Slave IV

But he was answering his own question. Implying he was curious what the lowest price anyone was able to obtain one for.

I estimate around $275 for mine by the time I ship it from hlj.

4 minutes ago, rematron said:

To be clear, I love Arcadia products. Anyways, this is why I stated that Arcadia “tweaked” molds. While the SV-51 and VF-19 and VF-0 are not the same molds as Yamato, they are still based on Yamato’s molds and the transformations are basically identical. Arcadia just went in to try to improve them. That seems substantially easier than engineering and creating a perfect transformation from scratch. The VF-5000 is such a design. How many Macross mechs has Arcadia designed from scratch? 

In that sense, maybe all of them? Aren’t they basically the same designers and key people from Yamato? Plus, there is always T-Rex that seems to design for everyone doing high end transforming Mecha. 

2 hours ago, WhatBoutMyStar said:

I must be one of the lucky ones that hasn't had any issue with the legs detaching on any of the 3 DX VF-1s that I have when transforming them, which granted isn't that often and I've only unpegged that lock once (when I first got the 1J) to check out the waist swivel feature only to think, eh not worth it, and never used it again on any of my VF-1s. I can can  sway the figure mid-transformation back and forth and it stays locked with the legs attached. The only annoyance I have w/ the DX is the leg fins easily getting moved or falling off. Otherwise, I think they are significant improvement over the older Yamato 1/48 and Yamato/Arcadia 1/60 VF-1s that I have.

My DX VF-1s don’t have the legs falling off too easy either. My main complaint about them is their fit and tolerances feel sloppy. Look and articulation are great but the v2 1/60 feels like a much more refined and quality piece in hand even though it’s lighter with much less metal content. Heck, even Bandai’s own HMR feels better than the DX in similar ways. 

1 hour ago, Anasazi37 said:

This is particularly true in Fighter mode. I designed an adapter for the Archi Stand and had to do some clever engineering to make sure that the back-heavy weight was distributed well and that the arms don't drop down when the armor and gunpod are attached. They don't "peg in" as securely on the Yamato as on the DX when the legs are lowered to accommodate Super/Strike parts. 

I still need to get some Yamato adapters at some point to get my display set up ideally. 

The Yamto 1/48 is a pain to handle with super parts because its just too much stuff for the frame. But it looks great when all setup! That's the other thing with Yamato is it still looks better in some ways and modes. As for overall handling, I'd argue the Yamato 1/48 still has the most pleasant transformation out of them all except the OG Chunky. You can easily transform it into all modes quickly and with no fiddly parts that fall apart.

1 hour ago, Angesdad said:

Clearly someone over at 1999.co.jp made a mistake because no retailers I've dealt with will ship a Max 29 for 1,800 yen jammed in a small packet. I'm all penny pinching when it comes down to shipping charges but there is such thing as having enough room/protection for your expensive toy in an ample size box, and you pay for that.

I’ve had some cases where I think the shop messed up and charged a lot less than they should have and there are also times when they have promotions (especially HLJ) so I always go through the options and pick the cheapest. 

1 hour ago, Anasazi37 said:

You also have to hope that the store packs your item well enough to survive the long trip, or at least be okay with some item box damage in exchange for the lower shipping cost. The more time your item is in transit, the higher the probability that something will happen to it. DHL nearly destroyed my VF-25 Alto Full Set Pack, so even express couriers have problems (especially DHL), but my experience with Surface hasn't been great. If your item ends up in a bad position in the shipping container, with many heavier packages on top of it, and stays that way for 2-3 months, it might get crushed unless it's packed well. The few times I've used Surface, as an experiment, the shipping boxes arrived in bad shape, and there was some inner box damage. I know that you've had consistently good luck with Surface, and I tried using it based on your good luck and recommendation, but it hasn't worked out for me.

Reputable stores like HLJ, AmiAmi, and AE do pack well, which gives your item a good shot at arriving safely via Surface. Amazon Japan sucks for international shipping, or even just domestic shipping to a package forwarding service so you can use Surface instead of DHL (helpful for large and/or heavy items). There's always item box damage, bent pages on books, etc. because Amazon just tosses stuff in boxes or bags, loose. Little to no packing material. Speaking of package forwarding services, Tenso and Blackship pack well, but you generally have to pay extra for the service. It's worth the few extra dollars to make the box bomb-proof, though.

Yeah, I think this is a YMMV situation and depending on where you live and especially your local carriers, different options might not work out. Either way, I suspect most the damage is coming after the items arrives on shore because I happen to have pretty good local carriers and I have rarely received a damaged package. I probably use surface shipping more than anyone here so if the journey across the sea was the issue, I surely would have come across a lot more damaged packages. It makes sense to assume though because the longer it takes, the more chance of something going wrong but on the ship, we’re talking 2-3 months where it is safely tucked away with no one touching it. It’s when it gets into people’s hands again is when you need to worry. 

