Boobytrap

Does anyone know the actual release date of the regular release? I tried looking through the thread and didn't see it. I'm going on vacation for a week with little to no internet and I want to make sure I don't miss the payment window.

For some people, yes I'm sure it is. It can quickly add up to thousands of dollars a year. Not everyone has that much disposable income. For me, a better way to phrase it than what I did is that I'm at the limit for what I want (not ability) to spend on hobbies, and Macross isn't the only thing I collect. Available display and storage space is actually more of an issue for me than the financial part. And i'm just going to plug my ears, close my eyes, and pretend you didn't say anything about the existence of any other hobbies in the world. I like being married to my wife

Not all hobbies are affordable. I'd love to collect high end Italian sports cars and floor them up and down the Autobahn. Unfortunately I'm not a millionaire so that's not going to work for me. As it is collecting Macross, 1/6 figures, and Gundam is about all I can afford. If you want to collect high end toys you have to expect to pay high end prices. You also have to accept that not a single one, no matter how well it is designed and how much we pay, will be 100% without flaws (paint chipping, parts breaking, proportions off, etc...). Of course some issues can be worse than others, like Arcadia VF-0A/D, and should not be tolerated in any toy. Anyone is perfectly, and understandably, within their right to not pay high end prices for a toy that may break. Perhaps a better route is to pick one that doesn't cost as much so you aren't as upset should something bad happen. Maybe HMR would be a better route. Or going even cheaper, Toynami's. Of course the cheaper you go the lower the quality goes. In the end it is a subjective decision as to whether what you want to buy fits into your budget and expectations. If you can't find something you can afford that also meets your standards then maybe it's time to move on to another hobby.

Done and done. PO from NY. Why can't Bandai be this easy? Do they really make more money with their PO restrictions?

yes it was

Same. The first week I was on it was very overwhelming to me and my wallet. I was like 'oooh they have that', 'they have that too', 'oh wow they also have that'. Bid bid bid.

All of the deals I have received are from those items you indicated with low prices but multiple days left to bid. I usually put them on a watch list and keep an eye on how many bids have been placed and what the price is. If on the last day it's still at a low price with only a few people bidding I'll put in a single max bid and hope for the best. If i'm lucky I come in the next day with a nice surprise. If I don't win I just move on and wait for the next opportunity. The great thing with YJA is that they have a pretty good selection of items. You are pretty much guaranteed to get another shot at what you are looking for without waiting too long. Recently got a YF-29 30th, 1/60 super/strike parts, YF-29 isamu, and DYRL hikaru VF-1A for prices that were far less than anything I could find them for through other channels, even with the additional fees.

You'd think it would be captain obvious type knowledge but all too often I see people get caught up in the bidding and not follow that formula. All I can do is shake my head and hope that the dopamine high they got off of being the winner was worth the sledge hammer to the wallet.

I've only just recently started using YJA with Buyee as the proxy and I am kicking myself for not doing it sooner. It's super easy to use. The little extra you pay in fees and shipping to the proxy is nothing compared to the savings that can be had compared to any other retailer I have used (mandarake, jungle, ebay, etc...). If you are patient and keep your bids low you can walk away with some great deals.

Great purchase! Where'd you happen to find it? I was looking for a while and they were nowhere to be found (unless you wanted to drop over 1k). This last week though there have been several popping up.

Oh I agree. I certainly prefer to have the box and have never gotten rid of any that I have. There is also the completionist side of me that wants everything it came with even if it's just going into storage. In this case though that box would cost a good $100 or more. At that price I can live without it and tell the completionist side of me to shut up and be happy the married couple is in the display case.

I'm guessing the same thing... which is why, after waiting months for even one listing, I wasn't too upset to see a boxed one listed right after I bought the loose one.

I know it's comparing apples to oranges but there are examples of companies re-issuing things over the course of many years without having an increase in price. The first that comes to mind would be Gundam models. Bandai re-issues those things all the time and always at the original retail price. Last I saw they were a pretty profitable business. Like I said, apples to oranges. But if Arcadia ever re-releases the assembly kits and tries to charge $150 or something that's when I'll call shenanigans.

