G.I. Joe Classified Series (1:12)

[nacho]

My first reaction is "meh". As expected, the figure is nothing like what anyone hoping for a hooded CoCo would ask for. It's not comic, toon, or '80's toy inspired. It looks more like a 25th repaint or talking battle corps 90s figure than anything else. And knowing hasbro, they'll probably nerf the head by making 10000% sure it doesn't easily fit on the retro body.

The throne is nice, if not a bit small, but it's not any better than what could be 3d printed at home with not too much effort.

I assumed that a hooded CoCo would be an automatic purchase, but looking at this leaves me feeling vastly underwhelmed. I also know Hasbro will reuse this head to give us a dark blue toy figure down the road, AND probably another oddball variant before giving us the sunbow deco that most fans are looking for. BBTS can keep this one.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Definitely hang your flying vehicles if you can. That way you see them regularly, in their element. The only hard part is getting a good angle so you can see more of them than just the bottoms.

I feel like you could probably find enough to make use of your new printer between larger projects with stuff like background gear and upgrade kits for your dios. As an example, after seeing that DF rocket pod kit in person, I really really want to try to find a way to simulate an MMS missile in flight. I'm kind of brainstorming how I could modify the larger missile blast effects from the DF to fit the MMS to do mine (since I have no plans to have the Sidewinders flying anyway). I also want to do something similar with the Stinger - missile in flight rather than just blast out the back.

Like if you could make OG MMS missiles and blast/smoke trails (light enough to cantilever safely from the launch vehicle), I'd have to think that might draw some interest on ebay/mercari/forums. I doubt it would be a massive return, but it would probably cover kit materials plus maybe enough to cover materials for your own stuff. But I don't know enough to speak intelligently about it, so yeah...

Re: your previous post -

The pricing has definitely remained a little weird. Besides the brief oh-scary-tariffs bump, it seems like most of the figs have more recently defaulted back to $28, but then with demand(?) adjustments. The old stock/low demand stuff has often times gone sub $25 or even $20 before bouncing back toward default. The higher demand stuff has approached $30 for the standard figs, at least during the PO, before finding its median after release.

That said, there are some $30 figs that I have no explanation for - Lifeline, Monkeywrench, Mole Rat v2, SE v4, Major Bludd v2. Maybe they had a lower production level? I know it is keeping their monthly sales below 100 on AMZ, so I don't understand why they haven't dropped down to demand level. I also think that if $30 becomes the new median, they better drop production down a little if they are only going to sell double digits monthly on AMZ.

As for future releases, I'll be honest, besides the Destro I already have PO'ed, nothing I've seen actual renders/official pics of would get me to spend $30 per (even the H/KCoCo above, cool-ish as he might be to have, and who will cost significantly more that $30 at retail). And I have a hard time believing that even the more potentially desirable of the name dropped/expected figures would get me to $30, when I know full well that a little patience will get the ones I decide I do want into my hands for less.

Going forward I'm just hoping that, when the new stuff hits, the no-longer-new figs will drop in price. When they start going below $20, I pay attention to stuff I have passed on at retail price.

 

[nacho]

If I can find a tolerable smoke trail design, it should be no trouble to put an MMS mount cutout in it, print in translucent orange, and rattle-can the back half white. I've already got the MIM-23 missiles designed.

I'll see what I can come up with, no promises though! I'm absolutely no good at sculpting, but I can modify the $#!% out of existing stuff

 

[nacho]

So far... GS is automatic... and while I never liked the MKII as much as the original VAMP, I'll likely get one. I'm surprised at the Action Man. I always like the 2000's TRU o-ring figure, and the short-lived comic in the teens was fun, so I'll probably take a flier on him. The head sculpt look really good too. I wish Flint, Falcon, and several others had portraits that looked that good.

Legacy arctic guy... not sure if he's meant to be a more classic Snowjob (or a bone for those that missed the first release) or a pre-tool for Blizzard. But more snow troops are always welcome, for fodder if nothing else.

Oh, and apparently they promised a reissue of the MKI VAMP for those that missed out... not sure how far down the road that will be though.

 

[nacho]

I ordered Deep-Six today... skipped King CoCo and the "coming-to-an-Ollie's/Ross-near-you" $110 ATV-Trubble Bubble repaint 2-pack. What an overpriced POS offering.

Honestly, I'm surprised at the number of people going nuts for the weird hooded CoCo. The set costs $70 for the hood and throne on a throw-away body that no one will display once the toy and or toon versions come out soon enough.... or they pick up a discounted retro CoCo and make the hood fit.

