Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0 Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 MAGNETS FOR BETA CONNECTION?LOL OH EL POH EL good god that would jsut result in the FEW RARE MPC apha,s breaking due to weak connection to beta and nosediving on floor!!!
1 VF-1 2NV Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 My guess is they will offer a limited edition (100) bigger scale alpha/beta combo mpc ala bookends at some kind of convention at an outrageous high price .
EXO Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 Wasn't it at the AX and the SDCC that Tommy or Steve (can't tell them apart) shouted that we won't need to buy a different alpha to connect to the beta? Followed by a close... IF they make it....
rocco_77 Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 I have a PRE-3000 issue of the Alpha, and all I have is a loose arm and that pesky problem of the arms not wanting to stay locked together in fighter mode... Other than that, it's pretty darn good... My issue number is: 16XX for the record. I think that maybe they did some tweaks to the assembly line post 3000 units, but it doesn't seem to have helped 100% of the minor problems... I think a lot of people here are also overly-bitching about this toy since it's a Toynami piece... I'm not trying to defend Toynami, I'm just stating my opinion that the Alpha is not being judged as objectively as I had thought it would be... I know you all remember the VF-11B leg fiasco... And Yamato doesn't offer direct replacements... I have 2 VF-11Bs that have broken legs... Luckily someone here was nice enough to send me a couple extra fuselage parts to fix them... I know some of you may say... "we have a right to bitch"... and I will be the first one to agree with you... However, let's keep it in perspective... Yes, Yamato does build a superior product overall, but in comparison Toynami didn't so such a bad job on the Alpha as it's being made out by some when put next to the numerous flaws in some of Yamatos pieces (the above mentioned -11B, the 1/60 line (specifically, the Ostrich and Elintseeker chest plate issue, the floppy head of the Super VF-1J, and the loose hip joint issue that plagued almost the entire line), the YF-21FP that no one was really thirlled with, etc). And yes, I also agree that for the money, and the claim of this being a "collectible" that there should be a higher standard for this toy... I'm just asking for a bit more objectivity...
ewilen Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 They have about the same rate of lemons over at robotech.com. They seem to have concluded rightly or wrongly that the QC issues are concentrated in the pre-3000 units. haha, back when Toynami first annouced the notice about 1-3000 being variants, we were all joking, "Oh yeah, we found some problems, but we're just start fixing it now and call the first 3000 special variants." instead of scraping the whole batch and starting over. Assuming the 1-3000 units have a higher defect right, that could be the reason. It could also be that they produced both the variants and the main line at the same time but with different personnel.
Lonely Soldier Boy Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 I agree with rocco_77. I didn't get my Alpha yet, but I've read every complain carefully and I'm still getting it. Toynami is learning to make toys the hard way, but no one can say that the Alphas are just as bad as the VF-1 line (in fact most of the people here that bought the Alphas never bought a single VF-1 MPC). Seems that the main problem here is that Toynami (perhaps to save some bucks) entrusted the assembly of a complex toy to some cheapo chinese factory. That problem can be easily solved just by moving the operation to other manufacturer for future releases. In case that the red Alpha keeps having all these issues somebody here will have to recast the entire toy for a MacrossWorld special edition Alpha bootleg. I mean it.
macu5454 Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 I have a PRE-3000 issue of the Alpha, and all I have is a loose arm and that pesky problem of the arms not wanting to stay locked together in fighter mode... Other than that, it's pretty darn good...My issue number is: 16XX for the record. I think that maybe they did some tweaks to the assembly line post 3000 units, but it doesn't seem to have helped 100% of the minor problems... I think a lot of people here are also overly-bitching about this toy since it's a Toynami piece... I'm not trying to defend Toynami, I'm just stating my opinion that the Alpha is not being judged as objectively as I had thought it would be... I know you all remember the VF-11B leg fiasco... And Yamato doesn't offer direct replacements... I have 2 VF-11Bs that have broken legs... Luckily someone here was nice enough to send me a couple extra fuselage parts to fix them... I know some of you may say... "we have a right to bitch"... and I will be the first one to agree with you... However, let's keep it in perspective... Yes, Yamato does build a superior product overall, but in comparison Toynami didn't so such a bad job on the Alpha as it's being made out by some when put next to the numerous flaws in some of Yamatos pieces (the above mentioned -11B, the 1/60 line (specifically, the Ostrich and Elintseeker chest plate issue, the floppy head of the Super VF-1J, and the loose hip joint issue that plagued almost the entire line), the YF-21FP that no one was really thirlled with, etc). And yes, I also agree that for the money, and the claim of this being a "collectible" that there should be a higher standard for this toy... I'm just asking for a bit more objectivity... How much would you guess Toynami makes on one Alpha? As in terms of profit.
