Takara Tomy Masterpiece MP-44 Convoy/Optimus Prime Ver. 3

Discussion in 'Transformers News and Rumors' started by Retroheavy, Feb 21, 2018.

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  1. Dean ML

    Dean ML Well-Known Member

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    Same, brother! Re-watching s1 this past week, though, there are a lot of instances where this looks dead on. Would've been to have another option that's between this head and the other (mask goes straight across face, semi-angular head design), but I get why they went with the two extreme ends. And the s1 is the only head to use with that ax!
     
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  2. Brooklynwolf

    Brooklynwolf Well-Known Member

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    It's not just the accessories. When you transform the figure, you can't help but appreciate just what was involved in the process of creating this toy. I will admit that I too think it could've been cheaper, if only because many have been priced out of the hobby and are seeking alternatives i.e. 3rd party and the eventual KOs...it doesn't help Takara Tomys bottom line. But consider this, TT are aware of these factors, and I'm positive within the company there were on going debates as to how much they should charge for MP44. I can't imagine any scenario that involved them literally rubbing their hands together with a devious smile saying "oh we'll charge them this, and they're gonna buy it and like it and they can't do a goddamn thing about it!".

    Once again, it could've been cheaper. But having transformed the figure and played with it for a good while, I can SEE where my money's gone. I can FEEL what I paid for.

    I also agree that they could've given fans options, like what you suggested. A bare bones MP44 lite. No trailer, fewer accessories. That definitely would've kept the doors open for those that bailed on this release.

    Finally, I'm thinking of doing a follow up video where I can express these very thoughts and go deeper into this topic. Not gonna lie, MP44 has made me develop a new found appreciation for transforming toys. Pricing aside, it's the best time to be a collector of G1.
     
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  3. Shunwei

    Shunwei Well-Known Member

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    I very well can. So far all their pricing behavior says nothing other than this scenario.
     
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  4. Prime of Shadows

    Prime of Shadows Quick as Lightning

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    Just because your imagination is a powerful tool doesn't mean you have to use it to imagine the most pessimistic scenario possible.
     
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  5. Brooklynwolf

    Brooklynwolf Well-Known Member

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    Can I get some examples? I'm not being snarky, I'm actually asking.
     
  6. Soundwave3k

    Soundwave3k TFW2005 Supporter

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    Thanks for the detailed notes! Is there any chance you'd mind taking some comparison pictures of the more and less compacted backpacks and the two chests? I'd like to get an idea of the variance and see where my copy lands.

    Thanks!
     
  7. OmegaTaco Supreme

    OmegaTaco Supreme Evil will always triumph, because good is dumb

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    I blame Bandai and what they charge for stuff. I'm thinking TT was looking at them saying we should be getting more cheddar also.
     
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  8. alldarker

    alldarker M.A.S.K. Crusader

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    What’s actually also partly responsible for raising those prices is the sheer amount of figures being sent back to the retailers due to actual or perceived flaws in the figures. Don’t get me wrong; this MP-44 seems to have a real problem with the knees. But in the past, I’ve read about all sorts of practically non-existent flaws in Masterpiece figures being seen as legitimate reason to exchange the figure with a new one. And the retailers are most definitely passing on those costs back to Takara. Abuse of the easy exchange is certainly a factor in rising prices, because all those returned products have been produced at a certain cost, but are probably just scrapped when they get sent back.
    For Takara, it’s probably and unfortunately more cost-economic to not up the QC, but to accept a certain return-ratio and to sell ALL figures at increased prices to offset the losses.
     
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  9. Shunwei

    Shunwei Well-Known Member

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    Not imagination, i just simply look at what people really do and you base your conclusions off of that. I am sure you can easily do some searches and see how the MP line’s pricing has gone up in a parabolic fashion (not even linear). Do you base your conclusions on people or groups in life based on what they say or what they do?
     
  10. Trunkkey

    Trunkkey There are no bad toys, just bad people.

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    Just a 1 week update/reflection:
    My japan copy's left, lower-knee ratchet went out. I literally just watched it happen and it all clicked (no pun intended). There certainly is an order to bend the knee. They tried to Poka-Yoke the design with position-dependent slots, but as everyone has stated before me, the ratchet is stronger than the material holding it in place. The design required much higher force than the material could withstand. Very strange choice, that plastic. They should have used die-cast for that weird flange thingy. Not only is that weird collapsing leg flangy part thin and unsupported during transformation, it needs to hold a ratchet in place against itself and it needs to resist the interference mechanism that they designed in.

    I opened up 2 of the 3 MP-44's that I got shipped from the Chosen Prime. Collector grade.
    Autobot symbols are good and no paint defect on the big yellow crotch piece. All knees are fine.
    I will assume the third one is fine too. Sad that all three boxes, although looking pristine and cellophane wrapped from TCP, were double taped. I don't think AFA will accept that.

    Thoughts:
    Reviewing images of other people's MP-44 issues (the autobot logo being messed up in the corner, broken plastic, and chipped yellow crotch plate), some of these look like transportation problems. I've done a lot of shock/vibe environmental testing for shipping, and trucks are brutal. Even if I designed a robot to withstand 2500lbs of force, cyclical vibrations can cause heavy-duty castors to break, metal to bend, threadlocked screws to fly out, un-backdriveable mechanisms to backdrive...etc.
    So with the MP-44 I can imagine that even if there is no outward damage, just shaking the damn thing at high frequencies can crack point fractures in plastic, rub away at tampo'd decals, and chip paint (especially on a toy that's floating in clamshell packaging. I feel it really depends on what kind of truck they shipped the thing on. This is on TOP of all the actual QC issues that may exist.
    As for the knee, i highly doubt it "came out of the box broken". Having said that, the mechanism by which the knee bends and the materials used are silly oversights. They might as well have been broken out of the box.
    Looking at so many close-up pictures, I am also getting a little agitated about the sprue placements. That actually is something that i believe could have been done a little better.

