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Post by jwm on May 10, 2006 10:39:39 GMT -5
I have the big Rick Dom. I did a write-up on it that you can find over at CDX. In retrospect, I'd say stay away from the thing. The frame on it is really good. All the joints can be adjusted and set as tight or loose as you want. Unfortunately the armor on the Dom keeps it from being very poseable. But the whole wiring thing is just a pain. Maybe they have improved it; I wouldn't know. I'm a meticulous worker. I followed the instructions to the letter, and still the lights don't work very well. Maybe if you're an electronics buff, and have a pin point soldering iron you could make them reliable. Even if you went to that kind of trouble, you'll notice that almost all the lights are at the back and on the bottom of the figure. There's almost no way you can display the thing to take advantage of them. On the plus side, it's a great looking piece, and it goes well with the PG RX78/2, and ZakuII. If you can get it at a cheap enough price. It would be worth it to just forget about the lights.
JWM
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Post by joydivision on May 10, 2006 10:44:48 GMT -5
the hy2m rik dom is incredible! there is a lot of wires. i did it before the zeta. made the zeta seem easy and quick to build! the light gimmick on the bazooka is really ingenious! very strong lights also! they also fixed the sprew marks problem on the plastic parts. and it has great shelf presence!
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Post by Qball99 on May 10, 2006 12:47:37 GMT -5
the hy2m rik dom is incredible! there is a lot of wires. i did it before the zeta. made the zeta seem easy and quick to build! the light gimmick on the bazooka is really ingenious! very strong lights also! they also fixed the sprew marks problem on the plastic parts. and it has great shelf presence! I’d have to agree with joydivision. Even after building all of the Perfect Grade series, I’d have to say by far, building my HY2M Dom and Gouf was the most fun of I’ve had building a model. It took me a couple days to get use to the wiring, but from then on, it was a blast. For those of you who have worked on the HY2M series I found a way to solve the wiring issue. The instructions tell you to smash the wire and its connecting piece together using the gold bead. What I ended up doing for some pieces is thread the wire through the gold bead, and wrapped the wire around itself by spinning the gold bead. After that I simply smashed the gold bead into place. For some of the more trouble spots, I said screw the bead and soldered it. The beads are a real pain. In the end, I’m glad all of the lights are working, and they look great standing next to the PG series. Check out my picture below.
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Post by jwm on May 10, 2006 13:00:14 GMT -5
Q-ball99 Wow! That is an awesome display. Cool (and expensive) idea getting two copies of the Zak so you could do one with the clear armor, and the Zeta in both modes. How did you do with the wing tip lights on the Waverider? Do they still work? I'm glad you, and Joydivision had better luck than I did with the lighting on the Dom. Where did you end up soldering? Did you have a problem with the upper torso fitting together around the circuit box on yours? On mine the gap at the shoulders won't quite close.
JWM
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Post by Qball99 on May 10, 2006 14:09:14 GMT -5
Sup bro,
Honestly I only assembled one of the Zetas, and I never bought any batteries so I don’t know if it works or not. lol I bought the second zeta preassembled. I think one zeta build per lifetime is enough =], not to say that it was not enjoyable. It was also my first PG, and it was great. As far as soldering I don’t remember where I used it. I do remember however that I used the wrapping technique for the main circuit boxes. I did not want to mess that thing up by soldering. I actually believe that I have the same problem with the shoulder gap you are talking about. It has been sitting in my case ever since it was finished, so I have not handled it in a while. As you can see I have a very bad memory lol.
Qball
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Post by mannyD on May 11, 2006 0:18:54 GMT -5
Qball99: very nice collection bro!!! i envy you, it would probably take me a year to complete this line how are the PGs in action poses, stability wise? awesome collection dude!
