What's wrong with my Yamato, Bandai, etc.

[Chronocidal]

The peg is still good, not deformed. It just has some worn edges since you pulled it out with force while it was stuck.

Ok, just to clarify things: worn edges ARE deformation by definition. The peg is no longer the proper shape.

Now that I think about it, that metal bump that seems to be holding the legs in so tightly could have gotten larger over time. A small detail like that would be easy to damage during the process to remove the metal parts from their mold.

Edited July 12, 2010 by Chronocidal

[valkfighter]

Hi all,today I discovered that my yamato 1/60 vf-1s dyrl (V2) has also the problem with the canopy.that effect on the canopy that i dont know how to describe is falling too.I noticed it today also when transforming it back to fighter. Apart from the problem with both shoulders which need replacing now also the canopy adds to my list of problems this valk is cursed.

[maximilian_jenius]

Can I get some advice on this?

My vf-25s armored developed cracks through the hinge where the back folds. This would be the ones at the very 'back' of the shoulders where the back plate hangs off of in battroid - the one with the big metal circles in the joint. So far it's holding steady, but it irks me that such an expensive piece developed damage (note that I said I'm irked, but not really surprised <img src="http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/rolleyes.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="rolleyes.gif" /> ).

It looks pretty secure still, with no stress marks other than the crack. Should I just leave it alone? Or should I try layering it with cement just to join it again? Any tips on this would be much appreciated. I've read that ABS really has to be welded back together instead of applying superglue. This doesn't guarantee that it wouldn't happen again though, hence my apprehension.

Could it be due to the weight of the boosters hanging off and stressing it? Improper handling during transformation? I've never transformed it much since I got it (having the armor on pretty much killed that feature), but I have left it on the stand in fighter and battroid modes for some lengths of time.

SAME THING WITH MINE :s

the hinge have a "cut" (a little crack) but not stress marks, It seems secure but I dont't know if I could get replacements parts if it broke complete. any tips too? should I apply super glue, is not to critical if there is not stress marks?

please any tip or recommendation will be gratefully.

[Uxi]

One of the backpack / thrusters broke on my 1/60 YF-21 in the transformation. Looks like the screw that holds the thruster with the 3-flaps to the backpack sheared off. It mostly holds in position and stayed on long enough to get it back into fighter. Wonder if it's worth the trouble to try to get that broken screw out or if I'll just leave it there.

This is the same YF-21 1/60 where I the T-bar got a bit of the left "hoop" that goes around the pin sheared off.

Edited August 7, 2010 by Uxi

[GU-11]

I just found a tiny smudge of gray paint (probably from a factory worker painting up the visor) on the face of my VF-1J Hikaru.

Are there any safe solvents I can use to remove the paint? I thought of using a Gundam eraser marker (probably much safer than acetone or thinner), but I thought I should ask around and see if anyone knows what to use to safely get the paint of without potentially damaging the plastic surface.

[Chronocidal]

If that paint is anything like the paint on the canopy, tamiya paint thinner might be pretty safe, or whatever else can be used to remove the rainbow canopy coating. Judging by the smell of tamiya's thinner, I think it's alcohol based, but I have no idea how strong, or what type of alcohol.

Personally though, depending on how hard the area is to see, I might just try and scrape it off with a fingernail, or maybe a butter knife. From the experiences I've had with the paint used on DYRL VF-1 tails, I'd think it shouldn't be that hard to scratch off.

[GU-11]

Thanks for the advice, Chronocidal! I tried scraping very lightly at the smudge with a fingernail, and whaddaya know? It slowly came off! Buffed the area with a damp cloth, and the paint's all gone, and no scratches at all. It was just a tiny sliver on the right side of the VF-1J's "mouth", but gray against a white background is very conspicuous.

On another topic: To those anyone who likes to put their gummy pilots in their Valks for prolonged periods of time, you might want to check and see if there's any sign of them sticking to the seat.

I left the Amy Cunningham pilot in the cockpit of my DN for a few months, and when I removed it last night, some of the paint from the seat actually got stuck to the back of the pilot, and melded with it. Now the seat looks like it got riddled by bullet holes or something. I immediately removed the Gamlin fig from my VF-22S, which luckily only had a tiny speck of his flight suit stuck to the seat's unpainted surface.

