The Unlicensed Third Party Transformers Thread

[mikeszekely]

2 hours ago, technoblue said:

Eh… If we’re making comparisons to MP-44, then Magic Square’s v2 Prime is a closer take with the shin detail on the legs.

I dunno.  I mean, there's definitely things that are very MP-44 in the chest and shins, sure, but the proportions are still pretty similar to v1 overall.  NA's got MP-44's large pelvis and short midsection.  Like I said, not for me, but I get that it'll appeal to a lot of people.  FWIW, I'm not really interested in MS Op v2, either.  I'm good with the first one, in Legends and MP scales.

2 hours ago, technoblue said:

Anyway, I’m still getting both the NA and MS Prime updates and I’m looking forward to compare them once they’re both out in the wild. Also, I’m excited to compare the MS v2 update to its v1 counterpart.

I might not be interested in picking up another MP Prime, but I'm looking forward to your post.  I love going over all the minute differences.

[CoryHolmes]

On 8/7/2021 at 10:12 AM, sh9000 said:

Those Stunticons are tempting but I must resist.

This looks kind of cool.

Do want.  Do want dowantdowantdowantdowantsowant!!!!!!!

 

Punch/Counterpunch is my absolute favourite TF character and I've long dreamed of a good 3P figure doing him justice.  The rest of the photos make it look like the toy is literally double-sided, and that worries me a bit.  For 3P figure I expect a bit more engineering to go into it than just "turn around, flip the shoulders, swap the head".

 

But yes, I will have it.  It will be mine.

[M'Kyuun]

1 minute ago, CoryHolmes said:

  The rest of the photos make it look like the toy is literally double-sided...

TBF, that's pretty much how he's always been since the G1 toy, which I have, along with both versions of the recent WfC P/CP figs. But I know what you're saying, especially in a MP scaled fig. A little additional engineering to kinda cover up the fact that you just turn him around and lift his visor to change identities would be appreciated. It'd be very cool if they could make each individual bot either fully blue or fully yellow, and maybe even give him two heads depending on the identity in question. After all, the visor thing probably doesn't work quite as well at this scale. As it is, it's hard to believe anybody would be fooled that Punch and Counterpunch aren't the same dude.  14 year old me thought it was pretty cool, though. 50 year old me still does.

[technoblue]

5 hours ago, mikeszekely said:

I dunno.  I mean, there's definitely things that are very MP-44 in the chest and shins, sure, but the proportions are still pretty similar to v1 overall.  NA's got MP-44's large pelvis and short midsection.  Like I said, not for me, but I get that it'll appeal to a lot of people.  FWIW, I'm not really interested in MS Op v2, either.  I'm good with the first one, in Legends and MP scales.

I haven't seen any newer photos, but the grey prototype of MS v2 Prime is quite comparable to MP-44 (flipped below to give the same angle). At least, I think it is. I'm a tall person IRL, so longer legs and slightly shorter torsos are a-okay in my book and don't trigger me at all. 

At this stage, I do like how MS is trying to match the panel line detail of the official MP. I recognize NA is doing their own thing and I think that's cool too. The pelvis/shorts/pants area is not as angled where it meets the top of the thigh. Instead, it seems a bit squared off to me. That's interesting since I've read that NA has a few of the former DX9 WiP designers on their team. NA Optimus really doesn't look to share many design cues from DX9 Dutch at all.

5 hours ago, mikeszekely said:

I might not be interested in picking up another MP Prime, but I'm looking forward to your post.  I love going over all the minute differences.

 

6 hours ago, M'Kyuun said:

@technoblueI look forward to your MS Prime comparison, as I don't own V1, and am glad now that I waited, as V2 nails the backpack aesthetics better, and just overall incorporates any number of improvements. Its articulation is also quite impressive based on the proto shots I've seen.

Thanks guys. It should be a fun distraction from life, the universe, and everything.  

