New Galleries: BotCon 2015 Zaptrap with Beet-Chit and Spy-Eye and BotCon 1998 Vice Grip

It's a pity Zaptrap is a BotCon exclusive, 'cuz I would army-build the hell out of him otherwise. I do love that mold.

Seibertron.com is proud to to present the gallery of the Transformers Collector's Club Figure Subscription Service 4.0 first figure, Needlenose. Which is an update to 1988's G1 Targetmaster Needlenose. TFSS Needlenose is a repaint of Combiner Wars Firefly and includes updated versions of Sunbeam and Zigzag (aka Zputty), which themselves are repaints of Caliburst and Holepunch.

IDW fans may appreciate a guest cameo appearance by Reveal the Shield Turbo Tracks in Needlenose's gallery.

Click any of the images below to be taken to their respective gallery and don't forget to hit the jump and tell us what you think in the discussion below.

Subscription Service Needlenose










Subscription Service Zputty






Subscription Service Sunbeam





Remember to keep your browsers pointed to Seibertron.com for the latest in Transformer news, the largest Transformers galleries found on the web and the liveliest Transformers discussion this side of a space bridge.

I just opened him up myself. Fantastic figure and I love the colours and headsculpt. Though Zputty is up there in weird names...

In the thumbnail, it looked sorta like Thunderwing.

Zputty. I love this hobby

Came in the post yesterday (wasn't sure how long it would take in Canada) and I'm absolutely LOVING him. TFCC knocked the deco right out of the park. It's amazing how much different he looks from Slingshot despite being a pure repaint. Even without the extra knight helmet it's just... It's Needlenose. The shiny, metallic paint is great. He's just gorgeous on the shelf.

That vain, pretentious bastard.

"Zputty"? Isn't that some kind of 3D rendering program?

Zputty? Really? All I can think of is these.

Zputty, such a punky name for a Decepticon. It also sounds like a farting joke gone bad. As for Needlenose, he looks nice and I like the mold choice. Awesome figure!

As promised, and as the Transformers Collectors' Club keeps sending out its Subscription Service 4.0 figures, Seibertron.com continues to provide its visual services to the figures - as we did with Needlenose when it shipped, so we do now with the figure that was intended to be retail Ruckus, changed into Combiner Wars Offroad by Hasbro, and now released under the Grabuge name by the Club!

Click on any of the images to open up the full gallery, as we plough full steam ahead towards our 5000 gallery milestone.

Subscription Service Grabuge (116 images) - Combiners, Deluxe Class, Subscription Service

Huh. I know Off-Road was originally designed to be Ruckus before they changed directions, but wow. I didn't do a direct comparison but that head and shin detail is completely Ruckus.

He doesn't look AMAZING but I'm really excited to get this guy, one of my favorite D-list Decepticons

Thanks for the high-res Ruckus photo gallery. Those tacky paint apps really stand out compared to the factory figures, especially all the inaccurate and wavy edges/lines where they meet another color. For a 3x-4x price point, I'll pass. If the paint apps were factory quality, maybe. But even then, the price point is kind of silly.

And just as OffRoad almost ended up being Ruckus, so too did his actual Ruckus repaint.

Who decided to translate his name into French? Slicer?

Ruckus will always hold a special place in my heart for being the only Triggercon (or -bot) that I actually owned in '88. I wonder, was the aborted attempt to make him a Stunticon what led to the whole Thunder Mayhem gestalt team idea? IDR what was said about that back during the reveal.

The "Ruckus" trademark didn't pass legal - another toy company must have it. So to keep him as "Ruckus" as possible, one of the translated names from the original G1 packaging was used. Specifically, his French-Canadian name.

The Mayhem Attack Squad team concept solidified around some very cool ideas in Needlenose, Spinister, and of course Ruckus. Windsweeper was quick in materializing as well.

Ruckus looks great. I can def see how this mould was made for him. Cant wait for the Ramjet gallery. When is he shipping out? Anyone hear anything about it yet? I know I have asked a couple times in the last few weeks but he is much anticipated.

Moonshot wrote:Cant wait for the Ramjet gallery. When is he shipping out? Anyone hear anything about it yet? I know I have asked a couple times in the last few weeks but he is much anticipated.

He's still delayed, but Ryan got an pre-release specimen for the galleries:


Transformers Club Exclusives Ramjet Gallery

Keep in mind, this is the one without the modifications to the head.

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:Keep in mind, this is the one without the modifications to the head.

The one in my gallery that Pete loaned me to photograph had the correct head modification so that the head could do the fin in jet mode. Just confirmed with Pete that it was the corrected one.

Ah, ok, I stand corrected.

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:

Moonshot wrote:Cant wait for the Ramjet gallery. When is he shipping out? Anyone hear anything about it yet? I know I have asked a couple times in the last few weeks but he is much anticipated.

He's still delayed, but Ryan got an pre-release specimen for the galleries:


Transformers Club Exclusives Ramjet Gallery

Keep in mind, this is the one without the modifications to the head.

