Upcoming Death Note figures
Death Note isn't dead!
I'm a big Death Note fan so I check their official site from time to time. Few weeks ago I spotted the announcement for two new figures, but there was too little info. Now the site is finally updated with more info and preview pics. Grifon Enterprise will release a 260mm tall figure of Yagami Raito (Kira) that will be retailing for 14,800 yen and a 310mm tall figure of Ryuk that will be retailing for 17,400 yen. Both are scheduled for this year and will be pre-painted, made of cold cast resin.
I'd love to have them as a fan, but I think they could be better. I don't have any figure made by Grifon, how is their quality? And what can you tell me about cold cast resin? Is it better or worse than PVC? Anyways, the retailing prices are too high, so unless they look completely amazing in further pics, I'll have to pass these ones.
Official site: http://www.ntv.co.jp/deathnote/goods/index1.html
wow i'm a big fan too and i'd totally buy if they weren't so expensive :(
Well I can tell you one thing about cold cast resin vs PVC. It's certainly more expensive. XD
Here's info from riuva.com.
Coldcast
Basically, no heat is applied when the material is set in the mould. By mixing two types of liquids, a tough plastic compound is formed.
Poly Vinyl Chloride (PVC)
PVC is one of the most common plastics used in the world. It’s quite similar to rubber and the toughness/malleability of PVC is dependant on the plastisers added. More plastisers = more softness, since they straighten out neatly the long macromolecular polymer chains into neat rows. Some figure collectors complain of an oily film after a while and I would think this is due to the plasticisers migrating to the surface of the plastic. Small plasticiser molecules are pretty mobile and after a period of time, they accumulate on the surface to produce a oily crud.
This is also why PVC tends to get a bit crappy and brittle after a long time. Oh yeah these plasticisers are quite toxic too. And if you have a fire at home, dump your figurines at them to extinguish it, since the chlorine produced retards the flame.
A very large percentage of the figures sold are made of PVC. From gashapon, trading figures to 1/6s, these are mainly PVCs. Cheap material cost, easy of moulding, ductility (it won’t break much, just bend) are the reasons why it is used.
Never leave them in the sun. Ultraviolet rays produce free radicals on PVC, chlorine free radicals, that combine to form chlorine gas and the material is decomposed. The sun also heats them up and PVC distorts at a temperature of 60 degrees Celsius. Being a thermoplastic, you can actually heat it up and bend it, then cool for it to maintain that shape.
PVC, due to the addition of chlorine atoms which have a pretty high molecular mass compared to C and H, is heavy for a plastic.
Thanks for the lesson and thanks for making it easy to understand! I always thought PVC was a great, durable material but it seems kinda crappy now.
Copied from my blog:
>Cold Cast and Polystone figures utilize a Polyurethane (PU) resin base which, by simple economics, can be 3 or 4 times more expensive than PVC, depending on market conditions. The term "cold cast" derives from the decreased temperature of the materials elicited from the curing process and rolls off the tongue easier than 'polyurethane'. "Polystone" figures are actually 'reinforced' cold casts in that before the mold has cured, stone powder is added to the resin base for aesthetic and structural purposes. Besides being more expensive, the properties of polyurethane-based figures are almost the exact opposite of PVC: they're rather heavy, strong but potentially brittle, and don't adapt to temperature fluctuations as easily.
Griffon's PVC quality fairly tight, but not usually impressive. CCs might be a different story.As to whether CCs are better than PVCs, that's a matter of opinion. Each has their positives and negatives: better production quality versus massed produced PVC prone to defects, more expensive versus less expensive, limited availability versus thousands of units, and so on and so forth. If you're a fan, the money's worth it either way.
Thanks! That was helpful too!
They're OK quality, most of their figures are pretty small though.
XD That is the illustration of Light Yagami that I always wanted in a figure
(just attach the wings) BUT...WHY COLD CAST, it means expensive and fragile...
the figure could last less than PVC figure...
is there any chance to release a PVC version also???
anyway... If they attach the wings...(yes..i know....it would be more fragile
but more irresistible)
XD
I avoid figures from Griffon Enterprises. Their quality look poor and are not good value-for-money. The company seems to survive mostly by selling a plethora of ecchi figures from Ikkitousen and Queen's Blade.
The only Griffon figure I have is Asahina Mikuru Gothic Punk ver (http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10074679). I guess I was suckered in by the promising pre-order pictures. When display shelf space became scarce, Mikuru was the first I took out and replaced with another figure more deserving of being displayed.
I have 3 Griffon figures, one is an older Kanu i bought from rightstuf.com and her paintjob is not that great, face paint details are kind of off, and the color doesnt look like sample pics etc. I have another, Akane Soir, she is pretty good overall and her face paint is nice, but in some areas of the clothing details, the lines look a bit smudged, it could have been more clean.
My last one though, Hakufu awakening ver., looks REALLY GOOD. http://www.figure.fm/post/en/9584/Griffon+Sonzaku+Hakufu+awakening+ver.html
I don't regret buying her at all, she's one of my favorite figures now. Hopefully Griffon sticks to this kind of quality.
looks great in these photo but the price is >_<