Written by 4:45 pm My Builds

Completed : Wave 1/72 AFC-01H Legioss Eta


Kit Info
Brand: Wave KM-01
Scale: 1/72
Media: Styrene
Markings: Kit

The Subject
The AFH-01 Legioss is the main combat fighter of the Second Earth Recapture Force which was tasked with freeing Earth from the Inbit, an alien race that conquered Earth in 2050. It is a variable fighter that can transform between three modes: the aircraft-shaped Armo Fighter, the humanoid mecha Armo Soldier and an intermediate form of the two. The Legioss is armed with an 80mm beam gun and 60x missiles stored in various internal launchers. Capable of both space and atmospheric operations, the Legioss can also combine with the AB-01 Thread for added performance and firepower.

The AFH-01H Legioss Eta is the blue colored squadron leader variant and along with the green mass production Iota and red high performance Zeta, was one of three variants deployed by the Second Earth Recapture Force.

The Legioss is a transformable mecha from the 1983 anime series Genesis Climber MOSPEADA which was subsequently adapted in 1985 as the third generation of the American cartoon series Robotech where it was called the ‘Alpha Fighter’. The Legioss was designed by Kakinuma Hideki.

Sources
Wikipedia – Genesis Climber MOSPEADA
Gears Online – Legioss Eta

The Kit
Released in 2012 by Wave Corporation, the AFC-01H Legioss Eta was the first modern iteration of this classic 1980s mecha since the originals from Imai way back in 1983. The kit features:

  • full snapfit construction
  • fully poseable using polycap joints
  • parts are molded in color although not at the level of Bandai. Painting is definitely required.
  • hand options include an open and closed fist for either hand and a beam gun gripping right hand
  • includes the additional missile pod that attaches to the back of the left shoulder
  • a pretty comprehensive decal sheet

In 2021, Wave would release a 3-in-1 box where you have the option to build any of the three Legioss variants.

The Build
As usual with snapfit kits, I’ve had this one snapfitted together for a few years already. Also as usual (for a Wave kit), both the fit and polycap quality doesn’t compare to Bandai’s. The result is a kit where some of the parts snapfit without issue but show some gaps and slightly loose joints from lesser clutch power of the polycaps.

Throughout the years, some of the polycaps had also deteriorated resulting in them cracking length-wise: they still work, but they clutch even less now. By the time I decided to finish the kit in 2020, the plastic had also lost some of its strength resulting in the left hip ball joint breaking off when I was taking it apart. Surprisingly, I managed to get a replacement part (I posted about it here) which allowed me to finally finish this kit.

Like Hasegawa, Wave hasn’t embraced modern engineering techniques for their kits so they don’t bother to hide seamlines. The result is that almost every join requires cleaning up. It’s nothing that elbow grease can’t fix but it’s a modern kit, so the engineering should be better.

Colors & Markings
I stuck quite close to the default color scheme but I eyeballed the colors instead of mixing them as specified by Wave’s instructions. I again had some problems painting white but it wasn’t as bad as what happened on my last primarily white build, the Shin Kazama F-5 Tiger II. I’ve slowly started to switch to Tamiya and Mr Hobby acrylic paints which have helped.

In any case, painting the kit required quite judicious use of masking tape due to a lack of color separation. I handpainted some of the smaller details like on the head and the upper thighs.

For the markings, I only placed the main markings to keep a less busy look. I managed to rip the ‘1’ on the ’21’ at the back of the kit which I masked and sprayed back in. Other than that one errant decal, the others performed very well.

Finishing
I tried for another clean finish with only a panel wash and I think I’ve managed a better result this time. Still room for improvement though!

So I’m done with a kit that really shouldn’t have taken such a long time. But that’s me as usual and I like the result although it’s surprisingly small in size.

Build Log
> Construction & Finishing


Number 2 of 2022

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Tags: , , , , , Last modified: 5 December, 2022
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