ALL THINGS TRANSFORMERS!!!!

[Deak Starkiller]

Been on a bit of a Shapeways kick lately eh Nick?

YES! I love it, very fun to do. Nice little creative outlet.

picked up prime arcee, ratchet and another vehicon today at walmart. also went back and picked up several of the AM and 1st ed prime figures. deak, i blame you and your stellar pics.

Well thanks man.

 

[the angry orc]

seriously though, deak. your pics are awesome. i especially want the shapeways mace in your megatron pics. their site is awesome and i could seriously spend a silly amount of money on weapons for different figures. kind of like the marauders for non-joes.

 

[karamazov80]

Another knock on iGear and other 3rd parties I find laughable is that their stuff looks "cheap" as it's not like Hasbro's is significantly better eg,

I agree with you that they aren't much different. . .but to me, that's a problem. I'm not happy paying $100 for the same quality figure I can get from Hasbro for a fraction of the cost. . .even if that figure is better designed. With unlicensed 1/6 scale figures, unless they are being produced in extremely low edition sizes by hand by custom artist, we aren't paying multiple times what a mass produced figure costs. In fact, we usually pay less. I'm not saying the Igears of the world should charge prices equivalent to what Hasbro charges, but $100 for a Classics-scale toy is really pushing it. Particularly with their ridiculously high edition sizes and well known QC problems. I was really interested in the 3rd party stuff at first, but the more I think about all that, the more the price bugs me.

 

[Deak Starkiller]

seriously though, deak. your pics are awesome. i especially want the shapeways mace in your megatron pics. their site is awesome and i could seriously spend a silly amount of money on weapons for different figures. kind of like the marauders for non-joes.

It's a slippery slope but fun.

I agree with you that they aren't much different. . .but to me, that's a problem. I'm not happy paying $100 for the same quality figure I can get from Hasbro for a fraction of the cost. . .even if that figure is better designed. With unlicensed 1/6 scale figures, unless they are being produced in extremely low edition sizes by hand by custom artist, we aren't paying multiple times what a mass produced figure costs. In fact, we usually pay less. I'm not saying the Igears of the world should charge prices equivalent to what Hasbro charges, but $100 for a Classics-scale toy is really pushing it. Particularly with their ridiculously high edition sizes and well known QC problems. I was really interested in the 3rd party stuff at first, but the more I think about all that, the more the price bugs me.

How many Rainman figures do you own?

 

[thecorsair]

I agree with you that they aren't much different. . .but to me, that's a problem. I'm not happy paying $100 for the same quality figure I can get from Hasbro for a fraction of the cost. . .even if that figure is better designed. With unlicensed 1/6 scale figures, unless they are being produced in extremely low edition sizes by hand by custom artist, we aren't paying multiple times what a mass produced figure costs. In fact, we usually pay less. I'm not saying the Igears of the world should charge prices equivalent to what Hasbro charges, but $100 for a Classics-scale toy is really pushing it. Particularly with their ridiculously high edition sizes and well known QC problems. I was really interested in the 3rd party stuff at first, but the more I think about all that, the more the price bugs me.

Would you feel the same if Hasbro stuff cost twice as much as you currently have to pay though? ( As things do in Europe )

I can justify 3rd party prices because the designs, the scale and the character choices are what I'm looking for and at this point I virtually consider Has/Tak to be a lost cause in all those areas.

 

[Dubcustomz]

Would you feel the same if Hasbro stuff cost twice as much as you currently have to pay though? ( As things do in Europe )

I can justify 3rd party prices because the designs, the scale and the character choices are what I'm looking for and at this point I virtually consider Has/Tak to be a lost cause in all those areas.

B, is that you?

 

[karamazov80]

How many Rainman figures do you own?

It ain't just the money, it's the value for your money! Not to go too off-topic here, but I think I'm actually moving more away from Rainman and toward Iminime as the means to my high end, full figure custom fix considering how much more you seem to get for so much less. Only drawback is the tailoring. Rainman's tailor is as good as they come, but you are essentially paying $350+ for an outfit and accessories with him. That's a full figure from Iminime.

Would you feel the same if Hasbro stuff cost twice as much as you currently have to pay though? ( As things do in Europe )

Maybe, but. . .they don't! I can see how the difference isn't so huge for guys in Europe, but I'm comparing apples to apples in what is essentially the MSRP for these things.

 

[Dubcustomz]

Maybe, but. . .they don't! I can see how the difference isn't so huge for guys in Europe, but I'm comparing apples to apples in what is essentially the MSRP for these things.

Trust me, TP KO's are still overpriced here in the EU, theres still a massive difference in price between a hasbro TF and a TP KO.

