Die Cast Lighted 1/350th TOS Enterprise (TOMY crowd funded)

[goldcylon]

That is incorrect. There is no legal obligation based on what was said in marketing videos. Everyone that purchased an Enterprise agreed to these terms (which I’ve posted before). No open and shut legal argument exists.

“11. Purchases Made through the Site

All descriptions of the Products and the Services, and pricing thereof are subject to change at any time without notice, at the sole discretion of us”.

And you Sir are incorrect as I could make that legal argument all day. That's standard Corp legalize washed through their office of counsel. They did not deliver on their promises when even asked. However, it's a Moot point as they did the right thing. They did the right thing and that's the bottom line. They could have said pound sand and stand behind that legal statement and state take us to court. They didn't. If they were right, they would have told us to pound sand. They chose correctly and MADE it right.

 

[1138sw]

i hope you're right. guess we won't know anything till next summer, when they presumably announce the next project. although that gorndamned DeLorean set a dangerous precedent. funded within hours, quadrupled it's goal. that obviously is going to turn a clear profit, at 1/2 to 1/3 the production cost (i'm guessing) of the enterprise. just doing a Ghostbusters hearse or a Mach 5 (or, Gorn save us, a K.I.T.T. or a General Lee) is going to look mighty tasty come july, for a lot less hassle and lot more cash, i fear.

(but gornammit if the mach 5 came with working retractable buzzsaw blades and an underwater bubble canopy i'd have to buy the gorndamned thing now wouldn't i. oh and don't forget a working bird drone.)

Me too...I hope I'm right. They have the license so why not make more?

Glen Swanson who claims to have participated in the TOS Enterprise project says more is on the way:

"Tomy is working on other models that will be part of their new Star Trek Prestige Select line. They have learned from their mistakes and despite what you may have heard, they do listen to their customers."

So I'm hoping praying he's right. And yeah I to would love to see any of those vehicles you mentioned! : )

 

[pootboy]

Me too...I hope I'm right. They have the license so why not make more?

Glen Swanson who claims to have participated in the TOS Enterprise project says more is on the way:

"Tomy is working on other models that will be part of their new Star Trek Prestige Select line. They have learned from their mistakes and despite what you may have heard, they do listen to their customers."

So I'm hoping praying he's right. And yeah I to would love to see any of those vehicles you mentioned! : )

say whaa? groovy! Who is this swanson character? where is that quote pulled from?

 

[xlowes]

say whaa? groovy! Who is this swanson character? where is that quote pulled from?

I believe it was on FB. Glen also posted the following on FB about not having to use the saucer support stand ! "I checked with TOMY engineers that helped design the original model and they said that displaying the Enterprise without the separate saucer display stand support will not damage the model. The two pins on the secondary hull stand are strong enough to support everything by themselves. Though a little wobbly, they have the model balanced just right so that it won’t tip forward without the saucer support. TOMY told me that the stand is made of ABS which I understand is pretty tough.

 

[1138sw]

say whaa? groovy! Who is this swanson character? where is that quote pulled from?

Yes facebook.

Here is the link:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/725423994233410/user/1353393604/?locale=fo_FO

It's part of his review...last paragraph I believe...of his TOMY Enterprise.

 

[1138sw]

Here is Factory Entertainment's Refit.

It's really nice but not perfect. Decal sheets are somewhat apparent and some windows aren't evenly cut and even some of the paint is off but overall it is a fantastic piece. Is it 15 grand + worth it? I guess you guys decide.

If TOMY can match this in terms of quality I'd be blown away! Can you imagine the pearlescent paint and aztecing on diecast metal? It would look super amazing!

 

[1138sw]

Also I was comparing my PL 1/350 TOS Enterprise to the TOMY and my god Diecast makes a huge difference! I love my PL all lit up but when you compare the plastic to DIECAST there is just no comparison.

The TOMY makes my PL look like a toy. Love both but my TOMY is the king. : )

 

[pootboy]

Also I was comparing my PL 1/350 TOS Enterprise to the TOMY and my god Diecast makes a huge difference! I love my PL all lit up but when you compare the plastic to DIECAST there is just no comparison.

The TOMY makes my PL look like a toy. Love both but my TOMY is the king. : )

can we get a comparison shot or two? are they side-by-side in your man-cave?

 

[1138sw]

can we get a comparison shot or two? are they side-by-side in your man-cave?

LOL will try! I'm still trying to organize and find space! So give me some time! The thing is huge and I just got my table/cart for it! : )

 

[pootboy]

LOL will try! I'm still trying to organize and find space! So give me some time! The thing is huge and I just got my table/cart for it! : )

ok no worries i don't want to read about you in the local paper, crushed by a 46 pound separated saucer

 

[pootboy]

Here is Factory Entertainment's Refit.

It's really nice but not perfect. Decal sheets are somewhat apparent and some windows aren't evenly cut and even some of the paint is off but overall it is a fantastic piece. Is it 15 grand + worth it? I guess you guys decide.

If TOMY can match this in terms of quality I'd be blown away! Can you imagine the pearlescent paint and aztecing on diecast metal? It would look super amazing!

people would go bananas for this. BUH-NAN-NUZ.

 

[1138sw]

ok no worries i don't want to read about you in the local paper, crushed by a 46 pound separated saucer

LOL Actually the ship is fully assembled and sitting in another room while the PL is in another room since I got her a long time ago...like 5 years ago so setting them up is gonna take some time. I gotta figure it out. Call me lazy!!! : ) or a procrastinator! Basically lazy! : )

 

[1138sw]

people would go bananas for this. BUH-NAN-NUZ.