I think the fact that the Amy fig fits so tightly in the seat kind of contributes to the paint on the fig and the seat melting into each other--just a theory. In any case, you might want to keep an eye out for any tight-fitting pilot figs.

Currently looking for a jar of similar looking brown paint to touch up the patches on the seat.

If you plan to display your VF's with a pilot inside for over a month, at least cover the seat with a piece of paper to keep the paint from sticking to the pilot fig. Personally, I plan on clear coating the pilots as a more permanent solution.

DISCLAIMER: This is probably an isolated case and does not in any way indicate that all other gummy pilot figs are susceptible to this. Don't want to be causing any unnecessary panic here, heheh.

Edited August 16, 2010 by GU-11

[nightmareB4macross]

Thanks for the advice, Chronocidal! I tried scraping very lightly at the smudge with a fingernail, and whaddaya know? It slowly came off! Buffed the area with a damp cloth, and the paint's all gone, and no scratches at all. It was just a tiny sliver on the right side of the VF-1J's "mouth", but gray against a white background is very conspicuous.

On another topic: To those anyone who likes to put their gummy pilots in their Valks for prolonged periods of time, you might want to check and see if there's any sign of them sticking to the seat.

I left the Amy Cunningham pilot in the cockpit of my DN for a few months, and when I removed it last night, some of the paint from the seat actually got stuck to the back of the pilot, and melded with it. Now the seat looks like it got riddled by bullet holes or something. I immediately removed the Gamlin fig from my VF-22S, which luckily only had a tiny speck of his flight suit stuck to the seat's unpainted surface.

I think the fact that the Amy fig fits so tightly in the seat kind of contributes to the paint on the fig and the seat melting into each other--just a theory. In any case, you might want to keep an eye out for any tight-fitting pilot figs.

Currently looking for a jar of similar looking brown paint to touch up the patches on the seat.

If you plan to display your VF's with a pilot inside for over a month, at least cover the seat with a piece of paper to keep the paint from sticking to the pilot fig. Personally, I plan on clear coating the pilots as a more permanent solution.

DISCLAIMER: This is probably an isolated case and does not in any way indicate that all other gummy pilot figs are susceptible to this. Don't want to be causing any unnecessary panic here, heheh.

I wouldn't recommend you clear coating the pilot. If the pilot is having issues with paint transfer (via melting) then it is most likely that the paint is not drying or airing properly, on the figure. If you clear coat the figure it will never dry.

These are the basic effects when painting a vinyl kit with enamels.

[GU-11]

I wouldn't recommend you clear coating the pilot. If the pilot is having issues with paint transfer (via melting) then it is most likely that the paint is not drying or airing properly, on the figure. If you clear coat the figure it will never dry.

These are the basic effects when painting a vinyl kit with enamels.

Thanks for the heads-up.

Any advice on how I should deal with this problem (as in how I can stop the paint on the fig from melting into the seat), or if placing a piece of paper/rag between the pilot fig and the seat the only solution?

[GU-11]

Transferred from: Can You replace the SV-51's Wing Hinges? a.k.a. Yamato's Inferno....

Yeah, I got Yamato'ed again.

To keep a long story short, the SV-51 Nora type I bought from HLJ came with a busted left wing hinge right out of the box (the left hinge split apart, and the right one has stress marks on it). I emailed HLJ and attached photos. They replied, saying they'll contact Yamato, who will probably send replacement parts.

The thing is, the hinge doesn't look like it can be easily taken apart--at least not without replacing a huge chunk of the torso. The hinge seems to be connected as a single piece to the torso itself, and the underside looks really complicated. I know next to nothing about the mechanics of the SV-51 toy, and have no idea how the thing works.

If anyone here has tinkered around with his SV-51 before (as in taking it apart), I'd really appreciate it if you could verify if the hinge can actually be replaced, what parts I might need to fully replace the hinges (I'd like to specifically tell HLJ what parts to get for me, in case Yamato leaves out a couple of important components--redundant, I know, but you can never bee too careful), and how to actually go about this procedure.

Thanks in advance.

[Chronocidal]

Any pictures available? I've taken mine apart quite a bit to tighten the wings, and it'll really depend on which hinge broke.