Truthfully, I'm happy with my custom 3d printed hood on my home display shelf, and I have the FMF guy ready to donate the hood head to a retro body in the office studio. Hasbro is giving off "gotta squeeze every nickel out of our fans to pay for this new zillion-dollar Boston HQ" vibes. It's off-putting.

Hopefully the coming weeks will bring more exciting reveals and POs. I guess they can't shoot all their ammo on week 1.

Note: it is heavily rumored that the Grand-Slam / HAL set will be a Pulse exclusive. So he'll either be impossible to obtain and cause much wailing and gnashing of teeth (just like the green VAMP has done for years)... or he'll be on clearance for years to come like the cobra SMS and Stinger. Your guess is as good as mine.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Funny I started writing this in response to your previous, but wanted to watch the video before wrapping up and you replied again before I finished. Read the last line (written before I saw your reply) and tell me we, a pretty darn good representation of the fanbase, aren't on the same page about that set. C'mon Hasbro!

• GS/FLAK (kind of) - Meh, I loved the silver version with the JUMP so I think I will wait for that one, or maybe I'll just try to pick up a GS and bump Breaker v.1 from my current JUMP set, though I much prefer the silver to differentiate him from Flash. Now if I were to catch this on a good enough sale, all bets are off. Edit: if it is an Pulse exclusive than I will definitely pass. Homey don't play that game!
• Ethan Hunt... err... Action Man - I really don't have a place for him. Again though, on the right day with a good enough sale...
• VAMP Mk II - Umm, yeah. No need for a re-release of the OG for this guy. It looks great and I'm here for it! PO on day one. Thank you, Hasbro, for finally getting around to this one!
• Legacy Arctic Rescue(?) Dude, that apparently won't actually be wearing white(?) - It'll really really depend on what the actual product looks like and what it comes with. I'm leaning hard pass, especially if it's not an actual arctic kitted soldier.

As for today's drops, no PO's for me. I'm holding the line on this grouping.

• K/HCoCo - even though he's a nostalgic favorite, no chance I'm paying $70 for him and a goofy thrown I have not place for. I already have two versions (three if you count the retro wallpaper one). I might do it for half though...
• Deep Six - I'm surprised he's only $43 (how sad is that?). I came very close to PO'ing him on AMZ, but no, I said I'm holding the line. I'll get him when he gets sub $30.
• Repaint vehicles and figs for $110 - I wish them good luck. I honestly would NOT be interested in these for even half that price, nor can I imagine anyone else finding it worth that. Will we see these on Ollie's/Ross/Burlington shelves for Christmas for that? I predict yes.

 

[nacho]

Yeah, Deep-Six... I was surprised he wasn't a bit higher. He's only a deluxe, but I thought they might try to classify him as a Zanya/Chameleon figure+vehicle price point just due to his size. That's good, as I was prepared to balk. I like my Lightyear version enough to not have overpaid.

The vehicle 2-pack is just terrible. It doesn't release until Nov 2nd, but yeah, they might be heavily discounted by black friday. No one in their right mind is paying that. I suspect panic discounts will hit earlier than normal when they don't move. And it's a mass release, so there will probably be a retailer race to the bottom to make sure they aren't the last one holding palates of units they'll practically have to give away.

I'm interested in how big their HAL is compared to the one I printed. Hopefully they put out more promo pics soon. I'll get one just for GS, but I hope it's not chibi like the VAMP. I do prefer the silver GS look, but I also appreciate that the HAL originally came with red, so I don't hold that against them. And no doubt the silver will be coming eventually with either an official JUMP or in retros.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Yeah, I didn't notice the release date. I revise my prediction to next summer. I think the retailers try to ride it out but will panic once it doesn't sell at all for that price at the holidays. They'll either heavily discount it themselves thereafter or sell it off to the overstocks.

As for the HAL, the render definitely makes it look smallish when you compare the size of the seat to that of the guns. I'm pretty well settling into waiting for silver GS at this point and saving my play money for other future releases or deals on old stock.

I so can't wait for that VAMP! That one actually looks like it might exceed my expectations. And then with some GI Studios upgrades...

 

[nacho]

I'll always prefer the green OG VAMP (my first Joe toy of any kind), but the MKII looks nice (ignoring the same basic proportion issues that the green classified one has as well). And I look forward to getting tan Clutch for desert missions and WWOE setups. I'll need to print a retro helmet in tan though. And I'm a bit bummed that they didn't redo Clutch's head sculpt. It's not Falcon-bad, but it's far from my favorite in the line. But overall, the MKII is a welcome release.

