slaginpit

4 hours ago, Alphahorizon said:

I just saw that. The ratings (at least on ShowZ seem to elude to) from the buyers, show it being worse then the first iteration? I don't have either so i wouldn't know.

I have it I have zero issues 

For the price its not bad 

the only thing...if you notice in the pics is they have a different stand

thats because it doesnt have the adapter to put it on the stand 

https://showzstore.com/metal-club-musclebear-mc-1-100-zgmf-x10a-freedom-gundam-version-20_p1132.html

Get it now!! 

On 5/12/2020 at 8:47 PM, mikeszekely said:

Warpath is, I think, the last minibot that I don't have on my MP shelf.  I was waiting to see how the reviews for Fans Toys' new one was, and it sounds like they can be summed up as "the leg fell off."  Eh, I can live with partsforming, but I prefer it be intentional.  So that led me to look at the alternatives, and a fortunate side-effect of a Fans Toys release is that those alternatives are pretty cheap if you don't mind a used one.  So I picked up this guy: Badcube's Wardog.

Y'know, for a minibot Wardog isn't exactly mini.  I could charitably say he's around the size of an MP car, or I could less-charitably say he's actually slightly taller than Bluestreak here.  Regardless of where he was meant to fit on the scale chart, though, I think he was depicted as the same size as the carbots enough in the cartoon that he can get away with it here.

Aesthetically I think he fits the Hasui-era.  I was put off at first by the tank treads dangling from his arms, but I quickly realized that they're cartoon accurate.  Indeed, pretty much all the cartoon details are there- treads on his arms, treads on his feet, silver in his torso, silver on his shoulders, otherwise mostly red, the u-shaped indent on his pelvis, but he's also got details like rivets, lights, and paneling that you'd expect on a robot that turns into a tank.  Some more fair complaints might be that he's a little chunkier than he was shown to be in the cartoon, and he is sporting a bit of a backpack.

The G1 minibots didn't come with accessories, they weren't often shown using weapons in the cartoon, and you'd think a guy with a tank barrel sticking out of his chest really wouldn't need one.  That didn't stop Badcube from including some accessories for Wardog, though.  You get a kind of strange sci-fi gun, and a large chunk of partsforming with a handle.

Wardog's head is on a hinged swivel.  He can turn it and look up a good deal, but nothing really down and no sideways tilt.  His shoulders are a bit of a problem.  They're connected to his torso via ball joints, and on my copy, either through wear or through poor initial tolerances, they're very loose going outward.  He can at least hold a forward/backward rotation.  There's also a ratcheted hinge inside the shoulder, which allows for better lateral movement when the arm isn't totally perpendicular to the body, but it's really for transformation and it's really only good for a click or two.  His biceps swivel, and his elbows bend 90 degrees.  His wrists swivel, and his hands are just like a carbots with a fixed thumb, all the fingers molded together as one piece, and a single hinge at the base of the fingers.  His waist has a ratcheted swivel.  His hips go forward a little under 90 degrees and backward about 60 degrees on a ratchet, and a softer ratchet allows for a little under 90 degrees of spread.  His thighs swivel around the hip joint, and his ratcheted knees bend 90 degrees.  His feet have two hinges and a ball joint, and between them he can tilt his feet up and down and his ankle pivots 90 degrees.

He can hold both of his accessories using the fairly typical method of sticking a tab on the handle into the slot in his palm.  It's a bit of a pain, though, because the shape of the handles don't give you a lot of room to work with; you kind of have to slip the handle around his fingers then close them so they push the handles into his palms.  

If you don't care for Warpath to be walking around a gun and a riot shield you could leave them in the box, sure, although the shield has a role to play in alt mode.  So if you don't want to box them you can fold the shield up, stick the gun on it, and then attach the whole thing to his backpack.  However, his backpack is already fairly big, and with the shield on it it's pretty obnoxious.  Worse, it's actually enough weight far enough back on his body that he starts to have trouble balancing even with those huge feet.

Wardog somehow manages to get bigger as he transforms, coming out much larger than an MP car.  If there's one crowd that should please it's the alt-mode scale crowd, because an M551 Sheridan isn't a big tank, but it's still bigger than a car.

Much has been made over the years about Wardog's engineering and how transforming this guy is supposed to be a nightmare.  Honestly, I think those stories have been greatly exaggerated; my copy arrived in bot mode without instructions, and since it seems like all the big Youtubers went from tank to bot I wound up just winging it.  Now, I'm not going to tell you it's all rainbows and roses.  A lot of his parts are on armatures and sliders, and transforming him really involves dislodging and unfolding all his parts into a flayed, floppy mess then moving them around and locking everything back into place, and that always seems to involve a bit of finagling and massaging to get everything lined up right and tabbed in.  Despite that I didn't really encounter any tolerance issues, nor was I ever really unsure where something was supposed to go or how it moved.  Even the shoulders, which are often cited as one of the more difficult parts, really aren't that difficult once you understand what you're supposed to do, and on the whole I think Wardog is much easier to transform than pretty much figure Fans Toys has released for a movie/Season 3 character.