[GU-11]

Any pictures available? I've taken mine apart quite a bit to tighten the wings, and it'll really depend on which hinge broke.

You'll have to excuse the overly large pics and grainy look: same borrowed entry-level camera. It's that hinge that holds/connects the whole wing to the body.

And my apologies to the MW site maintenance crew for the giant pics: I couldn't remember where I downloaded that resizer to. Won't happen again.

[Chronocidal]

Ouch.. I was hoping it was something further down the wing linkage. My CF-51 had a cracked area on the plastic piece on the other end of the metal plate, but it looks like your break happened before that metal piece.

Yeah, I don't know about that one. I never took anything apart past that metal piece. I'll take a look at it later, but the big problem with fixing the SV-51 yourself is that most of it is glued together, so you can't really take it apart to replace anything that far into the structure.

I'd start looking for any clear part divisions around that broken joint as a start, but that break looks serious enough that you might be better off just getting a replacement.

[Shaorin]

Hi all,today I discovered that my yamato 1/60 vf-1s dyrl (V2) has also the problem with the canopy.that effect on the canopy that i dont know how to describe is falling too.I noticed it today also when transforming it back to fighter. Apart from the problem with both shoulders which need replacing now also the canopy adds to my list of problems this valk is cursed.

there seems to be a defective batch of 1/60v.II cockpit canopies out there.

my VF-1J Hikaru T.V. is the old hip-latch version, and I've owned it for over a year now,

with no problems developing on the canopy to this day...

[nightmareB4macross]

Thanks for the heads-up.

Any advice on how I should deal with this problem (as in how I can stop the paint on the fig from melting into the seat), or if placing a piece of paper/rag between the pilot fig and the seat the only solution?

Rubbing wax on the suface of the seat will help, as if would prevent contact from the seat to the pilot. Using a rag or peice of paper will only make the pilot stick to the object used as for interferance.

[GU-11]

Ouch.. I was hoping it was something further down the wing linkage. My CF-51 had a cracked area on the plastic piece on the other end of the metal plate, but it looks like your break happened before that metal piece.

Yeah, I don't know about that one. I never took anything apart past that metal piece. I'll take a look at it later, but the big problem with fixing the SV-51 yourself is that most of it is glued together, so you can't really take it apart to replace anything that far into the structure.

I'd start looking for any clear part divisions around that broken joint as a start, but that break looks serious enough that you might be better off just getting a replacement.

Thanks for the info, Chronocidal!

In their email reply, HLJ said it will contact Yamato and see what they plan to do about it, which basically means the ball is now in the hands of the manufacturer. They also said Yamato generally opts to send replacement parts. I'm not against replacing the parts myself, but the VF-1D's leg replacement seems like a cakewalk compared to this.

I hope Yamato has the common sense to make sure that the hinge is actually replaceable before sending me replacement parts. Better still, I hope they have the sense and decency to send me a replacement fig if it doesn't look like it can be repaired.

I've told HLJ that the hinge looks like a bitch to replace and I'm not even sure if it can be replaced at all, and I'd prefer a whole fig. Keeping my fingers crossed, and hoping HLJ/Yamato will budge.

In any case, if you find a way to replace the hinge, please do tell me.

Rubbing wax on the suface of the seat will help, as if would prevent contact from the seat to the pilot. Using a rag or peice of paper will only make the pilot stick to the object used as for interferance.

Thanks, man! I'll try rubbing a candle on the seat and see how it goes.

[mickyg]

What Chronocidal said about the SV-51, I second! It is mostly glued together, or said differently, it's screwed and then caps are glued over the screw holes. It looks great but it's a royal pain to take anything apart. I've got mine for sale and have packaged it back up but if you get stuck, I'll see if I can do some checking to offer some advise about dismantling it. The fix for my defective leg was pretty destructive - the screw cap was completely useless after I drilled a hole in it. Luckily the screw that holds that part together is not terribly obvious when looking at it (just ends up being a small hole on the side of the intake duct/thigh).

Oh, and in the case of my fault, the whole fig got replaced. Not sure if HLJ will have the same option that Overdrive did but fingers crossed!

[Chronocidal]

Ok, The good news is, you don't need an entirely new valk. But for all the parts swapping you'll need to do to replace the broken piece, you almost may as well get a new one.

