Encore Metroplex second run

[llamatron]

I guess it's safe to say that K.O.'s really have minimal impact on sales of official items.

This rerelease is a good sign that maybe we'll see some more large figures. Overlord would be magnificant but unlikely.

[kup]

What I have always wandered is: Which yet to be reissued figures do they still have molds for?

[canofwhoopass_87]

I've always wondered whether or not lost moulds are really just hearsay or fan rumours? I mean...can the companies really be able to lose the ability to manufacture thousands of the same pieces they produced in the 80's and early 90's?

If fans in their garage / KO'ers can produce something of similar (if not the same) calibre and likeness of many vintage items, surely anything can be reissued by HasTak if they wanted to?

or am I just a noob?

[5FDP]

I've always wondered whether or not lost moulds are really just hearsay or fan rumours? I mean...can the companies really be able to lose the ability to manufacture thousands of the same pieces they produced in the 80's and early 90's?

If fans in their garage / KO'ers can produce something of similar (if not the same) calibre and likeness of many vintage items, surely anything can be reissued by HasTak if they wanted to?

or am I just a noob?

GoktimusPrime said it quite well in a previous post (unable to find it though) that the cost of reverse engineering a toy would be significantly higher for HasTak as they have different production standards when compared to your average bootlegger. These would include marketing, quality control, registering trademarks for names in some cases etc. Bootleggers don't seem to care about legalities as the product they are making is technically illegal significantly reducing the cost of producing KO toys.

[GoktimusPrime]

Exactry. I mean, exactly. Making counterfeits is a lot cheaper and easier compared to legitimately making a reproduction.

Moulds that have been confirmed as lost, broken or too far deteriorated are:
G1 1985 Grimlock
G1 Mirage
G1 Slag
G1 Sludge
G1 1985 Snarl
G1 Swoop
G1 Wheeljack
Most (if not all) Beast Wars Basics
All the mass-released Armada Mini-Cons
RiD Prowl, Side-Burn and X-Brawn

Moulds which are rumoured to be lost are:
G1 Constructicons
G1 Sunstreaker

reference

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I hope that this second production run does mean that Metroflex is selling well. I would support any future endeavours from TakaraTOMY to release biggies; none of my G1 biggies are 100% complete anyway, so I'd jump at the chance to get Trypticon or Scorponok... and who _wouldn't_ want a reissue Fortress Maximus?! (Well, maybe not Linthart; I wouldn't bother if I were him ) You just know that a Japanese Fort Max reissue would come with Mastah Sword (even if the mould for that sword is deteriorated judging by the quality on the God Fire Sword, unless it was just Takara using cheap plastic on that thing).

[DarkHyren]

Well, this is good news. I don't have a Metroplex yet so I hope this means that costs will stay down and I won't have to pay double or more the actual retail price on him.
Yay

[GoktimusPrime]

I still wish e-Hobby would give us a reissue Metrotitan (I don't care if it doesn't come with Metrobomb), but I guess that ship has sailed.

[canofwhoopass_87]

I've noticed that many of the recently reissued 80's formers such as metroplex, the insects, perceptor and predaking generally sell for more than their originals? I always thought the main justification for collectors purchasing reissues was primarily cheap cost vs expensive vintage counterparts.

I've had a couple of reissues in my collection before and I must say - it's an immensely different feeling when cracking open a supremely mint encore jazz as opposed to an original C8 bubble wrapped one in a cardboard box, but it would be interesting to know what drives other people to collect the reissues?