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Post by Qball99 on May 11, 2006 10:17:10 GMT -5
Qball99: very nice collection bro!!! i envy you, it would probably take me a year to complete this line how are the PGs in action poses, stability wise? awesome collection dude! Thanks for the compliment bro. It has taken a while for me to build up my collection. I can’t believe it, but I think it has been 8+ years, which is a good topic, maybe I will start a new thread. Time has flown by =\. Honestly, I haven’t really had the chance to try action poses, not that I don’t want too. As you can see my case is a little tight right now, so posing is a little difficult. And if you think that case is packed tight, you should see my other one, lol. What really sucks is that all of my FIX and Diecast Gundam are sitting in their boxes, which are in bigger boxes….Hopefully things will change in about 4 months. My girlfriend and I are building a house, and I’m in the process of tracking down some display cases for it. I am actually driving 10 hrs to NY next Friday to pick up 3 display cases. Call me hardcore gundam collector. Wish me luck! Thanks Qball
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Post by jwm on May 11, 2006 10:43:30 GMT -5
MannyD For all my complaining about the PG models I've actually had pretty fair luck getting them in dynamic poses. The RX78/2 is the worst. It's tippy and unstable no matter what you do. The ZakuII is better. A lot of the problem trying to get these things posed comes from armor that falls off while you're handling the figure. You just about get it right, and then 'clink' some piece falls off from the inside of the leg, or the back of the arm and you have to start all over again. I've mentioned the problems with the Zeta. The Wing Zero custom can actually hold a pretty good stance, but you depend on the placement of those big heavy wings to balance it on those narrow feet. I don't have the Titans or the GP01, but I've heard they are an improvement. The Strike is by far the best. It is the closest to having toy like playability.
JWM
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Post by mannyD on May 11, 2006 22:57:16 GMT -5
jwm: this is breaking my heart hehe. i'm planning on getting the rx-78-2 next. on a side note, i've read in another forum bout PG vs MG, them comparing quality vs quantity. with MGs- no stability problems, can do more cooler action poses, have a wider range of robot figures to choose from, and you could get 3 to 4 MGs for the price of a PG. in turn PGs- are bigger, far better looking and better detailed. but have apparent stability problems. and the lingering thought of version 2 PG possibility (they did it in MG), ahhh!
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Post by jwm on May 11, 2006 23:33:21 GMT -5
Yeah, it's a tough call. The RX78/2 is the first PG model they made, and it really has a lot of drawbacks. On the one hand it is the best looking and most accurate rendition of the iconic Gundam, on the other hand it is by far the worst piece in an already flawed series. I've thought perhaps some of the stability problems could be improved by weighting the hollow pieces on the interior leg skeleton, and feet. Maybe that non hardening modeling clay, or with some fine gauge solder, or a combination. Just a thought.
JWM
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Post by jwm on May 12, 2006 11:27:11 GMT -5
I'll defer to you on this one, Ataru, since I don't have the figures you mentioned. I have only one MG kit, and that's the FAZZ. I don't know what it is, but I like the 1/144 scale, and the 1/60, but for some reason the 1/100 doesn't do much for me even though it fits right in with the SOC figures on the shelf. But then again, I like oatmeal and cottage cheese No accounting for taste on my part at all. JWM
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Post by mannyD on May 14, 2006 10:16:36 GMT -5
mannyD> I disagree that PGs are far better looking than MGs. The Gundam MKII 2.0 has the same amount of detail as the PG and better articulation. The number one advantage of PGs is size, with the number two advantage being internal details. well ataru, after much thought last friday, i've decided to take the plunge and built my PG zeta (against selling it hehe). well after finishing the head and torso these last two days, i'm very happy i've decided to built it. it's fairly a fast built, but skill and experience would help a lot. PG zeta is far better looking than MG zeta. i love the size, the design and number of parts, the working mechanisms and "hydraulics" in the internal frame and armor. just the head armor, it is made up of 10 separate parts, this level of detail cannot be found in MG zeta head armor, which has only two parts that is snap together, and a face plate i think building an MG zeta would not satisfy me after experiencing building a PG
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Post by mannyD on May 14, 2006 10:24:00 GMT -5
Yeah, it's a tough call. The RX78/2 is the first PG model they made, and it really has a lot of drawbacks. On the one hand it is the best looking and most accurate rendition of the iconic Gundam, on the other hand it is by far the worst piece in an already flawed series. I've thought perhaps some of the stability problems could be improved by weighting the hollow pieces on the interior leg skeleton, and feet. Maybe that non hardening modeling clay, or with some fine gauge solder, or a combination. Just a thought. JWM JWM: dude, i was thinking bout the same thing hehe. i was thinking of filling the leg internal skeletons with some weight for stability. hardening clay you suggested would be fine, bought one already. hope to finish the wings, arms and legs this week. wish me luck jwm, what about the stickers? do you use them? do they peel easily?
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Post by jwm on May 14, 2006 10:59:19 GMT -5
I use some, but not all of the stickers. What I've found is that they stick OK, but like everything with a Bandai model you have to be careful. Use tweezers to remove them from the sheet, and don't touch the sticky side. Make sure the plastic is clean where you apply them. Clean the plastic surface with rubbing alcohol to make sure there is no oil from your fingertips. Did you get the light in the head to work OK?
