Topic: Models and Figures

[Police Girl]

I was also refering to the fact that the transformation of magical girls usually just involves a change of clothes, yet nobody can tell it's them when they are in and out of transformation, which happened A LOT in Sailor Moon (Uranus and Neptune, the Amazoness Quartet, Starlights etc). Cutey Honey and most PreCure protagonists at least also have a change in their hairstyles (and hair color!) and occasionally eyecolor to conceal themselves.

As for Lelouch, he has no hole in the back, hence why I was asking if there are specific stands for S.H. Figuarts that use some sort of clamp or whatever to hold onto.

Tamashii stage ACT.4 is probably the best for humanoid characters.
Sometimes they come with other figures but you normally have to buy them separately. They are sold for about $15 for three.

[Blue Valkyrie]

Figma Kamen Rider Siren.

I admit I know basically nothing about Kamen Rider but I love some of the designs. It's a cool figure but getting her to hold any of her weapons is kinda terrifying, the handle on her shield also imminently broke and I barely touched it. 

The cloth cape is kinda cool, I was expecting a plastic one.

[Police Girl]

With fancy Japanese collectibles you can't ham-hand anything.

I've broken countless figures or parts from negligence.

best break out the epoxy and fix it.

[Blue Valkyrie]

I'll keep that in mind thanks, although I hadn't even begun to slide the handle onto the hand (that is terrifying as it involves bending the fingers and I can see that leading to stress damage in the future). I think there might have been some prior stress damage in the plastic, luckily everything else seems solid, although the sword is seriously thin plastic and one wrong fall could be fatal for that weapon accessory.

[Police Girl]

By chance, was the figure cold?

[Blue Valkyrie]

By chance, was the figure cold?

It was yes.

[Quickman]

Cold makes plastic brittle.  Warming plastic makes it soft, so if you want to get figures to hold things or move stubborn joints, it's suggested to warm the plastic to soften it.  Hair dryers work well for that, as does dipping the joint or piece in hot (near-boiling) water.

To fix the piece, I suggest superglue.  Quick and easy, as epoxy can be really tricky to use, and smelly. 

[Police Girl]

It was yes.

Yeah, I had the same issue with a cold figure.

Just either warm it up manually or let it sit in a warmer room.

I had to do that with a figma Aigis I just got recently because the thing was really damn cold from being out in the winter.

[Dr. Wily II]

Hmm... I need to take note of these when I eventually get the AGP Unicorn Gundam Girl... Warm her up... YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

[Blue Valkyrie]

It was a cold day and that box could have been in a freezing fed-ex truck for who knows how long, I'll be more careful next time, this isn't a cheap hobby. 
 
I'll have to try that hairdryer trick on my D-Arts Zero Mk.II one of the shoulders refuses to move like the other and I'm not keen on testing how tough the joint is. As for fixing Siren's shield do you recommend any type of superglue, or does any brand work?

[Police Girl]

superglue is bad for plastic.

epoxy and metal glue seem to work best.

[Quickman]

I have some cheap-brand superglue and it works fine.  Krazy Glue, if you want to go with a brand, but really, any will do.  Just be careful about excess glue squeezing out, so only put enough on the piece to hold it together.  Else, a cotton swab and a bit of nail polish remover will take off the excess, but be really, really careful, because it will take off paint.

As for stubborn shoulder joints, if the figure is in a warm room, try rotating the joint to work it loose.  Regular wear and tear will loosen joints nicely.  My D-Arts Mewtwo has a stubborn shoulder joint, and the most I've done was warm it with my hands and rotate it slowly to work it into position, followed by rotating the joint to loosen it.  Make sure to hold the joint itself, don't rotate below the bicep swivel.  Holding the joint will also help warm it.

[Blue Valkyrie]

I have some cheap-brand superglue and it works fine.  Krazy Glue, if you want to go with a brand, but really, any will do.  Just be careful about excess glue squeezing out, so only put enough on the piece to hold it together.  Else, a cotton swab and a bit of nail polish remover will take off the excess, but be really, really careful, because it will take off paint.

