Factory Entertainment Star Trek: The Next Generation Dustbuster phaser

[goldcylon]

Here are some dimensions for you on my Rod.com and HMS Dustbuster stand combo

The pre-order page list the dimensions as:

Type 2 Dust Buster Phaser -- 8¼ x 3 x 1 3/4” (209 x 76 x 44mm) so.... pretty close. GC

I ordered so dustbuster #3 on the way. I'm sticking with FE they have always treated me right. TBH I was on the fence but the prepay lower price was the deciding factor of many. I don't want to be in the should have would have could have position later. GC

 

[AJK001]

Bit of a sale if that helps. I'm still deciding. It's not may favorite but I am full of regret for not getting the First Contact phaser from MR back in the day.


SAVE: Star Trek TNG Type-2 Dust Buster Phaser Prop Replica

​

​ ​ ​ For a limited time, collectors who order the Dust Buster Phaser from FactoryEnt.com will get an exclusive $50 discount! Offer ends February 15, 2023.

I still regret not getting the MR First Contact Phaser but back then I was only concerned with TOS props.

 

[AnubisGuard]

I still regret not getting the MR First Contact Phaser but back then I was only concerned with TOS props.

I was lucky enough to get the FC phaser as a gift from my parents back in the day, but I had to pass on the tricorder due to being unemployed/underemployed at the time, and hooboy do I regret it.

 

[goldcylon]

I still regret not getting the MR First Contact Phaser but back then I was only concerned with TOS props.

I just picked mine up about 7 years ago an upgraded to SE about 2 years Ago. It was/is a pretty great phaser with excellent electronics and made mostly of metal. Of course I paid a hefty markup. But broke even between the two due to the current prices.

 

[-E-]

These did start shipping two days ago. Anyone expecting one? I have one on order but haven't heard anything yet. Looking forward to pics and video if anyone here gets one.

 

[FastballSpecial]

I'm looking forward to the in hand photos and reviews!

 

[NakedMoleRat]

Probably a bad move on their part to come out of the “big phaser” gate with a Dustbuster offering vs. a Cobrahead or Boomerang.

The Dustbuster has its fans, but it would be a comparatively smaller group that would be willing to shell out $500 for it.

If they fail to stick the landing with the Dustbuster, it’s more likely that the better selling models may never see the light of day.

View attachment 1665565

The dustbuster is my favorite TNG era phaser. No way in the world will they get $500.00 out of me for it.

 

[Caveneau]

I fell for it and bought one. That being said, I'm very, very anxious to see how they turned out.

 

[goldcylon]

I'm looking forward to the in hand photos and reviews!

Ask and you shall receive.

 

[goldcylon]

Dustbuster received and I have too be honest some disappointment. If we can agree to use the HMS/Rod.com kit as the standard to emulate. Then I hate to break the bad news. I have done a side by side comparison and here is my review warts and all. Well....we all now know what the limited edition release of this phaser is....as mine is #289 of 1019. I can't think of any significance in that number. The outer shipper as normal with Factory Entertainment it is just a brown shipper with the edition listed in felt pen.

Opening the box it is well protected with a nice rigid foam insert

Fact Ent bagged the art box which I appreciate and the art box is identical to every TNG prop replica that Fac Ent has been produced to date with one exception.... The Borg queen skull

The format is the same for the instructions for all of Factory Entertainments phasers and background LCARS artwork. I will admit that I like the LCARS presentation.

They (Fact Ent) learned from the cricket phaser display box disaster on the display box edges. So there was no edge film on the display box this time. As such it looked right.

No felt pen edition numbers on the plaques these are stamped with the edition number. I like the display box but I wish they had spent more time on the prop IMHO.

Ok so here it goes... It's undersized and if we used the HMS/Rod.com prop as the standard. It is exceptionally heavy being almost all Metal with the exception of the rubberized grip held in with magnets and the front of the phaser emitter. The color is like a dull flat sparkle grey and surprisingly just does not look right IMHO. The COA states this is a "blending" of multiple versions of the DustBuster from the CBS archIves . When you do that vs directly using a single prop it's never going to look other than an idealized version.

The LED segments are washed out with hyper bright green LEDs vs. the HMS Rod.com example where you can see the individual segments. While indeed it has segments it's completely washed out with a solid green hue. There as less segments and fatter and oblong.

The Fact Ent blue is too bright for my liking in the phaser emitter area

you can really see the undersize issue. It's slight but it's there. The grip is dull and appears Matt

The ergonomic curve of the handle is way off. Also the grip ends are squared off. The emitter segments above are narrower.

Art box is identical to every next gen prop to date other than the Borg queen skull cortex. However I like the art box.

This is IMHO the correct Blue for the front of the phaser vs. the bright blue used

Battery box is good with a on / off switch to save the batteries. The grip is held in with magnets like the Rod.com/HMS phaser.