    Verdict:
    They should have put a thick piece of Polyethylene over that yellow crotch piece (they did it on the head and shoulders but not here???)
    They should have stuck a protective sticker on the tampographed autobot logo.
    They should have omitted that clever but poorly executed lower knee ratchet slot mechanism, or they should have used die cast. (I kinda get why they didn't die cast, but it definitely would have made sense)
    They absolutely should have included some warning about bending the knee in the correct order.
    Having said all that, I still unconditionally love my MP-44. He's a looker.
     
    Last edited: Sep 10, 2019
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  11. divinecomedy

    divinecomedy Board Certified Fans Trollar

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    Why not? Same thing happening in the drug market in the US. For once the government is doing something useful and passing laws against it. Companies raise prices ALL THE TIME when they have a captive audience. Toys are not necessary, but people are dying because their access to drugs have been artificially cut off. That's not pessimistic. It's HAPPENING.
     
  12. StriderHiryu

    StriderHiryu Well-Known Member

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    I hear you and I definitely appreciate your take. However, I actually do think that they do exactly this. I'll tell you why. Number one goal of any business is to maximize profits. The question that we're left with then is for a given product, how much are people willing to pay? I think that analysis of the secondary market, take ebay for example, shows that people will pay big bucks for MP style figures. 3rd party in particular - $350 for FT Phoenix, $200 for Willis, on and on. The sell prices on this stuff is readily viewable to anyone. TT having done their analysis and is aware of all this, has to make the no-brainer move and raise their prices. Not because more parts, more complexity, more engineering (although all this does come into play to a degree, it's only the justification to the consumer), they raise the prices because they can damn well get away with it. MP collectors want the very best iterations of their favorite characters. We will buy new versions, new paint schemes, new heads, etc to satisfy the need for perfection. Prime is the pinnacle of this. They knew they were going to price people out, but they also knew that enough people would pay whatever for this character. If people are willing to pay $350 for Phoenix, surely they will do the same or more for an official Prime. People will also cave over time and shell out the money because the lust is too strong.

    To my original point, if they did make a value pack MP-44, more people would cave, the hate and angst would lessen and they would reclaim some fans who settled with 3P.
     
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  13. Labeled101

    Labeled101 Member

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    I paid full price for this bad boy and I will admit that I had a great deal of buyers remorse simply from the price point. The price is very, very rich. Although I am pleased with TT end result with Convoy 3.0, I fear the future releases will mirror the Cadillac prices.... i.e. BB 2.0, Hound, Dinobot & BW Megs.
     
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  14. Dcoleman44

    Dcoleman44 Well-Known Member

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    Most mass produce stuff are made in different places, could the bad knees be from one place and the good knees from another?
     
  15. Actar

    Actar Well-Known Member

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    Is anyone's Prime's waist a little loose? I don't mean in a "it's gonna fall off way", just slightly wobbly.
     
  16. tturbozx66

    tturbozx66 Well-Known Member

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    ✋ right here. Too loose for my liking. But there’s no way to fix it since it is pinned.
     
  17. mx-01 archon

    mx-01 archon Well-Known Member

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    Just a tiny bit. It doesn't free spin in most scenarios, but it'll certainly droop due to gravity if I do silly things like pull out the waist joint so far that the swivel is almost parallel to the ground.
     
  18. BrutiKing

    BrutiKing M O I S T

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    I have checked from the my old and new prime. From pulling up the ab joint (the proper one for articulation not transformation), it will loosen the pin due to stressing. In order to fix this, you should pull up his ab joint, then sand off the friction tab.
     
  19. Davej1438

    Davej1438 Member

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    Got mine and transformed him. No paint blemishes or anything so happy about that. Love the figure. Have another one coming but gonna keep that one in truck mode. Only issue with mine was his left right arm was a bit loose and when holding his gun it fell. I was able to tighten the screw and it seems fine now. Not too worried about the knees. Don't plan on playing with him and they seem solid. looks like if they are bent properly you wont have an issue. Although they never should have used that knee system. Anyway, not going to worry about the knees until I have something to worry about.
    My biggest concern is figuring a way to get the starcream head onto Make Toys Meteor. Looks great on him, just need some type of neck adapter to raise the head up a bit. hoping some third party makes something.
     
  20. God Orion

    God Orion Well-Known Member

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    I totally agree! My left knee was alright where as the right one did not work. The left one was way easier to glue than the right one. I will do it straight out of the box on the replacement one I should receive next week. Even if both work perfectly.

    I did so too and it worked just fine.

    It was such a tiny amount of thinner that didn’t even work for removing the paint that I gave up and tried a sponge with water. I didn’t bother talking about it at first as clearly, it made no difference. However, the friction of the sponge made the piece fall and showed that the back of the crotch was completely cracked.

    I don’t know what a jackhammer is but I only took the paint away with a yellow sponge. Fairly long process but worked pretty well.
     
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