Post by Zoidstar on Jul 13, 2011 22:07:21 GMT -5
Long time, no see! Time for another quick Zoids review, this time we have a real rarity: OJR Descat! Now, I was going to do a full build review like with Madthunder, but there really wasn't much to the build. More on that a bit later.
The Descat is one of my favorite cat Zoids. It's fast and nearly unbeatable with its laser-reflecting Ice Armor and the BFG it has tucked away in its back. The weapon is what makes this Zoid unique, as it uses a separate small wind-up type motor to work. It is also unique, as it is arguably the only weapon in Battle Story canon that boasts power enough to take down a King G, but unfortunately we will never know whether or not that detail is true or not, due to that freak meteor shower and, well, you all know the story.
The Descat is truly an underrated model. Sure, it's a bit blocky looking and has single-piece legs like its Grade-up cousins and doesn't even have a working Grade-up port to make up for it, but it does have the sole privilege of being the only Zoid with two motors, and the only Zoid that has a Grade-up port for a power switch (Even though its not really a Grade-up port...). That's another small gripe about the kit; that switch may be bulky, but it moves a bit too easily. As in a slight bump and off it goes! It is definitely a Zoid I wouldn't recommend leaving batteries in (Though I highly recommend you NEVER leave batteries in your Zoids due to corrosion!).
Aside from the kit, you get a small, yet nicely designed instruction sheet and the OJR mini-poster with a list of Zoids available at that time and a nice pic of King G. The kit also has the basic OJR Grade-up sticker sheet. The only thing that really caught my eye were the "Dark Army" stickers. Those and the Guylos emblems, but that's already my favorite of the three faction emblems. I do have a scan of the stickers if anyone is interested. I did plan on posting it, but for some reason Photobucket freaked out when I tried to upload it.
The build is very short, but very satisfying. A word of caution when assembling the motor, however. The wind-up motor needs to be wound before it is attached to the body. That should explain why some people have been having trouble with the gun's mechanism not working. It's also the most difficult part of the build, as the motor doesn't really have any knob that you can hold to keep it from going. I took the gun apart at least eight times, which is not an easy task. The two halves for the gun fit together really tightly, making them hard to pull apart. And the clips that hold the gun arms to the body aren't the thickest. (Think of Gungy's wing clips.) But once you have the kit together, and the gun properly wound, assembled, and attached to the Descat, he looks really nice.
It doesn't really have a whole lot of detail, so the stickers really do it justice. The kit also has that darker silver chrome like Gungy has.
Right side.
With the Gravity Cannon deployed. Note that when you put the cannon back down, you have to shut the side flaps first because they catch on the arms to keep them from flying open and making the cannon impossible to close properly. Also, be careful with the spring used in the body flaps as it is very thin and can both break and get lost easily. However, it is an ingenious way to have the flaps open.
A closeup look at the cannon. It has quite a bit of detail.
Oops! I forgot to put the Grade-up bar on in the earlier pics, but I fixed that problem! Even though it isn't a Grade-up Zoid, DON'T FORGET TO PUT THAT BAR ON!!!!!!
A look at the cockpit. It is typical Grade-up styled blah without any details whatsoever. I wish they would have at least chromed it. My least favorite part of the Descat.
When the Zoid is turned on, it simply walks forward chomping its jaws. The mechanism that it uses for the jaws is a bit disappointing as well. It's just a small lever that pushes the jaw closed from a deep cavity in the bottom of it. I would have been satisfied with a jaw that could be opened and closed manually. Also, a small switch on the back (that you build yourself almost Grade-up style) can be pressed to deploy the cannon.
Pros:
-Overall design. Not a big fan of HMMs, but would look REALLY nice as an HMM.
-Ingenious engineering, especially on the Gravity Cannon.
-Walks at a good pace for one of the fastest Zoids.
Cons:
-One-piece legs
-Cockpit design
-Pre-built motor. My favorite part of the Grade-ups....
-Hella rare, and no reissue in sight!
All in all, the kit gets a 4 out of 5 from me. While its great for an avid collector such as myself,I would advise the casual Zoider to avoid this kit, since it often fetches high prices when found and you don't really get much for what you pay for. I was lucky enough to find mine at a great price while looking for junked Zoid lots on eBay. (I mostly found those stupid T-Zoid golf clubs that come up every time you search "zoid" on eBay. And I'm not a fan of golf...) Anyway, I do plan on making a short video review on this guy, and reviewing all of my Zoid models the same way and posting them on YouTube, as there is an extremely disturbing lack of reviews for Zoids on there, and my YouTube channel has just been sitting around, unused, and I thought I would do something with it. So there you have it, and I'll post a link to the video review as soon as I make it and get it uploaded.
