Bandai VF100's Official Thread Ver.2

[edwin3060]

So Michael's 1/100 is going to have the speakers and sniper rifle eh? That's a lot more interesting than Ozma's.

The 1/100 VF-25G is also more costly than the 25S or F, so I guess you get what you're paying for!

[Alex]

The folding of the torso and the carving on the upper leg means that the 19 will be very close to PT since those are usually the tricky areas. The landing gear will surely be swappable just like the hands, 'cause they seem too big to be storable in the forearm, so if the head section isn't swappable, I'm in (unless they announce the Blazer before the Kai comes out, of course).

And it looks like the wing root is on a joint also. Can't see enough detail in the pic, but it looks to be. My excitement for the 19 is slowly increasing.

[Lonely Soldier Boy]

No kidding. Can't wait for fighter mode pics

[Zinjo]

Just picked up my VF-25F. WOW, love it!

The sculp is stunning and I am sooo glad they went with a grey canopy rather than the blue one shown on the box and in prototype photos.

It's unfortunate there's no pilot, but as far as I'm concerned this is NOT a toy. IMO, it's a multi-pose collector figure. The DX is the actual toy. This fighter series appears to me to be strictly for display. Taking all the engineering that went into the DX and model kits and shrinking it down for display purposes. Much like the Yammie "Art of War" series of Macross battroids currently available. Superior sculpts but not as posable as the Revoltech series.

Though I am not sure who's making them, but I saw on the web some 1/100 VF-1's with much more intricate weathered painting on them. They look really nice.

I am also encouraged that Bandai appears to have plans to produce Super Pack, Armored Pack, Fold Booster and Super Fold Boosters. Whether they'll be sold separately or sold as yet another version of our favorite valks is still unknown.

All in all, I am very encouraged by this line. I've been wanting a quality line of collector fighters ever since I bought my first Doyusha VF-1 (hoped they'd continue with the line, but it never happened).

If only we could convince the CM corporation to release a series of Macross cockpits like the ones in series 2 & 3, but with all the valks. Even a line of pilot helmets from all the Macross series so far, then I'd truly be a happy camper....

Something more than just re-issues of previously produced series'.

I suspect the non Frontier fighters will be a bit more difficult for Bandai to do since the don't have the benefit of cad drawings to work from. We'll have to see.

Edited March 29, 2009 by Zinjo

[edwin3060]

I suspect the non Frontier fighters will be a bit more difficult for Bandai to do since the don't have the benefit of cad drawings to work from. We'll have to see.

Well they seem to be doing well with the VF-19. I just hope that either Bandai or Yamato will release or re-issue the 1/100 Konig Monster! It would make the perfect backdrop for all these valks.

[eriku]

Just picked up my VF-25F. WOW, love it!

The sculp is stunning and I am sooo glad they went with a grey canopy rather than the blue one shown on the box and in prototype photos.

It's unfortunate there's no pilot, but as far as I'm concerned this is NOT a toy. IMO, it's a multi-pose collector figure. The DX is the actual toy. This fighter series appears to me to be strictly for display. Taking all the engineering that went into the DX and model kits and shrinking it down for display purposes. Much like the Yammie "Art of War" series of Macross battroids currently available. Superior sculpts but not as posable as the Revoltech series.

Though I am not sure who's making them, but I saw on the web some 1/100 VF-1's with much more intricate weathered painting on them. They look really nice.

I am also encouraged that Bandai appears to have plans to produce Super Pack, Armored Pack, Fold Booster and Super Fold Boosters. Whether they'll be sold separately or sold as yet another version of our favorite valks is still unknown.

All in all, I am very encouraged by this line. I've been wanting a quality line of collector fighters ever since I bought my first Doyusha VF-1 (hoped they'd continue with the line, but it never happened).

If only we could convince the CM corporation to release a series of Macross cockpits like the ones in series 2 & 3, but with all the valks. Even a line of pilot helmets from all the Macross series so far, then I'd truly be a happy camper....

Something more than just re-issues of previously produced series'.

I suspect the non Frontier fighters will be a bit more difficult for Bandai to do since the don't have the benefit of cad drawings to work from. We'll have to see.

It is a really well made piece. I was very impressed with the durability of the thing, especially at such a small scale.

