Third party toy discussion (stuff that's been released)

Post by **Denyer** » Fri Jan 30, 2015 8:27 pm

Denyer wrote:Just ordered: http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transform ... cules.html

Not bad. Can't judge by the original 3P figure(s) but it holds together better as Devastator than the original Constructicons and if you mainly want something for the back row of a display it's a good deal at twenty quid plus about the same for shipping.

Got this, the not-not-Throttlebot and a WST Rodimus KO from hzj401 on eBay BTW.

Seller's pic...

http://i.imgur.com/wwtJMuj.jpg

Post by **Denyer** » Mon Feb 02, 2015 11:21 pm

"Toy" colours Soar is beautiful -- interesting to see how paint apps have progressed since Scoria was released. Very sensibly doesn't paint the main structure of the head, though. Best of the three moulds they've released in terms of finish.

Knightdramon · Post by **Knightdramon** » Tue Feb 03, 2015 12:00 am

I'm sooooo back and forth on these dinobots it's not even funny. Doesn't help that 90 percent of the Soar reviews state how overtightened everything is, and that the ratchet joints squeak instead of ratchet

Post by **Denyer** » Tue Feb 03, 2015 12:11 am

Fingers on one hand seem a little tight on this one, but you've got to be careful with individually jointed fingers on any figure. And it's partly because I'm using other weapons (sword and gun from MP Grimlock) so I've wrapped the handles in tape to extend them. Grimlock's got a bigger gun...

If any of the joints seem too tight, the screws should loosen.

Post by **Clay** » Sat Feb 14, 2015 4:31 am

Clay wrote:He's a collection showpiece, and good fun. Not two traits that usually coincide.

To clarify, I regard not-fun showpieces as this sort of thing, which are wonderful and lovely but don't have any sort "sit down and fiddle with it" value.

Knightdramon · Post by **Knightdramon** » Sat Feb 28, 2015 9:40 am

Got my FT Soar today...

Hmmm. Kind of hard to like a toy that has arrived pre-broken in box. The red thigh piece had snapped off before I took it out and was missing.

Bit sore about this as I was going back and forth for a good while to buying this, and ended up looking forward to it.

Let's see if Kapow can pull through with a refund or an exchange. At this point I wouldn't say no to a full refund and just be done with it.

Post by **Denyer** » Sat Feb 28, 2015 5:05 pm

Sorry to hear. Don't know how much you've used UK consumer legislation, but bear in mind it's the retailer's responsibility to sort and they're liable for the return postage on a defective item under the Sale of Goods Act. If you need any help with that, let me know. The legal stuff's pretty clear cut, but some genuinely don't know it and get muddled with Distance Selling / Consumer Contracts regs.

I've had one instance with a missing rather than broken part with Alan at Omegalock, and was happy to wait for the manufacturer to send a part to be forwarded, but that didn't require any fixing other than clipping it on.

Knightdramon · Post by **Knightdramon** » Sat Feb 28, 2015 6:26 pm

Hmmm, Kapow have not replied on my emails yet they are active on FB today. Possible different "departments".

Hoping that they will reply soon/Monday on it. Their website states some firm rules but I think these are for things you've broken yourself/have got a single paint chip on and you want to return them.

I'm so and so on him, he's grown on me a bit but he'd be muuuuch higher on my list if he wasn't pre-broken. Still unsure if I'd accept a return and refund or an exchange. I think that for an exchange I'd need an entirely new leg altogether...

Meh, bad Saturday.

Post by **Denyer** » Sat Feb 28, 2015 6:37 pm

They can't disclaim statutory rights. On the other hand, all retailers get a lot of people trying it on, so the T&Cs look fairly standard.

Doesn't sound like something you should be trying to fix yourself* even if they follow the fairly common approach of using one stock item to cannibalise parts from -- post whatever photo you've sent them?

*Although TBH I'd still be going for that if it's an option, can rarely be arsed messing around with post office returns.

Knightdramon · Post by **Knightdramon** » Sat Feb 28, 2015 9:42 pm

Unfortunately that specific tab is made that way so you pretty much have to either take everything apart and try to pry in an equally small and fragile piece or just swap the entire leg.

What're the chances I can just return this, get my full refund and call this a day?

Post by **Denyer** » Sat Feb 28, 2015 10:17 pm

I think he's worth the price I paid, which was whatever Omegalock had them at, and maybe a bit of hassle afterwards... but if you're talking yourself out of it, might be best to go for refund.

Essentially they have to supply what you've ordered, so there's two routes -- return as defective for a replacement, in which case they're liable for return postage, or return under CCR within 14 days of receipt of goods for a refund, in which case you are. Either way, would use a tracked service.

edit: Obviously, you could do both -- return on their dollar for replacement, then deal with the replacement under CCR. They may be willing to skip the latter step as it's only costing them more.

numbat · Post by **numbat** » Sun Mar 01, 2015 10:54 am

I'm very impressed by MMC Divebomb (Talon), which I have acquired thanks to Knightdramon.