~KG24
The Descat is one of my favorite cat Zoids. It's fast and nearly unbeatable with its laser-reflecting Ice Armor and the BFG it has tucked away in its back. The weapon is what makes this Zoid unique, as it uses a separate small wind-up type motor to work. It is also unique, as it is arguably the only weapon in Battle Story canon that boasts power enough to take down a King G, but unfortunately we will never know whether or not that detail is true or not, due to that freak meteor shower and, well, you all know the story.
The Descat is truly an underrated model. Sure, it's a bit blocky looking and has single-piece legs like its Grade-up cousins and doesn't even have a working Grade-up port to make up for it, but it does have the sole privilege of being the only Zoid with two motors, and the only Zoid that has a Grade-up port for a power switch (Even though its not really a Grade-up port...). That's another small gripe about the kit; that switch may be bulky, but it moves a bit too easily. As in a slight bump and off it goes! It is definitely a Zoid I wouldn't recommend leaving batteries in (Though I highly recommend you NEVER leave batteries in your Zoids due to corrosion!).
Aside from the kit, you get a small, yet nicely designed instruction sheet and the OJR mini-poster with a list of Zoids available at that time and a nice pic of King G. The kit also has the basic OJR Grade-up sticker sheet. The only thing that really caught my eye were the "Dark Army" stickers. Those and the Guylos emblems, but that's already my favorite of the three faction emblems. I do have a scan of the stickers if anyone is interested. I did plan on posting it, but for some reason Photobucket freaked out when I tried to upload it.
The build is very short, but very satisfying. A word of caution when assembling the motor, however. The wind-up motor needs to be wound before it is attached to the body. That should explain why some people have been having trouble with the gun's mechanism not working. It's also the most difficult part of the build, as the motor doesn't really have any knob that you can hold to keep it from going. I took the gun apart at least eight times, which is not an easy task. The two halves for the gun fit together really tightly, making them hard to pull apart. And the clips that hold the gun arms to the body aren't the thickest. (Think of Gungy's wing clips.) But once you have the kit together, and the gun properly wound, assembled, and attached to the Descat, he looks really nice.
It doesn't really have a whole lot of detail, so the stickers really do it justice. The kit also has that darker silver chrome like Gungy has.
Right side.
With the Gravity Cannon deployed. Note that when you put the cannon back down, you have to shut the side flaps first because they catch on the arms to keep them from flying open and making the cannon impossible to close properly. Also, be careful with the spring used in the body flaps as it is very thin and can both break and get lost easily. However, it is an ingenious way to have the flaps open.
A closeup look at the cannon. It has quite a bit of detail.
Oops! I forgot to put the Grade-up bar on in the earlier pics, but I fixed that problem! Even though it isn't a Grade-up Zoid, DON'T FORGET TO PUT THAT BAR ON!!!!!!
A look at the cockpit. It is typical Grade-up styled blah without any details whatsoever. I wish they would have at least chromed it. My least favorite part of the Descat.
When the Zoid is turned on, it simply walks forward chomping its jaws. The mechanism that it uses for the jaws is a bit disappointing as well. It's just a small lever that pushes the jaw closed from a deep cavity in the bottom of it. I would have been satisfied with a jaw that could be opened and closed manually. Also, a small switch on the back (that you build yourself almost Grade-up style) can be pressed to deploy the cannon.
Pros:
-Overall design. Not a big fan of HMMs, but would look REALLY nice as an HMM.
-Ingenious engineering, especially on the Gravity Cannon.
-Walks at a good pace for one of the fastest Zoids.
Cons:
-One-piece legs
-Cockpit design
-Pre-built motor. My favorite part of the Grade-ups....
-Hella rare, and no reissue in sight!
All in all, the kit gets a 4 out of 5 from me. While its great for an avid collector such as myself,I would advise the casual Zoider to avoid this kit, since it often fetches high prices when found and you don't really get much for what you pay for. I was lucky enough to find mine at a great price while looking for junked Zoid lots on eBay. (I mostly found those stupid T-Zoid golf clubs that come up every time you search "zoid" on eBay. And I'm not a fan of golf...) Anyway, I do plan on making a short video review on this guy, and reviewing all of my Zoid models the same way and posting them on YouTube, as there is an extremely disturbing lack of reviews for Zoids on there, and my YouTube channel has just been sitting around, unused, and I thought I would do something with it. So there you have it, and I'll post a link to the video review as soon as I make it and get it uploaded.
~KG24
