David Hingtgen

Retractable stacks comes up fairly often, but I bet they aren't because: 1. Why? They should be long in BOTH modes. Long in truck mode for realism/accuracy, and long in robot mode because that's how he's looked since 1984. 2. Sure don't look retractable to me.

Powerglide as an F-32? Sort of an homage, but too ugly IMHO. Yeah, the A-10 is ugly, but ugly in a good way, like the F-4. The F-32 is just plain fugly. It could have been superior to the -35 in every way and still would have lost on fugliness alone. (The Navy pretty much flat out said no to the -32, no matter what the results of the competition were, based on the intake) Tracks: the new Vette's pretty neat (though I haven't either end head-on) and the pics circulating around of the deep red one (real Vette, not TF) is a GORGEOUS color. However, if Hasbro cheaps out and does flat plastic it'll ruin it. Just go with medium blue. (You know, model cars REALLY need to be painted, especially metallic ones--Hasbro needs to figure that out) Starscream---YF-22 would work better than F/A-22. (More angular). Doubt Hasbro or Takara know the difference, though. F-15's are still being built, keep with that.... Sideswipe--agree with everyone who says it should be a Lambo, not a Viper. '99 Diablo is the best of the more recent ones IMHO. Didn't like the 2000+ Diablos, and the Murcielago does nothing for me. Or hey, why not a '89 Countach? Different, yet newer than the original LP400ish Countach. (Despite his stickers and various websites, G1 Sideswipe is anything BUT an LP500S--he's not really any particular one, but close to a LP400 with a few prototype parts--he lacks every single distinguishing feature of the LP500 series)

Apollo Leader (I'll watch the tape soon, I swear): F-16XL's main advantage over F-15 was range. It's a big sleek wing, with a TON of fuel inside. Huge lift/drag ratio, large quantities of fuel, and only one engine. And the enlarged fuselage was for one thing--more fuel. F-15's carry a big chunk of their fuel outside. And even the E often has 3 big huge drag-making externals, even with CFT's. And as Nied said, sleek enough to supercruise under the right conditions. (Though most any F-15/16 will supercruise if totally clean and light---Thunderbirds configuration, etc)

Yes, the -16XL was better to the -15E. A bit better, not a lot. However, it'd take a lot before it was ready. The F-16XL was only an F-16 as much as the Super Hornet is a YF-17. The F-15E was a D with modified FAST packs. It'd be ready way way sooner, way way cheaper. Now, the -22 vs -23, that's a different story. An F-16XL is not simply a new wing, it's a new, longer fuselage too. The new wing hides the fact that the fuselage is new. The only F-16 parts it has are the nose and v.stab. (And the engine would be seriously hurting for performance--Block 30C/30D/40 F-16's were lacking for power with a full load, only newer block 50's have equivalent power to a 25/30A/30B). F-15E's were lacking in power until recently with the F100-229E engine. Early F-16XL's I bet would have had little power reserve. (of course, had we gone ahead with more Super Tomcats, with the same engine, there'd be plenty of development and money to improve the F110 even faster) Also, the whole "F-15E's are still just as good at fighting as an F-15C" sounds really, really good to people. (Even though it'll likely never happen that an F-15E will engage in a fight with a MiG, etc). Cant say that for an XL. (I am not anti-XL or anything, I love F-16's (and -15)'s) Just pointing out some stuff, and spouting off my opinions.

