Bandai

Gunpla Build - Master Grade Gundam Sandrock EW (Photos) 2025-08-10

There is a lot about the original Sandrock design that I like. There are things that, techncially speaking, I think it does better than the Endless Waltz redesign.

For instance, I think original design does a much better job at leaning into the whole “Ancient Persian Warrior King” theming. And I admire how much more colorful it is.

But having said all that, in the end I think I like the EW version more. Yes, theming may be weaker, and yes, it is less colorful, but it has a sense of presence that I find undeniable.

Gunpla Build - Master Grade Gundam Sandrock EW (Build) 2025-08-09

I’ve never understood why some Master Grades come in big square-ish boxes, while others come in what is essentially a really tall High Grade-shaped box. I’m not sure if the latter kind is used for simpler models, or if it is simply a different form factor.

I’m kind of leaning toward the former. While Sandrock appears to have roughly the same amount of runners as the Master Grade 3.0, some of them are smaller in size, meaning this undoubtedly uses fewer parts:

But let’s not really judge it until we’ve built it.

Gunpla Build - Master Grade Gundam Sandrock (EW Version) 2025-07-29

This year marks the 30th Anniversary of Gundam Wing, which Bandai has been put quite a lot of effort into celebrating (whether or not this is because it was, and still is, extremely popular with English speaking fans is left for you to speculate on).

As a result of all this celebrating (including a sweet new tribute animation), suffice to say the show has been on my mind a lot - and now I kind of want to build a kit.

Good thing I’ve got a few Wing Master Grades lying about:

This here is the Endless Waltz redesign of Gundam Sandrock.

Gunpla Build - Master Grade Gundam 3.0 (Photos) 2025-07-27

I knew I was going to like this model, but deep in the back of my mind I had a few doubts and concerns. Things like “What if something goes horribly wrong during the build?”, and “Is it really going to look quite as nice as I think it will”

But today I am happy to report that:

Nothing went horribly wrong
Yes, it really does look as nice as I thought it would. In fact, it might look even better.

Gunpla Build - Master Grade Gundam 3.0 (Body Pt 2) 2025-07-26

I think it’s time to finish this build off.

Feet

Assembly is fairly straightforward. You have three different sections - one for the heel, one for the middle of the foot, and one for the toe.

But it gets a bit more complicated after that. First, you have to choose how you want the ankle joint covers to look. Do you go with the traditional, screw-shaped covers? Or the ones with the magnetic coating?

Gunpla Build - Master Grade Gundam 3.0 (Body Pt 1) 2025-07-20

Those weapons sure gave a workout, but there’s no time to rest. There’s still a whole mobile suit to put together.

Head

This is one of those models that supports the use of an LED light to illuminate the eyes and the chest.

I’ve built other kits like this, and if my memory serves me they usually give you a choice regarding the eyes. The eyes will be made out of clear plastic (to allow the light of the LED to shine through), and you can choose to either leave them like that, or you can use the included eye decals (so that they won’t look dull and dead when there is no light)

At the very least I know that the MG Origin version of the Gundam does this

Gunpla Build - Master Grade Gundam 3.0 (Accessories) 2025-07-16

I kept thinking to myself, “This should be a nice, straightforward, short build post. I’ve built Gramps so many times before - what else could there possibly be to say?”

Answer: a lot, actually. Because it’s fun to compare it to those other builds - especially the Real Grade model, which is essentially this thing’s sibling.

But before we get into that, let’s start with those runners:

Gunpla Build - Master Grade Gundam 3.0 2025-07-09

Gquuuuuux is done and over with, and let’s just say that in the end it left a really bad taste in my mouth. And on top of that, my last build was a huge letdown. I need a good build to act as a palette cleanser from all this suckage. Something familiar. Classic. Iconic:

This is the Master Grade 3.0 Gundam. Yeah, this should fit the bill.