treatment Posted April 23 Posted April 23 (edited) HLJ re-opens pre-ordering for the Arcadia 1/60 Roy and Hikaru Strike VF-1S (both non-PF), as of this posting: Arcadia 1/60 Strike Roy (non-PF): https://www.hlj.com/1-60-scale-completely-transformed-vf-1s-strike-valkyrie-roy-focker-special-movie-ver-aca82166 Arcadia 1/60 Strike Hikaru (non-PF): https://www.hlj.com/1-60-scale-complete-transformation-vf-1s-strike-valkyrie-hikaru-ichijo-boarding-machine-movie-ver-reissue-aca82131-2# update/edit: now on Order Stop status again as of this update/edit: If you missed out again, try ordering them again during scheduled release-date... Edited April 23 by treatment updated Quote
26662 Posted April 23 Posted April 23 1 hour ago, treatment said: HLJ re-opens pre-ordering for the Arcadia 1/60 Roy and Hikaru Strike VF-1S (both non-PF), as of this posting: Arcadia 1/60 Strike Roy (non-PF): https://www.hlj.com/1-60-scale-completely-transformed-vf-1s-strike-valkyrie-roy-focker-special-movie-ver-aca82166 Arcadia 1/60 Strike Hikaru (non-PF): https://www.hlj.com/1-60-scale-complete-transformation-vf-1s-strike-valkyrie-hikaru-ichijo-boarding-machine-movie-ver-reissue-aca82131-2# Can anyone speak to the quality of these? I swore off Bandai’s HMRs for a number of reasons and these look like those HMRs (or the early 2000’s Yamatos). Quote
no3Ljm Posted April 23 Posted April 23 10 minutes ago, 26662 said: Can anyone speak to the quality of these? I swore off Bandai’s HMRs for a number of reasons and these look like those HMRs (or the early 2000’s Yamatos). One of the best. You can also check @jenius' in-depth review for both Yamato and Arcadia VF-1 releases here: https://anymoon.com/blog/?p=4599 Quote
MKT Posted April 23 Posted April 23 (edited) 8 hours ago, 26662 said: Can anyone speak to the quality of these? I swore off Bandai’s HMRs for a number of reasons and these look like those HMRs (or the early 2000’s Yamatos). Definitely check out the link @no3Ljm posted. I'll just say that for a 16 years old mold, the tolerances & precision beat many toys today, including the DX, and that qualifies the Arcadia as a legendary mold in my view. It may not have the heft of a DX for its size since it has very little metal, but the plastics are strong, withstands many transformation cycles (though there are one or two areas that need caution less they break), and the joints won't really go weak over time. Edited April 23 by MKT Quote
Radioguy Posted April 23 Posted April 23 Not doing PF on these either after the SDF news has me dumbfounded. I mean, Arcadia quality is the best at 1/60 scale, but if you don't even want people to think of considering Valkyrie Factory KOs as cheap alternatives, why not go back to the PF versions that they won't do to seal the deal? Are the added tampos really that cost-prohibitive? Quote
Sanity is Optional Posted April 23 Posted April 23 8 minutes ago, Radioguy said: Not doing PF on these either after the SDF news has me dumbfounded. I mean, Arcadia quality is the best at 1/60 scale, but if you don't even want people to think of considering Valkyrie Factory KOs as cheap alternatives, why not go back to the PF versions that they won't do to seal the deal? Are the added tampos really that cost-prohibitive? I don't think it's the cost of the tampo as much as the added cost on the figures makes them real shelf-warmers. Moreso for some valks than others, but who here remembers how long the Max+Milia premiums and the VF-4 premium sat around at HLJ with constant discounts? Quote
Radioguy Posted April 23 Posted April 23 1 minute ago, Sanity is Optional said: Moreso for some valks than others, but who here remembers how long the Max+Milia premiums and the VF-4 premium sat around at HLJ with constant discounts? I'd seen them fluctuate, but what was the lowest ever HLJ price? PF Max and Mirya with super parts are still listed there, but nowhere near this Max/Roy price right now. One might wonder if that price difference is what the PF cost is, but that's difficult to accept. Quote
