So now that Yamato is defunct.....

[Chronocidal]

But seriously, if you want to cut out the middle man of scalpers... pre-order. People complain a lot about pre-orders but the renewals for the Vf-25 CF and VF-25F a few weeks ago were pretty easy to reserve. It just took a little effort. This is coming from a guy who works full time as a professional.

Haha, very funny. You do realize that the scalpers are the ones picking up all the pre-orders right? It's why 5 min after those 30 second pre-order windows close, you see the auction sites flooded with sales for those items at twice the retail price.

That's not "a little effort." Getting in on those preorders is somewhere between a freak lucky click at the perfect time, and an act of God. The only reason a lot of people here have gotten any pre-orders at all is because they're willing to choke down the markup from places like NY, who keep their prices higher so they don't sell out in a few seconds.

Anyway.. yeah, the YF-29 is a perfect example of why I'm sick of Bandai's engineering. It wouldn't be such an issue if they didn't have this stupid fetish for die-cast in all those parts that are bound to scratch (or casting parts in the wrong color, then painting the entire part to cover it up). I transformed my YF-29 the first time last night. That's all it took to drag a trail of missing paint across the top edge of one of the shoulder blocks, because it rubs on the backplate when you press it back into place.

As good as the designs themselves are, Bandai needs a good boot to the head about the entire concept of "TRANSFORMING TOY." Either beef up your freaking paint, or cast the parts in plastic for crying out loud. As nice as the designs look, they seem absolutely clueless about the mechanics of, "Oh, yeah, this part will actually rub on this other one when you transform it."

I've said this before.. Bandai produces "transformable toys" that are neither toys, nor fun to transform. Yamatos were both, and it showed.

But eh. Maybe someone else somewhere down the road will pick up the molds. I just hate the thought of Bandai having the sole power of everything Macross related, because they clearly have no interest in selling to any market but within Japan, nor any ear to the interests of foreign customers.

Edited April 28, 2013 by Chronocidal

[Ignacio Ocamica]

Problem with that logic is that the same team that developed the VF-17 for Yamato developed the VF-171 for Bandai.

My sources have been wrong before so what I say shouldn't be taken as fact although I don't write it unless I believe it. Why is my praising of Bandai odd? The renewals are AWESOME and were priced at like 14,000 Yen. What isn't to like about that? The fact some people couldn't get them? Yeah, that sucks, but most those people didn't try until the toy had been out for months.

I know that the same team developed the VF-17 and the VF-171

You can have two different companies using the same team to develop a product, but each company can ask for different specs for such product (tolerances, fit, finish, materials used).

The VF-171 has tighter articulation and locks togheter better than the VF-17, but the VF-17 has a smoother sculpt, better fit and finish. Bandai VF's look more toyish than Yamatos VF's.

[Gakken85]

Bandai VF's look more toyish than Yamatos VF's.

Well.. they do originate from a cartoon

Personally I think the Yamato 17 looks boring and almost cheap because of the lack of paint details and uniform color.

The 171 CF looks amazing.

[Jasonc]

I stopped transforming any Bandai toys a long time ago. It's scary to think that after one transformation, most likely there will be a scratch somewhere on it. They're great to look at, but not fun to play with, at all.

[raptormesh]

Well.. they do originate from a cartoon

Personally I think the Yamato 17 looks boring and almost cheap because of the lack of paint details and uniform color.

The 171 CF looks amazing.

Because military planes usually paint their plane type in huge markings on their fuselage.

Different strokes for different folks. I for one, can't get enough stroking my yammies.

[Valkyrie Magnus]

I stopped transforming any Bandai toys a long time ago. It's scary to think that after one transformation, most likely there will be a scratch somewhere on it. They're great to look at, but not fun to play with, at all.

They can be fun to play with..... As long as you keep them in fighter mode and never transform them lol

[Ignacio Ocamica]

Well.. they do originate from a cartoon

Personally I think the Yamato 17 looks boring and almost cheap because of the lack of paint details and uniform color.

The 171 CF looks amazing.

Hehe you have a point!

I tried to establish (with my poor English) the often discused difference between bandai and yamato, where yamato valks have a sort of model kit approach.

[Gakken85]

Haha, very funny. You do realize that the scalpers are the ones picking up all the pre-orders right? It's why 5 min after those 30 second pre-order windows close, you see the auction sites flooded with sales for those items at twice the retail price.

