Bandai DX Chogokin 1/48 VF-1

[vlenhoff]

Honestly, i would have preferred a solid non splitting spine bar [swing bar]. It kind of keeps me away. 

It does look super nice, though.

[derex3592]

Agreed. You forget what a royal PITA that splitting swing bar really is until you go to transform the thing....

[Sanity is Optional]

I have 2 of them, transformed them both, swing bar didn't really bother me much apart from the first time I tried to get it separated.

[vlenhoff]

Looking at it from the bright side, i have only transformed my DX 1J once. Everything else i transform regularly, which is a few times a year. At least it will increase its durability since we transform them so little. BTW when is the 1A max coming out? NY made me pay immediately, and I know its been a while.

[derex3592]

11 minutes ago, Sanity is Optional said:

I have 2 of them, transformed them both, swing bar didn't really bother me much apart from the first time I tried to get it separated.

That must be nice ... 1st time out of the box mine came and still does come apart if I breath on it wrong.

[vlenhoff]

Just now, derex3592 said:

That must be nice ... 1st time out of the box mine came and still does come apart if I breath on it wrong.

Or just look at it wrong. 

[Slave IV]

The bar on mine is fine too. Only comes apart when I specifically want it to come apart.

[vlenhoff]

Maybe You all have superhero powers.

[Slave IV]

8 minutes ago, vlenhoff said:

Maybe You all have superhero powers.

Super wallet depleting powers maybe.

I chalk it up to manufacturer variance.

[Sanity is Optional]

I think part of it is twisting the bar, if you don't twist it it'll be quite firm, but if you twist it'll pop out, and the more you do it the worse it'll get most likely.

[vlenhoff]

I treat this thing as if it was House of cards. I guess @Slave IV is right, and there is some variance in its run. It's wings are slightly out of level when you fold them back too. I am really bummed out i didn't get the Hikkie 1S. I do have him twice in Yammie 1/48 form though. In any case, i am just wating for Max, and hoping they do Kakie and Roy.

Edited August 13, 2019 by vlenhoff

[Slave IV]

1 hour ago, vlenhoff said:

I treat this thing as if it was House of cards. I guess @Slave IV is right, and there is some variance in its run. It's wings are slightly out of level when you fold them back too. I am really bummed out i didn't get the Hikkie 1S. I do have him twice in Yammie 1/48 form though. In any case, i am just wating for Max, and hoping they do Kakie and Roy.

You just reminded me about the wing thing and mine does have that issue. It is such a minor issue to me that I forgot about it but it is annoying when I think of it. Hopefully we see an overall manufacturing improvement when the 1A comes out. 

[vlenhoff]

2 hours ago, Slave IV said:

You just reminded me about the wing thing and mine does have that issue. It is such a minor issue to me that I forgot about it but it is annoying when I think of it. Hopefully we see an overall manufacturing improvement when the 1A comes out. 

Yes it is super minor, as it is the bar thing. Still annoys me, I must admit. 

[peter]

I'm till wondering if they're going to address the non-white landing gears....I mean Bandai must have seen the feedback on that issue by now.

[Chronocidal]

36 minutes ago, peter said:

I'm till wondering if they're going to address the non-white landing gears....I mean Bandai must have seen the feedback on that issue by now.

How long did it take them to fix the chest strip angle?  I'd give them at least that long.  So that should be... what, about another thirty years?

I really would not be at all surprised if they use that as a selling point to re-issue every valk a decade from now though.    So long as they keep clinging to that old school Chunky Nostalgia^TM, I honestly have zero expectations for them to ever care about that level of aircraft-related detail.

Edited August 15, 2019 by Chronocidal

[easnoddy]

I'm going to display them as :

Hikaru 1S (Fighter) - Hikaru 1J (Gerwalk) - Max 1A (Battroid)

[vlenhoff]

19 hours ago, easnoddy said:

I'm going to display them as :

Hikaru 1S (Fighter) - Hikaru 1J (Gerwalk) - Max 1A (Battroid)

They do look fantastic in every mode. I guess secretly, I was waiting for the ultimate, friendly to transform chunky monkey 2.0./ Hi-Metal R evolution. Or something that would closely resemble Kawamori's line art. Like the "proper" leg transfer mechanism. Anyway, i don't mean to 

What we got is what we got, and other than scalpers adding hundreds to the price, I guess these releases are somewhat within our reach.  

[sqidd]

I looked for a bit, but I have ADD. Sorry.

I'm going to have to get the VF-1J (already available). But, I'm really going to need to get the S&S parts when they're released in what is it December?