Montarvillois Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 How much would you guess Toynami makes on one Alpha? As in terms of profit. Normal manufacturing margins in most industries are between 60-75%
macu5454 Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 How much would you guess Toynami makes on one Alpha? As in terms of profit. Normal manufacturing margins in most industries are between 60-75% Maybe even more than that as for the Alpha. The plastic is so cheap and the toy is small. Toynami made alot off of these Alphas I mean good for them but what about the consumers? So many have mentioned that it is not worth 80 bucks maybe 50 or 60? I think most will agree about this especially when there are other transforming toys out in the market that is way cheaper.
Montarvillois Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 (edited) When I say 60-75% it is on the cost price, retailer usualy has a 45-50% marging so that would mean that Toynami makes approximatly 30$ per Alpha. Retailler makes about the same amount, that's the way it works in most consumer's products except computer parts, grocery products and other specialties. Edited August 27, 2004 by Montarvillois
mac000 Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 To anybody who's trying to tranform their legioss this step is the opposite.
mac000 Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 This thing reminds me so much of what was wrong with the first YF-19. You will definitely need a tweezer.
mac000 Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 Ground clearance is a joke. Had they added 1mm more to the front landing gear.
Montarvillois Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 (edited) More pictures please, moooore. I am soo looking forward to get this thing and see if my legendary luck will serve me again , mind you I just exchanged a PG MKII with Vermillion One to get this as I promissed I wouldn't spend a penny more on toys in 2004 Edited August 27, 2004 by Montarvillois
Drad Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 ... I'm just asking for a bit more objectivity... Understandable. I worked hard to be fair, honest and objective in my review. But I only have control over my own thoughts and feelings about it. It was that lack of objectivity in many other reviews that made it REALLY difficult for me to decide whether or not to buy the Alpha.
mac000 Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 I got a slow computer, i might put up more pics later. Mine is #2079. So far nothing broken but one area I suspect will break sooner or later is the wrist connection. Toynami should of made removable hands. I had to use a tweezer to grab on the square base area to turn/pull it out of the compartment for soldier mode. I was reading the certificate card something about 40 artists proofs what are their differences if any?
Lonely Soldier Boy Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 (edited) Ground clearance is a joke. Had they added 1mm more to the front landing gear. If I remember well from the line art, the chest plate of the toy in fighter mode sticks out too much. I'll try to fix this by lowering the nose a bit (everyone is complaining about the angle of the nosecone anyway), that should help to get more ground clearance (if it can be done). Edited August 27, 2004 by Lonely Soldier Boy
Drad Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 Toynami is learning to make toys the hard way, but no one can say that the Alphas are just as bad as the VF-1 line (in fact most of the people here that bought the Alphas never bought a single VF-1 MPC). Seems that the main problem here is that Toynami (perhaps to save some bucks) entrusted the assembly of a complex toy to some cheapo chinese factory. That problem can be easily solved just by moving the operation to other manufacturer for future releases. Toynami IS improving their Masterpiece line. Slowly.. but they are improving. You can tell just by looking at the Alpha itself. The sculpt is great, outside of a few forgiveable flaws, and you can see several other areas in which they really tried to do things better this time. Now if only they'd switch to a better production facility, use better materials and get some humans for quality control (I suspect trained chimpanzees at this point), the Masterpiece line really would begin to approach the quality that it's named for.
