Arcadia 1/60 VF-0S & VF-0A

[treatment]

Hey, Tochiro.

Could you forward ChaoticYeti's video and pics to Arcadia and Mr.K regarding their current Zero valks' thigh-issue?

Thanks in advance.

Edited November 12, 2015 by treatment

[ChaoticYeti]

Tochiro means the VF-0 toys in general (as it a relatively new toy compared to the VF-4), not just the S-type.

Right. A lot of the new engineering went into the D and then that trickled down into the A and S. The point being that the A and S are not reissues of the original toys (and go towards covering the initial costs incurred by the D), while the 4 is.

These are discussions that SpeakerPODcast has had with Mr. K and have reported on in the past.

Got it. I thought I was clarifying a point. No intention to disagree. I have been craming out work stuff for a few overnights and am probably not making much sense.

[Mommar]

Hey, Tochiro.

Could you forward ChaoticYeti's video and pics to Arcadia and Mr.K regarding their current Zero valks' thigh-issue?

Thanks in advance.

Or better yet, someone who knows Japanese who isn't in a position to be blacklisted for potentially offending anyone. Because it needs to be done, but we'd rather it not sully our friend's potential reputation with anyone.

I'd do it, bit I don't know Japanese. Everybody already knows I'm a dick anyway.

[ArchieNov]

Hi Yeti. For your poll, would it be better to ask if the leg came/fell off AFTER trying to extend the joint? The legs on mine are fine, but that's because I never tried extending the hip joint for fear of them breaking off.

[ChaoticYeti]

Hi Yeti. For your poll, would it be better to ask if the leg came/fell off AFTER trying to extend the joint? The legs on mine are fine, but that's because I never tried extending the hip joint for fear of them breaking off.

Extending the hips isn't the core issue. From my own experience, the leg can pop off regardless of the position of the hip extension. I am sure it would be easier to force the ball out of the socket if you extend the hips, but that doesn't effect the physical size of the ball, or the seepage of glue in the socket.

Come to think of it, I did add a question to the poll asking people if they have transformed all of their VF-0's into all 3 modes.

Edited November 12, 2015 by ChaoticYeti

[jenius]

I would echo the extension not mattering. On neither of my toys did I get to the point of trying the extension gimmick before the leg fell off. Again, on my 0A, it was in the middle of the first transformation, the first time the intake area was going to rotate when the leg just dropped right off. I was worried from handling it in fighter mode because one intake seemed a little stiffer when I tried to get it to seat properly than the other so I think, no matter what, the first time I tried to rotate it it was going to fall off.

Has anyone been able to get the intakes to seat properly in fighter mode? Like do the intakes lock into that plate above them?

[ChaoticYeti]

I would echo the extension not mattering. On neither of my toys did I get to the point of trying the extension gimmick before the leg fell off. Again, on my 0A, it was in the middle of the first transformation, the first time the intake area was going to rotate when the leg just dropped right off. I was worried from handling it in fighter mode because one intake seemed a little stiffer when I tried to get it to seat properly than the other so I think, no matter what, the first time I tried to rotate it it was going to fall off.

Has anyone been able to get the intakes to seat properly in fighter mode? Like do the intakes lock into that plate above them?

Yes. They line up and lock perfectly in place....as long as the hip ball socket isn't mucked up with glue. I suspect you couldn't lock it up properly because the hip wasn't lining up due to its stiffness, caused by the excess glue, too large ball half, or both. Now that my leg is fixed, I can lock the leg in fighter, and gerwalk modes without issue.

[Tochiro]

Got it. I thought I was clarifying a point. No intention to disagree. I have been craming out work stuff for a few overnights and am probably not making much sense.

No worries :-)

Hope you manage to get some shut-eye soon.

Edited November 12, 2015 by Tochiro

[Tochiro]

Hey, Tochiro.

Could you forward ChaoticYeti's video and pics to Arcadia and Mr.K regarding their current Zero valks' thigh-issue?

Thanks in advance.

What makes people think that they aren't aware of the issue?

That's something I just don't get.

If a Japanese fan has at any time mentioned a single word about it, I guarantee Arcadia knows about it. And plenty of fans DO voice their concerns.

I find that if something doesn't get corrected, it's far more likely to be due to other reasons.

TL;DR - they know already.

[jenius]

What makes people think they're not aware of the issue? Oh I dunno, the fact they clearly haven't addressed it? The options are ignorance or apathy right? Ignorance is the option that gives the company the benefit of the doubt. You're telling us it's apathy... doesn't make me feel much better.

[treatment]

What makes people think that they aren't aware of the issue?

That's something I just don't get.

If a Japanese fan has at any time mentioned a single word about it, I guarantee Arcadia knows about it. And plenty of fans DO voice their concerns.

I find that if something doesn't get corrected, it's far more likely to be due to other reasons.

TL;DR - they know already.

I appreciate that, dude. Thanks.

Most people here at MWF (or outside of japan, in general) simply don't know if Arcadia is aware or not.