8 minutes ago, jenius said:

I'm getting close on this

I wish I loved the DX VF-1 more than I do. It's good... but it still leaves room for improvement and Bandai seems content to ignore the issues. 

I was going to mention in the other thread about Arcadia/Bandai preorders and quality that the Yamato 1/48 also still holds up as one of the 5 Almost equally greatest VF-1 toys ever. OG 1/55, Yamato 1/48, Yamacadia 1/60, HM-R and DX 1/48. Each one of these  stands out for different reasons and are irreplaceable in a collection, imo. 

59 minutes ago, PointBlankSniper said:

If that's the difference, with my other items present, sounds like surface might be the way to go.

I realize that now, after what kajnrig said. I keep forgetting which stores let you change these things because they all have different policies and invoicing proceedures. 🤪

Surface is almost always the way to go. The only time it isn’t is for very small items that cost less to ship small packet so you get it faster and cheaper that way. Saving $10 or more per shipment adds up quick!

Haha, yeah all the better and easier for me to collect Arcadia, not that it is too hard based on what we just talked about. I still consider Arcadia to be top of the line when it comes to Macross figures. The reason they didn’t need to change some molds is because those were already that good that they still hold their own to this day.

1 hour ago, Shizuka the Cat said:

After the issue with my VF-25G Revival pre-order thru Amazon US  (It is only now shipping, 4 months after release date, despite me pre-ordering), I no longer trust that Amazon can reliably acquire enough inventory to fulfill long-duration or open pre-order windows.  

Knowing that the YF-21 was going to be in high demand, I was religiously refreshing my Amazon search results page, so as to not miss the listing showing up.

Just to ease some of your worry, it typically takes domestic (US) shops 3 months after Japan release to get stock here, which corresponds to about how long it takes for a ferry to make it's way across the ocean and then you probably need to add domestic shipping to the shops and then their own inventory downtimes. So getting it 4 months after release date sounds perfectly normal. I personally wouldn't just because I'd rather save around $100 ordering direct from Japan and don't care about when I get it.

I think the answer is simply that Bandai is one of the world's largest toy companies that makes thousands of different products and they need to allocate resources according to what is most profitable to them. Macross is not even a blip to Bandai from any of the few reports I've seen so it makes a lot of sense that they are limiting and likely making less Macross products in comparison to a similar Gundam product for example. IMO, it has nothing to do with them purposefully making Macross artificially scarce to piss off collectors and we can get an idea of just how small the Macross market is when you take that into consideration and see how fast some sell out and how long some stick around even at clearance prices. 

Arcadia on the other hand is a tiny boutique company that mainly focuses on Macross products out of their own love for it so pretty much every release they have is made to order and they can keep orders open for whatever time period they need to coordinate with their factories.

So basically, it's two completely different business models.

37 minutes ago, Shawn said:

Break out your 1/60 Yamato VF-4 for the kids to play with...it does a fantastic Tank mode

Haha sweet! I'm not sure where my VF-4s are buried at the moment but will keep in mind when I uncover them! I do have some HMR around so I bet it works with those too!

48 minutes ago, jvmacross said:

Didn't this get called "Tank Mode" for the Orgroid toy?

Haha yeah! That’s exactly what I was thinking when they did it!

43 minutes ago, nightmareB4macross said:

Same here. I don’t think I have very many what’s called MIB untouched toys. I enjoy buying complete and original, but believe me my kids and I have played with everything we own. It’s all about the enjoyment, education, and sharing. 

I buy with intention to open all my toys and play together with my kids. But I got into a vortex of buying everything that remotely sparked interest and nostalgia so now I’m dealing with stacks upon stacks of misb toys that I don’t even know how I’m going to get through. Been changing that lately and really limiting my selection down to must haves. Funny thing is I used to be able to justify every piece as a must have. Last time my kids played with some of my chunkys they came up with this 4th mode:

6 minutes ago, jvmacross said:

Wrong!!!!

Conan, what is best in life?

Crush your enemies, see them driven before you, hear the lamentation of their women, and MIB untouched Macross toys...

 

lol!🤣

47 minutes ago, Shawn said:

Its up to each person to keep their bad condition toys original and yellow or they can restore the colors and have them look better.
There will be opinions on each side, but they literally made a million VF-1 toys, it isn't like we are dealing with limited run item.

If some of the worse yellowed loose ones get a new life I can't see how that is a bad thing. These aren't being sold or represented as 'mint in box'.

Here is another example of the process. I think it is amazing what can be done, just like restoring old computer cases from the 80's.
 