 

[Deak Starkiller]

It ain't just the money, it's the value for your money! Not to go too off-topic here, but I think I'm actually moving more away from Rainman and toward Iminime as the means to my high end, full figure custom fix considering how much more you seem to get for so much less. Only drawback is the tailoring. Rainman's tailor is as good as they come, but you are essentially paying $350+ for an outfit and accessories with him. That's a full figure from Iminime.

I am kidding, I dunno I don't need to justify my purchases. I like what I buy, if I don't then I sell it. And what's an Iminime? I am out of it I suppose.

 

[karamazov80]

I am kidding, I dunno I don't need to justify my purchases. I like what I buy, if I don't then I sell it.

Weeeeeell look at you, Mr. Fancy Pants! Iminime is the team who did these (Denny Kim runs that crew):

https://www.sideshowcollectors.com/forums/showthread.php?t=108593&highlight=iminime

They are also doing Ra's Al Ghul (with Rainman sculpt), Gordon, and Matrix figures.

 

[Deak Starkiller]

Weeeeeell look at you, Mr. Fancy Pants! Iminime is the team who did these (Denny Kim runs that crew):

https://www.sideshowcollectors.com/forums/showthread.php?t=108593&highlight=iminime

They are also doing Ra's Al Ghul (with Rainman sculpt), Gordon, and Matrix figures.

Not bad. Not bad at all.

 

[karamazov80]

Yeah, and the prices aren't much higher than Hot Toys. I'm excited about those guys being on the scene to provide us with the high quality characters that aren't quite sexy enough to warrant licensed HT figures, for prices that aren't that unreasonable, all things considered.

 

[DPrime]

YES! I love it, very fun to do. Nice little creative outlet.

I've been thinking of picking up some of the Shapeways stuff myself. Even... well, this would be long term, and require a lot of work, probably - I don't know much about the process - maybe designing something? Like Beast Wars upgrades maybe.

I've got a degree in fine art (and not a bs one - one that required portfolio interviews, took a very limited number of people, etc) so I'm not without the talent, so who knows? I don't know much about the process, though.

In the meantime, I think I'd like to pick up some of those upgrades for the FE Starscream. We'll see though - lots more to buy first.

I agree with you that they aren't much different. . .but to me, that's a problem. I'm not happy paying $100 for the same quality figure I can get from Hasbro for a fraction of the cost. . .even if that figure is better designed. With unlicensed 1/6 scale figures, unless they are being produced in extremely low edition sizes by hand by custom artist, we aren't paying multiple times what a mass produced figure costs. In fact, we usually pay less. I'm not saying the Igears of the world should charge prices equivalent to what Hasbro charges, but $100 for a Classics-scale toy is really pushing it. Particularly with their ridiculously high edition sizes and well known QC problems. I was really interested in the 3rd party stuff at first, but the more I think about all that, the more the price bugs me.

Aren't third party figures very low edition sizes though? I mean, maybe not compared to the 1/6th stuff you're talking about, but compared to Hasbro, it's miniscule.

Plus, there's a lot more work involved in designing a working, high-quality fully-transformable figure than a 1/6th figure. Not knocking 1/6th artists or anything - the good stuff definitely requires highly talented artists for sculpting, painting and tailoring. Just not the same amount of engineering, testing, and production facilities... which I would think takes a lot more time and resources.

 

[thecorsair]

There's some nicely designed Transformer weapons and things available on Shapeways but I find the materials the items are printed in tend to have a very grainy texture to them that doesn't take paint very well....which tends to defeat the point of having them available in the first place.

Given their skill at engineering things like the various Iron Man armor I'd like to see the Masterpiece line handed over to Hot Toys as they'd inevitably reset the bar several notches higher and would likely have the balls to attempt something utterly mental like Predaking instead of sticking with the usual suspects ad ifinitum.

 

[karamazov80]

Aren't third party figures very low edition sizes though? I mean, maybe not compared to the 1/6th stuff you're talking about, but compared to Hasbro, it's miniscule.

Plus, there's a lot more work involved in designing a working, high-quality fully-transformable figure than a 1/6th figure. Not knocking 1/6th artists or anything - the good stuff definitely requires highly talented artists for sculpting, painting and tailoring. Just not the same amount of engineering, testing, and production facilities... which I would think takes a lot more time and resources.

I can only assume, based on availability and interest, that well over a thousand Hercules bots were made (I've seen over 100 in stock at BBTS alone for a given figure, and they had restocks). And for that reason, I assume that they would require more investments at a factory level than, say, a Brothers Production or Art Figures toy, which will have a run of a couple hundred. Yeah, that's lower than Hasbro, but enough to create an economy of scale that would allow for pretty hefty profits I bet. Again, I'm not saying these should be the same relative price to Hasbro that unlicensed 1/6 figures are to Sideshow. But the relative difference is so vast that it just seems a bit unreasonable to me. The product you get in your hand almost never feels worth the price to me with these things, even though they are quite nice for what they are.

