1/60 Yamato VF-4G Web-Exclusive Toy

[M'Kyuun]

VF-4 looks better with every new pic. I still wonder if the shoulders will rotate, as they've not been shown to do so. I hope, but it won't dissuade me if they don't. As for the long slit far back on the lower fuselage, the forward ventral stabilizer will slide through it in battroid, so I doubt that it'll accommodate a weapon. I know opinions vary, but strapping a gunpod under the fuselage, or hanging ordnance off the wings, would sully the smooth clean look of this valk. That all of it's weapons are inclusive and unobtrusive add to the beauty of the fighter, and are convenient to the battroid. It's a testament to Kawamori's forward thinking, as all of today's fighters/UCAVs are designed with incorporated, conformal, and internalized weapon systems in meeting stealth requirements. Stealth technology, i.e. the F-117, wasn't revealed until 1988; Flashback 2012 came out in '87.

Edited July 31, 2012 by M'Kyuun

[slaginpit]

So there are many comments to sift through. Some tell me its a model you have to build. But is this a toy? And if its only pre-order in Japan will it see a wider mass release for me to get a chance to get one?

Edited July 31, 2012 by slaginpit

[EXO]

toy and prolly no.

[slaginpit]

Great. So I suppose it will be on ebay for 400 bucks..... Why the hell is Yamato doing this???? Do the japanese like exclusives this much. That how I got screwed on the SOC big O and the extra parts. Dam I am really hating this exlusive business but it seems like the norm now

[Mommar]

VF-4 looks better with every new pic. I still wonder if the shoulders will rotate, as they've not been shown to do so. I hope, but it won't dissuade me if they don't. As for the long slit far back on the lower fuselage, the forward ventral stabilizer will slide through it in battroid, so I doubt that it'll accommodate a weapon. I know opinions vary, but strapping a gunpod under the fuselage, or hanging ordnance off the wings, would sully the smooth clean look of this valk. That all of it's weapons are inclusive and unobtrusive add to the beauty of the fighter, and are convenient to the battroid. It's a testament to Kawamori's forward thinking, as all of today's fighters/UCAVs are designed with incorporated, conformal, and internalized weapon systems in meeting stealth requirements. Stealth technology, i.e. the F-117, wasn't revealed until 1988; Flashback 2012 came out in '87.

Officially revealed, 1988. Heavily inferred, 1970's.

Great. So I suppose it will be on ebay for 400 bucks..... Why the hell is Yamato doing this???? Do the japanese like exclusives this much. That how I got screwed on the SOC big O and the extra parts. Dam I am really hating this exlusive business but it seems like the norm now

How much of the Macross toy rush have you missed the past year? With the ridiculously low runs on all of Bandai's Valks most of here are actually happy for web exclusives because it means we might be able to buy one, regardless of the price.

[slaginpit]

Officially revealed, 1988. Heavily inferred, 1970's.

How much of the Macross toy rush have you missed the past year? With the ridiculously low runs on all of Bandai's Valks most of here are actually happy for web exclusives because it means we might be able to buy one, regardless of the price.

WHAT@!!!!!!!!!!!!

exclusivity and low productions runs are two sides of the same coin. Are you happy you can get an exclusive item others outside of Japan can get. Sorry I dont understand your point other than gloating

[locidm]

WHAT@!!!!!!!!!!!!

exclusivity and low productions runs are two sides of the same coin. Are you happy you can get an exclusive item others outside of Japan can get. Sorry I dont understand your point other than gloating

That's true in most cases. Unfortunately for the recent v2 Bandai Dx Valkyries, the supposedly mass releases had such low production number that preorders are filled within minutes of preorder opening, and typically this happens in the middle of the night for us in the US. End result is that most of us could not secure a preorder and had to resort to paying aftermarket high prices, often much much higher than MSRP. Quite a few members here had lost sleep trying to secure a preorder. The rest of us Had massive headaches trying to decide whether to pay the marked up prices.

On the other hand, the web exclusive stuff like the super packs and armor packs have been relatively easy to get because the preorder window is on the order of weeks (instead of minutes for the "mass release" Valkyries). So all we had to pay is a small fee for proxy service or a relatively small premium from Japanese retailers.