Lonely Soldier Boy Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 (edited) Right! After all the 1/48's were manufactured in china also and they're just perfect, so what's the big deal? (chimps are cheap, tho' ) Edited August 27, 2004 by Lonely Soldier Boy
gilermo Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 hi everybody, Here is some feedback from your ancestors over in europe.. The alpha just arrived in the Netherlands, i got so scared after reading al the negative feedback on this toy that i almost did not open it.. But i did anyway I got lucky i did not have the mayor problems that the most of you guys had, but some minor things did come up though.. -one of the landing gears is floppy -one of the missile doors on the arms is crooked. -the whole toy overall feels a bit breakable -the arms stand up fine though -the decals look great Overall i think i paid to much for this toy..it costs aprox. 144 dollars here in the netherlands..way too much for this thing it's in the box now i am getting an other one next week.. I can try to post a pic if anyone wants.. my alpha is number 04406..
aaajin Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 I think we should have a retarded alpha contest. Who has the most retarded alpha...pic (not more than 2 showing your alpha's worst flaws). Who's alpha will be crowned the most retarded alpha in macrossworld! Requirements: Its Id number 1-2 pics of how its retarted If a mod ok's this lets start it in a new thread. Any mod want to be a judge? AND the winner will win an exploded out-of-the-box alpha~!
Drad Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 (chimps are cheap, tho' ) Apparently so are the executives of a certain toy company and its licensor. Cheap chimps hiring.. cheap chimps?
Mechafan Posted August 27, 2004 Posted August 27, 2004 I think a lot of people here are also overly-bitching about this toy since it's a Toynami piece... I'm not trying to defend Toynami, I'm just stating my opinion that the Alpha is not being judged as objectively as I had thought it would be... I know you all remember the VF-11B leg fiasco... And Yamato doesn't offer direct replacements... I have 2 VF-11Bs that have broken legs... Luckily someone here was nice enough to send me a couple extra fuselage parts to fix them...I know some of you may say... "we have a right to bitch"... and I will be the first one to agree with you... However, let's keep it in perspective... Yes, Yamato does build a superior product overall, but in comparison Toynami didn't so such a bad job on the Alpha as it's being made out by some when put next to the numerous flaws in some of Yamatos pieces (the above mentioned -11B, the 1/60 line (specifically, the Ostrich and Elintseeker chest plate issue, the floppy head of the Super VF-1J, and the loose hip joint issue that plagued almost the entire line), the YF-21FP that no one was really thirlled with, etc). And yes, I also agree that for the money, and the claim of this being a "collectible" that there should be a higher standard for this toy... I'm just asking for a bit more objectivity... They only major difference is that Toynami are calling these Masterpieces. Yamato is just having them as regular figures. If I buy a Ford (Yamato) I expect some issues. But when I buy a so called BMW (MPC) the issues should not be there. Even with the issues on the 1/60 and 1/72 I never regreted buying them. I understand too that Yamato's have thier issues but when the last time you seen massive returns on them like the MPC's. Gamestops had to put some of the last MPC's on clearence to get rid of them. I think some got them as low as $10.  LOL, went to my local GameStop earlier today and they had a sign next to the Alpha saying that there is no returns after the tape/seal has been open even if the toy is defective!! HAha I talked to the guy and he said that alot of people have been coming back complaining about the toy. He also said that they will NOT be carrying any of the other series. I guess they are not taking any more chances. I can understand that, I got an Alpha Poseable for $2.50 a few weeks ago at Game Stop. Did toynami aquirre an exclusive licence to build a legioss? Or may other companies get the chance to make one themselves? Well since Harmony has exclusive rights to Mospeada worldwide, Toynami is the only game in town.
