Want to get a VF-25

[GianS]

Hello

I want to add a VF-25 to my Valkerie collection. Admittedly I don't know too much about the VF-25 toys or know too much about Macross Frontier as a whole.. But the VF-25 does look awesome...

As I have a few Yamato 1/60's (I only have Yamato Valkeries) I was wondering the following and need advice of fellow collectors here:

I am refering to the Bandai DX 1/60 range

1) Is there any particular recommened buy for this?

2) Do you get a pack containing the Super and Armor parts in one?

3) How is the general quality of these?

4) Do they look pretty accurate in all modes, especially in fighter mode?

Are there any other recommendations for the VF-25?

Much Appreciated.

G

[David Hingtgen]

It sucks, basically. Get a VF-27 if you want something from Frontier.

[Major Focker]

david's right, get the 27. although the 25 is somewhat more acceptable without the fast packs.

but if you must get a 25 and you like the tornado version, keep an eye out for the upcoming VF-25G with complete tornado parts.

[GianS]

thanks for the tips... it this based on that the toy is floppy, inaccurate or defective?

I am just curious why you both recommend the VF-27 above the 25

Thanks,

G

[arrow]

the VF-25 DX just doesn't have the details of the yamato. The rear wheels of the 25 are just awefull and it the gerwalk mode is really bad.

I have a VF-25 and RVF-25. If you have to pick one, get the RVF-25-- it looks different enough from any other valkyrie.

[GianS]

thanks... I did actually notice that... However on a display stand it looked quite promising.. but then even pictures can be decieving I guess... wish Yamato would do these...

[ff95gj]

I have yet to see anyone not recommending the VF-27 over the VF-25's. They are just that bad.

Different shades of body color, floppiness, bad scale, bad articulated Gerwalk, chunky battroid, after-sight super/armor parts, you name it.

Personally, I think the fighter mode looks okay. Although the landing gears are tiny and you need extra parts to attach the gunpod in F mode.

[BlueMax]

It sucks, basically. Get a VF-27 if you want something from Frontier.

I concur. VF-27 is definitely superior is almost everyway

[Major Focker]

thanks for the tips... it this based on that the toy is floppy, inaccurate or defective?

floppy- check. the worst part is the crotch lock. if not posed right it too easily bends over backwards, particularly with the super packs attached to the wings. without the packs, it's poseable enough but not satisfyingly solid

inaccurate- check. chubby battroid. fighter is decent if not for wings canted upwards instead of level, though still doesn't lock together quite well enough

defective- the packs fall off if you look at them funny. i would consider that a design defect. the white markings rub off easily. i consider that a production defect

I have yet to see anyone not recommending the VF-27 over the VF-25's. They are just that bad.

perhaps this is a bit unfair to the 27. it's not only good in comparison to the 25, it's that good compared to other valk releases in general. for me at least, it edged ahead of the VF-11 as the most well-made valk

[anime52k8]

Hello

I want to add a VF-25 to my Valkerie collection. Admittedly I don't know too much about the VF-25 toys or know too much about Macross Frontier as a whole.. But the VF-25 does look awesome...

As I have a few Yamato 1/60's (I only have Yamato Valkeries) I was wondering the following and need advice of fellow collectors here:

I am refering to the Bandai DX 1/60 range

1) Is there any particular recommened buy for this?

Don't buy one

2) Do you get a pack containing the Super and Armor parts in one?

you can get bundles with either the Super parts, the armor parts, OR the tornado parts (parts from the movie). there is no bundle with all three or any two. you can get stand alone sets of all three, but they've web exlusives that are no longer available, so they're rediclously expensive and hard to find.

3) How is the general quality of these?

shit.

pretty much everything said about them in this thread is true. also there are reports of them becoming spontaneously floppy after months of sitting on shelves doing nothing, and backpack hinges crumbling as if the plastic had failed at the molecular level.

4) Do they look pretty accurate in all modes, especially in fighter mode?

people tend to cut it more slack now than they did when they first came out, but they're pretty much wrong in every conceivable way compared to the animation model.

the Gerwalk mode is the worst (as it's got all of the fighter modes problems plus terrible leg articulation) fallowed by fighter. In fighter mode the legs are fat and hang down too low; the canopy is thick, looks like crap and contains the saddest excuse for a cockpit ever; the nosecone looks like it's upside down; and there are funky gaps in the top if the plane around where the head is because they where two cheap to make new back and chest plates that line up with each head.

Are there any other recommendations for the VF-25?

all of them suck. The DX is crap, the VF100 is tiny crap in a million pieces, the only decent VF-25 is the robot damashii which doesn't even transform.

[Phalanix]

Thanks for reminding me why I didn't get any VF-25's guys (aside from a VF100 that was on major sale)!

[Xx-SKULL-ONE-xX]

all of them suck. The DX is crap, the VF100 is tiny crap in a million pieces, the only decent VF-25 is the robot damashii which doesn't even transform.

I like my Konig Monster...Not 1/60 but still DX

[eugimon]

I like my Konig Monster...Not 1/60 but still DX

talking specifically about the vf-25 design.

[eugimon]

You also need to consider that the dx vf-25 wasn't designed with its own armor packs in mind.

The vf-25 got a minor retooling adding holes to the back plate in for armor attachments. This was a pretty horrible idea because that back plate is ridiculously fragile to begin with due to the poor plastic quality and the poor engineering. It's not uncommon to see cracking around the mounting holes.