Sanity is Optional Posted April 23 Posted April 23 2 minutes ago, Radioguy said: I'd seen them fluctuate, but what was the lowest ever HLJ price? PF Max and Mirya with super parts are still listed there, but nowhere near this Max/Roy price right now. One might wonder if that price difference is what the PF cost is, but that's difficult to accept. Based on Arcadia's statements, it actually is what they cost, plus what is likely a larger percentage share for the vendor to justify them carrying something that sells slower/ is a higher risk to stock. The curse of being a smaller business: Smaller volume means higher per-unit production costs Smaller company means less bargaining power with stores, less marketing. Lower consumer demand, no "premium" branding due to less well known company All of the above means that vendors want higher profit margins. As a (rectally extracted) example, say a figure sells from Bandai to HLJ at ¥10,000 and HLJ charges ¥12,000, HLJ has a profit margin on the sale of 20%. Being a Bandai toy, it will likely sell well, and HLJ anticipates it won't cost them much in time/storage to make that 20%. A similar toy might cost Arcadia ¥12,000 to make. To get the same profit margin the MSRP would have to be ¥14,400. However, if HLJ expects that it will take 2x as long to sell, and is more of a risk for them to stock, they'll likely want a higher profit margin, say 40% which puts the MSRP at ¥16,800. So the Arcadia one ends up being way more expensive. Quote
davidwhangchoi Posted April 23 Posted April 23 2 hours ago, MKT said: I'll just say that for a 16 year old mold, the tolerances & precision beats many toys today, including the DX, which qualify as a legendary mold in my view. It may not have the heft of a DX for its size, as it has very little metal. But the plastics is strong, withstands many transformations (though there are one or two areas that need caution less they break), and the joints won't really go weak over time. Quote
Lolicon Posted April 23 Posted April 23 Arcadia's VF-1 (inherited from Yamato) is the best VF-1 toy. Quote
Slave IV Posted April 23 Posted April 23 12 hours ago, Sanity is Optional said: Based on Arcadia's statements, it actually is what they cost, plus what is likely a larger percentage share for the vendor to justify them carrying something that sells slower/ is a higher risk to stock. The curse of being a smaller business: Smaller volume means higher per-unit production costs Smaller company means less bargaining power with stores, less marketing. Lower consumer demand, no "premium" branding due to less well known company All of the above means that vendors want higher profit margins. As a (rectally extracted) example, say a figure sells from Bandai to HLJ at ¥10,000 and HLJ charges ¥12,000, HLJ has a profit margin on the sale of 20%. Being a Bandai toy, it will likely sell well, and HLJ anticipates it won't cost them much in time/storage to make that 20%. A similar toy might cost Arcadia ¥12,000 to make. To get the same profit margin the MSRP would have to be ¥14,400. However, if HLJ expects that it will take 2x as long to sell, and is more of a risk for them to stock, they'll likely want a higher profit margin, say 40% which puts the MSRP at ¥16,800. So the Arcadia one ends up being way more expensive. Echoing that the Arcadia 1/60 is excellent and still I'm many ways better than the DX. To me, the original 1/55, Yamato 1/48, Yamacadia 1/60, DX and HMR VF-1's all have merit and claim to being the best VF-1s ever made in different ways and all still worth collecting to this day. The point quoted above and regarding stock sitting on clearance is simple but seemingly overlooked by people always asking about prices and "just making more". There just isn't that much demand and profit in Macross for companies to be making more than we are already getting of these things. Get what you can when you can and if you missed out, high aftermarket prices are going to be normal when stock runs out and the total amount of products is so low compared to other similar products from much more popular franchises. Quote
