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The Megazone 23 Garland By Yamato Thread

Renato

By Renato
in Anime or Science Fiction

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JELEINEN New Edwards Test Pilot

JELEINEN

Posted
Posted

Thanks for the review! I really want one of these things now.

I got the Garland yesterday thanks to Neova (Thanks Anthony!!).

I had no time to sit and carefully check it but I can give you guys some first impressions.  :)

The Garland is mostly ABS plastic just like the 1/48 Valks, comes with the Pilot, one Gun and the HUGE Yamato Box all full of... air.

The pilot is nicely painted but is no where near the Chirico figure Yamato made for the 1/12 Scopedoggie, so don’t expect too much.  In fact the pilot was a bit of a let down for me, arms and parts falls apart all the time and he is only in "seated position".  Very cool looking for display tough… but I wanted to play with the little figure…

The Bike mode is NICE.  Wheels turn (somebody asked that) and it holds together nicely. The legs stay in position via Magnets... no problem with mine, it holds fine.  But this is not a 1/55 ABS BRICK like the old Valks so it must be handled with some love.

The Robot mode same as the bike is totally NICE.  Holds fine and there are no parts flopping around.  It feels sturdy. Poseability is really-really good.

The head of the garland is fantastic, no seam lines, nice details and SENSORS!!  WHY they don’t give us a VF 1S head and VF OS head like this one!! They always have to leave the stupid seam line in the middle of the face in our poor valks...

Hands are also nice; it holds the gun without problems but not strongly. Anyways it can be posed without problems.

Some people was worried about the Magnets, in my opinion they work really fine (at least in my toy), specially on the bike mode, in Robot mode only one of the two magnets (4 in total) will be used, this is not really a problem but it may "feel" loose.

Plastic is nice but Yamato used a SUPPA Glossy ABS plastic.  Not like the Mate finishing of the valks.  This makes it looks too Toy-ish. Despite you like this or not it looks really well made and feels high quality.

Well, you can always spray a matt coat and get rid of the glossy plastic.

It really screams for a custom job, weathering or detailing at least... it will make this bike look totally great.

Paint job is good.

This are all first impressions, so far I am really satisfied with the Garland. It is one cool toy.

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1/1 LowViz Lurker SMS Squadron Leader

1/1 LowViz Lurker

Posted
Posted
Plastic is nice but Yamato used a SUPPA Glossy ABS plastic. Not like the Mate finishing of the valks. This makes it looks too Toy-ish.

Is it like the Qrau in terms of gloss level? I didn't mind the polished appearance all that much - maybe it could be mistaken for diecast from a distance like the alternators? :D

Desert_tiger Cannon Fodder

Desert_tiger

Posted
Posted

Hi all. Got my Garland today (I'm stationed in Okinawa). Its like a whole chapter of my life is now complete. I couldn't help but break out my Megazone OST, put on the music, and be transported back to '85 as I opened the package.

It is very sturdy in Bike and Slave mode. The magnets are a plus in that regard. Its the transformation however, where great care has to be taken. I would say the most vulnerable part is where the front tire is jointed to the "swing arm" that splits the tire to mount the wheels on the shoulders. the swing arm is die cast (I believe) but part that holds the whole tire and arm assembly is a tiny plastic joint.

Really disappointed with the Shogo figure being stuck in "sit" mode. I had just got my Revoltech "Dante" figure and I can pose that thing in virtually every position imaginable. Then I look at poor Shogo and you can tell he was barely an afterthought.

Is it like the Qrau in terms of gloss level? I didn't mind the polished appearance all that much - maybe it could be mistaken for diecast from a distance like the alternators? :D

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There is no mistaking the plastic for die cast, I'm afraid. It simply just looks like plastic. It would have to be painted with a flat coat of paint (and weathered, if you gotz them airbrush skillz).

All in all, great looking figure. Tops off my Megazone collection nicely. Now all I need is a Hargun or a GR-2 hover Garland to stand next to this.

Thats my $.02

Hiriyu Pineapple Eater

Hiriyu

Posted
Posted
wow... a little bowlegged ain't he?

