Yak Deculture! Yamato 1/3000 Macross SDF-1 Review!

INTRODUCTION

I have been a fan of Macross since I was a kid. But with 4 sisters, and my parents meager government servant's salary, I could not afford any toys. So, after I graduated and have a job of my own, I started looking for Macross toys. It was in 2005 I think, that I was introduced to Yamato. Their 1/48 VF are incredible! Perfect transformation while maintaining anime accuracy. Then came their 1/60 ver 2.0 line, which totally rocks!
But still, one thing is missing....the iconic SDF-1, the battle cruiser which carries the war from Earth to Pluto and back. The only available SDF toy that time was the vintage Takatoku or Matchbox, which due to their rareness, costs astronomically high...and the next best thing from WHAM was too small.
Out of the blue, Yamato produced 1/2000 scale SDF model kit in 2010, which although costs is insane ( RM8k, tax and shipping not included ), manages to sell out of expectation.
And due to that success, maybe, finally Yamato find it feasible to come out with a much smaller scale, albeit more affordable, 1/3000 SDF-1. And I wasted no time in raising the funds necessary to secure me a unit! And here it is!

PACKAGING

So let's start with the basic first.

The box is quite huge, the design simple and utilitarian, probably to save cost on an already premiumly priced product ( RM 1.4k ). Inside, the toys is further protected in a styrofoam box. Kudos to Yamato for not using the cheap plastic tray...heheehe...You know, even Bandai SOC nowadays cheap out on the styrofoam.

Box dimensions
Height = 490mm.
Width = 363mm.
Depth =
140mm.
Weight (toy in box) = Around 1721g

Toy Dimensions
Height in Attacker Mode = 420mm (in A-stance, from bottom
of feet to tip of gun booms).
Length In Cruiser Mode = 420mm.
Weight of
toy only = Around 981g

Measurement courtesy of Graham from Macrossworld.com

Ah, I should mention this; some small parts you have to assemble yourself, like screw covers and cannons installations...nothing major. Also, due to the design of the packaging, and the shape of the assembled product, I do not think you can keep the toy back in its box. Hurmmm....

DESIGN & DETAILS

Here's the part where I'm totally blasted away! I have to tell ya, this toy is so packed with details, even minutes one. Some complaint on the lack of color..my guess is they are confused with the TV version which is more vibrant in color.

Because this is a transforming toy, I'll be showing you both of it modes, starting with the battle cruiser mode.

1. Battle Cruiser

This toy is sturdy in this form, you can hold it up in one hand and 'whooosh' it around your room ( I know you want to ;) ) in confidence. The weight is just nice that it feels secure in your hands.

The small antenna on the head is made of flexible material, so no worries of it breaking off. :)

As you can see, sculpt is sharp and detailed, and the paintjob flawless. Even the material, although minimal die-cast is used, does not feels cheap. Its built speaks of high quality craftmanship, and its weight reaffirms that feeling. You can spend hours taking pictures of this magnificient toy, and still have a hard time choosing the best photo.

2. Attacker

True to the show, this cruiser transforms to a behemoth of a robot! And transforming this toy is a breeze. Although the instruction is in japanese, the pictures provided are adequate enough. If you are stuck anywhere, you can go to this video guide, courtesy of Graham from Macrossworld.com:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQXuVijWC94

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_PoaJOSJvs

This is the attacker mode, it can even stand on its own without the stand provided. You will notice while transforming this toy just now, there are a lot of ratchet joints, so you can be reassured of the tightness of the joints. And the toy feels solid in your hands. And as a plus, the knee has a 1 point articulation. You can even pull thelegs slightly apart to form the iconic 'A stance'.

The legs have no forward movement, but this is accurate to the anime. Well, this is a space faring cruiser...it just moves around by firing its thrusters, not by running! Hahaha!

GIMMICK

Finally, this awesome toy also has some gimmick to satisfy the discerning owner, and off course, to show off to your friends, what else! Lol!

First, the outer left leg cover can be removed by a simple pop out and pull movement, to reveal the nicely detailed Macross City inside! I admit the color is a bit bland, but not really matter so much.

Can just imagine teeny little VFs and Regults dishing it out in the streets...

Secondly, the small window can be rotated from 'closed' to 'open' mode. I was pleasantly suprised when I found about this function. It was unnecessary, but still Yamato included it and I'm glad they did.

"Oh, Hikaru...look at the stars...."

And lastly of course, is the twin main cannons that can be swung to the forward firing position. Really cool! I am not ashamed to admit that I always pretend there's a fleet of zaentradi ships waiting to be blasted away, everytime I lower the main gun boom.

COLLECTION/PLAYABILITY VALUE

Good all around built, solid and sturdy feel, ratchet joint, detailed sculpt ensure that this will be in any Macross fans' wet dream. Yamato's excellent engineering once again give the collectors something to shout about for the next few months...or years even! Well worth the money spent.

No electrical lights and sound, which could be a blessing as I would not have to worry about batteries leaking and such. Besides, it might make this toy sounds cheap.

Owh, did I forgot to mention, this beast is photogenic as hell!

CONCLUSION

Man, although it's still early in 2011, I have no qualms in declaring it THE toy of 2011 (2010 was the 1/24 Patlabor, Yamato also). If you are a fan of Macross, you just got to have this. If you are not...you STILL have to get this! Haha! Sheer awesomeness and cool factor make this SDF-1 earn 4.8/5 rating!