1/60 VF-1 replacement shoulder hinge

[Fatalist]

Received my new hinges today (pairs) and finally installed a set on my 1st edition Fokker. Perfect!!! I ended up ditching my gnurled pins and used/clipped down some thin nails, which I would assume were for nailing down hooks for framed art/pictures.

Thanks Veef!!!!!!!

[Axure]

savior of my vf-1's Roy and Hikaru are back in the saddle, holding guns, pointing, looking awesome and stuff. Yay. I went for the "dark" grey for the mechanism feel, though they don't match the original dark grey parts of the knees and such, I like them all the same. A great service you've done for the community

[VF5SS]

guys I got a message on Shapeways about the dreaded gunpod dragging so I tested it out on a fixed figure

The clearance is small but there's no dragging. Anyone else having issues? I recall it was a small margin of error even on an unmodded figure.

[VF5SS]

yeah it's just as tight on this stock VF-1D

crisis averted

[Vi-RS]

The standard polyamide colors are more pure white than the Super/Strike Valkyrie off white. They can be dyed or painted using acrylics to match the toy.

Despite the weird purpleness of their gray dye, it's not a bad fit if you just want to pass off the shoulder hinge as mechanical detail.

I think it's a pretty good idea to order gray color and treat them like mechanical details such as the side covers. That way you really don't have to try paint matching the valkyries.

[VF5SS]

The problem is Shapeways took down the gray option.

[Vi-RS]

The problem is Shapeways took down the gray option.

That's a bummer.

[VF5SS]

http://www.shapeways.com/materials/white_strong_flexible

the black might be a fair substitute or it may be too dark :<

[94medition]

VF5SS, thank you so much for doing these hinges. Now I can transform and play with my valk without worry. I just order 2 single sets and 3 double sets from Shapeways. I notice there are color options available (white, white polish, black, red and purple). A option gray will be awesome. I order all white but 1 set for white polish to see how they are different. [Edit] You mention it can be painted with arcylics. Is priming required?

Edited May 9, 2012 by 94medition

[VF5SS]

Shapeways has their own guides on how to paint the Strong White Flexible plastic

they used to offer gray but they took it down

[buckethead523]

i need to get ahold of one of these hinges(the right shoulder one) for my Yamoto VF-1S i got for christmas. Im always scared to change these because im afraid they will break and the minute i went to change its mode SNAP the hinge broke. It still holds on the one end but displaying it is a pain. :- /

[Shaorin]

i've just gotten hold of an 1st Ed. 1S Focker DYRL, and, even though the original shoulders have cracks, they hold their integrity.

they are annoyingly loose, however, so i went ahead and replaced them with the perfect set off of my 1st Ed. 1J Hik. T.V.

since it is getting a bit threadbare, after several years worth of heavy use, and i'm planning to replace it with another, fresh copy in the near future.

since SHAPEWAYS no longer offers a GREY set of these replacements, and i am in no position to be dying them myself,

would it be a good idea to get a set of these NYLON replacements anyway, even though the 1J POM originals

are perfect and tight as a drum to this day, and are serving my new 1S very, very well so far, despite the color mismatch?

any suggestions/recommendations here?

Edited May 11, 2012 by Shaorin

[VF5SS]

http://i.materialise.com/

These guys offer more colors for Polyamide and I hear their quality is better

they also offer this Prime Gray stuff that looks better than Polyamide

but they cost a lot more than Shapeways

do you guys want me to look into this?

[Mommar]

If you've got the money to spare investigating this other place I think, at the very least, it would be an interesting discussion/comparison academically. We may find a better way to fix/improve/create new parts if we all know the differences/strengths/etc... of the various types of shops out there.

[Black Bomber]

Hi great job. I want 4 pairs of these parts. you can send to Chile?

[VF5SS]

Just go through the link in my sig. Shapeways ships internationally.

[Black Bomber]

OK. Other question if I need a special part you can make it? For example if I desing a part in Cad 3d or similar you can do it? st

Thanks Again

Best Regards.

[VF5SS]

If you want, you can create a Shapeways account so they can make something you designed.

[seanwang]

First of all, great job VF5SS!!! I have a few questions:

1. Is there a way to tell if the shoulder hinge has potential problem by looking at the toy, before crack marks appear? The ones I am concerned are: VF-1J Hikaru with Armor Parts of May 2010 release, VF-1S of June 2010 release, and VF-1J Mass Production of July 2009 release. Are they supposed to be the "safe" "fixed" versions? Can you be so kind to tell me which one may be the "unsafe" version? I definitely want to order some shoulder hinges for backup but don't want to go crazy in terms of amount...

2. Are White and White Polish same color? does the unpolished one have coarse surface? Which one do you recommend?

3. Will the original metal pin damage the replaced new hinge? What kind of pin do you recommend, any specs?

My first post and load of questions....LOL....Thanks so much for your help!

