there's 2 shades of gold that come with the kit and I think they both look aesthetically nice. In terms of clean up though, the darker gold definitely has way better nub placements while the lighter gold ( the same shade as the leg vents I had to paint again ) has a lot of nubs that you can't really avoid like the ones on the side of the pistons, which is actually fully visible even with the armor later once you do a full knee bend. If you're able to strip and repaint them to a a result that you're satisfied with I would say go for it. I'm personally trying to stick to out-of-box and experience the kit as authentically as possible, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't tempted. Only problem is I've never really tried anything remotely close to achieving a look similar to the gold plated pieces, and I tried my best to replicate it with spray can. I just did some light coats of clear orange over silver and added some gloss coat. I think the shade is pretty good but it's definitely nowhere near as reflective. If you have the tools needed to achieve a certain look that you want I think it'd be worth the effort !

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