Valkfan

Hello everyone. You are right Easy506, this question has been asked WAY too many times. I really think that we should pin the answer to this question in the forums for ALL to see. Maybe on the homepage. Anyway, I can honestly say that dust is a non-factor in regards to the yellowing of plastic. Plastic yellows when UV light hits it directly. It is a chemical change within the plastic itself. For example, I have a vintage Bandai Hikaru VF-1A that is extremely yellow. As a matter of fact, it was yellow when I traded my friend for it back in 1986. Keep this in mind. His room had one window that faced west and he never had his shades closed. A few years ago, I removed the stickers from this valkyrie and noticed that the areas covered by the stickers were white. From this I thought that maybe it was in fact, contact with oils from my hands or maybe even dust. However, if dust caused this, then you could easily sand off the top layer of yellow plastic to expose the white plastic underneath. This plastic would be white because dust cannot be absorbed into plastic. I decided to sand the plastic to try out this theory and discovered that I had to sand the plastic extrememly deep to find any white surface. This proved that dust in no way affected the color of the plastic. Furthermore, I have had my Bandai Strike, Ostrich, and Elintseeker Valkyries on display at my parents house for about 20 years and they became extremely dusty over time. As if that wasn't bad enough, my father smoked two packs of Pall Malls a day inside the house for all of these years. He smoked so much that my old room even smelled like a pack of cigarettes. I have since taken my valkyries with me and cleaned them up. However, with 20 years of exposure to cigarette smoke and dust, they are as white as the day I bought them. These valkyries were not only displayed, they were played with constantly by myself. The only factors that seem to have protected my valkyries for all of these years is that my room only had one window that faced north (no direct sunlight) and I never took them outside (no direct sunlight). There was no other magic to their longevity. However, I can say with certainty that Yamato does use an inferior plastic compared to Bandai, maybe oils from the skin as well as humidity might affect this plastic. I guess that we will have to let the test of time take its course on our Yamatos as it has with our old 1/55's to see how well this plastic fares. So far, I have heard of Yamato 1/60th's yellowing on thier mid arms. I have yet to hear of any Bandai reissues yellowing. This doesn't include the reissue Super VF-1S valkyrie because this valkyrie seems to show many different shades of white to begin with. Considering how white the reissue Bandai Hikaru VF-1A is, I'd be willing to bet that this will be the first casualty. RJ

Hello all. I have waited to find these on eBay but realize that they're more than likely not going to appear. Does anyone here in the US know of a place to get them? I would be willing to share the shipping cost with others so that we could get some of these Bootlegs. That is if Sebastian is still able to get them.

I believe that the store you are referring to is named Mikado's. He definitely has Macross related items that are WAY TOO OVERPRICED. However, I didn't think that way about his prices 20 years ago when I purchased my Bandai Strike, Elint and Ostrich from him for a combined priced of about $120. If I only had a time machine.

By the time Jetfire arrived on the scene, I had learned my lesson with the Strike valk.

Hello all. I was just curious to know about your worst mistake as a kid in regards to your toys. Basically, is there a toy that, had you left alone would be worth a pretty penny now? I for one have the most regret with altering my original VF-1S Strike valkyrie as a kid. When I was a kid, my father took me to Japantown in San Francisco so that I could buy Robotech (didn't know of Macross yet) toys. When we arrived at Mikado's, I was extremely disappointed to find that they didn't have any of the valkyries that were on TV. They only had massive quantities of a few valkyries that I had never seen. I asked the owner about this and he said that the Takatoku's had been released a couple of years earlier and that they were harder to find. To me this didn't make sense since Robotech was new. As opposed to buying those ugly ass valks that were in the American stores, I purchased the 3 valkyries that he was selling. Of course, these were the Ostrich, Elintseeker, and the Strike valkyries. I decided that Bandai must have made a mistake painting Skull Leader red. I decided to take it upon myself to paint over the red and make it yellow. I did this with a paint brush and a bottle of Testors paint.

Hey Agent ONE, did you live in the San Francisco Bay area as a kid? When I was young, I befriended a kid from the neighborhood who showed me a collection of Takatoku valkyries that his dad had stored in their guest house. It was a really cool display that he said his father had purchased for him when he grew up. He also said that there was a second set that he was going to keep MIB as a future investment. If you're not him, then you must be the only other lucky kid on the planet who's father was one of the original members of Valkoholic's Anonymous. Rick

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I agree with you EXO. Those pictures are just alterations (Photoshop?) of an existing image. As a matter of fact, that valkyrie posing in the image is the same one we've seen for over 20 years on toy boxes, Macross ads, and more recently on the SDF DVD's. It is a television style valkyrie with an altered image of the VF-1A head. Here is the same image reprinted with different alterations over the years but the "VF-1B" in the pictures above is definitely original.