My point would make more sense if I didn't forget the pic:

Re-winging a plane is prohibitively expensive. I'm surprised it was even half-way seriously considered. Cheaper to make a new plane than re-engineer a wing to fit something else. (And it's not like the -22 has all that wonderful a wing). Probably cheaper and more effective to just do F-18-style RCS reduction. (RAM in the intake is a good place to start with that curved big inlet) Anyways---yup, tails are the #1 problem for stealth. Best solution is no tail at all. Which is why the B-2 is the stealthiest plane, and will be for quite some time. YF-23 is far stealthier than the -22/32/35, due to having only 2 fins, and at a very shallow angle. Big vertical fins=radar reflectors. Firefox---a key point for "stealth angles" is making them all the same. Don't just put angles whereever. Have like 2 or 3 "angles" for the entire plane, and make every leading/trailing/side edge line up with them. YF-23 is the best example. See how the wings/fuselage/tail all have the same angles? Perfectly parallel. That General Dynamics ATF does it pretty well actually. It'd be stealthy if not for the tail. (and maybe intakes)

That was there in the theatrical version. Though the final scene referencing it(with Gimli on the orc) I think was new.

Nobody's mentioned He-Man yet? No matter how much I like the franchise as a whole, the movie was just BAD. Of course, I watch it every time it's on.

Am I the only one who liked AI? I got the same sense from it as Edward Scissorhands (my fave movie, it'd be perfect if someone besides Winona was in it) Anyways, of what I've seen, I really hated Wing Commander. Just, every aspect of it was painfully bad. And if we're branching out a bit, Street Fighter is even worse than that. (Though Ming-Na Wen in red tights is worth pausing for, if you come across it at 2AM or something)

Heh heh. The smoothly blended canard was part of my suspicion. (Man I feel stupid not noticing it was part of the wing repeated, I even turned up the brightness--should have turned it higher I guess). F-15 canards do not fit well, should be a visible gap, as well as an extension--it does not mount directly to the wing root. (No surprise, can't stick F-18 parts on an F-15 and expect it to fit). Still, got the overall shape of it very well, though I think the leading edge needed to be more angled back.

Has the new-style vectoring too, I see.

Getting it tomorrow, have only played the (short) demo so far. In a word, fast. The new ATB is *damn* fast. First button-mashing-required RPG. My current initial strategy: have everyone a warrior. Quick review of stuff: most special attacks, magic, etc take too much time. (Though they do high damage--I'm guessing they're only intended for boss fights, as you can take on average monsters just by whacking them). Hack and slash. (Or shoot, guns do a lot of damage). If you plan on casting magic, better already have someone a mage before you get into battle. Battles are fast and intense. FFX had very short battles (a good thing), these are far shorter. Nobody's lasted through the 2nd round.

Well that got MY attention! Hmmmmn. It's not the F-15ACTIVE, modified or not. (trust me). 2 possibilites IMHO: 1. It's a fake photo. If it is, it's a good one. Main clue is the rudder---it looks as if the antennas/receivers on the stab actually overlap the (new) rudder's hinge-line, thus preventing it from moving. I also don't like the serial number on the stab (if anything, this is an F-15DJ, which there are none with 075 for a serial), nor the coloring on the rudder. However, if this was faked, then the canard was too. If you lighten the pic, the canard has a different shadow than the rest of the plane. But since it's angled, that could explain that. Also it looks to me like the stabs have anhedral. Why would you do that to an F-15? (Or change the rudders like that). That's probably the biggest clue of all---there's no point whatsoever to modifying the vertical stab and rudder like that. It's just stupid and dangerous. (You generally do not chop up an aircraft's only source of yaw stability and control) Also, the canard isn't attached the way it "should" be. Yes, right canard, but fits too closely. The "real" one isn't a perfect fit. 2. There's been a major F-15 modification I don't know about, that nobody's ever even jokingly talked about. (Modifying JASDF F-15's). F-15 canards are nothing more than F-18 stabs. (Yes, F-15's are that much bigger, they use F-18 h.stabs, and control them the same way---standard MDC linkages and all that). You need F-18 parts to make an F-15 like this. Boeing would have SO put something like that on their website. Also, I can't find anything on the net about an F-15 modified like this, either by or for Japan. IMHO, it's a very very good fake pic. (If it's real, then I'm shocked and humbled).