Terminus Hexatron Continuum has become my favourite all-round Transformer, in terms of displayablity and playability, so I was willing to give the awesome looking Feralcons a go.

Divebomb is not my favourite Predacon, but it was a good opportunity to give the MMC versions a look-in (given my favourite is Tantrum, and Bovis seems a bit hard to come by just now).

I am thoroughly impressed by the poseability of Talon, and his ability to balance in dynamic poses even with those giant wings outstretched and angled backwards. The transformation is efficient and satisfying too, making him fun to fiddle with in much the same way as Hexatron.

The only comment - and it's not a complaint - is that the feet are a bit weird, attaching far back on a deep leg which is the only real limiting factor in poseability.

And Talon is now definitely Divebomb, with a Decepticon insignia on his chest in that convenient depression clearly made for it.

On the back of Talon, I've ordered Tigris and Felisaber (I did love Catilla when I was a kid), and am trying to track down the other MMC Feralcons.

I know there are various add-ons for MMC Feral Rex as well - are any of these wortwhile (getting ahead of myself, I know, but worth pondering over time...).

Knightdramon · Post by **Knightdramon** » Sun Mar 01, 2015 12:30 pm

My only issue with Talon [or, insert any feralcon] is that they are great toys but you need to have them all to appreciate them fully. Hexatron is a great standalone complete piece, whereas they are good standalone pieces, but you need them all one way or another.

[PS: This comes from the guy who owns a ROTF Buster Prime since...2009 is it? When he first came out, and NEVER, ever attempted to get a Jetfire to combine them

]

I'd advise caution on Tigris's guns that attach on the back of his robot shoulders, as the holes are a bit small for the handles and some people reported fractures there.

And the other thing, but I've already "warned" you on that, is that all three of them share some parts and engineering

I don't think the add ons are worthwhile for this figure, to be honest. The Feralcons themselves [Felisabre and Tigris] come with add ons, some Feral Rex claw add ons I've seen needed to be removed for transformation, and Rex looks killer even without any of them. Just my take though.

Speaking of MMC---where.the.f*ck.is. the Nova Prime they initially showcased in August 2013? I will pre-order the sh!t out of that thing on first viewing, no questions asked, but this is an itch that has not been satisfied for a loooong time...

numbat · Post by **numbat** » Sun Mar 01, 2015 12:53 pm

Yeah, I realise the Feralcons all share components with each other. I have no problem with this if it works, and it does look like it does. In fact, it can have the added benefit of making them look like they are part of a whole / team. Which makes sense, I think, given the circumstances... (They are one of the few combiner teams that look like a team alongside their buddies, the Constructicons.)

But I get where you're coming from - my goal is a Predaking. As much as I enjoy the individual Predacons' designs, the combined mode was always the real seller (I have been this close to buying the G1 or reissue versions many times... Alongside Fortress Maximus the only G1 figures I ever contemplate buying, but in the end the blocky nature always discourages me). After all, it's the coolest looking of all of the gestalts ever, and he didn't seem to suffer so badly from extreme idiocy and sluggishness compared to the others...

That said, Devastator is my favourite gestalt and if anyone ever makes a good looking high quality G1-inspired version where the individual Constructicons actually look right, I'm sold. (Shame HasTak totally ballsed up their Combiner Wars version...)

I just came across the various add-ons while researching and tying to track down team members, so I thought I'd canvas opinion. From what I've seen of Feral Rex I'd tend to agree with you Knightdramon - he does look so awesome and high quality that I really was surprised there were any add-ons. If the claws need removed for transformation, that's an instant fail for me. The shiny wings look ok, but I'm blown away by the ones on Talon anyway - I don't know if it makes more of a difference in Feral Rex mode?

Knightdramon wrote:Speaking of MMC---where.the.f*ck.is. the Nova Prime they initially showcased in August 2013? I will pre-order the sh!t out of that thing on first viewing, no questions asked, but this is an itch that has not been satisfied for a loooong time...

More to the point, where the Hell is MMC Carnifex (not-Overlord), announced in 2013 also? He's one of the handful of remaining characters I really want to complete my collection and I'm clearly very impatient...

Knightdramon wrote:[PS: This comes from the guy who owns a ROTF Buster Prime since...2009 is it? When he first came out, and NEVER, ever attempted to get a Jetfire to combine them ]

I'm not really surprised. I had ROTF Leader Prime (standard version) and ROTF Leader Jetfire in the past, and I must say the combined mode was the only good point of Jetfire - but it was not enough to counterbalance how awful he was so I sold him anyway. I tracked down a Buster Prime last year after a lot of effort, and by chance the only affordable one with a faceplate was the DOTM Buster Prime & Jetfire two-pack. Jetfire looks nicer with his premium paintjob but he's still terrible, and I've not even got round to combining them nearly 12 months after buying. Buster Prime was the goal, and I am extremely pleased with him. I'd be happy to sell Jetfire if someone were interested... (Maybe I'll have a go at combining and see how good that looks though... Although the combined mode may be imposing, and quote cool, it is still quite a mess indeed!)

