The Energon Pub

Hey guys I wanna share my opinion on the RTS toyline.

It seems like Hasbro is using cheaper plastic on their newer releases. In my personal experience, I've noticed it when I've bought two deluxe figures from the Reveal the Shield series. The first figure that I bought was Perceptor. Yes he's an awesome figure; from the G1 looks to the super posable robot mode. But then I suddenly noticed the type of plastic used on him. I don't know but it really looks different from the generations line. This can be seen with his elbows. you'll also notice them when you touch 'em. The second figure I bought is Turbo Tracks. As for this figure, both his car and bot mode is superb. But then again, you'll notice something loose. I've read some of the comments in this thread and it seems like Tracks annoys collectors with some of it's loose parts. Mine has loose feet. Maybe because it's in ball joint but still it somehow irritates me. His wings are a bit loose too in some ways. But then I guess it must have been me. Oh well, that's all I have to say. And to Hasbro, More Power (and less problems to collectors) to you! I hope the next time I buy a reveal the shield figure, there'll be less trouble. Happy buying to all of you!

Well, I kind of agree, but not really with the examples you gave.

Comparing those two toys is interesting though. Tracks seems to be made of a very hard, non-porous plastic. Much of Perceptor, particularly the blue on him, seems to be a softer, more rough to the touch plastic that feels cheaper. If I were to take a carving knife to the plastic on Tracks, it would be much harder to cut than what is on Perceptor.

That plastic on Perceptor reminds me of Army Men plastic and I feel like we see it more and more though out the various lines we are getting.

I may be mistaken in all this, just an off-the-cuff observation...

Counterpunch wrote:Well, I kind of agree, but not really with the examples you gave.

Comparing those two toys is interesting though. Tracks seems to be made of a very hard, non-porous plastic. Much of Perceptor, particularly the blue on him, seems to be a softer, more rough to the touch plastic that feels cheaper. If I were to take a carving knife to the plastic on Tracks, it would be much harder to cut than what is on Perceptor.

That plastic on Perceptor reminds me of Army Men plastic and I feel like we see it more and more though out the various lines we are getting.

I may be mistaken in all this, just an off-the-cuff observation...

that's exactly what I noticed with Perceptor. Those blue parts really feel cheaper. As for Tracks, yes he is indeed made of tougher plastic. Only thing that bothers me of this guy is his feet.

I've heard rumors or something about more and more plastics are coming from India vs china, so maybe thats why are collectibles are feeling cheaper than before? Not only this is affecting Transformers, but some friends that collect GI Joes and they have complained about them feeling cheaper than before.

Take a look at Wheeljack's green and gray(?) colored connecting parts on his wing/shoulder. They looks sooooooooo K.O.ish.

Again, without disparaging the line/ starting a flame war about which is better Hasbro or Takara, but the plastics used in most Takara releases look more finer(with exception to Encore Bruticus)

Their getting cheap with their dang twisters, god their so hard to do by hand, if I'm eager to open it I'll open it in the car, but "S***!" Hasbro tied one in a complete knot. Just hate it.

Gyrotron wrote:Their getting cheap with their dang twisters, god their so hard to do by hand, if I'm eager to open it I'll open it in the car, but "S***!" Hasbro tied one in a complete knot. Just hate it.

I know what you mean. I couldn't get the ones on my RTS Lugnut undone, ended up having to cut them apart.

More on topic, they do seem a bit cheaper than others. Lugnut is the only RTS figure i've got at the moment though, so I can't really say much.

Gyrotron wrote:Their getting cheap with their dang twisters, god their so hard to do by hand, if I'm eager to open it I'll open it in the car, but "S***!" Hasbro tied one in a complete knot. Just hate it.

The twist-ties are more of a environmental issue than cost, as noted at a Hasbro Q&A. Personally I prefer the ropey kind, easier to cut and undo if you can reach them. Best of all: no injuries!

And you can't really fault Hasbro for cheapening the plastics a bit. Remember, petrol prices are continuously fluctuating and that affects the price and kind of plastics available.

Is it me, or is the RTS line using different plastics than the Generations line...in general?

Although Tracks and Wheeljack are basically the same mold, Wheeljack is the much nicer of the two. I still have RTS Jazz in his package, but he looks crappy compared to United Jazz. Dose any one have RTS Jazz open tell me if the plastic feels cheap or not. He missing plenty of paint apps compared to United Jazz.

bvzxa wrote:Dose any one have RTS Jazz open tell me if the plastic feels cheap or not. He missing plenty of paint apps compared to United Jazz.

I have both, and while I haven't done any extensive testing between the two, the only obvious difference I've observed has been visual. United didn't feel noticeably different to me...just looks a lot better.

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

Gyrotron wrote:Their getting cheap with their dang twisters, god their so hard to do by hand, if I'm eager to open it I'll open it in the car, but "S***!" Hasbro tied one in a complete knot. Just hate it.