407237[/snapback]

'S what happens when ya ridin' the range on yer Yammie Garland, pardner. Yeehaaaw. :p

I'm very impatiently awaiting mine ;)

Vermillion21 Alaska Base Survivor

Vermillion21

Posted
Posted
Desert_tiger - Thanks for the review, pics?

:)

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Here's the parts I was talking about. Sorry for the quality...cell phone camera.

post-2912-1150122318_thumb.jpg

post-2912-1150122884_thumb.jpg

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Cool, thanks for the heads up Desert_tiger!!

:)

Fort Max Pineapple Eater

Fort Max

Posted
Posted
Hi, I have put in a pre-order of the Garland from Twon moon anime, and I was just wondering if anyone has received any news from them? It has been a while, and today is suppose to be the release date for them, but I still haven't got any request of payment from them... I hope I get it soon...

I was in contact with Tam lastnight and he said that the Garlands wont show up from Yamato till sometime next week and to just be patient, when he gets his stuff he'll get them and it'll be all worth it :p

406919[/snapback]

Grah... need....garland...now.....

Cacophanus Cannon Fodder

Cacophanus

Posted
Posted (edited)

Got mine today and I echo the sentiments about Shogo, the figure is awful and the elbow joints have big bits of plastic sticking out (as shown already). The Garland is lovely though and well worth the wait, interesting use of magnets too.

Edited by Cacophanus
Hikuro Galactic Diva

Hikuro

Posted
Posted

Well I had some money issues so I gotta have tam hold on to my Garland for a lil while longer.....hopefully the problem will get resolved since I'm gonna go see my bank tomorrow.

Fort Max Pineapple Eater

Fort Max

Posted
Posted
I got a notice saying mine shipped.  Looks like I could have a very good tuesday.

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From Twin Moons?

I noticed that they've changed theis status to "in stock" but I've had no e-mails. :(

eugimon Super Dimension Member

eugimon

Posted
Posted

I notice my orders with twinmoons seems to go out a day or two after the first batch..but I'm guess that's because I'm always late to placce my preorder.

Hikuro Galactic Diva

Hikuro

Posted
Posted

I did my preorder when he first put it up on his site....so yeah if I remember right he said he was shipping by those who were first to order.

Alex Bridge Bunny

Alex

Posted
Posted

Beware. My Judy (Garland) broke after five minutes out of the box. The diecast bar that holds the arms/wheels on is incredibly thin and WILL break if you are not careful. Major oversight in my opinion. Tho saying that i bet im the only person this happens to.

Fort Max Pineapple Eater

Fort Max

Posted
Posted (edited)
I did my preorder when he first put it up on his site....so yeah if I remember right he said he was shipping by those who were first to order.

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Tam says he still has a few left over so I guess that everyone who pre-ordered will get one ok. Also says they start shipping em out today, :D

http://www.tmpforums.com/index.php?showtop...8875&hl=garland

Best edit evar! about an hour after posting that, I got my shipment notice and it's coming by express so I'll get it in time for the weekend! :D

Edited by Fort Max
Hikuro Galactic Diva

Hikuro

Posted
Posted

I just got mine in the mail today after I came home from having lunch with my old man and some pals. Yeah the thin arm bars do look fairly frail, but ya know you wont have a problem with it if you read the instructions. I've learned that long long ago when I thought I had broke my Optimus Prime 20th AV and looked seeing I was safe, but had to read the instructions to get him into truck mode.

So yeah, I strongly recommend ppl that when you get yours to read the instructions, the arms going to slave mode can be a lil tricky at first glance.

Overall I am a bit dissapointed in the lack of detail it has, not much for panel lines and it's like everyone though, shiny plastic.

It does have rubber wheels but they're full of friction so they don't roll very well on the ground.

Magnets don't seem to be a problem they are hella strong, but the Shogo figure is a bit of a pain to leave seated when your transforming into slave mode, he just can't stick still when your moving the upper body into locking position.

If I had to give Yamato a score from 1-10, I'd say 6.5 to 7, it's smaller then I thought, and could of used more detail and maybe a better shogo figure, but the effort that they actually made one since Megazone 23 is becoming a fad again was nice.