To start off, you need to work on this in some place you're not going to lose small pieces. I found this out the hard way.. when I got the screws out, little bits started dropping all over the place. I'd recommend a drop cloth or something.

The first thing to do is pull the legs off. Well, maybe. I'm not sure you have to, but it helped me to see better what I was doing, and made the plane easier to deal with while fiddling.

Second, look underneath the plate where your hinge cracked, and you should see two small screws. Take those out. You shouldn't lose any pieces here.

The magic happens when you take out a third larger screw that is underneath the pink plate that supports the head. You'll probably have to partially transform the torso before you can fold the head at an angle that will let you see it. Remove that screw, and the whole thing should come apart.

What happens is, this releases the upper chest plate. This plate holds down the pins that support the nose section rotation, as well as the small flaps plastic flaps on the shoulders that move around, and the silver gun barrels. When you remove the nose, you should be left with the following pieces.

What you'll see is pretty much a mess. You've got the three screws, the two metal pins for the nose section, the two gun barrels, and the two plastic flaps.

Now, as far as the repair is concerned, my best guess is that you need to replace... well.. everything that isn't the nose section or legs. Technically, yes, you can take apart this section further.. but all it amounts to is disconnecting the arms from the shoulders, and the wings from their hinges. For all intents and purposes, the section that holds together the wings, arms, and head is one big unit.

At the bare minimum, you're going to need to replace the main plate that the head hinges are connected to, which will include the head (since it's prety much permanently attached to that plate), the shoulders (since they are attached by a press-fitted pin that you do not want to remove), and the plates with the blue lights that the wings attach to.

If you know what you're doing, you might be able to transplant the arms starting at the second shoulder joint, but there's no clear division in sections until you get to the elbow, and a sinle screw that holds the lower arm to the upper shoulder (actually, the third screw up, starting at the hand).

In any case, it's ugly. I get the feeling that this entire assembly might be treated as a single part in the assembly line at Yamato, similar to how ordering a new set of shoulder hinges for a VF-1 got you the full arm assembly.

At the very least, you need that lower half of the chest plate, and any pieces permanently attached, which will include the upper shoulders, and anything up to the screw joint on the wing plates (the ones with blue transparent lights).

I honestly don't know what Yamato would replace in this case.

Edited August 18, 2010 by Chronocidal

[GU-11]

Ok, The good news is, you don't need an entirely new valk. But for all the parts swapping you'll need to do to replace the broken piece, you almost may as well get a new one.

To start off, you need to work on this in some place you're not going to lose small pieces. I found this out the hard way.. when I got the screws out, little bits started dropping all over the place. I'd recommend a drop cloth or something.

The first thing to do is pull the legs off. Well, maybe. I'm not sure you have to, but it helped me to see better what I was doing, and made the plane easier to deal with while fiddling.

Second, look underneath the plate where your hinge cracked, and you should see two small screws. Take those out. You shouldn't lose any pieces here.

The magic happens when you take out a third larger screw that is underneath the pink plate that supports the head. You'll probably have to partially transform the torso before you can fold the head at an angle that will let you see it. Remove that screw, and the whole thing should come apart.

What happens is, this releases the upper chest plate. This plate holds down the pins that support the nose section rotation, as well as the small flaps plastic flaps on the shoulders that move around, and the silver gun barrels. When you remove the nose, you should be left with the following pieces.

What you'll see is pretty much a mess. You've got the three screws, the two metal pins for the nose section, the two gun barrels, and the two plastic flaps.

Now, as far as the repair is concerned, my best guess is that you need to replace... well.. everything that isn't the nose section or legs. Technically, yes, you can take apart this section further.. but all it amounts to is disconnecting the arms from the shoulders, and the wings from their hinges. For all intents and purposes, the section that holds together the wings, arms, and head is one big unit.

At the bare minimum, you're going to need to replace the main plate that the head hinges are connected to, which will include the head (since it's prety much permanently attached to that plate), the shoulders (since they are attached by a press-fitted pin that you do not want to remove), and the plates with the blue lights that the wings attach to.

If you know what you're doing, you might be able to transplant the arms starting at the second shoulder joint, but there's no clear division in sections until you get to the elbow, and a sinle screw that holds the lower arm to the upper shoulder (actually, the third screw up, starting at the hand).

