Safari Ltd - new for 2014

[amargasaurus cazaui]

First off, her name is Forest Rogers, not "Forrest Rodgers"

Frankly, the late DeForest Kelly could probably have sculpted a better theropod than Forest Rodgers.   
 

I have been speaking with Forest a bit lately and disussing some of the issues that people are raising with the Carnegie pieces. I invited her to the forum and she has indicated she is crushed with work at the moment but agreed to visit the forum towards the end of december to review some of the input being given, so I think you all just might get a chance to ask her your questions directly yourselves. One thing I will state she did tell me....regarding the tripod pose versus large feet debate. It is neither her nor Carnegie making this choice, this is being dictated by Safari. Much like was implied, it has nothing to do with her abilities or decisions. She herself is just as annoyed about the decision to pose the animals in the three point stance we have come to recognize. She did state that an answer has apparently been found for the problem, but did not state what it was, so I would think change is coming in that direction.

[CityRaptor]

Ha! I knew it!

I wonder what the solution will be, given that Safari does not want to add bases.

Also looking forward to "meet" her at the forum.

[tyrantqueen]

I have been speaking with Forest a bit lately and disussing some of the issues that people are raising with the Carnegie pieces. I invited her to the forum and she has indicated she is crushed with work at the moment but agreed to visit the forum towards the end of december to review some of the input being given, so I think you all just might get a chance to ask her your questions directly yourselves. One thing I will state she did tell me....regarding the tripod pose versus large feet debate. It is neither her nor Carnegie making this choice, this is being dictated by Safari. Much like Doug Watson implied, it has nothing to do with her abilities or decisions. She herself is just as annoyed about the decision to pose the animals in the three point stance we have come to recognize. She did state that an answer has apparently been found for the problem, but did not state what it was, so I would think change is coming in that direction.

Thanks for confirming that, although I had a strong suspicion that was the case in the first place. I'm interested and excited to see what she has to say

[Takama]

Ha! I knew it!

I wonder what the solution will be, given that Safari does not want to add bases.

Also looking forward to "meet" her at the forum.

Snowshoes Perhaps?

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

Maybe they are thinking stands of some sort. Anyway it's great the Ms. Rogers will be able to visit with us. She has some exceptional talent looking at all her other work.  It's good she is on the same page as us as well..if the collectors and sculptor work together maybe the company will listen.

Seems very likely Safari had been listening to their retailers then who wanted pieces on their shelves that would stand on their own and display well before being bought.

I know we touched on this before, but should she stop by and comment can we please watch our wording and take some care please ?

[sauroid]

I know we touched on this before, but should she stop by and comment can we please watch our wording and take some care please ?

i agree

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

Thank you .

[Bokisaurus]

Maybe they are thinking stands of some sort. Anyway it's great the Ms. Rogers will be able to visit with us. She has some exceptional talent looking at all her other work.  It's good she is on the same page as us as well..if the collectors and sculptor work together maybe the company will listen.

Seems very likely Safari had been listening to their retailers then who wanted pieces on their shelves that would stand on their own and display well before being bought.

I know we touched on this before, but should she stop by and comment can we please watch our wording and take some care please ?

Great to hear that she is considering visiting the forum.
As for bases on figures, such as the route that CollectA has recently taken with their 2014 figures, this is the best compromise any manufacturer can do to address the issues of proportionately/accurate sized feet and stability of the figure. We simply cannot have both accurate size feet and stable figure. CollectA did produce figures without base that had accurate/proportionate feet, like the T-rex with prey and Rajasaurus, they can stand alright, but just a small vibration will cause them to fall.
Having worked at retail, yeah, retailer don't want figures that can't stand and fall all over.Too  much inventory damage and figures don't display well.
Even the Favorite figures tat comes with detachable bases can't stand on their own if you take them off the base, so what's the point?
Anyway, in the end, manufacturers can't make everyone happy.
And yes, we really should watch our wording or how we state our own opinion when giving feedback. We are lucky and should be  honored that such great and talented and well known artist visit/join our forum.
Okay, that's my 2 cents
Cheers!