Hey geecie30, thanks for all the research. I for one, need to look at episode #27 ( "Love Drifts Away") again to see this "refit" VF-1A. All I can remember seeing is the Orguss mecha with the VF-1A head. In regards to the VF-1B, I think that many would disagree with most of these statements about it. It was discussed thoroughly on the old boards and most of us agreed that the frankenstein valkyrie witnessed in episode #32 was more than likely anime error courtesy of Anime Friend. This happens throughout several episodes in the Macross Series because many episodes were outsourced to different Anime studios in different countries to keep up with the demanding deadlines. That is why the quality of the anime changes from episode to episode. Off hand, I can recall an episode where either Max or Kakizaki have what appears to be small canisters (missiles?) on the tail wings that disappear in the very next scene. Harmony Gold and Toynami claimed to have created a new "veritech" for the game "Battlecry" but all they did was take the credit if you can call it that, for a 20 year old mistake from a sub par studio. As for the name of the "veritech" that is "created solely for " the game, it's called a VF-1R not a VF-1B. All that seems to be known is the "half S" retrofit. This seems to leave the actual look of the VF-1B open to interpretation. I hope that this helps with the mystery of the VF-1B. Rick

Actually, I think that the main reason yellowing seems to be an exclusive and extreme problem for the Bandai/Takatoku valks is because they are the only one's that have stood the test of time. About 20 years of exposure will tell all. Come to think of it, I have yet to hear anyone complain that they notice yellowing on their Bandai reissues. I have heard some complain about yellowing on their Yamato 1/60 arms. From personal observation I would say that the Yamato plastic seems to be inferior in quality to the Bandai's. I am interested to see which of the two would look worse if they were kept in the same environment for 20 years. This of course wouldn't included them being stored in a dark sealed box or chamber filled with inert gas.

I also had read about the VF-1B in Macross Compendium. However, if there are any differences in the bodies of a 1S and a 1A, it seems that they are almost non-existant. After thinking about it for a while, I decided to make a custom super VF-1B about two years ago. I decided that my VF-1B would be the color of most VF-1A's (cannon fodder) with a VF-1S head retrofit painted to match. Graham has posted my interpretation of the VF-1B in the customs section. Unfortunately, it's labeled as a Super VF-1S. I guess it's because many Macross fans either refuse to believe in the existance of the VF-1B or know nothing about it and therefore see it as a Cannon Fodder VF-1S. Oh well! Rick

Bmaximum, you can get Goo Gone from Wal-Mart. This stuff is great for removing old stickers or the sticky residue that they leave behind. The yellowed tape is just another example of this amazing product. Rick

Hello all. I know that from time to time we see members post miracle solutions that are claimed to reverse yellowing on valkyries. I have tried all of them and have been disappointed with the results. First of all, I know that yellowing is a chemical change in the plastic that can't be washed off. However, I can always hope. That is the reason that I continue to try new methods that claim to work. Unlike these plastic miracles that I have mentioned, I have discovered a way to remove that old yellow unsightly tape from vintage Bandai DYRL boxes. To do this, I used Goo Gone and a Q-Tip on my vintage Bandai VF-1A Hikaru box. I just dipped the end of the Q-Tip in the Goo Gone (don't soak the whole tip)and used a back and forth as well as a circular motion with medium to light pressure until the tape had disappeared! The strange thing is that the tape almost looks like it has fossilized into part of the box itself. Other than the yellow discoloration that you see, you need to look at the taped section from an angle to see that it has a more reflective surface than the area around it. After I had used the damp Q-Tip on the taped part for a while, I looked at the area and saw that the yellowing and reflectiveness had almost completely vanished. However, I was a little worried at first because the treated area became slightly discolored due to the fact that the area was wet. Fortunately, when the area dried, it wasn't discolored or distorted at all. I was also a little concerned that I would rub off the top layer of the box and expose the bare cardboard, but with the medium to light pressure nothing like that happened. I then tried this method on my Bandai Elintseeker box and had the same excellent results. I'm sure that this method would work the same on a Takatoku box. I know that it takes a lot of courage to try this out on vintage items so I suggest that if you do decided to try this method, make sure to try it on a small and somewhat inconspicuous area. Let it dry to see that there is no discoloration. The results definitely made my boxes look better. Rick

I have to agree with CID! MW became even better when the customs section was added. Hey Valhalla and Lightning 06, didn't you guys already know that the customs section was up and running? If you didn't, here's the thread. http://www.macrossworld.com/macross/toys/m...ustoms-main.htm

Actually, it's a VF-1B(Tamiya Light Sand). I was inspired by this write-up at Macross Compendium. "VF-1B: VF-1A version upgraded by the "Half-S" retrofit (overhauled avionics and S-type head unit)."

I forgot to resize the picture! Sorry.

Hello all. Here is a picture of one of my customs that was made from spare parts. Hopefully, more pictures of this will soon be in the customs section. Rick

LMAO!!! Thanks for the laugh Grayson72. It was the best one I've had all week. This shows that I am not the only one who can see the obvious clearcoating. Too bad the shine wasn't as obvious in the pictures from the Ostrich auction I won. Maybe your right, it could be Future Floor Finish.