The twist-ties are more of a environmental issue than cost, as noted at a Hasbro Q&A. Personally I prefer the ropey kind, easier to cut and undo if you can reach them. Best of all: no injuries!

Agree. Recently bought a Pokemon toy and opened it with my son, I admitted it, I hate those metal twist ties and there are complete knots, too. Paper twist ties are WAY better and environmental friendly. At least I can cut them with the scissors, don't need to take out my pliers.

I think the master of cheap is Battle In Space's Hot Rod.

But aren't the wires in the twisties more expensive than the paper twisties?

Anyway, the United versions still sports the metal twisties unlike the United/RTS versions. So could that also add more to the cost?

Again, ain't aluminum( I guess)more expensive than paper products?

I've noticed that the newer figures are a lot more prone to stress marks. Nearly every figure I've bought recently has them.

I love the paper twist ties. No more breaking out the wire cutters for me!

what can I say....I'm happy with the new figs both RTS and United. It's true. Well...I wish G2 Prime was a voyager. There. I said it.

paul053 wrote:
I think the master of cheap is Battle In Space's Hot Rod.

Is that the two pack with Cyclonus? Is so, you are right on. Actually thinking about returning it to Walmart.

I like the rope ties. They are a challenge to undo with just your fingers. Plus you dont have to worry about them chaffing the figure.

Qualitywise, I think it depends on the specific character, not necessarily when they were made. I have all the Coneheads, several Seekers, and the 3 Lambo figures which have been released over a number of years and havent noticed any differences in quality. I think the colors of the characters plays a lot into perceived quality. Blurr for instance, looks kinda cheap with the pale colors compared to say Kup, but both are similiar in terms of quality. I cant vouch for Perceptor though. Havent opened the one I snagged at TRU.

Yeah, the BiS 2 pack really cheapened Rodimus to make it work. And yet it has the best version of Cyclonus of them all. I guess they cheapened him too by having some of the grey plastic be the same as the purple, but even so ...

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

Gyrotron wrote:Their getting cheap with their dang twisters, god their so hard to do by hand, if I'm eager to open it I'll open it in the car, but "S***!" Hasbro tied one in a complete knot. Just hate it.

The twist-ties are more of a environmental issue than cost, as noted at a Hasbro Q&A. Personally I prefer the ropey kind, easier to cut and undo if you can reach them. Best of all: no injuries!

And you can't really fault Hasbro for cheapening the plastics a bit. Remember, petrol prices are continuously fluctuating and that affects the price and kind of plastics available.

I suppose that's the best possible reason why they are getting cheaper. Oh well

tmk9883 wrote:Qualitywise, I think it depends on the specific character, not necessarily when they were made. I have all the Coneheads, several Seekers, and the 3 Lambo figures which have been released over a number of years and havent noticed any differences in quality. I think the colors of the characters plays a lot into perceived quality. Blurr for instance, looks kinda cheap with the pale colors compared to say Kup, but both are similiar in terms of quality. I cant vouch for Perceptor though. Havent opened the one I snagged at TRU.

Agree. Sometimes color makes difference. Some colors just look cheaper on the same material but if you paint it over, you won't tell. There was a sad thing. I bought a KO classics Ramjet (white color) a while back with 99 cents. Since the quality is SO bad, I threw it away and then bought the Hasbro classics version ($20!). After I opened it and showed my son, he thought and said "why you took it back from garbage can".

Also another thought, since the first movie, I think we are getting more TFs with panels hanging or flipping around. Those panels are somewhat thin (so can do the transformation right) and of course thin plastics feel cheap. Perceptor's windows panels folding into the legs is a good example.

paul053 wrote:

tmk9883 wrote:Qualitywise, I think it depends on the specific character, not necessarily when they were made. I have all the Coneheads, several Seekers, and the 3 Lambo figures which have been released over a number of years and havent noticed any differences in quality. I think the colors of the characters plays a lot into perceived quality. Blurr for instance, looks kinda cheap with the pale colors compared to say Kup, but both are similiar in terms of quality. I cant vouch for Perceptor though. Havent opened the one I snagged at TRU.

Agree. Sometimes color makes difference. Some colors just look cheaper on the same material but if you paint it over, you won't tell. There was a sad thing. I bought a KO classics Ramjet (white color) a while back with 99 cents. Since the quality is SO bad, I threw it away and then bought the Hasbro classics version ($20!). After I opened it and showed my son, he thought and said "why you took it back from garbage can".

Also another thought, since the first movie, I think we are getting more TFs with panels hanging or flipping around. Those panels are somewhat thin (so can do the transformation right) and of course thin plastics feel cheap. Perceptor's
windows panels folding into the legs is a good example.

An even better example of those cheap panels is turbo tracks' wing. mine's pretty loose and feels like they're easy to break.