JiminSTLouis
Master Member
I sent Chris Huisman a FB Message last night. He hasn’t read it yet.
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Die Cast Lighted 1/350th TOS Enterprise (TOMY crowd funded)
- Thread starter CessnaDriver
- Start date
I sent Chris Huisman a FB Message last night. He hasn’t read it yet.
1138sw
Sr Member
True, very true…but I just can’t believe that such mistakes would be made after previously stated commitments…it’s baffling to me!
JiminSTLouis
Master Member
I don’t think this is a mistake, but a realization that such a manual process of filling with bondo, letting it cure, sanding it, repeating until smooth just isn’t possible in a mass production process. I think they over-extended themselves. This project is SO far removed from their core competency, plastic children’s toys.True, very true…but I just can’t believe that such mistakes would be made after previously stated commitments…it’s baffling to me!
VitalNonsense
Well-Known Member
That's...quite troubling. Especially considering they placed all the plugs on the display side of the model, which had to be something Gary Kerr would have brought up.
How could they screw that up so bad when they already had a Get Out Of Jail Free card on the port side?
Plus they sold this thing with photos of the display side without visible plugs, and explicitly stating to customers that even the side with the plugs would have them all filled and sanded to not be visible. That's not just disappointing, now it's dishonest!
If they decided they couldn't budget for the filling like they had originally planned, they could have been transparent about it earlier and won people over by leveraging knowledge of the original model, explaining their choice to place the plugs on the side corresponding to the "unfinished" side of the original model. People would be disappointed, but there would be logic to it, showing continued commitment to an authentic appearance and making the best of the situation.
But placing all the visible plugs on the starboard/display side and keeping that to themselves is making the worst of the situation. If they release this thing with a starboard side full of unexpected plugs they never warned anyone about, who is ever going to trust them with another crowdfund? Why execute such an unforced error and lose all good will in the process?
If the visible hole plugs are representative of the final product then this is false advertising/bait and switch.
VitalNonsense
Well-Known Member
Also, side-note, if the last pictures really do represent the final product, I'm pretty disappointed in the nacelle caps. They look very toy-like with that flat bright orange. Something with a little more cloudy transparency would have been appropriate. Or even just less saturated, that looks very fisher-price orange. Are we even going to be able to see the lights through that?
Very little like the original model, nor their own earlier samples. They said they were working very hard to replicate them authentically but...
If instead they made that piece outta something like transparent 'Orange Salmon' or maybe 'Dark Peach' and hit the inside with some clear frost to cloud it up, it would already be like 90% there.
Very little like the original model, nor their own earlier samples. They said they were working very hard to replicate them authentically but...
If instead they made that piece outta something like transparent 'Orange Salmon' or maybe 'Dark Peach' and hit the inside with some clear frost to cloud it up, it would already be like 90% there.
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T
These nacelles look accurate to my eye….
…:yeah, it ooks like a 100% match with the original miniature’s color:
I don’t see the problem. The orange color looks dead-on.
Oh wait; silly me, I was comparing those Tomy nacelles to a toy.
These nacelles look accurate to my eye….
…:yeah, it ooks like a 100% match with the original miniature’s color:
I don’t see the problem. The orange color looks dead-on.
Oh wait; silly me, I was comparing those Tomy nacelles to a toy.
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dbrussee
Well-Known Member
I think that you might be responding to my FB post on TOMY? I asked there for some response to questions, but no feedback yet. In other news, I called TOMY customer service today to request a refund and was told "no". According to their rep, I can not cancel but can return for a refund when it arrives?
I ordered two of these. One for me and one for my brother. He doesn't want it now.
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JiminSTLouis
Master Member
???
Tomy US is part of Tomy International a division of Tomy Japan. At least I think that is how it's works. I would rather of had Tomy Japan make these.......they produce Tomica Limited Vintage diecast cars. It's all part of Tomy.
No. But someone a page back got a response from him. So I'm sure they have it now...
Well they should not have shown such a bad picture for August. Everything looked great up until the last batch of pictures. They could have at least explained why the did not take care of the stuff they said they were going to. So people kind of have a right to be a little upset. My excitement went from 100% down to 10%.
I agree, better to be honest with the customer and set expectations before the actual release...even if that means a lot of refund requests. There will be many who are unhappy but I'm sure there will be others who are ok with it.
Right now, things look very deceptive and dishonest...and I'm sure Tomy would not like the negative impact that will have on their brand reputation.
dbrussee
Well-Known Member
In response to my question if the saucer section is also supported by the display stand (not previously discussed or highlighted in the updates), there is the response from TOMY customer service:
"Hi Dave,
The vertical part of the display stand is only required for long term display.
Best Regards,
Jennifer"
So I guess that the stand(s) both cradle the secondary hull (as we've seen) and then there is an additional piece which supports the lower dome of the primary hull (which was news to me and perhaps others?). This is the default display configuration for the "docked" Enterprise as she normally would appear on-screen.
"Hi Dave,
The vertical part of the display stand is only required for long term display.
Best Regards,
Jennifer"
So I guess that the stand(s) both cradle the secondary hull (as we've seen) and then there is an additional piece which supports the lower dome of the primary hull (which was news to me and perhaps others?). This is the default display configuration for the "docked" Enterprise as she normally would appear on-screen.
In other words, they discovered the single bolt solution may not support the weight of the saucer long term and it was too late in the production process to rectify the problem properly so they re-engineered the display stand instead. This product has gone from excitement to regret very quickly.
