There I was, worried about whether or not the Master Grade F91’s articulation would hinder it’s ability to pose. As it turns out, I never got far enough to really find out.
Seriously, this photo shoot was a disaster. Thankfully nothing broke, but it took me almost an hour to get less than twenty shots. I ended up stopping out of fear that I would break something if I spent any more time.
There were three main problems I faced:
Action Base Adapter
The Master Grade F91 uses a custom Action Base Adapter. This is not uncommon, but unfortunately it uses the worst kind:
That’s right - we’re supposed to mount a large(ish), relatively heavy Master Grade to this small clippy-type adapter.
It just doesn’t create a stable connection. The model can and will fall off the base if you even so much as touch it.
Too Big
For final display purposes, I planned on putting the F91 on an Action Base 1, but for the photoshoot I originally intended to use a smaller Action Base 2. Unfortunately that was not possible, since the custom Action Base adapter only fits on AB1’s and AB4’s.
Suffice to say that the model and the base just barely fit in my lightbox, and it was impossible to photograph them without the ceiling of the lightbox showing up in the shot.
Not Sturdy
It’s almost comical how many pieces fell off this model while posing. The shield, the arm, parts of the leg armor, and the entire backpack all came off multiple times. The reason I got so few shots is because I spent so much time adjusting limbs, then reattaching them (and then readjusting, and reattaching …)
Eventually I just gave up. It’s been weeks since I finished this build, and in that time I had neither the energy or the willpower to do this photoshoot. So of course it happens that on the day that I finally found some motivation, I wound up with less than two dozen shots by bedtime, despite staying up late on a work night. It was demoralizing, and I didn’t feel like going through the same experience on a second or third night of photography.
So. Here is what’s left of my photos. Sorry that they’re not terribly great, but them’s the breaks. I’ll sprinkle in some notes and observations along the way.
One of the biggest failures of this model kit is the design of its (and general lack of) holding hands. For instance, it has no open palm hands, despite the fact that open hands are incredibly expressive and versatile. There are certain poses that just don’t look right with closed fists (such as the one above).
The hands are also weirdly engineered. On the trigger finger hand, for example, the trigger finger itself is molded on the same piece of plastic as the rest of the fingers, which makes it very difficult to slot in a weapon. Additionally, the way in which the fingers plug into the hand is very weird and not very stable.
Right: The fingers plug into the hand from the side, and they don’t tend to stay there.
Here’s a tip - when using the beam caster, you absolutely must move the grip forward as much as possible, otherwise it can’t hold onto it properly. Not a big deal, just something to keep in mind.
Based on the limited number of photos I got using the Action Base, it seems as if the leg articulation isn’t as much of a liability as I initially thought it would be. For example, I learned that the feet can point downward, so middair poses don’t have to look awkward.
At the same time, I learned that the limited articulation in the arms is a noticeable liability. Between their lack or range, and their propensity to fall apart, certain actions poses ranged from difficult to impossible to pull off. Case in point: I fully admit that at no point was I able to get the F91 to hold onto its VSBR’s properly.
I had so many issues with the shielding popping off that this is literally the only standing pose I shot where it’s equipped:
Here’s a shot with the face open and a VSBR deployed. Despite the face parts being so small and delicate, they gave me the least amount of trouble. Go figure.
Finally, here are a few super basic shots with the beam rifle:
And that’s pretty much it. After I was done, I realized that I didn’t take any photos with the shoulder wings or the leg vents open. Maybe I’ll go back and try that some other day, but for now I’m going to cut my losses.
I have a few more things to say about this build, this model, and about Master Grades in general, but I think those thoughts are best left for one more (truly final) post.