I bet the 25 will be more sought after later than it is now.

[ruskiiVFaussie]

Fire Valk looks good!

[biggooftoybox]

Hi Fellow MWers,

With all the relatively negative reviews of the VF100s 1/100 VF-25F i figured I'll provide my more positive review of the 25F. =) I will not be providing pictures since everyone should have seen it by now. So let's get started:

The packaging for the VF-25F is really nice, window box with the flip cover. It doesn't get any better than this. You can clearly see the VF-25F in battroid mode and all the details are visible. Once you open the package though, you may get a big shock. There are 3 trays worth of parts and at first glance it looks way too intimidating. I was only thinking at that moment "nutty, for once I'm going to have to keep the trays and the box or else i'm going to be losing stuff" Parts aside, once you get the VF-25F into your hands, in one word: "WOW!" Yes it is not as big as the DX or the 1/72 but it has a certain good feel to it. At first it does feel a bit light and feels rather fragile but after toying around with it for a bit and repeated transformations it's actually very sturdy.

In battroid mode, the details and articulation are very nice indeed. I was able to strike some really crazy poses. The extra hands will allow for holding the gunpod (which you get 2) and the combat knife. Again details look good and the mode does not look unbalanced and if i have to say, it looks like in the anime. I really do not notice too much inaccuracy, but then again maybe i'm easy to please.

To convert to gerwalk mode, you have to take out a bunch of parts and replace with other parts. At first this was daunting but i soon realized that the parts being swapped made perfect sense and to convert from battroid to gerwalk/fighter the parts needed are 90% the same.(you'll neeed a new nosecone, hip/fuselage, shoulder joints and that's about it) Specific to gerwalk mode are the "knee" joints which allow for the legs to bend forward (connects the air-intakes to the rest of the leg). I do have a bit of gripe here in that the "knee" connectors provided don't merge properly. Either the pegs are a bit too large for the holes or vice versa. (air-intakes to knee connectors to rest of leg). Here because of the loose knee connectors, poses were a bit more difficult to acheive. However I was able to strike 2 key poses. a) where the VF-25F is bending forward to appear the pilot is getting in and out. b) the scene were Alto first hops in and randomly blasts away. Both poses were stable and looked awesome but once i lifted him up to take flight, one of the legs fell off. =( Attach it back again and don't swing it around too much.

To convert to fighter from gerwalk, not much needs to be done. Just remove the arms, swap in the new shoulder joints, remove the knee connectors and you're good to go. Everything else stays in place. For fighter mode the accuracy is very good. I compared it to the 1/72 model kit i have. While i think everyone mostly agrees that the 1/72 model is the closest to the liner art, I think the 1/100 comes a close second. In terms of accuracy it does look better than the 1/60 DX. In fighter, you can mount the closed gunpod and swap out the landing gear covers for the landing gears. I can completely live with the detachable landing gears since I expect that for something this small.

Switching it back to battroid mode took me less than 3min the next time around. As i said, once you do it once or twice all the swaps become obvious.

Now on to the known ISSUES:

All the parts are sturdy and repeated pullings and insertions seem to be ok. Of course I'm sure after the Nth transformation things are bound to get loose. The minor issue I've discovered so far is "loose" knee connectors for gerwalk mode. However there is one MAJOR issue which is the mounting of the shield on the forearm in battroid mode. Again it seems the hole for mounting or the peg for mounting is too small/big. It is damn near impossible to mount the shield on the arm without doing some serious damage. Basically the problem is that the peg on the shield is at the hollow point of the shield (i.e. where the hands insert into in fighter mode) So therefore when you put any force onto the shield to mount to the arm, you're basically forcing the lower section of the shield to deform and bend as the peg simply won't go into the hole on the arm. So now i'm stuck with a slightly bent lower shield section. In this case I've basically given up mounting the shield to the arm. (let me see if i can get a pic for that)

If anyone knows how to bend the plastic back, let me know.