The sound is ok and there are multiple functions and lights action to include beam width. I bought this to be completist as I did not want to overpay for it later on the secondary market however being honest I like my Rod.com / HMS better. GC

 

[renaissance_man]

Dustbuster received and I have too be honest some disappointment. If we can agree to use the HMS/Rod.com kit as the standard to emulate. Then I hate to break the bad news. I have done a side by side comparison and here is my review warts and all. Well....we all now know what the limited edition release of this phaser is....as mine is #289 of 1019. I can't think of any significance in that number. The outer shipper as normal with Factory Entertainment it is just a brown shipper with the edition listed in felt pen. View attachment 1700608View attachment 1700609

Opening the box it is well protected with a nice rigid foam insert


View attachment 1700610

Fact Ent bagged the art box which I appreciate and the art box is identical to every TNG prop replica that Fac Ent has been produced to date with one exception.... The Borg queen skull

View attachment 1700611View attachment 1700612

The format is the same for the instructions for all of Factory Entertainments phasers and background LCARS artwork. I will admit that I like the LCARS presentation.

View attachment 1700613

They (Fact Ent) learned from the cricket phaser display box disaster on the display box edges. So there was no edge film on the display box this time. As such it looked right.

View attachment 1700614View attachment 1700615

No felt pen edition numbers on the plaques these are stamped with the edition number. I like the display box but I wish they had spent more time on the prop IMHO.

View attachment 1700616

Ok so here it goes... It's undersized and if we used the HMS/Rod.com prop as the standard. It is exceptionally heavy being almost all Metal with the exception of the rubberized grip held in with magnets and the front of the phaser emitter. The color is like a dull flat sparkle grey and surprisingly just does not look right IMHO. The COA states this is a "blending" of multiple versions of the DustBuster from the CBS archIves . When you do that vs directly using a single prop it's never going to look other than an idealized version.

View attachment 1700617

The LED segments are washed out with hyper bright green LEDs vs. the HMS Rod.com example where you can see the individual segments. While indeed it has segments it's completely washed out with a solid green hue. There as less segments and fatter and oblong.

View attachment 1700618

The Fact Ent blue is too bright for my liking in the phaser emitter area

View attachment 1700619

you can really see the undersize issue. It's slight but it's there. The grip is dull and appears Matt

View attachment 1700620

The ergonomic curve of the handle is way off. Also the grip ends are squared off. The emitter segments above are narrower.

View attachment 1700621

Art box is identical to every next gen prop to date other than the Borg queen skull cortex. However I like the art box.

View attachment 1700622View attachment 1700623View attachment 1700624

This is IMHO the correct Blue for the front of the phaser vs. the bright blue used

View attachment 1700625

Battery box is good with a on / off switch to save the batteries. The grip is held in with magnets like the Rod.com/HMS phaser.

View attachment 1700626

The sound is ok and there are multiple functions and lights action to include beam width. I bought this to be completist as I did not want to overpay for it later on the secondary market however being honest I like my Rod.com / HMS better. GC

Thank you for sharing your review, much appreciated.

 

[goldcylon]

Thank you for sharing your review, much appreciated.

Welcome Jamie !

 

[IFA]

Hi GC. The display plaque says "edition 1500" but it is really "1019" ???

 

[goldcylon]

Hi GC. The display plaque says "edition 1500" but it is really "1019" ???

I don't think they reached the full order potential. Look at the brown shipper box apparently the run was modified

 

[IFA]

Yes certainly.....it is weird they didn't make the plaque after !!!

 

[goldcylon]

Yes certainly.....it is weird they didn't make the plaque after !!!

That would have cost them more money to modify the plaques lol. Maybe they will go back to the felt pen
or maybe they can exercise the option to buy the rest of the run. All speculation as who really knows?

 

[Apollo]

Looks like Fact Ent has struck out again

 

[FastballSpecial]

Dustbuster received and I have too be honest some disappointment. If we can agree to use the HMS/Rod.com kit as the standard to emulate. Then I hate to break the bad news. I have done a side by side comparison and here is my review warts and all. Well....we all now know what the limited edition release of this phaser is....as mine is #289 of 1019. I can't think of any significance in that number. The outer shipper as normal with Factory Entertainment it is just a brown shipper with the edition listed in felt pen. View attachment 1700608View attachment 1700609

Opening the box it is well protected with a nice rigid foam insert


View attachment 1700610

Fact Ent bagged the art box which I appreciate and the art box is identical to every TNG prop replica that Fac Ent has been produced to date with one exception.... The Borg queen skull

View attachment 1700611View attachment 1700612

The format is the same for the instructions for all of Factory Entertainments phasers and background LCARS artwork. I will admit that I like the LCARS presentation.

View attachment 1700613

They (Fact Ent) learned from the cricket phaser display box disaster on the display box edges. So there was no edge film on the display box this time. As such it looked right.

View attachment 1700614View attachment 1700615

No felt pen edition numbers on the plaques these are stamped with the edition number. I like the display box but I wish they had spent more time on the prop IMHO.

