Bandai 1/60 DX Chogokin Macross Plus YF-21

[treatment]

  On 6/28/2024 at 3:59 AM, Chronocidal said:

Yeah, my shipping for this is going to be massive anyhow, since I'm packing it in with a whole pile of other things I've been waiting on.

I was HOPING the HG YF-21 would make it (along with a couple of other kits that were on backorder), but I'm done waiting on that one.  Maybe I'll get it once more things come in.

This though?  Really hurts my brain.

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Assuming you're using credit-card instead of paypal, do you not use Yen instead for your payment-currency at hlj?

Should have better rate if you use Yen as your payment-currency.

 

 

 

Edited June 28, 2024 by treatment

[Chronocidal]

  On 6/28/2024 at 4:08 AM, treatment said:

 

Do you not use JPY for your payment-currency at hlj?

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Oh, I do, and I'm not going to use FedEx anyhow.  I'm just laughing at how their "economy" shipping is more expensive than the priority option.  

This isn't even going to be the total, I just tested a couple of items.. the actual box is going to be much bigger I think.

[treatment]

  On 6/28/2024 at 4:14 AM, Chronocidal said:

Oh, I do, and I'm not going to use FedEx anyhow.  I'm just laughing at how their "economy" shipping is more expensive than the priority option.  

This isn't even going to be the total, I just tested a couple of items.. the actual box is going to be much bigger I think.

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I see.

fwiw, I was a bit surprised that DHL was a quite cheaper than either FedEx options at hlj earlier.  

Usually it's the other way around.

Not sure if the pricing scales up respectively as well when shipping lotsa stuff like you seem to be contemplating right now.

 

Edited June 28, 2024 by treatment

[Chronocidal]

  On 6/28/2024 at 4:27 AM, treatment said:

I see.

fwiw, I was a bit surprised that DHL was a quite cheaper than either FedEx options at hlj earlier.  

Usually it's the other way around.

Not sure if the pricing scales up as well when shipping lotsa stuff like you seem to be contemplating right now.

 

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It kind of depends.  I avoid DHL because of issues getting things to me here (no local hub), but I tend to shuffle items in and out of the box to find the best deal, and generally EMS comes out the best for me.  It's usually a shuffle between paying for weight vs volume, and knowing that HLJ has a few specific sizes of box to use.

[treatment]

  On 6/28/2024 at 12:31 AM, oshanmacross said:

Oh, now I get it!
For some reason when this was first announced I must have read it wrong, or maybe it was bad translation.
They TOTALLY could have thrown an extra fold booster in there...

 

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They totally could.

But this is Bandai.

They don't even include a spare head-laser with this DX, per Graham's report.

Not sure if it even has a spare lock-pin...

 

 

 

[26662]

  On 6/27/2024 at 3:34 PM, treatment said:

 

Check your hlj-account.

Mine got charged/pw-ed about 5pm JST:

 

 

6550y for DHL to US is relatively steep since no HLJ shipping-discounts this time.

Expecting delivery early next week (Monday/Tuesday).

Hopefully this Saturday the soonest...

 

edit/update: SHIPPED!

 

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Happy for you and everyone else who got an in-stock notice.  I ordered one from HLJ really late and haven’t gotten a notice yet, so I’m guessing HLJ fills orders by FIFO.   #respect

[26662]

  On 6/28/2024 at 8:42 AM, 26662 said:

Happy for you and everyone else who got an in-stock notice.  I ordered one from HLJ really late and haven’t gotten a notice yet, so I’m guessing HLJ fills orders by FIFO.   #respect

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Does HLJ stalk these forums?  Got my notice w/i 45 minutes after posting.  God bless HLJ!

 

Edited June 28, 2024 by 26662
De-identify moi

[Test_Pilot_2]

Still waiting on AmiAmi here. It'll probably be next week at this point.

[MKT]

  On 6/27/2024 at 3:01 PM, Graham said:

A word of caution, the tip of the head later was slightly bent on mine in the box and as there is a panel line there, it looks like it would be easy to break off the tip. And there is no spare head laser in the box. The instruction manual even warns you to be careful with the head laser.