[M'Kyuun]

15 hours ago, technoblue said:

I haven't seen any newer photos, but the grey prototype of MS v2 Prime is quite comparable to MP-44 (flipped below to give the same angle). At least, I think it is. I'm a tall person IRL, so longer legs and slightly shorter torsos are a-okay in my book and don't trigger me at all. 

At this stage, I do like how MS is trying to match the panel line detail of the official MP. I recognize NA is doing their own thing and I think that's cool too. The pelvis/shorts/pants area is not as angled where it meets the top of the thigh. Instead, it seems a bit squared off to me. That's interesting since I've read that NA has a few of the former DX9 WiP designers on their team. NA Optimus really doesn't look to share many design cues from DX9 Dutch at all.

 

Thanks guys. It should be a fun distraction from life, the universe, and everything.  

I'm a short dude at 5'2", and the proportions of this look just fine to me. It's a little more anatomically correct to actual human proportionality than most TFs, and most general depictions of robots in various genres, which usually have foreshortened thighs.  The similarities, thanks to that comparison shot (Thanks, Technoblue) are beyond coincidental; they're totally going for the MP-44 look in bot mode, and I'm fine with that. I already own Light of Freedom, which departed from the thinner more lanky look in favor of a chonkier bot, which works for me in the MP scale. I'm glad this isn't just a shrunken down clone of LoF, as their LoJ V1 was. I am curious, however, if they're employing some of the same tricks as Takara and NA with two sets of windshields to delineate the truck's windshield from Prime's chest. I hope not, but if they do, I hope it's well executed, and not as obvious as NA's method. Too, I hope this isn't just a scaled down MP-44- MS have proven themselves to be adept designers, so some originality is appreciated.

I'm curious if V2 is coming with the trailer. None of the proto shots I've seen have shown it, although there was one proto shot with the repair drone, so it follows that there will be a trailer. Then again, LoF didn't come with one, nor the ability to connect it to a trailer, which was a surprisingly important omission for an Optimus figure.  That trailer, whether you display it or not, is part of the character, and leaving it out is like making Soundwave with neither the cassettes nor the ability to even store them. It's a salient feature of the character from the beginning, and the omission is notable.

[sh9000]

Looks like I’ll be getting XTB Punch-Counterpunch and the Battlechargers.

[technoblue]

3 hours ago, M'Kyuun said:

I am curious, however, if they're employing some of the same tricks as Takara and NA with two sets of windshields to delineate the truck's windshield from Prime's chest. I hope not, but if they do, I hope it's well executed, and not as obvious as NA's method. Too, I hope this isn't just a scaled down MP-44- MS have proven themselves to be adept designers, so some originality is appreciated.

Yeah. It isn't as obvious in the shared photo above, but Magic Square is employing their own version of the window gimmick. The truck windows shift to the backpack in bot mode. Without paint, these alt-mode pieces don't stand out to me. It remains to be seen if that will hold true once we get to see the painted prototype of v2 or if those pieces will pop out at certain angles like they do on NA Prime.

3 hours ago, M'Kyuun said:

I'm curious if V2 is coming with the trailer. 

I think I've only seen photos teasing bits and pieces of the v2 trailer, myself, but nothing showing the whole kit and caboodle in alt mode. All that is to say, I have no idea what the final release will include.  It will be fantastic if it is a full set with fun add-ons, but I won't be put out if we get a barebones option instead.

I already have two copies of LoJ v1 Prime: MS-B18X+ and MS-B18W. I picked up the W release to go with the Ultra Magnus armour and the X+ release is G1 Optimus with the trailer and metallic paint apps. I got that to match up with my copy of MS-B36Y Megatron. The LoJ v1 mould still holds up very well so I can understand the sentiment of those who are content to stick with it and who are skipping v2 and/or the NA release. 

