Model/Toy Review Drop Box

Discuss models, figures, Blu-rays and more.
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Fignuts
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

Huh. That's weird. I recently got the Zaku II ver 2.0 as well, and have had no problem with the stability of the legs. Maybe yours isn't quite in all the way or a part of the peg is chipped?

Also you forgot to mention the killer decals that come with this kit. The one on his right shoulder gaurd is especially sweet.
GM_Fan10
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

Fignuts wrote:Huh. That's weird. I recently got the Zaku II ver 2.0 as well, and have had no problem with the stability of the legs. Maybe yours isn't quite in all the way or a part of the peg is chipped?
Could be, but I don't know. I shoved those pegs in pretty far. And I'm not seeing any chip marks.

If this doesn't get any better I'm gonna drill a couple of holes in the pegs and stick a piece of steel wire in them.
Also you forgot to mention the killer decals that come with this kit. The one on his right shoulder gaurd is especially sweet.
...What decals? I didn't get any decals. I didn't get any cardboard insert either.
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Fignuts
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

The dry transfer decals?
Here's a pic of the one I was referring to.
http://www.dalong.net/review/mg/mg97/p/m97_04.jpg

Also, they stopped doing the cardboard inserts a while back, from what I understand.
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Duo
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

Hmmm.. I have a Char's Zaku 2.0 and I've tried to replicate your problem with the legs, but I just can't get it to happen man... :(

Which peg are you having a problem with as there are techincally 3 hip to leg pegs. The from from the hip, the one that connects that to the a round part that connects to the thigh.

Even though this is just a preliminary questionaire, I'm thinking you might have a lemon... that or it was tampered with if you didn't get any decals with the kit...
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blind_dead_mcjones
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

question regarding grammar, is it absolutely necessary to use american english as opposed to the queen's english with the reviews?
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Fignuts
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

blind_dead_mcjones wrote:question regarding grammar, is it absolutely necessary to use american english as opposed to the queen's english with the reviews?

lol didn't even notice that. No offense but that rule is a bit rude, imo. And it's not as if it's a completely different word or anything. Usually just an added letter.
GM_Fan10
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

Duo wrote:Hmmm.. I have a Char's Zaku 2.0 and I've tried to replicate your problem with the legs, but I just can't get it to happen man... :(

Which peg are you having a problem with as there are techincally 3 hip to leg pegs. The from from the hip, the one that connects that to the a round part that connects to the thigh.

Even though this is just a preliminary questionaire, I'm thinking you might have a lemon... that or it was tampered with if you didn't get any decals with the kit...
Well it's the short little pegs that plug right into the polycap at the crotch. The ones at the top of the legs that only have about 1/8th of an inch of depth to them.

It could've been a lemon, hard to say since other people aren't having the same issues. Maybe I'll get another Zaku 2.0 and try my luck again.

Either way I've got the legs rigged so they won't drop off without being deliberately pulled. I drilled out the center of the pegs and glued a piece of finishing nail into one of them while leaving the other end bare. Now they're more stable, but they still aren't able to support their own weight in an off the ground position.
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Sume Gai
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

GM_Fan10 wrote:Well it's the short little pegs that plug right into the polycap at the crotch. The ones at the top of the legs that only have about 1/8th of an inch of depth to them.
every one of my own MGs uses this same design for the Crotch/Thigh connection. I -had- the same trouble when i built my RX-78-2 2.0 but it was only because I hadn't pushed the pegs in all the way.
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GM_Fan10
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

Sume Gai wrote:every one of my own MGs uses this same design for the Crotch/Thigh connection. I -had- the same trouble when i built my RX-78-2 2.0 but it was only because I hadn't pushed the pegs in all the way.
With mine such wasn't the case. I pushed the pegs in all the way, until they met with the dividing wall at the middle of the selected polycap they plug into. I pushed them in all the way, as firmly as I could, and they still fell out with the wrong touch.
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blind_dead_mcjones
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

GM_Fan10 wrote: With mine such wasn't the case. I pushed the pegs in all the way, until they met with the dividing wall at the middle of the selected polycap they plug into. I pushed them in all the way, as firmly as I could, and they still fell out with the wrong touch.
have you checked those polycaps for splits?
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GM_Fan10
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

blind_dead_mcjones wrote:have you checked those polycaps for splits?
No I didn't. Until today I never ever heard of polycaps splitting.