At the end of the day, the supposedly bandai exclusives were relatively much easier to get and relatively cheaper than the mass release stuff.

[EXO]

It's really not just Macross toys. Actually Yamato is actually doing a great job pumping out these obscure valks, extremely obscure if you consider over all general pop culture. I was just checking the He-Man boards and their line is in trouble (once again). If they don't get enough subscriptions then they may have to cancel the line. Frankly I think they are undervaluing their property and license a bit. If Macross fans are willing to buy valks over $200 I'm pretty sure He-Man fans would be willing to pay as much for the Castle Grayskull.

[MichaelS]

If these are still resin prototypes can there still be changes made or is this pretty much what we get?

[mechaninac]

At this late stage in the game with a release date looming before the end of the year, I'd say the resin prototype is 95%+ indicative of the final product; it's highly unlikely that any changes will be made to proportions, wing and fins geometries, or anything else other than minor tweaks to the parts involved in transformation.

Is there a chance that Yamato could still add wing and underbelly hardpoints, angle the wings down a few degrees in their neutral state, make the leg fins and stabilizers parallel in their default positions? With only two or three months left to cut steel, run test shots, work out the kinks in the assembly line, and begin production to make their deadline... I don't think so.

Edited July 31, 2012 by mechaninac

[slaginpit]

where can I pre-order this thing?

and 2) Preorders on Ebay: Ebay has preorders on the Fast packs for both the Vf171 and VF17 Nightmare. How does that work? First off doesnt that void the period you can submit a claim if the period to enter a claim is 30 days. Does ebay discount the time for the pre-order to get into your hands and then the claim period kicks in? I just cant find the fast packs anywhere where you have to pay up front

[danth]

Yeah, can we get some info on how to actually get one of these?

[Lupin The Third]

Is it just me or does the VF look a little to small.

When I saw the first pics I thought that it looked like a substantial, large piece (like the Max Factory Big O or a similar figure) but the new pic does appear to be quite dimmunitive. Perhaps it's because the VF-4 carries so much of it's bulk out on the wings rather than at the center of the vessel like most valks/jets that we thought it was going to be huge. Unless of course it's being handled by the biggest dude in Japan...that guy should be a pro-wrestler.

[xrentonx]

where can I pre-order this thing?

and 2) Preorders on Ebay: Ebay has preorders on the Fast packs for both the Vf171 and VF17 Nightmare. How does that work? First off doesnt that void the period you can submit a claim if the period to enter a claim is 30 days. Does ebay discount the time for the pre-order to get into your hands and then the claim period kicks in? I just cant find the fast packs anywhere where you have to pay up front

Anything preordered on ebay is at your own risk. I've done it before and luckily the two guys I purchased from were legit guys who didn't cheat me out of my money. I did pay via my credit card through paypal though so I could always do a chargeback if anyone tried to fu*ck me over. I guess that's pretty much the secret. Use a credit card that will provide you some protection...you will always win unless the seller provides proof (like a tracking number) of shipment.

Edited August 1, 2012 by xrentonx

[Lupin The Third]

Anything preordered on ebay is at your own risk. I've done it before and luckily the two guys I purchased from were legit guys who didn't cheat me out of my money. I did pay via my credit card through paypal though so I could always do a chargeback if anyone tried to fu*ck me over. I guess that's pretty much the secret. Use a credit card that will provide you some protection...you will always win unless the seller provides proof (like a tracking number) of shipment.

Agreed. You can actually dispute cc charges for up to 180 days, which most people are unaware of. So if someone does burn you you can take 'em down!

[xrentonx]

Yeah, just don't go crazy with the chargebacks and you'll be ok. Chargebacks reflect negatively against you if you do them too much. Committing fraud with chargebacks is a common thing so it works both ways. Anyway, just be careful is all and use common sense when buying.

[slaginpit]

awesome thanks guys

[Jasonc]

Is there any updates on the price of this thing? I thought they were going to announce a price at Wonderfest, and hasn't that come and gone already?

