VF-1Guy

I suggest that you buy some nice cheap used text books and live off Ramen for 9 months so that you can use some of the loan money to get a set of FAST packs. They make the 1/48th even better!

I received my VF-1S Hikaru yesterday and I've got nothing to complain about. One of the little filler pieces on the side of the battroid was greasy, but that's nothing. I had a tiny gap above the intakes, but it wasn't anything to be worried about and I expect it to go away when I transform back to fighter mode. Paint apps look good. No floppiness or bad fits. It's now standing on my shelf wearing strike armor - A great rendition of my favorite valk. Now all I need is the Hikaru 1J so that I can make a TV super VF-1S. I think that will be my last 1/48 unless they come up with something tempting like an Angel Bird, VE-1 or VF-1D.

Wohoo, first voter! I just transform and occasionaly my valks. I really wish that life wasn't so hectic so that I could spend some realy quality time with them!

That's something I'd like to see! All three M+ valks in 1/60 scale!

Most toy companies keep their projects under wraps until it is time to show them to the buyers. Showing a product too early can lead to problems. People will nit pick to the end of time if the prototype differs from the product. It also generates bad press if a product is shown then later delayed or cancelled.

Very nice setup! I would love to tear into some of those boxes! The glass shelves are available at IKEA for $5 each (including 4 pegs with plastic caps). I replaced all the wooden shelves* in my Billy cabinet with glass. It's setup with from top to bottom with 2 glass, 1 wooden, 2 glass and the bottom. I have lighting installed in the top and the bottom. Check the link in my .sig for pictures. * The middle shelf is structural, therefore it can't be replaced.

I've seen a number of different brands of super glue solvent. I use the Jet stuff. You should be able to find it at hobby or hardware stores.

Maybe the new headrest is to accomdate the upcoming TV pilot sculpt?

I've often wondered if Yamato put a stop to the replacement part service due to abuse of the system. I'm sure they had a huge number of requests for 001 wings, S heads and heat shields (you don't have to look to hard to see how common these requests are). I can't say that I blame them since they are in the business of selling complete products, not selling parts for projects.

Sounds to me like Yamato is going to ride the Macross train to the end of the line. I don't see Macross being all that popular 2 years from now. It has seen a very nice resurgance, along with a number of other 80's properties, but I don't think that there is a strong enough core fan base to keep it going at this level forever. Many of the people who jumped on the Macross band wagon have gotten their fill and have moved on to other things. I'm grateful for everything that Yamato has produced. They have given me a great Macross collection that I will be able to admire in the Macross-lean years to come.

I don't think that the Hikaru 1S will interfere with the eventual release of a Max & Milia or much of anything else for that matter. The Hikaru allows Yamato to fill a release time slot and to get some easy money while they finish getting the Hikaru 1J ready for release. This money will help to fund the R&D costs of creating new and original toys like the Q-Rau, GPB, Mac 0, etc. Creating a varient doesn't involve too much R&D cost, but creating a new toy certainly does. I'm going from memory here, but it seems that the 1/48 releases have followed a mostly consistent pattern so far. I expect the next 1/48 after the Hikaru J to be a Max J or Milia J, the D may be too much of a risk at the 1/48 price point. I also expect to see another A or two before they are done. 1/60 1/48 1st Hikaru A Hikaru A 2nd TRU CF Roy S 3rd Roy S Max A 4th Max A Low Viz (new age CF?) 5th Roy Strike Hikaru S (can be a strike using the FP kit) 6th Hikaru J FP Hikaru J FP 7th D 8th M&M 9th VE & VT

That an improved version is on the way is further proof of the original "A" model's inferiority. I see this a totally different way. I see the rerelease as an indication that the 1/48 line (including the Hikaru 1A) sold well enough to warrent a second release. We assume it will share the minor improvements that were introduced along the way (which makes sense, they probably changed the original molds). That TRU bundle is one huge box!

I had a much larger post here complaining about bashing others for their opinions since they differ from your own. I removed it since I decided it wasn't polite to single out a specific person. Debates are fine. They have fueled humanity since the dawn of time. Just remember, you have your own opinion, that's fine, but don't deride others for their opinion.