I see talk of buying these items through other avenues than eBay. Can anyone give me some insight into what those avenues are? How it works? Positives? Negatives? Etc?

I see something mentioned about pre- orders. How is that pulled off?

I have a friend who lives in Japan that I asked if he could source some of this stuff for me. He hasn't really found anything as far as a place to purchase (I'm not sure he worked that hard at it, he's lazy). Is that a good option if it's an option? Have someone pick this stuff up in Japan and then ship to the US? Anyone have a link to where I can send him to get this stuff?

Is there a buying tutorial on here that I'm not seeing?

Sorry for all the newb questions. I imagine for the pro's on here they all sound really dumb.

Thanks guys!

[Slave IV]

The S&S parts are available for order currently at Nippon Yasan. Your best bet is to order them from there now. 

[sqidd]

3 minutes ago, Slave IV said:

The S&S parts are available for order currently at Nippon Yasan. Your best bet is to order them from there now. 

I found the site, thank you.

Am I understanding this correctly. I can order/pre-order through this site and when they're released they will get shipped to me here in the US? I'm assuming this company is in Japan?

I'm going to need the VF-1S movie version and the S&S parts.

 

Thanks for your help!

 

[DYRL VF-1S]

The VF-1S and Parts haven’t released yet. So there is still a chance to purchase both in a pre-order. The wave of orders available for parts at this point will release in April 2020. You missed the window for Dec.

However, the VF-1S still releases in Nov. So, you can either pay an upcharge on somewhere like Nippon, or wait until it releases and gamble trying to get it then.

5 minutes ago, sqidd said:

I found the site, thank you.

Am I understanding this correctly. I can order/pre-order through this site and when they're released they will get shipped to me here in the US? I'm assuming this company is in Japan?

I'm going to need the VF-1S movie version and the S&S parts.

 

Thanks for your help!

 

 

[sqidd]

26 minutes ago, DYRL VF-1S said:

The VF-1S and Parts haven’t released yet. So there is still a chance to purchase both in a pre-order. The wave of orders available for parts at this point will release in April 2020. You missed the window for Dec.

However, the VF-1S still releases in Nov. So, you can either pay an upcharge on somewhere like Nippon, or wait until it releases and gamble trying to get it then.

 

I just ordered the VF-1S Hikaru Movie Edition and S&S Parts off Nippon-Yasan. $535 to my door (3 day UPS shipping). That seems pretty reasonable actually. I can't imagine I will be able to get them through eBay later down the road for less than that.

Now all I have to do is wait for them to show up.

Thanks for your help!

[Sanity is Optional]

6 minutes ago, sqidd said:

I just ordered the VF-1S Hikaru Movie Edition and S&S Parts off Nippon-Yasan. $535 to my door (3 day UPS shipping). That seems pretty reasonable actually. I can't imagine I will be able to get them through eBay later down the road for less than that.

 Now all I have to do is wait for them to show up.

Thanks for your help!

For future reference with NY:

• DO NOT BUY ALREADY RELEASED STUFF FROM THEM. They almost always massively overcharge.
• Do not pay in anything other than Yen, they massively inflate their currency conversion prices.
• Do not order released and pre-order items together, the released items will wait until the pre-order items have been released to ship, but you'll still pay up-dront for everything. In your case, if you ordered together everything will ship in April or May.
• Do not compare prices without including shipping with other stores, NY typically upcharges their shipping.

For already-released items I suggest the For Sale/Trade forums here or Mandarake. Mandarake is selling sealed unused VF-1Js for about $410 with EMS (fast) shipping to the US.

Edited August 17, 2019 by Sanity is Optional

[sqidd]

10 minutes ago, Sanity is Optional said:

For future reference with NY:

• DO NOT BUY ALREADY RELEASED STUFF FROM THEM. They almost always massively overcharge.
• Do not pay in anything other than Yen, they massively inflate their currency conversion prices.
• Do not order released and pre-order items together, the released items will wait until the pre-order items have been released to ship, but you'll still pay up-dront for everything. In your case, if you ordered together everything will ship in April or May.
• Do not compare prices without including shipping with other stores, NY typically upcharges their shipping.

For already-released items I suggest the For Sale/Trade forums here or Mandarake. Mandarake is selling sealed unused VF-1Js for about $410 with EMS (fast) shipping to the US.

Great tips, thank you.

 

The release dates for them are about a month apart. I don't imagine that will be a big deal. They will show up when they show up.

