Do you read instructions first or not?

[Autocon]

i always read the instructions

once ive transformed the figure i may need it again or not
BW are easy and some have the same transformation as others
movie line is a bit more difficult

[JuzMel]

You wanna tell me what is "I like barbie"....

[kup]

It depends how I feel. Sometimes I will read instructions and sometimes I won't.

However the most common thing I do is try to transform the figure myself and after I am done, check the instructions (and online pics) to see if i got it right. There are some exceptions to this rule such as the more fragile or expensive figrues such as Binaltech in which I will study the instructions carefully so that I don't break it.

[STL]

Boy, we've got a lot of pansies on this board. Oh well, that just makes it easier for us real men to stand out.

[heroic_decepticon]

To each his/her own I think.

Still, I hardly think reading instructions is necessary (I just prefer not to, but that is me) no matter how expensive the toy is- these are made, for kids, to play with and usually will not break unless excessive force is used, manufacturing defects aside.

[STL]

Still, I hardly think reading instructions is necessary (I just prefer not to, but that is me) no matter how expensive the toy is- these are made, for kids, to play with and usually will not break unless excessive force is used, manufacturing defects aside.

Yeah, banter aside, I agree with that assessment. I do think though that in recent times toys have become harder to transform with higher technical transformations. I mean I envy any child who had to transformer Ult BB or TFM Ironhide or TFM Prime. Those are very difficult transformations. The present TFA Ultra Magnus' arms are pretty hard to get right too I'd imagine so I can imagine instructions are useful in those instances.

For me personally, I refuse to consult instructions unless I've been lost for quite sometime. Even then I leave the toy and then come back to it later/another day to try again. Only after that do I consult instructions. There's just no satisfaction for me from reading the instructions, watching video reviews b/c that takes away a lot of the fun I get when I discovery a figure for the first time. That's even more so that we don't exactly break our figures out and play with them these days so there's a lot of fun in that first transformation. Once you've learnt it, it might be cool to transform again but its not quite the same as the first time. Kinda like the 1st night you spend with a new girlfriend. The first time's magic then after that it's still fun but that sense of mystery/the unknown has gone away.

I think the two that spring to mind where I consulted instructions were TFM Ironhide and the aforementioned BT Grimlock/Wheeljack. In neither case did the instructions prove very useful. I used it on MP-05 too though I knew exactly what was going on but was just very iffy about pulling on the leg since the force i was using seemed a lot.

[Stompy]

I'm one of the pansies!

I use instructions the first time round and then subsequent conversions are without instructions. I just don't want to break the figures. Although I must admit a lot of the official instructions are vague or could have been redone for a more suitable and easier conversion.

TFM Ironhide was no problem getting into robot but it was darn annoying to get it back to truck mode. But on closer inspection there's grooves that a couple of pegs rest on in truck mode that actually helps position those waist panels perfectly.

[heroic_decepticon]

I'm with you there STL- only time I used instructions was for BT-Grimlock and MP-05. For MP-05, I would have been happy to use more force, but that was before i realised that some of the apparently metal looking chrome parts were actually plastic.

***

I think that there's an apparent contradiction for fans who enjoy the engineering aspect of Transformers but who nonetheless use instructions to transform their toys.

Transforming them without instructions, and figuring out the engineering, goes hand in hand with appreciating it. Each toy is designed with a certain logic- ie catches, joints, clips, etc. If a part won't bulge, its an opportunity to delve into the engineering and figure 'which buttons to push' and which way to push them.

The only thing remotely constructive in the instructions is a warning to the effect of 'toy is designed such that excessive force is not needed to transform toy'. And so if at any one point we find ourselves using excessive force (which admittedly is a subjective concept depending on the individual), we should go back and explore the engineering a little bit more to figure out what exactly should be done.

And this brings those fans full circle to their appreciation of the engineering aspect of Transformers.

[jaydisc]

TFM Ironhide was no problem getting into robot but it was darn annoying to get it back to truck mode. But on closer inspection there's grooves that a couple of pegs rest on in truck mode that actually helps position those waist panels perfectly.

Same. Getting to robot was easy, but getting back to alt mode was tough. I actually had to put it down and come back later.

Now, I just memorize that the thighs rotate four clicks before sticking them back into the body.

[SilverDragon]

I look at the instructions first. Given the cost of Transformers, I really don't want to break anything!