[amargasaurus cazaui]

She did not drop even a hint or idea where the problem is headed for a soloution, she only said she thinks they have an answer now so the figues will not be tripodal, and she also clearly stated Carnegie does NOT want large oversized feet for the dinosaurs. Safari is the one electing for the tripod stance. So anything I would add is my own surmise, but I do not see any other answer except some sort of stand or base being used. That is however, just me talking.
  I do find she is very outgoing, intelligent and quite polite and considerate. She is a just really a nice lady and I hope people respect that .Apparently she takes on commissions and has many to finish with Christmas deadlines so she stated perhaps she could visit directly afterwards.
  My own purposes in finding her were to secure her signature on the Psittacosaurus piece for my collection, as some might have guessed. I sent her a few pieces for this purpose and am excited for that outcome on my own side of things.

[tyrantqueen]

Ideally, the solution for me would be to rebalance the model through the manufacturing process. Maybe they could make the feet of the model heavier, and the head and body hollow?

Snowshoes Perhaps?

I really hope not.

[Daspletodave]

It all starts with the sculptor and the mold. If the mold is properly balanced, then the final figure will be too. It doesn't matter what is poured into the mold - resin, plastic or cement - the figure will stand. There are some fine examples of this - some of the Battats, the Favorite (circa 2004) figures, the Carnegie Sinraptor. A two-legged beast like T-Rex has its center of gravity around the hips - with the weight of the front end (head and torso) exactly balanced by the back end (the tail). Nature does not make a mistake! The real life animal was balanced so an accurate toy copy should too.

The problem is the toy companies- they need to mass produce product. So they cheat - oversized feet or tripod poses. Bases, especially detachable ones, are an added expense because they are an extra part.
But even if the mold is perfect - they can still screw it up. Case in point - the Battat Ceratosaurus. I have one in resin that stands perfectly. I have another in plastic that does not. Why? Because of warpage. The slightest warpage in the feet or legs and the model topples. Plastic is poured into the molds when it is hot and then it has to cool and harden. Removed from the mold too soon the plastic is still pliable and soft and the model warps. That is not the sculptor's fault or the mold. I'm sure we all have some plastic dinos that won't stand.

The factories in China that produce nearly all the dino models discussed on this forum no doubt have quotas and are constantly on the go to meet deadlines. Even visibly warped dinos continue to the next step to be painted and then shipped. (Makes you wonder just how bad a figure has to be to get rejected and thrown back into the melting pot). So it's no wonder that toy companies try to limit the damage by going with oversized feet or tripod poses. It will be interesting to find out from Forrest Rogers just what the solution is.

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

Thank you guys for the support in how we treat our artists.

I know some of us warm houses at various times of the year..and shipping containers get hot too..all that can make a figure warp and throw off stability.  I can see where they would rather add bases, stands, ect..to help all they can.

[KeU]

It all starts with the sculptor and the mold. If the mold is properly balanced, then the final figure will be too. It doesn't matter what is poured into the mold - resin, plastic or cement - the figure will stand. There are some fine examples of this - some of the Battats, the Favorite (circa 2004) figures, the Carnegie Sinraptor. A two-legged beast like T-Rex has its center of gravity around the hips - with the weight of the front end (head and torso) exactly balanced by the back end (the tail). Nature does not make a mistake! The real life animal was balanced so an accurate toy copy should too.

The problem is the toy companies- they need to mass produce product. So they cheat - oversized feet or tripod poses. Bases, especially detachable ones, are an added expense because they are an extra part.
But even if the mold is perfect - they can still screw it up. Case in point - the Battat Ceratosaurus. I have one in resin that stands perfectly. I have another in plastic that does not. Why? Because of warpage. The slightest warpage in the feet or legs and the model topples. Plastic is poured into the molds when it is hot and then it has to cool and harden. Removed from the mold too soon the plastic is still pliable and soft and the model warps. That is not the sculptor's fault or the mold. I'm sure we all have some plastic dinos that won't stand.