Hey Culverin, how's it going? First of all, I will say that modifying and selling a modified item is okay as long as it is mentioned in the auctions description. In the auction I won, the only thing that was mention about the Super O was that it had a yellowed chest plate. As a collector I decided to bid up to $400.00 for this rare item. However, I never agreed to bid $400.00 to purchase a sanded and clearcoated (damaged) Bandai Super Ostrich. If I'm going to pay that much for something that has been altered, I would have purchased his VF-1D custom w/box. I'm letting everyone here know about this so that they don't get burned like I did. Rick

Hello guys. I have finally identified a MW member that sold me a Bandai 1/55 Super Ostrich that was sanded and clear coated to hide yellowing for $400! I have provided two links below that will show you about an Elintseeker auction that I consider absurd. I was taken by this guy and I don't want to see it happen to anyone else on these boards. http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?showtopic=7011 http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?...pic=172&st=160& This message has been brought to you by your local MacrossWorld Community Watch Program.

Hey Zeke, small world! I'm the guy that you sold the sanded and clear coated Bandai VT-1 Super Ostrich to. I've noticed that your current auction for the VE-1 Elintseeker looks to be clear coated as well. I promised you that I'd warn my friends to avoid your auctions. This includes my friends here at MacrossWorld. Now that I know who you are, I will recommend your name be added to the Blacklist. Sorry, but this is something that I feel needed to be said and done. For anyone wondering about the clear coating practice that I mentioned above, here is the link to a strange highly glossed Bandai VE-1 Elintseeker auction that Zeke had placed on eBay. Keep in mind that even the new Bandai reissues don't carry a shine like this 20 year old item does. Even the armor looks like glass! http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...ssPageName=WDVW

Hello. Would this happen to be your auction? http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...ssPageName=WDVW

Hey Blaine23 you're right, I do own the 3 original issues. However, just in case you're assuming that I'm one of those collectors who is looking to make some profit off of my hobby, you're wrong. I am the original owner of these items which I purchased in 1985 with money I made from mowing lawns. They were US $40 each when they were purchased from Mikado's in Japantown, San Francisco. I paid $120 for all 3 and could have sold them a few years ago for at least $3000 but didn't. I don't collect or hoard Valkyries for profit. This is an actual hobby for me, not a business venture. As for the prices, those are set by fans like you and I. I could care less if they were only worth $40 still. The point is that every great collection has something that's rare. For example, I don't own a Low Viz. They are rare and therefore worth more. This was determined by the collectors. I think that it took some time before the DYRL 1/55's went up in value, unlike the Low Viz. There is no way that I'd pay over $200 for an item that never existed in the television series or the movie and was produced as recently as last year. I therefore will probably never own one. To those who have them I say, good for you. That is a rare item that makes the collecting even more fun. I want one but I hope they don't reissue the LW VF-1A. I know many collectors have sacrificed something to be able to afford them. Bmaximum, I feel your pain. I am with Kanata67 on this one. If they do reissue them, maybe they could color them differently, hopefully not "hot pink" but something Macross like. Bandai doesn't care. I was just suggesting that they show a little respect to the people that have made them money by buying these vintage items originally. Also, this would help to avoid slapping anyone (insert Bmaximum's name here) who worked hard to get them, in the face. Once again, just a suggestion. Kind of like those who want a Low Viz VF-1J or VF-1S. I agree with them. Yamato could mass produce these so that many collectors can get them instead at a fairly reasonable price. I agree with you on this one. For me, the 1/55 will always be the best. Perfect transformation started here! I really think that they could make the 8 new variants that I already named. This would be so easy for Bandai to do. Of the 8 that were never issued, 6 of them are VF-1A's and 1 is a VF-1S. These molds already exist. The only molds that they'd need to make is one for the Vf-1D head and heat shield. I say make these limited runs and charge higher prices. The only thing that I find frustrating is that a few years ago it seemed like everyone was talking about Bandai's lack of interest in reproducing the 1/55 line. Then once they did this, many bad mouthed Bandai and the 1/55 design. It's almost as if these critics hold animosity toward the 1/55 because they didn't have them and couldn't afford them. To these people I say, hail the new guy in town all you want, but it will NEVER have the same impact on the toy industry that the 1/55 had. Long live the 1/55!!! Rick

I just thought about this one. What about a new kit that contained these parts: 1) updated Hikaru VF-1J nose section with removable canopy cover 2) parts to correct the incorrect gray Max/Millia elbows 3) tail wing replacement parts with the correct color scheme for the Cannon Fodder 4) new and improved head replacement sculpts 5) smaller more attractive swing bars 6) replacement landing gear wheels and shoulder hinges that are plastic plated to cover the diecast metal Yeah, I know it's never gonna happen, but imagine if it did. Rick