I actually won this one. And your reasoning is exactly why I purchased it. With the slow trickle of re-releases and their focus on hero valks I didn't see any way they would get to this in the next ten years if ever. I can be patient, but not that patient. I actually preferred it being loose. It would immediately be going on display and it saved me a few bucks. No need to pay an extra $100 for a box that is going to sit in the closet/garage.

Regular release for me. I would prefer for them to fit in with the valks I already have. But I wouldn't hesitate to get the premiums if that's all they offer. No way I'm not having these two in my collection. As for the Bandai question, I'm not worried about it. As mentioned above I like consistency. I'll stick primarily with Yamacadia V2's. I might get a Bandai for novelties sake or if they offer the delta schemes or something else unique that I don't expect Arcadia to release.

Oh come on now, how can you not love the pineapple salad death. For me though I think his death in SDFM still had more emotion. It happened in front of Claudia so you get that heart string pull with her emotional response. Death in battle is more expected. In SDFM he survived the battle and was supposedly safe only to end up dying due to his bravado to make it through anything and a desire to make it to dinner with the one he loved. So I would say his death in DYRL was more heroic and was more tragic in SDFM. But both were a reflection of his character so it just comes down to what is more your cup of tea.

This. I know everyone is different and has their own opinions but I still don't understand the love for DYRL over SDFM. Other than better animation I don't think there is anything I like better in it. Unfortunately because DYRL is apparently liked more, at least by toy companies, it often leaves SDFM toys as an afterthought.

Overall this looks better than any previous release. If the manufacturer was Arcadia or Bandai I would have no problem with pre-ordering it. Unfortunately it is ET and I just can't trust that the end product is going to be something worth the price. The last thing I want is to drop a lot of money just to have it sit in a box somewhere because it wasn't good enough to supplant my Toynami version I currently have on display. At least I can rest easy knowing that this will be available long after the release. Like most others here I'm just going to wait for the reviews hoping for the best but expecting the worst.

You should check out this thread. I think you'll be pleased. http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/topic/42594-whats-next-for-arcadia/?page=51

Woo hoo!!! Super excited for this news. Been wanting this pair for so long. And it's not yet another VF-1S re-issue. Hopefully these sell really well so that Arcadia keeps pushing out other re-issues (VF-1D especially). I was hoping to see this news when I saw M & M on ebay today.

fify

I'd say they were just OK. Aesthetically they were the best as it didn't impact the appearance of the valk when they weren't on. They were also easy to apply. You didn't have to worry about getting them lined up with slots and tabs, the magnets would take care of that for you. They weren't without their faults though. Easy on also meant easy off. Sure, they would stay attached once in position but any time I would move move a leg there's a good chance it would come off. They also aren't the best for 'swooshing'. I tend to grip with a thumb on the side of one leg and the other fingers on the side of the other leg. This can cause the armor parts to easily slide off and since your hand isn't actually gripping the valk in any way (only the armor parts) there was a good risk of dropping it. There was also the issue of people not getting the magnets correctly applied from the factory which would cause them to repel instead of attract. Due to all of that (and probably other reasons I'm not thinking of) I can understand why they went to the more secure and less QC issue prone option that doesn't look quite as good.

The first time I put it into gerwalk I was worried that those pieces couldn't take the stress of clipping them together. While they do provide sturdiness and hold the two halves together I don't plan on ever clipping them together again. I'll just rest the pegs on the clips.

Great news. I use their sprays all the time with my Gundam models (too lazy to deal with an airbrush) and love the quality of them. Just never thought to use it on a transforming model/toy for fear of it not holding up. Always passed on getting one of the Yamato assembly kits for this very reason. I'll seriously consider giving it a try if the right opportunity comes along. Thanks for the inspiration!

Absolutely beautiful customs. What paint/top coat are you using to minimize it from getting scratched/chipped during transformation?