The Third Party Gundam Thread

[Alphahorizon]

Kampfer arrived!! Not enough time to do much, but this thing, just from my initial look is a really nice piece. 

[Ridden001]

On 1/29/2020 at 8:06 AM, Alphahorizon said:

I am in the same boat. I assume it has to do with the holiday going until the end of the month.

 

AND

 

also on SHowZ

 

The shipping company will be off work from 1/18/2020 to 2/9/2020 due to Coronavirus.

ECOAS is actually intercepting your package.

[sqidd]

Well, this dude is awesome. Super beefy. Great heavy and solid feel. Zero flop. Yeah, I know my picture sucks.

 

[killatopak]

MN-Q02 (White Pheonix) finally arrived to the store where I preordered.

 

Really excited about it but I also kinda wonder when MN-Q01(Yellow Dragon) will arrive. They were announced at the same time yet there’s been no news of it aside from old pics back in October. I kinda worry that they will change some stuff on it like they did on the white one. At the very least include the original head as an alternate head sculpture.

[Alphahorizon]

Mine is in transit. Supposed to show up yesterday. Pretty excited myself to check that one out.

[sqidd]

45 minutes ago, Alphahorizon said:

Mine is in transit. Supposed to show up yesterday. Pretty excited myself to check that one out.

I think you're really going to enjoy it.

The only thing that bothers me, and this is nit picking, is that the shotguns pin into the hands in a position where you can't get the trigger finger high enough to reach the trigger. It looks funny with all four fingers wrapped around the grip below the trigger guard. Again, nit picking.

Edited January 31, 2020 by sqidd

[SuperHobo]

Messing around with Sazabi a bit more, it's cool the butt plate is on a second hinge than can be pulled out and get out of the way for kneeling poses. 

 

[Ridden001]

Hi everyone.

Do we know what type of batteries are used in the MB Sinanju?  I want to make sure I have them on hand when it arrives.

Edited February 1, 2020 by Ridden001

[no3Ljm]

39 minutes ago, Ridden001 said:

Hi everyone.

Do we know what type of batteries are used in the MB Sinanju?  I want to make sure I have them on hand when it arrives.

I think @bleecher answered your inquiry on the Gundam Figure thread.

 

[bleecher]

1 hour ago, Ridden001 said:

Hi everyone.

Do we know what type of batteries are used in the MB Sinanju?  I want to make sure I have them on hand when it arrives.

Two A23 batteries for the stand, confirmed. I believe the backpack uses a total of nine 377 batteries, 3 for each side thruster and 3 for the primary thruster and head. I am still waiting for the button cell batteries to arrive to confirm they are correct though.

[slaginpit]

Woohoo got the bottom half. 

Overall:

Here are my initial thoughts. The actual metallic content is pretty good. I would expect the same amount in an original Bandai release. Remember this is a big bulky suit, any additional metal could cause issues of balance and paint chipping with all the panels that move. The paint is spot on with two different shades of Red. Details are all over this thing. It is based off the MG Ver.Ka model. Its a win win, as you get a metal skeleton with almost toy quality plastic with awesome paint work, tampo printing and mods

Its worth every penny. If you want even more Sazabi keep in mind the time it would take to pump one out and the cost increase. I dont know about the Americanos and Rich Asians but if this Wuhu Flu is anything serious we are going to see a slowing economy. And worse a non-existent export market.  So we are  very lucky as a collecting community we got this very nice piece at the cost it was sold at. 

 CGI Accuracy: while trying to maintain the original look. It really pulls off the more modern look that Katoki envisioned .  All the moving pieces and that exposure of the psycommnu system made famous in the Unicorn series. However it still somewhat maintains that simplistic goofy animated look. 

Paint Apps: Very very nice. I really like the two tone. I think the difference in colored panels give it that ultra realistic look in something that could be envisioned in real world space mecha's. Just like the Difference in panel colors of star trek and star wars ships it makes sense to do this on Space Mecha. I really like they are now doing this on most of the MSGs

What I would love to see is some carbon battle scaring. Hot Toys pulls this off nicely with the right balance not to piss off those collectors that like the clean look while also satisfying collectors who like a little "used" realism. The Flat coat is what I like the best. I dont think any of these war machines should come out all chromed and shiny. THATS cringe 

I have inspected this toy for any paint blotches/splash but not noticed any. Its very clean. The booster paint applications, and Piston and all other details is clean with some metalic paint accents of Blue,  silver and gold.  The white seems to be a base white.