I get Deak's POV, and I've shared it in the past, but if I've got a couple hundred dollars to blow, I guess I'll feel I'm getting more out of it spending it on something other than a couple unlicensed TFs, even if they are extremely cool for what they are, and even though I'm a huge Transformers fan. And that makes it hard for me to pull the trigger. Not that anyone should care

 

[thecorsair]

3rd party figures are overpriced without doubt, but virtually all the stuff I've bought has been more impressive than any official TF when it comes to the overall fun I've gotten from messing around with the different poses and accessories so the price doesn't seem so bad.

 

[Ra88]

The Dutch Transformers convention BOTS was Sunday, and I got myself a fantastic haul.

Generations Thundercracker
HFTD leader Starscream (FINALLY)
Universe Sunstreaker
WFC Megatron
DOTM Skyhammer
RTS Lugnut
Generations Perceptor
Generations Kup

A ton of great figures, and all for a pretty damn good value too, all together they were 100 bucks. Definitely good deals that I was very lucky with. Out of all of them I like Kup the best though, even with his screaming melting old man head, he's just a terrific figure with a ton of personality and a good balancing of old and new. I really did not expect to like him so much, since he always looked meh to me in pictures.

I also won a Solar Storm Grappel with my Megatron (who I entered for the kitbash contest). But I already got that last Friday. A buddy could use it for his Menasor custom though, so I gave it to him, and in return I got...A Human Alliance Jazz!

Given their skill at engineering things like the various Iron Man armor I'd like to see the Masterpiece line handed over to Hot Toys as they'd inevitably reset the bar several notches higher and would likely have the balls to attempt something utterly mental like Predaking instead of sticking with the usual suspects ad ifinitum.

Eh, I'd rather have it stick with Takara and have them step up their game again. Hot Toys rule, but I don't know whether they have the experience to design transforming figures that don't, you know, break during the first transformation, or look satisfying in both modes. I'd love movie figures of them, though.

3A, on the other hand? Now there's a company that could knock it right out of the park.

 

[Spiderwebb13]

Eh, I'd rather have it stick with Takara and have them step up their game again. Hot Toys rule, but I don't know whether they have the experience to design transforming figures that don't, you know, break during the first transformation, or look satisfying in both modes. I'd love movie figures of them, though.

3A, on the other hand? Now there's a company that could knock it right out of the park.

Yeah Hot Toys doing Transformers would be weird, and I totally agree with you. I love my Hot Toys figures, but picturing them being Transformers I see pieces everywhere.

 

[DPrime]

Given their skill at engineering things like the various Iron Man armor I'd like to see the Masterpiece line handed over to Hot Toys as they'd inevitably reset the bar several notches higher and would likely have the balls to attempt something utterly mental like Predaking instead of sticking with the usual suspects ad ifinitum.

Ehhh... I don't know. Just because they do that well, doesn't mean they'd have any idea how to make Transformers. It would require a wholly different approach regarding engineering, how tough/flexible plastics need to work, etc.

I mean, just look what happened when they tried to do 3 3/4" figures. They looked great, but were INCREDIBLY brittle and prone to break.

The Dutch Transformers convention BOTS was Sunday, and I got myself a fantastic haul.

Generations Thundercracker
HFTD leader Starscream (FINALLY)
Universe Sunstreaker
WFC Megatron
DOTM Skyhammer
RTS Lugnut
Generations Perceptor
Generations Kup

A ton of great figures, and all for a pretty damn good value too, all together they were 100 bucks.

Awesome haul!

Out of all of them I like Kup the best though, even with his screaming melting old man head, he's just a terrific figure with a ton of personality and a good balancing of old and new. I really did not expect to like him so much, since he always looked meh to me in pictures.

You should try to pick up the iGear head set for him. Makes a great figure 100% better!

I got a pretty good haul today, actually. The WFC Generations figures started showing up here at Winners stores (kind of like Ross/Marshalls in Canada), and got all three for $8 each!

I was kind of thinking about getting the United versions, but... well, $24 for all three or about fifty bucks a piece, hard to really justify the extra cost.

 

[thecorsair]

3A would be another good alternative as anyone providing a fresh approach would be preferable to me than Has/Tak at this point because their style is getting very predictable....nearly everything is a Deluxe and the designs are looking increasingly simplified.

DPrime,
Your purchases perfectly illustrate my point about the price differences.

You paid $24 for 3 figures which is about £16-£17.

Depending on import store prices that would have got me 1 and possibly left a bit for shipping which for Hasbro quality figures wouldn't be worth the money.