Post by **Clay** » Sun Mar 01, 2015 1:50 pm

numbat wrote:I just came across the various add-ons while researching and tying to track down team members, so I thought I'd canvas opinion. From what I've seen of Feral Rex I'd tend to agree with you Knightdramon - he does look so awesome and high quality that I really was surprised there were any add-ons.

The add-ons exist because other companies want money too, not because Feral Rex needs them. All of the add-ons I've seen for him look rather pointless in the way of making him different, not better. As Knightdramon said, Tigris and Felisabre already come with some additional parts to address the most common complaints (some forearm fillers for the other three limb guys, some extra weapons), but I didn't think even those were really warranted.

What about Devastator? I have Hercules and Green Giant both now, and an add-on kit for the original set that makes it more poseable. What do you want to know?

numbat · Post by **numbat** » Mon Mar 02, 2015 9:38 am

Thanks Clay.

I don't know if there's anything I want to know about either of the third party Devastators. Of the two I think I prefer Green Giant, but the individual robot modes for the teams don't look like they do a great job of resembling their G1 inspirations - but I could be wrong?

In any case, I think I'll focus on one giant expensive third party gestalt at a time...

Post by **Clay** » Mon Mar 02, 2015 8:52 pm

Our own Paul has a pretty good gallery and review of Green Giant, and is ultimately what convinced me to double-dip.

If you're big on the individuals resembling their G1 counterparts, both sets do more-or-less okay with the exception of Long Haul for both. It's a bit of a design conundrum, and one that not even the Hasbro version offers a good solution for. The problem is that Long Haul's legs are supposed to be made of the dump bed, and the dump bed is supposed to make Devastator's lower back. However, since Devastator's thighs were originally a completely separate piece, any new version that doesn't use spare parts has to find new legs somewhere. All three so far (Hercules, Giant, and Generations Devastator) have the upper legs formed from Long Haul, but that ****s with what Long Haul is supposed to look like as an individual robot.

Another solution would be to add a seventh member or simply have an extra piece form the waist and thighs, but that's somewhat antithetical to the idea of a revised combiner that doesn't use spare parts. So I'm not sure that you can get a Devastator that's made out accurate Constructicons (at least in Long Haul's case).

Each set has its positives and negatives. I like Giant's collapsing crane arm and the general "updated" look of the individuals, but I also love Hercules' IDW tractor-tread forearms and general simplicity. But the Generations Devastator is the only one that has Bonecrusher's chest made from the bulldozer blade.

If none of those options appeal, the original set is available as an Encore release are really rather nice in their own right.

Maybe that was helpful?

numbat · Post by **numbat** » Thu Mar 05, 2015 10:31 am

Yeah, I can see why the individual Constructicon robot forms can't match the originals perfectly in order to deliver a complete and unified Devastator without recourse to additional parts. I don't have an issue with that exactly.

I dunno, I would just like their heads to look like the G1 ones. That said I was having a closer look and perhaps they do resemble the G1 toy heads?

Post by **Denyer** » Mon Mar 09, 2015 9:40 pm

I'm sure there's something interesting going on here...

Dear customers,

We've changed! http://tfs-express.com is live NOW!

>From March 15 2015, we will stop selling Transformers on http://www.omegalock.co.uk and start using http://www.tfs-express.com instead. As the front office of tfs-express.com, all of the orders and shipments are still managed by us. We will still use our facebook as a platform to give any store updates and handle any customers' enquires.

Please have a look at the following FAQs before you raise any further questions.

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Yes. You need to create a new account on tfs-express.com to use our service. In terms of the Data Protection Act 1998, we cannot move the customer data from omegalock.co.uk to tfs-express.com.

2. Is the item still shipped from UK?
Yes. All of the items are shipped from our UK warehouse and delivered by Transbridge (UK) Ltd.

3. Is the shipping cost still calculated from UK to my delivery address?
Yes.

4. What happen to my existing pre-orders made on omegalock.co.uk?
All of your existing pre-orders made on omegalock.co.uk will still be managed by Transbridge (UK) Ltd. When the items are in stock, they will be shipped by Transbridge (UK) Ltd.

5. What happen to my existing deposit pre-orders made on omegalock.co.uk?
You will be asked to pay off the balance on tfs-express.com. Please attach your omegalock.co.uk order number when you pay off the balance.

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Yes. All of the orders made on tfs-express.com need to be made in US dollars.

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Yes. Please attach your order number made on omegalock.co.uk to claim the offer.

8. Are previous loyalty programs on omegalock.co.uk still valid?
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Knightdramon · Post by **Knightdramon** » Mon Mar 09, 2015 10:21 pm

Something a tad odd going on, that's for sure...raised a few eyebrows on tfw2005 as well.

But hey, free Apolyon*