Sweet thanks, I must have missed the gallery for him some how. Hate that he is delayed.

Got ruckus in the mail today. Heh. Tiny box compared to needlenose.

I like him a lot. Because RUCKUS. He unfortunately simply has too much paint. The yellow paint especially on his outer truck shell just looks too thick and glossy, and kind of cheap, doesn't quite go with the really nice colors of the blue plastic. I totally understand the need to work with the mold stories and it looks right onto the character,just looks more like a custom than a high-end collector item.

Love the little details like the spring eco on his hood, the yellow connector chest port. He's really cool but just not as nicely done as needlenose or my previous sub figures (thrustinator, circuit, jackpot).

While still part of the beast world of alt-modes, the latest addition to the Seibertron.com galleries lives in a crossworld of Transformers Collectors' Club Exclusives and a direct G1 redeco, as a set of figures that was supposed to be a retail exclusive, but made it into Timelines in 2008 instead!

Let your eyes float over the full Seacon team, including Nautilator, Overbite, Seawing, Skalor, Snaptrap, and Tentakil, and their combined mode Seacon Superwarrior Piranacon. The fun fact about these dangerously reused molds, is that each component is drowning in playability: they can be a robot, an aquatic monster, and a Targetmaster with their weapon mode, plus the combining mode! Surf the galleries by clicking on any of the images below.

Club Exclusives Piranacon (135 images) - Combiners, Exclusives, Seacons


















Club Exclusives Snaptrap (105 images) - Combiners, Exclusives, Seacons








Club Exclusives Tentakil (103 images) - Combiners, Exclusives, Seacons, Targetmasters










Club Exclusives Skalor (107 images) - Combiners, Exclusives, Seacons, Targetmasters










Club Exclusives Overbite (97 images) - Combiners, Exclusives, Seacons, Targetmasters










Club Exclusives Seawing (104 images) - Combiners, Exclusives, Seacons, Targetmasters










Club Exclusives Nautilator (91 images) - Combiners, Exclusives, Seacons, Targetmasters

SEACONS WHOOOOOOOOOOOOO

These guys look cool. Can't wait for them to get a modern update eventually, cause that is a good look

Perhaps I missed something, but how are these 'dangerously reused molds'?

Dagon wrote:Perhaps I missed something, but how are these 'dangerously reused molds'?

They're reused much much later than the first time the mold was intended, and it shows.
Perhaps bad phrasing on my part, here.

Dr Va'al wrote:

Dagon wrote:Perhaps I missed something, but how are these 'dangerously reused molds'?

They're reused much much later than the first time the mold was intended, and it shows.
Perhaps bad phrasing on my part, here.

Also, hadn't the molds somewhat degraded by the time this set was issued?

And just to be kind of nitpicky, the King Poseidon version of Tentakil is actually Scylla, who's a fembot, not just a version of Tentakil.

Bounti76 wrote:

Dr Va'al wrote:

Dagon wrote:Perhaps I missed something, but how are these 'dangerously reused molds'?

They're reused much much later than the first time the mold was intended, and it shows.
Perhaps bad phrasing on my part, here.

Also, hadn't the molds somewhat degraded by the time this set was issued?

I own the set, but haven't looked at it for quite a while, so maybe I'm not as aware of this mold issue as it apparently warrants. This is kind of a head-scratcher remark to me though, as no one ever seems to be critical of the trillion Combaticon reuses in such a way. The Seacons have only been reused three times, or four total times if that sounds better, so I guess i don't really associate 'mold overuse' or degradation with them.
Ultimately, I think I just misunderstood what the good doctor wrote.

Bounti76 wrote:And just to be kind of nitpicky, the King Poseidon version of Tentakil is actually Scylla, who's a fembot, not just a version of Tentakil.

I wouldn't call this a nitpick at all.

For whatever reason though the Combaticon molds hold up. In terms of number of uses, you're absolutely correct --- the Seacons have been used far less.

Couple years ago I got the BBTS shared exclusive reissue of the Seacons and I was TERRIFIED to transform them. The plastic felt brittle and it felt like every part was going to snap at the slightest movement. I did a full conversion ONCE, returned it to combined mode (and clicking the heads into the ports was the worst), and stuck it back in the box. I had similar, but not as severe, issues with the TRU reissue Insecticons from about five years ago. I couldn't speak to the quality of the current (overpriced) platinum set of Insecticons.

I think "dangerously reused" is fair to say with respect to the quality of the toys.


When WAS the last Combaticon reuse? RID? They were great, at any rate. But that's already 15 years ago.

Bounti76 wrote:

Dr Va'al wrote:

Dagon wrote:Perhaps I missed something, but how are these 'dangerously reused molds'?

They're reused much much later than the first time the mold was intended, and it shows.
Perhaps bad phrasing on my part, here.

Also, hadn't the molds somewhat degraded by the time this set was issued?

Yeah, that is also what I was referring to.