Last thoughts:

If anyone has read my review till this portion, THANKS. My general impression is that i like the VF100s VF-25F. While it does have some shortfalls it does a very good compromise between the 1/60 DX and the 1/72 model kit. In one sentence i'd say it has the look of the 1/72 kit and the "most" of the sturdiness of the DX. When i transform it around and play with it, it feels solid in my hands. Right now it is in fighter mode and it looks damn good beside my other Valks. While the price is a bit steep (especially air-freight from HLJ) I think I'll continue to collect this line. The lure of having many Valkyries in scale and other obscure valkyries is too good to pass up. Overall I'll probably get the others and put them in various poses (like models but saving the build time).

Next I've just got to assemble that Gundam 1/144 stand and see if the VF-25F will fit. =)

So if the prices have dropped now is a good time to pick it up. Support this line and maybe Bandai will improve over the course of the next few releases.

Edited March 31, 2009 by biggooftoybox

[eriku]

However there is one MAJOR issue which is the mounting of the shield on the forearm in battroid mode. Again it seems the hole for mounting or the peg for mounting is too small/big. It is damn near impossible to mount the shield on the arm without doing some serious damage. Basically the problem is that the peg on the shield is at the hollow point of the shield (i.e. where the hands insert into in fighter mode) So therefore when you put any force onto the shield to mount to the arm, you're basically forcing the lower section of the shield to deform and bend as the peg simply won't go into the hole on the arm. So now i'm stuck with a slightly bent lower shield section. In this case I've basically given up mounting the shield to the arm. (let me see if i can get a pic for that)

If anyone knows how to bend the plastic back, let me know.

Thanks for the excellent review! I liked the 1/100 as well. Not enough to keep it (I decided I'm going to stick with DX only for Frontier) but I have nothing bad to say about it. The shield issue can be fixed by shaving very small bits of plastic from the peg until it fits to your liking. I can't suggest how to bend it back into place other than maybe heating it with a hair dryer or boiling water and gently bending it back to where you want it, then rapidly cooling it down with cold water.

[logos]

source

Why does every version seem to have to come with a warped gun? I can handle the parts forming but Bannan guns? Really? For that price that's fricken ridiculous.

Edit: Nevermind I don't see why they have to include 2. Seems to me that the transformation mech on the gun is simple enough to include in a 1/100......

Edited March 31, 2009 by logos

[Vifam7]

Why does every version seem to have to come with a warped gun? I can handle the parts forming but Bannan guns? Really? For that price that's fricken ridiculous.

PVC plastic. Has always been a problem on Gundam MSiAs and GFFs. Thankfully it's a problem that's easily fixable. Just put it under hot water (not boiling water) for a couple of seconds, bend it into correct form, and quickly dunk it in cold water.

Edit: Nevermind I don't see why they have to include 2. Seems to me that the transformation mech on the gun is simple enough to include in a 1/100......

I thought so too. I guess they did it to completely avoid breakage. [shrug]

[eriku]

Is boiling bad for PVC? Back when I was paying attention to Star Wars toys people were always boiling them to pop the arms and legs off for customizing. I never had a reason to try it myself.

[edwin3060]

You don't actually have to boil it, just immerse it entirely in boiling water for 10 seconds, then take out and straighten it out, then hold under cold running water in the straightened form to fix it again. PVC won't react badly as long as you don't boil it for prolonged times.

[Vostok 7]

Ugh. Gashapon disease belongs on 100 yen Gashapon toys, not $50+ "collector" toys. I wish manufacturers would figure this out. That's one reason I hated the Gundam Fix line. MSIAs were livable since they were so cheap, but still, it really sets off the OCD in me. The boiling trick doesn't always fix it permanently, either. At least not for my hyper-critical OCD eye. It also can damage the paint, unless the color is completely molded in.

Vostok 7

Edited March 31, 2009 by Vostok 7

[edwin3060]

Ugh. Gashapon disease belongs on 100 yen Gashapon toys, not $50+ "collector" toys. I wish manufacturers would figure this out. That's one reason I hated the Gundam Fix line. MSIAs were livable since they were so cheap, but still, it really sets off the OCD in me. The boiling trick doesn't always fix it permanently, either. At least not for my hyper-critical OCD eye. It also can damage the paint, unless the color is completely molded in.

Vostok 7

The colour is not moulded in, but my gunpod is still fine so far after the fix.

[Kyp Durron]

Just thought I'd put it out there that if anyone here in the U.S. has an extra 1/100 Alto or doesn't like theirs, send me a PM.