While a VF-1's CG may be whack, r/c modelers use this magical stuff called "lead" to make any plane have whatever CG they want. Anyways, there ARE r/c VF-1's. And they have either (or both): Extremely canted and modified v.stabs, or thrust vectoring. Sure it's only 1D vectoring, but a ducted fan and a flap is good enough for a little model, provided it's fairly stable on the pitch axis. Bigger wings (or greater camber) are a given for most any r/c plane based on a fighter. (You sure won't get an perfectly scale F-16 to fly as-is, but you can make a lot of tweaks that won't affect the appearance that make it a rather docile plane).

There was a discussion about this a while ago. Basically, an *accurate scale* VF-1 will not fly. You can make something VF-1-ISH fly, but not a VF-1. Best bet might be to take an F-14 (they fly) and modify it to look like a VF-1. Or just scratch-build a VF-1 with mods needed to make it stable/controllable. Generally, you'll need bigger wings, bigger stabs, might need to cant the stabs out more/make them all-moving, and either a really good thrust vectoring system with a very forgiving/stable center of gravity, or do the all-moving canted stabs thing for pitch control. Also, you'll need ailerons, the real thing doesn't have them. (Well, that's debatable). A VF-11 is the most real plane, IMHO. No problem making that fly, just make the stabs big enough. (I know somebody made a YF-21, that'd work too, just not as well as an -11 IMHO)

I like my TF's as they were in the movie. That is my definition/standard of how they should look. Comic art changed, there were both well- and badly-drawn episodes (and now "extreme" statues), but the movie--that was like the idealized form of the show. Movie Prime=my perfect Prime. Same for any character. (Especially Megatron---his head/helmet was so often simplified, the movie gave as all those little angles and subtle depth) I do not like all the anime/mecha/buff versions coming out lately--glad I'm not the only one.

I really like Idolo's music. If you like ZOE, definitely get Idolo. Decent battles, good music, good story. (Hey, a "B" in anything from areaseven is pretty high praise)

Anubis--Battle Beasts. Earth/Water/Fire/Wood and Sun beats all! Or something like that. And yes, those. And they're from Transformers, in Japan. Go see here: http://www.x-entertainment.com/messages/524.html

I liked this a lot. And since it was only like $18 when it came out, a good value for an OVA. Anyways--Dolores is TOTALLY different. Yes, same world/era and some characters, but tone/idea is WAY off. Like FFX-2 and FFX. But, even more so. I mainly got Dolores because I like chick-mechs. But you've got to REALLY like chick-mechs to like Dolores. Dolores is like a very long, humorous, hi-jink filled version of Idolo. Though it does explain even more background. *MINOR* SPOILER ALERT FOR DOLORES ... ... ... ... ... ...... ... .... you'll see anubis ... ...... ...... ... ... ... ... And thus, while Idolo sets up the first ZOE game, Dolores sets up ZOE 2.

Hey, he had to reach over and push his own eject button to let his cassettes out. Soundwave must be an older TF, with little automation.

#1 complaint I've seen has been the whole server/worldpass thing. That alone is reason for me not to get it. (For there are few people I'd want to play with, but would LOVE to play with those few people). It'd be a long expensive process to get everyone together. Just not worth it. (In addition to me deciding not to get it the day it was announced) First FF ever I won't buy. ::waits for FF12, thankfully FFX-2's out next week:: Last time I checked, FFXI sold 1/4 the copies of FFX in Japan. Any more recent numbers? Hopefully Square learned their lesson with a 75% drop that we want FF to be traditional, not on-line.

