G.I. Joe Classified Series

FuzzyBlueDemon said:
I always liked that Storm Shadow, BUT I didn't grow up with GI Joe really, so I'm not offput by discrepancies from the original figure the way someone who had him as a kid might be
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The funny thing is I DID grow up with Joe and I'm always out for new iterations and looks. With these long lived properties, you gotta take a chance every so often. Like TMNT, I always liked how the bring forth a new versions that stayed true, but brought a little something different. 2012 TMNT, awesome. 2018 TMNT, not so much, but I wasn't the target. Each generation of kids gets their version. Some work, some don't, but at least they tried to do something fresh.

Back to Joe, along with deepcuts (Icecream Soldier) and fan favorites (Iron Grenadier Destro), I would't mind seeing versions inspired by the various 3 3/4 lines (didn't really collect too many of those), and some never-befores from various media (Female Night Raven Pilot).
 
Y'know, neither of the two Storm Shadow alternate costumes bothered me much, but I think that's because I got two dud classic Storm Shadows with locked/frozen hips and I was just happy to have versions of him that didn't require copious amounts of heat and shock oil to make work. I think I was so frustrated I couldn't get a non-dud copy of my favorite version that I was like FINE, I'll just use the OTHER one. (Running gag over on the other forums that I'm a damned fool for sticking with Classified as long as I did because of how much bad luck I had with their hips being stuck.)
 
That's why I think of you every time I open a Classified figure, wondering if this is time I get Docsilenced.
 
Ru1977 said:
That's why I think of you every time I open a Classified figure, wondering if this is time I get Docsilenced.
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I got one single Viper that didn't need shock oil. One. Literally my only complaint about this line is I was cursed with their right hip joints.
 
Oh those hips. I still remember all the discussions about sanding the hip nubs from the Fwoosh. I'm glad I don't have to do that anymore, a few figures ended up too loose from just the tiniest amount of overwork.

An aside, I recently picked up Elite 117 Rhea Ripley and she fits in great with Classified. I don't normally mix Classified with other figs but she might have a permanent place in the 'noks. Here she is with two of my favorite Classified figures. Baseball bat is from ML Riders Punisher:
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She's a must for fans of muscle gals and The Crow! Happy Easter :)
 
I've been eyeballing her for the exact same reason. I mean, I eyeball her anyway for various reasons, but she screams 'Nok.
 
Ru1977 said:
I think that's entirely fair. Your use of 'cursed' doesn't seem to be an exaggeration or hyperbole.
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I mean, at like, a 33% failure rate, it was either cursed or I was too dumb to quit.

I'm actually super looking forward to a new Mindbender cos the exclusive was one of the ones I couldn't fix. I reckon I'll put the Vintage version in with the extra bibs and bobs the exclusive one came with and just put the old one in storage.
 
I wanna get my hands on the cursed DocSilence figures. Maybe it was a you thing! I’ve never (knock on wood) had stuck joints on Classified figures.
 
I probably get stiff ones here and there, uh huh huh. But the first ever classified I got was Snake Eyes, the first visor one. And he was my only classified for ages because I was working all the joints (uh huh huh) after first opening him and one of the ankles was REALLY stuck and I ended up snapping it off.

I eventually got a replacement from one of the guys on eBay that sells all his figures in pieces, then later tried my luck with the stom.shadow then still waited a while before diving in head first last year. I considered selling the two I had then went another way heh. But between that Snake Eyes ankle and the Docsilence curse, I was wary.
 
Washing my figures (20-30 second hot dish soap water soak, followed by lightly testing the joints, cold rinse, drying via air blower gun) has really helped with tight joints. Although some have been stuck by fused plastic and needed scalpel surgery. Sometimes they need to be frozen and then just force the joint. Sometimes it's just not fixable, but generally-speaking, there's a solution.

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Toy enjoyer problems. I also recommend investing in a heat gun, I bought this one:
Three years ago and it still works like a charm when joints feel tight, or even sometimes swapping heads or hands just to be safe. If you have NECA figures, this thing pays for itself in one Haulathon lol!
 
Off the top of my head, the only Snake Eyes who gave me trouble was the one from the two-pack with gray Timber. Every standard Viper, most BATS, Doctor Mindbender, the first Zartan was dicey but heat fixed him (Retro was fine), DESTRO (I had terrible luck with Destro til I bought one used, I eventually did get a perfect one, which is my favorite figure), the first Firefly (retro was a lil loose but I don't mind a little loose vs. stuck), the first Stalker (Retro was fine). The BATS and Vipers were so common that it makes my luck feel worse because I kept making the same mistake over and over again.

Could not find a Lady Jaye who had both functional elbows AND functional hips, and Cover Girl's right arm liked to just fall out of the socket. So did Zatana but I was able fix both of those.

That being said, it's been a few years since my bad luck run so I think they've fixed a lot of these issues.

Vicious, I may go back and do the soap and hot water trick on the BATS and Vipers. I did hot water and shock oil and it would temporarily help but eventually go back to stuck if I left hem along for too long.
 
docsilence said:
Vicious, I may go back and do the soap and hot water trick on the BATS and Vipers. I did hot water and shock oil and it would temporarily help but eventually go back to stuck if I left hem along for too long.
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If you're talking about the legs at the hips being too tight to move, you might need to sand the nubs a bit. Heat and pop the leg off and gently sand the bumps (trying to avoid the one on the end opposite the hip rod or your figure will do the splits), clean and test often. I personally find that often the soft plastics used on these figures causes shock oil to make articulation less smooth but YMMV. I also like to do little leg circles before going any direction when posing these figures, like most of us should be doing IRL. Starting with small circles, moving up to bigger, and then placing the leg where I want it. Legs going straight forward can put a lot of pressure on the hip rods if they are twisting. Newer figures have been better in this regard but it's still a good practice in both toys and being an old person.
 
Docsilence, i know you don't have time or creativity to waste this way, but you should do a blog or something on all this. No kidding, it's remarkable.
 
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