Just opened my Rodimus last night and all in all, I'm liking him. I do have the issue with the trailer not closing flush like most people but I'm going to try some of the fixes here and see if they help. One other issue is the panel cover on the back of his right leg. I fold up the tire and make sure the wheel is slid up and tucked in all the way but I just cannot get the panel to tab in and I cant tell why.

 

I’m absolutely loving this figure! Only issue I had was with the trailer not closing all the way. I brushed floor polish on the tabs and tab slots on the trailer and it closes perfectly now! That’s with the gun turret inside as well.

 

I have the same tolerance issues with the trailer, but that's easily fixable.

Is this transformation kind of a pain in the butt for anyone else? I guess I've gotten rusty as I pretty much exclusively collect Generations now, so it's been a while since I've handled an MP or a more complex movie toy, but certain aspects of this conversion seem to be more fiddly than they needed to be. Like, what is up with folding the back section into the lower legs? There's not enough clearance unless I just force it. There seems to be a double joint there, but it won't move in the direction to allow for that clearance. The arms weren't so bad, though again a lot of joints where you seem unsure at first which direction they go.

The fingers on mine are extremely tight. I basically have to use the sword to pry them open, which I'm sure won't help maintain it's paint job that well. Way too much of a hassle just so he can do the "This is the end of the road, Galvatron" pose.

Still, gripes aside, it's still kind of surreal that this toy exists. A Rodimus Prime with a Voyager-sized bot mode has been something we've wanted basically since Classics started in '06. If I had it handy I'd almost want to see what he looks like next to the Classics Optimus mold, even though he's not really the figure to measure against anymore.

Oh! One more cool thing. In all the videos and photography I'd seen, it looked like the headcrest was just the same color as the rest of the head, as opposed to how it was done with '86 Hot Rod, but it seems like the back half of the head was molded in a darker maroon, but the crest was sculpted on that part, and the front half in lighter red. It looks great but very subtle.
EDIT: I got that wrong. The front head piece is painted red with the crest left unpainted. Makes the same effect, I just hadn't figured out how they did it correctly.

 

Only rough part of the transformation for me is getting the rear tires extended out

 

 
All that Trailer space and they couldn't work out how to poke that car further back and/or make it resemble the cab.

 

Since there’s no way to move the car back, it seems like the simplest 3P fix is. An extension to make the trailer overhang go further forward

 

Not sure that'd work without moving the pipes too.
Or make a new core bot PE style. Since the car mode here offers no contribution to the Winnebago, do away with it and display in his awesome bot mode (nobody bought this to have another Hotrod car surely). Then have a new core bot or even just a nice looking cab to plug in the space.

If this thing ever goes on clearance I'm gonna pick up a second to butcher & customise (just to finish the designers job).

 

Wow, this guy is fantastic! Yeah I have the non closing trailer and the rear tires require some plastic flex to go in the calves, but overall, looks glorious!

 

A few more Rodimi for comparison.

 

Got this guy this weekend, and I’m already kicking myself for not getting 2... he’s completely sold out in Japan where I am, so I may import a second on BBTS eventually, but I got the shit luck of ugly paint on his collar and chest  ... but as he and his predecessor are my favorite characters, it may be unreasonable, but I really wanted a perfect copy... the neck is especially annoying, since I haven’t seen anyone else with this issue  

Anyway, he’s pretty good, and I know some paint divas might object, but I really wish those cheapskates at Hasbro had molded the yellow and orange areas in plastic instead of painting those colors over red and clear plastic... the thighs seem to be ok, but rubbing that “V” wing under the trailer clasp/slot makes me cringe every time. Especially since the “V” wing paint is orange paint on top of yellow paint on top of clear plastic... smh  

Idk, what with Galvatron’s shoulders, wobbly Dinobot, a handful of other loose QC issues (Fangry’s knees) and now Rodimus’s shoddy paint, Hasbro has really just stopped caring about quality. Sure, the design and engineering are great, and I’m grateful for what we’re getting, but the execution is sloppy and if it’s because they’re rushing, then I really wish they’d just slow down and try harder to get it right   I hate that I’ve started thinking I need to get two of everything at the outset just to be able to cobble together a decent figure...

Also one thing I'll add as my personal opinion,
I am in the group wishing maybe his head looked a little less old... especially around the mouth? I also am not a big fan of the feet--the look big and clunky, almost like hooves, if that makes sense. I would've preferred maybe a more tapered toe, I think that would've been more accurate, and surely it would've fit in the trailer just as well.
I will say, I'm also glad whatever jackass was in charge of Galvatron didn't get the right/chance to put bird poop on Rodimus, as the clean look is what all these figures should have.

