OmegaD3k

Here’s the Regult with basic colors. No panel lining or detailing yet. Will have to save that for later. The only downsides to this kit are the extremely loose knees, which swivels 360 degrees very easily. Surpringly enough, despite this minor flaw, the Regult can stand on its own very well. I did a quick “earthquake test” and shook the desk around gently, and he hardly moved. The ratchet joints are excellent and very stiff. The legs are double jointed, so pretty much any pose can be achieved with this guy. There’s a lot of sanding, and even a bit of carving required to make all the pieces fit together, but it only took about 2 days. It took over a week to spray everything, especially since I had to use about 3-4 coats of white to cover any dark grey spots of the HDP material. Superglue is preferred, but not required, since the pieces fit together very tightly. Overall it’s the perfect Regult. A shame it never went into mass production as a toy. :/ Here’s a height comparison with a V2 VF-1 and VF-25 renewal:

So much awesome model building in this thread! Here’s the 1/60 Yamato Regult I’m working on. Not going to do the cockpit. The colors are supposed to be similar to the TV show. The basic kit should be done in a day or two. I won't be doing any detail or putty work (to seal those gaps around the legs) until I have more time on my hands.

The CAD line-work looks promising, but I'm not really blown away yet. However I still tip my hat to any company that can make the VF-4 look decent/good in all 3 modes. Here's hoping February will bring some prototype pics. The middle one really looks good! Great job.

Just got my Ozma. The colors look perfectly fine in hand. The shoulder and thigh joints are nice and solid this time around, unlike the Alto version which will get very loose over time. The only gripes I have are the extremely loose head lasers which flop around in fighter mode (nice that Bandai included separate hard plastic head lasers, but those too are extremely loose). EDIT: A dab of nail polish worked great, and fixed the loose head lasers. There is also piece on the back, molded in light grey (on which is printed the hilt of the sword of the emblem), which will pop off all the time during transformations, but it can easily be snapped back into place. Near perfect valk! No paint chipping, or any signs of factory related damage unlike my Alto. Here’s hoping Luca is next (preferably with a non-exclusive ghost or three included with the valk). ^^

Thanks for the reply! The HDP material does feel a bit like hard putty. While test-rinsing a piece with some warm water, it began to feel like clay, and for a moment it looked as if the piece could easily be deformed, but thankfully that didn’t happen. This HDP plastic is pretty interesting to say the least. It’s unlike resin or anything else I’ve worked with. It’s pretty durable, too. It looks like the final Regult could easily survive a fall or two off a tall shelf.

Hi everyone, Most of the kits I’ve built in the past were injection kits, and since I have no experience with Heavy Duty Polyurethane (HDP), I got a few questions regarding this kind of material: The plastic pieces have a soft surface, with almost a powder-like look and feel to it. At first I thought the pieces were actually covered in some kind of material since they reacted/got darker to moisture or water (I could see my finger-prints, and other smudges), but they reverted back to their powder-like look and lighter grey tones after a few seconds. 1.) Will this powder-like material affect which type of paints I use? 2.) Can I use (Tamiya) Acrylic spray paints for HDP (I’ll use Tamiya White Surface Primer first)? 3.) Is it advisable to rinse/wash all pieces with water first, before working with them? 4.) Would normal plastic model kit cement/glue work with HDP, or should I use super-glue? 5.) Is there anything else to know about working with HDP? Thanks in advance for any advice! I’ve been looking for 1/60 Regult topics, but couldn’t find any which covered this topic. >.<

How is anime-export? Are they any good/reliable? Think I'll have to bite the bullet and pre-order the armor set. $140 for armor is quite a bit... While the armor set looks fantastic, I hope it won't require any double sided tape to stay on, like with the V1. Seeing how the V2's are holding up pretty well so far, here's hoping for the best.

