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View Full Version : Help with a ludicrously tight ratchet joint on Optimal Optimus



Tallestblue
13th September 2010, 08:55 PM
Hey guys, FINALLY received an Optimal Optimus off Ebay today, item was loose and Used, but nowhere near in as Good condition as the seller made it sound.
The Ratchet that connects to the piece of blue chrome (The Shoulder joint essentially.) on the Right arm is impossible to move, once I put it in place to convert to Jet mode it refused to budge. So...how do I go about fixing it?

Can it be dissassembled? My partner has suggested pouring graphite powder into it, will that work?

I've waited ten years for this toy and would be really upset if I had to get a new one, any hints on how to fix it would be greatly appreciated.

Hursticon
14th September 2010, 03:21 AM
My original Optimal Optimus suffered the exact same issue Tallest, I know how you feel, every time you go to rotate it you feel like your gonna absolutely snap the F@#$ out of it.

My advice mate, unscrew that entire assembly, from the upper arm to the shoulder itself making sure not to lose any bits or springs etc., then, I'd spray the cogs, pins etc. with a little WD-40 then apply a really, really thin coat of oil to each piece, then reassemble everything.

You should find that everything is a little freer but you may notice that now it's better than the other shoulder, at least I did :p:rolleyes:, which is sort of frustrating but at least you wont run the risk of breaking it.

What ever way you decide, I wish you luck mate as he is an incredibly show accurate and awesome figure! :D

Good luck. :)

liegeprime
14th September 2010, 06:49 AM
Hmmm Im guessing the sprimng inside the shoulder joint system is a bit to "springy" for lack of a better term. Kinda like Metroplex's hip joint. Well hopefully Hursty's suggestion works TB... Ive waited a long time for this fig as well before. I had a previous purchase which had a broken robot head and incomplete, so basically I needed a whole new one. That old one now resides in my box of trades/for sale. This other one I got doesn't have the same issues on that shoulder joint you guys mentioned, come to think of it neither did my first junker OPOP, hmmm.

Tallestblue
14th September 2010, 10:01 AM
Yeah, the screws are pretty stiff. a lot of them look rusty.Gonna try to get it all a part today, but I'm seriously thinking of just getting another one when i have the cash.

kup
14th September 2010, 02:00 PM
I will have to check my Optimal Optimus to verify but I think that I the arm can be disassembled. I am willing to bet that the ratchet joint within has become unaligned and its causing an obstruction making the arm unmovable. If the arm can be disassembled, it should be an easy fix.

Don't pour anything on it until I can verify. WD 40 and graphite would be absolute last resorts and only for internal work, specially for a plastic toy with chrome.

Tallestblue
14th September 2010, 02:52 PM
I've tried disassembling it and the screws will not budge. It looks like I'll have to just get another one.

kup
14th September 2010, 03:34 PM
I've tried disassembling it and the screws will not budge. It looks like I'll have to just get another one.

Are the heads damaged? If they are damaged then I recommend you drill through the heads and replace the screws. I can't remember but hopefully the screw holes are big enough to do this without damaging the figure.

You probably should have demanded a partial refund from the seller, the toy sounds to be in a very sorry state.

kup
14th September 2010, 04:27 PM
I just had a good look at my Optimal Optimus. I am now fairly certain that the problem with your toy is the ratcheting gear coming out of place so WD-40 or graphite is useless to fix it.

The good news is that the screw holes are fairly large so you should be able to drill through the screw heads without damaging the figure. Once you do that and open up the arms, you can re-align the gear but you'll need new screws.

liegeprime
14th September 2010, 06:30 PM
Is that the only part you need replacing TB? coz I can prolly just sell yah my junker one, cheaply and do a transplant to make up a whole better one. Just to clarify though do you have pics of the part in question? Coz Im still trying to get in my head that shoulder part being tight, hmmm are the screws in it rusted or something?

When I say junker though, his screws have no rust, he doesnt have any accessory with him and is missing (broken off) the robot head - thus he stays in gorilla mode, Electronics still works well ( i removed the batteries after testing), Chrome has wear. LMK I can send you pics.