In any case, it's ugly. I get the feeling that this entire assembly might be treated as a single part in the assembly line at Yamato, similar to how ordering a new set of shoulder hinges for a VF-1 got you the full arm assembly.

At the very least, you need that lower half of the chest plate, and any pieces permanently attached, which will include the upper shoulders, and anything up to the screw joint on the wing plates (the ones with blue transparent lights).

I honestly don't know what Yamato would replace in this case.

A million thanks, Chronocidal!

Oh gosh, that's looks like a massive undertaking if I ever saw one. How the heck am I supposed to tell HLJ which parts to get, when even I'm confused by the vast amount of parts there are?

Well, I'd glad to know at least it's doable. I guess I'll just have to trust Yamato to be smart enough to include all the necessary parts. Honestly, I'd rather fix the thing myself if they asked for me to send the busted fig back to them. Packing the thing and queuing at the post office is WAY more trouble than tinkering with the fig on a workbench.

Guess I'll just have to sit tight and see what Yamato decides to do.

Thanks again, man. I owe you one.

What Chronocidal said about the SV-51, I second! It is mostly glued together, or said differently, it's screwed and then caps are glued over the screw holes. It looks great but it's a royal pain to take anything apart. I've got mine for sale and have packaged it back up but if you get stuck, I'll see if I can do some checking to offer some advise about dismantling it. The fix for my defective leg was pretty destructive - the screw cap was completely useless after I drilled a hole in it. Luckily the screw that holds that part together is not terribly obvious when looking at it (just ends up being a small hole on the side of the intake duct/thigh).

Oh, and in the case of my fault, the whole fig got replaced. Not sure if HLJ will have the same option that Overdrive did but fingers crossed!

Thanks for offering to help, Mickyg! Knowing my amateur-level skills in fig modding/fixing, I'll be PM'ing you pretty darn soon.

As for HLJ's replacement policy, their HELP page states that: "...We will arrange to supply you with replacement parts or a new item (at our discretion) at no charge. In some cases we may request that you return the damaged item to us, but in these cases we will credit you for the postage you pay to do so. "

I just hope they'll get me a new item without asking me to send the busted one back to them for whatever purpose. It's not just about the money for postage; the trouble it takes to send it back to them is also a major pain.

Besides, what the heck would they want with a busted fig, anyways? Recon it for resale?

BTW, did Overdrive ask you to send the busted one back to them?

Edited August 18, 2010 by GU-11

[mickyg]

Nope! When companies ship overseas and the packages are big, it's often more expensive for the shipping charges than to just send a replacement and let the customer keep the old one. They only pay shipping once that way. I'm guessing the manufacturer gives them some sort of credit, or it'd be too costly for the retailer otherwise.

I honestly thought my broken SV-51 would not end up being fixable. I was pretty happy when I discovered it was!

[GU-11]

Nope! When companies ship overseas and the packages are big, it's often more expensive for the shipping charges than to just send a replacement and let the customer keep the old one. They only pay shipping once that way. I'm guessing the manufacturer gives them some sort of credit, or it'd be too costly for the retailer otherwise.

I honestly thought my broken SV-51 would not end up being fixable. I was pretty happy when I discovered it was!

Well, that sounds like very good news for me! The packaging for the Nora is among the larger sizes for Yamato VF's (hold the lid up, and a small dog could probably use it as a shelter ), and the whole box is quite hefty with all the accessories in it. It cost me over 30 USD to ship, even at 20% discount for EMS. That's a third of the Nora's price on clearance sale!

Hopefully, Yamato's gonna reckon that it would ultimately cost them more to get back the busted fig, which could well be the case, since such a large part of the fig becomes useless when the hinge breaks.

[bouncing boy77]

Well, that sounds like very good news for me! The packaging for the Nora is among the larger sizes for Yamato VF's (hold the lid up, and a small dog could probably use it as a shelter ), and the whole box is quite hefty with all the accessories in it. It cost me over 30 USD to ship, even at 20% discount for EMS. That's a third of the Nora's price on clearance sale!

Hopefully, Yamato's gonna reckon that it would ultimately cost them more to get back the busted fig, which could well be the case, since such a large part of the fig becomes useless when the hinge breaks.

hey man, after what you went thru with the 1D, i really hope you can also get your SV-51 fixed.

