I think it could work well. Just rearrange the kibble and he’d be overall shorter and it’d work great.

 

Man...I hate cutting on new figures, but it would be nice to fix that leg issue with this guy. That is really my only major complaint about him. And, he seemed to disappear from stores pretty quickly around me...I haven't seen one on the shelves in months it seems.

 

I used a pair of model clippers to cut them off. It's pretty obvious when you have yours in hand.

 

Well probably cause he’s the most popular SS figure of the line.

Assuming I will have it in hand.

 

It's more down to what tools you have. there's a block on the back of his neck that fits into the wide notched kind of section in the back of his helmet, and has 0 purpose. I just shaved that off carefully. Takes time because it's literally a relatively large surface section on that neck panel, but now he can look up, yay. Also shaved the corners on the front of his neck, so he has a consistent movement from side to side now without having a spot where he can't look down in-between.

get it onlineee

 

^^ This guy gets it.

 

I get it too, but if I didn't buy online I wouldn't have half the figures I have, and the ones I DO have I would have gotten months later, if I was lucky... It took me years to give up on retail, but at this point unless I have nothing else to do and I happen to be in a target or comic book store or whatever I don't even expect to find anything I want or don't already have.

 

It means a lot to me. Growing up in Australia we don’t have the best distribution. I long for the day we get it as good in America or Japan, and I can just go into any store and get any figure I want from each wave and not skip anything. When there’s something I love and it’s in the store it brings me incredible joy.

 

I'm actually kind of the same. Part of the reason I don't like sightings or using brickseek to find stuff is that there is a kind of endorphin rush in finding something new on the pegs without having advance knowledge that it's already there.

 

Right on.

And I also completely agree with Sightings/Brickseek point. To me it feels like cheating. I mostly use Sightings to determine if figures are potentially available in my area.

Needless to say, I can’t fault anyone for ordering online. It’s the smart thing to do, and I certainly do it on occasion. But for ME, one of the best parts of this hobby is the pure, clean joy that comes with finding something in the wild.

 

Unless "it" is the figure. In which case he hasn't.

I mean, if you've got free time to randomly hunt around, that's great for you. Some of us don't.

My only regular opportunity to "hunt" is the weekly grocery run to Target, which means I'm at the mercy of luck depending on which store I go to. Sure, sometimes I can stop at either Target or Walmart on my way to work, but I can't do it *every day.*

So for me, stuff like Brickseek is a godsend. It can help me know if it's worth while to swing by a store and check. Or take the time to go out of my way to a different store.

But nothing is more useful etailers. Because even $4 shipping is a *huge* time saver compared to the gas/time I burn going from shop to shop in the off chance maybe they've got something.

 

Except that’s not really how it works here (America) anymore either. Distribution may not be as bad as some places like Australia, but it’s not reliable at all anymore.

It used to work that way. I think dark of the moon (2011) was the last era of collecting where I could legitimately expect to find something surprising on a store shelf.

Exactly. It doesn’t just cost time to hunt around, but it costs money. It feels annoying to pay shipping, then have to wait days or even weeks for an item, but often times it saves money and time in the end. Like I’ve said, I totally get going into a random store and finding something cool and I also LOVE that feeling, but it basically never happens anymore. And even if I do find something I want in a store, it’s probably already something I’ve seen a million pics and video reviews and internet arguments about, which is fun but also spoils the fun, if that makes sense.

 

I gave up buying locally when it became cheaper to order them online... Prices of Transformers figures in Singapore are absolutely bonkers.

 

I get it.

We're old enough and have enough access that we know what's coming long before it comes. It's not like when I was a naive kid who saw a new character debut on Beast Wars and *immediately* began calling around stores to ask if they had it.

So I'm okay with watching reviews from those who get early access, and I don't mind building up a pile of loot so I can minimize shipping. Even if it means waiting for nearly 4-5 months to get my hands on Legends Godbomber or UW Megatronia.

But that also means I get to be a more discerning buyer. When I was a kid I bought into the hype. I had most of the characters from the Beast Wars series and had a few "clunkers" that just spoke to me for whatever reason (Retrax, Injector, etc) but now I've got other expenses and space is a concern so I can't just buy whatever I want.

That extra time to sit on a preorder and watch reviews means I can save myself money if something isn't up to par. Or, if I'm on the fence about one figure I know to pass because there's an upcoming figure that I *definitely* want.

 

When I was kid, I was naive and thought a new character debuting on Beast Wars meant it's toy would be in stores by the end of the week. Without regular internet access, new discoveries were always fun. I still remember specifics surrounding the day I walked into Target and OH HOLY CRAP there was Magnaboss and Tripredacus. First I had ever heard or seen of them.

The upside of having advance knowledge, though, is you can better plan purchases. If you're on the fence about "A" you can now hold off on it because you know "B" is coming later that you definitely want.

Example: When CW was going strong, I slowly realized I wanted all of them. So preorders were an absolute must to secure stuff like Sky Reign. Likewise, knowing what Titans Return entailed gave me a heads up that I could stop focusing on what was in stores and focus more on going back and picking up the FunPub/UW combiner figures I wanted.

Likewise, had I not been paying attention I'd have missed the PotP leak. Knowing combiners were coming back gave me a chance to sell off some stuff to build up money and room, while helping me avoid that impulse of seeing new toys on shelves and wanting *something*. Because I knew the payoff (PotP) was coming. And I had already secured most of it via preorder.

 

Totally agree on all this. Except with studio series I’ve mostly been buying everything and then just reselling or modding what isn’t up to par. These days I’d rather experience a toy for myself sometimes and always try to keep it in resell condition if I don’t absolutely love it.

 

It’s also just cheaper to buy Hasbro stuff in stores. Unless I find a good eBay seller.

 

I got Shatter in store latest like a couple of days ago, and I really like her. I do prefer getting things in store when I can, but quite frankly it's too much risk and not enough reward to go almost exclusively brick and mortar hunting. I'm very selective with my choices, and usually the stores have no idea what the hell they wanna sell, lol, especially Walmart. -_0

 

Intereting to see this guy being hard to get in markets like walmart in other places.

That's how i found mine, and i know some people that did the same in my country.

 

I've never seen him at any of my local Walmarts. I've only seen him at my local Meijer. I ordered him from Megalopolis like 2 months before he started showing up in stores. Once Toy World's Freedom Leader releases I'll be putting ol'38 up for sale or giving him to my son.