When we get an MP-44 reissue, I can imagine they'll have cast the yellow parts of the pelvis in yellow plastic, and the antennae will definitely be sorted.
I wouldn't expect no voice box for a regular reissue, and certainly they would keep it fully painted. They might also keep the 'fixed' knees (it's not really a proper fix though, is it?) from MP-49.

Perhaps a toy-accurate repaint would forego most paint in the same way that MP-49 has (and MP-36+ also has many unpainted areas too, compared to MP-36). Probably no need for the voice box for the toy repaint either.

 

I recently purchased painted cabinets for my kitchen and the paint is damn durable. And the paint on cars and bicycles are also durable; so why can't paint on Masterpieces be durable as well? QA issues sound like cutting corners in cost.

 

Apples and oranges, my friend. For one, plastic is very different than wood or metal, and most of the things you mention don’t have painted parts that rub together constantly, and when they do, the paint isn’t there for long. That said, I only have two or three figures out of all of the releases since MP-8 that have exhibited paint issues.

 

Looks like he’s 10% off at ShowZ right now for $225. Not as good the original AJP price but if anyone’s interested in him

Takara Tomy Masterpiece MP-49 Black Convoy

 

Anybody have paint chips on his head crest like I do? Have any ideas as to why this is happening? My MP-44’s head is still immaculate and I’ve transformed him a thousand times, but I’ve transformed my MP-49 only a handful of times and I find a new little chip on his head every time.

I’m guessing it’s obviously rubbing on something when it’s in alt mode, but I don’t know what makes it so different than MP-44.

It’s just disappointing, since I got this figure so I can be a little more robust with it, because MP-44 chips like crazy, and I was hoping he would stay pristine no matter how many times I transformed him.

 

OMG deTh oF teh LInE!11!1

 

Late to the game, but did a short write up on my recent experience with MP-49. The wobbleness might be common knowledge to some, but just in case folks or potential buyers find this info useful. After spending the night transforming my newly arrived Nemesis Prime and playing with the articulation a bit, I came to the conclusion that MP-49 should be renamed. May I present:

MP-49 WOBBLE PRIME



A bit disappointed actually, even though I got this pretty cheap. "MP-44 knee defects" aside, I have heard a lot of good things about the new Prime, like "Best MP Prime ever!". So having a chance to get the Nemesis Prime at a bargain price with knee fixes works out perfectly for my collection to co-exist with MP-10 (a special gift from my wife years ago). I knew about the complex engineering going in, but having in-hand experience is another story. The unpainted plastic does look quite rough (unpainted gunpla style, scuffs and sprue marks and all) and definitely look less polished than my other unpainted MPs with a lower grade of surface treatment, or lack there of. But definitely helps in the transformation with no paint chipping. What surprised me is the softness of the plastic (probably a material choice to minimize stress and cracks). They flex a lot, especially obvious with all the thin panel folding and a lot of small hinges, extreme origami style. While going at it very slowly and cautiously, it took me an hour and a half for my first try, following instructions step by step. The end result is a very cool and streamlined robot mode. Very good looking. Ratchet joints at the right places (shoulders, hip, knees and ankles) and no floppy loose friction joints. On paper, this is great. But once you grab hold of it, some issues start to show...

TakaraTomy might have tried too hard for its own good in terms of engineering. When they went for the extreme origami design, the whole figure's arms, legs, torso, backpack...etc. all rely on numerous tabs to keep the shapes. Some parts can start to not holding up as you handle the robot mode more and have wear off those tabs. Lower arms for example, were made up of a few fold out panels with tiny tabs and hooks holding it together, but an unintentional squeeze on the arm while posing can dislodge a tab or a hook and that hollow lower arm falls apart.

But there is more...  

The elephant in the room. The WOBBLENESS. While TakaraTomy tried to give this figure sturdy joints with ratchets and all (and they are pretty sturdy and clicky), what connects the joints to the rest of the body worked against them, those over-complicated sandwiched panels and gaps that cause a lot of plastic flexing. The hip and knees have the strongest ratchets, but it is also the hip and knee that suffers the worse wobbleness! The wobbleness are very even and exactly the same amount on both left & right hips and knees, so it is not really a case of misassemble or a single bad joint, it is the structure/design. You can see these images to get the idea.






In the end, I don't regret getting this, but the design flaws and wobbleness really take away my excitement about this piece. This is the only wobbly MP I have ever own, with only MP-09 Rodimus share a little bit of that wobbleness on one faulty hip ratchet, but not even to this extend. The MPs are either solid or loose, but not wobbly like this even though the ratchets are fully functional and clicky. With that said, Wobble Prime can still hold poses very well, just that I have to always account for that extra 4-5 degree of leg movement and making sure the ratchets lock in angles that compensate them without losing balance. Wobble Prime can still look awesome on the shelf at least. But kind of sad that a $30 Hasbro Studio Series 86 Hot Rod gave me way more satisfaction than this $160 Prime (retailed $250) that is supposed to be an engineering prodigy. So unless you can find it dirt cheap and don't mind a wobbly bot, you may want to skip MP-44 and MP-49.

Though have to give credit to where credit is due, this guy is pretty awesome when it comes to posing. Not that many MPs can pull off this pose with ease like him.

 

With MP 44 I learned to pose him by finding the pose I like, then moving the hips one click inward and let the wobbliness take care if the rest. Not ideal, but as long as he doesn't do the splits I can manage. Is MP 49 much worse in that regard?

 

Thanks for the write up and insight, I’d heard about the wobblyness before but not explained the way you explained it. I can understand the issue more clearly now.

 

MP-44 is a little wobbly in the hips but not nearly as wobbly as my MP-49. I blame the lack of paint. I think certain joints were designed to have paint to tighten them up. And as you said the unpainted plastic looks much worse than usual because I believe this figure was designed to always be painted and then they ended up not painting it.

Also that kneeling pose looks a lot better when you use the ab crunch joint.  

 

Does this guy have the same paint chipping issues as MP-44? I’d like to get some insight as I’m thinking about saving up for this guy.

 

he’s mostly unpainted plastic, except for the face, shins, toes and obliques

MP-44 mostly had issues with paint chips on the yellow crotch details, which are unpainted on MP-49. MP-44 also had issues with paint wear on the obliques, but based on reports in this thread the paint on MP-49 in those areas is much more durable.

 

MP-49 (and 44) is solid as fuck. nothing about it stops me from posing it like the beast he is. Wobble or not.

 

“Til all are gone.”

 

Can get one used for 165 shipped. Love the look, don’t own mp-44, but these issues i read about concern me. Not sure whether to drop the money. I don’t need a perfect figure I just want a fun figure that isn’t too fiddly.

 

It's wobbly, but it is not floppy. Joints are actually tight and ratchets lock well. But the wobbliness makes it not very stable in an action pose with the give in the joints (mainly hip and knees), regardless joints being tight. Shakes the table a bit or lightly push it with a finger and the wobbliness/give may be enough to cause the figure to lose balance and fall. Transformation is very complex and fiddly, but the transformed mode is not. Pretty solid actually. If you are not looking for something perfect and knowing what you are getting into, $165 shipped is not a bad price. With a lowered expectation, you may end up liking it. It is just not a "be all end all" Prime mold some claim it to be, but it has its merits, aside the wobbliness.

 

Thanks. i bought it a few days ago when the price drop to $140 shipped. Waiting for it to ship.

 

$140 is a great deal.

 

Do they have another? Lol. I'm interested.