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M'Kyuun

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  1. M'Kyuun
    Just watched LEGO Masters- for a long time AFOL, there's a lot to love. while I'm not familiar with judge Amy Corbett, Jamie Berard is a bit of a celebrity within the community. He's a Design Lead for Creator, specializing in many of the Expert Creator sets. He designed the Café Corner, which started the whole modular building theme, the Winter Toy Shop, which started the Winter Village theme, as well as the Ferris Wheel, the Sydney Opera House, and many more. Guy's just an amazing builder, but he's also a really good speaker/presenter, which is a talent he's employed for LEGO's many Creator Videos explaining behind the scenes stuff about new sets. Definitely an excellent choice for judging a competition like this. Some extraordinarily talented folks in this first episode. I'm familiar with Tyler Clites, who goes by the handle "Legohaulic". He's the guy who built the egg drop. I'm also familiar with Boone and Mark, as I've seen them in person at LEGO conventions here in the Pacific Northwest. In fact, I'll likely see them at the end of the month for Bricks Cascade in Portland, OR. Hoping I'll get the chance to congratulate them on making it to the show, and wish them luck. I'm looking forward to some of the builds, as I always champion any venue that really demonstrates the potential of LEGO, as even today, I think a lot of people are locked into the thinking that it's just a bunch of 2x4 red, yellow, and blue bricks, b/c that's what they had as kids. I hope some of the builds down the road get into techniques, like making stuff like this, or this, or this, where the focus is more on the artistry of the build over movement. Lots of potential for a show like this, and the fact that Australia, and Britain, I believe, have already had LEGO Masters shows gives them a tried and true blueprint to follow for the American take.
  2. M'Kyuun
    There are 28 pages, the first 14 are comic, followed by 7 pages of lineart showing various features of the Proto-Garland, some of the actual toy, some not, and then 5 pages of Garland evolutionary flow chart with numerous illustrations, then 2 pages showing illustrations of the Hargun. The inside cover has pics of the Garland, the grey proto for the Hargun, and the Proto-Garland toys, and the inside back cover shows pics of the Hargun and Transport grey scale models for upcoming toys. Sorry, no pics.
  3. M'Kyuun
    I'll always remember him from Saturn 3. He had quite a good run,; we should all be so fortunate to have so many years and so many experiences. RIP Mr. Douglas.
  4. M'Kyuun
    I see some folks are downloading my VG file. Just wondering if it's working ok for you guys.
  5. M'Kyuun
    When I worked on the B-1, from '99 to '02, we never used the hardpoints, as they were never installed for START compliance. Often, on long missions, the aft bay, IIRC, was fitted with an internal removable fuel tank, while the forward bays carried ordnance. Still, sixteen 2000 lb bombs can do an astounding amount of damage, especially when they can do precision strikes with the JDAM. I got to see 'guncam' footage of some of those strikes. In one, we watched as they brought the entire face of a cliffside crumbling down to block a cave entrance believed to be used by Al Qaeda. We also saw pics of runways on Afghan airports that had had bombs dropped dead center every couple hundred yards to prevent them from using air power against us. Its both awesome and frightening what we can do with our weapons systems today, and god knows what we're holding back in secret 'just in case'.
  6. M'Kyuun
    NA did a great job, although they do a pretty good job with most of their stuff. I have their Harry (Prowl) and their Max (Cosmos), and both are really nice little reps of their characters. I haven't gotten any of their Seekers, but those and their Megatron both look awesome. But y'know, I expect a little better from a company that's been doing this for almost forty years. I wasn't crazy about the Siege Seeker, as the legs under the plane just bugged me. But when I saw Thundercracker on sale, I picked him up on a whim, and while I still don't like the leg situation, in hand it looked better than in pics. (Why is that? Unconscious justification? I don't know.) But the transformation is pretty cool, and the bot mode has excellent articulation, especially in the legs and feet. I remain quite impressed with it, and held out hope that the same or better levels would be brought to bear in an eventual F-15 version. And then they dump Classics Seeker 2.0 on us, with even less alt mode accuracy than its predecessor. I don't understand why Takara seem to have so much trouble designing a decent transforming aircraft, when they do such a great job with land vehicles. Yeah, I'm pretty disappointed. Again, I wish third party would produce improved CHUG scale figs, or do improved KOs of the figs that have glaring flaws, like Astrotrain's crappy alt modes, and the new Seeker's crappy F-15 mode. I'd happily give them my money for improved versions.