View attachment 1700616

Ok so here it goes... It's undersized and if we used the HMS/Rod.com prop as the standard. It is exceptionally heavy being almost all Metal with the exception of the rubberized grip held in with magnets and the front of the phaser emitter. The color is like a dull flat sparkle grey and surprisingly just does not look right IMHO. The COA states this is a "blending" of multiple versions of the DustBuster from the CBS archIves . When you do that vs directly using a single prop it's never going to look other than an idealized version.

View attachment 1700617

The LED segments are washed out with hyper bright green LEDs vs. the HMS Rod.com example where you can see the individual segments. While indeed it has segments it's completely washed out with a solid green hue. There as less segments and fatter and oblong.

View attachment 1700618

The Fact Ent blue is too bright for my liking in the phaser emitter area

View attachment 1700619

you can really see the undersize issue. It's slight but it's there. The grip is dull and appears Matt

View attachment 1700620

The ergonomic curve of the handle is way off. Also the grip ends are squared off. The emitter segments above are narrower.

View attachment 1700621

Art box is identical to every next gen prop to date other than the Borg queen skull cortex. However I like the art box.

View attachment 1700622View attachment 1700623View attachment 1700624

This is IMHO the correct Blue for the front of the phaser vs. the bright blue used

View attachment 1700625

Battery box is good with a on / off switch to save the batteries. The grip is held in with magnets like the Rod.com/HMS phaser.

View attachment 1700626

The sound is ok and there are multiple functions and lights action to include beam width. I bought this to be completist as I did not want to overpay for it later on the secondary market however being honest I like my Rod.com / HMS better. GC

Wow I'm surprised it's undersized of all things.

 

[masterjedi322]

Dustbuster received and I have too be honest some disappointment. If we can agree to use the HMS/Rod.com kit as the standard to emulate. Then I hate to break the bad news. I have done a side by side comparison and here is my review warts and all. Well....we all now know what the limited edition release of this phaser is....as mine is #289 of 1019. I can't think of any significance in that number. The outer shipper as normal with Factory Entertainment it is just a brown shipper with the edition listed in felt pen. View attachment 1700608View attachment 1700609

Opening the box it is well protected with a nice rigid foam insert


View attachment 1700610

Fact Ent bagged the art box which I appreciate and the art box is identical to every TNG prop replica that Fac Ent has been produced to date with one exception.... The Borg queen skull

View attachment 1700611View attachment 1700612

The format is the same for the instructions for all of Factory Entertainments phasers and background LCARS artwork. I will admit that I like the LCARS presentation.

View attachment 1700613

They (Fact Ent) learned from the cricket phaser display box disaster on the display box edges. So there was no edge film on the display box this time. As such it looked right.

View attachment 1700614View attachment 1700615

No felt pen edition numbers on the plaques these are stamped with the edition number. I like the display box but I wish they had spent more time on the prop IMHO.

View attachment 1700616

Ok so here it goes... It's undersized and if we used the HMS/Rod.com prop as the standard. It is exceptionally heavy being almost all Metal with the exception of the rubberized grip held in with magnets and the front of the phaser emitter. The color is like a dull flat sparkle grey and surprisingly just does not look right IMHO. The COA states this is a "blending" of multiple versions of the DustBuster from the CBS archIves . When you do that vs directly using a single prop it's never going to look other than an idealized version.

View attachment 1700617

The LED segments are washed out with hyper bright green LEDs vs. the HMS Rod.com example where you can see the individual segments. While indeed it has segments it's completely washed out with a solid green hue. There as less segments and fatter and oblong.

View attachment 1700618

The Fact Ent blue is too bright for my liking in the phaser emitter area

View attachment 1700619

you can really see the undersize issue. It's slight but it's there. The grip is dull and appears Matt

View attachment 1700620

The ergonomic curve of the handle is way off. Also the grip ends are squared off. The emitter segments above are narrower.

View attachment 1700621

Art box is identical to every next gen prop to date other than the Borg queen skull cortex. However I like the art box.

View attachment 1700622View attachment 1700623View attachment 1700624

This is IMHO the correct Blue for the front of the phaser vs. the bright blue used

View attachment 1700625

Battery box is good with a on / off switch to save the batteries. The grip is held in with magnets like the Rod.com/HMS phaser.

View attachment 1700626

The sound is ok and there are multiple functions and lights action to include beam width. I bought this to be completist as I did not want to overpay for it later on the secondary market however being honest I like my Rod.com / HMS better. GC

Thanks for the photos and thorough review!

Disappointing that they got the size so far off…especially when there are so many references out there! Seems to becoming a recurring theme with their TNG line, sadly enough…

While I still hold out hope for a cobra head or a Mark VII tricorder, I am worried that the accuracy of those replicas could be in jeopardy…

Sean

 

[-E-]

Thanks for sharing, goldcylon. Contemplating just canceling my order since they haven't shipped to me yet.