ghostryder

Is it just me, or is the priest collar less pronounced on the -1J compared to the -1S in the background? Maybe it's just the pose and chest place positioning, all I know is I can't get my -1S to look like that without rainbow canopy peeking out.

Damn, the 1J look really good...

edit: Is there anyone out there besides me that thinks the YF-19 was the worst looking of the three Mac+ 1/60 valks? Don't get me wrong, I'm still happy to own it, I just think that of the three (based on these first pix of the VF-11b) the YF-19 did the worst job of capturing the 'feel' of the valk. Am I the only one?

edit2: The lineart comparison makes the difficulty faced by the VF-11b clear - look how long and narrow the nosecone is in the lineart of the fighter mode, and how short and stubby it is in the lineart of battroid mode. As others have said, this new toy seems to nail battroid mode, which will inevitably make the nose look stubby in fighter mode, and give it an overall impression of being 'chunky'. Yamato should sell some fighter-mode-only GNU toys to satisfy those who want a perfect fighter mode.

Agree - I think there's definitely some leeway in making the nose cone longer and thinner, and still not affect the battroid looks. Comparing to lineart, looks like the toy's crotch is even a hair shorter.

Still looks better than the YF-19 overall - you gotta admit that when lining up all these 1/60 M+ toys , the YF-21 will look out of place, with it's super sexy fighter mode and stick-legged battroid mode.

Has anyone tried that yet?

The old 1/60 had a more traditional shoulder assembly/transformation, like the 1/55 chunky. It was solid as heck and locks into place in battroid, but had very limited poseability - the worse of any VF-1 toy.

The VF-0 has the same shoulder hinge style as the v2 1/60 VF-1, and hasn't had issues (at that location anyways). It's just a matter of inadequate material thickness, poor material choice, and sloppy assembly QC.

I really wish people would stop re-posting these old pics from a few months back.

Hmmm... looks OK considering all the anime magic they had to overcome, but the small fins and blocky protruding intakes kill the lines of the fighter mode, which happens to be my favorite Kawomari fighter design . The CAD top and side views aren't much better. Battroid looks pretty good, if not exactly line-art accurate.

Wait, these are the same old shots that Miriya posted from a Yamato mag in August. I guess we can stop bitching unitl new pictures arise

Did they change the type of plastic for the shoulder?

It looks noticeably different. I only ask this because my VF-1S shoulder JUST got a fracture.

Friggin Yamato. UGH.

It does look different, maybe POM? I thought there were issues molding POM in certain colors, maybe that's why they're grey.

No changes to the nose/canopy, yet

As for fighter mode, the only sleekness I see on the 1/48 is the longer nose, the arms going below the legs destroys the sleekness for me.

It's not just the longer nose, the chest plate and intakes have a more shallow profile on the 1/48 than on the 1/60 v.2. Yes, the latter exacerbates the low-hanging arm effect, but they also both give the fighter an overall sleeker look. To me, the 1/60's fatter chest plate (presumably to cover the taller canopy) and the larger intakes (which help hide the arms) give it a chunky blocky look, especially from a front perspective view.

One thing for sure, the 1/48 wins in fighter mode with fastpacks on (IMO). In this mode, the hanging arms are not a factor, and the big long nose helps.

I have both and like both for different reasons, I just wish they could have combined the best attributes of both to make the ultimate rendition of the VF-1.

If I had to pick one, I'd say the 1/60 v.2 just from the standpoint of overall anime-accuracy and potential for a complete line. It just irks me that they FUBARed the whole neck area to accomodate 2-seaters, and that didn't even result in an accurate looking VF-1D (thusfar). I would be more irked if/when my 1/60 v.2 shoulders break.

The 1/48 is more fun to play with, is more durable, looks more menacing in battroid mode, and looks more sleek and sexy in fighter mode. You gotta have a few of these.

Is there a definitive way to tell (on an unbroken sample) if the pin was installed bur-side up or down? I looked at mine again last night and could not tell the difference between the top and bottom pin ends on either shoulder.

