HGGundam Build Divers

Tiltrotor Pack

864 yen of chainsaws, missiles, and spinning rotors that turns any HG into a gunship.

MechaGrade Score

3.4/5

Tiltrotor Pack · 1/144 · 2018

GradeHG

Scale1/144

Released2018

Runnersn/a

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The verdict

I will say it plainly: this is not a mobile suit kit, it is a weapons expansion pack, and once you accept that it is a genuinely clever little box.

It was built for the Grimoire Red Beret but the 3mm connectors mean it clips onto almost anything in your HG shelf, and the dual tilting rotors are a rare sight in Gunpla. For 864 yen it punches well above its price as an accessory, but do not buy it expecting a kit that stands on its own.

Best for: HG collectors who already have a shelf of kits and want a cheap way to reload them with weapons and a flight pack

The full review

What it is

The Tiltrotor Pack is one of Bandai's HGBC customize sets, three runners of parts built to bolt onto an existing HG rather than build a suit from scratch. You get a military style backpack with two propellers that actually pivot and spin, a missile pod, two chainsaws, and extra parts to modify the Grimoire Red Beret's rifle. I clipped mine onto a spare RX-79(G) and it read immediately as a ground assault loadout, the kind of gear a mercenary unit would strap on. The parts are already molded in separate colors, so straight out of the runners it looks presentable without a drop of paint.

The catch

The obvious catch is that you are paying for accessories, not a mobile suit, so if you do not already own compatible HG kits this thing has nothing to attach to and just sits in a bag. It is also tiny in scope, three runners and no instructions for posing beyond mounting the backpack, so there is no articulation story to speak of. A few retailers note the parts benefit from careful gate cleanup with a sharp cutter since the chainsaw and rotor pieces are thin, and because it is a niche accessory pack it is easy to miss at retail or find sold out at hobby shops that only order small quantities.

Who it's for

Buy this if you have a couple of HG kits already on the shelf and want to spend less than a coffee turning one into a heavier, gunship looking loadout, especially if you own or plan to grab the Grimoire Red Beret it was designed around. Skip it if you are new to Gunpla and looking for your first build, or if you want a kit that poses and stands as its own centerpiece, because this pack has no legs, no torso, and no story without a donor suit to dress up.

The build story

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

This is a fast build, three runners and no real assembly puzzle, but the thinness of the chainsaw blades and rotor arms means rushing the nub cleanup leaves visible stress marks. A sharp side cutter and a light hand go a long way here, since there is very little forgiveness in these small parts before they start looking chewed up.

The standout piece of engineering is the tilting rotor mechanism itself, a simple hinge that lets the twin propellers rotate from a forward flight angle to a vertical hover angle, something you rarely see on an accessory this cheap. Combined with the missile pod and dual chainsaws, and the rifle upgrade parts for the Grimoire Red Beret specifically, it is a surprising amount of hardware variety for well under a thousand yen, and the color separation means none of it needs paint to read clearly on the shelf.

Lore & trivia

01The Tiltrotor Pack released in May 2018 as HGBC number 37, part of Bandai's Gundam Build Divers customize parts line rather than the main HGBD mobile suit lineup
02It was designed in-universe as gear built by the character Rommel to give the Grimoire Red Beret VTOL style propellers, a missile pod, and dual chainsaws
03Its 3mm connector joints make it compatible with a wide range of other HG kits beyond the suit it was designed for, including ground type units like the RX-79(G)