No Love for the 1/55's

[Beware of Blast]

Wha? Heretic! Michael Buble is nothing compared to the great Frank Sinatra.

Whoever he is, I'd say he has one up on ol' blue eyes... called breathing...

1/55 rulez!!!

Of course the 1/55s rules!

Michael Buble is a Canadian crooner who does nice cover versions of evergreen to current love songs. Currently quite hot in Asia.

Also, I don't mean to be disrespectful of Micheal Buble or Noel, but to pit Michael Buble with the great Frank Sinatra, as a way of differenciating between the 1/55s and the 1/48s... it's more like a scenario where we have the Yamato 1/48s 20 years ago and, we're blessed only now with the Taka/Bandai 1/55s!

And as far as Michael Buble alone is concerned, he's like a better, more competent Toynami than anything else right now.

Edited October 3, 2003 by Beware of Blast

[BoBe-Patt]

I think the reason why nobody is talking about the 1/55's anymore is there's nothing coming out for it. As you can see, all the topics about the 1/60 or 1/48 have all been about the newest releases. I'm pretty sure if another 1/55 was reissued, there would be a lot of posts about it.

[kidkorrupt]

wow, i cant beleive i havn't commented yet.

i own 2 1/60's which i have only transformed once.

no 1/48s.

i must say that i am one of the fiercest supporters of 1/55s here. its that nostalgia.

and with work they can look DAMN GOOD. just look at xstoys's stuff =D

[xstoys]

Thanks for the kind words KidK!

I absolutely agree with you about the 1/55's. I am still a staunch supporter of the 1/55 valks. Think of them as diamonds in the rough. Sure, they may not be as refined as the new valkyries made today by Yamato. But, they were the original template & have already proven their worth; withstanding the test of time ... nearly 20 years now.

They were great back in the day when Macross was in it's heyday, but even now, with a little ingenuity & some elbow grease, the 1/55 can still give any new Yamato a run for it's money.

Those who attended MW Con3 are witness to the potentail of what the 1/55 is capable of. Wait & see... the best is yet to come!

[yellowlightman]

i must say that i am one of the fiercest supporters of 1/55s here. its that nostalgia.

and with work they can look DAMN GOOD. just look at xstoys's stuff =D

Look at xtoys' stuff, hell look at YOUR stuff. That Ostrich of yours at MW Con 3 was awesome.

[Mersenne]

I started buying toys again (after I stopped being a kid) a year ago. The first Macross toy I ever experienced is the 1/48 Max. I think it rocks.

Incidentally, do you have to remove the legs on any of the Yamato non-VF-1 1/60 toys (like, say, the VF-11 or the YF-21) to transform them?

[kidkorrupt]

tony dude, start a thread.

post some of your stuff up at high res, multiple angles, describe all the features. hell MW might as well just have a "xstoys" section right underneath models n toys.

it'll start a 1/55 craze =D

and thanks sean, appreciate the words, but i am still a beginner with much to learn

[niomosy]

I'm more of a 1/55 person. I bought a 1/60 Max mainly because I was in Japan and the only Bandai's they had was the VF-1S (which I also got).

Didn't bother with any more 1/60's until the Elint and Ostrich and mainly because there didn't seem much chance of them coming out from Bandai or Yamato in 1/48. At this point, I've decided to go for a used Bandai VT-1 since that's what I'd prefer. A 1/48 would be ideal but I have no experience with the 1/48's.

I'm just not a fan of the transformation. They look scrawny compared to the 1/55's. I'm not concerned that much with accuracy. The 1/55's are accurate enough for me plus they have the benefit of being solid and able to be played with.

The 1/48's, I haven't really tried yet. I'll at least get the VF-1J and a fast pack to set it up as a Strike valk Now if they pull out a VT-1 and VE-1 in 1/48... I might just have to pick those up! If they release the GBP armor, I would probably get another 1/48 of some kind.

[Apollo Leader]

There hasn't been much in the way of Bandai/Takatoku 1/55th talk simply because the rerelease of the toys has been dead in the water for nearly a year.

Yamato has been the torch bearer for Macross toys for 3 years straight now. In my opinion, Yamato has supported the Macross license more then any company ever has.