Transformation number 6 or 7 for me, no problems so far, but I have babied the shoulders since day 1 when out of the box.

If the pic is squished side-to-side, that means the vertical stabs will look even shorter on the profile view . Sigh...

It is a great job they did...

Agree... somehow, a badly charred Hikaru VF-1J just seems "right." Now we just need a custom 1/48 Britai to kick it's ass... and a 1-off Kakizaki VF-1A to stand there doing nothing

Wow, that lt gray looks great. Not anime-accurate, but much better than the stark white of the '02 reissues.

I wish they would have used the dark blue-gray of the original '84 strike valk for the FPs.

Yes, it is supposed to have all the fixes.

Has anyone seen a preorder for the stand-alone VF-0S reissue?

After having both for a while, I think I still prefer the look of the 1/48 with fast packs on, both battroid and fighter modes. The longer 1/48 fighter nose seems to work better with the packs (looks less stubby), and the thicker legs and properly recessed head makes the 1/48 battroid look more menacing.

FAST pack tip: For the armor on the back of the legs, work with the upper tab first. Seems counter-intuitive based on the "hook" of the lower tab, but lower tab first just doesn't work.

Weird, I attached them just like the 1/48 (lower tab first) and had no problems?

I also agree that the non-retractable dorsal antenna is annoying in fighter mode with fastpacks on. I don't keep it in that mode for fear of scratching the black paint on the tail fins. I'm glad the back hatch recesses in battroid mode, so there isn't the same problem.

How about these? Not perfect, but close enough.

1/48 Hikaru VF-1S with Stealth fastpacks...

...that is until they come out with 1/60 v2 stealth packs, then it will be 1/60 v2 Hikaru VF-1S with Stealth fastpacks...

So for the VF-1S I would have to get a VF-1A Max and do a head swap with a VF-1S head. I guess that makes my decision a little easier. I am not a fan of the VF-1A head.

thanks

Right, you'd also have to swap the right wing from the Roy with the "001", and also paint the arrows on the head blue.

Those fast packs on the vf-1j dont look like the correct TV colors to me, look more like the dyrl colors. TV fast packs were more green.

I always saw the TV packs as being more of a pure gray without the greenish tint (e.g., the VF-0 fast packs) . The DYRL pack should be very dark with a midnight/navy blue hue. So really, none of Yamato's VF-1 fastpack offerings are correct.

Exactly, that canopy would work better for the VT-1 or even VE-1, but not for the 1D.

If they only extended the fusealge back like 2mm it could still hide behind the chestplate in battroid mode. Then they could add that 2 mm to the canopy. That would make a huge difference to me.

I think Swoosh's previous point was that even on the 1-seaters, the back of the removeable fuselage section is already as high as it can go in battroid mode. On the 1-seaters, it is exposed and is an eyesore, but on the 1D, it should be completely covered by the chest plate.

The only way to make a longer fuselage section work is to not push the nose up in battroid, which means the hip hatch would need to be moved up to line up with the swing bar. Which stinks, because the forward fuselage should be a different mold for the 2-seaters anyways, so these changes shouldn't be a big deal.

We know it won't be TV Max -1A (with the ltd 1/48), but I'll be very happy with M&M or a properly hued TV CF (no flesh tone, please ).

I bet the heatshield will be way too short in battroid (same length as the 1/60 v.2 1-seaters).

... also the extended part will sit higher in battroid mode since even for the 1S it is not entirely covered by the chest plate.

BAH, I hate when I'm wrong . Oh well, my pickiness will save myself $100.

Any other trick the other v.2 1/60 owners here use to open their intakes?

They are frackin tight, and the only way I could pry them off was also with the edge of a rounded hobby blade. No fingernail short of a newborn baby's is going to fit in that little crack.

I just leave the covers on anyways, since I think the intake fans being right at the intake opening looks silly (on all Yamato valks, not just this one).