DCUC Quality Control Issues
 

I remember reading NoisyDvL5's review of Wave 16 Robin on DCClassics.com and noting how brittle Robin's feet are.

I have since been very careful never to turn the ankle joint.

Well... last night while packing up for an upcoming move, Robin took a tumble from a height of about 2.5 feet, landed at an awkward angle on his right foot and it immediately broke straight off. There is little more than a pencil lead piece of hollow plastic affixing the ankle ball to the lower leg, and the plastic is brit-t-t-t-t-t-tle.

The molded pieces look like they will support a pin inserted into the opening at the bottom of the leg and into the top of the foot. I will see how it goes, and maybe add Action Figure Podiatry to my business card. If not, I suppose I'll have to resort to trusty old plastic welder.

Word to the wise: Don't mess with Wave 16 Robin's feet!

Every wave has at least one mass produced figure with serious issues. It's clear Mattel has no desire to improve their quality control for this line.

I had a problem with both Raven (her left arm broke off at the shoulder) and Black Lantern Abin Sur (head popped right off!). I just bought another Abin Sur but the swivel joint in Raven's shoulder is melded with the actual shoulder piece. I tried fixing it but ended up almost destroying the piece completely.

I also had an issue with my Metallo C&C! I'll make sure not to use Robin's feet as you said. OH! And my Penguin broke off at the waist the other night!

I can't get the waist and torso of my Darkseid to connect, and I think the problem is the waist.

Also, almost every single figure I get is warped due to the blister packaging.

I have Wave 16 Robin (modern head). The ankles definitely suck, but as long as you're careful (with mine at least), you can get him into some decent poses.

My worst DCUC QC issue is my Blackest Night Abin Sur's super warped leg.

Holy crap...didn't know robin had feet that easy to break!

Never knew there were stories this bad about DCUC figures. I had assumed that they were pretty solid. Of course, I have yet to buy one, so my only knowledge of their QC comes from my fellow Arkers.

I guess it's a good thing that Robin's always been light on his feet!

*crickets*

....ahem. I'll be leaving now.

Ahhh hahahaha! :D

But yeah. This is really the first time I've ever heard of toys breaking easily. I've had issues with Marvel Legends, Marvel Universe, and Infinite Heroes (After they created the lame super articulation in the final days), but not DCUC. It's ashame that Robin seems to.
However, as I mentioned they have an aweful problem with the packaging blisters warping their limbs. My Komandi (Or whatever his name is) can't even stand... on a stand.

Hey guys, I just FINALLY got the DC/MOTU Aquaman/Merman set. I think the biceps on Aquaman are on the wrong arms. Anyone hear anything about that?

I've seen that happen before man, not on Aquaman yet but I feel your pain. I heard that the Batman Begins Movie Master Batman has the forearms placed inverted.

I can look at mine when I get home, but nothing stood out as being wrong with mine. I wouldn't be surprised though; these guys (Matty--MOTUC) put shoulders on backwards with at least three figs (1st release He-Man, Roboto, & King Hssss), so it's not that unlikely.

Wave 1 C&C Metamorpho- left leg refuses to stay connected.
Wave 3 Sinestro chase- glue bled over to hip joints, broke figure trying to get joints to work.
Green lantern- neck articulation so loose, it gives Hal the " bobble head" effect.
Wave 4 Wonder Woman- insufficient amount of glue to hold crotch together. I was actually able to fix this.
Wave 7 Flash- head "wings" glued on crooked, super loose upper torso joint.
Wave 12 C&C Darkseid- "bobble head" effect.
Green Lantern 2- pack ( comic versions) Silver age Hal Jordan leg broke off after i got him out of the box.
Green Lantern Classics Wave 2 Star Sapphire same as Sinestro chase, above. Returned & exchanged for another SS, only to find same problem as previous SS.
Green Lantern Movie 2- pack- Hal Jordan right forearm broke at elbow, right out of package.
I really, really wish another company had the DC master license.

All the DCUC Flash figs I've seen have poor ear wing placement. I think it is his right one that points downward.

My Sinestro from the TRU Thaal Sinestro 2-Pack has his right eyebrow painted on his forehead instead of the raised eyebrow on the head sculpt.