Edited August 9, 2021 by technoblue

[Kuma Style]

 

[JB0]

On 8/8/2021 at 5:56 PM, M'Kyuun said:

TBF, that's pretty much how he's always been since the G1 toy, which I have, along with both versions of the recent WfC P/CP figs. But I know what you're saying, especially in a MP scaled fig. A little additional engineering to kinda cover up the fact that you just turn him around and lift his visor to change identities would be appreciated.

Agreed, but "the way things are" is accurate to the original toy, the american cartoon, and the japanese cartoon. There's little road out without a complete reinvention, and the market for such has proven dreadfully slim.

I made do with my Hasbro remake. The "titan armor" fist he came with I use as a jetpack, and that does a passable job of making the back of either bot not look like the front of another bot.

 

 

Same reason that Powermaster Prime/Ginrai homages have a truck face on both sides of the core robot(unless they're official, then they just omit the core). Even the heavily-stylized Thunder Manus. They could do it right, but it would lose a major feature consistent across all interpretations of the character.

Edited August 10, 2021 by JB0

[M'Kyuun]

3 hours ago, JB0 said:

Agreed, but "the way things are" is accurate to the original toy, the american cartoon, and the japanese cartoon. There's little road out without a complete reinvention, and the market for such has proven dreadfully slim.

I understand the desire to make certain toys 'just the way they've always been' in most regards, but IMHO, Punch/CP is a bit of a unique case where the original toy manifested the limitations of what they were willing or able to do, but if better were possible in a modern toy, why not. The PotP shares the same shortcomings as the original toy, so far as the bits of each alter-ego is clearly visible, and they share an alt mode.  In my eyes, these characters could benefit from today's engineering to hide the alter-ego bot bits, and furthermore, change the alt mode, at least in some notable degree, so that they don't both turn into the same exact blue car.  I'd like to see someone take a stab at it, as I think it'd be an overall improvement.

[JB0]

4 hours ago, M'Kyuun said:

I understand the desire to make certain toys 'just the way they've always been' in most regards, but IMHO, Punch/CP is a bit of a unique case where the original toy manifested the limitations of what they were willing or able to do, but if better were possible in a modern toy, why not. The PotP shares the same shortcomings as the original toy, so far as the bits of each alter-ego is clearly visible, and they share an alt mode.  In my eyes, these characters could benefit from today's engineering to hide the alter-ego bot bits, and furthermore, change the alt mode, at least in some notable degree, so that they don't both turn into the same exact blue car.  I'd like to see someone take a stab at it, as I think it'd be an overall improvement.

I agree completely that it SHOULD be done. Just like I think a Powermaster Prime/Ginrai core robot that doesn't wear the front of the truck on his back and a second front-of-truck on his chest is possible and should be done.

I just don't think it will be done because it isn't "anime-accurate", and that disappoints me greatly.

[M'Kyuun]

4 hours ago, JB0 said:

I agree completely that it SHOULD be done. Just like I think a Powermaster Prime/Ginrai core robot that doesn't wear the front of the truck on his back and a second front-of-truck on his chest is possible and should be done.

I just don't think it will be done because it isn't "anime-accurate", and that disappoints me greatly.

Well, all trends come to an end eventually; it's merely a question of time and interest. G1 will always be the heart of Transformers for as long as the franchise exists and remains popular, but the nostalgia that drives the current total animation accuracy trend will likely end when we old Geewunners become one with the Matrix. I hope it happens before that, within my lifetime, but the current trend has a very strong following. Even the third party legends makers are going that way, except Iron Factory, who do have always taken their own direction. But, I do think there are those of us among the old guard who aren't as crazy about the slavish toon direction, such as myself, who wouldn't mind seeing improvements to characters such as I outlined for Punch/CP, or a return to what has been called the 'hybrid' style during Hasui-san's watch. I prefer the carry-over of realistic details from vehicle to robot, mixed with G1 toy details, animation proportions, and copious amounts of articulation. That combo works for me, and yields the best of all worlds, IMHO, except when it detrimentally effects the look of the figure as in MP Arcee's chest. I can live without butterfly joints if it impacts the look to that extent. I think there's there's room in the fandom for the toon stuff, and for 'hybrid', but, MP Skids aside, the hybrid stuff just doesn't carry the same weight of approval right now. Hopefully that'll change, or some company will take it upon themselves to go that route. I remain hopeful.