JWM
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Post by mannyD on May 14, 2006 12:31:34 GMT -5
did not try it yet, i'll purchase the watch battery this weekend
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Post by mannyD on May 14, 2006 12:57:41 GMT -5
... the latest MG of the rx-78 has a lot more external detail and vastly superior articulation than the PG. ataru that is superiorly misleading, have you counted the points of articulation of a PG's hand? and an MGs hand?
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Post by mannyD on May 22, 2006 6:24:49 GMT -5
jwm and Qball99: need your advice bros. do you remember this contruction page of PG zeta?: the one when you connect the ankle to the shin/lower leg internal frame. the ankle frame has a spring mechanism inside so that the ankle/feet can go up and down a quarter of an inch or so, like in a car's suspensions (don't know the use of this articulation in PG zeta though hehe). it is a nice feature, but when you connect A, B, C and D above, even when you tighten the screws in the shin/lower leg internal frame, the ankle/feet tends to be shaky and not tight. which i think may cause the legs to be unstable. haven't finished the leg internal frames, have a chance now to correct this flaw (?). i am planning in "cementing" A, B, C and D above, ditching the up and down articulation of the ankle, which i think for now is useless, please correct me if i'm wrong. but the lower legs would be stable for sure. what do you think?
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Post by mannyD on May 22, 2006 7:46:11 GMT -5
Manny, no, actually it's the number of joints that is misleading. The MG one year war version gundam for example, has less finger joints, but it has a much wider range of articulation in general than the perfect grade. The MG Gundam mkII 2.0 has a significantly wider range of movement than the PG gundam MkII in both the upper and lower body. It's not just about the number of joints. The only perfect grade that has better articulation than modern MGs is the strike gundam. Every other perfect grade has worse articulation, seriously. ataru, i think i get what you mean hehe. but i don't agree entirely (again ;D). PGs i think are supposed to be more better in articulation, design, and detail. the possibility and range of movement and articulation is there, it's just a question of how long it can maintain that ultra cool pose, because of the weight issue. but to say "MG has a significantly wider range of movement than the PG gundam" is damn straight misleading hehe. i don't believe you in that part bro. unless you've built every PG and their corresponding MG counterpart, then compare them vis a vis. only then, probably, i will believe what you say ;D best regards
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Post by f360 on May 23, 2006 7:45:17 GMT -5
I have to disagree with you here too, ATARU.
What you said early were "lot more external detail and vastly superior articulation than the PG"
Which is incorrect and misleading.
"lot more external detail" Even if you use the latest Master Grade as comparaion it still do not have more external detail than a Perfect Grade, detail is detail , it doesn't matter small or big. I mean try comparing the Hands, the finger joints, the wrist, the Eyes, the hyro pistons, trusters, armor haches.. just to name a few. And lets not forget that Perfect Grades have super detail internal frame too, and that's worlds beyond Master grade's internal frame in Details. MG with lot more detail than PG? no such thing.
"vastly superior articulation " That is alsomisleading.. MG never had VASTLY SUPERIOR ARTICULATION over Perfect Grades. The part about the MG RX-178 2.0 over the PG RX-178 is misleading... sure the MG has the sliding leg armor but what about it, it do not increase articulation whatsoever, you can count that in as extra detail only. The MG RX-178 Ver 2.0 AEUG can not even turn it waist, lol. If you had said that some newer MG can post a bit better then their PG counterpart then it will be correct,, but it's NOT "vastly superior articulation ".
Pretty much it's the wording that you used that made your statement incorrect and misleading.
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Post by mannyD on May 24, 2006 2:47:06 GMT -5
... It is a simple fact that this MG has many more external details than the PG. Just look at any pictures of them- they're not even in the same ballpark... ataru: that's all i wanted to hear hehe. dude you are basing your opinion on "pictures" you have seen hehe. have you "built" every PG and their corresponding MG? if you haven't, it is REALLY WRONG AND MISLEADING for you to judge the whole line just base on your observation of "pictures". you can argue with a 1000 word dizzying essay on the weakness of PGs, but without building and experiencing the lines (PG and MG) and building every model with individual notes on the internal frame design and complexity, number of working parts and points of articulation, the design and breakdown of the armor (working mechanism if any), extra gimmicks (like led lightings and spring/suspension system in the internal frame), and so on- i believe your opinion is without basis, and just a pigment of your imagination (honestly ;D) tis plain and simple bro- IF YOU HAVEN'T BUILD EM, DON'T JUDGE THEM. as always, best regards dude ;D
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