jenius Posted April 23 Posted April 23 Every Macross fan needs at least one Yamato or Arcadia 1/60 v2. It is still great, no doubt. Quote
Radioguy Posted April 24 Posted April 24 Yeah, I only cited the KOs as existing and being a potential threat, but an Arcadia 1/60 is a must have. I'm glad to own a couple. Quote
treatment Posted April 24 Posted April 24 On 4/22/2024 at 8:42 PM, treatment said: HLJ re-opens pre-ordering for the Arcadia 1/60 Roy and Hikaru Strike VF-1S (both non-PF), as of this posting: Arcadia 1/60 Strike Roy (non-PF): https://www.hlj.com/1-60-scale-completely-transformed-vf-1s-strike-valkyrie-roy-focker-special-movie-ver-aca82166 Arcadia 1/60 Strike Hikaru (non-PF): https://www.hlj.com/1-60-scale-complete-transformation-vf-1s-strike-valkyrie-hikaru-ichijo-boarding-machine-movie-ver-reissue-aca82131-2# update/edit: now on Order Stop status again as of this update/edit: If you missed out again, try ordering them again during scheduled release-date... fyi new release date schedule for both is 8/24, per https://arcadia.ac/user_data/news Quote
MisaForever Posted April 25 Posted April 25 18 hours ago, Radioguy said: Yeah, I only cited the KOs as existing and being a potential threat, but an Arcadia 1/60 is a must have. I'm glad to own a couple. There are KOs of Valks? I mean I shouldn't be surprised, just haven't ever come across any online. Quote
no3Ljm Posted April 25 Posted April 25 7 hours ago, MisaForever said: There are KOs of Valks? I mean I shouldn't be surprised, just haven't ever come across any online. Yup, since 2017. Quote
Radioguy Posted April 25 Posted April 25 12 hours ago, MisaForever said: There are KOs of Valks? I mean I shouldn't be surprised, just haven't ever come across any online. Well, KO's of Arcadia VF-1 valks. I think they are still on eBay, and some third-party retailer sites. They are sold under the Valkyrie Factory "brand". More recently, there's another "brand" called FuGu that solicited a VF-1S (presumably from the same Arcadia KO mold) in Jetfire colors to compete with KitzConcept's "God of Flame" VF-1S that tries to attempt the same color scheme. That's garnered some added attention lately. Quote
jvmacross Posted April 25 Author Posted April 25 Any additional "KO" discussion can be posted here....thanks! Quote
Spark-O-Matic Posted April 25 Posted April 25 On 4/24/2024 at 3:01 PM, treatment said: fyi new release date schedule for both is 8/24, per https://arcadia.ac/user_data/news I missed it, the Cell Unicron was released and had to buy it as my preorder came up. got an AmiAmi Email this morning to retry again in August and this time ill order both. Quote
Alex GS Posted April 26 Posted April 26 DX Chogokin VF-31J Super Siegfried link for AmiAmi 17:30 pm local Japan Time https://www.amiami.com/eng/detail?gcode=FIGURE-169262 Quote
sh9000 Posted April 26 Posted April 26 https://www.nin-nin-game.com/en/dx-chogokin/125765-dx-chogokin-macross-do-you-remember-love-vt-1-super-ostrich-limited-edition-bandai-spirits-.html https://hobby-genki.com/en/dx-chogokin/33076-dx-chogokin-vf-31j-supersiegfried-hayate-immelmann-use-revival-ver.html Quote
Shizuka the Cat Posted April 26 Posted April 26 55 minutes ago, Alex GS said: DX Chogokin VF-31J Super Siegfried link for AmiAmi 17:30 pm local Japan Time https://www.amiami.com/eng/detail?gcode=FIGURE-169262 Is this a WWD release? Quote
Alex GS Posted April 26 Posted April 26 https://www.hlj.com/dx-chogokin-vf-31j-super-siegfried-hayate-immelmann-revival-ver-banc664181 Quote
jenius Posted April 26 Posted April 26 (edited) When they sell out, here's another option: https://www.anime-export.com/index.php?product=79875 and this is now live, same price as anime-export, 3000yen more expensive than HLJ https://hobby-genki.com/en/dx-chogokin/33076-dx-chogokin-vf-31j-supersiegfried-hayate-immelmann-use-revival-ver-4573102664181.html Edited April 26 by jenius Quote