Hikuro Galactic Diva

Hikuro

Posted
Posted
Beware. My Judy (Garland) broke after five minutes out of the box. The diecast bar that holds the arms/wheels on is incredibly thin and WILL break if you are not careful. Major oversight in my opinion. Tho saying that i bet im the only person this happens to.

Okay I'm in theh club with you on this Alex. I was trying to transform it back into Bike mode and the peg that connects the joint to the swing bar snapped off like it was soft butter.

I think a theory behind this is that if your using a Shogo figure to transform it, it wont fit too well into the cockpit....so it's probably best to NOT use the shogo figure at all....it's sort of a waste.

But I'm gonna talk to tam to see if there's anything he can do since this is gonna be a MAJOR issue with collectors....but it sucks, 2 hours and it's already broken and I hardly even touched it.

Graham Super Dimension Member

Graham

Posted
Posted

Heh, mine arrived at the office yesterday. Opened it up and immediately had the first 'oh sh*t' moment! As I gently lifted it out of the plastic tray, the two small painted silver plastic parts located near the neck & handlebars, that hold the front section of the bike on promptly fell off. See pic below: -

garland.jpg

Luckily a couple of drops of super glue fixed the problem and I was back in business.

Another minor niggle was that there was a big glue fingerprint on the left side of the bike, where the two magnets are located.

I managed to get the bike transformed into robot mode in a couple of minutes while only having to glance at the instruction manual a few times.

Overall, I'm very impressed with the design and engineering that went into this toy and the high level of detail and articulation. Most of the joints were nice and tight and the robot balances well. The magnets are also executed quite well. I love the detailing behind the visor.

Getting Shogo into the cockpit is a pain in the posterior though. I also wish that the robot could hold the gun a bit tighter. A peg on the guns grip mating with a hole in the right hand would have been a nice addition.

Second big 'Oh Sh*t' moment came when I took the toy home. Rather than carrying it back home in it's box, I left the box at the office and put the toy in robot mode in the plastic bag that the instructions came in and then put that in my bag, together with a couple of books and DVDs I was carrying. The toy was on the top of the bag though, so was not being squashed in anyway and I was being careful. When I got home, to my horror I found that the tip of the right metal bar (about 3mm long), where it plugs into the wheel had somehow broken off and now the right arm cannot securely attach to the toy and falls off quite easily. Tried gluing the tip of the metal bar back on, but could not get a good bond on the zinc pot metal.

Also, I tried transforming back to bike mode this morning and the big rear red light fell off. This is only press fitted, so it was easy to reattach. Also, the grey plastic shoulder spike on the left arm came apart and fell off. Seems it was not glued at all and was easy to reattach.

I want to like this toy, I really do. Perhaps, I'm just unlucky and got a lemon, but while it's a very clevely designed toy, it does so far seem overly fragile.

Graham

Hikuro Galactic Diva

Hikuro

Posted
Posted

totally up to you, I think just for collectors it's a must have, but if your just in it for the "cool" factor, nah save it, cause I don't think it was honestly worth the 100 bucks....Yamato while brilliant in the design, really f'ed up the chance for this to be a rather sturdy model.

GobotFool Alaska Base Survivor

GobotFool

Posted
Posted
Beware. My Judy (Garland) broke after five minutes out of the box. The diecast bar that holds the arms/wheels on is incredibly thin and WILL break if you are not careful. Major oversight in my opinion. Tho saying that i bet im the only person this happens to.

Okay I'm in theh club with you on this Alex. I was trying to transform it back into Bike mode and the peg that connects the joint to the swing bar snapped off like it was soft butter.

I think a theory behind this is that if your using a Shogo figure to transform it, it wont fit too well into the cockpit....so it's probably best to NOT use the shogo figure at all....it's sort of a waste.

But I'm gonna talk to tam to see if there's anything he can do since this is gonna be a MAJOR issue with collectors....but it sucks, 2 hours and it's already broken and I hardly even touched it.

409280[/snapback]

WTF? The Diecast bar snapped? That is wrong...

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