eFX TIE fighter at SDCC

[jkno]

No offense intended or directed, but it peeves me when people with completely valid reasons for expressing discontent and dissatisfaction with a company and their products waiver in their justified criticism. It happens a lot with Efx...."I can't believe I've paid this much and waited this long to get (insert product here) and it has A,B,C,D, and E wrong with it. Unbelievable! But don't get me wrong...it's a nice product and they've done a great job.." COMPLETELY baffles me.

The ship does look quite nice. BUT, when/if you botch the last 10% of the job it rather detracts from the enjoyment of 100% of the finished product and the experience. It it were a one off situation it would be SLIGHTLY easier to let sllide. I say slightly because after more than two years there was AMPLE time to make sure that the wings fit properly and the decals were correctly placed. But this has happened before with other products and given the scope of work that went into this item, these seem relatively minor issues to catch and correct without a tremendous investment of man hours. Meaning, it doesn't take a complete re-engineering of the product.

This is also what happens as a result of deaing with Chinese factories. They're half a wordl away with no on-site quality control to ensure that the little things are done as well as the big things, because it is the little things that make it possible for the wings to go on properly.

I wish the company no ill fortune. I just want them, as a paying customer, to deliver on their product promises without these kind of quality issues. So the criticism is not only valid, but after how many product debacles now?...quite necessary because the pattern keeps repeating itself. Accountability matters. But as consumers, the blame has begun to rest on us, too. We keep lining up to pay good money to be delivered imperfect product and appear to be "grateful" for the opportunity. After this much time and this many items following the same trend, I don't understand that mindset. When a company doesn't deliver what it promises in a timely fashion and free of quality issues, holding them accountable for that is your right.

I don't want to see any company fail. But this is unacceptable to me and it should be to anyone. This is my last EfX product unless they resolve their quality issues and revisit their ordering policies. Having this much money on the hook after all this time with no out when things start to take a turn toward the disappointing doesn't sit well and it shouldn't with anyone. Do it right or don't do it.

^ Totally agree with this post.

BTW if talking about taking it apart (if you don't like the hypothetical reselling or moving in different house), what if you assembled one wing and then realize the other simply cannot be put together. Or some other part is wrong (like Turrican's interior part) or electronics don't work etc. What to do then, ship it like that back to eFX? You need to disassemble it to ship it back to eFX.

This product may be a lot less than a fan made item, but that doesn't excuse bad QC. This is not a $10 Hasbro action figure. Quite simple.

 

[Turrican]

Today i got my replacement from Toypalce.
Super well packed, all parts on the cockpit are undamaged, nothing is missing.
On that cockpit , the wings fit perfect.

So... all is fine now.
THX Toypalace to your great service.

 

[jkno]

Today i got my replacement from Toypalce.
Super well packed, all parts on the cockpit are undamaged, nothing is missing.
On that cockpit , the wings fit perfect.

So... all is fine now.
THX Toypalace to your great service.

Congrats my friend!! :thumbsup Good to hear everything is fine in the end! Wish there wasn't the need for this though.

 

[Jedi-72]

Efx this ... Efx that.... You wanna know the reason there is small defects. See the pix below. They are NOT modelers or even fans. Probably the same factory they make the rubber dog ****. It is a production line. Even resin kits warp and there is a shed load of work to do. Heck I'd love one of these in kit form. Would be a breeze compared to the work I'd have to do on a garage kit. For the price as mentioned above it is a bargain. An absolute steal. Even if you have to do a little trimming. As for taking it apart for re sale? Where did efx ever say it comes apart so you can re-sell it? That is not their problem. They sold you the best replica tie fighter to date period! You wanna have a crack at a resin one? Be my guest.. I'll see you in a month when it's finished.

Exactly right! They're NOT modelers, which can be problematic when employing them to BUILD A MODEL! And a high-end collectible one at that:lol Kind of proves the point.

But again, making the argument that, "If you saw where these things are made and who is making them, you'd be amazed that they turn out half way decent at all." is a baaaaad argument to try and make. I know you don't work for Efx, but that's not how you handle these kinds of issues. As a customer, that's not MY problem. That's THEIR problem. All a customer wants is what they paid for and for it to be free of issues. That's the basic contract between a customer and a business. The hows, whys and whos should be invisible to the paying customer. Not their problem.