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Hopefully the problem is not widespread. Someone already have their’s broken out of box.
 

 

Edit: Another report of broken head laser.

Edited June 28, 2024 by MKT
Added another case

[m0n5t3r]

Ouch! You would think Bandai would've learned by now. They detached the nozzle flaps but not the head laser. 

[Lolicon]

Seriously? After all the releases with detachable head lasers/fins to avoid breakage, they go back to this crap? 

I dislike Bandai, but stuff like this reminds me that I don't dislike them enough. 

[MKT]

It’s annoying that valks without spare head lasers are the one that tends to break.

[enphily]

the only shot from hacchaka for now

[MKT]

3rd case reported, folks.

[PointBlankSniper]

This is rapidly becoming a meticulously designed nightmare scenario...

[m0n5t3r]

  On 6/28/2024 at 1:46 PM, enphily said:

the only shot from hacchaka for now

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Those long legs made me do a double take. I thought the 21 looked taller than the 19 but when I focus on their heads and shoulders, they're just about the same height.

[Froy]

  On 6/28/2024 at 1:06 PM, Lolicon said:

Seriously? After all the releases with detachable head lasers/fins to avoid breakage, they go back to this crap? 

I dislike Bandai, but stuff like this reminds me that I don't dislike them enough. 

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And it is not just past releases, even this release has parts that got to be attached out of the box. The exhaust fins.

[enphily]

  On 6/27/2024 at 3:15 PM, enphily said:

fighter and gerwalk review from hobby watch

https://hobby.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/review/1601938.html

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part 2 https://hobby.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/review/1602584.html

Edited June 28, 2024 by enphily

[treatment]

  On 6/28/2024 at 11:53 AM, MKT said:

Hopefully the problem is not widespread. Someone already have their’s broken out of box.
 

 

Edit: Another report of broken head laser.

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  On 6/28/2024 at 12:56 PM, m0n5t3r said:

Ouch! You would think Bandai would've learned by now. They detached the nozzle flaps but not the head laser. 

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  On 6/28/2024 at 1:06 PM, Lolicon said:

Seriously? After all the releases with detachable head lasers/fins to avoid breakage, they go back to this crap? 

I dislike Bandai, but stuff like this reminds me that I don't dislike them enough. 

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  On 6/28/2024 at 1:46 PM, MKT said:

It’s annoying that valks without spare head lasers are the one that tends to break.

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  On 6/28/2024 at 1:54 PM, MKT said:

3rd case reported, folks.

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Exactly like the YF-19 DX antenna-gate breakage shenanigans.  Now also present with the YF-21 DX !!!

Guess Bandai is still really very high on their ass-ymmetry trip...

 

[Actar]

  On 6/28/2024 at 3:25 PM, enphily said:

part 2 https://hobby.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/review/1602584.html

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I can't wait to get the figure in hand to see if the hinges can be finagled into something a little bit more palatable.

[Chronocidal]

Is there some place to go and just yell incoherently about how terrible this is where Bandai will pay attention to it?

Or do we just have to hope the Japanese customers will do that for us?

[MKT]

  On 6/28/2024 at 3:25 PM, enphily said:

part 2 https://hobby.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/review/1602584.html

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Somehow, this is one of best looking Battroid pic so far as per article.

But maddeningly, all the Battroid pics are taken whilst hung on the stand.

[borgified]

Just out of curiosity, isn't there a Shapeways replacement for the broken 21 antenna  (if it does happen like the 19)?   

[Froy]

  On 6/28/2024 at 5:09 PM, Chronocidal said:

Is there some place to go and just yell incoherently about how terrible this is where Bandai will pay attention to it?

Or do we just have to hope the Japanese customers will do that for us?

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I'd be curious about what could the percentage of fans getting this birds be among all people who get them.

Seeing how many reviewers just get the toys for content generation sake.

How many get them just because and so on.