Early on though I tried clear nail polish on the pegs to beef them up in thickness, that didn't help. Then I tried applying drops of superglue to the polycap itself and spreading it around evenly. That still didn't work. Hence the drilling and rodding.
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Alastor
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

I plan to submit reviews of the following (in no particular order) in the next few weeks or months. If anybody's already working on reviews of these items, give me a holler. Also, my camera broke down last month, so no image submissions for my reviews until I get a new one.

- 1/144 HG Fighting Action MMS-01 Serpent Custom
- EMSiA!! ZGMF-X10A Freedom Gundam
- EMSiA!! ZGMF-X09A Justice Gundam
- EMSiA!! XXXG-00W0 Wing Gundam Zero (Endless Waltz Version)
- Robot Damashii GN-0000 00 Gundam
- Robot Damashii GNR-010 0 Raiser
- Robot Damashii GNZ-003 Gadessa (Revive Revival colors)
- Robot Damashii GNZ-005 Garazzo (Bring Stabity colors)
- Robot Damashii GN-001 Gundam Exia
- Robot Damashii GNX-U02X Masurao
- Robot Damashii GNW-20000 Arche Gundam
- Robot Damashii RX-0 Unicorn Gundam (Unicorn Mode)
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Chris
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

Fignuts wrote:lol didn't even notice that. No offense but that rule is a bit rude, imo. And it's not as if it's a completely different word or anything. Usually just an added letter.
My website, my rules. Simple as that. I write in American English, and anything that comes in with British English, I have to edit. If people want me to post their reviews, they can make my job easier for me.
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GM_Fan10
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

Chris wrote:My website, my rules. Simple as that. I write in American English, and anything that comes in with British English, I have to edit. If people want me to post their reviews, they can make my job easier for me.
Will mine work for that requirement?
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blind_dead_mcjones
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

GM_Fan10 wrote: No I didn't. Until today I never ever heard of polycaps splitting.

Early on though I tried clear nail polish on the pegs to beef them up in thickness, that didn't help. Then I tried applying drops of superglue to the polycap itself and spreading it around evenly. That still didn't work. Hence the drilling and rodding.
its a very rare phenomonom that used to plague the very first Gunplas. where sometimes the polycap would rip or tear and essentialy become useless

doesn't happen anymore for the most part with bandai stuff, the one time i've encountered it was with my 1/72 dual face armored core on the right leg, the polycap for the right leg/hip tore and the leg would just flop around and it wouldn't stand properly, i ended up having to switch it for the arm socket polycap.
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Banagher
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

General and Technical Data:
Series: Mobile Suit Gundam
Title: 1/144 HG RX-78-2 Gundam Ver. G30th
Release Date: July 2009
Suggested Price: ¥ 1,200
No. of Parts: 136 + 1 metal chain
Plastic Colors: white, blue, red, yellow, dark grey
Gimmicks: none

Introduction:
Well, here comes another release of the RX-78-2 Gundam that we’re all familiar with, except this time, it’s to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Gundam franchise. This model’s look is based on the giant 1/1 Gundam statue that was on display in Tokyo a while back, which means it has a whole new mold. With yet another incarnation of the original Gundam, is this model really worthy to be a product that celebrates the 30th anniversary of Gundam? Let’s find out.

Contributor: Banagher
Date: February 27th, 2010


Head:
The head is nothing special, just what you would expect of a High Grade kit. It has some nice panel lines on it too. There is a foil sticker for the eyes and a dark grey foil sticker that wraps around the neck.