Anything I order over €80 is always opened and inspected at customs (central Europe), with a hefty fee slammed on it. Plus customs always take their sweet time, and it may take over a week for them to release the package... I'll be lucky if my VF-17 arrives by next Friday. Anyone else in the EU have the same happen to them?

It being a web exclusive is no big deal whatsoever. HLJ.com is sure to stock them, just like all the other Yamato exclusives. Seeing how these announcements are usually made over half a year in advance of the item's release date, I'll be saving up for at least 2 of these (the goal is to get 3 - one for each mode). I'd never believe I'd actually see the day in which a toy company would actually make the VF-4. This is like a dream come true. I still can't believe it. Thank you, Yamato. It's unbelieveable what the company has done for the Macross franchise, and it's fans, after all these years. I only have 1 question: WHEN?

I'm guessing the announcement will be something along the line of a new valk (VF-17D, VF-19P, VF-4, VF-5000) being a web-exclusive release only. Which really isn't that big of a deal, since I do believe HLJ.com has an agreement with Yamato, and will stock said web exclusives. They did so with the weathered versions of previous Destroids/Valks, among other things. Don't care much for any sound-force or additional fast/armour packs, myself.

Amazing photos of an amazing valk! The head looks great, and somewhat evil-looking. The proportions and poses are perfect. I am so going to set my VF-17 to that running pose. ^^ If this is released before January, the VF-19S may have some strong competition for the title of "valk of the year" for me. Simply awesome. Release the Nightmare already, Yamato!

Strange, my VF-19S's ankles bend just fine for Gerwalk mode...

Just picked up mine, and much like the Kai, this is yet again another perfectly flawless release. This is the valk of the year for me. Nothing comes close to the ingenuity, craftsmanship, design, and solid QC of this piece. No complaints whatsoever. Solid 10/10! Bring on the VF-17! ^^ The only annoyance I had was the amount of release-mold grease/oil on the figure which was very easy to clean off. It seems to be a common thing with valks these days. My Kai, Bandai's VF-29 and VF-25 all had the same thing. And now, crappy-smartphone-photos-of-VF-19S-standing-with-one-leg-on-messy-work-desk.jpg

BBTS always offers Yamato valks for insanely high prices for some reason. More so than any other shop I have seen on the net. I always go with HJL.com: http://www.hlj.com/product/YMT00225

Wow, the VF-17 looks quite huge in battroid mode next to the VF-19. O_O So glad I got this guy on pre-order. Can't wait!

Sorry if this has been posted before, but BigBadToyStore seems to have one back in stock, as of right now: http://www.bigbadtoy...876&mode=retail "In Stock" - "Only Substandard Available" - $209.99

Just picked up mine from the post office and right out of the box I noticed a few very minor things which made me cringe. Aside from the issues pointed out below, this the perfect rendition of the VF-25, and blows all others right out of the water. The legs and thighs are very tight; the left arm is sturdy, and the overall piece feels very well put together. However… While I didn’t notice it immediately, the left, white, “fin” or “antennae” behind the head is severely bent which may have been a factory error, seeing how I was not able to bend it back to its proper position and the plastic was so hard, it wouldn’t budge. There was also a stress mark at the bend, but it wouldn’t show up on camera. I think something very heavy may have squished that piece into the way it is. There are no other signs of damage on the entire valk. There are a few paint chippings, and some paint smudges, but again, it’s nothing serious. Since I also build and paint model kits, I can clean those patches up quite easily. (note the deep scratches and paint chipping on the left black stripe in the attached pic) What I did notice right out of the box was that the right shoulder was incredibly loose and floppy at the ball joint. I’ve tightened the screw just a little bit, but it didn’t help much. This seems to be a recurring problem with all of Bandai’s Frontier Valks, seeing how I have three V1 VF-25’s, one VF-27, and one YF-29 which all had floppy limbs right out of the box, or ended up that way after a few transformations. Again, excellent valk, but the floppy joint(s) are a real distraction and severely hinder any attempt at some cool poses. The fact that Bandai released the Version 2 of the VF-25 so quickly makes me feel like I’ve been suckered in for having bought multiple V1’s. If they had waited longer, say, for the 5th or 10th Anniversary of Macross Frontier, I wouldn’t mind. But seeing how the same company made the amazing 1/72 model kit, I knew they could do better, but I didn’t think they would revisit the VF-25 this soon, after less than 2 years. Aside from all that, there are no other complaints. Thumbs up for this Valk. Got an Ozma on Pre-Order, and will no doubt pick up the rest of the squadron... Again.

