rdrunner

Thanks @ArchieNov, that’s why I love Weijiang’s oversized KOs. They make improvements to the base mold as well as upscale it. I would love to see their take on MP-39 Sunstreaker (and the police car repaint) if they ever decide to make it.

Just a strip of decals for the Macross/Skull Squadron outside the boosters.

How can you tell it’s the crappy (1.0?) version? What should be the cover art for the better version of the -1S?

@Slave IV speaking of office shelf Macross collections, I have been sending a few shipments to my work address, they will probably be smuggled home some time soon.

nice! congrats on finally getting it!

speaking of 1/48s, I see used Woodland Camo GBP on the second hand market from time to time, but have NEVER seen the urban camo. Was it a very limited release at the time? I can't remember for sure. Think it will really go well with the black and yellow VF-1S though.

The KO Super strike pack fits well on the originals though. This is the KO set on my Yamato VF-1A DYRL. No notable issues.

I would agree. The tolerance are all over the place but they have done a fairly good job in making sure that most of the transforming mechanism etc work as expected in the original toy. For a price of $80 including shipping, it was ok to get one "stunt" copy that I can play and break. But at their current price point ($130) you will definitely be better off getting a used Yamato v2.

Got this recently on TB, for about 220 CNY plus shipping (I think under 80 CNY), so about 300 CNY all-in or under $50. Again Weijiang have not only upscaled a MP design, but they have also incorporated the Shadow Fisher fix to the two hip side plates. Loads of ratchet joints throughout, and the sculpt is spot on as well. Alt mode transformation is less “gappy” than the original which is also a big plus.

Ok @borgified as a fellow GBP fan I was also curious to see the results for myself. It feels just like me digging out a pair of old jeans, and go, meh that should still fit, but the moment I finish putting it on, the button and zip explodes...and that was almost exactly what happened to my GBP armor when I tried to fit it on the KO -1S. There were clear gaps in the nappy area, the arm and leg armours will just not lock in properly, the chest falls off, and I only managed to get one shot of it in full armour before I stared at it too hard and the leg armours just disintegrated in front of me. Verdict? Don’t even think about trying to fit a GBP on a KO. I wonder if FextHobby’s 1/60 OWL (if it gets made at all) will fit better on it, but I don’t intend on trying.

The woodland 1A is a thing of beauty, in both fighter and battroid modes.

Thanks! The more I look at it though, the bigger the urge to paint the 1/48 visor grey... Need to take apart the head and find me a grey Gundam marker or something...

For years the only Macross toy I had were the 1/60 v1 and the 1/48 Roy VF-1S with SSP. Absolutely loved posing the 1/48 in fighter mode (with or without the fast pack), and to me it’s still the best looking fighter out there. The only shame was that the lights on the front of the boosters are both aligned to the left and came out asymmetrical. I have always regretted not getting the GBP and had to pay through the nose for my copy recently. But boy it was so worth it. The v2 1/60 seems lanky in comparison.

I agree with you - I won't rely on them as the only source of an item on PO either. As a backup, their prices with economy shipping are competitive. We just have to wait like a couple hours for them to post the PO link after everybody else, and get past the spinning wheel of death....

I have only ordered a few things from them but I have never received anything in a used or damaged box either. In fact the packaging was done extremely well with bubble wraps etc. however I do agree that their customer services leave a lot to be desired and the 31A fiasco sure didn’t help their reputation in this regard.

That’s a bummer. But where in the US do you live? I am on the East Coast and can see two options. Last time I went with the cheaper one. Too bad that shipping killed this option for you. Sorry.

I ordered my VT-1 from them a couple days before PO even opened, took a chance but it arrived without any hassle, my only complaint was the lightly squished packaging. They now have a link for the VF-4. http://www.bandaionline.com/hi-metal-r-vf-4-lightning-iii-action-figure/ I would suggest that you do your research and due diligence before deciding to order with them. Good luck!

Wow - imagine Premium Finish Arcadias selling out in less than 2 minutes....

Thank you! I was too tired to stay up through the night and missed out on the HLJ site problems, and the subsequently short PO window for the other main sites. Had to get my second from AE as insurance. Hope they are reliable. My two bets are now with Nin-nin and AE...

I think the 2 left is an error.

Same here! But guess that was bound to happen.

Not with the recent Hi-Metal R releases I don’t think.

For the DX YF-19 and VF-1J it was a totally different atmosphere here. I still remember the flurry of replies in the YF-19 thread when HLJ opened their link for PO and many people made multiple orders thinking that it wasn’t working properly! (And then of course we had to cancel before HLJ caught us!)

Yup!

Seems awfully quiet here compared to the last preorder (DX VF-1J). I might just hang around a bit for the Amazon option, get my second and call it a night...