But I am still glad that Bandai did rerelease 7 of the old 1/55ths... I was able to get a Max and Milia for under $200 instead of paying a $1,000+ on eBay for a used set. B)

[estacado06479]

meh, as tony and jason have said, the 1/55 is alive and well

i for one am sick of anyone drooling over a (insert scale here) stock valk

i'm declaring this now, if all you have is stock valks, you dont have a collection, you have "his" collection. congratulations, you paid all that money for something anyone can get and you have nothing to show for it because you have nothing unique, wahoo.

[yellowlightman]

tony dude, start a thread.

post some of your stuff up at high res, multiple angles, describe all the features. hell MW might as well just have a "xstoys" section right underneath models n toys.

I definately second that, it'd be great to have some write up info on how you did even a few of the mods to that 1/55th, it'd be very useful to future customizers. Plus it'd be nice to see better pictures of that thing, my pictures from MW Con 3 didn't come out all that great.

[Sephiroth]

meh, as tony and jason have said,  the 1/55 is alive and well

i for one am sick of anyone drooling over a (insert scale here) stock valk

i'm declaring this now,  if all you have is stock valks, you dont have a collection,  you have "his" collection.  congratulations, you paid all that money for something anyone can get and you have nothing to show for it because you have nothing unique, wahoo.

"stock" this...

There's beauty in keeping things stock, hell...it'd be a damn crime If I customized my vintage 1/55 Millia VF-1J just to make it "unique". It's perfect as is.

Edited October 4, 2003 by Sephiroth

[CHAN]

meh, as tony and jason have said, the 1/55 is alive and well

i for one am sick of anyone drooling over a (insert scale here) stock valk

i'm declaring this now, if all you have is stock valks, you dont have a collection, you have "his" collection. congratulations, you paid all that money for something anyone can get and you have nothing to show for it because you have nothing unique, wahoo.

I am interested to see your collection

[EXO]

I tried so hard to make "his" collection mine. I love my stock valks. If anyone feels bad about having something that's not one of a kind, please send it to me...

[yellowlightman]

I tried so hard to make "his" collection mine. I love my stock valks. If anyone feels bad about having something that's not one of a kind, please send it to me...

I'm re-evaluating myself. My collection is a sham!

Package is on its way to you, Alex.

Seriously though, a collection is just about collecting things. Just because other people might have similar collections with the same thing, doesn't make yours any less worthwhile.

[DrClay]

meh, as tony and jason have said,  the 1/55 is alive and well

i for one am sick of anyone drooling over a (insert scale here) stock valk

i'm declaring this now,  if all you have is stock valks, you dont have a collection,  you have "his" collection.  congratulations, you paid all that money for something anyone can get and you have nothing to show for it because you have nothing unique, wahoo.

anyone care for a round of toys vs. models? I have a collection of stock valks I love to display to myself. I am way to critical of my own work to enjoy staring at it, and I don't want to just see photos of valks I don't have. What the heck's wrong with you?

Edited October 4, 2003 by DrClay

[Radd]

meh, as tony and jason have said, the 1/55 is alive and well

i for one am sick of anyone drooling over a (insert scale here) stock valk

i'm declaring this now, if all you have is stock valks, you dont have a collection, you have "his" collection. congratulations, you paid all that money for something anyone can get and you have nothing to show for it because you have nothing unique, wahoo.

I'm not certain it was your intention, but this comment comes off as very mean-spirited. I certainly hope that wasn't the intention as not all of us are modellers. Not all of us are huge into making our own customs, or even paying others to do it for us. Some of us simply like to collect toys based on mecha from our favourite anime series.

Some of us are happy with the toys themselves, and don't even bother to add stickers. Some of us will go the extra step to guy one of the custom sticker sets floating around. Some of us, for better or worse, will try our hand at panel lines, while others will go all out and customize everything to the point that it becomes an entirely different display piece. There's nothign wrong with any of these options.

No need to belittle someone simply because modelling/customizing isn't a hobby of theirs, and they just like to collect the toys.

[Deadzone]

meh, as tony and jason have said, the 1/55 is alive and well

i for one am sick of anyone drooling over a (insert scale here) stock valk

i'm declaring this now, if all you have is stock valks, you dont have a collection, you have "his" collection. congratulations, you paid all that money for something anyone can get and you have nothing to show for it because you have nothing unique, wahoo.

I think what he's saying is that anyone can go out and buy a toy, but it takes time and effort to actually customize one. Believe me, I've done two, and they both took about a month each. However, I think it is perfectly fine to collect stock valks especially if they are rare like the original Miriya VF-1J. I have a couple of stock reissues and have no intention of repainting them. They look great as is.

