DSC_8652
MP 47 Hound. I skipped this one when it was first announced because I remember the MSRP was ridiculous. The fact there were so many QC and design issues was just icing on the cake, so I was happy to sit on this until a good deal came up.
Well, it did come up - basically about 1/3 the price after you factor in shipping. And of course, I experienced all the highs and lows of ownership.
Hound is a licensed Willys Jeep CJ-3B, or as most of us know it, the Army Jeep. Vehicle mode is nicely done, though I guess because the design of the Jeep hasn't changed tremendously since the 80s, it doesn't quite hit the nostalgia buttons as much as the other ones do.
You can attach a Jerry Can, Spare Wheel, Tail Gun, and a Soft Top to the vehicle mode. Now I'll be honest.. .I can't remember when the soft top was used in the show, and I definitely don't remember Hound ever having a shield.
You also get a small, very well articulated figure of Spike Witwicky... I think he's the one that eventually went on to bond with Fotress Maximus? Either way, not the one that ended up as Arcee's head. The figure can be played with on its own, or you can put it into the drivers seat.
Hound's specialty is holograms, so it is fitting that the set includes a hologram Spike that can be put into the drivers seat or.. you know, other stuff... like I would do.
Transformation into robot mode is kind of where things start to go crazy. The transformation itself isn't terrible, and has that nice balance of straight forward and clever design. the issue is with the design - the doors feature hinged plastic parts that are too weak to withstand the rigors of transformation, and this has been a wide spread issues.
Another wide spread issue is paint chipping - the green plastic on Hound is actually painted and not just flat plastic colour, so basically every surface is a potential paint chipping spot, which isn't that great for a product that has lots of close calls and rubbing as part of the paint process.
Once you get it into robot mode, the articulation isn't bad. I would say it's the same as Trailbreaker. Great feet, knees, waist and so on. Features ab crunch, but has really wonky shoulders. The difference is that if you're willing to have your figure look weird, Hound offers quite a bit of shoulder movement, but like I said he looks WEIRD.
I also seem to have weak elbows on my figure. Not sure if this is a wide spread issue, but the arms will droop if I'm using the gun with the hologram emitter effect or the "shield".
But I will say this. The robot mode is sweet on Hound. I would say that it's probably my second favourite in terms of overall design, next to Inferno. Proportions are great, and even though the shoulder mounted missile is embedded in the transformation, it's not undersized
One other thing that I didn't photograph here, not so much due to the laziness, but rather due to damage is that Hound has a visor that he uses when underwater... yeah.. don't ask. It broke with the previous owner.
DSC_8652
MP 47 Hound. I skipped this one when it was first announced because I remember the MSRP was ridiculous. The fact there were so many QC and design issues was just icing on the cake, so I was happy to sit on this until a good deal came up.
Well, it did come up - basically about 1/3 the price after you factor in shipping. And of course, I experienced all the highs and lows of ownership.
Hound is a licensed Willys Jeep CJ-3B, or as most of us know it, the Army Jeep. Vehicle mode is nicely done, though I guess because the design of the Jeep hasn't changed tremendously since the 80s, it doesn't quite hit the nostalgia buttons as much as the other ones do.
You can attach a Jerry Can, Spare Wheel, Tail Gun, and a Soft Top to the vehicle mode. Now I'll be honest.. .I can't remember when the soft top was used in the show, and I definitely don't remember Hound ever having a shield.
You also get a small, very well articulated figure of Spike Witwicky... I think he's the one that eventually went on to bond with Fotress Maximus? Either way, not the one that ended up as Arcee's head. The figure can be played with on its own, or you can put it into the drivers seat.
Hound's specialty is holograms, so it is fitting that the set includes a hologram Spike that can be put into the drivers seat or.. you know, other stuff... like I would do.
Transformation into robot mode is kind of where things start to go crazy. The transformation itself isn't terrible, and has that nice balance of straight forward and clever design. the issue is with the design - the doors feature hinged plastic parts that are too weak to withstand the rigors of transformation, and this has been a wide spread issues.
Another wide spread issue is paint chipping - the green plastic on Hound is actually painted and not just flat plastic colour, so basically every surface is a potential paint chipping spot, which isn't that great for a product that has lots of close calls and rubbing as part of the paint process.
Once you get it into robot mode, the articulation isn't bad. I would say it's the same as Trailbreaker. Great feet, knees, waist and so on. Features ab crunch, but has really wonky shoulders. The difference is that if you're willing to have your figure look weird, Hound offers quite a bit of shoulder movement, but like I said he looks WEIRD.
I also seem to have weak elbows on my figure. Not sure if this is a wide spread issue, but the arms will droop if I'm using the gun with the hologram emitter effect or the "shield".
But I will say this. The robot mode is sweet on Hound. I would say that it's probably my second favourite in terms of overall design, next to Inferno. Proportions are great, and even though the shoulder mounted missile is embedded in the transformation, it's not undersized
One other thing that I didn't photograph here, not so much due to the laziness, but rather due to damage is that Hound has a visor that he uses when underwater... yeah.. don't ask. It broke with the previous owner.