[Chronocidal]

Well, that sounds like very good news for me! The packaging for the Nora is among the larger sizes for Yamato VF's (hold the lid up, and a small dog could probably use it as a shelter ), and the whole box is quite hefty with all the accessories in it. It cost me over 30 USD to ship, even at 20% discount for EMS. That's a third of the Nora's price on clearance sale!

Hopefully, Yamato's gonna reckon that it would ultimately cost them more to get back the busted fig, which could well be the case, since such a large part of the fig becomes useless when the hinge breaks.

Well, on the plus side, if you do wind up getting a brand new one without having to send the broken one back, you've got a hefty stash of spare parts to use if something else breaks in the future.

Actually.. does that broken one stay together in fighter at all? While I doubt that hinge would be really fixable, you could always glue the whole thing in fighter mode, and customize it at will, with no fear of scratching the paint during transformation. Sort of sad to make it fighter only, but I suppose it's better to have a nice fighter for display than a pile of spare parts.

[GU-11]

hey man, after what you went thru with the 1D, i really hope you can also get your SV-51 fixed.

Thanks, man. I was like, "You gotta be kidding me! Again?!" Meh, it might be a case of bad feng shui in my display room.... Honestly, I'm surprised I'm still in the mood to joke after getting Yamato'ed for the second time this year.

Well, on the plus side, if you do wind up getting a brand new one without having to send the broken one back, you've got a hefty stash of spare parts to use if something else breaks in the future.

Actually.. does that broken one stay together in fighter at all? While I doubt that hinge would be really fixable, you could always glue the whole thing in fighter mode, and customize it at will, with no fear of scratching the paint during transformation. Sort of sad to make it fighter only, but I suppose it's better to have a nice fighter for display than a pile of spare parts.

No such luck, Chronocidal.

HLJ just replied me. First, they assured me that Yamato is usually pretty good about sending parts that can be easily attached - in other words, they will send not just the joint, but the parts that attach to the joint.

Their other option is, as quoted, "...to send it back for repair or replacement. Since another option is available, in this case we cannot pay for the return shipping, but we will send it back once repaired free of charge. Please let me know which option you prefer."

You have to wonder why they're so adamant on asking for the busted one back, since there's so little they could recycle once the hinge is damaged. In any case, the replacements they'd have to send me probably amounts to almost a third of the whole fig, anyways. I hope they won't try to skimp on the parts and make me replace the arms, or nosecone, or whatever parts they can remove. I hate the idea of sliding hinge pins in and out, for fear of loosening them.

I guess I'd rather spend a few hours tinkering with the thing rather than queuing up at the post office. And I'm DEFINITELY NOT paying any extra shipment for it!

Heheh, I hope you and Mickyg don't mind getting pestered for advice by an amateur when I start taking the Nora apart!

Edited August 20, 2010 by GU-11

[mickyg]

Not at all - no one wants to buy mine so I figure I'll have it for a while longer. Ask away!

[GU-11]

Not at all - no one wants to buy mine so I figure I'll have it for a while longer. Ask away!

Heheh, I'm holding you to that, friend!

[Chronocidal]

Well, if they actually do offer to replace the broken piece, take that option (duh ). It wasn't that painful to take apart.

The only question is how much of the figure you might get attached to that piece. Odds are, you might get new arms and wings. You will have to reassemble the plane by reattaching the nose section, but aside from the small parts, it's not a difficult thing to do.

When I took mine apart, the only hinge pins I had to fiddle with were the ones that hold the nose to the chest, and those are a free-spinning type with no friction, so don't worry about any stress from that. They just slip through big loops on the nose piece, and get sandwiched in a slot between the halves of the chest.

The arms have the potential to be a little tricky, but only because the shoulder pads get in the way. If you tweak them enough, you can unscrew the arms at the shoulders without a huge amount of trouble. You just wind up having to reassemble the thing, which can be annoying because of the small parts. If you have to replace just the lower arms, things are much easier.

I'll be glad to help out where I can, but I'm going on a business trip for 2 weeks to vegas, so I won't have my SV-51 with me to provide any pics of assembly or anything.