A lot of people prefer decals since they give it more of a model look. Decals are thinner and don't have an obvious border like a sticker. There are a few tricks to getting a decal to look good and to make it more durable (surface prep, solvent, clear coat, etc). I can't comment on how well a properly applied decal stands up to time. I personally prefer stickers. I find that the Yamato stickers are thin enough that they don't look that obtrusive. You can make the stickers look better by trimming away the excess border. I use a pair of first aid scissors to this. One potential downside of stickers is that they may yellow or peel over time. I don't see any issues on my Yamatos yet, but who knows after 20 years.

Nice. I really wish they'd release it w/o the VF-1J... Waste space? It's all about Yamato saving mula. The box is the same size as 1/48 boxes. Simple. They probably got a deal on one size of box or soemthing. I thought that the VE & VT boxes were actually a little larger than the 1/48 boxes. The box for the 1/48 VF-1J w/ FAST Packs will probably be the size of a small house!

I know it is just a different head, but I've been waiting for this valk for a while. The Hikaru Strike is the definitive VF-1 for me. I think I'll be done with the 1/48 line for a while once I get the 1/48 VF-1J with FAST packs. I don't much care about the 1J Max & Milia. A CF could tempt me though.

You could fix those warped wings without too much effort. Just immerse them in some hot water (around 90C) for a few seconds. They should start to straighten out. You can finish straightening them by hand and then run some cold water over them.

I voted 'no' but not because I see find the low-vis ugly, in fact I love it! I just don't see the need for another one to tempt me.

I've had no problems at all with my set. The arm armor stays attached just fine.

I started the non-stop thing back in 94, so I guess it's been 9 years now. Wow, I hadn't realized it's been that long. I started on Star Trek then moved into Spawn, Star Wars, Transformers, X-Men, Batman and countless others. The thing that got me into Macross again was the Joon's I picked up in '95 or '96. Now I'm trying to stick soley to Macross.

I'd recommend spending the extra $20 to get the all glass cabinet. The wooden one looks kind of cheap in person. I haven't seen the glass one in person. I have one of the larger cabinets (see my .sig). All glass isn't an alternative in my current apartment since there is too much sunshine to protect against. I plan to get one of the all glass cabinets once I move to a house. My collection is already overflowing the one I have.

There are a couple of things to remember about price setting. 1. Retailers will set the highest price that the market will bear. We here at MW are not the entire market. We probably don't even make up a sizable chunk of the US market. I'd expect prices to be higher if we were the entire market. 2. A bunch of people sitting around talking about what they are willing to pay could possibly affect an initial price, but it won't affect the long term price (if Yamato even pays attention to such things). Opening your wallet is what determines the long term price. The suggested retail for a 1/48 Max is 13980 yen, but it can be had for about $89 now since a lot of people kept their wallet closed. I see the same thing with the VE-1 and VT-1. 3. It looks like from the prices that estacado06479 quoted that most the retailers are sticking close to the dollar equivilent of the MSRP. The lower price for TRU Japan is probably due to their size. They are purchasing these things in a much higher volume than the other retailers and they may be buying directly from Yamato (no wholeseller involved). What haterist is saying does have merit though. We have a micro-market here at MW in that we have both buyers and sellers. What we say we are willing to pay could be a factor in the price that a local seller sets.

I had a Jetfire back when I was a wee lad. I sold it at a yard sale when I wanted money to do teenager stuff. I had a green knock off Joon's but I sold it to buy more Star Wars junk. I picked up a boxed Bandai Strike, but I later sold it when I needed some cash for some other silly purchase. I guess I'm not too attached to the Chunky Monkey since I keep selling them. I now have 0 in my collection and don't plan on changing that.

I actually had it listed as 'all my wallet belongs to Yamato', but I changed it since I was afraid no one would get it and I'd be accused of having bad grammer (well, worse grammer).

Just curious what scales people are still collecting. I still go for all three.