[danth]

But remember those Christmas mornings where you didn't get any Transformers toys, but watched the cartoon instead and had the character's poorly drawn, simplified animation models burned into your soul, creating overwhelming nostalgia to this day?

Neither do I.

I'll never get it. The original toys were awesome looking, with panel lining and cool stickers full of circuitry, and there's no way the cartoon with it's cheap animation was going to be able to capture all of the toy's coolness. So now, we're going to make the toys just as boring looking as the animation? Why?

Don't get me wrong, the cartoon usually fixed the toy's goofy proportions. And in cases like Ironhide completely deviated from the toy in perhaps a good way.

But man, for me, those cartoons were just commercials. The toys were the things I spent hours playing with and looking at.

Jazz has wings!

[mikeszekely]

22 minutes ago, danth said:

But remember those Christmas mornings where you didn't get any Transformers toys, but watched the cartoon instead and had the character's poorly drawn, simplified animation models burned into your soul, creating overwhelming nostalgia to this day?

Neither do I.

I'll never get it. The original toys were awesome looking, with panel lining and cool stickers full of circuitry, and there's no way the cartoon with it's cheap animation was going to be able to capture all of the toy's coolness. So now, we're going to make the toys just as boring looking as the animation? Why?

Don't get me wrong, the cartoon usually fixed the toy's goofy proportions. And in cases like Ironhide completely deviated from the toy in perhaps a good way.

But man, for me, those cartoons were just commercials. The toys were the things I spent hours playing with and looking at.

Jazz has wings!

Counterpoint: I remember watching the cartoon a ton. After the '86 movie came out on VHS I wore it out watching it every day. And on Christmas morning?

I got Gobots. My parents couldn't afford Transformers until season 3. The only Season 1-2 toys I had were Seaspray, Powerglide, Bumblebee, Sideswipe, and the Insecticons. (And a Galactic Man I pretended was Shockwave). My parents tried to make up for it, as I had a ton of them after Season 3, but by then after seeing the movie so many times I was keenly aware that the toys were a bit off from the cartoon. So, to me, sorry. No wings for Jazz.

(For those that do like wings on him, I wish the Studio Series toy have you the option the way Maketoys' did)

There's one weird exception for me, though. I spent a ton of time looking at the combiners I really wanted but never got in those checklist catalogs. As a result, even though I like the cartoon look for the team members, I have a preference for the toys in combined mode.

[sh9000]

There are 2 versions of XTB Punch-Counterpunch with different heads.

 

XTB.

[M'Kyuun]

6 hours ago, danth said:

But remember those Christmas mornings where you didn't get any Transformers toys, but watched the cartoon instead and had the character's poorly drawn, simplified animation models burned into your soul, creating overwhelming nostalgia to this day?

Neither do I.

I'll never get it. The original toys were awesome looking, with panel lining and cool stickers full of circuitry, and there's no way the cartoon with it's cheap animation was going to be able to capture all of the toy's coolness. So now, we're going to make the toys just as boring looking as the animation? Why?

Don't get me wrong, the cartoon usually fixed the toy's goofy proportions. And in cases like Ironhide completely deviated from the toy in perhaps a good way.

But man, for me, those cartoons were just commercials. The toys were the things I spent hours playing with and looking at.

Jazz has wings!

 

5 hours ago, mikeszekely said:

Counterpoint: I remember watching the cartoon a ton. After the '86 movie came out on VHS I wore it out watching it every day. And on Christmas morning?