Torso:
The torso has a lighter blue color than just about all of the RX-78-2’s other incarnations. The red around the waist is also more pale and pastel. Just like the head, the torso also sports a huge amount of panel lines. There is some good waist articulation as well, which is a ball joint, meaning it can turn and bend forwards and backwards.

The hip is pretty standard, with the front skirts being able to move individually. There is a slot in the back skirts to put the bazooka clamp on, which can be interchanged for a flat white piece to cover the slot when the clamp is not in use.

Arms:
The arms are quite well articulated, good enough for most action poses. The elbow is single-jointed, although it looks like a double-joint. Again, there are a lot of panel lines on the arms, so I think it’ll look better with the panel lines colored in, especially since the arm is almost all white.

Legs:
Again, quite standard legs. It has some good articulation. Just like the rest of the model, the legs have a huge amount of panel lines that are begging to be colored in.

Weapons and Accessories:

Beam rifle – A nicely detailed beam rifle, molded in dark grey while the scope is molded in yellow. The second handle near the front of the rifle can be swung 180 degrees, although the handle is too big to be held by the Gundam’s hands. The scope can also swivel from side to side.

Shield – A simple shield with a piece that slots into either arm. The piece can be swiveled 90 degrees upwards to reveal a peg that goes into the hole in the backpack so that the shield can be mounted there. There is also some nice detail on the inside of the shield.

Hyper bazooka – The hyper bazooka is all molded in dark grey. It’s quite a simple weapon, and can be mounted on the back skirts by using the bazooka clamp provided.

Beam saber – The beam saber is quite a disappointment in this kit, because despite this model being the kit to celebrate the 30th anniversary and all, Bandai has decided that they are too lazy to give you clear pink beams and instead have gone with the all white beam saber with hilt molded on.

Beam saber hilts – Just ordinary beam saber hilts, and since the kit does not come with separate beams, the hilts are simply there for display. However, you can find beams from other 1/144 kits that might fit into the hilts.

Gundam hammer – The Gundam hammer is a ball and chain for the Gundam. The handle and the ball are molded in dark grey, while the chain is actually metal.

Optional hands – The kit comes with quite a few different hands, which include:
- Right and left closed fists
- Right trigger finger hand for beam rifle and hyper bazooka
- Right open fist for beam saber and Gundam hammer

Conclusion:
So, that is the kit to celebrate 30 years of Gundam goodness. Is it really a kit worthy to be the model that commemorates this extraordinary anniversary? Not quite. Frankly, Bandai could have put more effort into making this kit more special, for example at least put some clear pink beams for the beam sabers. However, the Gundam itself does have some nice articulation, taking the technology from the more recent 1/144 Gundam 00 models, and it does have some nice detail plus a lot of panel lines. All in all, a good kit, but not quite worthy for the occasion of the 30th anniversary.

Rating: 3.5/5
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G-Slayer
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

LM 1/144 RMS-006 Jenice Custom

Series: Limited Model (LM) 1/144
Title: RMS-006 Jenice Custom
Release Date: 12/1996
Suggested Price: ¥800
No. of Parts: 24 + polycaps + water decals
Plastic Colors: flat green
Gimmicks: 100mm machine gun, heat hawk

Introduction
Contributor: G-Slayer
Date: March 21, 2010

A grunt MS featured in Gundam X, I was lucky enough to find this and another rare model kit at a local anime store. Doing what a true Vulture would do, I salvaged it from the heap, pieced it together and customized it to my liking. So how does the Jenice ‘hold up?’

Head

The head attaches to a ball joint and could rotate 360° if not for the Jenice’s ‘mustache’ and shoulders. To ‘demote’ the Jenice, you can cut off the command antenna.