IMHO, the best-looking all-black models are always done one of two ways: 1. "Serious paint chipping". Go find pics of P-61's. They define aircraft paint chipping. But a well-done model of a P-61 is usually going to win every prize at the show. LOTS of fine, thin, silver lines/spots where the paint is gone and the metal is showing through. Every rivet causes a little paint chip. 2. "Many shades of black". Usually done to F-117's, though IMHO it doesn't look right fort them as F-117's are the blackest black of all things. (Submarines and SR-71's are less black than an F-117). Anyways, it usually comes out best if you do it like wm cheng did for his YF-21--kind of random, angular patches of color, don't follow the plane's lines. 3. Want ready-made different blacks? Go check out the model railroad paints. I like polly-scale, and they make (from darkest to lightest) engine black, steam power black, oily black, and tarnished black (almost a purple-black). "Grimy" black isn't black at all, more like FS36076 or so. Engine black and steam power black are VERY useful---steam power black is as close to pure black as something can possibly be without being pure black. It's more like "90% flat black" as opposed to a purely dead matte 100% flat black. Reflectance is its only difference from engine black. (I have found that enamel blacks often are "deeper" blacks than acrylic---engine black isn't deep enough to touch-up some models painted with enamel, even though it's the blackest acrylic I can find around here)

Skip to the last half of this post for interesting info on real-life truck stack lengths, start here for my opinions and ranting. My *opinion* is that Hasbro knows d*mn well the US one will have the short stacks, but they're simply not going to say it until it's too late to pre-order the JP one. Anyways---I would be *stunned* if the JP one had short stacks. What possible reason would there be? The long stacks exist. There's a mold, it's been used. It'd be very different if ONLY short stacks had been made and Takara would have to make another mold for the JP market, but that's not the case. My main concern is real life stacks, regardless of TV/comic accuracy (though since the original G1 model, and thus TV was real-life accurate, it's the same)---IMHO, MPC Prime sacrificed a lot in truck mode, G1 has a more accurate truck mode. (of course the overall tradeoff is well worth it---1,000x better robot for an 80% as good truck). The reason I'm not an Armada fan is sucky vehicle modes. (And loved RID) (Ironically, for G1 etc, the main concern was a good robot--you were guaranteed a good vehicle, since they were real). I don't need REAL vehicles, just realistic. RID Ultra Magnus is a good example. Not a real truck, but very realistic. Armada Prime is a bad example---not a real truck, looks like a parallel universe's Ford F350. (That's probably my #1 beef with Armada--Prime's not a semi! He's a pickup on steroids. Whoever designed it obviously has no clue what makes a semi a semi, and not a pickup with stacks) Finally---I posted a much longer version of the following at the TF2005 boards, I'll post a quick version here Stack shape/size is not determined just by what the owner thinks looks cool. It is determined by what the truck will haul. Hauling van-type trailers (e.g. Optimus Prime) requires the tallest stacks of all. Why? Because if your stacks are short, they will exhaust right in front of the trailer, staining and corroding it. (Possibly acoustic damage, if it's a loud truck). This is bad (diesel truck exhaust is far, far worse than the worst car exhaust). So if you haul a trailer, you want stacks high enough to exhaust ABOVE the trailer. They will also often have the tips canted outwards 45 degrees, to have them exhaust on either side of the trailer, further helping to prevent exhaust from damaging the trailer. Of course, you can't be TOO tall, you'll start hitting bridges/overpasses. Standard "tall" stack height in the US is 13ft, 6 inches above the ground. (Lots of people go with 13ft 5in for a little extra safety margin) This will clear like 99% of overpasses in the US, and exhaust above like 99% of all trailers. (This is why you never see a sign saying "Clearance 15ft"---any truck will fit under it, no need to post a sign. But anything less and you'll start seeing listings--mostly 12 and 13ft, which most trailer-hauling trucks will not clear, though many tanker-hauling ones can) (I could go into tankers if you want, but suffice it to say, they MUST be shorter, and luckily they CAN be shorter without damaging the tanker)

I find it humorous that the mods themselves can't agree, and interpret the guidelines completely differently. Anyways, my PC is so old (I plan to replace within 12 months, hopefully before the HD dies) I won't go into many specifics. Suffice to say, 500mhz, 128MB.

Yeah, but "Angel Birds" just never sounded right. If they mixed the teams the other way, you get a WAY better name for a squadron (or 80's band)--- Blue Thunder! That'd rock, and there's a lot of cool paint jobs you could do. Blue/white lightning stripes.....