I got Gobots. My parents couldn't afford Transformers until season 3. The only Season 1-2 toys I had were Seaspray, Powerglide, Bumblebee, Sideswipe, and the Insecticons. (And a Galactic Man I pretended was Shockwave). My parents tried to make up for it, as I had a ton of them after Season 3, but by then after seeing the movie so many times I was keenly aware that the toys were a bit off from the cartoon. So, to me, sorry. No wings for Jazz.

(For those that do like wings on him, I wish the Studio Series toy have you the option the way Maketoys' did)

There's one weird exception for me, though. I spent a ton of time looking at the combiners I really wanted but never got in those checklist catalogs. As a result, even though I like the cartoon look for the team members, I have a preference for the toys in combined mode.

In the toy or toon debate, my greater tendency is towards the toys. After all, they existed before the toon and were the basis for the animation models.  In the case of the Vanettes, I prefer the animation model to the toys. The animation did give better proportionality, which is the one strong point of the animation. In all other regards, it's the toys that I look to for actualizing the details, as Danth pointed out (the circuitry details among many of the figs, as well as other sculpted details and real vehicle details that carried over to the bot modes, even Jazz's wings). I love mechanical details, especially realistic details like electrical cables, circuitry, hydraulics, gear detail, etc, so the more you can cram into a robot figure, any robot figure, Transformers or otherwise, I'm all for it.

While I enjoyed the toon, at least First Season, the animation flaws often stuck out to me (I was thirteen at the time, so a bit more critical and observant of errors, fudged transformation sequences, dodgy proportions in both bot and car modes, which happened a lot in both cases, the 'mass shifting', and other inconsistencies and animation goofs that might not be so apparent to younger children). I loved the stories in First Season. 'Fire on the Mountain' is probably the weakest ep, due to all the human stuff, and just a thin plot. But it had Skyfire in it, and since his appearances were rare, I was still pretty happy with it. But I think they did a good job of maintaining the overarching story of the Decepticons' attempts to amass resources to create energon cubes initially to return to, then to revitalize, and finally to bring Cybertron to Earth via a space bridge.  It was all so unique and creative to me, storytelling wise, and provided opportunities to use unique characters like the Dinobots. It was just good stuff from that POV. I haven't watched First Season in probably five or six years, but it all starts coming back to me when I talk about it, along with that old excitement. So yeah, there's certainly an argument for nostalgia coloring one's preferences, both toy and toon. If, like Mike, the toon was all you had, well it makes sense that that is where your heart lies b/c that's what you had. I was fortunate enough to have a handful of G1 toys, which I messed about with quite a bit:  Prowl, Jazz, Wheeljack, Ratchet, Soundwave, a few KO cassettes, Huffer (of course), Sludge, Shrapnel and Kickback, Long Haul and Scavenger. I think that's all I had from First Season.  I also had a few figs from later seasons, including Galvatron, but by that time, I was getting close to graduation and entering the military, so my collecting pretty much went on hiatus until Beast Wars came along, and piqued my interest with , holy crap, articulated figures! Like most, I was skeptical about the animal alt modes, but once I started watching the toon, I was hooked, and that's where my TF toy collecting really started in earnest.  But there was always that hope that we'd someday get idealized, fully articulated versions of the old G1 toys at some point, and now we're  spoiled for choice. I never imagined it would happen; I hoped, but didn't have much faith. Never happier to be so wrong. It's still slightly disappointing that the toys are all leaning towards the animation look, but given that or nothing at all, I'll take what's available with gratitude, and maintain a flicker of hope that eventually more of the old toy details will creep in over time.

But as I've said many times, given how many 80s properties are long dead and nigh forgotten, I'm extremely grateful that Transformers, my absolute favorite toon and toyline from the 80s, is still flourishing, and I'm able to get the toys that I could only dream of as a kid and young adult. While we all have our preferences concerning what we want in the toys, I think its worthwhile to just be thankful that these toys exist, that the franchise is still alive and well, and that there are so many options available to us as Transformer fans for toys and merch of all kinds. It's easy to fall prey to cynicism and being critical, and much harder just to take a moment, appreciate what we have, and just say thanks. 