Gimmicks: The only gimmicks this thing has is the MG model panels opening to revel extra boosters and it executes that beautifully. No issues there. I did pop off a couple of panels but no biggie just pop them back on. Oh yeah and the same thing with the pod funnels. Which yeah the seam doesnt seem to close up. But honestly I had the same issue with the MG verKa Kit. So what can you expect. Im not going to whine about it since I always wanted a figure rep. of this bad boy and the closest thing we got was the Bandai head statue. 

The lighting system in the eye gimmick is bad. I mean ok im happy they added it but it barely shows through the visor. Adding that feature actually made the head piece quite fragile.

The Rear Skirt splitting gimmick works really well. I thought you would have to give it some force but it was pretty smooth and the piston had not issue with paint apps hampering the movement.

MODS:  I see that the ankle guards have some re-design. More sharper look. I think it looks good. 

The Boosters are a complete redesign. On the original they were an after thought. So boring and unoriginal. 

As a result everyone modded them 

However I do like what MC did here. Great work mine had a break in the box. Actually it was really just two halves not put together. But the paint apps and tampos look great 

 

 

 

Edited February 2, 2020 by slaginpit

[slaginpit]

The Gun was modded too. And i have not seen anyone state that the shotgun could be removed. Again no issues with the great application of different paint apps. Very nice and original. 

Build Quality. 

Outside of the head and neck piece fitting snug into the main torso and BOTH arms having issues of just not being able to hold its arms upright this thing doesn't at all feel cheap. 

I don't understand the community sometimes. Bitch and moan about pricing and not making other mechs in MSG other than SEED and Doube00 Hero Gundams. IM grateful for the 3rd party Manufabs. The plastic is not as solid as say a MB Seed. I would say its more between a MG gundam and something like a cheap Transformer toy. Weight always being the issue one has to make the plastic as light as possible. However since the original MG had a lot of layering the plastic still feels solid. It aligns to the same build material as the Ksh. The Funnel pods dont close properly. I forgot to mention they are also modded from the original. But again its not a big deal.  You have to assemble it when it arrives. Its shipped in two pieces, the upper and bottom half and you have to assemble the legs torso, pelvis, arms and head and neck, backpack, boosters and funnel pods. Getting the pieces into the metal base is a struggle because its a tight fit. That translates into some incredible poses no kit to day has been able to accomplish. Again the Arms issue is not really a weight issue its the metal on metal being able to hold as there is no friction. Even without the sheild the arms cannot hold in a god stance. Gum it up a bit with nail polish and it would fine

 

Now for the comparisons to other similar sized 3rd party MSGs and its little cousin

 

 

[slaginpit]

Is it worth it? A resounding yes! It has presence, its not flimsy and delicate like a kit. Its got great paint apps and features. Its the only real Sazabi figure we have. I would mark this as a Master Grade collectible.  

I do wish it came with some more accessories. I friggen booklet would be nice. I dont care about boxes. I toss every box i get into the recycling bin. If that's a hot toys, a takara or this. In the bin it goes. Space is an issue and I am not a cardboard collector. Boxes add more cost too. However.  A nice booklet maybe some back story about the suit, a page about the features, a summary of part. But dam this thing really needs a stand! Also nice would have been like we got for the ksh, funnel lauching supports to show them taking off from the pods. Having funnel features without having them displayed in attack mode is somewhat of a waste...

 

Verdict Highly Recommended. 

 

 

 

[no3Ljm]

Nice review!

 

[slaginpit]

20 minutes ago, no3Ljm said:

Nice review!

 

thanks

 

[SuperHobo]

47 minutes ago, slaginpit said:

Is it worth it? A resounding yes! It has presence, its not flimsy and delicate like a kit. Its got great paint apps and features. Its the only real Sazabi figure we have. I would mark this as a Master Grade collectible.  

I do wish it came with some more accessories. I friggen booklet would be nice. I dont care about boxes. I toss every box i get into the recycling bin. If that's a hot toys, a takara or this. In the bin it goes. Space is an issue and I am not a cardboard collector. Boxes add more cost too. However.  A nice booklet maybe some back story about the suit, a page about the features, a summary of part. But dam this thing really needs a stand! Also nice would have been like we got for the ksh, funnel lauching supports to show them taking off from the pods. Having funnel features without having them displayed in attack mode is somewhat of a waste...