And again, given how much of this piece looks to have been done well, the things that have been issues amount to carlessness in checking the little details. The heavy lifting seems to have been done pretty well. So, to have the tough stuff done so well, it makes it THAT much more annoying that decals couldn't be put on properly. Those "non-modelers" did a pretty good job on the building. The stumble was on the finishing. And working off of flipped reference material, that means the decal problem isn't the fault of the builders. Somebody else screwed that up and the builders simply followed the templates they were given. That sounds more like an Efx issue as opposed to a builder one.

And you're right about building a kit. But a month spent building one would still be two years and three months quicker than Efx delivered.

 

[Runner]

Yeah but eFX knew of these issues before hand. Why not be forthcoming and let everyone know that they would need to sand down the wing post a little before trying to screw it together. Maybe would have saved me from stripping my screw to the point that I cant mount the wing correctly anymore!

And people suggesting that I contact Bryan as he is a stand up guy and will take care of it? He has seen fit to completely ignore any attempts at getting this straightened out.

Efx this ... Efx that.... You wanna know the reason there is small defects. See the pix below. They are NOT modelers or even fans. Probably the same factory they make the rubber dog ****. It is a production line. Even resin kits warp and there is a shed load of work to do. Heck I'd love one of these in kit form. Would be a breeze compared to the work I'd have to do on a garage kit. For the price as mentioned above it is a bargain. An absolute steal. Even if you have to do a little trimming. As for taking it apart for re sale? Where did efx ever say it comes apart so you can re-sell it? That is not their problem. They sold you the best replica tie fighter to date period! You wanna have a crack at a resin one? Be my guest.. I'll see you in a month when it's finished.

 

[jedimaster]

I guess maybe I'm just looking at this from a modelers point of view and not a collectors point of view. To me they are some easy fixes but I understand for those that can't.

 

[hugescale]

I have checked my ties today:
Perfect? Almost. But wow, what a great replica!

To everybody involved in making that fantastic model:
THANK YOU VERY VERY VERY MUCH !!! You have done an outstanding job !

Two things make me thoughtful:
- When will there be a studio scale Darth Vader´s tie available to fill the gap between my ties?
- With well below 700 models sold, will there be a chance to see the tie-interceptor?

 

[moffeaton]

I am pretty picky. Ask Neisen or Salzo about "undercuts and Jason Eaton's opinions", some time. I just got my EFX TIE - it is KILLER. For something that was made en masse, it IS as good as it gets, especially for the price they are selling it for. The TIE I build with hero wingstars (when Steve makes them available) will have flaws, but in different ways from this one (because it will be hand made). Sure, it may be closer to the ILM TIE and it may have gobs of "soul" :lol, but this one is AMAZING and clean clean clean.

 

[Zenwalker]

I love the eFX TIE!

Enjoy Jason! I know you guys put a lot of hard work into this thing.

Kind of regretting I didn't purchase a second one.

 

[jkno]

John Dykstra signed plaque - this was one of the fastest TTM's I ever had in my life, he also returned the $15 cash I included

I already have this autographed photo from him I got a couple years ago:

 

[Mois]

I guess maybe I'm just looking at this from a modelers point of view and not a collectors point of view. To me they are some easy fixes but I understand for those that can't.

Exactly. This is a mass market product, the same as an ipod or anything else; it isn't a custom built. Issues at the manufacturing end have nothing to do with the consumer.

As a modeller, $1000 seems like a bargain. As a collector, $1000 is a monstrous amount of money, and the "near enough's, good enough" finish on most eFX products of late, is not acceptable.

I can see both sides of the coin, but as someone who owns all the MR & eFX SS's / replicas, I can tell you when the "average Joe" comes to my house and hears some of the prices these things cost, they think I'm smoking some serious drugs. To anyone NOT in the know, these are just "plastic toys" and $1000 goes a LOOOOOOOONG way in the "real world" toward things that have a far more quantifiable value.

So at the end of the day, each to their own. But regardless, eFX's QC and customer service leaves something to be desired.

 

[Mois]

But saying all that...

I LOVE THE TIE!

The only way you notice the "defects" on mine is to look at it under a microscope.

As a stand-alone show piece, it's second only to the MR Falcon.

 

[jedimaster]

Wow... If this was a true replica of the filming miniature you guys would have a fit. ILM had no QC either. Half of the filming miniatures were just slapped together, full of badly cast pieces full of air bubbles and slapped up paint jobs.

And they call us rivet counters..... In the collectors world close enough is good enough. There is not one replica that is 100% accurate to a filming miniature so. Close enough is ok?

