BANDAI SPIRITS has released the non-scale plastic model kit “Planosaurus Iguanodon,” priced at 1,925 yen and currently on sale, inspiring modelers to modify the parts based on historical fossil discoveries from the Bernissart coal mine.
The Bottom Line
- BANDAI SPIRITS offers the non-scale plastic kit “Planosaurus Iguanodon” for 1,925 yen, featuring roughly 20cm of length.
- Modeler Hiroto Urabe (Armic) rebuilt the kit using epoxy putty, metal wire, and parts from other dinosaur kits to mirror the anatomy of Iguanodon bernissartensis.
Modifying the 1882 Skeletal Style Into Anatomical Proportions
The kit by BANDAI SPIRITS captures the historical aesthetic of the 1882 mounted skeleton, which famously featured a kangaroo-like stance achieved by breaking the straight-fossilized tail. Because the dinosaur build constraints leave standard plastic parts slightly slender, modeler Hiroto Urabe undertook extensive cutting and rebuilding. The build process required separating individual dorsal vertebrae and adjusting their spacing using reference figures and bone charts.
To fix the structural proportions, the tail vertebrae were sectioned and threaded with metal wire to restore articulation, while the neural spines were replaced with precision-cut plastic plates. The fragile tail tip was swapped entirely with a spare part borrowed from a Parasaurolophus kit. Meanwhile, the torso ribs—slightly too narrow out of the box—were replaced by carefully redistributing components from a Triceratops kit.
The scapula and coracoid were excised from the molded ribcage and thinned down using metal files to eliminate bulky plastic edges. Epoxy putty was packed around the transverse processes, pelvic bones, and ischial peduncle to reinforce the skeletal frame and give the trunk volume. The skull also received a major overhaul, drilling out the orbits and temporal fenestrae before layering putty to mimic the robust profile of Iguanodon bernissartensis.
Transforming Limbs and Replicating Bernissart Fossil Textures
Elbow joints on the kit’s forelimbs required a complete overhaul using metal wire to bypass standard hinges, while the second through fourth digits were sawed apart and given enlarged terminal phalanges. The hind limbs underwent similar surgery, cutting the knee joints to adjust length and grafting modified parts from a Tyrannosaurus kit onto the feet to correct insufficient toe volume.
| Model and Scale | Original Kit Price | Key Modification Source | Target Taxon |
|---|---|---|---|
| Planosaurus Iguanodon (Non-Scale) | 1,925 yen | Triceratops, Parasaurolophus, Tyrannosaurus | Iguanodon bernissartensis |
Painting the assembled skeleton required recreating the distinct preservation state of specimens unearthed in Belgium. Fossils from the Bernissart coal mine feature dark, patchy brown colorations due to iron pyrite crystals and protective resin treatments applied to combat pyrite decay.
Taxonomic Evolution From Gideon Mantell to Modern Paleontology
Gideon Mantell named Iguanodon in 1825 based on isolated teeth, initially imagining a giant lizard with a thumb spike planted on its nose like a horn. Decades later, the discovery of dozens of complete skeletons at the Bernissart mine shattered those early assumptions, leading to the 1882 mounting of the iconic kangaroo pose. By the year 2000, taxonomic revisions shifted the type species from tooth fragments of Iguanodon anglicus to the well-documented Iguanodon bernissartensis, standing around nine meters long during the Early Cretaceous period.
Recent studies have pruned the genus further, spinning off slighter contemporaries like Mantellisaurus into separate groups that once coexisted by partitioning food sources. While fragile real-world fossils can never be posed dynamically in actual museums, hobbyists retain the freedom to reconstruct these prehistoric animals on a workbench.
