1/55's revisited

[LocusPocus]

…picked this guy up the other day from a local comic/gaming shop for 40 dollars. complete surprise, never happens in my world. incomplete but very solid - it brings back some great memories

[jenius]

The toy that began my addiction.

[26662]

On 2/26/2026 at 8:22 PM, jenius said:

The toy that began my addiction.

Same.  I have maybe 4 here at the house in various stages of disassembly and another dozen or so in storage right now.  Still an addict.  Can’t wait for the “Missing Link” VF-1J release later this year.

That said, take a look at this insanity:

https://ebay.us/m/QdF2QC

[jenius]

I would sell mine for that much

[Slave IV]

Saw this in a shop window recently. 

 

[26662]

22 minutes ago, Slave IV said:

Saw this in a shop window recently. 

 

I've owned only one Joon's: I bought it in 1999 off eBay for <$100.  It was stupid-floppy with obscenely-large tolerances.  I relisted it almost immediately.  Yes, of course, I wish I hadn't sold it.  My younger self was an idiot in a lot of ways.  Sadly, not much has changed on that front.  🙂😉 

[Slave IV]

17 minutes ago, 26662 said:

I've owned only one Joon's: I bought it in 1999 off eBay for <$100.  It was stupid-floppy with obscenely-large tolerances.  I relisted it almost immediately.  Yes, of course, I wish I hadn't sold it.  My younger self was an idiot in a lot of ways.  Sadly, not much has changed on that front.  🙂😉 

Haha, that's why I never sell anything unless I have extra. But that's also why my house is basically a warehouse, which is another form of idiocy, lol!

[strikevalk]

promo poster on ebay... 

https://ebay.us/m/ZvELPb

 

[jvmacross]

19 hours ago, strikevalk said:

promo poster on ebay... 

https://ebay.us/m/ZvELPb

 

It's one of those rare items that don’t necessarily translate to the kind of price being asked....

Here's mine....

https://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/topic/46734-takatoku-toys-and-bandai-macross-promotional-materialsnow-with-more-arcadia/#findComment-1522274

 

[Slave IV]

Posting this information I saw on TFW and got permission from the OP (@betsuni) to repost here. Original Post on TFW.

Just wondering how many people here knew about this feature?

So I discovered something new to me on the old VF-1 1/55 design after I don't know how many decades of owning one (and playing with my old VF-1A as a kid to the point where the front landing gear won't stay locked in). There is a clip that is there to firmly attach the "back" of the Battroid!



You can unclip it by pushing down on it when flipping out that back panel instead of trying to pop it out.

This new found knowledge makes this thing an insanely awesome toy. It is super solid now in Battroid mode.

I am a two-time, undefeated Chunky transformation champion, who has owned and been playing with these things since they came out, and I have never noticed this or heard it mentioned until it was just pointed out in that thread. The clip part, yes, but that it has a spring loaded release, nope!

Edited Wednesday at 11:54 PM by Slave IV

[sh9000]

Yes I've known it since taking apart Jetfires back in the day.  There's a spring in that area.

[Slave IV]

That makes sense if you are taking the whole thing apart. Only parts I ever took apart are the shoulders to fix the ratchets and the cockpit as part of the intended shield swap. Luckily never had problems besides the shoulder on any of mine and I don’t like to paint or alter my toys.

Still interesting I’ve never heard it mentioned before, even in the instructions. 

[BlueMax]

Ooh.... that is new to me as well! Guess I haven't been transforming them enough!

[treatment]

2 hours ago, Slave IV said:

Posting this information I saw on TFW and got permission from the OP (@betsuni) to repost here. Original Post on TFW.

Just wondering how many people here knew about this feature?

So I discovered something new to me on the old VF-1 1/55 design after I don't know how many decades of owning one (and playing with my old VF-1A as a kid to the point where the front landing gear won't stay locked in). There is a clip that is there to firmly attach the "back" of the Battroid!



You can unclip it by pushing down on it when flipping out that back panel instead of trying to pop it out.