 

[ralphee]

Yeah but ILM weren't setting up a retail shop for filming replicas either Simon eh?
Close enough, is good enough, well, in terms off accuracy, sometimes, that has to do, depends on ref, time spent researching, funds allowance too in some cases......but close enough on quality, no, thats not good, not at all.

It doesn't matter what kind of bargain this model is, compared to real wold costs of scratchbuilding it from actual donors, if the quality isn't up to par, its not good business.

Dont get me wrong, its a lovely model, now its out there, I'm very impressed, all you guys have shared some great pics and insights, but with ANY product, QC has to count for something.

There is also a big difference, in models built for a 3 second camera pass, and the model that sits in a study to be admired by all who may pass by, my two cents anyhow.

lee

 

[DARKSIDE72]

My model made it to me today! I'm humbled , it's a beauty. Looks like it was taken right off a shelf in the archives! It really is a museum quality replica.

Review:
Mine went together flawlessly. The wing caps are tight but I don't plan on ever disassembling it. The paint/color is awesome (thanks Gene!) The decals look terrific (thanks Jason!) The detail is crisp and clean, looks like the individual parts were just planted on. The light up engines are a neat plus, and well thought out. The base is super heavy and well engineered. EFX you did a great job!

I'm trying to remember when we first started id'ing parts on the tie...8-10 years ago:wacko Seems so long ago...

A personal shout out and thanks to Steve. All those years paid off bro:cheers You have always been dedicated to bring this model to fruition and worked damn hard to perfect it over the years. You made it happen!

A big thank you to all of you who helped and continue to help make these props a reality! YOU KNOW who you are! You guys are awesome!

Jamie

 

[Mois]

Wow... If this was a true replica of the filming miniature you guys would have a fit. ILM had no QC either. Half of the filming miniatures were just slapped together, full of badly cast pieces full of air bubbles and slapped up paint jobs.

And they call us rivet counters..... In the collectors world close enough is good enough. There is not one replica that is 100% accurate to a filming miniature so. Close enough is ok?

I wasn't saying any replica is 100% screen accurate (and I agree, they never will be). I'm talking about QC of a product... that's all.

If parts are meant to fit together, make them fit. If decals have been put on reversed due to poor QC, that's NOT good enough.

What if Apple sent out their iPods with the print reversed? They'd be recalled and fixed (and please don't get on the eFX is a small company, so cut them some slack, bandwagon. There's thousands of small companies that, in fact, do it better than the larger ones due to their desire to make a stand-out product).

A prop (or custom) is an entirely different beast.

 

[imaginager]

Shall we start discussing the too small eFX pylon diameter, or the controversy regarding the actual size of the TIE ball? LOL.

Despite all the complaints I've read about in this thread, the replica I received from eFX is amazing. I'd rather they not have used printed parts, and that the canopy was the correct size, but it's a gorgeous model.

I'd still love to build a Neisen hero, when all is said and done. And, maybe, with a bit more coaxing, I can convince Julien to finish his replica...

 

[DARKSIDE72]

I wasn't saying any replica is 100% screen accurate (and I agree, they never will be). I'm talking about QC of a product... that's all.

If parts are meant to fit together, make them fit. If decals have been put on reversed due to poor QC, that's NOT good enough.

What if Apple sent out their iPods with the print reversed? They'd be recalled and fixed (and please don't get on the eFX is a small company, so cut them some slack, bandwagon. There's thousands of small companies that, in fact, do it better than the larger ones due to their desire to make a stand-out product).

A prop (or custom) is an entirely different beast.

You're a troll and need to GO AWAY.

 

[DARKSIDE72]

Shall we start discussing the too small eFX pylon diameter, or the controversy regarding the actual size of the TIE ball? LOL.

Despite all the complaints I've read about in this thread, the replica I received from eFX is amazing. I'd rather they not have used printed parts, and that the canopy was the correct size, but it's a gorgeous model.

I'd still love to build a Neisen hero, when all is said and done. And, maybe, with a bit more coaxing, I can convince Julien to finish his replica...

So what is you're point?

 

[DARKSIDE72]

I'd love to see any resin monkey build this particular model scratched for under 1G...

Imaginere says he'd love to build a Neisen hero... This is the Neisen hero...
If you buy a kit add your own coolshade this is as close as you will ever get to the ILM model. Damn I can't wait until this yea at wonderfest...