As I mentioned, Wardog turns into an M551 Sheridan tank, and it looks pretty good.  I know some reviewers complained that the tank barrel seems small, but it's actually pretty accurate.  There's lots of riveted detail.  The lights, driver's window, and hooks on the front are pretty accurate.  The treads even seem to have the correct number of wheels (five big ones, two small ones).  And in a cartoon-accurate fashion he's mostly red but he's got a large silver section behind the turret.   I think the tank might look a little better with a machine gun on top of the turret and maybe some smoke launchers on the sides, but then I suppose he'd be less cartoon-accurate.

The turret can rotate; it actually uses the ratcheted waist joint to move.  The barrel can only move up and down a little, though.  There are no wheels under the treads so he doesn't roll.

Now about that partsforming.  The shield actually forms the bottom of the tank, and the gun can still store on it.  It gives him a very clean underside and helps solidify his tank mode, to the point that you can almost miss the fact that it transforms.  If you really wanted to leave it and the gun in the box, though, you can.  The bottom won't be as clean, but that's not a huge deal.  More concerning to me is that it'll leave some minor gaps you can see through under the sides.

So Wardog... well, he's an older figure now.  And with what Takara is doing today maybe we can overlook his backpack.  The alt mode is very good, and the robot mode is a little chunky but better than I first though, at least aesthetically (although I could have used a lot more paint and a lot less bare red and gray plastic).  I think I'd be totally satisfied with this figure if not for the shoulders.  I mean, with all the sturdier hinges and ratchets used on the rest of the figure it's really baffling that they used such crappy ball joints there.  And while I don't think his engineering is as bad as its reputation I do wonder if it's a tad more complicated than it really needed to be.  That makes it a bit difficult to really recommend Wardog.  There's something about him that just screams, "I'm a placeholder!"  If there's one thing that Wardog's really got going for him it's that FT's doesn't look like that slam dunk to replace him that we expected it to be.

I know FT...FTs!!!!! are nice figures but i really prefer this version 

? the pics are coming off as gold not silver...

This is such a great photo

do people know the shoulder skirts can attach to the back as the back plate guards. i dont see anyone knowing it does this 

2 hours ago, Alphahorizon said:

Yeah, I should have clarified. But I do have the Motor Nuclear, first and pre ordered the second. Saw the new picts released a few days back for the gold, and like what I see.

 

Seriously F Bandai. I have a couple of the Metal Builds and can say they feel way more fragile then most of the third party versions I have gotten. I hope the second Motor Nuclear is released. Still butthurt about Metal Club. 

YES

13 hours ago, Alphahorizon said:

Looks cool indeed. I saw that they have put a lot of Devil Hunters out on re order from ShowZ. I am not familiar with the line. I know there are 2 releases so far with 5 more from what I gather. Anyone here have those 2 releases and care to speak on it?

The White and Gold Dragons are based on the Barbatos frame. So are these. By using these as the base frame they are able to escape the IP police but I heard the next to fall are these guys so they better push these out as fast as they can 

This review makes the paint scheme better than the chromed look 

yeah I now know what bugs me about New Ages SW...Its got to goddam waist 

really sucks that TungMung was shut down as it was the superior movie SW...New Age increased its price point knowing this 

lol talk about cognitive dissonance. 230 plus dollars yeah easy pass 

8 hours ago, Test_Pilot_2 said:

Thinking of dropping some cash to grab some of these before they're all gone... Particularly the Red Comet K, the white dragon, the sazabi, and the G.Tetra...

Is the ShowZ store the place to do that, or what? Would it be prudent, given the circumstances? I imagine y'all have a better idea than I on this.

after they come back 

On 4/29/2020 at 5:05 PM, Alphahorizon said:

Maybe if they were faster at shipping out their goods. Even before this whole covid-19 mess happened. Metal Club seems to be slow to start

exactly but also but during this period why shut down peoples ability to make any profit....

On 4/29/2020 at 12:13 PM, SuperHobo said:

Here's small article that describes the Metal club raid: https://ggmara.blogspot.com/2020/04/3600.html

Man, 5600 completed units were seized. It sucks most of these will probably be destroyed. Who knows whoever is in charge of destroying them might flip them for cheap. 

On the bright side, that 3P Sinanju's 2nd batch made it out and actually put it in actual packaging this time. Hopefully, they worked out some of the build kinks too. 

 

 

No problems with mine....

7 hours ago, FattyMoBookyButt said:

Did you get an incoming notice for Yellow Dragon or are you trying to stay ahead of the curve? 

I agree, it's worth it to pay for the shipping. Otherwise you're going to be paying ebay mark-ups (and there's always the rogue seller suspicions floating around my head until the item shows up on my doorstep) or US webshop mark-ups...if they stock them. I bought a few items that were located in the US with the ebay markup this week because I know they're going to be hard to get going forward.