[Chronocidal]

I'm not even necessarily thinking of just the broken antenna.  I'd like to see how many Japanese fans are as disappointed by the compromises in this design as many of us are here.

[jvmacross]

  On 6/28/2024 at 5:09 PM, Chronocidal said:

Is there some place to go and just yell incoherently about how terrible this is where Bandai will pay attention to it?

Or do we just have to hope the Japanese customers will do that for us?

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It's a WWM release....the US Bandai site won't know where you bought it from until you start asking for part replacements....so you can start yelling at them for now....

I forgot if I have two or three of these incoming.....it'll be extremely disappointing to find out I've been Bandai'd....on each order! 

Guess I'll need to do with my DX -21's what I do now need to do with my KC Macross merch...open for inspection....

 

It'd be ironic if the US allotment gets rectified to eliminate the potential antenna damage....or do they all get produced-packaged at the same time but just take longer to get here due to the proverbial Chinese slow boat?

Edited June 28, 2024 by jvmacross

[HardlyNever]

Well, it sucks this looks to be coming out worse than anticipated, especially with the damage straight out of the box.

Seems like my theory that this will be a shelf warmer available on discount might come true.  Now it's a question of whether I even want to buy one at a discount.

[Mog]

Wonder how hard it would be to Frankenstein the legs off this and place them onto the Yamato and then replace the Bandai’s short bellyplates/hip-guards with the longer Yammie ones?

[jenius]

Lol, where there's a will, there's a way, but I suspect it would be significant effort and compromises. Arcadia should swoop in and show Bandai what's up with a Yammy V2.

[Chronocidal]

  On 6/28/2024 at 8:44 PM, jenius said:

Lol, where there's a will, there's a way, but I suspect it would be significant effort and compromises. Arcadia should swoop in and show Bandai what's up with a Yammy V2.

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I'd even take more of the V1. Just give me a PF version to match my YF-19.

[MacrossJunkie]

Wow, that's crazy they packaged it like that. A thin rigid plastic piece at the highest point in the package, protected by a flexible plastic bubble. Gee, who could have predicted that this could happen if anything should get placed on top of the box?

Should have just kept the head laser detachable and separate in the package. 

Also, I still think those arms are too small and scrawny. While the Yamato version needed Omega Pants, Bandai's needs Omega... sleeves?

[Chronocidal]

  On 6/29/2024 at 12:25 AM, MacrossJunkie said:

Wow, that's crazy they packaged it like that. A thin rigid plastic piece at the highest point in the package, protected by a flexible plastic bubble. Gee, who could have predicted that this could happen if anything should get placed on top of the box?

Should have just kept the head laser detachable and separate in the package. 

Also, I still think those arms are too small and scrawny. While the Yamato version needed Omega Pants, Bandai's needs Omega... sleeves?

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Yeah, this.  It's all the more painful because bigger arms would have drastically reduced the badonkish look as well, by moving the tails further back.  

There is a ton of space behind the arms that could have been used by more arm.

Edited June 29, 2024 by Chronocidal

[davidwhangchoi]

  On 6/28/2024 at 1:54 PM, MKT said:

3rd case reported, folks.

 

 

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This is some grade A bull....

Bandai... Bandai....

 

now i have to break my misb like I had to do when the 19's had those reports of broken head lasers....

I hope where i purchased it from has a good damage return policy 

[tekering]

  On 6/29/2024 at 12:25 AM, MacrossJunkie said:

A thin rigid plastic piece at the highest point in the package, protected by a flexible plastic bubble.

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Mine's intact, thankfully. 😌

  On 6/28/2024 at 9:54 PM, Chronocidal said:

Just give me a PF version to match my YF-19.

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You can always do it yourself...

My Yamato is a little more restrained than the tampo on Bandai's. 😅

[Chronocidal]

I've never wanted to risk screwing up the one I have, so maybe I'll just have to track down a second one of these days.  Maybe we'll get lucky and Arcadia will re-release it once the noise from the Bandai one blows over.  I'm curious how well it will fare on the markets.