Edited August 1, 2012 by Jasonc

[jenius]

My bad on that one. I was told that's when the announcement would be but it appears they need to give the accountants a bit more time... which makes sense since they're clearly still working on determining the production quantity.

[derex3592]

Here's hoping it's no more than $300-$325 ish. And available from HLJ.

[CF18]

where can I pre-order this thing?

(Here go my list again)

These proxy shops in Japan may let us pre-order this web limited item for a reasonable mark-up:

* http://www.tokyo-hunter.com/

* http://dv8cag.com/

** http://hobbyclick.jp/store/

http://www.anime-export.com/

http://biginjap.com/

http://www.nippon-yasan.com/

http://yokattaweb.jp/index.html

* Are the shops I have ordered from before and got my items without problem.

** I only used their eBay store before, no problem.

They will not list it until Yamato announce the price and list it at their web store.

There is still a chance that HLJ may sell it with no proxy mark up, like they have with 95% of other Yamato's limited items before including some very expensive item e.g. the helmets and 1:2000 SDF-1. But this VF-4G may be a bit special since Yamato can't seem to decide on the price, and HLJ would at least want a 5-10% profit off it to make it worth while for them.

[gwfalcon]

Salute to CF18!!!

Charming post!!

[EXO]

They never really stated that the price was going to be announced at Wonderfest. The translation to their post read as this, " Normal pre-ordering with no discount for the VF-4 is scheduled to start in August after the price is announced."

There's a chance that the hobby magazines will have the final price before the pre-orders start.

[MichaelS]

cool cant wait

[MacrossJunkie]

Wow. The guy has hands so big.

From Macross Mecha Manual:

VF-0: 18.69m

VF-1: 14.23m

VF-4: 16.8m

YF-19: 18.62m

VF-25: 18.72m

VF-4 is indeed on the smaller side.

The fighter mode is small, but it seems to me that the battroid mode is still pretty large if going by its size compared to the stand.

It's just like the VF-17. The 17's fighter mode is an even smaller shorter 15.63m in length, but manages to be one of the taller battroids amongst valkyries at 15.82m due entirely to the way it transforms.

Edit: changed smaller to shorter. It's shorter, but in no way would I call it small. Its overall dimensions still make it seem pretty large.

Edited August 2, 2012 by MacrossJunkie

[EXO]

Detail pics

[ps99042]

Thanks for the pics >EXO<, you've definitely made me start thinking that I need this valkyrie. So beautiful!

[caslon]

Wow!!

[3D-Brainx]

Nice pics >EXO<! Looking good. Can't wait for the final price and the "real" preorders.

[MichaelS]

This rapidly turning into there best work so far keep it up Yamato! Now they need rework and rerelease the rest of the others. Coarse Bandai needs to as well so the rest can get the DX series.

[Froy]

This bird is going to be expensive, everynew pic is a reminder of that. But hell I have to get one!

Edited August 2, 2012 by Froy

[Vi-RS]

It's beautifully done.

[Jasonc]

Here's hoping it's no more than $300-$325 ish. And available from HLJ.

With that, I could afford 3 of them. I have a feeling they're going to be a little more. I'm more concerned with the ease of getting thm. If HLJ has them, we should be alright, but I have a feeling that these are going to be a bit more difficult to get.

[robodragon]

With that, I could afford 3 of them. I have a feeling they're going to be a little more. I'm more concerned with the ease of getting thm. If HLJ has them, we should be alright, but I have a feeling that these are going to be a bit more difficult to get.

Shut your mouth. LOL

I really hope not, I've been wanting this bird like most here for a looooooooooooooooooooong time. I have two of the transformable recast models unbuit because I'm too scared to F it up. The VF-4 is my unicorn with a naked super model riding it with rainbows shooting out her JJ. I'm not a praying man, but I hope your wrong and HLJ get's this bad girl.

[MacrossJunkie]

I'm not too worried about availability. I see no reason why sites like the ones CF18 listed wouldn't be able to do the web pre-orders as they have done with many in the past. Unless Yamato is forcing a set limit on the number they produce to some abnormally small number of units regardless of the number of pre-orders they get, I would think there should be enough for all that want one.