  7. M'Kyuun
    Ah, dude, sorry to hear that. I'm definitely going to be more cautious with that, as I was trying, lightly, to get more upward extension of the toe for posing. Fortunately, I didn't break anything. But I hope you're able to get replacement parts, or a replacement of the entire thing, as it sucks to drop $200+ on a toy only to have it break almost immediately after opening it. Looking at the pics, I notice everyone's able to get that forward windscreen piece to sit flush in Slave mode- mine sticks up just a couple mm, and I have no idea what it's catching on. The gold painted insert that tabs underneath it fell off almost immediately as I was beginning to transform it the first time, but I tabbed it back on and it stayed put through the rest of the transformation. It sits flush in Maneuver Craft mode. I think I'll have to put it through another transformation and hopefully everything will sort out, or the problem area will make itself known. I usually eschew instructions, but I followed them with this guy, as I didn't want to break some hidden part, or what have you. I'm glad I did, as I didn't even notice the hinged panels on either side of the neck, as they fit so well, you can barely discern a seam. It's gorgeous workmanship, no doubt. I stumbled a bit over getting the crotch piece extended, too, so again, even with instructions, I had to backtrack a little. As I get older, I find my pride in such things eroding, especially as my toys continue to get more expensive and fragile. I'm really pleased with it, after having waited for decades to finally have one in hand. That said, I'm a little disappointed with how limited the hip movement is on mine- barely any lateral movement, and I don't want to force it. I wish they'd made the hip sockets extend out of those upper thigh parts just a little to get more range. I was trying to do the kneeling pose that's pictured, and having tough time getting that to work. I don't know if I just don't have the legs extended enough, but I can't get a deep enough knee bend to make it work satisfactorily. Again, I'm leery of forcing anything. While the detailing of these new figs is just amazing, there's truly something to be said about the durability of the old 80's toys, especially the old Chunky Monkey. Not the most accurate representation of its source, but dammit, you could seriously play with that thing without much fear of breaking it. Again, best wishes to you, UN Heffy, on a positive resolution. Update: I determined that I installed the little plate under the windshield upside down. Once I reinstalled it correctly, it flushed up nicely. I was also able to achieve the kneeling pose by adjust the calf guards down, which provided the necessary space for the knees to bend. Doubt anyone cares, but I thought I'd post it anyway. Cheers all!
  8. M'Kyuun
    I'm glad I got mine in. I fence sat for a while, as $600 is a lotta dough, and honestly, I think it's worth about half that due to the shell-formery lack of engineering. But, it's official, will likely hold it, or increase, its value, has a really good looking planet mode, and a decent bot mode. I'm just hoping it'll be without QC issues once it releases. I'm thinking once the official release comes and goes, Zeta will be free to market theirs; in the meantime, they have time to refine it. They definitely have the Hasbro version beat in the engineering dept, but at the cost of the planet mode's deco. They could probably find some work-arounds to improve that since they've got a year to sit on it. Been looking at the reviews for some of these Earthrise figs popping up. I really, really wish they'd come up with a new mold entirely for the seekers, as that giant hole between the intakes, reminiscent of an F-16 intake, just looks atrocious. The original G1 toy had a better fighter mode. I also wish they'd tucked away those horizontal stabs to clean up the legs. And what happened to the exhaust augmentors that form the heels? I saw someone post that this looks better than the Classics toy which it basically copied, and my reaction is that the opposite is true. New Age's Lucifer looks better, and it's a legends class figure. It's disappointing, and one more reason I wish these third parties would do CHUG stuff when the official toys suck.
  9. M'Kyuun
    My remarks were in regards to the aesthetics, as I've no doubt a lot has changed beneath the skin, given three decades worth of advancements since the first one rolled out, and a lot of experience in real world combat to inform the design. I hadn't even noticed that the intakes were missing from the wings; I always liked the look of those, but the new intakes are barely discernable in that pic, so I imagine the effect is similar for radar. Appreciate the drawing, AN/ALQ 128. I just did some reading (that drawing was attached to the article), but there was no mention of how many bomb bays this thing will have. I was hoping the next one would have three, like the B-1, but given that it's smaller than the B-2, which has two bays, I'm wondering if they were able to cram two bays into this thing. I assume they'll want to reuse existing rotary launchers, which are capable of carrying eight MK- 84 2000 lb bombs, with or without JDAM, as it's probably the most oft employed munition in our arsenal. Those launchers are universal, so it makes sense to design around them, and they take up a lot of space when fully loaded. This is a B-1 with what look like MK-84s to my eye. Anyway, it's cool to see a new aircraft, although the purpose of it is dismaying. It's perhaps overly cynical, but peace is an impossibility with our species, hostilities will always exist, and war is a lucrative business, for industry and government.
