Ideally it'll depend on the alt mode. Matte paint could work fine on a new Starscream but I'd want any new non-military carbot to have the same fresh, just-off-the-assembly-line gloss paint as Sunstreaker, Prowl et al.
Takara, just killed an MP Hound Put a crack against his head Broke a panel, now he's dead Takara, MP Hound’s life had just begun But now you’ve gone and thrown it all away Takara, ooh Didn't mean to make you cry If I don’t get a replacement again this time tomorrow Carry on, carry on As if nothing really matters Too late, your time has come Sends shivers down my spine Body's broken all the time Goodbye Takara, I've got to go Gotta leave you all behind and face the truth Takara, ooh I don't want MP Hound to die I sometimes wish he’d never been made at all
This is epic!!! I just opened up my second Hound figure, this one from Amazon.co.jp (one of the discounted one from last week). It came in a sealed, single taped box, so it was definitely not a return. And... I don’t know what to tell you guys, but this one is actually even better than my AE one which I got two weeks ago. This one came in box K1219, figure code I2619. I usually keep my extra figure MISB, but I didn’t want to chance it with this one. My first AE figure has a hairline crack on the driver’s side door hinge, which has’t gotten any worse, but this one has no cracks whatsoever. Perfect paint all over. The joints were once again very tight indeed, so I took lots of care and time to open them up, but he’s in perfect bot mode now and everything still seems perfectly fine. Changing him back and putting him in the box, and he’ll be a perfect spare in case something does happen to my play / display MP Hound.
I concur. I'd love V3 Starscream in matte paint. Mp36 Megatron's paint looks and feels great. I just want/need Soundwave 2.0, Starscream 3.0 and Jazz (and MP29+) and I'll be complete and call it a day. 15 transformers total (5 dinobots). If TT makes all 5 dinos I would switch them out for my FT.
For returns with a refund option. Does Amazon JP refund the shipping cost to your card or is it through gift cards? I don't want $200 worth of gift cards.
Good luck, @alldarker ! I just turned mine back to bot mode and still no cracks (again, while leaving all the extras in his legs and feet). I mean to go through a few more transformations before the 29th (my last day of the return window), but I feel a little more confident every day that my copy's plastic is fine. I've probably transformed and posed him as much or more than any other MP within the first month. I do wish TT would address the widespread problems of this release, though, and do whatever they can to make it right and retain fans. MPs are the only things I really collect, I'm happier than ever with the figures' designs, and just want it to continue as long as possible. QC issues aside, I really think having the head and cannon on an armature to keep the hood clean was the right way to go. The Jeep mode's so beautiful and I'm having a lot of fun with the opening hood, the seating ability, and the soft top.
I haven't had chance to properly post about Hound yet, so here goes... Got him a week or so ago, and of course had read all the horror stories, so I was ridiculously vigilant when transforming him the first time. Slow and careful... No noticable cracks/fracture lines, but could anything snap or crumble at any moment? The experience was, I imagine, a lot like disarming a bomb. And incredibly, he didn't go off. Phew. So there he was, in bot mode, looking pretty good actually. I must say, design-wise there's some great stuff going on. Storing the rear-mounted gun, spare wheel, gas tank, rear wheels and the handgun all in the lower legs is extremely impressive. And the actual wheels fold up! Genius. A gamechanger surely! The larger scale Spike figure is awesome, I've been lobbying for some Human Alliance type G1 humans for a long time. Really hope some enterprising 3p picks up the ball there and gives us other toon human characters in the same vein and, dare I say, some Marvel comic figures too. Anyway so Hound went on the shelf and stayed there until today, when I finally plucked up the courage to change him back into alt mode. Keeping a keen eye on the instructions, more out of fear of missing some vital step and causing undue stress (on plastic as much as on myself), I again took my sweet time. At one point, as I was swinging up the lower leg panel, there was a horrible cracking sound and I feared the worst. Luckily it was only the sound of the plastic catching over the surrounding edges. There's a ridge on the underside of the panel that just trips on the folded up wheel. The ridge is so close to the hinge, and the natural instinct is to handle the panel at the end as you swing it up, that I can see how torque could easily snap it due to the resistance from the wheel (if this has already been covered in the thread forgive me, I've not been following much lately!). As for why mine seems, at least for now, fairly solid while some are snap, crackle and popping like Rice Krispies I have no idea. Can there really be 'good' copies and 'bad' copies floating around? Seems illogical for a production line product. I'd love to know what the ultimate cause of the problems is. Perhaps even get reassurance that some copies are actually ok and sturdy enough not to worry about every time we touch them. Talk to us Takara! As it is, what ought to be a fantastic figure is marred by the dread one has knowing he can't be handled like a normal piece. Ten out of ten for design. Minus several million for execution.
well, got a third copy from aj last night, here are my experiences: 1st copy: very small crack on the joint behind the left knee. probably won’t crack any further, but still cracked nonetheless. good is slightly warped so the right side is raised about 1mm. 2nd copy: no cracks, but multiple paint issues - one on the helmet, both shins, and on the lower thigh where the green shin covers up when standing straight. 3rd copy: huge crack on the head armature where others have noted cracks where the black pivot screw is. i was able to frankenstein a final copy by swapping out the armature piece, thank goodness that section is attached to the steering wheel which is only held on by two small phillips screws instead of on unremovable pins. so i’ll continue to transform this copy for the next few days, i’m hoping it stays intact. but yea, the cracks confirm what some others are seeing right out of the box and not as a consequence of hamfisting.
All the hooplah about his poor QC and I still took the chance from Amazon JP earlier this week and I have no regrets or complaints. Another amazing Masterpiece and I don’t miss my Willis one bit.
Just wanted to say hello. Finally received my Hound. I could sniff a crack but good grace it wasn't the case. I feel lucky, despite some paint imperfection. I was a bit stressed during the transformation but it wasn't that difficult in the end, and I love the engineering. Sure there are some scary tight joints, but thx to all your advice I did lubricate most of them (and warmed them up with the hair dyer lol). I also unscrewed a bit the neck/head armarture plus a bit of sanding I cross my fingers this figure will hold it's state. It's miles better than Fans Toys Willis
Neither can I. I think it's like those 3D posters from the 90s - some people can see it and others just can't. Accept it.