To all who keep, and have kept, Transformers alive and thriving, eternal gratitude.Yeah, even you, Michael Bay.

 

[danth]

On 8/10/2021 at 11:16 AM, mikeszekely said:

Counterpoint: I remember watching the cartoon a ton. After the '86 movie came out on VHS I wore it out watching it every day. And on Christmas morning?

I got Gobots. My parents couldn't afford Transformers until season 3. The only Season 1-2 toys I had were Seaspray, Powerglide, Bumblebee, Sideswipe, and the Insecticons. (And a Galactic Man I pretended was Shockwave). My parents tried to make up for it, as I had a ton of them after Season 3, but by then after seeing the movie so many times I was keenly aware that the toys were a bit off from the cartoon. So, to me, sorry. No wings for Jazz.

(For those that do like wings on him, I wish the Studio Series toy have you the option the way Maketoys' did)

There's one weird exception for me, though. I spent a ton of time looking at the combiners I really wanted but never got in those checklist catalogs. As a result, even though I like the cartoon look for the team members, I have a preference for the toys in combined mode.

Thanks. It's a good reminder for me that different people with different experiences have preferences just as valid as mine.

Agreed on wanting options to achieve cartoon or toy accuracy like Maketoys Jazz.

20 hours ago, M'Kyuun said:

But as I've said many times, given how many 80s properties are long dead and nigh forgotten, I'm extremely grateful that Transformers, my absolute favorite toon and toyline from the 80s, is still flourishing, and I'm able to get the toys that I could only dream of as a kid and young adult. While we all have our preferences concerning what we want in the toys, I think its worthwhile to just be thankful that these toys exist, that the franchise is still alive and well, and that there are so many options available to us as Transformer fans for toys and merch of all kinds. It's easy to fall prey to cynicism and being critical, and much harder just to take a moment, appreciate what we have, and just say thanks. 

Agreed.

It's pretty fun to rant/complain sometimes though...

[M'Kyuun]

2 hours ago, danth said:

It's pretty fun to rant/complain sometimes though...

Human nature; nothing to be done for it. 

Except evolve into an emotionless collective machine intelligence where all voices are one, and perfection is guaranteed every time by virtue of all decisions thereto made by the hive mind. I think I'll take the occasional ranting, thanks.🙂

[JB0]

31 minutes ago, M'Kyuun said:

Human nature; nothing to be done for it. 

Except evolve into an emotionless collective machine intelligence where all voices are one, and perfection is guaranteed every time by virtue of all decisions thereto made by the hive mind. I think I'll take the occasional ranting, thanks.🙂

We are borg. Resistance is futile. Your technological and biological diversity will be added to our own.

[CoryHolmes]

After some thought, I think the $99 pricetag is a death knell to any sort of decently engineered toy.  The Dinobots, with their tails hiding in their boots, were hundreds each.  My hype for this James/Bond is diminishing.

[JB0]

34 minutes ago, CoryHolmes said:

After some thought, I think the $99 pricetag is a death knell to any sort of decently engineered toy.  The Dinobots, with their tails hiding in their boots, were hundreds each.  My hype for this James/Bond is diminishing.

I hope it exceeds expectations.

[mikeszekely]

My 3P collecting has slowed a bit as a few players have dipped out of the game and I'm getting closer to completing the TV cast in MP scale.  Even though I've had issues with a lot of XTB's output this year (and a lot of last year) at $100 each I'll probably get both, then come here to write about QC issues or a horrible pain-in-the-tuchus transformation.

[CoryHolmes]

1 hour ago, mikeszekely said:

My 3P collecting has slowed a bit as a few players have dipped out of the game and I'm getting closer to completing the TV cast in MP scale.  Even though I've had issues with a lot of XTB's output this year (and a lot of last year) at $100 each I'll probably get both, then come here to write about QC issues or a horrible pain-in-the-tuchus transformation.