  10. M'Kyuun
    That sucks, man. Sorry to hear the quality is so poor. Hot Toys come at a premium price, and my impression has been that they made a really good product to justify it, although that's my impression rather than experience, as I don't own any Hot Toys' products. Again, sorry to hear it's floppy; hopefully that's not a trend.
  11. M'Kyuun
    Got my Proto today, and it's a thing of beauty. The only nitpicks I have are that the little plate that attaches under the forward windshield bit keeps falling off (only held by friction to a little tab in there), as well as the little computer monitor screen thing that attaches under the aft windshield, also just tabbed. The little side panels on either side of the neck plate, which are hinged, are designed to extend upwards to allow for clearance to hinge out of the way when transforming the neck and head areas. Those little hinge panels aren't attached, and will pull right out of the chest piece, similar to how the landing gear panels were done on the old Yammies. I've already noticed a little bit of paint chipping, so take care when manipulating it. I wish the thighs had more lateral movement on the hip joint, but their range is pretty limited. No spread leg stances for this guy, sadly. I also wish the toes could swivel up a little to get more dynamic poses, but they don't. Paint , detail work, and overall fit are pretty good on mine. The front fairing/chest wants to come up just a little, so I have to keep pressing it down flush, but otherwise, there are no major issues with it. Pretty solid piece. Looks beautiful. Love all the detail work inside the legs, along with the swiveling thrusters. There's also a comic book depicting some scenes, all in kanji, of course. But the front few pages are full of various variable bike designs, which is an awesome inclusion. I could just sit and look through those for hours. So, another long sought figure knocked off my wish list. I think Arcadia should do the Motoslave next. The old Yammie leaves somewhat to be desired.
  12. M'Kyuun
    Looks just like the B-2. I think American engineers have hit a threshold for stealthy design. Kinda takes the wind out of your sails when every new design looks like a clone of the last.
  13. M'Kyuun
    You can keep up with updates here.
  14. M'Kyuun
    My story's similar. I got set 386 circa' 76 or '77, moved on to Classic Space and Town in '78, and never stopped collecting after that, although I did slow down a bit through the nineties. I hadn't even thought of CS themes for the Glaug, but yeah, why not?! I built a Classic Space Konig Monster (actually two of them), so by all means. You give me too much credit; the engines are a simple solution that took me a long time, and many tries, to arrive at. The sai are placed on either side of the clicky hinge to, as you surmised, prevent it from rotating on the bar. The intake with the claw just snaps into the female end of the clicky hinge; there's enough clutch power there to hold it. The effect is such that the intake is mounted off-center, which allows the engine to be mounted in a more propitious manner as it relates to the shape of the leg. Simple but effective. My laundry list of desired parts, including a greater array of telescoping elements with varying sizes/friction, is extremely long. Just for starters, we need better joints, and a plethora of inverted modified plates, hinges, and slopes.
  15. M'Kyuun
    I'm still trying to figure out how to get files to show up in Studio. I'm new to it, so learning as I go. I posted the ldr. file in my previous post, as you should be able to import it once you have Studio 2.0 installed. That's my understanding right now. I hope it works.