Hope this helps. The numbers in the white circles are for the P.E. parts. The numbers in the black circles are for the decals.

That doesn't look bad at all, it's just a crack. If it pops off, super glue it. That should help. :3 Well, after more than (at least) 40+ transformations, my first edition VF-1S roy is cracked, too. But no biggy. It's not like the piece is broken, or has fallen off. And if it does, I'll simply super-glue it. As for the whole QC issue... If any of you guys collect HOT TOYS figures, you've probably encountered worse QC. I had to return nearly half of all my HT figures due to (far worse) defects, yet I still collect them. Maintenance and repair jobs are all part of being a collector. I see my Yamatos (and Hot Toys figures) as fully assembled, pre-painted model kits, whereas other companies like Bandai only produce simple toys, marketing their overpriced product in hopes of selling them as collector items. Why Bandai doesn't just up-scale their beautiful 1/72 fully transformable VF-25/27 model kits to 1/60 scale (or have their toy counterparts be exactly the same in terms of design) will remain a complete mystery to me. That, to me, would warrant the price they are asking for now - and I would gladly dish out the dough for them. Back on topic... Aside from Roy, my: VF-1J is perfectly fine VF-1E is perfectly fine VF-1D is perfectly fine VT-1 is perfectly fine

Great photos, ff95gj! Wow, seeing those pics of the Battroid mode, does make the 27 look like a huge chunky, and much less sleek/refined like the previous versions of it we've seen in earlier photos. Does have a very strong 25 vibe to it, which is a disappointment. :\ Still love the fighter and gerwalk mode, though! Don't think I'll keep mine in Battroid mode, now. Yikes... :\

Is this it? (It sorta shows the cockpit inside the chest) From the "Shoji Kawamori Macross Design Works" Hope it helps!

HOLY @#%$ =O *slams the cancel button on the HighMetal* Seconded! I can't wait for this and any highly likely VF-19 Emerald Force releases. :3 All what's missing now is a 1/60 VF-17! There is only one word to express my feelings toward this: BOMBA!!! Only 1 question: WHEN?

*grabs tomato shield* How about a SDF-1 Macross side-story, in form of a short 3-4 parter OAV? Tell a violent, realistic war-story through the eyes of other VF pilots. Or we can go Star Trek (2009), involve time travel, there by ruining the original cast and crew as we have come to know them. Hikaru will be a drunken destroid pilot, Roy will be an 18yr old PC hacker, Max will be shot down during his first mission, and Kakizaki will lead the Skull Squadron to victory with Reba West as Minmey. I think I just came up with the basic premise to the live action Robotech movie... *runs for dear life* Seriously though. No reboots, no remakes, and no george-lucas-ifying (adding new scenes and visuals) please. Look forward, not back. Bring on the VF-30's!

Didn't they show prototype pics of the VF-27 with an SMS stand a long time ago? Or was it the model kit... (Can't remember) If they do include a stand (for the price they're asking, they should!), it should be a huge improvement over the 25's. If it weren't required in order to pose my VF-25 Michel valk (loose crotch + floppy mess), I'd toss the stand in the bin.

Same here. While it's not as absolute perfect as my YF-21, my Gamlin is still one of the sturdiest valks in my collection. Both my YF-21 and VF-22 are very stable in all three modes. Got the YF-21 in Gerwalk mode right now, and has been like that since last year. ... I better go dust em off. XD