ReplicantSavior
Super Freak
- Joined
- Feb 6, 2013
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I originally posted this on the SF. But I know some people here don't go over there. I know I only check here for figures and a few other favorite threads.
I wanted to get a few ARH Frazetta statues, I would have been a first time customer, but people who follow the Frazetta threads know that those statues turned out to be a lot more limited than originally advertised...
Anyway, I went to a friend's over the holidays who was able to get some of those ARH Frazetta statues. Here are my thoughts on those and the whole ARH situation.
The Styrofoam
Let's start here because I always heard that the styrofoam ARH uses is cheap. Guess what? It is different if you are used to the type of styrofoam that just about every other statue company I've seen uses. The styrofoam from ARH feels different to the touch. It's not as soft compared to the other statue company styrofoam. And it was breaking on the outside in some areas because of the weight of the statues or bases. I've never seen that on any statue styrofoam before and it is telling that they aren't using the proper strength or weight of styrofoam for the item weight they are shipping. Also, I noticed that tape doesn't stick that well to the styroform. It was lifting on the packages that I saw. Overall, it does come across as cheaper quality. And if that effects getting statues without damage that is something ARH needs to fix immediately.
The Sculpt / Design
There are a few ARH Frazetta statues that I wanted to get. I was able to see almost all of the ones that I wanted. I saw The Barbarian, The Huntress, and Virgin of Mahars. The sculpts seemed fine to me maybe with the exception of The Huntress. Her face is still not right. But I believe they went back and forth a lot on that one. I think I preferred the original design from what I recall. And I wonder what that other company's Huntress was like. I have a small pic somewhere of the sculptors at the Frazetta Museum and the Huntress is on a table with other prototypes. But I don't think we ever got to see a big, singular image of it.
I've never seen the older Clayburn Moore Barbarian statue in person and I like his sculpts. But I think this ARH version is on the same level if not a bit better. Overall the look of the statues I saw is like the origin material. And so far these are the best Frazetta pieces I've seen. I didn't like the look of the old Egyptian Queen statue that much. And that other company that stopped making Frazetta pieces previously, never released any of the works that I was interested in.
The Paint
Here is where they have some issues. The paint job on the statues is not as sharp as the prototypes and in the NYCC videos. Maybe you could call it messy in some areas. I was reminded of people having paint problems with some of the old Kotobukiya Fine Art line. That's kind of what the paint on these reminds me of. Since some of these are so low production editions, I wish ARH custom painted them for a premium like they are doing now.
I really wanted that Virgin of Mahars statue and it's not as detailed as the prototype. The wet look on her ankles isn't there and the nipple color is still off from what I recall Arahom mentioning in a video. I guess it's ok if you got it a for bit over $200. But for more than double the price. No way. I still want to see the Atlantian one as the paint looks good in pictures. But he didn't have that one. I might get it myself as there are a few low priced ones on eBay. I thought the Barbarian was ok but the recent repaint makes it look much better. If I could get a Barbarian and Virgin of Mahars at retail cost, I would definitely get them repainted.
The Big Issue...
I thought the sculpt of their Eve statue was ok. Similar to the Virgin of Mahars but not as good. However I like the idea with the two color snake and possible customization. Yet this quote, especially that first sentence, supposedly direct from Arahom scares me:
"Yes... The real reason we haven't shipped ALL the statues already is because we don't have money to ship the statues. I've been desperately trying to make more sales of NEW statues to be able to raise some money and finish paying for the shipping of the last statues we have not yet shipped, and this is the reason why we are making the AP statues in house again, to try to raise some money as fast as we can until things are back to normal."
https://www.statueforum.com/showpost.php?p=5364081&postcount=109
I can't believe that Arahom wrote this to a customer let alone a member here. I guess he didn't know. But that could end a business as it makes it look like he is completely on the edge. He flat out says that older orders are dependent on new orders. So if he can't ship statues no way is he giving refunds for stuff that's not like what's shown or delayed statues. I remember a thread here about their new policies. You are stuck with an ARH statue if you decide to order no matter what happens. Who knows what "normal" business is or where "normal" is on his spreadsheets. I wouldn't want to take that risk no matter how much I like a statue. The stories some people are posting here sound like nightmares and a money hostage situation without credit card protection. I wouldn't be surprised if the lack of success of the ARH Frazetta line has to do with potential customers knowing about the past problems with ARH. I heard of them which is why I didn't pre-order, I was waiting for the release. However now that a few other companies are about to start making Frazetta statues, I'll just have to see if I made the right choice.