Finally, one last pet peeve: the packaging.
I personally don't have enough space to have the luxury of keeping the mainline crew's boxes, so he'll go in a polybag, then into a big plastic storage bin with a bunch of other guys, but if I was a "keep it in the box" guy for mainline figs, I would be pissed as the "strapped to a piece of cardboard" packaging method is pure shit from a collector stand point. I get cutting back on plastic, so I'm not saying they need to return to blister packing per se, but even Bandai Japan uses wood pulp trays for their Rider Belts and something like cardboard segments to at least hold the pieces in place like the Combiner Wars Titan's would've been nice. This packaging (I didn't get the other Commanders, but I know they're the same) is shit. "F" grade for packaging here.

 

Mine arrived a day early from Amazon as a total surprise.

Man, he is so close to being a perfect figure. Surprisingly, I don't seem to have the trailer issue, mine closes, even with the turret inside. However, I have to ask, is there a trick to the rear wheels into calves transformation phase? While getting them in was a true pain and I flexed the plastic a lot more than I feel I should (I did do the double extension on the part that will hug the wheel to create as much space as possible, but still it took an extreme amount of force), but going back to vehicle mode I kept thinking, "And this is how I broke my minutes old $80 Rodimus" trying to get the wheels back out. I don't know if I got unlucky with the QC tolerances or what, but it took so much force I honestly expected to snap it to get those rear wheels to pivot back out. I even looked up a transformation video hoping I omitted something but nope. On the transformation videos that part just swiveled.

My other issue was going to robot mode, getting the chest/neck/spine all to align properly was very difficult to align as well, I kept having a big gap over the stomach and the windshield not lining up. It took some finagling to finally get it to snap into place.

Personally, I feel that the front wheels into backs of the shoulder transformation was unnecessary and that from some angles, the arms seem a little stubby. Now, I love the battlestation, and honestly I really like the headsculpt. It looks right for me. On the flip side, many of the pictures of alt mode looked bad to me, but in hand, it doesn't. Odd that. Though I will admit, if Toyhax makes a kit for him that includes the "widows peak" over the windshield, I'll buy it. That's the one eyesore for me.

I had G1 Rodimus as a kid, he was a gift that Christmas after seeing the movie. I quite enjoyed him, though I often wished he could become a sort of Hot Rod and leave the trailer behind. LOL, all these years later, I seem to have gotten my wish. My childhood self would've been over the moon with the idea of this guy. As a modern day fan of the original profiles, I am completely satisfied.

Not to get into the whole, "Is he worth the price and being a Commander" issue, but I will say, this guy is clearly a step above the normal levels of engineering and parts count and I shudder to think of all that would've been omitted in a foolish attempt to get him into a leader class budget or even a special one off between Commander and Leader. I also don't think I'll be mad if they later release just Rodimus sans trailer, though something tells me that won't happen.

If the back wheel transformation wasn't such a pain and they had painted/stickered/tampo'd the "widows peak" over the windshield, I probably wouldn't hesitate to call him a 10/10.

EDIT: I've transformed him a bit more. It seems the best way to get the rear wheels out of the calves in robot mode is to use the exposed tire on the inner calf an push from there. It also seems that after a few tries, the swivel panels have loosened up, it's not nearly as hard on later transformations as it was the first time. Though I still feel like it's more difficult than it should be. The chest panel locking in has also continued, but having done it, at least I know where and how to push to get it to lock in, like the legs, it just takes more force then I would like.

 

Yeah, you have to tab 1 into 2 before you try to compress the chest or you end up with a big gap in the stomach because things don't line up. Took me a couple of tries to get that down as well.

 

Annoyingly, they didn't include this step in the instructions.
Spent nearly 20 minutes trying to get the chest right.
Ended up looking at the 'prime vs prime' review.
Showed this tab & latch quite clearly.
Worked like a charm.
One missed instruction can make a big difference.

 

I don't do instructions unless I get stuck to a point where I think I might break something, so it's always an adventure for me.  

 

I'm sure it's been done to death, but:

End of the Road Galvatron!

 

For $80 they need to paint the rims silver... and of course, these aren't the pop off wheels either, so they don't make it easy to DIY.

Anybody paint the rims yet?

 

jesus christ he looks so sad. he looks like he's been drinking his leadership burdens for the better part of 50 years.

 

Epic!

 

I bought this:

3pcs Silver Mirror Marker, liquid... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B099YQ7NK6?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

See this video:

 

That looks great. I wonder how long the paint apps last, before they rub off or tarnish