 

Verdict Highly Recommended. 

 

 

 

Definitely agree about the desire for having the ability to have the funnels displayed and an overall stand for Sazabi.  

[sqidd]

3 hours ago, slaginpit said:

I

 

 

 

 

I absolutely LOVE the boosters!!! I've got mine displayed in a non traditional fission so you can see the back of the figure as well as the front (you have to walk around it a bit). I love how it looks from the back. So much so that I seriously considered getting a second one so I could display the front and back at the same time. 

[sqidd]

4 hours ago, slaginpit said:

I dont know about the Americanos and Rich Asians but if this Wuhu Flu is anything serious we are going to see a slowing economy. And worse a non-existent export market. 

 

 

I got the Flu in a really bad way the day after I un-boxed mine. And I just don't get sick. Ever. I take incredibly good care of myself, eat a psychotically focused diet, etc, etc, etc. I haven't had so much as a could in it has to be 5-6yrs now.

Coincidence? Probably. Did I have a little "pandemic freak out" there for a moment. Yep, sure did.

Anyone know where these are built and ShowZ is? I would be curious if it's in the quarantine zone.

I've got two more boxes from ShowZ that have shown up since. Probably irrational, but I'm a little hesitate to open them up.

[slaginpit]

1 hour ago, sqidd said:

I got the Flu in a really bad way the day after I un-boxed mine. And I just don't get sick. Ever. I take incredibly good care of myself, eat a psychotically focused diet, etc, etc, etc. I haven't had so much as a could in it has to be 5-6yrs now.

Coincidence? Probably. Did I have a little "pandemic freak out" there for a moment. Yep, sure did.

Anyone know where these are built and ShowZ is? I would be curious if it's in the quarantine zone.

I've got two more boxes from ShowZ that have shown up since. Probably irrational, but I'm a little hesitate to open them up.

Some boxes of mine are coming from quarantine zones. Shanghi, Guangzhao. 

When I got the current batch i used medical gloves my N95 mask and i quickly disposed of the boxes and then wiped the figures. 

 

[sqidd]

1 hour ago, slaginpit said:

Some boxes of mine are coming from quarantine zones. Shanghi, Guangzhao. 

When I got the current batch i used medical gloves my N95 mask and i quickly disposed of the boxes and then wiped the figures. 

 

Smart. I have all that stuff. I'm going to do it too. Thanks for planting the seed.

What are you wiping the figures down with? I don't want to "melt" the paint.

[Ryoma]

2 hours ago, sqidd said:

I got the Flu in a really bad way the day after I un-boxed mine. And I just don't get sick. Ever. I take incredibly good care of myself, eat a psychotically focused diet, etc, etc, etc. I haven't had so much as a could in it has to be 5-6yrs now.

Coincidence? Probably. Did I have a little "pandemic freak out" there for a moment. Yep, sure did.

Anyone know where these are built and ShowZ is? I would be curious if it's in the quarantine zone.

I've got two more boxes from ShowZ that have shown up since. Probably irrational, but I'm a little hesitate to open them up.

Don't worry, there is no way you can get infected through any package coming from China. Bacterias can survive only few minutes outside the host they are in. It's impossible for them to survive in an environment such as a card box or something similar. I had a similar issue and looked into it, you know just to be sure. You will be fine.

[sqidd]

1 minute ago, Ryoma said:

Don't worry, there is no way you can get infected through any package coming from China. Bacterias can survive only few minutes outside the host they are in. It's impossible for them to survive in an environment such as a card box or something similar. I had a similar issue and looked into it, you know just to be sure. You will be fine.

Good to know. Thanks

Still wearing gloves though!

[crackpot]

4 hours ago, sqidd said:

I got the Flu in a really bad way the day after I un-boxed mine. And I just don't get sick. Ever. I take incredibly good care of myself, eat a psychotically focused diet, etc, etc, etc. I haven't had so much as a could in it has to be 5-6yrs now.

Coincidence? Probably. Did I have a little "pandemic freak out" there for a moment. Yep, sure did.

Anyone know where these are built and ShowZ is? I would be curious if it's in the quarantine zone.

I've got two more boxes from ShowZ that have shown up since. Probably irrational, but I'm a little hesitate to open them up.

Not really the Corona but I can imagine this is what happened to @sqidd

 

[crackpot]

9 hours ago, slaginpit said:

 

 

 

That's the MC Freedom, right? What's your feedback on that? How does it scale with the official MB Strike Freedom? 