As for stubborn shoulder joints, if the figure is in a warm room, try rotating the joint to work it loose.  Regular wear and tear will loosen joints nicely.  My D-Arts Mewtwo has a stubborn shoulder joint, and the most I've done was warm it with my hands and rotate it slowly to work it into position, followed by rotating the joint to loosen it.  Make sure to hold the joint itself, don't rotate below the bicep swivel.  Holding the joint will also help warm it.

I'll keep both options in mind, same with Epoxy.

As for D-Arts, I did some digging around and it seems that might just be some QC issues, some Zero MK-II's have that issue others don't, although I'm still not sure if it's a tight joint in my case or something deformed in there preventing the joint from functioning. I'll try your trick sometime and see if it fixes the problem, I also need to see if I can use some form of polish to make the peg for attaching Zero's buster larger because it falls off a lot.

[Quickman]

Epoxy (such as Mighty Putty) would work pretty well for that.

As far as my figures, I just gave them a good dusting.  Most of my stuff are statues and busts, with Mewtwo being my only current figure.  Just gave him a new pose and that stubborn shoulder isn't as stubborn as it used to be.  Rotating it helped, as it's now at the same tightness as the other shoulder.

Have yet to pose him with the Shadow Prune, though I may give him a lightsaber again.

Right now he posed like "come with me if you want to live."

[Blue Valkyrie]

I kinda regret not getting D-Arts Mewtwo when I had the chance. 

[Police Girl]

Don't be, he's awkward as hell to pose and while not having a hole in his back for the stand is a nice thing aesthetically it kills the figure to have it clamped, it doesn't like to stay clamped.

Depending on your disposable income, you might want to consider looking at Mandarake for figures. They have a lot of selection but they will kill your wallet and hide the body.

[Quickman]

Oddly enough, I haven't had a problem.

Then again, I used to make stop-motion shorts with action figures and got used to posing things that won't stand up.

[Blue Valkyrie]

Mandrake seems to have pretty good selection from a quick glance, I tend to use Hobby Link Japan and the prices aren't too bad but good luck finding anything that's not current there. Kinda drives me crazy as they keep discontinued figures listed that I can never get now.

[Quickman]

I got mine through Amazon, from Big Bad Toy Store.

Another option, which I use for other display items, is to look on eBay for previously-displayed figures.  As long as they're clean, in good condition, complete, and the joints are still tight, you can get a good deal for a loose figure.

I tend to go this route for action figures, busts, and vinyl displays, but I haven't tried it for articulated figures, yet.

[Blue Valkyrie]

I've done that for one or two figures, I got basically new Akiba Yellow figuart for what amounted to less than 20$ Canadian.

Don't regret that buy at all.

[Police Girl]

Bluefin posted a teaser for a figure they're unveiling on their facebook.

At first it was just a plain yellow picture so people thought it was gonna be a yellow ranger.

Then they changed the image to this:


I think its safe to say poseable plumbers are on their way. Figure smash bros is almost a reality.

[Protoman Blues]

Well I've pretty much bought every Figma Nintendo figure (cept for Pokemon) so this will be no different.

Posted on: January 21, 2014, 12:32:55 AM

 

    

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

HOW AM I NOW JUST FINDING OUT ABOUT THIS?!?!

[The Great Gonzo]

Bluefin posted a teaser for a figure they're unveiling on their facebook.

At first it was just a plain yellow picture so people thought it was gonna be a yellow ranger.

Then they changed the image to this:


I think its safe to say poseable plumbers are on their way. Figure smash bros is almost a reality.

Wait wait, so in addition to Nendoroid Luigi and Link, Bluefin's possibly going to make some Mario figures? Sweet. ^^

[Dr. Wily II]

Just gonna say that Bandai will be releasing HGCC Turn A Gundam in April this year. And P-Bandai announced that they will soon have pre-orders for the Moonlight Butterfly effect parts.

[Protoman Blues]

After building the Tallgeese yesterday, it's so hard to go back to not even HG's but older MG's as well. The newer skeletons are just so much better. I'm looking forward to working on the Epyon & Wing Zero soon.