That's not "a little effort." Getting in on those preorders is somewhere between a freak lucky click at the perfect time, and an act of God. The only reason a lot of people here have gotten any pre-orders at all is because they're willing to choke down the markup from places like NY, who keep their prices higher so they don't sell out in a few seconds.

I don't think you can prove that. It does happen. But they can't buy 70-100 items all at once and resell them. Hell, there is a guy on this forum who bought 7 himself so he could re-create a scene from the movie. A lot of them are going to collectors who know better than to wait.

If you're complaining about $30 dollar markup I can't help you. I don't understand people who complain about a fairly small mark-up, and then also complain that they can't get the toys they want. Pony up and lay down if you know you want it. This isn't the right hobby if you're on a budget. You could also be industrious and buy an extra for re-sell.

And don't knock NY. They are doing you a service by making these available. HLJ and other sites just take their allotted stack, sell it off, and move on to their Vinyl dolls. Yeah, it cool to get them at the cheapest price possible, but they don't give a damn if you get one. At least NY is buying up stock from stores that don't even sell in the states and making it available. To me, it's worth $30-40 extra bucks. You'd be paying that much if you bought through a proxy Japanese buyer anyway.

Both of the new renewals were up multiple times over the course of two weeks with plenty of chances to grab one both on NY, and other stores. I got one and NY and another site myself.

It sounds like a lot of you don't even like these toys! haha. So why stress pre-ordering/buying something you don't enjoy?

Also, some have rose colored glasses when it comes to Yamato toys. They were full of quality issues and can also be annoying to transform at times. People have just forgotten about broken shoulders, loose feet joints, and snapping head lasers.

I'm not defending Bandai, or hating on Yamato, I am just trying to be realistic. It sucks that Yamato is gone, but its not the end of the world. We'll see how it shakes out.

Edited April 29, 2013 by Gakken85

[Vifam7]

Because military planes usually paint their plane type in huge markings on their fuselage.

Different strokes for different folks. I for one, can't get enough stroking my yammies.

Military planes were painted with huge markings on their fuselage. Huge stars and bars and big black letters boldly stating what air force they belong to.

Edited April 29, 2013 by Vifam7

[Gakken85]

Hehe you have a point!

I tried to establish (with my poor English) the often discused difference between bandai and yamato, where yamato valks have a sort of model kit approach.

For sure. Yamato did a great job bringing model quality to toys. No doubt.

[Tober]

The only fact that needs to be said is that T-REX is a "Triumvirate" of three people and not just one single person. By all means return to your witch hunt.

Your point being..?

[Dax415]

Just curious.....anyone have a guess as to when we will know anything about the future of our macross toys through Arcadia?

[Vifam7]

Just curious.....anyone have a guess as to when we will know anything about the future of our macross toys through Arcadia?

Probably next month at Shizuoka Hobby Show.

[raptormesh]

Military planes were painted with huge markings on their fuselage. Huge stars and bars and big black letters boldly stating what air force they belong to.

I know very well about the markings and I don't abhor them, what I'm contending is the type of aircraft being stencilled on the plane that's in service.

[jenius]

I think the 17 actually comes together worse in just about all modes than the 171 does. If the 171 didn't have those TERRIBLE detachable wings It'd be very easy for me to call it a better toy in all respects. I look at my 17 toys in fighter mode and I feel like just about every part of them needs to be massaged to get all the lines to match up perfectly. I don't seem to have that problem with the 171. My 17D was also so tight I've vowed to never transform it again, way too much of a PITA.

[raptormesh]

For sure. Yamato did a great job bringing model quality to toys. No doubt.

Yet I've transformed my model quality VF-19 more times in a week than I have my -29 the two years I've got it. I even enjoyed it, .

Again, I don't really blame scalpers, NY or even Bandai. NY do provide a service and they should get paid for it. I just want more choices, because variety and competition is good if it's feasible.

Edited April 29, 2013 by raptormesh

[Graham]

I think the 17 actually comes together worse in just about all modes than the 171 does. If the 171 didn't have those TERRIBLE detachable wings It'd be very easy for me to call it a better toy in all respects. I look at my 17 toys in fighter mode and I feel like just about every part of them needs to be massaged to get all the lines to match up perfectly. I don't seem to have that problem with the 171. My 17D was also so tight I've vowed to never transform it again, way too much of a PITA.

