Lynx7725

Yes externally one of those old enclosures and a new one are nearly identical. But internally they're completely different. And while the new case has all sorts of easy to maintain features like removable motherboard trays, drive rails, and detachable hard drive bays, how easy do you think it would be to add those features to your old case? Sure you might be able to put some thumbscrews on it, mabye even cut a new access panel into it, but to put all of the really easy to use stuff you'd have to completely re-design the internals of the case.

You're right to say that the old casing cannot be refitted with the new technologies efficiently. It's better in this case to toss or recycle the old casing and buy a new one.

But in our case here, as far as I know for the Super Tomcat, it's supposed to be a re-designed and built-from-scratch airframe, so your concern here is misplaced.

If they intend to upgrade from say, D to E, and is claiming all these things.. I would say the same things you did. But if indeed the ST-14 is a total redesign (based F-14's proven design, but totally reworked), then your concerns would be addressed.

That and I don't see how adding a few extra access panels are going to make up for design defiencies in the airframe. There's not a whole lot you can do to improve maintainability without re-designing the airframe.

I can draw an analogy for you here.

In the early days of PC computing, components are standardized (PCI, etc. etc.) and it's often fashionable to scratchbuild your own system. This was before the era of Dell and other big computer manufacturers stepping in, okay?

The casing for PCs then were horrible. They are often a single metal frame with attachment points for hardware, but designed with little thought of maintenance or accessibility. Customizers often end up with nicks and scratches due to the (sharp) frame designed to secure components.. but not for users to reach them.

Nowadys, PC casing are much more user friendly. My current system casing can strip out entire cages for easy installation of harddrives and other peripherials, the entire PC power supply can be detached and replaced (previously power supply are as good as welded to the frame...). This makes maintenance MUCH easier, and replacement of parts much easier too.

But structurally-wise, externally my PC is still a darn box.

In a similar fashion, in theory, ergonomic design of the interior of the airframe, with special emphasis on accessibility, replacability and maintenance, can easily cut maintenance cost down significantly on the ST-14.

I love the Tomcat to death, yes... but I've heard on good authority that one of the huge benefits of switching over to Super Hornets is the ungainly amounts of maintenance time involved in servicing F-14's compared to the other options.

I think, at this point, let's segregate a few points that appeared to be mixed in.

• 1. There is no denying the F-14 is a maintenance hog. This is well documented.
  
• 2. There is no denying that new technologies that the F-22 and F-35 represent must be introduced in a controlled fashion to the military. This has been extensively dealt with in another thread.
  
• 3. That the F-22 and F-35 may not be SOTA enough is really a relevant issue here. Moreover, you need to have gradual introduction of new technologies in order to maintain combat effectiveness of the whole armed forces, so introducing a less-than-SOTA machine makes sense in a way.
  
• 4. There is no denying that the F-18 can't do all the missions that the F-14 is currently doing. The question is whether the F-14's original mission is still valid, which IMO it is.. which means a US Task Force may have serious holes in its defenses in the near future.
  
• 5. The F-18 isn't a bad plane. It flies. Better than the F-35 now, better than the Eurofighter now, better than the Brit's uncertified Chinooks. So it's not a bad plane. It just looks like a bad plane... :D
  

These are all separate issues and shouldn't be mixed up too much.

What really irritates me is the destruction of the F-14's toolings. There is ABSOLUTELY no reason to do that. It is a burning of a bridge that I suspect in the near future will become a regrettable decision.

It is utterly insane to destroy the toolings because it means if and when you need to reintroduce the F-14 due to pressing situational needs (like when they discover in practice that F-18's can't do all of F-14's jobs..).. you can't. It's an insane, stupid, and utterly senseless thing to do, especially when there are other ways of achieving the same result.

Tornado's good. Except when being shot down by Patriots:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/05/20/patriot_missile/

Patriot sucks, IMHO. It's like the AEGIS system, only with a much worse record.

Uh-huh. I guess a working IFF isn't a necessity for flight...

Patriot, yeah. I guess it's a victim of its own "success".. the media wanted a success story, and the Patriot was in the right place at the right time.

Anyway, back to the overweight F35. Given that there's about a decade's time before it enters service, the probability is good that advancements and refinements will lower the engine weight. It probably WILL still end up overweight, but not by 1.5 metric tons.

And now the Eurofighter Typhoon might just crash on you.

Good God.

Overweight F35, aging Harriers, uncertified Chinooks, unreliable Eurofighters.. does the Brits have any thing that will fly properly?

26.62722% - Total Geek

Might want to replace "Zentraedi Battle Pod" with "Yamato 1/60 Customized MAC II"...

Just a premonition that it may actually happen.

The ending leaves that question absolutely open, although Miho's statements hint strongly that the two are alive.. but only Miho knows for sure, and she ain't talking.

It's the right sort of ending for WHR, actually. The whole series is about mysteries, lies and deceit.. so an ambiguous ending like that fits right in.

Is Robin Sena -- the Devil's Child -- still alive? Nobody knows. But it is an interesting story hook if WHR2 ever comes around.

Just an observation. White sand (typical of really good beaches) would probably go better than the current colour.

yeh, that was kinda annoying me as well. But I dont have any here at home either, thats all I had, kinda like the golf ball :

Might I suggest.. painting the current sand into a whitish colour?

Just an observation. White sand (typical of really good beaches) would probably go better than the current colour.

Otherwise, an excellent piece.

You can do this too with the GFF Zeta-Plus. I'll post some pics of mine in this mode later tonight.

