xstoys

Oops, my bad! I meant to thank "Lazyman" in HK. Sorry Deadzone. So many people... I got confused. Lazyman & Neova ... special thanks to you both! Tony xstoys

These are solid figures & even licensed! Check out the copyright on the bottoms! These are absolutley not the same figures as the "chase" figure from the recent Macross figure set. Pretty rare find, I think!

Ever seen one of these??? Comes in silver & painted versions. It took 3 trips to this store, & some mad bargaining by Neova & Lazyman to get the store onwer to sell these 2 items to me. Thanks guys!

Sorry that last one was kind of PG-13, this one is more PG.

Hi again all, Sorry it took so long to post. Just moved to a new place & just got a phone installed, & DSL coming next week. I just wanted to share some of the great loot I snagged in HK during the shopathon. Special thanks to Neova & Lazyman for the aid of their awesome bargaining skills in Cantonese. Check out these cool paint ups! Enjoy! xstoys PS. Sebastian .... I know you hate me, now drool!

Ha, ha , ha! Very funny Sebastard!... oops, I mean Sebastian .... no I meant Sebastard! =P Next time I'll just keep all the good stuff to myself. Suits me just fine. So, I suppose the next time I'm in your neck of the woods, you won't have any interest in any updates regarding Macross, right! No problem... that's just more ammo to tease you with. Yes, yes, I know ... "YOU HATE ME!"

Just an update ... I waited too long to make a reservation for the Kowloon Hotel in HK, now it's all booked for a toy convention. I'll be staying at the Ramada Kowloon now. So if any of you guys attending the Shopthaton are at staying at the Ramada or are in HK & read this e-mail before Friday, gimme a hollar. I'll be staying there as of Thursday 1/8/04. Look or me under "Tony Yao". I'll see you guys Friday morning at 11am at the Kowloon Hotel. xstoys Tony

OK Sebastian, I'm in for at least a day; probably the first day... seeing as now even Danny is going. PS. I had a blast with you 2 drunken asses last week in Shanghai at Mao Ming Lu. You 2 might as well having been stripping & dancing on the tabletops. Shameless, both of you! =P GET MY NAME RIGHT! It's "xstoys"!!!!

I was lucky & scored a coupe of the $25 Red Dress Minmay's a few years ago .... & NO I am not interested in selling any , so please dont' ask! Also available at that time were the 12" Gin Rei from Giant Robo, & Queen Emeraldas from Captain Harlock. They were also $25 each during that sale. The DYRL Pink dress Minmay cost me a bit more, but seeing how rare it is, it's well worth the money! xstoys

I've got one, maybe no one has ever heard of ... "Metal storm: The Destruction of Jared Sin". This movie is from way back in the 80's & starred Richarrd Moll, "Bull" of "Night Court" fame. This movie sucked so bad, you could see the wires holding up the space ships & the telephone pole behind the fenced background of the studio lot! =P

Here is another shot of it fom that show.

I hate to burst anyone's bubble, but this is absolutely a custom job! This pic was posted some months ago from a Japanese convention on the MW boards. So if Yamato does decide to come out with a 1/48 TV Max, it most likely won't be exactly like this one. Nice custom job, though.

We've all got to give Seiichi a round of applause. I definitely agree with KidK, Seiichi is one of the most gracious people I 've ever met. He really took good care of us when we (Jason, Nick, & myself) visited Tokyo earlier this year. Kudos! xstoys

I love this show too. I believe this show was called "Magma Taishi" in Japan. At local coventions you can find bootleg videos of this awesome show for @ 10. There are even some toys of the Goldar figure. Marmit made a 12" figure a few years back, but it's pretty expensive now; @ $150 & up. I'm still looking for one. There are also some vinyl toys too. B)

Oh, I almost forgot ... here are the humble beginnings of my custom scratch built 1/55 "Thunder Hammers" armor. Sorry about the glare from the flash.

Last one. Thanks for all the interest & support; especially to KidKorrupt, keep up the good work. Good luck to all you customizers out there! Tony xstoys

Another shot...

Ask & ye shall receive... more pics of my VF-1D. Work in progress, of course. I don't like showing unfinished work, but here it is anyways.

Ok, Ok, here is a pic from MW Con 3 of my "ultimate" VF-1D 1/55 custom. As to whenI'll finish... who knows? Enjoy! BTW - the name is "xstoys"!

Hey KidK, Ok, you caught me. =P You know I can't resist a good 1/55 post. Oh man, you want me to list all my 1/55 mods... but they're not all finished yet. =( I actually haven't had much time to work on my "ultimate" 1/55 custom valk in awhile. I'll need to re-examine it to remember what I did to it. but from what I do remember: • Yamato style collapsable gunpod/ handle & the gunpod does hang underneath in fighter mode • No more ugly gun clip. Gun now clips directly to the arm on either arm; through a custom fit negative cavity. • Proportioned articulated hands with semi posable fingers that do retract like the 1/48 with opening for arm panels • 1/55 TRANSFORMABLE heatshield intact during all transformations • Vented/ resculpted intakes on chest (more than just a cutout; it has been totally resculpted) • Wings with multiple lights & folding panels (you have to see this one to believe it) • Resculpted extended nose cone & repositioned nose lasers • New resculpted detailed "accurate" 2 pilot cockpit (not like the VE-1 or VT-1) like the VF-1D extended cockpit (And they said it couldn't be done... =P) • Triple Vac-formed canopy with frame, canopy, & custom heat shield • Pivoting pilot seats , so the head in Battroid mode can flip over & the seats can push upward to pop out of the top opening (I believe this is a first for any transformable Valk; the 1/76 scale head flips, but it doesn't transform) • Negative contour scoop intakes on the chest for VF-1D (replacing the 4 black trapazoids) • Fulcy "modified" hips & feet • Accurate Gerwalk "A- style" stance • Accurate VF-1D Chest without step at the top. • Working airbrake hatch • 1/55 posable action figures of Hikaru & Minmay That's all I can remember right now... but there are many, many, many more mods that slip my mind right now. Thanks for looking. xstoys

Thanks for the kind words KidK! I absolutely agree with you about the 1/55's. I am still a staunch supporter of the 1/55 valks. Think of them as diamonds in the rough. Sure, they may not be as refined as the new valkyries made today by Yamato. But, they were the original template & have already proven their worth; withstanding the test of time ... nearly 20 years now. They were great back in the day when Macross was in it's heyday, but even now, with a little ingenuity & some elbow grease, the 1/55 can still give any new Yamato a run for it's money. Those who attended MW Con3 are witness to the potentail of what the 1/55 is capable of. Wait & see... the best is yet to come!

Yes, I actually do own one, as well does VF1X. I first saw his at MW Con 2, & after that I had to have one. But it wasn't till a year later I finally obtained one. It didn't come cheap either. It is one of the valued pieces of my Macross collection. Someone had a BIN on ebay for $1,000.00; a bit too much if you ask me. As far as I know, 3 of us at MW own one; myself, Jerry, & Seiichi. They are tough to come by; even in Japan. But you gotta love the little thing...

Remember, if you are doing a true 1/6 scale Roy, he is substantially taller than every other human in the Macross universe. So you should use a body even taller than a standard 12" figure. I would love to see his 1/6 sculpt with pilot flight suit & helmet. I have considered the task many times, but until you try designing an "accurate" 1/6 pattern it's hard to understand the nightmare you have gotten yourself into. Also consider the material you will be using for the outfit, it needs to be the right color & weight; otherwise it will stick out like a sore thumb & be bulky & ugly. Good luck in your endeavor & I can't wait to see pics. B)

And a rear view

Here is a side profile.