Classics 2.0/Universe Comments thread

[jaydisc]

The plastic on Universe is so cheap that its almost like a KO and its also noticeably lighter in weight than the Henkei due to the much thinner plastic.

That's absolutely ridiculous. How would this be done? By not putting as much plastic in the mold? Using a different mold? What are you using for this weight test?

[kup]

Are you SURE that Universe toys use thinner plastic than Henkei's? Because thinner parts would mean they probably wouldn't fit together properly during assembly, and would likely also fail Hasbro's safety tests due to breakage.

It looks that way to me. If I drop it it will stay intact but it is still a thinner/more brittle plastic than Henkei's and its not just to the touch but visually too.

Sorry its thinner plastic, may still be within toy safety standards but Henkei in that regard is much better.

[Sutton]

I think when people say 'thinner' they don't necessarily mean there's less weight, or the parts are actually smaller, but there's corners that can be cut when it comes to the plastic mix - I'm certainly no expert on the matter, but there's techniques that can be used to make the plastic 'go further', synthetic oils and stuff like that.

There's definitely a more 'swirly' nature to the plastic in Hasbro stuff in the last couple of year's releases, especially obvious in lighter greys and yellows. Classic Screamer shows the swirly effect quite well, and when I look at something of a similar colour from G1, there's none of that going on.

[jaydisc]

Cheaper/Different plastic is much more tenable. Thinner just doesn't make sense.

[kup]

Yeah Thinner may not be the right word for it but its certainly weaker and more brittle. However the Henkei is still heavier than the Universe despite both being the same size and both having plastic parts..

[lcz128]

Cheaper/Different plastic is much more tenable. Thinner just doesn't make sense.

Agreed. The volume of plastic that has to go into the mould would be the same, so it couldn't possibly be thinner -
The only thing I can think of would be the contents of the mix - and how it may be 'thinned' down (say with a cup of milo, you're thinning it down by adding more water - so the amount of the mix that goes inside is the same, but you get less 'milo' in it)
But I don't know anything of the composition of plastic... so this is just me guessing.
I think we ought to ask Hasbro what they think of the differences in plastic quality between the two companies and how there isthe swirling, its impact on quality and if there's anything they can do to combat that.

[FFN]

Ahh, you meant plastic density.

Here's an article on plastic, if anybody wants to know more about plastics used in TFs.

[kup]

Ahh, you meant plastic density.

Yeah, plastic density is a much better term for what I mean about the lesser plastic used in the Hasbro version.

[King Atlas]

Is this the only mould that has a different "feel" to the plastic qaulity?

[kup]

Is this the only mould that has a different "feel" to the plastic qaulity?

I have not compared any other two like I have done with Streak as I mostly own Henkei when it comes to the 'Classics 2.0' figures.

However I do own Universe Galvatron and his plastic is of the same quality of Universe Bluestreak when it comes to the purple but I cannot directly compare it as I don't have the Henkei counterpart in hand.