Torso

The torso comes in 2 parts, with holes for a 2-piece jetpack, ball joints for the arms, and a compartment for the legs. The ball points are a tight squeeze for the arms and stiffen them. Sand them too much and the arms fall off. As usual, the skirt armor hampers the legs. Decals are included for the chest.

Arms

Each arm bears 2 points of articulation. They also have tiny ball joints for the shoulder guards, which you’re never sure are attached unless you hear a light snap. And even then they could come off. The hands are ball-jointed polycaps with holes to squeeze the weapons into. One decal is included for the left shoulder guard.

Legs

Each leg bears 2 points of articulation. A part with ball joints and a peg attaches the legs to the torso, but causes the same stiffness/looseness problems.

Weapons and Accessories

Both the machine gun and heat hawk are molded in one piece. You just detach them from the frame, paint them and you’re good.

Conclusion

Though the Jenice doesn’t have much mobility to begin with, it’s still a problem I’ll have to fix sooner or later (something I’m not so eager to do after all that painting). But its simple construction earns the Jenice a solid score.

Overall Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
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RafE'
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

Hi there. Is it possible that I contribute a Macross kit review (specifically Bandai's YF-25)? Thanks. :)
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blind_dead_mcjones
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

RafE' wrote:Hi there. Is it possible that I contribute a Macross kit review (specifically Bandai's YF-25)? Thanks. :)
don't you mean VF-25? anyway this should answer your question
Chris wrote: Right now, obviously, the focus is on anything Gundam. I would like to build up reviews for a Macross section, so right now those are the only non-Gundam model reviews that should be posted in this thread. Good luck.
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Dark Duel
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Re: Model/Toy Review Drop Box

Since I just recently got one, thought I'd contribute a review of the HCM Pro Akatsuki.

General and Technical Data

Series: High Complete Model Progressive (HCM Pro) 1/200
Title: 1/200 HCM Pro #42 Gundam Akatsuki Complete Set
Release Date: Summer 2007
Price: varies from $20-ish at HLJ to upwards of 60
No. of Parts: Figure+base/effect part+26 parts
Plastic colors: gold, black, white, dark gray, red, semitransparent pink, transparent blue
Gimmicks: Included Oowashi and Akatsuki Striker Packs, dual-function display base

Introduction
Somewhere between the "Hyaku Shiki" of its equivalent and a gold-plated Strike on steroids, the Akatsuki Gundam is my first of the HCM Pro line, and it's quite a nice figure. As with the rest of the line, it's as detailed as it is tiny

Contributor: Dark Duel
Date: April 16 2010

Head
Comes with two sets of head antennae/V-Fin. The eyes and camera are painted blue, but a bit difficult to see under normal light. The Akatsuki's head design is not particularly detailed to begin with, but this figure renders it extremely well, and has the right amount of detail where it counts, particularly on the lateral head antennae and vents, the inside of which are painted black.
The V-Fin falls off easily on mine if handled, so it ends up looking like a cross between V Gundam's Gun-Ez's head and Batman's cowl, but other than that it's great.

Torso
Where to begin? The detailing on the torso is exquisite. It's a pretty solid piece, and interestingly, has two short lines on the upper part in between the chest vents that mirror the same lines on the V-Fin. Which I can't remember the Akatsuki having in the series, but look really nice. The Japanese character "Akatsuki" is painted in black on the front right side of the waist, and the inside of the small thrusters on its rear waist are painted black. Speaking of the waist, there's an astonishing amount of articulation in the hip panels that hold the beam rifle and saber, which makes posing this thing a lot of fun. My only gripe is that the inside of the chest vents are not painted black like the ones on the head. The waist also has a hardpoint on each side to accomodate the beam saber(s) and beam rifle.

Arms
These are really cool. the left shoulder has "Akatsuki" written on it, mirroring the right waist. While on the shoulders, the part that houses the biggish red thrusters, or vents, whichever they are, on each one is actually removable, which leaves the shoulders looking exactly like the Strike Gundam's(except for a rectangular hole on the side that holds the peg for said parts)
Again there's a lot of small detailing on the shoulders and arms, which are extremely well-articulated for a figure so small. There's a peg on either elbow which can accomodate the attachment point for the shield, as well.