In fighter mode, the leg armor significantly alters the geometry of the wing glove attachment to the leg. Which stresses the wing glove joints, resulting in more cracking or at the best some pretty alarming stress marks. This wouldn't have been an issue had Bandai designed the leg properly but they didn't.

The forearm armor attaches in a manner similar to the old 1/55 chunky monkey arm armor. Not only is this incredibly flmisy but it actually breaks the transformation in fighter mode as the armor attachment latch does not allow the forearm and the shoulder to close properly. This makes attaching the gunpod a pain in the ass as the tolerance is zero.

The leg armor requires you to actually remove the ankle cowling off the DX and attach them again because they couldn't be bothered to make a more elegant solution.

The large boosters on the back, aside from helping to cause cracks, also flop about because the wing glove lock on one side of the DX just doesn't work. So you have a nice fragile hinge supporting a heavy, unsecured weight.

Add to all that, the whole thing is floppy as hell.

Metal on metal shoulder hinges get loose really quickly. Which is nice because the plastic seems to out gas and contract causing most of the friction joints to self loosen over time.

The whole thing seems like it was designed by different teams and then cobbled together. For instance. The shoulder looks like it should be articulated but the pauldron on top of it pretty much stops any articulation past 3 degrees or so. The tail fins don't cant out at any angle, they just hang straight down because the leg panel covers the tail fin hinge completely.

It's just a complete mess. Save your money and the aggravation of blowing 200 bucks on this shiny POS.

Edited November 8, 2010 by eugimon

[Raptor One]

As for recommendations, the 1/72 models are pretty good. They are waaay more accurate and generally look awesome. Only problem is you have to build them and they're obviously more fragile than the DXs 1/100s and Damashiis

Edited November 8, 2010 by Raptor One

[Vifam7]

Are there any other recommendations for the VF-25?

Yes, the model kit. Given a bit of time and patience, you can build it. Since it's a Bandai kit, all you really need is a side cutter and a hobby knife. No glue or paint needed.

The only caveat is that since it is a model kit, it's not really made for constant handling. But it does transform and does look good from every angle and in every mode.

Edited November 8, 2010 by Vifam7

[Shin Densetsu Kai 7.0]

I don't mind the sculpt of the DX VF-25, I love the gloss finish too. I hated how easy it was to scratch the paint off and I also hated how floppy it got after only a short time out of box.

[nexxstrait]

Yes, the model kit. Given a bit of time and patience, you can build it. Since it's a Bandai kit, all you really need is a side cutter and a hobby knife. No glue or paint needed.

The only caveat is that since it is a model kit, it's not really made for constant handling. But it does transform and does look good from every angle and in every mode.

Speaking of which, this is what you get with Ozma's Armored PAck. I'm the worst of modelers, so this is really a recommended kit. Plus, seing it "grow" piece after piece is a lot of fun. Vifam7 was also right when he said it looks good on all modes. It does. And costs far less than a DX, too.

Edited November 8, 2010 by nexxstrait

[ff95gj]

Me too want to share my platmo 25S. I am a horrible model-maker but it still looks decent.

[Vic Mancini]

I love the look of the model too. (I still don't have one myself, but hope to get one eventually.)

The only thing I don't like about the 1/72 models is the small pilot. He looks like he is 1/100 scale to me.

[regult]

I can only keep congratulating myself for skipping all the DX VF-25 toys, but cannot do so for leaving the plamo kits stored in their boxes. I also give myself a pat in the back for getting the DX VF-27 toy and NOT the model kit...but now I have Frontier valks in 2 different scales!

The pilots look small? Whenever I look at the 25 or 27, I get the impression it should actually be larger than the canon stats (quite accurately followed by models and toys). My 1/60 VF-27 looks quite at home with my 1/72 modern jets collection...the 1/72 does look a bit smallish, especially when comparing cockpits.

Edited November 9, 2010 by regult

[GianS]

Thanks all for the excellent feedback... you have saved me lots of money... I am now curious about the kits though... are they still easy to find? Is it just one brand or if there are more, which is recommended.

Ideally am looking for a V-25 with armor and super parts... and the ability to display it vanilla as well. If it takes two kits, I am ok with that thanks!

G

[ff95gj]

Thanks all for the excellent feedback... you have saved me lots of money... I am now curious about the kits though... are they still easy to find? Is it just one brand or if there are more, which is recommended.

Ideally am looking for a V-25 with armor and super parts... and the ability to display it vanilla as well. If it takes two kits, I am ok with that thanks!

G

I am not sure about the areas you live, but I still can find the VF-25 models (or almost any Bandai models) pretty easily.

For the models, they don't attach the armors and super parts only... Sometimes you need to swap parts. Therefore you may need to buy a separate unit if you want a plain VF-25 to display. They are all from Bandai.

BTW, if you are interested, the VF-25F w/ Tornado part has just released for a couple of weeks.

For Armored VF-25, you can find the 25F and 25S sets. For Super VF-25, you can find VF-25F and VF-25S sets as well, and also there is the Super Parts sold separately for your VF-25G and RVF-25.

[David Hingtgen]

While the super/armor parts are removable/swappable from the models---it's a lot of parts swapping and disassembly, and puts them under quite a bit of stress to remove the parts. It's not really recommended to change it once you've decided "what they'll wear".

[GianS]

Thanks David, understood... so one of each then it sounds like... it's Bandai making the kits as well right?

Edited November 9, 2010 by GianS