Yeah, I don’t care what people want to do with their toys. That example is cool but to me, it looks just as good yellowed and whatever color it is doesn’t change my enjoyment of my toys. The only thing I would argue against it is that I hear they just turn yellow again pretty quickly so it seems like a lot of trouble for nothing. 

I don't care about resell value or hoarding a huge collection of duplicates but I always like getting me some chunky love whenever a good deal comes around. I always thought chemical treatments to whiten toys is about as silly as someone doing it to their skin but whatever, right? Especially when the fix is just temporary and could damage other parts along the way. I would never bother with it on any of my toys so I wouldn't want to buy any that have undergone that kind of treatment so it's great that people point these things out. Most of my 1/55 have not yellowed badly or at all, and either way I don't care if they did. I just enjoy them for the great toys...best toys ever that they are and whatever colors they come in.

1 hour ago, Shawn said:

If you are in the Pasadena,CA area on Jan 28th, my friend is blowing out a bunch of loose 1/55 VF-1s at the con
Come see them in person!

https://pasadenacomiccon.com/

Oh friggin hell! Would he be into meeting somewhere beforehand? Haha!

1 hour ago, grogall said:

Will the 1980's Takatoku GBP also fit the 2000 Bandai reissues?

Yes.

And just because...

6 hours ago, tekering said:

Online pre-orders are your only chance to get DX Chogokins at retail prices.  They don't show up in Japanese stores.

Not, that is, until they hit the secondary market:

So yes, I have to face the preorder madness along with the rest of you... although it's a different kind of crap show for Japanese collectors.  Unlike HLJ, Anime Export, and the other specialty shops, most Japanese retailers could care less about collectors.  Bandai tells them they can't list a product until after 4pm on a certain date, so they list that product a half-hour later, an hour later, several hours later... and unlike AmiAmi or Nin-Nin, they don't provide any indication of when exactly the preorder will go up. 

Amazon.jp had their listing up at 4:06, but their stock was superseded by third-party sellers asking ¥12000 above retail (!), making it impossible to access Amazon's own listing in time; I got close, but was cartjacked before checkout.  Yodobashi Camera listed at 4:26, BIC Camera hadn't listed until after 5:00, JoshinWeb didn't up up their listing 'til nearly 6:00, and it looks like Edion didn't add the YF-21 to their site until sometime the following morning!  The only shops that respected the 4pm schedule were Akiba Sofmap and Bandai's own Tamashii store, and both of those only offer lottery sales, so... practically useless. 😒

I've tried telephone enquiries before, to no avail.  Online preorders are the only option I'm aware of. 

In fact, I remember seeing a sign at the customer service desk at BEST Denki turning away any customers trying to order a Metal Structure Sazabi. 

Damn, that sucks! Thanks for sharing!

8 hours ago, Big s said:

I was thinking about the sh version honestly. I kinda want to see how the face looks up close before I spend the cash. At least on those I can actually check out the figure when I hold the box

I haven’t seen it up close but it seems really good. I had it preordered but cancelled last min as part of my cutting down. I don’t really care to collect things that were never meant for toy collecting but end up getting figures just because. But even so, I still have the Mezco order and will probably keep it because if I have one, might as well go all out with hopefully the best one. 

14 hours ago, Big s said:

I’ll probably just skip hasbro till they figure things out. I guess they’re giving duties to other companies to handle their franchises like Mcfarlane and a couple others. Maybe one of them will eventually give me what I want or Hasbro could just learn that people don’t like their packaging 

There is the recent SHF release and upcoming Mezco.

5 hours ago, Big s said:

I really hate the packaging on these. It’s the biggest reason that I haven’t been interested in Hasbro stuff. I might get a couple figures if I really like them, but I don’t really have shelf space and it would be cool to just hang a few on the wall in box, but I can’t see the actual figures in these boxes so there really isn’t a point to it.

If you just want some Indiana Jones figures to hang misp, there are the retro style ones that are on cards.

I’ll grab one python pod if it gets clearanced enough, lol. Don’t need/want python Copperhead but still need to get the regular one. 

2 hours ago, scand said:

I just can't stop myself when it comes to army building... But Firefly and Zartan with his  Dreadnocks...  possibly one day.

Haha, it’s all part of the plan to control yourself. In that case, wise, very wise. 😆

27 minutes ago, scand said:

I have been telling myself for the last two years... I'm not jumping down the G.I. Joe Collectors Rabbit Hole again. I have to many other hobbies and the Classified series is pricey. But, new rule, Only Joes, no Cobra, and only from the 82-86 series. Man am I outta room.

I get you on being selective but Cobra is the main draw of GI Joe collecting, imo.😜

Nice overview @grogall

My most wanted is VF-1S Max.