This new found knowledge makes this thing an insanely awesome toy. It is super solid now in Battroid mode.

I am a two-time, undefeated Chunky transformation champion, who has owned and been playing with these things since they came out, and I have never noticed this or heard it mentioned until it was just pointed out in that thread. The clip part, yes, but that it has a spring loaded release, nope!

 

9 minutes ago, Slave IV said:

That makes sense if you are taking the whole thing apart. Only parts I ever took apart are the shoulders to fix the ratchets and the cockpit as part of the intended shield swap. Luckily never had problems besides the shoulder on any of mine and I don’t like to paint or alter my toys.

Still interesting I’ve never heard it mentioned before, even in the instructions. 

 

You don't have to take it apart. 

That feature has been long known, but I guess was just easy to forget since the 1/55 TF process is way so simple OOB and stuff.

At least this reviewer recently explained it with his retro-review at the 10:40 time-stamp:

 

As such and fwiw as a trivia,  Bandai kinda replicated that feature in their DX VF-1 line:

 

 

[Slave IV]

1 hour ago, treatment said:

 

 

You don't have to take it apart. 

That feature has been long known, but I guess was just easy to forget since the 1/55 TF process is way so simple OOB and stuff.

At least this reviewer recently explained it with his retro-review at the 10:40 time-stamp:

 

As such and fwiw as a trivia,  Bandai kinda replicated that feature in their DX VF-1 line:

 

 

I get you don’t have to take it apart. Not really a feature if that was the case. I meant it makes sense someone who took the whole toy apart would notice it. Either way, thanks for sharing the video. That is the only other time I’ve seen it mentioned now. 

Edit: After watching it again and listening to the translated version, he doesn't mention the spring loaded feature at all. Just that you need to clip that part in, which you never need to know about the feature to do. He doesn't transform back from Battroid mode where it could be mentioned that you can press down on that part to release the clip.

Edited yesterday at 04:15 AM by Slave IV

[treatment]

1 hour ago, Slave IV said:

I get you don’t have to take it apart. Not really a feature if that was the case. I meant it makes sense someone who took the whole toy apart would notice it. Either way, thanks for sharing the video. That is the only other time I’ve seen it mentioned now. 

 

Yeah. That will be kinda bizarro weird to it take apart for a feature.

Got me interested a bit to check out if other reviewers that touched on this easy-to-ignore feature and remembered CDX 2009-review of the 1990 Super Valk did point it out at the 12:13 time-stamp here:

and kinda did at the 13:23 time-stamp with the hard push-to-click stuff on the Origins VF-1S back in 2010:

Like most everyone else, we just kinda muscle-memory/habit it just like EVA_Unit_4A did without really dwelling on it since it's just so logical...

add/edit:

here's Peaugh's talking about it back in 2010 at the 6:09 time-stamp:

Really assumed @jenius old reviews may have mentioned it in passing as well, but not sure anymore... 

edit2:

Yup. @jenius kinda alluded to it briefly when clicky-unsecuring of the backplate in his review at the 6:29 time-stamp:

@Slave IV was talking about the "spring-action" unhooking by pushing down the peg/peg-area instead.

Edited yesterday at 05:37 AM by treatment

[Slave IV]

26 minutes ago, treatment said:

 

Yeah. That will be kinda bizarro weird to it take apart for a feature.

Got me interested a bit to check out if other reviewers that touched on this easy-to-ignore feature and remembered CDX 2009-review of the 1990 Super Valk did point it out at the 12:13 time-stamp here:

and kinda did at the 13:23 time-stamp with the hard push-to-click stuff on the Origins VF-1S back in 2010:

Like most everyone else, we just kinda muscle-memory/habit it just like EVA_Unit_4A did without really dwelling on it since it's just so logical...

add/edit:

here's Peaugh's talking about it back in 2010 at the 6:09 time-stamp:

Really assumed @jenius old reviews may have mentioned it in passing as well, but not sure anymore... 