[FattyMoBookyButt]

9 hours ago, slaginpit said:

Outside of the head and neck piece fitting snug into the main torso

Did you take the batteries out? I don't know if they used the wrong battery size, but the stack of batteries in mine was too big for the section they were designed for. The light wasn't impressive enough so I took them out.

[anime52k8]

5 hours ago, Ryoma said:

Don't worry, there is no way you can get infected through any package coming from China. Bacterias can survive only few minutes outside the host they are in. It's impossible for them to survive in an environment such as a card box or something similar. I had a similar issue and looked into it, you know just to be sure. You will be fine.

The Survival times of Viruses varies wildly based on environment and type of virus you're talking about. A typical flu virus is usually less than 24 hours on a hard surface while something like Norovirus can survive several weeks. Coronavirus specifically is a few hours.

[slaginpit]

5 hours ago, sqidd said:

Smart. I have all that stuff. I'm going to do it too. Thanks for planting the seed.

What are you wiping the figures down with? I don't want to "melt" the paint.

I take a lysol wipe and wrap that up around a paper towel to not make it concentrated. So far its had no ill affects on my figures. But I suggest always to test on the inside or small area

[slaginpit]

3 hours ago, crackpot said:

That's the MC Freedom, right? What's your feedback on that? How does it scale with the official MB Strike Freedom? 

Gorgeous. I will do a review today comparing it to the Bandai one

[slaginpit]

2 hours ago, FattyMoBookyButt said:

Did you take the batteries out? I don't know if they used the wrong battery size, but the stack of batteries in mine was too big for the section they were designed for. The light wasn't impressive enough so I took them out.

No I dont really care all that much since i never use the LEDs anyway. I would prefer if they used some kind of luminescent light piping...This who think of light up gimming are pretty pointless since if you leave them on for a period of 10 min or longer they start to burn out the batteries. Its better to have those new stands where the batteries run off wireless charge.  A good example of this was (forgot the name) back to the future model that had a mag base that would also provide the power to the leds and stay on with touch controls to turn them off. 

[crackpot]

44 minutes ago, slaginpit said:

Gorgeous. I will do a review today comparing it to the Bandai one

Nice. If you can, I'd like to see it side by side the MB Freedom and  Strike Freedom.

[Ryoma]

56 minutes ago, anime52k8 said:

The Survival times of Viruses varies wildly based on environment and type of virus you're talking about. A typical flu virus is usually less than 24 hours on a hard surface while something like Norovirus can survive several weeks. Coronavirus specifically is a few hours.

Thanks, i was referring specifically to the Corona virus, sorry i did not make that clear. That's actually the only virus i looked into because i honestly got a little scared too(i do have asthma so although the death rate is still pretty low 2 or 3% i think it wouldn't be very pleasant for me to catch it  ).

[Ryoma]

6 hours ago, sqidd said:

Good to know. Thanks

Still wearing gloves though!

Ah ah, me too!

[sqidd]

52 minutes ago, slaginpit said:

No I dont really care all that much since i never use the LEDs anyway. I would prefer if they used some kind of luminescent light piping...This who think of light up gimming are pretty pointless since if you leave them on for a period of 10 min or longer they start to burn out the batteries. Its better to have those new stands where the batteries run off wireless charge.  A good example of this was (forgot the name) back to the future model that had a mag base that would also provide the power to the leds and stay on with touch controls to turn them off. 

I can't find the motivation to play with light gimmicks. If I did I would turn them on once, say "Ooo, neat". And never turn them on again. Now if I could get every toy with a light gimmick to light up at the same time with the touch of one remote control, I'd be into that. That could be done obviously. Not for the effort I'm willing to put in or time I have for though.

I played with the gimmicks on one toy. The Battle Damaged Ultimetal Optimus Prime. And that was just to make sure everything worked on such a pricey toy before I left good feedback on it. The batteries are back out of it now and I'll probably never put them in again.

[sqidd]

16 minutes ago, crackpot said:

Nice. If you can, I'd like to see it side by side the MB Freedom and  Strike Freedom.

I've got a MB Strike Freedom Soul Blue. What do you want to see it next to?

[no3Ljm]

24 minutes ago, sqidd said:

I've got a MB Strike Freedom Soul Blue. What do you want to see it next to?

I think crackpot wants to see any of the MB Freedoms besides the MC Freedom figure based on slaginpit's post above.