Most of us just don't know if the Japanese fans have also noticed the same defect/issue of these new Zero valks.

[Sandman]

Yes. They line up and lock perfectly in place....as long as the hip ball socket isn't mucked up with glue. I suspect you couldn't lock it up properly because the hip wasn't lining up due to its stiffness, caused by the excess glue, too large ball half, or both. Now that my leg is fixed, I can lock the leg in fighter, and gerwalk modes without issue.

Oh great. That means both my od and 0a have that leg issue. I haven't been able to snap in the intakes for both of them. In the fine tradition of yamatoed we now have being "Arcadiaed".

[jenius]

Oh great. That means both my od and 0a have that leg issue. I haven't been able to snap in the intakes for both of them. In the fine tradition of yamatoed we now have being "Arcadiaed".

Eh don't panic yet, Yeti was offering a hypothesis. It's possible that there are two different issues and you don't have the more damning leg falling off issue.

[ChaoticYeti]

Eh don't panic yet, Yeti was offering a hypothesis. It's possible that there are two different issues and you don't have the more damning leg falling off issue.

What Jenius said. Have your tried to transform, and pose yours yet, Sandman?

[Universe1010]

I hope these issues are fixed with the VF-0S

[Scyla]

What makes people think that they aren't aware of the issue?

That's something I just don't get.

If a Japanese fan has at any time mentioned a single word about it, I guarantee Arcadia knows about it. And plenty of fans DO voice their concerns.

I find that if something doesn't get corrected, it's far more likely to be due to other reasons.

TL;DR - they know already.

I think the reason why we have this feeling of being ignored is that the problem was already present on the VF-0D and nothing has changed with the VF-0A. So if they are aware of the issue why not change it between releases.

It is the same thing with the VF-171CF from Bandai. Why not include a set of spare shoulder pieces with the Armor Parts Set? Since the failure rate of those seem to be much (much) higher than on the Arcadia VF-0 toys Bandai clearly knows that the is an issue with.

It just comes across as an attitude of: "yes we know of the problem but we don't do anything because you bought the toy already".

I'm sure this is not the case for Arcadia (I'm not so sure about Bandai ) but since most of us don't live in Japan and don't understand Japanese that is the impression we have. Of course it doesn't help that we have zero options of getting replacement parts or a replacement unit. Even with HLJ most of what you can get is either a discount or a refund because once the toy is sold out that is the only option.

So we feel helpless (because we are) and not recognized by Arcadia so we have to do something to change it. Yeti made a good video showing what the issue is and how to fix it. As you said Arcadia is likely to know the issue but why don't they act on it.

The fact that a VF-0 costs $300 doesn't help!

The fact that jenius a respected reviewer of Macross toys has this issue on both his VF-0 doesn't help!

ChaoticYeti I will take your poll once I have the VF-0A in hand this weekend.

[technoblue]

Everyone should go take a look at ChaoticYeti's poll before panicking. It sucks that there is a QC issue, but to say that it is widespread is probably something of a witch hunt. My 0D is okay. I transformed it between all modes the other day and even inspected the ball sockets on the leg/hip joints. It was hard on the nerves since I'm another one who kept my 0D in fighter mode all this time, but I I think it's better to know if I have a broken leg and need Yeti's Shapeways parts or help making the fix.

Also, the more data we can get, the better informed we'll be. To that end, I plan to transform my 0A later today and do the same. When my 0S arrives, I'll make sure to check it out on day one.

[arbit]

Everyone should go take a look at ChaoticYeti's poll before panicking. It sucks that there is a QC issue, but to say that it is widespread is probably something of a witch hunt. My 0D is okay. I transformed it between all modes the other day and even inspected the ball sockets on the leg/hip joints. It was hard on the nerves since I'm another one who kept my 0D in fighter mode all this time, but I I think it's better to know if I have a broken leg and need Yeti's Shapeways parts or help making the fix.

Also, the more data we can get, the better informed we'll be. To that end, I plan to transform my 0A later today and do the same. When my 0S arrives, I'll make sure to check it out on day one.

It is great to have a shapeways fix, but I would still hate to have to cut the glued plastic tabs on a 300 dollar toy.

[ChaoticYeti]

The sample size is too small to draw conclusions, and we are still a smaller subset of all owners of these figures. By looking at the poll as it is now you could easily say the issue is insignificant, or you could say there is a 1 in 10 chance your leg will fall off. The poll isn't definitive. Take it with a grain of salt.

[jenius]

I'm 2 for 2, that didn't take much hunting.

[funkymonkeyjavajunky]

Apologies if this question has already been asked, but why does this toy have a half plastic/half metal ball socket in the first place? Why isn't the socket just all metal?

[Scyla]

Apologies if this question has already been asked, but why does this toy have a half plastic/half metal ball socket in the first place? Why isn't the socket just all metal?

I assume that either the pure metal socket wouldn't have enough friction to allow the toy to hold poses. Especially when coated. The other think could be manufacturing differences. Maybe it is not possible to cast a metal ball that has everywhere the same diameter that would be necessary to have enough friction for poses.