I wanted to get a few ARH Frazetta statues, I would have been a first time customer, but people who follow the Frazetta threads know that those statues turned out to be a lot more limited than originally advertised...
Anyway, I went to a friend's over the holidays who was able to get some of those ARH Frazetta statues. Here are my thoughts on those and the whole ARH situation.
The Styrofoam
Let's start here because I always heard that the styrofoam ARH uses is cheap. Guess what? It is different if you are used to the type of styrofoam that just about every other statue company I've seen uses. The styrofoam from ARH feels different to the touch. It's not as soft compared to the other statue company styrofoam. And it was breaking on the outside in some areas because of the weight of the statues or bases. I've never seen that on any statue styrofoam before and it is telling that they aren't using the proper strength or weight of styrofoam for the item weight they are shipping. Also, I noticed that tape doesn't stick that well to the styroform. It was lifting on the packages that I saw. Overall, it does come across as cheaper quality. And if that effects getting statues without damage that is something ARH needs to fix immediately.
The Sculpt / Design
There are a few ARH Frazetta statues that I wanted to get. I was able to see almost all of the ones that I wanted. I saw The Barbarian, The Huntress, and Virgin of Mahars. The sculpts seemed fine to me maybe with the exception of The Huntress. Her face is still not right. But I believe they went back and forth a lot on that one. I think I preferred the original design from what I recall. And I wonder what that other company's Huntress was like. I have a small pic somewhere of the sculptors at the Frazetta Museum and the Huntress is on a table with other prototypes. But I don't think we ever got to see a big, singular image of it.
I've never seen the older Clayburn Moore Barbarian statue in person and I like his sculpts. But I think this ARH version is on the same level if not a bit better. Overall the look of the statues I saw is like the origin material. And so far these are the best Frazetta pieces I've seen. I didn't like the look of the old Egyptian Queen statue that much. And that other company that stopped making Frazetta pieces previously, never released any of the works that I was interested in.
The Paint
Here is where they have some issues. The paint job on the statues is not as sharp as the prototypes and in the NYCC videos. Maybe you could call it messy in some areas. I was reminded of people having paint problems with some of the old Kotobukiya Fine Art line. That's kind of what the paint on these reminds me of. Since some of these are so low production editions, I wish ARH custom painted them for a premium like they are doing now.
I really wanted that Virgin of Mahars statue and it's not as detailed as the prototype. The wet look on her ankles isn't there and the nipple color is still off from what I recall Arahom mentioning in a video. I guess it's ok if you got it a for bit over $200. But for more than double the price. No way. I still want to see the Atlantian one as the paint looks good in pictures. But he didn't have that one. I might get it myself as there are a few low priced ones on eBay. I thought the Barbarian was ok but the recent repaint makes it look much better. If I could get a Barbarian and Virgin of Mahars at retail cost, I would definitely get them repainted.
The Big Issue...
I thought the sculpt of their Eve statue was ok. Similar to the Virgin of Mahars but not as good. However I like the idea with the two color snake and possible customization. Yet this quote, especially that first sentence, supposedly direct from Arahom scares me:
"Yes... The real reason we haven't shipped ALL the statues already is because we don't have money to ship the statues. I've been desperately trying to make more sales of NEW statues to be able to raise some money and finish paying for the shipping of the last statues we have not yet shipped, and this is the reason why we are making the AP statues in house again, to try to raise some money as fast as we can until things are back to normal."
https://www.statueforum.com/showpost.php?p=5364081&postcount=109
I can't believe that Arahom wrote this to a customer let alone a member here. I guess he didn't know. But that could end a business as it makes it look like he is completely on the edge. He flat out says that older orders are dependent on new orders. So if he can't ship statues no way is he giving refunds for stuff that's not like what's shown or delayed statues. I remember a thread here about their new policies. You are stuck with an ARH statue if you decide to order no matter what happens. Who knows what "normal" business is or where "normal" is on his spreadsheets. I wouldn't want to take that risk no matter how much I like a statue. The stories some people are posting here sound like nightmares and a money hostage situation without credit card protection. I wouldn't be surprised if the lack of success of the ARH Frazetta line has to do with potential customers knowing about the past problems with ARH. I heard of them which is why I didn't pre-order, I was waiting for the release. However now that a few other companies are about to start making Frazetta statues, I'll just have to see if I made the right choice.