We've, or at least I, have been spoiled over the last couple years with cheap goods straight from China. Things are changing and that's just the way it's going to be for a bit.

I would normally pay the full amount after  the first few chinese review videos go up but not a lot of them right now on youtube so im not paying up front for him only for the Gerbera. And im still waiting for my 30 dollar DHL notice of payment required. Again that same guy told me there are issues to get the Yellow Dragon from factory to shipping point..So im not sure we will even see it this year...

2 minutes ago, SuperHobo said:

How much was the extra shipping on the Gerbera Tetra? 

30 

2 hours ago, SuperHobo said:

Damn. While I only ever bought a 00 raiser from metal club, I appreciated them being around for folks who missed out on the official release and not wanting to pay astronomical secondary market prices. Bandai being quite aggressive as of late, first it was the ceast and desist to mo show, then it was the stop of  KO MG kits, then the metal build digimon company, now metal club is under fire. 

Is JiangGao the same as metal club or are they a different group? 

JG is different, I think they are the same designers from MC...not too sure. 

And yes while I understand the whole Bandai IP thingy...I get it....But phuck em. Their prices on Macross crap has made many retailers shy away from carrying it. Their bandai stuff is way over-priced...Takara is now guilty of this too. And the quality is sub par too. for Example

The SOC/FIgurarts HB MK2 was absolute crap. It sold for more than the first Hulkbuster and was just crap. 

I dont have it but i watch many videos to get enough from that the Nugundam 1/60 is trash. Its a fancy statue that you can pose a little bit but for me sometimes I want that dynamic pose. 1000 dollars??? Do people realize HOW CHEAP it is to manufab these things. Even on SHOWZ we are overpaying for the KOs by about 20-30% and that included the Black Mamba and Weijiang Mold Fix and paint app changes on the KO transformers 

The prices are obscene and even the Hot Toys are just getting stupid. Since I was laid off from the Telco Company I worked at in Sept '19 and no i cant even find a job due to this lockdown thing I have been selling off parts of my collection ...and the secondary market is full of cheap bastards. You WONT get what you paid most of the time. Transformers even the MP line with the box and all dont hold their value at all. So...buy a KO their value will go up...HOT TOYS KO buy that too. 

LEGO lol some of the cheapest Arseholes on the planet. 60 Year old cucked adults staring at the front window just messing with the glass with their salvating. I was selling my New Lego UCS Falcon with the box and every thing and the stand i bought...couldnt get 800 for it. I bought it new for 1100 with the tax...got rid of it for 650. I was shocked how much I got for my used MG kits and MB gundams. But you wont get those stupid secondary market prices. 

I packed up one Valk for a guy took it out of the cabinet and began to transform it and it crumbled into pieces...Thanks bandai...

So yes while I do agree with IP theft is bad thing I also completely disagree with Corporate Greed as well. So there are options....And when i sell i can sell them for what I paid without worry about guilt for selling them for 20% less the cost. Although I find Americans are far more fair then canadian lowballers which I understand since we are litterly taxed into oblivion 

I was so hoping on the Chars Zuku from Metal club much more detailed...ugh I was lucky to get the Metal Soldier Zuku....Also i guess this kills JG NuGundam Project....Or was it MC i cant remember who was planning on doing a smaller scale of the PG MB one...

What we will see more of is stuff like this ..Which is basically re-using the same frame from Seed and Barbatos 

This might be your last chance to get yourself a Ksh...I really like this one....very very good i have the green one and I prefer it over the more bulkier one

57 minutes ago, Jaustin89 said:

I haven't been looking for that one specifically but I've had some good luck with otherwise out of stock third party figures on AliExpress.

You just have to keep an eye on the rating of the seller and your shipping options at the moment aren't great. You either pay an extra $50-100 for UPS/FedEx/DHL (if they're available from that seller) or wait upwards of a month for it to go anywhere with or EMS (I've got a third party wings of light that's been sitting at Shanghai airport for 3 weeks so far). 

I have offered to pay the extra shipping on my AGX-04 GP-04 Gerbera Tetra and Motor Nuclear MN-Q01 1/72 Scale Yellow Dragon, its worth it...they wont be around for a while as China is so desperate for Western business. Which is kinda funny considering all the anti western sentiment. So BE polite with your VENDORS...

Hence the sale now...Specifically they will bring down the hammer on Double00 and Seed...of course whatever stock there is of the Sazabi, the two Ksh's and Sinanju 

I was also told today that the Daban PG Double 00 Riser and possibly some other kits as well. Say goodbye to MC Seed and Wing too...

Stuff on pre-order may just be whatever was made. No information as of yet if the arrests and raid included current stock 

Hey guys 

So i have this asian guy that buys and sells from me...

Basically he told me a couple of days ago Bandai has gone ballasitc and its taking action to  discontinuing the KO Metal Build Line...

I dont know the reason but apparently the Owners of Metal Club were arrested there will also no longer be any new shipments of Sazabi...

There is some talk about Bandai allowing them to make them as long as they transform

Edit: Sorry not owners but the designers