HGUniversal Century

RCX-76-01 Guncannon Mobility Test Type/Firepower Test Type

Two failed prototypes in one box, and somehow that's the whole appeal.

MechaGrade Score

3.7/5

Guncannon Mobility Test Type/Firepower Test Type · 1/144 · 2017

GradeHG

Scale1/144

Released2017

Runnersn/a

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The verdict

This is a two-kits-for-one experiment that actually works.

You get a genuinely swappable Guncannon that rebuilds between the gatling-armed Mobility Test Type and the twin-cannon Firepower Test Type using different heads, forearms, and hand sets rather than just sticker swaps. It will never look as clean or as posable as a modern MG, but for a 1/144 HG it packs in more play value per dollar than almost anything else in the Origin line. I like it more for what it lets me do than for how it looks standing still.

Best for: Origin-line completionists and anyone who wants one HG box that plays like two different mobile suits

The full review

What it is

This kit is Bandai's answer to a very specific bit of Gundam lore: before the RCX-76-02 Guncannon First Type went into mass production, Anaheim Electronics tested two rival configurations, one built for mobility with shoulder gatling guns, one built for raw firepower with oversized cannons. The kit hands you both. Swap the head, the right forearm, and the hands, and you go from the gatling-gun Mobility Type to the big-cannon Firepower Type without cutting or gluing anything. Building it the first time is a little novel just because you assemble it knowing you are about to take it half apart again to see the other configuration, and that back-and-forth is genuinely fun in a way most single-loadout HGs are not.

The catch

The 360 degree waist rotation and double-jointed elbows and knees are real, but this is still a tank-legacy suit under an HG budget, so the range never reaches RG or MG territory and the pose vocabulary is more "solid stance" than "dynamic action shot." The claw-style manipulator hands that ship with the kit read as stiff and slightly awkward next to the separate weapon-holding hands, and you will lean on the swap-in hands for anything that needs to actually grip a gun. Bandai leans on stickers and painted panel lines for a lot of the color separation and the cockpit/cannon detailing, so a shelf-ready finish still asks for markers or paint, not just clipping parts together.

Who it's for

Get this one if you care about the Origin storyline and want the object lesson in why the Guncannon program got scrapped in favor of Operation V, or if you just like a kit that gives you a reason to rebuild it. The dual-configuration gimmick alone makes it a better value pick than a lot of single-pose HGs at a similar price point. Skip it if you want a display piece that looks striking straight off the runners with zero extra work, or if you already own the mass-production RCX-76-02 and don't care about the two rejected prototypes that came before it.

What works

Genuine dual-build gimmick, swap head/forearm/hands to go from Mobility Type to Firepower Type and back, no cutting required
360 degree waist rotation plus double-jointed elbows and knees give it a wider stance range than its tank-derived silhouette suggests
Comes loaded with hardware, machine gun, rifle, shoulder gatling guns, large-caliber cannons, three hand types, and a display stand

Worth knowing

Stock claw-style hands look stiff and are mostly there for lore accuracy rather than posing, you'll swap to the gripping hands for anything active
Relies on stickers and paint for a lot of its panel lines and color callouts, an HG-budget finish needs extra work to look sharp
Pose range still tops out as solid-and-stable rather than dynamic, this is a tank with legs, not a nimble RG-style frame

Sold? Grab it.

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The build story

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

Assembly follows standard HGUC-era gate placement, nothing exotic in the cleanup, and the swap parts (heads, forearms, hand sets) fit together with enough friction to hold through repeated configuration changes rather than falling apart the first time you touch them. The two large-caliber cannons and the quad gatling gun are chunky, straightforward subassemblies that go together fast, which keeps the whole build from ever feeling like a slog even with the extra parts count of carrying two loadouts in one box.

The standout here isn't articulation for articulation's sake, it's the swap system itself: front and side skirt armor lift out of the way of the double-jointed knees, the waist spins a full 360 degrees, and the head can either ball-and-socket swivel or hinge back, all of which make both configurations pose competently rather than just look different. Between the machine gun, rifle, shield, shoulder gatling guns, twin large-caliber cannons, and the dedicated display stand, the accessory count is well above what you'd expect from a single HG at this price band, since you're effectively getting the loadout of two kits.

Lore & trivia

01In the Origin timeline, the Guncannon First Type's disastrous showing against Char Aznable's Black Tri-Stars at the Battle of Loum directly convinced Tem Ray to push the Earth Federation toward Operation V, which produced the RX-78-2 Gundam.
02The RCX-76-01A Mobility Test Type and RCX-76-01B Firepower Test Type were rival evaluation prototypes built to settle the design debate before the RCX-76-02 Guncannon First Type was finalized for mass production.
03This HGGTO release lets a builder assemble both rejected prototypes from a single box by swapping the head, right forearm, and hand parts, rather than requiring two separate kits.