If the transformation is anything other than "fold legs, squish arms, cover head" I'll be surprised.

[sh9000]

 

XTB.

[mikeszekely]

4 hours ago, sh9000 said:

XTB.

Missed one.

Now, I'm not interested in playing the Fans Toys game where preorders sell out like they're PS5s, so there was no way I was replacing Tesla with Tesla 2.0.  But if the reviews on this guy are positive I might switch out Tesla for this.  The original Tesla is kind of trash.

[tekering]

6 hours ago, mikeszekely said:

I might switch out Tesla for this.

XTB wins on accessories alone! 😃

[sh9000]

Cool.  I think I’ll be getting XTB Perceptor.

 

KFC.

XTB.

 

[mikeszekely]

Alrighty, so Nonnef has five different upgrade kits for the Earthrise vans.  One of them is new wheels, which I didn't bother with because the old ones don't really bother me.  One of them is a kit with treads, arms that you can use to hold the leg panels if you pop them off the figures, and a bit similar to the one that came with Siege Ratchet that you can use to turn the van roofs into sleds  similar to the G1 toys'.  I didn't get it, either, because it's a bit of partsforming that doesn't have a good place to go in van mode.

I did try the other three kits.

First up we have this pretty basic kit.  It comes with a pair of guns/tools that look fairly similar to the stock weapon the Earthrise vans come with.  They don't have handles, so a pair of black pegs are included.  You also get a pair of guns modeled after the ones Ratchet was dual-wielding when he died in the '86 movie.  

Once you cut them from sprues and install the handles on the one type, any figure with 5mm port hands can hold them.  The reason the peg wasn't part of the one type of weapon is because without the peg it can be mounted onto the large peg on the underside of the roof.  This probably works a lot better if you by the other kit that turns the roof into a sled.

Both types of weapons in the kit are compatible with blast effect parts.

So... not a mind-blowing kit.  But, the pistols that Ratchet dual-wielded are actually a pretty common, generic design throughout the cartoon.  And one kit comes with two pistols and two of the other gun/tool.  At just $5 for the unpainted grays it's not a bad deal to pick up a couple for lots of figures you might feel could use a gun, like Warpath or Wheeljack.

Next up we have this kit for Ratchet, to try to make him a bit more cartoon accurate.  You get a pair of crosses, a pair of fists, and a new waist piece, all in red, plus a pair of glue dots.

To install, you use the glue dots to stick the crosses to Ratchet's shoulders.  You slide the original fists off of their mushroom pegs and then slide the new ones on.  As for the waist piece... well the original parts are glued, and to remove it Nonnef suggests that you use a knife to separate the halves, cutting a tap in the process.  Frankly, I'm not comfortable with that, so I'm not installing it.

Actually... the crosses stick out a bit, and the glue dots don't do a great job holding them in place.  I might pull them back off and just get the Reprolabels.  As for the fists, they're a bit loose in the wrist swivel, but the peg hole is too tight.  So I'll probably just paint the original hands and put them back on.  For those of you keeping score at home that means I probably won't use any of the kit, so my recommendation is to save your money.

Lastly, we have this kit, which I forgot to photograph on the sprues and had to grab Nonnef's stock image.  This kit, which requires a bit of assembly, and it replaces the Siege feet that were reused on the Earthrise vans (which also means they could be used on the Siege vans, if you want).

Begin by cutting all the pieces off the sprues, and use a hobby knife to trim the sprue marks.  Take the heel part with a mushroom peg and place it with the 5mm peg facing up.  Put the black part that looks like a Gundam joint onto the peg.  Take the toe part with the peg on it, and fit the mushroom peg from the first piece into the groove for it. (taking care that you have the right toe part on the right heel part).  Take the other toe part and fit it onto the peg from the first toe part.  It's designed to snap together, and the toe will rotate on the mushroom peg.  However, I found that the parts will separate while you're rotating them, so you might want to glue them togther.