[GU-11]

Well, if they actually do offer to replace the broken piece, take that option (duh ). It wasn't that painful to take apart.

The only question is how much of the figure you might get attached to that piece. Odds are, you might get new arms and wings. You will have to reassemble the plane by reattaching the nose section, but aside from the small parts, it's not a difficult thing to do.

When I took mine apart, the only hinge pins I had to fiddle with were the ones that hold the nose to the chest, and those are a free-spinning type with no friction, so don't worry about any stress from that. They just slip through big loops on the nose piece, and get sandwiched in a slot between the halves of the chest.

The arms have the potential to be a little tricky, but only because the shoulder pads get in the way. If you tweak them enough, you can unscrew the arms at the shoulders without a huge amount of trouble. You just wind up having to reassemble the thing, which can be annoying because of the small parts. If you have to replace just the lower arms, things are much easier.

I'll be glad to help out where I can, but I'm going on a business trip for 2 weeks to vegas, so I won't have my SV-51 with me to provide any pics of assembly or anything.

Thanks for offering to help, man! I opted for the replacement parts, since they won't pay for shipping, and are probably just going to repair it for me instead of giving me a new one. Might as well save 30 dollars and get it done myself.

It'll probably take about a month from now before the replacement parts get from Yamato to HLJ, and from there to arrive at my doorstep via SAL. IIRC, it took around three weeks from the time I got the shipping notice to the time the parts arrived. You'll probably be home long before the parts arrive.

Grasshopper looks forward to partaking in your vast ocean of figure repairing wisdom, oh wise master....

[Rabbid Potato]

Forgive my posting here but I was hoping to get some help with my vf-22 since I don't think it's gonna be sold any time soon. Just wanted to know if the leg is in right because I just can't get it back into fighter mode.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v146/SD_Jetfire/IMG_0490.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v146/SD_Jetfire/IMG_0491.jpg

[GU-11]

Forgive my posting here but I was hoping to get some help with my vf-22 since I don't think it's gonna be sold any time soon. Just wanted to know if the leg is in right because I just can't get it back into fighter mode.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v146/SD_Jetfire/IMG_0490.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v146/SD_Jetfire/IMG_0491.jpg

I own a VF-22S Gamlin and YF-21, and from the looks of it, I think you need to turn the leg leftward 90%, so that the tip of the foot faces inward, and the broad side of the leg lies flat against the "roof" of the fuselage.

[Alain]

Guys,

Just transformed my YF-21 back to fighter mode first time since I got it last 2008. But I managed to " Crushed " the flaps, the one just behind the intake, forgot to open it up while securing the back plate in place, and in turn, stress marks are present now from the flaps, any body here have managed to order replacement parts of the YF-21? Unlike the YF-19 which have parts that are coded, looks like Il have to send pics to HLJ and see if they can get the replacement flaps.

[Scream Man]

Ocunt me as one of the folk with a Canopy issue. I too have had the wrinkled thing happen to the coating. I rubbed it and most came off, so it's not super noticeable now, but its still there alright

Does it have something to do with leaving the Valk in Battroid for so long? if so Ill have to check my other one when i get home

[Shaorin]

Ocunt me as one of the folk with a Canopy issue. I too have had the wrinkled thing happen to the coating. I rubbed it and most came off, so it's not super noticeable now, but its still there alright

Does it have something to do with leaving the Valk in Battroid for so long? if so Ill have to check my other one when i get home

i still have not had a problem with my 1/60v.II -1J Hikaru T.V.

so this canopy problem surely must be a production batch issue.

is there any way to get YAMATO to supply you a replacement canopy?

[Scream Man]

I doubt it, but it scraped off OK, so I'm just going to let it be for now.

[hutch]

Transformed my VF-25 and VF-27 yesterday for the first time in a while.

I had Alto in GERWALK for a while and when I went to transform to fighter mode, the legs are completely floppy below the knee. Specifically between in-line and the 'hyper-extended knee' position. If it weren't for the lock with the wing section they would droop down.

On the 27, even though it's been in fighter mode for months, the shoulders have gone really soft. They're so loose that he has trouble holding his gun up. Wasn't that way when I got it.

It's disappointing. I love those designs so much but it seems like Bandai has a hard time building a toy that can sit on a shelf without getting floppy.