Great pics! What risers are you using?
I guess I'm not the only one thinking of mixing and matching some IF bots with MasterMade haha. And you have all the stuff I'm looking for... Burning Slug, Tactical Staff, Fort Max Statue... lucky! Love to see it!

 

Not an IF collector myself, but guys your pics look awesome. Thumbs up to y'all.

 

you love to see it

 

I get the risers from AliExpress. It comes as a set of 3 with different heights, which is great for different size bots.


I actually got into Iron Factory because of Master Made and my god, some of those Master Made busts are a pain to get, and they costs an arm and a leg for what they are (still looking for the bust of Scorponok).
Believe it or not, my Master Made/Iron Factory display is more expensive than my other displays, just because of the amount of figures I can place in the space (and I collect both Flame Toys and DX VF), but man, IF are so fun to play with and pose, and display in a way that you can’t with other scale figures because of their size and weight.

Master Made figures is also great for IF because of their numerous 5mm ports, which you can attach clear clamps to display flying IF figures.

 

That look awesome.

 

great pics the bots look great. i was just wondering what flight stands you were using? i dont recognize the base on them but they look pretty cool.

 

The super long flight stands I actually took from my DX VF-31s armoured parts (because the parts are so damn heavy that you need two clamps to hold the arms if you want to pose him. The others I got from AliExpress, but they all comes with 5mm pegs, which is great for Master Made Figures.
I attached a pic of my VF-31s with armoured parts for those not familiar with the figure and you’ll understand why the clamps were included.

 

excellent displays!!! those risers and your tip of pegging clear flight stand/clamps into the MM figure ports, which i never even thought to do, are great tips!

 

I just decided to start collecting legends class, so unfortunately I've missed out on a lot of releases. I picked up IF Hound, Mirage, Magnus and Dirge. Any other recommendations for good figures and an idea where I could get them? I've eyed the Sidewipe/Sunstreaker pair and Cygnus, in particular.

 

all of them are definitely worth picking up. there are tons of deals out there if you look around. lots of IF guys try and pay it forward.

 

IF will soon release Cygnus in the shattered glass version, so if you don’t want to pay a premium, perhaps that would be a good alternative.

 

Soon is relative, last I'd heard it's early next year at this point. But it's a good color scheme and definitely cheaper than original.

The Samurai line Bludgeon, Tyrant/Megatron, Scorponok or Black Zarak if you can swing the cost, the Heat Death/Absolute Zero mold (Dragon Megatron from Beast Wars), Cygnus is a good'n too but pricy to get the original now, I'd say you should get your hands on A seeker or two, even if not necessarily the original trio given Starscream is like $150+ on his own. Obsidian just came out and looks damn nice in the black and metallic gold. Bridge Watcher/Shockwave is pretty neat for what they are but not worth the costs you're going to find them for on eBay in general. As for where to get the harder to find ones, Robotoybase is an option, but you want to be mindful of shipping costs. I used them to get my hands on the Amethyst seeker repaint, Jazz, Warpath, and an original Ultra Magnus (I wanted the weapons) and shipping was around $35 of the $280-ish cost.

 

Don't you mean... they cost a chest and a head?

 

lol well said.

 

Megatron definitely. Cygnus, Lord Scorpion are other favorites of mine. There’s a ton of good IF stuff. Pocket toys KO of Bruticus might be good to look into for a combiner that’s cheaper.

Personally I don’t think Sunstreaker is that good, an alternative to paying a ton for the duo would be to get the g2 Sideswipe on his own. That Sideswipe is awesome.

Edit: also join the transformers legends scale BST on FB as well as checking the BST forum here, they have IF bots go up all the time. Some good ones just went up on the FB group, like Megatron, Jazz and G2 Sideswipe.

 

Both Megatron and Cygnus are awesome. Megatron can be -more or less- easily found, Cygnus on the other can't be. There's an SG version coming up so you can pick it up for a good price. Cygnus is just cool to look at, while Megatron's accessories make him fun, so you can get his normal G1 look or the IDW look. So solid recommend on both.

The new Magnus is an awesome figure too.

 

I've finally been able to track down the vast majority of IF figures that I'm interested in, thanks to sellers and robotoybase, haha. There are a few that I'm somewhat interested in, though I'd like the community's opinion on whether they're actually still worth it now, especially at the crazy after market prices. I'm not against paying a "late tax" for a good figure, but if it doesn't stand the test of time I should probably pass.

The figures I'd like some opinions for are EX-14 (Stormbringer Prime), EX-12 Datsuns, EX-16 Arcee, EX-25 Dai Atlas and EX-28 Warpath. I feel like I'm going to keep hunting for Warpath since he's a significant character from my childhood. I definitely would love a Prime, but I've read that the EX-14 mold and its variants had some engineering or QC issues that might not stand the test of time. I definitely would love a good incarnation of Arcee, but something about her sculpt makes her stand out against other IF bots, and not in a good way. I feel the same for EX-05 Windblade.

As for my favorites of the ones I've received so far, I like Megatron and Ultra Magnus Final Armor as others have recommended. I also quite like the Wheeljack mold for some reason - always liked the character, looks nice in both modes and has a simple and fun transformation. One figure that really surprised me was Primal Commander - I have absolutely zero attachment to Beast Wars or Transmetal, and I always thought Optimal Optimus looked rather goofy, but this figure is just so fun to flip back and forth! He looks good in at least 3 of its 4 molds, has good articulation and paint, and just has a fun factor that I love to see in my legends figures. I had Perfect Effect Gorira too, but while he felt hefty and looked pretty good, I think the bigger scale made him look goofier to me, and he was a pain to pose and keep stable or transform.

 

i have never heard of any issues with the prime mold other than it being a little dated.

with that said i have all the ex14 prime's and i have had multiples of the prime and the others. there are no issues that are associated with that mold that i have ever heard about.

they are still out there cheap you just have to look around and be at the right place at the right time. i think a board member here sold one like 2 weeks ago for 80 or whatever.

i am also a big fan of dai atlas and warpath is also a must own. i like the datsuns as well i feel they are a must for an if collection. but not an immediate grab. lately they have been popping up as singles that are pretty affordable.

 

For the ex-14 lineup, I have 2 of the figures (Nova and Nemesis) primes and the third is on the way. I don’t have any QC issues on both my figures, however in combined mode I do find that poseability is somewhat limited. I do find Nova Prime has the nicest presence (with the wings), whereas Nemesis prime has the nicest paint and finish. I’m still waiting for the 3rd prime but I do wish IF would make a more G1 version to go with the other bots. That’s the same way I feel with the Datsun bros as well. The bot mode is fine, but their alt mode feels somewhat out of place.
Also, when you start collecting with the newer figures and go backwards, you do start noticing the datedness of the older figures and thus harder to justify paying a premium for them. A example of this are the c-clip looking hands on the older figs which I feel the need to put dual wield weapons to hide them when compared to newer figs with swap out hands.
I’m also on the fence regarding getting Arcee and their other fem bots. I find them a bit too anime ish.

 

On a side note, IF ex-47 Galvatron is in stock at Bombusbee.