Interestingly enough, I'm the opposite. I find the VF-17 far easier to transform than the VF-171. For me the VF-171 is a PITA.

Both great looking toys though.

Graham

[jenius]

Well I should have qualified that comment with the fact I don't find either one particularly fun to transform. I've transformed my 171 more times now though and I'm starting to get a feel for it. The 17 is a little simpler but on the 17D some parts were so stiff I was frightened to move them... especially given the fact the 17D literally cost more than twice my 171 (got the Super Parts bundle).

[MacrossJunkie]

I thought the VF-17 is one of the top 3 easiest and fastest valks to transform so far. The other two being the VF-1 and VF-11. The VF-19 comes in at a very close 4th for me on ease of transformation.

Edit: Mine didn't have super stiff joints though so that helped, but as far as the transformation goes and the clearance you're given to work with, I consider it to be very easy.

Edited April 29, 2013 by MacrossJunkie

[Gakken85]

Hey Graham did you get my pm?

There is a review of the new renewal up in the CF 171 thread and apparently Bandai has done some improvements. I'm looking forward to mine.

Edited April 29, 2013 by Gakken85

[jenius]

On my 17S it's pretty easy to go through the paces but even so, the end result in each mode is just kind of... meh. It's fun to pose but it's not MORE fun to pose than the 171 and fighter mode just doesn't come together any where near as well as the VF-19 toy does. The VF-19 is amazing, it's definitely a high water mark for Yamato with the VF-4G and V2 VF-1 not being far behind. I don't think anything Bandai has done compares to favorable to the VF-19 which is one of the reasons I hope Aracadia does fill that "super deluxe" niche.

[Chronocidal]

I don't think you can prove that. It does happen. But they can't buy 70-100 items all at once and resell them. Hell, there is a guy on this forum who bought 7 himself so he could re-create a scene from the movie. A lot of them are going to collectors who know better than to wait.

If you're complaining about $30 dollar markup I can't help you. I don't understand people who complain about a fairly small mark-up, and then also complain that they can't get the toys they want. Pony up and lay down if you know you want it. This isn't the right hobby if you're on a budget. You could also be industrious and buy an extra for re-sell.

And don't knock NY. They are doing you a service by making these available. HLJ and other sites just take their allotted stack, sell it off, and move on to their Vinyl dolls. Yeah, it cool to get them at the cheapest price possible, but they don't give a damn if you get one. At least NY is buying up stock from stores that don't even sell in the states and making it available. To me, it's worth $30-40 extra bucks. You'd be paying that much if you bought through a proxy Japanese buyer anyway.

Both of the new renewals were up multiple times over the course of two weeks with plenty of chances to grab one both on NY, and other stores. I got one and NY and another site myself.

It sounds like a lot of you don't even like these toys! haha. So why stress pre-ordering/buying something you don't enjoy?

Also, some have rose colored glasses when it comes to Yamato toys. They were full of quality issues and can also be annoying to transform at times. People have just forgotten about broken shoulders, loose feet joints, and snapping head lasers.

I'm not defending Bandai, or hating on Yamato, I am just trying to be realistic. It sucks that Yamato is gone, but its not the end of the world. We'll see how it shakes out.

I can see that, and I guess I'm not trying to bash anyone, but the flood of auctions that always appear right after the preorders close at all the various shops is always really irritating. The sales on those sites happen fast enough that I don't think there's any way it could happen unless people are using automated processes to log in and purchase them faster than humanly possible. The fact that people are somehow able to buy them while people here complain of the sites crashing out entirely gets old.

Personally, I don't have a problem with NY, and I'm okay paying that markup so I can sleep easy, but the problem is they have to do what they do in the first place. They basically become a proxy seller for the other shops. And I'm not really thinking about recent times, I'm thinking about the first couple of Bandai releases after the VF-25S. At that point, no one really knew Nippon Yasan existed I think, and they only became a popular source because so many people were able to grab VF-171EXs from them at retail even after release.

Now that that site is more well known, it doesn't happen anymore, and they tend to suffer from the same pre-order shenanigans as every other site. They just have the process in place to go out and find more, and then keep supplying them manually, whereas other shops just expend their allotment from Bandai, and pull them off sale.