 

I edited my post after you quoted but once again, not a single one of those mentions specifically the spring loaded nature of the clip and that you can press down on it to release. They only mention the clip in part, which I think is obvious and the part that is kind of mind blowing is the easy release part that no one mentions.

Edited yesterday at 04:45 AM by Slave IV

[sh9000]

2 hours ago, Slave IV said:

That makes sense if you are taking the whole thing apart. Only parts I ever took apart are the shoulders to fix the ratchets and the cockpit as part of the intended shield swap. Luckily never had problems besides the shoulder on any of mine and I don’t like to paint or alter my toys.

Still interesting I’ve never heard it mentioned before, even in the instructions. 

Yeah my point of reference was 1985 when I was a kid and had G1 Jetfire.  Nothing was mentioned in the G1 instructions and I wondered what the part was for.  I also never owned the Takatoku 1/55 VF-1 as a kid.  

Congrats to the person who knew it before others.  Here's a cookie.  The question was how many people knew about the feature.

Edited yesterday at 04:47 AM by sh9000

[Slave IV]

3 minutes ago, sh9000 said:

Yeah my point of reference was 1985 when I was a kid and had G1 Jetfire.  Nothing was mentioned in the G1 instructions and I wondered what the part was for.  I also never owned the Takatoku 1/55 VF-1 as a kid.  

Congrats to the person who knew it before others.  Here's a cookie.  The question was how many people knew about the feature.

Exactly! @betsuni is the only person I've ever seen mention that when transforming from battroid mode, you can open the back door and press down on the spring loaded latch for easy release. I'm wondering who else knew that because I sure didn't and not ashamed to admit it.

[treatment]

15 minutes ago, Slave IV said:

I edited my post after you quoted but once again, not a single one of those mentions specifically the spring loaded nature of the clip and that you can press down on it to release. They only mention the clip in part, which I think is obvious and the part that is kind of mind blowing is the easy release part that no one mentions.

 

6 minutes ago, Slave IV said:

Exactly! @betsuni is the only person I've ever seen mention that when transforming from battroid mode, you can open the back door and press down on the spring loaded latch for easy release. I'm wondering who else knew that because I sure didn't and not ashamed to admit it.

 

Hmm. Maybe you need to demonstrate it.

I took out my old Super and tried it.

It only untabs the the clip when I pushed down the backplate, but with no springy action.

[Slave IV]

3 minutes ago, treatment said:

 

 

Hmm. Maybe you need to demonstrate it.

I took out my old Super and tried it.

It only untabs the the clip when I pushed down the backplate, but with no springy action.

Ok, I’m not sure if I can post a video as easy as photos here but I think I can explain. 
See the top part circled in this picture?

 

That tab that locks into the hole in the fuselage circled below it, is spring loaded. From the perspective of this picture, you could push up on it. When transforming to Battroid like in the videos you posted, you can see the same tab from a top view through the door that the head fits through and you can press down on it to make tabbing it in easier, and when transforming from Battroid mode, you can open the door and press down on it to release the tab without forcing anything. It’s definitely not obvious unless you know it’s there, which is what makes it another insanely cool feature that I went decades not knowing. I hope that makes more sense now. 

[treatment]

12 minutes ago, Slave IV said:

Ok, I’m not sure if I can post a video as easy as photos here but I think I can explain. 
See the top part circled in this picture?

 

That tab that locks into the hole in the fuselage circled below it, is spring loaded. From the perspective of this picture, you could push up on it. When transforming to Battroid like in the videos you posted, you can see the same tab from a top view through the door that the head fits through and you can press down on it to make tabbing it in easier, and when transforming from Battroid mode, you can open the door and press down on it to release the tab without forcing anything. It’s definitely not obvious unless you know it’s there, which is what makes it another insanely cool feature that I went decades not knowing. I hope that makes more sense now. 

That's what I did and there is no springy-action that you and Betsuni were talking about.

The peg just gets un-tab when you press down on it since you're giving it space to unhook.

