Can't wait for the next two!!

 

How are you expected to buy these when pre orders are sold out? And how do pre orders sell out? Shouldn't it be pre orders are expired.

 

preorders sell out when the expected order total is reached, there was a window to preorder these

 

Maybe a head variation for a potential God Neptune gift set?  

 

Yes, I suppose sanding down those pegs is most probably the only real way to deal with the issue of stress marks appearing on the combiner peghole. What sort of sandpaper do you use for this task, in terms of grit? Also, do you dry sand or wet sand the peg? I suppose I ask because the way the pegs seem to be, you can't sand at them without scratching up the plastic on the pegs and causing visible evidence that you sanded it. So there's an aesthetic consideration to be had with this fix as well.

I guess it may not matter as much when sanding down the pegs on the combiner hands and feet, since you won't see the pegs when those are plugged into the limb bot. But for Gulf's weapon mode, the instructions do tell you to combine his small blue guns and plug a peg on the combined gun into the combiner peghole. I can't imagine sanding that peg without scratching it (and of course that won't look good aesthetically). Same would go for the pegs on Turtler's robot forearms if you want to avoid stress marks on the peghole on the shield that they plug into, but that seems like a lesser consideration given that the plastic the shield is made from seems rather study (including the pegholes on it) and those parts are not subject to anywhere near the same load bearing stress and movement that a limb bot is.

I suppose this can be minimized somewhat depending on the type of grit used for the sandpaper and whether you dry or wet sand it. I don't really have much experience in that regard, so I'm curious as to what grit of sandpaper to use on this sort of plastic to avoid scratches and scuffs on the sanded area. I do swap around the limb bots of a combiner with some regularity just to give the combiner a different aesthetic feel from time to time, so that does entail sanding down all of the applicable pegs (hand, foot, weapon) to facilitate this.

It seems rather concerning that the main gimmick of these figures, the fact that they can combine into a super robot, is basically their weak point. This is given that manipulating a combiner foot while it is plugged into a limb bot seems like asking for the combiner peghole. As you mentioned, given that the forwards and backwards ratchet and the ankle tilts on the combiner feet are pretty tight, it is most certainly ill-advised to use them while they are plugged into a limb bot. Removing the feet, posing them separately, and then plugging them back into the legs of the combiner is probably the only real way to pose the legs without causing undue strain on the pegholes, though it is an unintuitive way to pose the combiner.

It is quite a shame, though, since the combiner feet seem to be well-engineered, and clearly, lots of work went into them with the forward and backwards ratchet, but you can't use them while plugged into a limb bot without the risk of breaking the combiner peghole. I suppose the designers really missed the mark on that aspect of this set. Out of curiosity, if you do plan on sanding down those pegs on the combiner hands and feet, what grit of sandpaper would you use and do you dry or wet sand it? I suppose while you can sand those pegs, you'd also want to avoid scratching and scuffing up the plastic as much as possible as well, and that seems dependent on the grit of sandpaper used, as well as the technique of sanding.

 

I have no idea what grit I use, and scratch marks haven't bothered me on the combiner pegs...

 

Ah, well, the grit of sandpaper you are using is usually printed on the back of the sandpaper itself. I suppose scratching up the combiner pegs themselves isn't too big a deal, since you are plugging those into limb bots and you won't really see them. The one I'm really somewhat uncertain about is sanding the peg on Gulf's combined small guns that plugs into his combiner peghole for his weapon mode.

Scratching up that peg would be more obvious from an aesthetic standpoint, and it's probably more prudent to sand that peg if you want to use Gulf's weapon mode. Some of my friends have remarked that even using the weapon mode, and plugging in the combined small blue guns into the combiner peghole, causes stress marks on said peghole. Same might go for sanding the pegs on Turtler's forearms to avoid stress marks on his shield as well.

I have heard some people comment on the internet regarding sanding plastic to use progressively finer and finer grits of sandpaper to clean up the sanded surface from a visual standpoint after using the coarser grit sandpaper to remove the material you want to remove. Probably an idea if you need to sand down a peg that is highly visible on the figure. Some also suggest using toothpaste as it is a mild abrasive and can buff out some light scratches.

 

I've also not paid attention to the grit I use as typically the stuff I sand are pegs and are hidden in use (checking now, 150 for rough and then 600-700 for more fine work).

I did try to plug in his gun today and I did notice the start of two stress marks. Keep in mind the gun has to.be pegged together so it's never completely flush which I wager will add more stress as it's trying to expand within the port. So it's absolutely going to be something to keep an eye on and/or take precautions with.

 

I like the unused head, but the one they did use is more accurate to the original toy.

One might think, but the production head is closer to Coelagon's head. Unless they don't care and want to use the other one any way.

 

Off the top of my head, characters that have had a V-shaped visor like that before:

Jazz
Overdrive
Swoop (toy)
Micromaster Growl

I'm not counting characters that also have faceplates.

 

Anyone heard anything from Action Robo? First time ordering from them.

 

well, secured a preorder of wave 3 at robot kingdom, just received wave 1, missing wave 2.....


while being a decepticon, these look cute  

 

I like Gulf better than Blot now. Mainly because Gulf has a larger beast head and an added tail.