-Kyp

[Vifam7]

Support this line and maybe Bandai will improve over the course of the next few releases.

Hopefully Bandai is listening to the feedback on these toys. It's probably too late for improvements on the VF-25s, but there's hope for the upcoming Fire Valkyrie.

Good review BTW.

[edwin3060]

Given the banana gun on the VF-25F, I shudder to think how the open sniper rifle of Michael's VF-25G will turn out.

[Salamander]

Given the banana gun on the VF-25F, I shudder to think how the open sniper rifle of Michael's VF-25G will turn out.

Alternate death for Michael: shot in the back with his own rifle

[sev]

I must be crazy but I'm thinking about giving the Ozma 1/100 a try. It looks pretty decent in the pics from Tamashii 2009. High hips and all. Someone talk me out of it!!

[Kyp Durron]

Sorry, I'm afraid I can't...I'm trying to decide between that or the 1/72 model.

-Kyp

[edwin3060]

I must be crazy but I'm thinking about giving the Ozma 1/100 a try. It looks pretty decent in the pics from Tamashii 2009. High hips and all. Someone talk me out of it!!

Get it only if:

a) You can't afford the DX toy

b) You already have the 1/72 kit

c) You really want a 1/100 to go with that Konig Monster that's been lonely in the back of your cabinet with all the 1/60s around it

[SVF-Gerwalk]

Sorry, I'm afraid I can't...I'm trying to decide between that or the 1/72 model.

-Kyp

I should recomend 1/72 to everyone !!, even if you are collecting DXs.

Is anime accurate in proportions and is a exelent enginnering piece, have exelent transformation base and articulated mechanims, and Is cheaper so no cost much have a try.

I give a try and has been amazed with this kit, have no equal, is a must have.

I have two VF-25F kits and already orderer RVF-25 and VF-25G, and waiting VF-25G with Armour , this kits are sooooo adictive

Edited April 1, 2009 by SVF-Gerwalk

[edwin3060]

I should recomend 1/72 to everyone !!, even if you are collecting DXs.

Is anime accurate in proportions and is a exelent enginnering piece, have exelent transformation base and articulated mechanims, and Is cheaper so no cost much have a try.

I give a try and has been amazed with this kit, have no equal, is a must have.

I have two VF-25F kits and already orderer RVF-25 and VF-25G, and waiting VF-25G with Armour , this kits are sooooo adictive

I'll second that! Having built 3 kits so far, VF-25S, RVF-25 and VF-25F Clear, I'll say that I never get tired of the build because the instructions are clear and easy to follow!

[regult]

So much talk about the kits and this is going way off-topic...but let me say this: I have 4 kits, 1 finished F...the Ozma S has been waiting construction in the box since it's release back in November last year (the first one was overwhelming, the 1/72 kit is not just a model, it IS a 1/72 machine)! I just acquired the Super F and the RVF-25, chasing after a G and waiting for the armored S.

BUT, now that I got my first 1/100, I actually like it! I had read all the negative reviews, and honestly, I don't LOVE the piece, but if you suck at sanding and painting (or taking good care of decals so they don't peel off), THEN: 1/100 is your friend, inaccurate hip and all...Maybe the drop in the price helped a bit: HK$228 at Richmond111, I decided to give it a try: still, there are things I hate about the 1/100:

1) the misplaced legs in battroid mode (they could have done it right! just a different insert, no folding joints or anything!)

2) the unnecessary indentation in the lower nose section (which allows the DX toy to fold, but since it's just an insert in the 1/100...WTF?)

3) the consistently banana shaped gunpod (I was probably lucky the open one was fairly straight?!).

Conclusion: if it's cheaper than the 1/72...it is quite a good alternative.

(edit: added the price factor)

Edited April 1, 2009 by regult

[regult]

Pics of fighter mode with properly glued legs please. I'm curious to see how it looks.

-Kyp

Did anyone give you the pictures you asked?

I used blue-tac to "glue" the legs to the arms in fighter mode, and this is the result. It doesn't go as high up as the 1/72, because the sculpt is completely different here, and you can still see prominent gaps between the shield and the legs, and you can barely make out "sms007" up (down?) there on the auxiliary vents.