There is no springy-action, tho.

At least, not on my Super-1S.

edit:

btw, we should be clear that one pushes down the peg area below the trap-door, instead of the trap-door or the backplate itself.

Pushing down the trap-door or the backplate itself may just result in tragic breakage...

 

Edited yesterday at 05:30 AM by treatment
clarity

[Slave IV]

23 minutes ago, treatment said:

That's what I did and there is no springy-action that you and Betsuni were talking about.

The peg just gets un-tab when you press down on the door since you're giving it space to unhook.

There is no springy-action, tho.

At least, not on my Super-1S.

edit:

btw, we should be clear that one pushes down the peg area below the trap-door, instead of the trap-door or the backplate itself.

Pushing down the trap-door or the backplate itself may just result in tragic breakage...

 

I don’t have any Takatoku or early Bandai chunkys easily accessible to see but from the pictures I’ve looked at and SH saying he has it on his Jetfire, I’m assuming it must have been an original design that was on all of them. 
 

You can see in this picture that @jvmacrossshared of his Strike Valk, that it seems to have the same design. 

So that tab sticking out, push from the top (above it) down (towards the black screw) and you should notice it is spring loaded. 
I’m definitely also curious if it is not on some versions. Again, that would be very interesting since every write up I’ve seen that mentions differences in the various releases has never made any mention of that clip and if they were aware of it, surely thy would have mentioned the existence or non existence of it. 

Edited yesterday at 05:48 AM by Slave IV

[treatment]

5 minutes ago, Slave IV said:

I don’t have any Takatoku or early Bandai chunkys easily accessible to see but from the pictures I’ve looked at and SH saying he has it on his Jetfire, I’m assuming it must have been an original design that was on all of them. 
 

You can see in this picture that @jvmacrossshared of his Strike Valk, that it seems to have the same design. 

So that tab sticking out, push from the top (above it) down (towards the black screw) and you should notice it is spring loaded. 

Yeah, I know.

It does have a spring in the assembly of it.

But it doesn't do any springy-action when you push down to disconnect it.

I can only guess that Takatoku engineers figured out that it helps in easier alignment connection and cuts down on structural breakage by isolating it.

 

 

[Slave IV]

1 minute ago, treatment said:

Yeah, I know.

It does have a spring in the assembly of it.

But it doesn't do any springy-action when you push down to disconnect it.

I can only guess that Takatoku engineers figured out that it helps in easier alignment connection and cuts down on structural breakage by isolating it.

 

 

Ok, yeah, it doesn’t “launch” the tab out with spring action like the missiles in the gunpod😂. It just releases it so you don’t have to use force to pull it out. But as you mentioned, it was also probably designed to reduce stress and breakage even if you don’t press down to release. 

[treatment]

3 hours ago, Slave IV said:

Ok, yeah, it doesn’t “launch” the tab out with spring action like the missiles in the gunpod😂. It just releases it so you don’t have to use force to pull it out. But as you mentioned, it was also probably designed to reduce stress and breakage even if you don’t press down to release. 

As such, here's Wotafa demonstrating his "own way" of untabbing/disconnecting the peg by pushing it down with his forefinger starting at the 13:14 time-stamp (turn on english-subs for context):

snapshots:

  

 

That is the process that you and Betsuni discovered, right? Or at least, close to it?

I know I've both read and watched some fan/fans detailing or at least noticing that particular part some years ago before, but I can't seem to find it anymore right now. 

Maybe it's in one of the old MWF threads back in the day.

Maybe in this very thread itself since this thread has been active since 2005... 😅

 

 

Edited yesterday at 09:50 AM by treatment
pics added

[nightmareB4macross]

That spring loaded tab is there specifically to keep the front and back halves together in Battroid mode. When pressing it down to disengage from Battroid to fighter it is always best to hold the back plate so you don’t force the metal shoulder hinges to warp and eventually break the plastic clips that keep them in place. Plus it keeps the Battroid tighter. If you often mis-operate these parts the front and back halves will get very loose and sloppy over time. And when you pose an arm with the GU-11 pointing forward the two halves will often split and the arm droops down.