Hursticon
14th September 2010, 09:31 PM
Hmm, I'm sorry to hear about the state of the screws TB. :(

In light of Kup and Liege's suggestions, I'd say try and do what Kup suggested with drilling out the old crews and combine all the good parts of that one with the Junker that Liege is offering you. :)

I believe it'll be a far cheaper alternative than trying to acquire another through eBay and after all the work you would of done, I reckon you'll appreciate the figure all the more. ;)

Acquiring a 'mint as mint can get' figure is nice, but nothing is more gratifying than repairing a damaged figure with the remains of another IMO. :D
(Hell, Transformers do it all the time) :p

Tallestblue
14th September 2010, 09:42 PM
Aside from the shoulder (The grey bar connecting the blue chrome and maroon chrome sections) The electronics don't work. A battery has been allowed to leak inside and the compartment is rusted. It has minimal wear, has the blast panels, gun and two of the clear missiles and looks very nice as a display piece, Fine is you only want it in robot mode and never want to touch or transform it. That's not what I want nor as it was advertised, I'd say the figure is in used condition, not Excellent Condition.
The only problem with the Drilling solution is I'm not particularly handy(Seriously, I don't even own a drill.) I may end up doing more damage than good. But perhaps with a few swaps around with a Junker it might salve my burning rage. A few Questions for you Liegeprime; Is the grey head section snapped off, or just the head itself? And can I just remove the head through "excessive force" Or Do I have to disassemble the electrics? If the head can be popped off then we might have a deal. (Chrome wear is fine, most of my transmetals have chrome wear.)

liegeprime
14th September 2010, 10:58 PM
Its the whole gray piece and the robot head that's missing. The head can be taken off using some force.. not excessive and there's a trick on where to press so you don't snap the gray piece when trying to remove the head. You actually slide it forward while the gray piece is 90º up and it should come off easy without the need for force actually
I just tried it with my complete Opop now to see if could be done. Ill take some shots and post the pics here. You don't have to dissasemble the electronic cannon parts for this simple transplant.

Honestly though from your description of that figure , THAT is a Junker more than what my spare is. Mine just appears to be semi complete compared to that.

Erm thinking ahead though, how does $15 + postage costs sound to you?

Tallestblue
14th September 2010, 11:08 PM
Okay. I just tried unscrewing bits and pieces of OPop to see if it could be done and it can, so I'd just swap out the head and the arm and maaaaaybe the Gorilla/Head chest as it's pretty banged up and the ape head is loose. Or, I might just take the head off and give the accesories to this new one. Save the time and effort.

liegeprime
14th September 2010, 11:49 PM
Actually, having a good look at my incomplete one, you just need to put the robot head, and the arm plates and the other accessories ( gun and missles) but pretty much it's a decent Opop really, cept its got no bot head and them accessories. Ratchet is still good not too tight but not loose.
Removing the head,
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb313/liegeprime/Miscellaneous/miscellanystuff001.jpg
gray piece 90º up and then push the head forward to slide it out
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb313/liegeprime/Miscellaneous/miscellanystuff002.jpg
do reverse for putting it back on

here's some pics
Front - the opop names smudged off a bit
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb313/liegeprime/Miscellaneous/miscellanystuff003.jpg
Back - no bot head
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb313/liegeprime/Miscellaneous/miscellanystuff004.jpg
Elctronics still work - put batteries in just for demo
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb313/liegeprime/Miscellaneous/miscellanystuff005.jpg
and as you can see the usual chrome wear

here they both are, side by side
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb313/liegeprime/Miscellaneous/miscellanystuff006.jpg

Tallestblue
15th September 2010, 09:31 AM
Okay, he looks pretty good, and $15 plus postage is AWESOME. Seriously, I paid 60 bucks for the optimus I got so that's a sweet deal. I'll PM you for payment details.

liegeprime
15th September 2010, 10:02 AM
NO worries, he's been in my sale/trade pile for less than a year now. I got him cheap - prolly coz of the no head thing ( which the seller failed to mention) and absolutely no accessories so Im happy to sell him even cheaper for what I got him for, just to help a fellow Ozformer out as well.

Im sure most of us here are curious what that"junker" Opop you got looks like in the first place coz if I base it from your description, dayuum that IS a junker. For the clear missles - Im not sure but I think ebay seller therawyde might still have one. I havent visited his store for quite a while now. but last time I did , I got from him 1 of the missles to complete my current Opop on display. hope that helps.... btw for your BW wants have you visited Verno's listing here, he might have updated his items?. Cheers!

Tallestblue
15th September 2010, 10:17 AM
I got Inferno and Quickstrike from Verno, I'm waiting for him to update his
Transmetal Waspinator. I'm fairly certain in our conversations Verno sdaid he's got two spare Optimal Optimus missiles. I don't have a digital camera otherwise I'd show you guys the battery damage.