At this scale, I think it's fine as is, especially head-on, besides, it is much more solid than I expected and blue tac seems to hold pretty well.

[Kyp Durron]

Did anyone give you the pictures you asked?

I used blue-tac to "glue" the legs to the arms in fighter mode, and this is the result. It doesn't go as high up as the 1/72, because the sculpt is completely different here, and you can still see prominent gaps between the shield and the legs, and you can barely make out "sms007" up (down?) there on the auxiliary vents.

At this scale, I think it's fine as is, especially head-on, besides, it is much more solid than I expected and blue tac seems to hold pretty well.

Yes he did, thanks for taking your pics though.

Here's the post where he shows what his looks like :

http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?...st&p=727323

-Kyp

[Graham]

I think the success (or not) of the VF-19 is going to make or break this line.

Graham

[badboy00z]

Maybe if this line fails Bandai will concentrate more on the DX line and make it better? I just want the VF-19 anyways so I don't care if it succeeds or not. Lol.

[Graham]

I'm still hoping for a VF-171 and VF-2SS w/SAP in the VF100s line.

Of course I'd prefer a 1/60 DX VF-171 though.

Graham

[lechuck]

All I want is a VF-19 that is actually fun to pick up and pose with, be it parts-forming or not.

Any sympathy I had with Yamatos 1/60 YF-19 has basically been flushed down the toilet European style (=fast!) as of this week.

[Renato]

Any sympathy I had with Yamatos 1/60 YF-19 has basically been flushed down the toilet European style (=fast!) as of this week.

Why is that? I just got off the phone with Yamato this afternoon to report ANOTHER problem with mine, the second in as many weeks.

Never mind, in terms of the Fire Valk "making or breaking" this line, though, I would say they will probably sell better than the 25's, simply because it would be the only one in the market right now.

The way the 25 is being milked in its many incarnations one shouldn't be surprised if they're not flying off the shelves, but this VF-19kai will only be the second transformable toy in existence for the design, so I would expect it to be a highly sought-after item. Bandai made a smart move in choosing that as their next design, rather than going down the all-too-familiar VF-1 path. Pity they didn't plan things this way with the Origin of Valkyrie 1/55 series. Instead of "too little too late", it was a case of "too much, too early".

[lechuck]

Why is that? I just got off the phone with Yamato this afternoon to report ANOTHER problem with mine, the second in as many weeks.

One of the grey plastic blocks inside the fuselage broke this week, with the toy only having a handful of transformations behind it and sitting in battroid mode most of the time.

But quite frankly this is just the epitome of many other problems and failures the toy has IMO. Shoulders that are loose (up/dowm movement), hip joints are loose, intakes that keep banging into everything in the hip area (battroid), intake covers that keep popping of, lack of a chest lock, lack of a waist joint, gaps in fighter mode and last but not least crooked gunpod and rear landing gear.

By themselves some of these things are negligible, but sum it up all together and the 1/60 YF-19 just makes for a poor experience. You pick it the legs fall together and the arms fall down. Do anything with the arms/legs and sure enough you are going to be sorting out chest section over and over again. The whole thing is just lacking a certain solidity.

The plastic block breaking this week, was just the icing on the cake for me.

So with all that in mind, I'm naturally wanting Bandai to give me YF/VF-19 that is a more enjoyable experience.

[Radd]

I really want the line to hold out at least until the VF-4 is released. I might pick up the Fire Valkyrie to display with my Koenig Monster, though. Right now I have an ancient Bandai snap-together Emerald Force kit.

[regult]

It maybe myself, but I don't want to see a 1/100 VF-1 from this series at all (at least for a long time). Maybe scale-purists would like to have it sitting next to the YAmato Monster, but the world is already saturated with VF-1s. The Basara custom is a very very wise move as many pointed out.

Bandai should definitely revise their partsforming excess though, and seems they are working on it. I have no VF-19 but I understand the mechanism is simpler than the VF25, so it should be possible to change less parts and achieve more transformation fun. As for the inevitable VF-1...scale down the original YAmato 1/60, end of story, remove anything other than the leg and don't bother packaging the thing.

But stress again: prices should always be kept lower than 5K Yen. That's not fun in any way, full-transformation or not! (HMM...too bad the Q-rea is not a "VF"!)