MKT Posted April 26 Posted April 26 Oh wow still available at the usual places.. No fighting F5 and getting cart-jacked! Quote
treatment Posted April 26 Posted April 26 Bandai still really refusing to bundle the FPU and Reaction Missiles to complete it, huh? Well, best opton right now is to just wait for it to show up on Amzn-US. Then wait a bit more for the inevitable amzn-discounting to try to move it... Quote
Shizuka the Cat Posted April 26 Posted April 26 (edited) VF-31J still available at AmiAmi.... though I think that is possibly due to a site glitch. I noticed that, when using either Chrome or Opera browsers, when I tried checking out my order, the browser would bug out (Chrome would give me that "Oh Snap" error message, for example) repeatedly and never let me finish checking out the order. However, I was successfully able to place an order using Firefox. Not sure if this site/browser issue is happening to other people on AmiAmi, but if it is, that would explain why AmiAmi's pre-order is still open. Edited April 26 by Shizuka the Cat Quote
no3Ljm Posted April 26 Posted April 26 1 hour ago, Shizuka the Cat said: VF-31J still available at AmiAmi.... though I think that is possibly due to a site glitch. I noticed that, when using either Chrome or Opera browsers, when I tried checking out my order, the browser would bug out (Chrome would give me that "Oh Snap" error message, for example) repeatedly and never let me finish checking out the order. However, I was successfully able to place an order using Firefox. Not sure if this site/browser issue is happening to other people on AmiAmi, but if it is, that would explain why AmiAmi's pre-order is still open. I'm currently browsing using Safari. Most of the VF-31J links posted above are still has the item open. Only HLJ is sold out. Quote
Alex GS Posted April 26 Posted April 26 1 hour ago, Shizuka the Cat said: VF-31J still available at AmiAmi.... though I think that is possibly due to a site glitch. I noticed that, when using either Chrome or Opera browsers, when I tried checking out my order, the browser would bug out (Chrome would give me that "Oh Snap" error message, for example) repeatedly and never let me finish checking out the order. However, I was successfully able to place an order using Firefox. Not sure if this site/browser issue is happening to other people on AmiAmi, but if it is, that would explain why AmiAmi's pre-order is still open. I don't think is a bug in AmiAmi webpage even in HLJ the PO was up for a while, my opinion is that this reissue is not as appealing for customers as other Valks because if you look for the original VF 31J you can find it kinda easily and in some cases below MSRP, even in new condition, so there are plenty of VF 31j outhere. I was really surprised Bandai decided to release this again, when this Valk releases all other VF 31J Hayate will go even lower price tag. Quote
sh9000 Posted April 26 Posted April 26 17 hours ago, sh9000 said: https://www.nin-nin-game.com/en/dx-chogokin/125765-dx-chogokin-macross-do-you-remember-love-vt-1-super-ostrich-limited-edition-bandai-spirits-.html The DX VF-31J Super Hayate Revival is still available to preorder from Nin-Nin-Game for the cheapest price. The link says Super Ostrich but the listing is for the 31J Super Hayate Revival. Quote
Alex GS Posted April 26 Posted April 26 bbts is up https://www.bigbadtoystore.com/Product/VariationDetails/275469?o=10&utm_source=Marketing&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=marketing&utm_content= Quote
no3Ljm Posted April 26 Posted April 26 Adding Entertainment Earth for US$322.99 (with Free USA Shipping). https://www.entertainmentearth.com/product/macross-delta-vf31j-supersiegfried-hayate-immelmann-use-revival-version-dx-chogokin-action-figure/blfbas66418 Quote
no3Ljm Posted April 27 Posted April 27 31 minutes ago, davidwhangchoi said: 320? US prices ....hard pass Yeah. Even under the WWM banner, it's still cheaper getting directly from Japan. Quote
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