From the Trip Part Two

After a solid adventure in China and Hong Kong, Jesse, Paul and I headed for Japan to visit our friends and attend Super Festival 50. We had a good flight and after some time on the Narita Express we were greeted by the main man, Don "Datadub" Kratzer at the station in Nippori (where we stay while in Japan). As a great surprise Mori (Master of Real X Head) came to meet us right as we arrived! From the time we got into town things moved at a quick pace. Our first full day in we met up with Mori again as well as super talented Ayako Takagi (creator of Uamou). Mori took us all out to one of his vinyl factories, which was actually one guy pouring figures in a porch off the side of his house! It was wild to see the slush molding process in action. The differences between slush molding and rotocast molding became very clear thanks to the tutorial that we were given. Due to Paul's extensive experience in toy manufacturing he was able to articulate the major differences between these two types of vinyl production. Japanese slush molding is capable of creating an almost flawless crystal clear look while the roto-casting process leaves bubbles and waves. Outside of that point the end results are somewhat similar as far as the look and feel of solid colored stuff, although many hardcore collectors would argue that Japanese vinyl is absolutely superior. Personally I like having the option of trying out both types, Japanese and Chinese. We can sell the Armodoc for an affordable price because the production costs and material are lower than in Japan. The people producing the Armodocs are skilled craftsmen and not just a nameless horde of workers on a line. After spending time watching the Pheyaos mold in action and seeing two all clear figures emerge (which Mori cut and assembled) we went over to visit master painter of thousands of Kaiju, the legendary Goto-san. Goto-san was extremely welcoming and totally fascinating. His work space actually reminded me of my own organized mayhem. He demonstrated his techniques on a black Pheyaos which he turned into a homage to Metaldar (one of my favorite Metal Heroes). Mori then hand painted the yellow eye. It was surreal to be in the middle of it. Ayako also had one of her Uamous painted up. I also asked Goto-san to lightly spray the feet of my favorite Scar Pheyden. Being there will be in the front of my memory banks forever. After saying our goodbyes (and hitting my giant skull on everything in the place) we headed to Mori's shop and collectively lost our minds at all his crazy stuff. His accomplishments over the past six years have been incredible. Just staying in business these days is a victory and Mori has survived a very tumultuous market while remaining hyper creative. He is definitely a huge inspiration and really cares about what is going on around him. Between Mori, Don and Ayako we were in great company as we continued our journey. More to come ...

From the Trip

Jesse and I had a great time in China, visiting multiple factories that cover all the aspects of what we are manufacturing. Looking at the process of roto-casting in action is always interesting and getting a close look at the Armodoc molds was a highlight. It's a different method than the vinyl slush molding we would see in Japan. While we were at the paint factory we experimented with a bunch of different techniques. Chun, a master painter there, is always fun to work with. We speak the universal language of "Lunatic Painter" to communicate. Jesse went nuts over the killer adhesion that the PVC paint had, super powerful and durable stuff. As always the trip was informative and worth every second thanks to our partner Paul. His knowledge and connections seem to have no limits. Japan up next...