I guess the only problem I have with some collector's is when they show off their collections as if they are superior because they went out and spent five thousand dollars on rare toys. They have three MIB strike valks which makes them better than a guy who only has one. Stock valks are great to look at and display, however I try not to take personal pride in a toy I just buy since it is kind of silly. Big whoopy, I filled out an order form and sent it in. About a million other people can do the same thing. I can see taking pride in having an extremely rare toy that you had to seek out and find, but other than that....

In the end, I respect guys like Kid K more for customizing valks as opposed to someone who buys ten 1/48. But like I said before, "not that there's anything wrong with that".

[Dragon Lord]

You know, I love the look and feel of Yamato's 1/48s, but I will always love the 1/55s, especially customised ones. It really is a shame that guys like Jung, Rick the Hunter, Dom, don't really show up here anymore, their work were absolutely awesome. At least KidK is still here!

I've got some of the work by some of the guys I mentioned above, and they will stand up to the 1/48s anyday.

Joe P.

[kanata67]

Incidentally, do you have to remove the legs on any of the Yamato non-VF-1 1/60 toys (like, say, the VF-11 or the YF-21) to transform them?

my 19 and 21 both feature attached legs and nice engineering. The vf-11b wasn't designed o have removable legs... it just kinda worked out that way for many

quote-------------------------------

I guess the only problem I have with some collector's is when they show off their collections as if they are superior because they went out and spent five thousand dollars on rare toys. They have three MIB strike valks which makes them better than a guy who only has one. Stock valks are great to look at and display, however I try not to take personal pride in a toy I just buy since it is kind of silly. Big whoopy, I filled out an order form and sent it in. About a million other people can do the same thing. I can see taking pride in having an extremely rare toy that you had to seek out and find, but other than that....

------------------------------------------------------------------------

I am dang proud of my collection, though it's not like any material possesion makes me better than another. I don't take pride in my re-issues but I do like having them around. While I have many valks boxed and complete, I am not so lucky as to have enough disposable income to get what ever I want when I want it. I spend much time searching for stuff that I can actually afford, and I do take pride in some things I got ridiculously cheap. I take more pride in the knowledge that 80% of my boxed and complete stuff was incomplete when I got it. Out of, lets just say a few, jetfires... I only aquired one complete with all accessories, and it still needed a box and all the inserts which it now does. It brings me a sense of satisfaction evertime I got that last part I needed and put the toy away. Then there is the pride I take evertime I fix an old abused toy such as a glued together JM, a tail-less super o', broken main gun on a SDF, loose legged destroid monster, etc.

I do have to agree that the pieces in my collection that are not replacable are not the common toys, with the exception of one for sentimental reasons, but the customs I created myself. Where the heck would I go to buy a violator valk??? It has a lot to do with the creation process and knowing that it comes from within. I am willing to bet that many of those who draw would rather watch all thier comics burn than their sketchpads. As a writer I know I would watch my library perish to save my notebooks, at least till I get everything put on PC and stored in a remote location .

I would also agree that every collection should have at least one custom. Doesn't matter what, or how nice, but something enhanced post production. Obviously don't custom a pristine boxed specimine unless you really want to, but do make a custom. Mount a GI joe gun on a 3" destroid, paint an abused 7" destroid, rip the leg off a MPC and name it "gimpy", color a super posable with marker, drill out the left hand of an old bandai 1/55 so it can have a weapon in each hand, swap legs between yammie 1/60's for fun, get recast armor for something that shouldn't have it, bury an sdf-1 in the ground up to it's shoulders... whack it with a shovel... and call it a diorama, do something.

Why do I still love 1/55's??? because I can gets more parts cheaper, which is the same reason I like old chevy's which were also "chunky". I just need to get more bits for my bit's box and some non-spawn related ideas . Wonder how a 7" power armor would look with a barbie head...

[Omni Existence]

meh, as tony and jason have said, the 1/55 is alive and well

i for one am sick of anyone drooling over a (insert scale here) stock valk

i'm declaring this now, if all you have is stock valks, you dont have a collection, you have "his" collection. congratulations, you paid all that money for something anyone can get and you have nothing to show for it because you have nothing unique, wahoo.

To each his own my friend.

To each his own. You like yours, I like mine!

[rsvictor1976]

I keep my 1/55's in the closet. I like displaying my Yamato's more. Maybe if I had the reissue Max and Milia I would have more love for them, but not likely.