Anyway.. I dunno. This really isn't about shops, it's just that I really don't like the way Bandai does anything about Macross. They cut corners to save on production costs, they make sales, engineering, and design decisions that make my head hurt with their stupidity and greed, and they can't seem to take the time to actually put the effort into their products that Yamato ever did.

[jenius]

I still think there needs to be some reconciling with the rage of how hard the preorders are to get for Bandai toys with how high the MSRP was on Yamato toys. The mark-ups we're paying to easily get Bandai toys from the scalpers (again, talking about current releases, not three months later) tends to still make these toys much cheaper than Yamato MSRP. "Yeah, but I used to wait eight months to get Yamato toys at 25% off or more!" Proving that Bandai's methods make sense.

Edited April 29, 2013 by jenius

[Kicker773]

This thread has really swayed back and forth... kinda wondering where its heading..

[jenius]

Good point. What toy will be Yamato's holy grail? From the looks of the secondary market prices right now it's going to be the VF-4G or the 1/3000 SDF-1. I think the CF VF-1J will always be second fiddle to the M&M VF-1J toys. Will the LV VF-1S be the hottest property since it's technically a Focker release or will it always be luke warm since there are two other more canon-looking Focker VF-1S toys.

[Tober]

Good point. What toy will be Yamato's holy grail? From the looks of the secondary market prices right now it's going to be the VF-4G or the 1/3000 SDF-1. I think the CF VF-1J will always be second fiddle to the M&M VF-1J toys. Will the LV VF-1S be the hottest property since it's technically a Focker release or will it always be luke warm since there are two other more canon-looking Focker VF-1S toys.

Are you being facetious?

[MacrossJunkie]

One thing among many that I'll miss about Yamato that many, I'm sure, find to be an upside is that the Bandai releases (aside from the VB-6) just don't come with any stickers to let you further customize or just add for the markings they didn't bother to tampo print on the toy.

[Valkyrie Magnus]

This thread has really swayed back and forth... kinda wondering where its heading..

For me VF-17 vs VF-171. They are both a nightmare to transform and both stay in fighter mode in my house.

[Gakken85]

I think all the super rare 1/48s will be high dollar in the future, and the Low Viz stuff always seems to be hot.

I'm still amazed people go nuts over those brownie command 1/60's.

[jenius]

Are you being facetious?

No, I was getting back on topic.

[vlenhoff]

My greatest respect to Yamato. They gave us some of the most amazing Macross toys ever. With some hits and some misses in quality, they totally won me forever. Long live Yamato!

Edited April 29, 2013 by vlenhoff

[kyekye]

For me, I set my policy for buying toys.

1. Never ever pay premium over retail (except some some fees)

2. Once decided to pass and it become sold out, never ever look back.

These rules kept my sanity for long time.

[Gian]

For me VF-17 vs VF-171. They are both a nightmare

Agreed

Now back on topic, I really hope Arcadia continues with the 1/60 line from Yamato, prices on ebay are ridiculous right now.

[Dimis]

I think all the super rare 1/48s will be high dollar in the future, and the Low Viz stuff always seems to be hot.

I'm still amazed people go nuts over those brownie command 1/60's.

About the VF-1s low vis, i have been watching auctions on and off for about a year - kind of want it, but can live without it - and the highest it has ever gone is 20,000 something YEN. It doesn't look like the kind of variant that people would fight over in a bidding war, maybe because no collection should feel incomplete without it. Probably the same could have been said for the VF-X, but that brings some more variety to a collection than a simple colour-swap of a mass release. If only that bright yellow was darker...

Edited April 29, 2013 by Dimis

[Valkyrie addict]

Not to take anything from the 171, but the VF-17 has a lot of anime magic on its transformation and Yamato did a great job to try and balance it out, remember the Bandai VF-17 DX?? that thing was obscene. The 171 and 25 were designed without sorting to too much anime magic to sell as a toy, so I find lazy that Bandai makes errors in something that needs less work to design on CAD than the other valks from the Macross universe.

The Holy grail will be the VF-4G or the 1/3000 SDF-1.

I'm noticing that prices on ebay are still ridiculous but not as expensive as a few weeks before, either people are already completing their collections and interested has gone down or people are running out of money. I'm the latter.

Edited April 29, 2013 by Valkyrie addict