BanDai in their ever-resourcefulness re-used the same leg frame the developed for the RX-78-2 Gundam Ver. 1.5. This frame has withstood the test of time, I must say. The Gundam 1.5 was released in June of 2000, the Musha was released in August of 2006. That's over 6 years! With the massive leaps in Master Grade innovation in those six years, they still decided the leg frame from the 1.5 Gundam was worth re-using again.
I suppose they were milking the mold one last time before the Gundam 2.0 was released.
The entire frame of the leg comes molded all together! I've no clue how they accomplish this!
The first thing to do here is to cut away the two mini sprues. A pair of clippers won't be able to get into the tight spots, so grab an X-acto blade!
Then cut away the large sprue and we're in business.
There are still two remaining bits that need to be cut away, but first lets take a look at the posability
The knee joint and ankle joint are both very flexible right off the tree! No assembly required for this gizmo!
The two bits that need cutting off are from the hinges where some back armor panels attach. But DON'T throw out the pointy one!
You need the pointed end to force the hydraulic pipes apart...
No make sure you've got everything moved out where it needs to be.
The pipes move into position with a 90 degree rotation and then moved up and down respectively towards the leg. These ones need the outer armor put on before they will be functional.
The bottom hydraulics snap into place very nicely.
And the ankle has a nice range of motion back...
... and forth.
The knee joint bends 180 degrees without the armor!
The outer armor is attached and the knee joint is screwed together tight.
Unbent knee
Sorry for the blurry picture...
Half way bent and the hydraulics have not engaged.
Bend the knee all the way and the hydraulics extend all the way out.
A very impressive design! This will allow the Musha to recreate some very nice Samurai moves!
