construct bots, opinions?

[morg176]

I was thinking of picking up a wheeljack or an Ironhide to see what they are like.
What are your opinions of this line, as it doesn't look like we'll get anything new for a while in the standard lines . . .:D

[Omega Metro]

I don't have any myself but they are expensive for what they are. Quality is a concern for me also (Starcreams half painted head, stress marks).

[CBratron]

Heard of clips stressing and breaking from repeated clipping and unclipping. Kinda worrying when the biggest feature is to deconstruct and construct bots in whatever form you want.

[griffin]

There's quite a few comments and photos in the review topic (http://www.otca.com.au/boards/showthread.php?t=16771).

[Cat]

Some are good, some suffer from too many pieces weighing them down and making them awkward to handle. But, being customisable, it's not a death-sentence like it is if it were a regular TF. So that's something.

It's a promising start, and I'm looking forward to improvements with future waves.

By far, the best two from the first wave are Wheeljack and Ironhide, so they're definitely the ones to get.

And come on, Ironhide is only $15AU, and he's a big enough figure that you really feel like you got your money's worth, at least.

Wheeljack is awesome, but you may not feel as if there's enough extra offered to warrant the almost double price of Ironhide.

So I'd recommend starting with Ironhide if you're unsure, but if you want a guy who looks really kickass and is a bit more fun, grab WJ.

And avoid the triple changers.

[Sam]

They definitely look better than Built-To-Rule kits, but how does the quality of the plastic compare to say, Mega Bloks?

[Cat]

The only thing I'd be able to compare them to would be LEGO, and even then, I'm not the best person, as I'm not big in the block scene (if it's even called that).

I think the plastic quality is pretty good. It's not as precise as LEGO, but that's kinda like complaining that every Transformer isn't an MP.

I haven't had anything break, and I'm not really worried about anything, other than my usual concerns about the possibilities of C-clips snapping. Hasn't happened so far, and doubt it will.

I know some people have mentioned how much they dislike the rubber-coated balljoints used (same as they used for the Kre-O builds). I don't mind it. Weight isn't an issue on these guys, but you start to get a bit iffy on the triplechangers (but again, you're better off skipping them anyway). So if you didn't like them on the Kre-Os, you probably won't like them here. For me, not something I'd have thought about, but may be an issue for some apparently.

For the price, I was honestly very happy at the value of them, especially, as I mentioned, Ironhide and Wheeljack.

Big figures, accessories (obviously WJ wins that one, but Ironhide has a gun), and what to me seems like good quality plastic. Ironhide is amazing at $15, I don't know how anyone could pass him up (I've customised my two slightly, and I think it looks even better than the default builds, and it was just a few extremely minor changes. I'm sure people with skill can do much better). Wheeljack comes with a lot more, and looks totally badass, but you may not be completely convinced it's worth double the price. Depends on what you think of the extra storage case too, I guess. But when you really look at it, for what WJ is, and for the price, I think it's perfectly reasonable, and I'm happy.

[morg176]

I bought Ironhide today. for what it is $15.75 is an OK price for it.
I like the vehicle mode, a dune buggy with bumper/sensor array and rear wheel suspension. nice.:D

might get wj when on sale

was very impressed with the design of the head. nice:eek:

[Cat]

The headsculpts are really nice.

I liked the Kre-O headsculpts, but these are even better.

Just a warning if you end up getting Starscream. ALL of them have a mispainted helmet. Just the left side is painted black, the rest is unpainted grey. It looks a bit weird, so just pretend it's dramatic shadow lighting.

And yeah, the value call on WJ is tough, seeing as we're practically doubling the price. It's not a situation where someone can really definitively say whether or not he's worth it. That opinion is going to vary.

But if you see him on sale, I wouldn't even hesitate. He's awesome.

Here's the small changes I made to both my Ironhides: Sorry for the photo, it's the only one I bothered taking. I just changed the position of the wheels, and I didn't like the unused pieces jutting out from under his forearm, so I moved them to the shin, where they hold firmly and add a bit more colour and detail to the legs.

http://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m80/KJ_81/IMG_5318s_zps18490d7a.jpg

[morg176]

that is a very nice improvement.
I was thinking if you had a 3D printer you could design and churn out your own pieces.

[Cat]

I'm a bit dubious on how they'd hold up, and how close they'd be to the correct tolerances. Be interesting though.

Although there may be practical limitations. I know some people have had problems with custom Kre-O parts being 3D printed, because they couldn't get the pieces thin enough to be the correct size and still be within the minimum width range for the printer.

I don't know much about that, though.

Also, one thing I forgot to say: You know how with Ironhide, he feels and looks cool, but holding him, he doesn't feel quite like a real TF?

WJ has that. All the extra pieces fill him out more, and give him that extra heft, so he basically feels like an actual normal TF toy.

I thought that was pretty neat.