Sorry man, I've got to be a bit blunt here. "Syringe" is a lousy name for this.. I understand your intent behind the name, but to be honest, Penguin is the first name to pop into my head when I saw your redesign.

Design-wise... Aerodynamic, this is not. Is there any real reason for an extensible wings? I mean, as I understand it, there is some justification for having verniers mounted on long extensions -- the force or moment generated by such a placement has more impact on the craft.

If so, why not simply leave the wings permanently stuck out? Extensible wings just means more things that can go wrong on an aerospacecraft.

Having the hard-docking point between the engine intakes might pose problem with FOD, especially if this craft is capable of intraatmosphere intercepts.

Overall, this craft looks and sounds like a brick.. that's fine, actually, as a troopship. It's just that with a name like "Syringe"... I expect it to be more slender, or more cylindrical in appearance.

I always liked the idea of a season long story arcs, even the continuity has been mostly airtight.

I might be highjacking this thread a bit here, but..

I'm not really a Star Trek fan, but I occassionally peek into the discussions here and there. One site -- funny in the right light -- caught my attention:

First TV Drama Enterprise Pages

This guy is obviously biased, but I would like your opinions on his opinions.

Okay, I took it out of the box so I could get an image of it. Here's a picture.

I learn -- usually through the hard way -- that these things have a nasty habit of coming back to haunt you again and again until you fix it.

In this case, it's not a good idea to paint it, because you need a really steady hand and a very fine brush to paint the groove. You can do it... but... a slight mistake and you can end up with a smudgy Skull.

You can mask and paint it, I suppose... but that's a huge hassle for a single line. And the masking could possibly damage the Skull insignia.

The best solution I can think of is to get a Micro-pigma pen -- not Gundam marker, invest in a good pen -- of the right colour, and panel-line the groove repeatedly. Maybe hit the area with a flat coat of sealent to kill any gloss.

As David says, different glossiness of black contrasts with each other, so make sure to test the pen at some less obvious part, like the base of the fin, and have a wet tissue/ towel handy to wipe away the ink if it doesn't look right immediately after application.

An MP-44/Sturmgewehr-44 would be nice but screw that.  You want a friggin' MG-42 with a belt of ammo attached and wearing 2 more belts like Rambo.  More menacing that way.

Oh, you mean something like this? :P

EDIT: Forgot to attach pic at first pass. D'oh.

Anybody have any of the other Takara Cool Girl Figures?  Just curious about the quality/poseability of them (have heard about Dragon 1/6th figures, but not Takara...).

To answer this question:

Nude, the posability is quite good. Quality is also quite high -- you get what you pay for. Durability, may get a little loose, especially the wrists, after some time.

Unfortunately, on the version I have (Power Assault Section -- big ass gatling! ) the.. uhm.. catsuit restricted the posture quite severely, and the added layer of padded vest does get just a little into the way.

Overall it's really worth your money. I probably will be getting one of these, maybe 2; I have a MG39 which would go wonderfully with this figure (I got the MG39 specifically for the PAS). Maybe it's time to pick up a Panzerfaust or RPG.. Panzerfaust if I can find it.

EDIT: Oh yeah, Takara's official pics of this.

There's never really specific 'Mech stats.. maybe a few, sure, but AFAIK nothing definite beyond "10-plus meters of moving metal"...

i am confused by this, anyone want to explain?

This set of pics is a parody on various Gundam MS/ MA models. The various poses that Osaka is in mimics the overall look of the MS/ MA.

You have to be fairly familiar with the mecha in order to appreciate the humour -- maybe I'll put up a bunch of comparison pics later tonight.. provided I can get the proper resource.

Like you said -- The main purpose of this is to give the option of remaining in cover while looking around corners. I definitely can appreciate this, but this is already possible now, although probably without the ability to poke a gun barrel around said corner.

I think, and you point out, that the company's attempts to push this product as being capable of turning a single man into a one-man ERT team is the basis of my annoyance at it. It's like giving said man the wrong set of confidence.. very dangerous.

Personally, if a tool has value and will be very useful to the team, cost should be a secondary concern. I won't mind spurging if it works well!

Like I said, I see some merit in the system, but the exact execution of the idea leaves me cold.

I definitely see the advantages of this in CQB, but honestly do feel the "commercial" has overhyped the product.

My major concern is really two areas: the reset time and noise (between bended and straight), and the potential for user fixation on the LCD. The latter can be overcome by training, but I'm not so sure about the former.

Hey, has anybody here seen THIS, the world's most expensive GLock accessory?

Oh jeez. I'm not really an expert, but that.. that thing look hideously unuseable.

I can definitely see the potential in what it does... the clip shows a uniformed policeman sweeping under a car, that's definitely useful; I can think of a few other situations where a tool like this would be useful.

But gawd.. this thing is clunky, sounds awfully loud when you clack it back into a straight line, looks like a SMG or short assault rifle but shoots as a pistol, and has a teeny LCD. I can't wait for the first poor sod who fixate on the LCD and fail to see a clear and present danger.

Nice concept, but I cringe at this execution. I'm not sure whether the concept can be actualized in a decent way at this time though.

Y'know, this could be because the VEFR looks like a man with a Chinese coolie hat.

Oh these...

Seen them in box. About.. uhm 5" to 6" tall, not too bad on their own. Didn't handle one so can't talk about the quality.

As a 40K player, it's something that's... not very useful.

They look quite nice, actually.

Though I was a little distracted by the watermelons (yes, pural. ) on the left of the pics.

Escaped.. this is much tougher than the Crimson Room (and I had to search for hints online).

It's also much creepier and may not be appropriate to all parties.