[blugts]

Just whipped out my Bandai's from the closet. They are a lot of fun to transform!

[joke-machine]

you'll find there are still those of us on this board who are old school and love the 1/55s. We're just silent because any talk of our love for the 1/55s results in public ridicule similar to those given to Robotech lovers.

Amen to that. I personally have felt like an outsider for some time now because of my dislike of Yamoto, and enjoyment of the old Bandais/Takas. I didn't used to feel like that. Honestly it has gotten so bad that I don't come here often anymore. The boards have become VERY heavily biased to Yamoto.

Well by GOD I am here to say I LOVE CHUNKY MONKEYS!

[drifand]

The gee-whiz accorded to the Yamatos seems to have reduced the appeal of the 1/55s down to just "nostalgia" and durability. Call it nostalgia if you like, but the 1/55s will always remind me of the original days of SDF Macross in a way no modern toy can. It set a precedent for transforming toys back then, having actually performed the sequence as depicted in the show with no removal of parts. Talk about inaccuracies of the sculpt and swing bar doesn't mean much to me in light of what the toy achieved 20 years ago with available materials and technology. In today's world of snap-fit Gunpla perfection, the 1/48 finally made the mark in terms of quality and overall effort where the 1/60 failed, but at a pretty high price. Whatever shortcomings the 1/48 has simply gives me more reason to appreciate the originals.

[valkyrie312]

Well, I haven't had the funds to buy a 1/48 and I am sure that I would love it, but I am a huge fan of the 1/55s! They may not be accurate to the lineart, but they are darn fun to play with and still look really cool! Now, if anyone wants to donate a 1/48 VF-1S to me......

[estacado06479]

meh, as tony and jason have said,  the 1/55 is alive and well

i for one am sick of anyone drooling over a (insert scale here) stock valk

i'm declaring this now,  if all you have is stock valks, you dont have a collection,  you have "his" collection.  congratulations, you paid all that money for something anyone can get and you have nothing to show for it because you have nothing unique, wahoo.

"stock" this...

There's beauty in keeping things stock, hell...it'd be a damn crime If I customized my vintage 1/55 Millia VF-1J just to make it "unique". It's perfect as is.

ugh, obviously dude, not everyone has a vintage valk collection, making it unique.

there are tons of camaros on the road, but if you had a 68' you'd have something that not everyone can go out and get...

as for my collection, it is currently "on loan" , but can be viewed, at least in part, on kid-k's website, the missing parts, which is the majority of it, either havent been customized yet, or were on display at this and last year's cons.

[kanata67]

meh, as tony and jason have said,  the 1/55 is alive and well

i for one am sick of anyone drooling over a (insert scale here) stock valk

i'm declaring this now,  if all you have is stock valks, you dont have a collection,  you have "his" collection.  congratulations, you paid all that money for something anyone can get and you have nothing to show for it because you have nothing unique, wahoo.

"stock" this...

There's beauty in keeping things stock, hell...it'd be a damn crime If I customized my vintage 1/55 Millia VF-1J just to make it "unique". It's perfect as is.

ugh, obviously dude, not everyone has a vintage valk collection, making it unique.

there are tons of camaros on the road, but if you had a 68' you'd have something that not everyone can go out and get...

as for my collection, it is currently "on loan" , but can be viewed, at least in part, on kid-k's website, the missing parts, which is the majority of it, either havent been customized yet, or were on display at this and last year's cons.

While not everyone has a 68 camaro, or a 67 as in my case... most people have probably not had a wheel fall off while driving or a windshield wiper launch from the vehicle and land on a cop car . Now that I think about it... comparing 1/55's to my seatbelt-less, heater-less, wiper-less, roof leaky, broken motor mount, broken freeze plug, gas guzzling, rusted out brake line non-stopping camaro makes me start thinking I should start getting yammies...

Oh wait... parts fall of them to

[Solscud007]

I myself ama fan of the Jokemachines. But right along with them is my Super VF-1S 1/55 I like it more than anythign else out there. 1/60 or 1/48

[Blaine23]

Well... the fact that no Bandai/Taka 1/55's are being released right now has an awful lot to do with their lack of presence on the forums.

Not to mention the fact that we almost exclusively talked about 1/55's for over 10 years... there isn't much left to say that hasn't been said.

All that being said, as much as I love the Yammies, I still miss me the Bandai die-cast goodness of a Chunky Monkey. And I desperately wish they would finish their reissue line, even if they have to charge twice as much and make fewer toys.