[technoblue]

The sample size is too small to draw conclusions, and we are still a smaller subset of all owners of these figures. By looking at the poll as it is now you could easily say the issue is insignificant, or you could say there is a 1 in 10 chance your leg will fall off. The poll isn't definitive. Take it with a grain of salt.

I don't know. No one is trying to prove a bias here. At least, that isn't my intent. The only thing I think people would like to know is how many forum members have broken VF-0 Valkyries. The issues I've run into are minor: misaligned tampo printing and one thruster detail falling off from inside one of my 0D's feet.

It is great to have a shapeways fix, but I would still hate to have to cut the glued plastic tabs on a 300 dollar toy.

Understandable. My point is that there are members here who are happy to help out if an issue is fixable. For example, a pin vise is useful for drilling out broken tabs so that you can replace them with stronger bits. I learned that from a few of the modeling guys, and I was able to succeed in completing a similar repair to my MP Ultra Magnus some months back. The thigh looks and works great now.

[seti88]

Apologies if this question has already been asked, but why does this toy have a half plastic/half metal ball socket in the first place? Why isn't the socket just all metal?

I assume that either the pure metal socket wouldn't have enough friction to allow the toy to hold poses. Especially when coated. The other think could be manufacturing differences. Maybe it is not possible to cast a metal ball that has everywhere the same diameter that would be necessary to have enough friction for poses.

I wondered the same when all these happened. After opening up and fixing the bum leg, it would seem similar to what Scylla mentioned abt friction. the joint feels tighter as the plastic provides friction against the metal surface, sort of like a rubberized surface. Metal against metal won't be as sticky and in the long run will be loose as the metal surfaces smooth out each other. That's my observation.

The Qc issue was abt tolerances of the half plastic ball being too large and not to spec. It also left a gap for adhesive to seep thru and contaminate the hip chamber resulting in the hip socket being stuck to the half ball half metal joint.

However it would seem not everyone experiences it but I do think if it was a car it would result in a recall!

[Lolicon]

Pretty sure the risk of death or dismemberment is pretty low from faulty VF-0 legs.

[jenius]

Yeah, and how convinced are you that if it hasn't fallen out yet it never will? Maybe I'm just super unlucky, or maybe you all own a bunch of time bombs as that inner mechanism loosens up over time. Hope that's not the case but obviously i've seen nothing that inspires confidence.

Edited November 12, 2015 by jenius

[Mommar]

Apologies if this question has already been asked, but why does this toy have a half plastic/half metal ball socket in the first place? Why isn't the socket just all metal?

It's a common method for ball sockets, actually. Apparently the Bandai's do this as well.

[technoblue]

Yeah, and how convinced are you that if it hasn't fallen out yet it never will? Maybe I'm just super unlucky, or maybe you all own a bunch of time bombs as that inner mechanism loosens up over time. Hope that's not the case but obviously i've seen nothing that inspires confidence.

If any of mine break down the road, then I'll take a deep breath and attempt the fix that has been posted. If that doesn't work, well...I guess shame on me for buying three of these $300 toys. In that case, I'll probably swear off Arcadia until they show a QC improvement that matches the price they're asking us to pay.

But like Lolicon alluded to above, there are other more important things to keep in mind. I'm getting old, so I move on.

[Frogze]

I just transformed my 0A to check the legs but no problem to report so far, one is a bit stiffer than the other but both can move properly so far.

I really love the proportions of the battroid mode, it is definitely an improvement over the previous version, as for the brighter colors I think I also like them better although I've no intention to part from my original Shin copy yet.

[Gakken85]

I agree. These these are too expensive to have structural problems this bad. This is like a step back to the V1 VF-11 or something.

[no3Ljm]

As much as I love their products, they should've made it like the VF-1's. Easy to pull. Easy to repair.

[Silverstreak]

Cancelled my Po for the 0S. Give the AUD, I can't justify it.

[Scyla]

So I had some time to play with my Arcadia VF-0A. No legs falling of so far. I have to say while the Two tone gray looks great it is really a weakness during the transformation. From just one circle I already have a paint rub in the underside of the intake (don't know where that came from) and a black smear on one of the shoulder pauldrons. The arm transformation just doesn't work well with the paint. I don't know if Arcadia can use some more durable paint but the one they uses feels very powdery and not strong. Opening the landing gear doors was a nightmare.

[spanner]

Cancelled my Po for the 0S. Give the AUD, I can't justify it.

Week Aussie dollar yes but im still keeping my pre-orders. I simply have no choice as I want them too badly. I had originally ordered 2, then bumped it up to 3, then 4 and finally 5 of which one was for my son but he's since changed his mind and now I think I'll only get 3. That'll give me one each for Battroid & Gerwalk and one for the Reactive Armor set. I've also done a back flip on my original decision not to order a VF-4G and ordered one so I can display one in Battroid also.. This hobby is like a roller coaster!

Edited November 14, 2015 by spanner76

[mechaninac]

... A roller coaster that shakes every last bit of loose change out of your pockets.