fo

All 6 Fin-Funnels can be connected together with joint parts — 4 of them are fixed in the folded position, and only 2 are articulated.

The articulated Fin-Funnels fold at both hinge points.

Some of the backpack parts were changed to accommodate the Fin-Funnels.

There are some leftover parts as well.

Bazooka action

Beam Rifle + Beam Saber Action

Together with the 1/144 Nu Gundam standard version.

OLD 1/144 Nu Gundam Fin Funnel - Comparison of the revised backpack. Look closely and you can see the Fin Funnel version's mo

Comparison of the revised backpack. Look closely and you can see the Fin Funnel version's molded color is a bit closer to pure white.

Together with the HGUC Nu Gundam + Fin Funnel released in 2008.

The 8th kit in the old Char's Counterattack lineup is the 1/144 Nu Gundam Fin Funnel. It's essentially the existing 1/144 Nu Gundam standard version with Fin-Funnels added — two extra runners were included, yet the price only went up by ¥200. The trade-off is that the small screwdriver that came with the 1/144 Nu Gundam is no longer included.

On top of that, the white molded color of the body has been slightly changed. The original standard version had just a faint hint of beige to it, whereas the Fin Funnel version comes out in a pure, clean white. Since the body itself is the same as before, check out the 1/144 Nu Gundam review for the details — this review is really just here to cover the added Fin-Funnels and the backpack parts that were changed to go with them.

Of the added Fin-Funnels, 2 are articulated and 4 are fixed in the folded position. Each Fin Funnel can be strung together and plugged in using joint parts, but the connection parts don't hold very well and tend to fall apart easily. On top of that, the extra weight in the back makes it harder to keep the kit balanced, so it's actually trickier to get it standing upright than the standard version. The Fin-Funnels themselves also look pretty bare — single-color molding with no seals — so the whole thing feels a bit plain. The washed-out look of the Fin-Funnels alone is enough to make you want to paint the whole kit.

As you can see in the review photos, the Fin Funnel version I built had a molding defect on the right leg, leaving the ankle joint fully exposed. Being an older kit, the molds have aged, so the chances of running into defects like this are probably higher than usual.

Anyway, this kit is significant just for the fact that a 1/144 Nu Gundam with Fin-Funnels exists at all. If you're choosing between the standard version and the Fin Funnel version, I'd say spend the extra ¥200 and go with this fully-equipped kit. :-)
[ Updated at 2017.8.14 ]

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.