kellen Posted August 28, 2004 Posted August 28, 2004 Just got #1778. Got it from the Valkyrie-Exchange. Very little defects 1 small paint chip and I had to fix the right leg to allow it to fully extend (so that the alpha is not off balance ) Nothing really big. The weight is much better than the original series, and the toy seems to be more solid as a result. I think the price of $80 was a little steep (should be more around $50-$60 for the quality of toy). But I am happy with it and hope to get the rest of the series
Göönk Posted August 28, 2004 Posted August 28, 2004 pictures with a 1/48 and stickers on http://perso.wanadoo.fr/hagstrom/alpha/alpha001.jpg http://perso.wanadoo.fr/hagstrom/alpha/alpha002.jpg http://perso.wanadoo.fr/hagstrom/alpha/alpha003.jpg http://perso.wanadoo.fr/hagstrom/alpha/alpha004.jpg http://perso.wanadoo.fr/hagstrom/alpha/alpha005.jpg http://perso.wanadoo.fr/hagstrom/alpha/alpha006.jpg http://perso.wanadoo.fr/hagstrom/alpha/alpha007.jpg
Montarvillois Posted August 28, 2004 Posted August 28, 2004 WOW !!! Goonk, your pictures are great !!! Cmon guys, you gotta admit that even with the flaws, the Alpha looks great.
eugimon Posted August 28, 2004 Posted August 28, 2004 I admit, looks great. hope future releases fix some of these problems.. my thinking is the paint stuff is because they rushed production on these guys.
Apollo Leader Posted August 28, 2004 Posted August 28, 2004 Just got one through a local Gamestop today (still waiting for Kevin to send me my other one!). Mine is #924 (the boxes and the toy's numbers all match). The only flaw I've found was a slight paint run on one of the arms in fighter mode. Everything seems to be in place and nothing seems to be damaged so far (I haven't transformed it yet ). I've never had a full blown Alpha/Legioss before, so I will most definitely be following the instructions. I like the weight that it has for a toy this size. The attention to detail and its overall appearance is better then the MPC VF-1 was. Hopefully my Alpha/Legioss survives its first few transformations.
CoryHolmes Posted August 28, 2004 Posted August 28, 2004 I like the weight that it has for a toy this size. The attention to detail and its overall appearance is better then the MPC VF-1 was. You can say *that* again. This thing just blows the sculpt of the VF-1 MPC out of the water. (and I'm a guy that doesn't mind the VF-1 MPC sculpt...)
Horizons Posted August 28, 2004 Posted August 28, 2004 Well, I, for one, I'm very pleased with my Alpha. Seems to me that Toynami is at least trying to fix things. Maybe they're not quite at MPC level yet, but later on, who knows? If a few of the problems of the first batch are fixed for the second one, and a few more for the Rook MPC, shouldn't that have taken lots of the 'little' problems everyone, myself included, is having, off of the MPC line? Maybe by the end of this line the MPC banner will fall in place, rightfully so, with the toy itself. Here's hoping.
geecie30 Posted August 28, 2004 Posted August 28, 2004 Does any one know what that hatch thing is where the alphas butt is? Thanks
Kin Posted August 28, 2004 Posted August 28, 2004 hi everybody, Here is some feedback from your ancestors over in europe.. The alpha just arrived in the Netherlands, i got so scared after reading al the negative feedback on this toy that i almost did not open it.. But i did anyway I got lucky i did not have the mayor problems that the most of you guys had, but some minor things did come up though.. -one of the landing gears is floppy -one of the missile doors on the arms is crooked. -the whole toy overall feels a bit breakable -the arms stand up fine though -the decals look great Overall i think i paid to much for this toy..it costs aprox. 144 dollars here in the netherlands..way too much for this thing it's in the box now i am getting an other one next week.. I can try to post a pic if anyone wants.. my alpha is number 04406.. Duur he? heheheh How much did you pay for shipping?
SDFcommander Posted August 28, 2004 Posted August 28, 2004 Does any one know what that hatch thing is where the alphas butt is?Thanks That folds in to make room for the canopy in robot mode.
CoryHolmes Posted August 28, 2004 Posted August 28, 2004 Does any one know what that hatch thing is where the alphas butt is?Thanks That folds in to make room for the canopy in robot mode. How do I pop it out again to make it flush in fighter mode?
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