Legs
There's not a lot to say about the legs that hasn't already been said about the rest of the body. the mold is highly accurate and there's a ton of detail. The tiny vents on the side of each knee are colored black, as are those of the ankle and the tip of the foot. The feet have a ridiculous amount of articulation to them, with the front part able to turn nearly 45 degrees downward, which can make for really sweet poses.

Weapons and Accessories

Hands & Beam Sabers
There are a ton of those, because they're molded in one piece in a variety of configuration. One combined and ignited beam saber, which has a molded hand on it.
One combined with a single blade ignited, which fits neatly into either hand or the slot underneath the barrel of the beam rifle. One combined, both blades deactivated, which fits into the hip hardpoint, hands, or the aforementioned slot. And two sets of single sabers, one with the blade and one without, so you can have Akatsuki dual-wielding beam sabers.
Two additional pairs of hands, one open and one closed fist, which can hold the shield, rifle, or sabers.

Beam Rifle
Not much to say about the rifle - it's a solid, molded dark gray plastic, with the targeting scope painted in white with a blue lens, and a slot below the barrel that accomodates the combined twin beam saber, shut down or with a signle blade ignited. It's detailed, but nothing fancy.

Shield
Some assembly required here. Molded in two parts, plus the attachment for the elbow and a handle. It's a little on the heavy side(relatively speaking), so some care is needed when posing or the arm pops right off. As everything else so far, there's a lot of detail on it, especially for something so plain.

Oowashi Pack
My favorite part, the Akatsuki's Striker Pack for atmospheric combat in the series. Looks a bit like a cross of the Force Silhouette and the Infinite Justice's backpack, with a pair of stabilizer fins on the top that need to be popped in. The wings can fold down 90 degrees, and the right wing has "Oowashi" written on the upper tip in both English and Japanese. The cannons, which are along the bottom, do slide open, and pivot underneath the arm to position as if it's firing them. The wings have a lot of detailing, including flaps. And it has a nosecone that flips backwards when attached to the MS itself, and which otherwise can be flipped down so the whole backpack looks like a bright gold UAV. It has little panels molded underneath that look like housing landing gear, and what look like little bitty guns molded on either side, which I don't recall ever actually being mentioned in-series or other material.
It's a big backpack, so the figure is back-heavy standing, meaning you're better off posing it on the included base.

Shiranui Pack
First off, let me just say that I really don't like this design, which in the series is used exclusively in space. That said, it's a beautifully-crafted piece, though the part that requires the most assembly, as each individual remote has to be snapped into place, and there're seven. As everything else, each one is crafted in exquisite detail, with the three cannons painted gray and the thruster/peg in red. Each one fits snugly into place - too snugly, in the case of the one that mounts facing backwards on the center of the backpack, which takes some effort to pull out. UC fans will note a passing resemblance in the assembled backpack, which has "Shiranui" written on both sides, to that of the Hyaku Shiki.
It's smaller than the Oowashi so the figure is much less back-heavy, unless you're attaching the base/effect part(more on that below). It's less fancy too, but the main parts that hold the remotes can be rotated to face forward in firing position as well.

Base
Ah, the base. Two parts, molded in clear blue plastic, snaps together. Fairly standard, and makes posing the Oowashi Akatsuki a lot more fun.
It also does double duty as an effect part to display the Shiranui Akatsuki launching its remote weapons, though doing so makes it very backheavy, so care is needed when posing.

Conclusion

Pricey figure, as with many HCM Pro, and moreso than most(when it came out, I usually saw it for upwards of 70, but if you can find one decently-priced, definitely worth it, especially since Akatsuki plamo in particular is difficult to come by, and it's a much better-looking design than most of its contemporaries in GSD.

Rating: 5/5
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