 

[ThunderDan19]

So I was thinking... Which always seems to lead to me spending money.

Long story short, I decided that if I want to be consistent I should be willing to pay the full price for DS. They kept him at the proper (even if mildly inflated, but what isn't these days?) price point for a pretty cool looking, oversized, all new tooling, no reuse/repaint figure. As a market sample of one, if I'm going to reject the overpriced all repaint money-grab option, I need to reward the proper one.

Plus, I had almost exactly the amount needed in leftover play money with AMZ... so it was a sign!

It was the right thing to do.

 

[nacho]

Ok, I need some input on this MMS missile exhaust project. I've found what I think is a suitable starting point, and I began working on the mods to fit the MMS. But I have questions:

- how long would you like it to be? Right now, I have them kinda maxxed-out at just over 400mm (roughly 16"), and I'm assuming we can make them hold the missile and not come loose from the launcher... although the cantilevered weight of the missile might need more than the friction of the dogbone connector to stay attached to the MMS base. Personally, this is where I'd liberally use poster tack. But they don't have to be that long if you want shorter.

- how many missiles are firing at once, 1, 2, 3? do you want mutable different lengths? Tell me more about what you envision this action display looking like.

- it really needs to print horizontally, both for stability during printing as well as strength when it's done. you don't want the weak points (layer joints) to be along the main axis of the part. That's just asking for it to snap easily. SOOOOO, printing horizontally, I can print it as one piece... but it'll have lots of supports, thus making the underside less-than-pretty.... OR we can slice it in half so that there are two long pieces with flat sides that you glue together (see pic). That results in a much cleaner overall surface and gives the strength we need... BUT it means there is a joint running the length of the part. It's a trade-off that depends on what you want exactly visually.

- do you have a preference about which missile(s) are firing? (I label them 1-2-3 left-to-right if you're standing behind the platform... because that's how the vintage serial number stickers are applied). I'll likely have to tweak the smoke design for one side or the other (or both) because the smoke trail needs to be big enough to look good, but I intentionally made the MIM-23 missiles as big as possible, and thus the wings of the adjacent non-firing missiles will likely try to occupy some of the same space as the smoke. So I have to adjust for that.

- do you want them "raw" in translucent orange, or do you want me to try to paint the back end white... or white then darker smoke colored on the back tip? They'll need some partial painting of some kind to look right, but I don't know if you have a specific plan in mind or you want me to take a stab at it.

Just tell me what you see in your mind's eye, and I'll try to adjust accordingly.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Oh man. Now I'm feeling the pressure...

So I pulled out one of my DF blast trails and, oddly enough, while it doesn't actually lock in, it lodges against the adjacent (out of the box) missile fin and holds the "launching" missile in place. I also had to put one of the ground blast/smoke effects under the turret to keep it raised, so that would probably also need to be considered as part of a "kit."



But it's crazy that, with just a tiny piece of duct tape, I was able to use the parts I have for a workable, pretty seamless solution. Seems like maybe with a little bit of adjustment to copies of existing parts, there could be a much more elegant solution/upgrade, tailored to an OG MMS.

In order:

- The length of the current DF/Rattler blast effect (about 11") seems to work pretty well from my limited experience over the past few minutes. Would it be worth doing another longer version? Doubtful. The more weight that goes out in front of the launcher, the harder it will be to keep it from falling over. Gut feeling is that longer would be problematic. Will probably require some trial and error.

- The horizontal approach seems to be the way that the Hasbro ones are done too, as they have what appears to be a visible joint, so doing it that way should fit right in with the "official" ones.

- My current "launching" one is number 3, which works well because the MMS is displayed on the far right side of my shelf so that one favors the middle. As mentioned above, trying to add a second launching missile might be problematic because of the added cantilever weight and possible fin conflicts. Plus, if this ever becomes a kit, it might be prudent to consider the overall cost of 3 OG missiles, a launch blast effect and another "blast effect" needed to support the turret.

- My initial impression would be to try to mimic Hasbro's blast effects as closely as possible. I know I appreciate things looking like they fit in the "same world" as much as possible. I'd image other collectors/dio makers might feel similarly. The Zuni rocket kit for the DF does not have any white and is a consistent orange. That would be my only critique of that kit - that it would be even better if the blast effects out the back of the pods had some puffy white smoke incorporated.