The two are very close in robot mode but I think Blot wins due to being able to tab his monster head to his back and it being smaller makes it a smaller backpack. Gulf has an oversized backpack that just hangs there loosely: unless I’m missing something.

I like that Gulf’s blue is lighter than I’ve seen in pics and videos, but I would have preferred it to have been turquoise like in G1.

Overall, I’m amazed at how different Gulf looks to Blot. I’m not so sure about continuing to buy the rest of the Seacons.

 

You can tab his monster head into his back. I missed it at first, but it is there.

 

I see. I tend to use 220 grit myself, since I've always tended to perceive anything with a lower number to be too coarse and potentially remove more material at once than I'm comfortable with. I suppose I might have to get finer sandpaper (or emery boards) for touch-up work or buffing out the sanded surface for a smoother finish. Even if I am sanding something down, I suppose I still do still want the final work to still look good aesthetically.

I'm sorry to hear about your figure's combiner peghole getting stress marks. I don't know how much you may want to use Gulf's weapon mode but you do raise very valid points about the combined gun not being flush and trying to expand. I don't know how much sanding the peg in question on the combined gun that plugs into the peghole for weapon mode is a viable fix. I suppose if you sand away enough material on the peg, you'll get to a point where plugging in the gun won't cause stress marks on the peghole. However, this will possibly scratch up that peg and create some aesthetics issues. Unlike the pegs on combiner hands and feet, this peg isn't always hidden. So if you sand down the peg, you probably may want some way to buff and polish the peg and make it look better aesthetically afterwards.

I would note that putting aside Gulf, Tentakil's weapon mode is also formed the same way as Gulf (pegging together two smaller weapons and plugging a combined peg/weapon into the combiner peghole), so perhaps similar concerns might exist for Tentakil in that regard. Especially so since he is the other bot that traditionally forms a leg for King Poseidon's. Overbite is traditionally the bot that forms King Poseidon's Targetmaster weapon, and his weapon mode involves plugging his gun into the combiner peghole as well. It is to be noted that Overbite is also a Rippersnapper retool, and that mold is notorious for having a very fragile combiner peghole.

All in all, it seems rather disappointing that these issues exist with the pegholes on these bots, since they are premium items and you'd think Takara would fix them from an engineering standpoint. Admittedly, it is making me a little concerned that the same issue will crop up again on the remaining Seacons, which we have all yet to get our hands on.

 

Anyone order these guys from RobotKingdom and get them yet? My order with them has been saying Processing.. for a month now.

 

I'm not overly concerned about the aesthetics of the pegs. I can always touch it up with a finer grit. As I was saying the other day to someone, when you have hundreds (if not more) figures displayed some minor issues like unsightly pegs will quickly fade into the sea of indulgence on your shelves.

It is a huge disappointment though that the issue hasn't been addressed with a more substantial fix. With the amount of remolding the Terrorcons and now Seacons have received I would think rectifying a design flaw like this wouldn't be too much to hope for.

Ultimately mine would be displayed combined and I tend to shelf my stuff pretty quickly after purchase so I'm not too concerned about breakage. But for those who transform.often this could be a big deal. I wonder if a small application of something like super glue or clear nail.polish might strengthen the area. It's not a spot with precise tolerances when transformed so a layer of either wouldn't affect transformation.

But bummer for sure.

 

I ordered from Action Robo-- also my first time. I haven't heard anything.

Let's keep each other updated...

 

Despite being Decepticons, nothing compares to the G1 Predacons in adorability factor.

 

I suppose some plastic polish (or stuff meant for polishing automotive bodies) could work to touch up the appearance of the final product/work. To an extent, I think toothpaste or a paste made from a 1:1 mix of baking soda and water also could help buff out light scratches on plastic. But certainly, I think that peg on Gulf's combined weapon probably needs to be sanded down somewhat if you want to use the weapon mode, considering the stress marks. It doesn't appear that peg in question will be used for anything other than weapon mode, so sanding it is probably wise.

Considering how much new engineering went in the parts like the combiner hands and feet with the individually articulated fingers on the hands and forwards and backwards ratchets on the feet, you'd think Takara would make the combiner pegholes thicker to accommodate these features. As it is, it's probably ill-advised to manipulate the ankle tilts or ratchets on the feet while they are plugged into a limb bot. You probably need to remove the feet pose them separately, and then plug them back into the limb bots. Not an intuitive way to pose a combiner, but I see no other option.

I do transform my figures a decent amount of times and for combiners, I do swap the limbs around every so often to change up the combiner's aesthetics. So I suppose I do want to be able to use all the possible configurations for each limb bot (hence the thought of sanding down the peg on Gulf's combined gun).

If you are talking about using clear nail polish or superglue to strengthen the area, that could be interesting to consider as a tip. How would you go about applying it? Would you apply it to the outside of the combiner peghole somehow? Or somehow apply it on the inside of the peghole? The reason you get stress marks is because you are forcing a peg that is a tad too wide for the peghole, and thus the plastic of the peghole is stretching/flexing to try and accommodate it. Wouldn't applying material like this to the peghole prevent this sort of flexing?