HGUniversal Century

FA-78-1 Full Armor Gundam

The best HG Gundam base kit in the lineup, buried under a mountain of extra armor plates.

MechaGrade Score

4.1/5

Full Armor Gundam · 1/144 · 2023

GradeHG

Scale1/144

Released2023

Runnersn/a

Check price on Amazon

Affiliate link. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.

The verdict

This kit works because Bandai didn't cut a single corner on the RX-78 hiding underneath all that armor.

Strip off the Full Armor parts and you've got the HG Origin Gundam, one of the strongest small-scale RX-78 builds Bandai has ever put out, then they bolt on a rocket cannon, a double beam rifle, and missile bays without breaking the frame's pose range. It takes real time to build (people who normally clear an HG in an hour or two report three to four hours here), but every extra minute buys you a kit that looks like a completely different mobile suit when the armor comes off.

Best for: builders who want a transforming display piece, the full-armor version and the clean RX-78-2 underneath, from a single box

The full review

What it is

This is the FA-78-1 Full Armor Gundam done as an add-on shell over the HGGTO RX-78-2, so you're really building two kits in one: the excellent Origin-line Gundam frame, then a second layer of chest missile bays, shoulder-mounted knee missiles, a double beam rifle for the right arm, and a 360mm rocket cannon that rides the back and swings over the shoulder. Waterslide decals cover the MSD-style stenciling and federation markings. Popping the armor off to reveal the base Gundam underneath is genuinely satisfying, it's the kind of gimmick that makes a shelf kit feel like a toy again, and the underlying frame holds every pose you'd expect from a modern HG.

The catch

It's a Premium Bandai exclusive, so you're paying more than standard HG money and hunting secondary market or proxy sellers to get one, and the box is dense. Expect double to triple the build time of a normal HG once you're cementing on missile hatches, cannon struts, and beam rifle joints. The backpack and rocket cannon add real weight to the rear, and like most Full Armor kits before it, dynamic rear-heavy poses want a stand or a wide stable base under the feet. The olive drab color scheme is also divisive, some builders love the FSWS prototype look, others find it flat and wish Bandai had leaned into a darker or grayer scheme.

Who it's for

Get this one if you already like the HG Origin RX-78-2 and want a bigger, weapon-heavy version of it that still lets you build the plain Gundam when you're tired of the armor look. It rewards patience and careful part orientation more than a standard HG does, so it's not the kit for someone who wants a fast weeknight build. Skip it if you're chasing a cheap, quick RX-78, or if paying Premium Bandai markup for a niche MSV variant isn't worth it to you, a standard HGGTO RX-78-2 will scratch a similar itch for less money and half the build time.

What works

the RX-78-2 frame underneath is one of the best small-scale Gundam bases Bandai has made, and it still poses freely with the armor on
popping the full-armor shell off to reveal the plain Gundam underneath is a satisfying, functional gimmick, not just a marketing line
loaded weapon set (double beam rifle, 360mm rocket cannon, chest and knee missile bays) gives a lot of display variety for one box

Worth knowing

Premium Bandai exclusive pricing and limited availability compared to a standard retail HG
build time runs two to three times longer than a normal HG once you're assembling every armor plate and hatch
rear-heavy backpack and cannon assembly push dynamic poses toward needing a stand, same issue every Full Armor variant has had

Sold? Grab it.

Check price on Amazon

Affiliate link. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

The build story

What the build is actually like, and the engineering worth knowing about.

The base RX-78-2 build is clean HGGTO engineering: tight gate placement, minimal visible seams on the major limbs, and part fit that doesn't fight you. Layering the Full Armor shell on top is where the time goes. Missile hatch parts, cannon struts, and the double beam rifle mount are small and numerous, and getting the armor plates to click on square without stressing the frame joints takes patience rather than skill. Nothing here is fiddly in a bad way, it's just a lot of small assemblies stacked on a kit that was already complete on its own.

Articulation barely suffers for the added bulk. The Origin frame's shoulder, elbow, and hip joints keep their range even with armor plates on, and the front and side skirt armor are cut to swing out of the way of leg movement, a detail carried over from the RX-78-2 base kit. Color separation on the armor is handled mostly through molded plastic rather than stickers, with waterslide decals reserved for fine federation markings and stencils, so panel lines and paint jobs pay off well once assembled. The weapon loadout, double beam rifle, rocket cannon, and dual missile bays, gives genuinely different display options from one kit rather than one accessory you use once and shelve.

Lore & trivia

01The FA-78-1 comes from the fictional FSWS Plan (Full-armor System and Weapon System), an Earth Federation program from the late One Year War meant to boost the RX-78's survivability and firepower with bolt-on armor and weapons.
02This HGGTO release builds on the Mobile Suit Discovery (MSD) side-story line for Gundam: The Origin, and reuses the acclaimed HG Origin RX-78-2 as its base frame rather than a new sculpt.
03It was sold as a Bandai Hobby Online Shop (Premium Bandai) exclusive rather than general retail, which is why secondary market and proxy pricing runs above typical HG rates.
04The kit's armor is designed to be fully removable, letting builders display either the armored FA-78-1 or the plain RX-78-2 Origin Gundam from the same parts.