Hope that helps, and please don't put this in front of anything you are trying to get done otherwise. As you can see I have a workable solution after just a few minutes of effort. Overall, I see this as a potential opportunity to provide the community with an upgrade solution that maybe Hasbro overlooked. And I'm sure there are probably tons of others out there that we just haven't noticed yet.

Edit: I just had an idea while showing my jerry rigged kit to my daughter. As an alternative to a "blast/smoke" effect that fits under the turret, perhaps a counterweight disguised as another initial blast/smoke effect could attach to the back of one of the other missiles. This one would likely be much shorter and puffier, but with a similar weight to the longer streak effect. I know it's probably not nearly as simple as I make it sound, but it's an idea, and would probably be much more presentable than the under-turret smoke effect.

 

[nacho]

Thanks for the input.

I assume that it would be easiest to print a little barely-visible wedge piece to fit under the launcher (or maybe a few of them in various sizes) to keep the rack from drooping at different angles rather than developing an "effect" to put under there... unless that effect is a goal.

11" is certainly doable. I'll be tempted to print a max-length part just to see how badly it tries to tip over. I don't think my effects or OG missiles weigh as much as hasbro's because they're printed hollow with a structural grid inside rather than a solid chunk of plastic. It saves material and print time while still being plenty strong enough.

But if necessary, another effect part printed with a heavy infill pattern could act as a counterweight... or alternatively find some metal/lead parts that could be hidden under the back rear for extra weight. I'll have a better idea when I see how heavy the printed parts are.

EDIT: I just had a thought.... what if I put a hollow cavity in the backend of the exhaust trail that we could put metal washers (or fishing weights / buckshot / whatever) in, countering the weight of the missile with the effect itself? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

------------

FYI, I'm just doing these for us (and any long-timers in our little crowd that show interest). No chance I'm getting into the custom part printing and shipping business as some kind of side-hustle. The margins are low, the hassle is high, and it would suck all the fun out of the whole endeavor. This is purely for s#!ts and giggles.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Roger that. And I'm happy to help brainstorm with you. I just don't want there to ever be any feeling of pressure or that I'm taking advantage of your skills and cool toys. You've already been more than generous!

I like both the onboard counterweight and the wedge idea, as well as maxing the overall length! Less to hide beats hiding supports with extra blast and smoke every time, and more overall length makes for a higher wow factor. Like I mentioned, I think a little trial and error should make the preferred length and counterweight method evident in short order.

 

[nacho]

Roger that. And I'm happy to help brainstorm with you. I just don't want there to ever be any feeling of pressure or that I'm taking advantage of your skills and cool toys. You've already been more than generous!

I like both the onboard counterweight and the wedge idea, as well as maxing the overall length! Less to hide beats hiding supports with extra blast and smoke every time, and more overall length makes for a higher wow factor. Like I mentioned, I think a little trial and error should make the preferred length and counterweight method evident in short order.

Nah, no pressure felt... doing fun stuff like this is the whole reason for having the cool toys. My inner engineer likes the challenge.

I merely want to keep it fun. The minute I have to start mass-producing things, responding to paypal emails and customer service inquiries, lost shipment shenanigans, sausage-fingered mouth-breathers trying to treat this stuff like it's made by tonka, "collectors" expecting museum-grade products, etc... that's when it's not fun anymore. I want to keep it a hobby.

But trying to make our displays better is a ton of fun, so I'm all ears when it comes to good ideas. And I'm happy to run out parts for our crew. Material costs are negligible, and I take great satisfaction in making something new or improving things that hasbro neglected. So don't be shy if/when you need a custom part or want to try something new. Chances are it'll be something I need too!

(I've been meaning to run out a set of MIM-23s for you for a while, but this project gives me a good reason to work them into the mix... and I'll run them on the new printer, so they'll be even better than my first batch... gotta check my inventory on that color!... I'm assuming you're ok with me painting the decals? My painting skills are mediocre at best, but if you don't do it much, it's better than nothing )

---------------

Right now, I'm keeping the printers busy with some world-building. I'm printing legends-scale TF diorama parts. I'm about half through with the decepticon underwater HQ, complete with the weird tower that rises from the ocean to let them out, as well as Shockwave's cybertron lab, complete with Space Bridge receiver tower. And I'm about 85% finished with the Quintesson "pit of judgement". I found a cool design online, and then I'd modded it and added lots of parts/features, and more than doubled the original size. It's going to be even bigger than the TTBP. That pit has taken 12kg of filament! I had to buy in bulk from the manufacturer to get a better price

 

[ThunderDan19]

Holy Polymer, Batman! That's a lot of plastic. I'm not a big TF guy (can hardly justify my Joe addiction as it is), but make sure you drop some pics over here too (assuming you typically do them over on the Xfrmrs forum) when you get some cool dios set up with those. Even a normie like me could appreciate legit backdrops on that magnitude!