I can't seem to keep Cheetah's thighs together. Though this sounds like a good thing... :D it isn't.

Nice work on WW's crotch. :)

I haven't tried fixing the biceps on my Aquaman. Is there a safe way of swapping them?

I had the complete opposite...the head on my Darkseid was near impossible to connect - I almost gave up and conisdered just having it sit in the socket, with no connection at all. But I gave it another go and finally got it in by wiggling it with considerable force. The connection is super tight and swivels like a charm.

Hope this helps for some who think they have the bobble effect, give it more muscle into the connection - it might work out!

Crotch and torso, right? I've been trying to get mine to clip together for over a year now.
Glad to know it's not just mine.

Actually no issues at all with the torso/crotch on mine - they clicked right in.

This is my first DCU figs; I scored the full wave over the past 2 days for dirt cheap just to get Darkseid...and finally got the last piece of the puzzle today....

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5156/...5152485674.jpg
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5308/...985d018d62.jpg

DCUC has always had some quality issues for me, but rarely have they been really bad. Mostly I notice some real slop jobs paint wise, or some really odd mangled limbs in package. I did once get the wave 3 or 4 Green Lantern and his leg tore off basically right out of the box. My fault, and now I know how to fix stuck joints, which I've had a few of. One thing I noticed on my Imperiex and Arkillo is that the paint peeled too easily in the joint areas.

Thing is, in cases like stuck joints where it's a relatively easy fix, it's a little work for a big payoff. DCUC figures are some of the best playable/poseable figures since Marvel Legends for me.

On the other hand, if you can get a near perfect figure right out of the box it's the best feeling. I nabbed an Eclipso from amazon for like $6 and it had a tiny smudge on the cap but no stuck/overly tight joints and no warped limbs. I always hope that I get a good one online, because this line of figures has me inspecting them in box at the store more than I ever have with other lines.

I've been collecting mainly Marvel figs and imho DCU paint app is mint in comparison to Marvel Universe. I've only pickedup the Wave12 DCU but i didn't even bother inspecting the figs at all as I was just interested in the C&C. Surprisingly all the figs look nearly perfect with respect to their paint app, and I tell you, I'm super picky with paint app. MU figures drive me nuts, perhaps the smaller scale makes it more difficult for cleaner apps, but heck that's no excuse!

Overall, I'm super impressed with DCU figs so far....love the articulation and the scuplt. I'm totally sold and now on the hunt for the main justice league guys. With the full wave 12 figs I've got, I'm planning to make some custom Marvel figs. I'm not sure what to do with Mary Batson ...

Just got the Batman Legacy Golden Age Joker this week. They put so much glue in the peg hole for the coat that it oozed out and the coat got glued on to the right sholder joint and in the joint so you can't pu his arm down. I tryed to fix it and just ended up calling Mattel and got a voucher for what I payed for hin, did the same for Robin when his foot broke. By the way boil Robin's foot /ankel and it will take off the paint they put on the joint which is causeing the problem. scrap the paint off move his ankel around and BETTER then new.

Now that I have a few more of these figs, I see some serious warping issues with Blackest Night Aquaman, Earth-2 Superman, and Firestorm/Deathstorm. None of the three can be put into a standing pose to properly balance on their respective heel pegs. Ronnie has to be arched backward to stand, Supes has really bad balance due to his shoulder tilt & cape, and Aquaman's warped legs make him the worst of the three.

That's not a quality control issue. A design issue maybe, a production issue probably. But NOT quality control.

I think those might be DC Direct figures you have, 'cause none of those guys exist in DCUC (Which does have a terrible problem with the packaging warping the figures. I can't personally say anything about DC Direct because I don't have hardly any).

I want to know what's up with the chalky powder/residue that manages to show up on my early DCU figures.

I thought that the point of plastic was that it lasted forever!

Right you are. Bad design.

Are Blackest Night figs DC Direct? Some of the figs that are twisted and mangled by design to resemble zombies are mangled to the extent that they become out of balance from even the most minor package/bubble warping (legs, especially) that they are done for.

As I read it on other forums, Mattel switched manufactures both before and after Wave 3 since Wave 3 suffered so extensively from that powdering issue, either poor plastic or poor paint or a bad chemical reaction between them.