The Energon Pub

Wow, long time-no-post

Anyways, there I was my minding own business, what with having the day off work and the postie knocks on the door with a parcel, I had pre-ordered this guy so long ago, I had actually forgotten!

So, not having anything else to do, I thought I'd post this, if this has been done before, then I hope the powers-that-be will deal with this thread as needed.

In advance I make no apologies for the quality of the pics, I'm no Ryan and have had to contend with a 3yr old running round, but on with the show...

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As you can see, Rumble comes in the standard "fishbowl" packaging, which is more hotly contested than a certain yeast based sandwich spread, personally I don't like it, but so be it.

As we see, he is number 24 (and no Jack Bauer in sight!)and the base of the box reveals his motto and shows us his "working pile drivers".

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A quick scan around the car shows off his personalised number plate, which would be totally unroadworthy in the UK and would draw loads of attention from the Police, however, I don't see un-armed British Bobbies posing too much of a bother to an evil Decepticon!

The Alt mode is pretty solid, the front wheels move and the joins are not too obvious, desptie the red colour.

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A look at the undercarriage of the vechile reveals little of the hidden Robot-mode and as with other Alts' the bonnett/hood (depending on which side of the pond you live on) & boot/tailgate both open to reveal weapons. The doors open as you would expect, but for some reason, I neglected to photograph it!

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The transformarion process is pretty simple. The instructions give 16 stages and we all know how much they can be streamlined, certainly not the most complicated model in the range.

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A final whizz round the Robot mode shows us where the weapons go, they are actually hooked on the back to emulate the G1 look, nice little reference if you ask me. The most disapointing thing is the lack of hands, they would have made a huge difference.

There is a switch on each shoulder that is supposed to make the pile drivers "work", I've had no luck and don't see it as required, hopefully gimmicks won't infect the Alternator line.

Rumble isn't the most poseable toy in the series, probably on par with the Alt-Hound mould, his elbows are the same as Alt-Winchargers knees, i.e not there.

Build quality was good, not once did anything "pop-off" whilst I was handling him, nor did I feel I had to force anything during the transformation. Of slight concern where the "ankles" which are quite small and loose, for a figure which is as bulky from the waist up as this one, some balancing was required so he didn't topple over.

All in all, I'm dead chuffed, the head mould and back weapons are a nice homage and the Robot mode looks good, with virtually no kibble, a solid purchase for Alternator fans everywhere.

The real question is that if RIBFIR, does that mean that if FIBRIR, but that I will let you decide for yourselves!

Good review, and nice pics.
He seems to be a great homage even if he has a few niggling problems.
As to Red or Blue, there's nothing to stop people calling him Frenzy even though the box says Rumble. Well, there's the name on the numberplate I guess, but reprolabels should come up with a solution to that soon enough.

spiritofcat wrote:Good review, and nice pics.
He seems to be a great homage even if he has a few niggling problems.

Cheers for the feedback, I've not really done anything like that before.

The problems, as always are subjective, I don't think that they're a major issue and wait for the inevitable Frenzy repaint!

I got an email this morning confirming my Alt. Rumble had been shipped! Having seen these pics and read this review I'm glad I ordered him! Is there no other way of opening the box though?

Excellion wrote::grin:

I got an email this morning confirming my Alt. Rumble had been shipped! Having seen these pics and read this review I'm glad I ordered him! Is there no other way of opening the box though?

Sorry mate, that's the only way to get the box open, very much like blister/carded figs.

Shame really

Pretender Skywarp wrote:

Excellion wrote::grin:

I got an email this morning confirming my Alt. Rumble had been shipped! Having seen these pics and read this review I'm glad I ordered him! Is there no other way of opening the box though?

Sorry mate, that's the only way to get the box open, very much like blister/carded figs.

Shame really

Damnit! That is a shame. I like keeping the boxes as pristine as possible, one of the many reasons I collected Binaltech instead of Alternators. But with Binaltech finished I have to make do with Alt. Rumble.

Mines waiting at the post office... I'm really impressed by the underside of the alt mode. After Prime and Ravage I was having my doubts about the whole disguised thing.

He does look good, despite the rather tedious alt mode. I must admit I still feel annoyed about the lack of hands.

I personally would have preferred a alternator version of Rumble as opposed to Frenzy, but he looks like a pretty kickass figure. ;p

Shame the alternators are ending so we're not getting the repaint, whatever you like to call him.

What's the real shame though is no Alt Ironhide or Bumblebee. They would be really easy to do with existing molds, too. *sigh*

Excellion wrote:

Pretender Skywarp wrote:

Excellion wrote::grin:

I got an email this morning confirming my Alt. Rumble had been shipped! Having seen these pics and read this review I'm glad I ordered him! Is there no other way of opening the box though?

Sorry mate, that's the only way to get the box open, very much like blister/carded figs.

Shame really

Damnit! That is a shame. I like keeping the boxes as pristine as possible, one of the many reasons I collected Binaltech instead of Alternators. But with Binaltech finished I have to make do with Alt. Rumble.

Well you could cut a hole in the clear plastic bubble instead of tearing it from its cardboard base...

I always cut the bubbles off with a stanley knife and then chuck them.

If you run the blade around the bottom of the bubble as close to the box as possible, it comes of very neatly. It leaves a small strip of plastic on the box, but it looks so much nicer and nothing gets torn.

Nice review BTW. My Rumble arrived yesterday, but I've not had a chance to transform it yet.

.

Since it'll avoid another thread by simply adding to this one:

Got mine in today. I have few complaints now that I have him in hand. The lincense plate being one piece tends to snag the left shoulder cannon. Its minor but annoying.

Along with that, the left piledriver on mine doesn't work right and requires that I pull it out. Plus like all spring loaded gimmicks, I fear its only matter of time before the plastic catch wears down enough to no longer hold back the compressed spring. I honestly hate spring loaded gimmicks.
Not to mention that the undersized shaft of the piledriver tends to flop around when extended. Again a minor thing but there's a snowball effect for all these minor details.

The knees bend below the head lights, if you're not careful then you'll drag the upper half of the leg over the clear plastic which result in drag scratches. Maybe you'll never see them but still this could've been easily fixed with a small amount of clearance molded into the upper leg.

Finally, the doors in alt mold seem to have no place to go. they should've gone with a design similar to the Corvettes ball and socket set up. The windows of the door get in the way of the windshield and the mirrors get in the way of everything thing they come near.

Still, I like this figure, and welcome the eventual repaint. And a good kit basher should have no trouble producing the missing forearms. The screw hole in the face of the piledriver offers a great mount and the upper arms retract for a more... appropriate look.