 

They didn't ding me more than a few bucks on the conversion as far as I could tell. I converted Yen using an online calculator and then compared to to what I paid using PayPal. Great heads up though.

 

Mandrake bookmarked

 

Thanks!

Edited August 17, 2019 by sqidd

[Slave IV]

Cool! Just take note that the SSP you ordered are the second run which releases in April because the first run sold out almost immediately. If you ordered together, they will send everything when both in stock. If you can’t wait for the Valk, you can split the order. 

[sqidd]

27 minutes ago, Slave IV said:

Cool! Just take note that the SSP you ordered are the second run which releases in April because the first run sold out almost immediately. If you ordered together, they will send everything when both in stock. If you can’t wait for the Valk, you can split the order. 

All good. I can wait. Thanks!

 

[Slave IV]

Just now, sqidd said:

All good. I can wait. Thanks!

 

Wise move. No problem and congrats, I think you'll be a happy camper.

[DYRL VF-1S]

1 hour ago, sqidd said:

Do not pay in anything other than Yen, they massively inflate their currency conversion prices.

For reference on this: If you happen to have PayPal credit, the only way to leverage the free 6 mos with no interest is to pay in USD. That being said, while you’ll not pay interest, you’ll pay the inflated currency exchange. So, if you really want to micromanage the cost, you have to calculate the interest in the amount of time you plan to pay it off versus the inflated exchange you’ll pay.

Splitting hairs but some people like to drill down into stuff like this so it’s worth mentioning. Like for me, I have to pay an International exchange fee on my AMEX and Visa so I’m paying someone something anyway. Ha.

[Sanity is Optional]

Best option really is to get a dedicated "travel" credit card that doesn't charge currency conversion fees.

I have one I use for all no-USD purchases, saved me quite a bit, and cost me exactly nothing.

[F360]

9 minutes ago, DYRL VF-1S said:

For reference on this: If you happen to have PayPal credit, the only way to leverage the free 6 mos with no interest is to pay in USD. That being said, while you’ll not pay interest, you’ll pay the inflated currency exchange. So, if you really want to micromanage the cost, you have to calculate the interest in the amount of time you plan to pay it off versus the inflated exchange you’ll pay.

Splitting hairs but some people like to drill down into stuff like this so it’s worth mentioning. Like for me, I have to pay an International exchange fee on my AMEX and Visa so I’m paying someone something anyway. Ha.

It's time for you to get a credit card that does not charge fee for foreign transactions.  

[DYRL VF-1S]

1 hour ago, Sanity is Optional said:

Best option really is to get a dedicated "travel" credit card that doesn't charge currency conversion fees.

I have one I use for all no-USD purchases, saved me quite a bit, and cost me exactly nothing.

 

1 hour ago, F360 said:

It's time for you to get a credit card that does not charge fee for foreign transactions. 

Hehe...yeah I have a Discover card I use for Manda, but like AJ doesn’t take it for example. Anyway, probably more of a finance discussion, but I’m not opening a another line of credit just to collect. Between my Discover and PayPal credit, or sucking up the foreign trans fee on the others, it’s fine.

Just clarifying options re:Nippon. I digress. In general, Nippon inflates both shipping and currency exchange. Aside from knowing that, they’ve done me good.

[Sanity is Optional]

Ah, mine’s a visa, so accepted everywhere pretty much.

[levzloi]

as a former Discover Card user, my favorite Futurama segment.

Fry : Do you take Visa?

Clerk : Visa hasn't existed for 500 years.

Fry : American Express?

Clerk : 600 years.

Fry : Discover Card?

Clerk : Sorry, we don't take Discover.

Edited August 17, 2019 by levzloi

[sqidd]

3 hours ago, Sanity is Optional said:

Best option really is to get a dedicated "travel" credit card that doesn't charge currency conversion fees.

I have one I use for all no-USD purchases, saved me quite a bit, and cost me exactly nothing.

Good heads up! That could pay off huge over the long run!

[DYRL VF-1S]

47 minutes ago, levzloi said:

as a former Discover Card user, my favorite Futurama segment.

Fry : Do you take Visa?

Clerk : Visa hasn't existed for 500 years.

Fry : American Express?

Clerk : 600 years.

Fry : Discover Card?

Clerk : Sorry, we don't take Discover.

Haha! Right?! I’m irritated that this is the only card I have with no foreign transaction fees just by happenstance. I travel internationally more often now and it’s just a bloody gamble. 

I literally only use it for Manda and carrying over seas on the rare occasion I can use it.