As for the missiles, by all means, your paint skills on a bad day would dunk on my learning on the job. I suppose it would technically be re-learning since I used to do basic paint on scale model military planes and choppas... way longer ago than I would like to admit. I became a big fan of pre-painted and detailed models for a good reason!

 

[ThunderDan19]

Post from Viper Island

As per Hasbro, there will be no G.I. Joe Classified HasLab this year. It's now official.

www.youtube.com

We sort of skipped past the little comment BMac dropped about this during the livestream. It does jive with the recent departures and the upheaval of the big move to Beantown. It will be interesting to see if we actually get something big and new as a MTO or if it will just be a repaint (presumably a stripped down version of the DF - hopefully not a TF one). That prospect alone motivated me to lock in my purchase of an original version. Not looking to repeat history where I was stuck with only the Tigerfly back in the day. I'm not scarred by that at all...

I'm also slightly salty that the VAMP II is set to be a Pulse exclusive. I hope they do a better job (vs. the v.1) producing enough inventory so that everyone can get one that wants it. At least the price should easily cover the free shipping threshold for us non-premiums. And the promise that a re-release of the v.1 should potentially temper the demand for v.2 for those who'd prefer to wait for one of those instead.

I'm actually hoping it doesn't go up for PO during GI June. I'm due to be on some travel coming up. If the PO drops during that time, it's very unlikely I would be able to guarantee to be available/able to access Pulse if I'm in an entirely different time zone and potentially somewhere they wouldn't allow purchases from anyway. I may have to ask for a favor in the form of an extra PO if I am incommunicado. I'd make sure to pay you up front for the purchase and all shipping.

 

[nacho]

The expectation by insiders is that MKII is going to PO next week, along with the HAL/GS, and Action Man... all Pulse exclusives.

If you're far away where interwebs are sketchy or a VPN can't circumvent their geo-blocks, I'll be happy to pick up an extra MKII. If you want to PM the best address, I *might* be able to put in a second order that ships directly to you so you won't have $15 of USPS postage. I have sticker shock at the post office every time I ship anything larger than an envelope.

-------

The other item we didn't discuss was the wink-wink-nod hint that an LRRP 3-pack was in the works at some point. I'll take 'Nam Stalker, Tommy, and SE all day long.

-------

And this ... had *just enough* filament left :

(it's a cleaner print than it looks, the harsh lighting grossly magnifies every tiny thing)

 

[ThunderDan19]

I greatly appreciate that! If it goes past midweek, it'll get dicey, which is why I started to freak out a little bit when one of the videos I watched yesterday suggested it might happen this month. After the v.1 shortage, not being able to jump quickly is a real concern for me since I've been begging for the MkII for a while now. I'll check back on it if it looks like it's going that way. Thank you!

As for Action Man and the LRRP fireteam, I'm way more willing to roll the dice on whether they will be around if I decide I need them, though neither set seems like it would be remotely critical to my collection.

Wow, those missiles look like they are growing out of some kind of alien plant... I'm kind of baffled by it. Does the printer remove the "branches" or do you have to snap them off like the old plastic model parts?

 

[nacho]

If I were a betting man, I'd assume those POs will go live on Wed next week, 1pm for premium, 2pm for all else.

Those alien plants are supports... some people use different flavors/shapes, but I think "trees" are the most efficient. And they only attach to the part by the tiniest thread, just enough to keep any overhanging layer above from printing into mid-air. They usually snap off pretty easily and the "sprue" marks are almost imperceptible. It's wasted plastic, but sometimes you have no choice, based on the orientation you print the parts. But no worries...

 

[ThunderDan19]

Alien threat neutralized! Those look awesome!

I should be okay if they go live on Wednesday. Thursday or beyond would complicate things significantly.

 

[ThunderDan19]

I got the missing parts from my rocket pod kit for my Dragonfly this afternoon, so it was time to hang her up!




It looks better than I had imagined and dropped right in where the Super Cobra had been.

 

[ThunderDan19]

Ah heck, gotta give some love to the Rattler too!




It also dropped right in where the Apache was. I'm afraid I won't even miss those guys.