The Energon Pub

BotCon's Twitter has revealed a new nugget of information; an image of the BotCon Customisation Class figure. This year it will be G2 Sideswipe from the Universe Sideswipe mold!



The image can be seen here.

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A little explanation for the new guys:

This figure will not be available either in the boxset, as a freebie, or as part of the Souvenirs. Rather, people who have registered for the Customizing Classes will get to assemble and paint this figure.

What I find interesting is that usually such classes use plastic colors based on a toy of an earlier run of the mold, i.e. leftovers are used. For instance, SG Nightbeat has the same plastic colors as Club Nightbeat, only the deco is different. The same goes for SG Thunderclash and BotCon Thunderclash.
In this case, the plastic colors are all unique to this toy, not a single release shares all colors.

HA! I know quite a few people on here who're slapping their foreheads and cursing Unicron about this.

While I'm not one of them, I have to say that's a REALLY nice repaint. Personally I think it's the best custom class figure they've done so far...

WHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHY!

THIS IS SO COOL! Why couldn't I afford to go to botcon this year! Ah well, maybe I'll find a scalper or whatever who'll sell one to me.....

Oh how I wish this could get released at retail... It looks fantastic. To all who are entering the customizing class, I salute you.

What? No shrunken head?

edit: Not done being a hater...

So, it was more of a "Put this puzzle together" class rather than a "Here's what you can do with some paint and imagination" customizing class?

Not to be cynical, but it's not really customizing if you have the work special made for you from the beginning.

I would like to have a custom Classics Fortress Maximus made from Cybertron Metroplex. Please go ahead and make my custom for me Hasbro.

Am I really looking at this wrong?

I really just want the head, for the up coming hasbro release of red alert.... oh come on no one else noticed red alerts head is um not red....I get the original toy not having red head either, but the cartoon did, i want one like that!

Counterpunch wrote:What? No shrunken head?

edit: Not done being a hater...

So, it was more of a "Put this puzzle together" class rather than a "Here's what you can do with some paint and imagination" customizing class?

Not to be cynical, but it's not really customizing if you have the work special made for you from the beginning.

I would like to have a custom Classics Fortress Maximus made from Cybertron Metroplex. Please go ahead and make my custom for me Hasbro.

Am I really looking at this wrong?

Somewhat. The "put this puzzle together" bit is true: the members get the sprues (yes, the sprues) with the plastic pieces attached, some screws and metal pins, and some paint in specific colors. The members then paint the pieces and assemble the toy. This gives me the feeling the class is more for beginner-to-intermediate customisers, as they're building a figure from the ground up. Think of it as a BotCon Build-A-Bear

I thought the class might have ended up doing Tiger tracks but this is totally cool. First time I ever wanted a custom class figure. Then again I would want him fully assembled and painted, ah well.

Wow. Botcon pulled it off again. A figure of their's I actually want.

First it was the Classics Seekers, now this guy.

Considering the number of years they've been doing this, only two exclusives have interested me.

That's pretty sad. They need to up their game a bit, really.

I would've liked Punch/Counterpunch, but the hand and head issue ruined it for me.

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

Counterpunch wrote:What? No shrunken head?

edit: Not done being a hater...

So, it was more of a "Put this puzzle together" class rather than a "Here's what you can do with some paint and imagination" customizing class?

Not to be cynical, but it's not really customizing if you have the work special made for you from the beginning.

I would like to have a custom Classics Fortress Maximus made from Cybertron Metroplex. Please go ahead and make my custom for me Hasbro.

Am I really looking at this wrong?

Somewhat. The "put this puzzle together" bit is true: the members get the sprues (yes, the sprues) with the plastic pieces attached, some screws and metal pins, and some paint in specific colors. The members then paint the pieces and assemble the toy. This gives me the feeling the class is more for beginner-to-intermediate customisers, as they're building a figure from the ground up. Think of it as a BotCon Build-A-Bear

Inside info on this one: Very little painting to do and the roof airbrushing was done by Sean, apparently not the class participants.

BotCon Build-A-Bear is funny though...

Counterpunch wrote:So, it was more of a "Put this puzzle together" class rather than a "Here's what you can do with some paint and imagination" customizing class?

Not to be cynical, but it's not really customizing if you have the work special made for you from the beginning.

I would like to have a custom Classics Fortress Maximus made from Cybertron Metroplex. Please go ahead and make my custom for me Hasbro.

Am I really looking at this wrong?

I agree. If I were attending this class, I would be excited about the figure I was receiving, but I'd be pretty disappointed with the class itself. Kinda sounds more like I'd be "learning" how to take apart a few different repaints and put them back together with a different color scheme. With those newly acquired mad skillz I'd have to sell some of my custom masterpieces on eBay for zillions!

i really want those g2 swipe stickers, ive already made my own [well nearly done] g2 swipe, dammit!

Kibble wrote:

Counterpunch wrote:So, it was more of a "Put this puzzle together" class rather than a "Here's what you can do with some paint and imagination" customizing class?

Not to be cynical, but it's not really customizing if you have the work special made for you from the beginning.

I would like to have a custom Classics Fortress Maximus made from Cybertron Metroplex. Please go ahead and make my custom for me Hasbro.

Am I really looking at this wrong?

I agree. If I were attending this class, I would be excited about the figure I was receiving, but I'd be pretty disappointed with the class itself. Kinda sounds more like I'd be "learning" how to take apart a few different repaints and put them back together with a different color scheme. With those newly acquired mad skillz I'd have to sell some of my custom masterpieces on eBay for zillions!

I'd like for them to do a build-a-bot class where they show you how to fully assemble the figure, how it works. Like you were on the factory production line. I mean putting in the pins, screws, springs, painting by hand, etc. I mean, you're just given a bag of parts and screws and springs and have to assemble it from scratch, yourself.

Now, if they currently do that, I'm sad I'm missing out on it, because I think that would be hella fun.

Grab yourself a couple of junkers off E-Bay, disassemble them and re-assemble them.

Same thing, much cheaper.

Dammit I can't believe this! This was the G2 toy I most wanted as a Botcon exclusive! I really really wish I'd signed up for the customizing class!

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:Think of it as a BotCon Build-A-Bear

Too true, man.

What I don't like is the cost. I agree with CP, for the $80 or whatever I'd like a little artistic freedom. I'm fine with having a pre-set mold and putting it together like a Gundam model, but if I'm paying that much I'd like a blank figure and to learn about painting techniques and make my own Clamp Down or Deep Cover or something. Hoping I don't sound too preachy, but what I see in a "custom deign class" is being taught skills that I can go home with and replicate with things I can find in a hobby shop, not have to go back to BotCon next year because all I learned how to do is use a screwdriver. As gorgeous as this figure is, it's just another doubly-expensive add-on set with extremely(er) limited quantities.

That being said, I will now be a hypocrite and probably pay an absurd amount of money should someone offer it to me.

Idunno, the sunstreaker mold has been used a lot, isn't anyone afraid of mold degradation?

ligiermirage wrote:Idunno, the sunstreaker mold has been used a lot, isn't anyone afraid of mold degradation?

Very good thought two points:

1) if it was going to happen it would've happened already.
2) I've heard that Hasbro has changed the way molds are made so to get more uses out of them. Don't know if that is true or not.