Edited May 30, 2012 by seanwang

[VF5SS]

To be honest, I just went ahead and replaced the hinges on all of my VF-1s. Having such sturdy parts in that area makes transforming them more fun.

http://www.shapeways.com/materials/white_strong_flexible

Here is all the information on the Strong White Flexible. Personally, I've only used the normal white or dyed parts. Never the polished.

You can use the existing pins or any similarly sized metal rod.

http://twitpic.com/9l2igy

A pair of vintage Atlas brand tacks also works.

Tack the planet!

Here is some more information and instructional videos.

http://collectiondx.com/blog/vf5ss/i_never_liked_it_when_my_toys_broke

[seanwang]

Thanks for such quick reply!!

The repair video starts with the wings already taken off. How do you do that?

Edited May 30, 2012 by seanwang

[VF5SS]

It's just three screws on the backplate. They can be taken off on your way to replacing the shoulders.

[seanwang]

Got it, Thanks! An unrelated question, sorry for going off topic here, but since this is such a hot thread...

The leg piece of the GBP armor for VF-1J has some very noticeable scratches, upon on arrival. It's caused by friction with the plastic packaging. Do you know any easy way to polish it or buff out the scratches without damaging the paint? It's dark blue color but I don't want to re-paint it ( I am not very good with that).

Edited May 31, 2012 by seanwang

[94medition]

I got my order from Shapeways last week but did not have time to check it out until today.

First of all, I want to thank VF5SS for making these joints. I ordered two sets of white (double), one set of white polish (double) and two set of white singles. The white polish is a little smoother than the regular. If I order more in the future, I think I will go with the polish version. The material feels very strong. It is kind of rough even for the polished version. It is a bit "chalky" out of the bag, and the hole are plugged with the chalky stuff. Just use a pin the clear the stuff. No problem.

However, I do have problem with one of my single joints, the diameter for one of the hinge way bigger than the other one. I have not put it on the valk yet, but I can foresee it is likely going to be a problem. Do I contact Shapeway directly for this issue? Looks like they got the wrong dimension. Here is some pics.

Package

Content from left to right, single white, double white, double white polished

Except Shapeways got the wrong dimension, I am very happy with these joints. I now have no worry when I play with my valks. Thanks again VF5SS!

Edited June 9, 2012 by 94medition

[Reïvaj]

What kind of white are they? TV or DYRL white?

[VF5SS]

I would contact Shapeways to see if they can send you some better parts in exchange. That's a pretty major deviation.

Recently they sent out a survey to shop owners to see what they need to work on and I was sure to emphasize tighter tolerances.

[94medition]

I looked at all the parts again, and I think I figure out what the problem is. Comparing my sets to Loute's post in page 5, I think even though I order two sets of single (5mm), I got 1 hinge of 4mm and the second hinge is a mix of 5mm and 4mm(the ball part), making my second hinge unless. I thought Shapeways prints two pieces as a set together. Another possiblity is they did make the set correct, but messed up while packing, meaning another person's order maybe wrong (order 4mm set but get one and a half set of 4mm and one piece of 5mm).

[Vi-RS]

anyone ever tried dying it with Rit dye?

http://www.ritdye.com/

Edited June 13, 2012 by Vi-RS

[Loute]

I looked at all the parts again, and I think I figure out what the problem is. Comparing my sets to Loute's post in page 5, I think even though I order two sets of single (5mm), I got 1 hinge of 4mm and the second hinge is a mix of 5mm and 4mm(the ball part), making my second hinge unless. I thought Shapeways prints two pieces as a set together. Another possiblity is they did make the set correct, but messed up while packing, meaning another person's order maybe wrong (order 4mm set but get one and a half set of 4mm and one piece of 5mm).

You may have mine

Don't worry, it works well anyway.

[Kyp Durron]

While you're at it, how about some wing glove "plugs" to fill in those cut outs for the shoulder hinges, it's the one thing that's always irked me about the 1/60 V2 fighter mode. The 1/48's don't have them (As I recall) and neither does the VF-0's.

-Kyp

[master of macross]

Hello guys, has anyone bought these items from this site? I would need for a DYRL color, those who sell them are neutral?

thanks guys;)

http://www.shapeways.com/model/463232/kanzen-henkei-1-60-scale-fighter-variable-hinge.html

[xrentonx]

Yes. This entire thread is dedicated to that link.

[master of macross]

ok tnks my friend, i buy that

[adiexx]

Hello guys, just picked up my first ever yamato macross kit. Some one sold it to me cheap because of the broken shoulder. One question about the replacement part though, has anybody tried the polished version? Does it have the same strength or 'grip' as the normal one? I might go for the polished version because it looks nicer, but i want to know how does it behave first.

thanks!

[vt102]

anyone ever tried dying it with Rit dye?

I have not personally, but alot of guys in the BMX community use that to dye their plastic seats and mag wheels.

Gonna order me a couple of sets soon.... Thanks for making these.