Flip the foot over.  The black bumper pieces will fit into the heels; it'll be pretty obvious which one goes into which foot, because you'll want the the bumpers to run along the heel and if you have the wrong one the bumper won't line up right.  Lastly, take the translucent tail lights and glue them in place.  If you assembled them the way I did you'll have the foot in it's van mode configuration.  Spin the toe 180 degrees for robot mode.

Pop the old feet off; they're just held in with friction.  Then use the Gundam-ish joint to pop the new foot on.

Here you can see a sort of before and after, and here's where I'm going to point out a few cons.  For starters, no, the Nonnef parts are NOT a color match for the originals.  The white's not too bad- in person it looks similar to these pictures I took on my particular display (the built-in display on an Asus ROG Zephryrus G14 laptop).  Not included are pics of the red kit, because I think they look worse in person than they do in my pictures, but if you want an idea compare the red for his Sideswipe spoiler with any part of Ironhide.  The other con you can see here is that the new parts do not line up flush with the van mode.

The Gundam-style joint provides the new feet with the same ankle tilts as the original feet.  In theory, since the joint can swivel around the peg it's installed on, the new feet should give an ankle swivel, too.  In practice the swivel is tight, and trying to use it just popped the foot back off.  Oh well, it's not like the original feet swiveled.

Which brings me around to where I landed on these feet.  I've seen Chinese 3D-printed kits that have better color match, painted windows, and that fit more flush in van mode, sure.  But from what I've seen those kits also have issues with leaning in bot mode, plus they partsform between robot and van modes, plus some people prefer injection-molded plastic over 3D printed stuff, so it seems like you're trading one set of flaws for another.  The simple fact is that Nonnef's feet look better than the stock feet, even with the slight gaps in van mode and the inexact color match. Plus, Nonnef's feet kits are something like half the price of those Chinese kits.  I don't think I'd recommend using them on the Siege vans, as I think Earth-style van doors look more out of place on their Cybertronian modes than big feet sticking out, but I think they're worth picking up for the Earthrise vans.

[sh9000]

XTB’s Omnibots are still on my list.

[JB0]

A. That's hot.

B. No one's gonna try and reduce THIS guy to bland and weirdly puffy toon accuracy! For once, my preferences are unarguably the right way to do it!

C. A white 80s Toyota is gonna trigger all kinds of Initial D crossover jokes(and yes, I know he's the wrong Toyota).

[Valkyrie Hunter D]

I will get all three of them, especially the Mazda!

[mikeszekely]

I'm genuinely psyched for everyone that's wanted Omnibots but I have zero connection to the characters.  I don't remember them being in any fiction, and I think they were some kind of mail-away dealies that I never had as a kid.

Despite XTB's QC issues lately I did decide to throw some preorders down on Punch/Counterpunch (the Japanese version, aka the toy-accurate one) and the Battlechargers. 

[anime52k8]

no idea who this character is, but I'm catching those mk.II Supra feels

[JB0]

1 hour ago, mikeszekely said:

I'm genuinely psyched for everyone that's wanted Omnibots but I have zero connection to the characters.  I don't remember them being in any fiction, and I think they were some kind of mail-away dealies that I never had as a kid.

Yup. They were mail-order only, and unlike Reflector didn't manage to squeeze under the wire into the fiction and thus remained untainted by ugly cartoon redesigns.

They all looked pretty rad to me looking in the catalog, though. They had the same sorta deal Tracks has going on, where they turned into weaponized cars like they forgot this isn't MASK. Lasers flip outta bumpers, missiles pop up from trunks and doors... one even turned into a flying car "just like Tracks". But how's a young boy supposed to get his parents to buy him a Transformer that isn't even on the shelf at the store?

[derex3592]

7 hours ago, JB0 said:

A. That's hot.

Yeh it is!!!