Status: Not sold, but gone nonetheless, 07/2013
Last Modified: 2013-07-19
First Posted: 2008-07-04
The first “Holotech” version of a Zoid, from Hasbro. Awesome, but for some reason it was nearly impossible to find. I’m planning to use this one in a custom, so I wanted to get some pictures of it all pristine. Unfortunately I already started masking before I got out the camera, so one piece of leg armor doesn’t match. Think of it as a compare/contrast with the standard NAR Zaber Fang!
I had to have this one sent to me from Australia, which was the holotech capital of the world, for some reason.
The clear plastic on this one was even more brittle than usual, and the pegs that hold the feets did not survive my last move without a dab of super glue. Still, Holo-fishy wins points for being the most “holotech’d” of the line (but it would have been nice to have smoky grey boosters too). As with all my holos, I had to get this from a contact in Australia.
For the longest time I’d been sitting on a MIB one of these, but recently I stole its wonderful clear saws, for a custom weapon for Hammer Rock. Then, someone on Pheno’s forum was selling a built one for dirt cheap. Hooray!
Also: Orange! Transparent! Chainsaws!
Back when this set came out (late 2002, along with Redhorn and Deathsaurer), it was quite a big deal, especially for clear-obsessed me. Now, with Hasbro’s holotechs, and the Genesis DVD set limiteds, it’s almost commonplace. I still love them, though. (These were never officially known as “crystal” zoids, but the name stuck.)
As if the crystal Molga weren’t enough, they made one of Red Horn too. There was also a crystal Death Saurer, but that one required too much shelf space, and way too much money.
Since the crystal horn dye went so well, I thought I’d do my Molga (I went with the Genesis color scheme). It did not go as well. The body halves warped a little, and the greys are darker than I wanted, but it still looks kind of cool. Last three pics were taken on a light table.
I did this one by using fabric dye. Mix a box of dye in a medium saucepan, bring to a simmer, throw the pieces in, and stir.
Note: If you have a gas range, I would avoid this technique like the plague. You can’t get an even and predictable heating area and run the risk of melting pieces beyond repair!
I took the clear pilot from my holotech Megaraptor and painted him clear orange, to look like a Micronaut Time Traveler figure. I’ve wanted to do this forever, but until recently there were no clear pilots.
In celebration of Toys R Us Japan’s 15th anniversary (October 2006), Tomy released an entirely clear Gojulas! The gearbox, battery covers and even the light are all clear. Best of all, I get another clear pilot, which means another mini-micronaut! I wish the original Z-point giveaways (don’t call ’em crystal!) were this complete in their clearness. Proper pics to come (someday) are finally here. Last three are keychain LED-enhanced!
Thousands of years ago, a prophecy foretold of a “holotech” Liger Zero. Some even claimed to have seen them in stores, or even to have purchased one, but in the absence of photographic evidence, such people were branded as liars and heretics. Then, in late 2007, Liger Red Hiou was revealed—a holotech liger, but the armor was clear PINK! I think this could be the best Liger Zero ever.
The Gojulas HT I got recently came with another clear figure for me to color. This time I went for the yellow Time Traveler, since I’ve been digging clear yellow a lot lately. This time instead of paint, I used a Sharpie for the yellow, and Gundam markers for the white/silver. The damn white kept absorbing the yellow, though, so this one’s a bit messy.
TWO DOWN, TWO TO GO!
Here are a few pieces from the Baratz series. I don’t have any of the others, because they were expensive as crap to get. There were 13 Baratz in all: six designs, each with two colors, and then the obligatory “chase” figure.
1-7: This is the combo I didn’t think of, but ended up being the best one.
8-14: This didn’t turn out as nice as I expected (and is a pain to photograph), but it does look good in the dark! (#14 is all glow power, no blacklight.)
To get this guy, you had to buy each of the three Genesis DVD box sets (which each came with a clear hero liger, and cost around $300), then send the proofs of purchase off. Or wait until they hit Yahoo Japan (much cheaper!). The best part of this one (for me) is the clear pilot. I’ve wanted one of those forever! I also got some fun night/blacklight shots.
I don’t know much about these. I think they came out late 2004. I ended up using some on my Decalto Dragon. Toy-Wave still has them for pretty cheap, so I got a ton.
This was a Fuzors limited that was sold at a convention in early 2005. Those nasty red pieces will make your eyes bleed, so get a spare NJR for swaps. The last pic is a really ugly flash shot, but it shows the shiny plastics that many Fuzors kits had.
1-5: I didn’t like the red bits on the Command Wolf HT, so I swapped them with parts from an NJR woof.
6-10: Lately I’ve been interested in the idea of clear bits over shiny bits (like the G1 dinobots). Then I remembered I had some leftover gold bits from my leoshop Woof. I know that your eyes are hurting right now.
HMM clear parts? OH MY! This was a festival limited, like all the other HMM CP sets, but the first to feature clear parts (most have been chromed).
I combined my crystal Molga with a RoboStrux Kreep to make a half and half zoid. It’s easier to see the internal workings now, but the Kreep is kind of ruined, because the pieces didn’t fit quite right.
I finally got one of those Guylos Molga limiteds, and the first thing I did was take the glowy bits off the sprues and put them on my clear Molga. This is a swap I’ve wanted to do forever! Maybe I will have to build my spare clear Red Horn, and do a similar swap with it and a Dark Horn.
Hasbro Chameleor, aka Megaleon in the NJR. This one came out in 2002, but I didn’t know until very recently that it had clear parts, or I would have gotten it a lot sooner. The last pic is an attempt at the ol’ action shot that the boxes always have.