The factories in China that produce nearly all the dino models discussed on this forum no doubt have quotas and are constantly on the go to meet deadlines. Even visibly warped dinos continue to the next step to be painted and then shipped. (Makes you wonder just how bad a figure has to be to get rejected and thrown back into the melting pot). So it's no wonder that toy companies try to limit the damage by going with oversized feet or tripod poses. It will be interesting to find out from Forrest Rogers just what the solution is.

Don't forget though, a toy would have uniform density from head to tail since it is made from a single material.
What tyrantqueen mentioned is more accurate since the lungs in an animal would take up more volume but not weigh as much as muscle in the tail.
So if they can manage to find a production process that can hollow out the chest portion of the toy easily and quickly, it would be easier to balance a 2-legged toy.
PAPO has shown as again and again that it is possible to mass produce well detailed toys. I believe what I mentioned above can be easily achieved.
It is only up to management to decide how much of a profit they wanna pocket. None of the other people in the development or production cycle will even get a whiff of the money anyways.

[Yutyrannus]

I just recieved my Suchomimus in the mail (about 7 min. ago in fact ). It is a great figure. Not as big as it appears in photos, but that is mainly because the tail is most of the length. Only problem is that the upper jaw is sort of twisted, but other than that not much warping (good thing winter here is so cold ).

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

Heat it up and it might un-warp.

[Yutyrannus]

Heat it up and it might un-warp.

Yeah, I was going to heat it up and bend it into the position it should be in while holding it in cold water.

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

Heat it up and it might un-warp.

Yeah, I was going to heat it up and bend it into the position it should be in while holding it in cold water.

Yeah, heat, bend, then hold in position while under cold water.  The thing is to get ti hot enough to stay before cooling. What I mean is hotter than room temp, which will cause it to go back as it warms up.

[amanda]

I have the Favorite 2004 Allosaurus and Tyrannosaurus, and neither of them can stand on their own. The Allo used to but over time lost that ability. I believe some have reported this problem with Papos too? Actually my Papo Allo is pretty tricky to get standing too. As for bases, I like the idea simply because using them lets you put the theropods into more interesting and active poses. Maybe not outright running (1 leg & heat = not standing, base or not) but maybe not just standing there, either. I am sure the sculptor would relish that opportunity?

I think the balancing is a problem because of the material used too. It's not just heavy feet and light body. The Carnegie theropods all have fairly thin ankle areas, and that is a weak spot with the warping and softening. Re-balancing and all that won't help the problems caused by the material used. The resin Battat may be standing for that reason, resin will not warp, and even the tiniest variance on the plastic one will kill the balance.

[KeU]

I have the Favorite 2004 Allosaurus and Tyrannosaurus, and neither of them can stand on their own. The Allo used to but over time lost that ability. I believe some have reported this problem with Papos too? Actually my Papo Allo is pretty tricky to get standing too. As for bases, I like the idea simply because using them lets you put the theropods into more interesting and active poses. Maybe not outright running (1 leg & heat = not standing, base or not) but maybe not just standing there, either. I am sure the sculptor would relish that opportunity?

I think the balancing is a problem because of the material used too. It's not just heavy feet and light body. The Carnegie theropods all have fairly thin ankle areas, and that is a weak spot with the warping and softening. Re-balancing and all that won't help the problems caused by the material used. The resin Battat may be standing for that reason, resin will not warp, and even the tiniest variance on the plastic one will kill the balance.

Good point. But having a lighter body in general will reduce the amount of stress acting on the ankles, making them less likely to warp.
Granted, during a very hot day, it will warp anyways but the figure could probably tolerate slightly higher temperatures without deforming.
An stronger material to be used on the load bearing limbs would be the ideal solution but then again, this is unlikely to be implemented as it is costlier and hardier to produce.

I don't own any Battat figures but isn't resin really fragile? That will not be suitable for toys.

[amanda]

Resin is not fragile, but IS breakable. It is not toy material be any means.