And as an FYI, a similar clip system is used in the 1/100 Takatoku figures, but the clip is attached to the nosecone underside and has no spring tension.

Hope this helps.

[nightmareB4macross]

Just now, nightmareB4macross said:

That spring loaded tab is there specifically to keep the front and back halves together in Battroid mode. When pressing it down to disengage from Battroid to fighter it is always best to hold the back plate so you don’t force the metal shoulder hinges to warp and eventually break the plastic clips that keep them in place. Plus it keeps the Battroid tighter. If you often mis-operate these parts the front and back halves will get very loose and sloppy over time. And when you pose an arm with the GU-11 pointing forward the two halves will often split and the arm droops down.

it also has a dual purpose to keep the arms locked in place during fighter mode.

 

Just now, nightmareB4macross said:

And as an FYI, a similar clip system is used in the 1/100 Takatoku figures, but the clip is attached to the nosecone underside and has no spring tension.

Hope this helps.

 

[Slave IV]

7 hours ago, treatment said:

As such, here's Wotafa demonstrating his "own way" of untabbing/disconnecting the peg by pushing it down with his forefinger starting at the 13:14 time-stamp (turn on english-subs for context):

snapshots:

  

 

That is the process that you and Betsuni discovered, right? Or at least, close to it?

I know I've both read and watched some fan/fans detailing or at least noticing that particular part some years ago before, but I can't seem to find it anymore right now. 

Maybe it's in one of the old MWF threads back in the day.

Maybe in this very thread itself since this thread has been active since 2005... 😅

 

 

Thanks for finding all these references! Yes, he doesn’t mention it but he does appear to be using the mechanism the way betsuni pointed out (it was all him, not me). I figure it was something someone else had to know about but I’ve just never heard about so it’s just another little detail that further enhances what I consider the best toy ever made. 

5 hours ago, nightmareB4macross said:

That spring loaded tab is there specifically to keep the front and back halves together in Battroid mode. When pressing it down to disengage from Battroid to fighter it is always best to hold the back plate so you don’t force the metal shoulder hinges to warp and eventually break the plastic clips that keep them in place. Plus it keeps the Battroid tighter. If you often mis-operate these parts the front and back halves will get very loose and sloppy over time. And when you pose an arm with the GU-11 pointing forward the two halves will often split and the arm droops down.

And as an FYI, a similar clip system is used in the 1/100 Takatoku figures, but the clip is attached to the nosecone underside and has no spring tension.

Hope this helps.

Yep, thanks for the additional details! Even though none of my chunkys are loose and I didn’t know about the feature, I guess I was always careful enough when transforming. Also, the genius design of it gives it a lot of tolerance and precision at the same time for it to work with minimal wear even if you don’t press the spring down to release. 

[Hiriyu]

Huh. The presence of the spring is new to me, but I'd always transformed them using Wotafa's method regardless. Always thought that it just relied on the natural flexion of the plastic. Neat!

[Slave IV]

12 hours ago, Hiriyu said:

Huh. The presence of the spring is new to me, but I'd always transformed them using Wotafa's method regardless. Always thought that it just relied on the natural flexion of the plastic. Neat!

Wow, thats interesting you used a similar method to transform without noticing it. Makes me wonder if the designers only meant for it to relive stress when pulling without pressing it down? Knowing how thoughtful they were, they probably would have designed a button top or something to make it more obvious and easy to press. 

On another note, now that some of us know it’s there, it seems like it enables an easy way to fix the toy if you have a loose connection there. Like I said, I don’t have the issue on any of mine but I know I’ve played with many that did. Should be fairly easy to either replace or reposition the spring, if that is the issue or 3D print the clip if it is worn. It wouldn’t work if the tab on the fuselage is broken so I’m curious what the typical failure point is on those who have loose ones.