I've got an original G1 set, the God Neptune set, and the TFCC rerelease, and have never had any mold issues. I remember hearing the BBTS/TRU reissue set had a lot of QC issues, but have never handled it, so I can't speak to that one. I guess I'm just surprised to learn that there are such issues associated with these figures.

As for the Combaticons, the original Universe line had two Ruinations, and I think that was a year or two after RID ended. Still a long time back regardless.

Dagon wrote:I've got an original G1 set, the God Neptune set, and the TFCC rerelease, and have never had any mold issues. I remember hearing the BBTS/TRU reissue set had a lot of QC issues, but have never handled it, so I can't speak to that one. I guess I'm just surprised to learn that there are such issues associated with these figures.

As for the Combaticons, the original Universe line had two Ruinations, and I think that was a year or two after RID ended. Still a long time back regardless.

None of these sets have as bad of mold degradation as people suggest. They feel about the same as the original G1 version. The primary issues I had with my reissue and Club sets were pegs being a little loose in peg holes, which was fixed by adding a dab of superglue to either the hole or the peg (which was determined by plugging in other accessories from the set as well as the original G1 set). Everyone's guns fit fine now. The rest of the issues also seem to be similar to issues that the original G1 toy set had with paint issues (which some people might not be as picky about). They have some issues, but I would consider most of the issues to be minor with quality control. However, truth be told, there was a slight delay on me finishing the gallery for my Club set because it was missing the card for Skalor as well as having two left fists for Piranacon. I ordered a second set off eBay after discovering the two left fists (I wasn't too worried about the missing bio card, but was really frustrated about the missing right fist). I'll relist the other set on eBay (though I'm unsure if I'll sell it as an entire set or piece it apart to help people out who might be looking to replace something that broke or is missing on their set).

As much as I like how unapologetically '80s the originals were, I think I like the deep sea colors of this version even more.

Bounti76 wrote:And just to be kind of nitpicky, the King Poseidon version of Tentakil is actually Scylla, who's a fembot, not just a version of Tentakil.

God Neptune, not King Poseidon.

Dagon wrote:As for the Combaticons, the original Universe line had two Ruinations, and I think that was a year or two after RID ended. Still a long time back regardless.

Just one: the grey Urban Camo was still RiD2001, albeit at the advent of Universe 2003.

Speaking of mold degradation, the Combaticons do suffer from it visibly, especially Onslaught who's been retooled the most times (FYI Blast Off having a rounded nosecone was an intentional tweak). Look at Encore Bruticus closely for plastic marring.

Fellow Seibertronians, we have an update to our early access Ramjet gallery, as well as a sneak peek at the upcoming TFSS 4.0 Spinister gallery, in the form of their bio cards and art. So check them out and let us know what you think in the comments below.

I wish I could get Collector's clubs bots. I would really like that Spinister.

Just an FYI for all of you folks wondering who Shrute is, its the new name for Hairsplitter.

What is a Shrute anyway?

I wrote the bio and tech specs for Ramjet.

Randy

Powered Convoy wrote:I wrote the bio and tech specs for Ramjet.

Randy

You don't say.

Heh, cute that Spinister getting a release as a Targetmaster for Nemesis Prime got a mention in the bio. (I wonder if that would've lead to something more if the club's original plan to have Nemesis as the torso for Wreckage went through.)

It was originally unintentional from the writer, because the Toxitron toy was already finalized when he was brought on-board to do the bio. It did though become a fun little nod to unused plans when others at Fun Pub read it.

JelZe GoldRabbit wrote:Just an FYI for all of you folks wondering who Shrute is, its the new name for Hairsplitter.

What is a Shrute anyway?

I think it's the name of a character from "The Office".

RevTibe wrote:Heh, cute that Spinister getting a release as a Targetmaster for Nemesis Prime got a mention in the bio. (I wonder if that would've lead to something more if the club's original plan to have Nemesis as the torso for Wreckage went through.)

I think the reference stands fine on its own, and was amused by it.

I love Ramjet's head. It is awesome.

And I really want a Spinister, extra MTMTE please

"Does not want to talk about his mileage" as opposed to saying does not want to talk about his past.

THIS IS THE WAY YOU WRITE TRANSFORMERS

Fun Pub's fourth figure of their Transformers Subscription Service is now being received by the fans and several have contacted us to let us know. This time, it is Windsweeper, who is a redeco of Combiner Wars Skydive. This toy is an update to the G1 Windsweeper toy, who was a triggercon, and acts as a limb for Thunder Mayhem. We have quite a few in hand pics for you courtesy of Seibertron and Scotty P, which include Vomes with Matrix of Malice as well.

There is next to nothing in that bio that even even resembles Windsweeper's personality.

Compare this:



To these:

What kind of matrix is that...

[BW] Rainmaker wrote:What kind of matrix is that...

Read the bio.

Sabrblade wrote:There is next to nothing in that bio that even even resembles Windsweeper's personality.

Compare this:



To these:

Seems pretty accurate to me; it just adds something new to him.
Besides, it's a new continuity. New interpretations are fine.

Don't like generation one comic art work on him front of plane is behind his feet