Yup! AND I think TOMY might know it too. The demand might be so high they might not have the capacity to handle it! LOL I think Chris and the gang might be freaked out! LOL

 

[scotthm]

B, C and D are all good options.
A is neat but can't compete standing next to the other three!

"A" is the perfect complement to the TOS E. It would probably also be much less expensive to manufacture than the other three.

If multiple follow-up models are coming I'd much prefer the Klingon D7 be next.
---------------

 

[Jamesfett]

Refit

Excelsior

Enterprise E

Enterprise F

 

[publiusr]

Well if the saucer ever sags we all can just display the saucer section separate...lol....

The only way an Enterprise won’t sag is if you had the secondary hull segment-pylons-nacelle join as a triangular bracket that had foam filled blow-molded nacelle ends and such.

You could punt that and it’d stay straight.

 

[RevelationSpace]

Having seen some comparisons with the Polar Lights ship versus this one, I have to agree that the Tomy paint job and especially the lights are far superior. Obviously the PL lacks the ugly hole plugs and seams of this one (never mind the stand), but I can't agree with those who've said the Tomy ship looks crap in comparison. They're both nice models, each with their pros and cons, although the shortcomings of the Tomy are quite obvious while those on the PL only reveal themselves when it's beside the Tomy, which is kind of ironic.

It would be nice to know if Tomy consider this a success, but given how uncommunicative they've been throughout this entire process, I doubt we'll ever know. Even if they do produce another ship (surely a Refit or D, anything else would be foolish from a business perspective), they may still consider this to have been a minor failure. Not giving it worldwide availability didn't help them, but as far as I know this was the largest diecast product they've ever made, so I'm sure they'll have learned a lot from it. I'm skeptical that they'll do another, if for no other reason than the surprisingly limited number of initial backers (I for one expected them to easily fill their original requirement of 5000, instead they barely got half of that) showing that perhaps there isn't the demand for this ship that they thought there was. I'd expect more people would back a Refit or D, but who knows.

 

[Ant1988]

Having seen some comparisons with the Polar Lights ship versus this one, I have to agree that the Tomy paint job and especially the lights are far superior. Obviously the PL lacks the ugly hole plugs and seams of this one (never mind the stand), but I can't agree with those who've said the Tomy ship looks crap in comparison. They're both nice models, each with their pros and cons, although the shortcomings of the Tomy are quite obvious while those on the PL only reveal themselves when it's beside the Tomy, which is kind of ironic.

It would be nice to know if Tomy consider this a success, but given how uncommunicative they've been throughout this entire process, I doubt we'll ever know. Even if they do produce another ship (surely a Refit or D, anything else would be foolish from a business perspective), they may still consider this to have been a minor failure. Not giving it worldwide availability didn't help them, but as far as I know this was the largest diecast product they've ever made, so I'm sure they'll have learned a lot from it. I'm skeptical that they'll do another, if for no other reason than the surprisingly limited number of initial backers (I for one expected them to easily fill their original requirement of 5000, instead they barely got half of that) showing that perhaps there isn't the demand for this ship that they thought there was. I'd expect more people would back a Refit or D, but who knows.

Right. Also what a lot of people don't get is that the designers don't make these decisions. People can email Chris all day long and beg but it's ultimately up to his boss and his boss is not going to be sentimental about it. He/She is gonna look at the profit of this one and base their decision in that.

 

[Tosfan1]

One of mine was laying in the box. THey are engineered to snap in. Hence a suction tool would be the only safe way to get them out without chipping and damaging paint IMHO

Same here. I had just set the secondary hull on the stand and noticed an exposed screw hole. As I rummaged through the shipping material I found the plug. Whew.

BTW - I had told my understanding wife I bought this to enjoy for a couple months and would be selling for a profit. Now that I have it, I’m not keen on selling it!!! “Out of my cold, dead hands!”

 

[weisshaupt]

Not giving it worldwide availability didn't help them, but as far as I know this was the largest diecast product they've ever made, so I'm sure they'll have learned a lot from it. I'm skeptical that they'll do another, if for no other reason than the surprisingly limited number of initial backers (I for one expected them to easily fill their original requirement of 5000, instead they barely got half of that) showing that perhaps there isn't the demand for this ship that they thought there was. I'd expect more people would back a Refit or D, but who knows.

Somewhere in this thread someone posted a Prestige Harvester combine they did that was arguably bigger.

The PR on this project was horrible. Its not just it was US only. They Crowdfunded on their own site, so no one came to know about it simply because they were on a major crowdfunding platform. (MST3K S14 is running now on their own site, and while its ticking along, it would probably be funded by onow on a big platform- getting the word out is key. ) I know of only one interview they did with a "you tube influencer", they didn't reveal or pitch this at comic con - or even a Trek specific convention that I know of. I believe they did just the one show in Chicago. And they advertised on Facebook of all places ( that worked to find me.. but if I hadn't seen the TOMY and known who they were I would have skipped over it as a scam) I don't think it was lack of interest, it was lack of reach to the people would would have been interested. Which is why you see the ones selling on ebay for between 1200-1400 on average. If the market had been saturated, people would be sitting there with thier own , and 1-2 others unable to sell them. If TOMY had set up interviews with all of the bigger adult Toy collector channels, or entertainment channels like Nerdrotic, revealed the thing at Comic-con SD, paid for commercials to run during streamed episodes of TOS, directly contacted Mods at the more prominent Star Trek Forums and groups, and so forth... they would have reached that 5000 goal and more.