  16. M'Kyuun
    Hi Lexomatic. Nice to have another fellow Pennsyltuckian and LEGO enthusiast among us. I'm originally from Ridgway, in the northwestern part of the state, and settled here in WA after retiring from the military. Concerning the Glaug, having a mate would be a first, as I never make copies of my MOCs; instead, I make info sheets showing all the modes. About one out of five public spectators bother to read them, and even then, I don't think folks get that my MOCs transform. Anyway, I appreciate the compliment, even if the Glaug isn't to your taste. I feel the same way about the VA-3 Invader- just an ugly design, but a lot of folks like it. As it happens, I completed the design digitally today in Studio, which is basically LDD on steroids; it has a lot more functionality and receives constant updates. best of all, it's a free download from Bricklink. I'm providing the file here for anyone who wants to build their own. A couple notes: I couldn't assemble the engines in the program due to its not allowing bars to fit into the bar sized holes of this gear, which is necessary to complete the assembly. I used a number of retired parts throughout the build, so that may complicate matters as they're more difficult to come by these days. You're nigh resigned to buy from European sellers for those older parts. In the program, I built the bicep section of the left and right arms differently, placing the elbow ball joint connection one plate's difference from the other. I did this, as digitally it lined up with one, but physically, it lined up with the other. I struggled a bit with alignments on this build. Anyway, I thought I'd put that option into the digital design. I also built the forearms slightly differently, just to provide two solutions depending on what plates one might have. The pics I attached show the engine construction, as well as a top down view of battroid illustrating how the armature should sit when stowed. I straighten the linkages so the only two bend points are immediately at the engine attachment, and at the ball joint where it connects to the double Mixel joint linkage at the body. The engines should snug into their alcoves, and by rotating the engine linkage inward, it should catch and hold under a little protrusion built in there. The rest of the transformation is pretty intuitive. Other than the hip position, which relies on a double-ball jointed linkage rather than a slider, it pretty much follows Kawamori's line art. I designed the internal hip joint to rotate to put the external hips closer to the forward fuselage in battroid. It looks better, and helps with stability. I think that's it. I welcome anyone to take a stab at this. I'd love to see variations/customs. This is the first of my large MOCs to have a complete digital design, and who better to share it with than fellow Macross fans. And maybe a few LEGO fans, as well. To those who give it a go, good luck! Variable Glaug Final_Copy.io Variable Glaug Final_Copy.ldr
  17. M'Kyuun
    "My God, it's full of ABS." I thought I had a lot of stuff, but you shame me , at least on the figure front. However, I have a room full of LEGO, plus LEGO in one form or another and in varying quantities in just about every room of the house, so it's probably equitable from that standpoint. I seldom have visitors, but when I do they just look incredulous.
  18. M'Kyuun
    Nice collection. I have most of these as well. I really wanted the flying Vehicon, but I don't think it was sold here in the States, and I wasn't too savvy about online retailers then. Overall, I think there were more stand-outs than stinkers in the line. I'll concur with Airachnid- just the worst- and Knock Out being weak. Good stuff overall.
  19. M'Kyuun
    Most kind of you, Carl. Haven't seen you post anything in some time, so I'm quite flattered that you left a kind word for my Glaug. As to instructions, I designed a fair bit of this thing in LDD, but the digital model isn't complete at this time. Moreover, I probably used some parts that LDD doesn't have due to its having been retired by TLG. Too, LDD won't let me construct the engines the way I did with brick; for some odd reason, they didn't impart the ability to pass a bar through the bar sized holes in this gear, which was key to getting the intake to offset from center. I suppose I could always take a picture or two showing the innards; it's really not a complicated build, but it took me a few tries to figure it out, nonetheless. Brilliance is not one of my talents. Let me work on the file tomorrow to clean it up and try to complete it, and I'll send you a copy. LDD is still free to download, AFAIK, and it has a built in instruction feature. It's not a perfect program, but its sheer usefulness and ease of use make me wish they'd continued to update it into perpetuity. Heh, I didn't know Kawamori-san had a Facebook page, but I guess it figures. I'm waiting until Friday to take some , hopefully, better pics, as the lighting in my mancave is crap, and we're supposed to finally get a little sun on Friday, which usually helps a bit. I'd love to show it to him in person, but I doubt that'll ever happen. I've harbored a secret wish that he'd come check out BrickCon in Seattle one of these years, as I'd have all my Macross inspired builds there for him to see. If I get some clearer pics, I may just post them on his FB. Thanks for the recommendation, Valk Hunter D.
  20. M'Kyuun
    Got my notice from Anime Export, too. Just waiting for a return email with shipping cost. Pretty excited- this'll be my first Garland toy. Fingers crossed that it's free of QC issues. Just paid for fast shipping, so hopefully, I'll have it by Tuesday, provided it doesn't get lost in the customs wasteland.
  21. M'Kyuun
    I recognize the middle name, Fallyna, and of course, Jenius, so I must have seen it somewhere before. The blue and yellow color scheme comes up if you just do a search for Variable Glaug, so that's what I went with. Plus, I like dark blue, so personal bias thrown in. As I recall, I watched what must have been a cutscene from the game featuring the VG, but beyond that, I mostly took inspiration from Kawamori's Design Works, internet images of the blue and yellow version, and pics of the model that I referred to in an earlier post. On a side note, I bet it'd be fun to fly that thing in a combat game. It's such an unconventional design, but I dig it. Dammit David, now you got me wanting a Maoramia minifig. Been checking out minifig customizers. There's a guy called Behance who did a nice Hikaru Ichijo (Rick Hunter), but I'm thinking I need to find someone who does their own parts, although, I don't think a custom helmet would fit in my VG. I'm using a regular helmet sans visor, and it just barely fits. A small purple hair piece might fit, though. BTW, did some research- cool backstory for Moaramia.
