From Gundam to Decepticon Part 2: Recolouring HG Murasame

By Rosie _Custom_Gunpla

on Jan 9, 2026

It became clear that colour alone wasn’t quite enough. While the HG Murasame’s silhouette is strong, a few areas benefited from small structural refinements to better sell the Starscream-inspired jet aesthetic.

These changes are subtle, functional, and intentionally low-impact, no major kitbashing, but just enough modification to improve proportions and visual flow.

Structural Tweaks: Bringing Starscream to life

Before final assembly, attention turned to the central fuselage and gunpla form, areas that become very visible once the kit is posed in MA mode and gunpla form

The stock configuration works well mechanically, but visually it feels slightly busy and segmented, more “transforming Gundam” than “dedicated jet”. To address this, some small but effective modifications were made.

What Was Changed

The modification focused on:

Building a cockpit for the chest to match the robot form
Reducing visual breaks along the fuselage
Creating a smoother, more aircraft-like aesthetic
Modifying the head for a transformer look

This involved reworking the chest armour piece for a cockpit, inverting the wings for the robot form and creating a cohesive jet look. The result is subtle, but it dramatically improves how the MA and Gunpla modes look.

Importantly, these changes:

Do not affect the transformation
Do not weaken the connection points
Remain fully compatible with the rest of the kit

It’s the kind of tweak that disappears when you’re building, but becomes obvious once you see the final silhouette.

Why This Matters for the Starscream Concept

Starscream is defined by clean, aggressive aircraft lines. Any unnecessary visual noise breaks that illusion. By modifying the chest and tightening the panel fit, the Murasame leans harder into a jet-first identity.

This also helps the repaint do its job more effectively. Large, uninterrupted surfaces allow the colour scheme to read clearly, especially when viewed in flight poses.

Reassembly: Structural Changes in Context

Once the modified part was fully painted and reinstalled, the MA mode finally clicked. The jet silhouette feels more intentional, more cohesive, and less like a compromise between modes.

This is exactly the kind of modification that works well in a crossover custom: it respects the base kit while quietly supporting the new identity.

Updated Takeaway

This build started as a colour transformation, but it’s become a good reminder that customisation exists on a spectrum. You don’t need extreme modifications to improve a kit, sometimes a single refined part does more than a dozen dramatic changes.

With paint and structure now working together, the HG Murasame is fully ready for final finishing.

The final blog will bring everything together: