Desert Gunner (1986)

Scale: 1:72
Initial Release: 1986
Medium: Polystyrene
Kit Rarity: 4

About the Design

The 1980s saw a slew of original science-fiction model series come out of Japan.  (SF3D, also featured in this section, was another one of them.)  While most of these series focused on giant robots and battlesuits (Gundam, Dvorak, etc.) a few posited imaginative fighting vehicles that at least were a little less anthropomorphic.Like S3D, The "Fang of the Sun Dougram" Combat Armor Series posited a future civil war fought with advanced robotic armor.  But the vehicles in this series were larger, more futuristic, and looked like refugees from H.G. Wells' classic "The War of the Worlds."   For example, this Desert Gunner featured a tank-like body propelled by six huge spider-like legs, ostensibly designed for maximum maneuverability in sandy/rocky terrain.

About the Kit

The "Fang of the Sun Dougram" (What the hell does that mean?) was carried by a few fringe hobby dealers in the mid-1980s.

The kit was subsequently re-issued by Revell as the "Sand Stalker" under the "Robotech Defenders" moniker during the big Transformer/Japanese Robot craze a few years later.

This Desert Gunner model was from the original Takara series.