  22. M'Kyuun
    I'm embarrassed to say I don't know who that is, although I assume it's the VG pilot from the game. Google was no help. To answer the question, no plans to make a custom fig. Just not in my spectrum of interest, so far as LEGO goes. That's not to say I wouldn't buy a nice custom from someone who was good at it, if reasonably priced. Honestly, I never give much thought to the minifigs piloting my mecha, Macross or not. My Monster happens to be done in Classic Space colors, so I've got a red astrofig at the helm. I used the Collectible Series Space Marine (Luiz) for my VF-4, and I've got the aptly named Hikaru from Exo-Force in his 2006 deco, reminiscent of the VF-1's chest, at the controls of my Variable Glaug. His hair doesn't fit, but a helmet does, just barely. I suppose I should care more, especially when building something from an IP, but I don't. I'm always much more concerned about the model itself, and trying to make it functional while adding as much detail/features as I can. I never worry about convention goers pointing out my pilot follies, as the vast majority of folks I've encountered at conventions, literally tens of thousands at this point, don't recognize any of my Macross builds. Just the way it is. Shrug.
  23. M'Kyuun
    FE Arcee has her wings: they're actually her shoulder pauldrons, which is somewhat accurate to her animation model. If they'd engineered them for her shoulders to poke through them to sit externally, then they'd have been pretty spot on. It doesn't bother me any. I have her RiD version, too, which I also thought was a good mold, and I was happy to see it reused, albeit with some heavy remolding, into Generations Chromia. I dig the Tron-ish look of her bike mode. I never had Breakdown-honestly, I don't recall ever seeing him in stores, but I may have just passed on him for whatever reason. I'd like to see an updated toy of Dreadwing: I liked the character, and the character animation model, but the RiD toy left somewhat to be desired in jet mode, especially with half a hip sticking out from under the jet on either side. Stuff like that perplexes me- why are some figs engineered so well, and then others end up like this where it looks half-arsed? It's irksome. Anyway, he could stand an update. Almost forgot about Prime Rumble- cool figure. I like how they used his car shell as giant pauldrons for his smaller pauldrons. Fun figure. The mold hints to his G1 cassette look are appreciated. At this point in my collecting, I rarely look back. One exception is Animated Blackout- so wish that toy had been marketed here in the States. He's one that got away, as I wasn't really familiar with the online shopping scene back then. The markups for that figure are crazy- it's cool, but not cool enough for the asking prices these days.
  24. M'Kyuun
    Deeply appreciate the compliments, fellas. It was a labor of love in the truest sense...it nearly took a few 'test flights' across the room before I was finished. Really wish LEGO would invest in making some better joints. Anyway, I've had a sweet spot for the Variable Glaug for a while now, and I was a bit dismayed in my search for inspirational images that, aside from the excellent custom model, which incidentally appeared here on Macross World fifteen years ago, and any number of colored copies of Kawamori's line art, little else exists. Not even Experten, who is no stranger to making garage kits of lesser known valks, has made one. Glad I could do it a little service. I'm taking this guy to Bricks Cascade, a LEGO convention in Portland, OR, at the end of February/first weekend of March. The Mecha coordinator is familiar with Macross, so I'm pretty excited to show this thing to him- most people walk right by my stuff, as they don't recognize it, and often don't realize they transform unless I'm there to tell them, so it's nice to have at least one person who knows what it is I've built. I won an award last year for my Monster, and I can't help but feel he had something to do with that. It's not the reason I do what I do, but a little validation in the form of more LEGO is always welcome. Anyway, just want to say thanks once again to all commenters for your wonderfully kind words. Most appreciated.
  25. M'Kyuun
    Thanks, guys. I thought the hands were kind of weak, personally, but LEGO offers few options, and this seemed the best one that would still offer a modicum of poseability of the digits. I wish the hinges were grouped closer together, but it is what it is. LEGO is all about compromise. Anyway, I greatly appreciate the kind words. I was happy to get it to stand on its own without a stand. It has that big backpack and those little odd shaped feet- I wasn't sure, but to my surprise, it stood fine the first time I tried. Sorry for the poor quality pics; I'm a better builder than a photographer, unfortunately. Too, my mancave is poorly lit, my camera's old, and my filing cabinet cum photo booth sits directly under my Transformer shelves, so all the way around, not the optimum situation for photography.
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