Using the reviews before I knew that since I was a collector that didn't put my guys into combat much this guy would find himself some nice shelf space. When I opened him I looked for paint scratches, etc. I found none. Through the transformation process I was extremely careful and didn't find that any joints were loose or that paint had come off. The only problem I had with this dude was his hands. The hands have two points where the connect with the fingers so his fingers kept coming off while I was letting him stand in his awesome pose with the gun to the sky....other than that I didn't have any of the problems anyone else did so I am feeling pretty lucky.

Beware though, this guy is fragile...if you plan on transforming him a lot I'm sure he won't make the cut...

Echoing what the folks b4 me wrote:
Good: Great design and engineering.
Bad: Looseness everywhere. Paint scratches. Pegs don't stay in slots.
Ugly: Did mention looseness EVERYWHERE? Paint scratching? Pegs won't stay? I guess I did.
This TFSource image looks like the real deal, while the actual product feels like a bootleg of the original. That is the best description. Knockoff of something that was once great. It's too bad he has all these problems, because aesthetically he's quite nice. Bottom line: unless your a completionist and have money to burn, avoid this guy. One of my few 3p purchase regrets.

As other reviewer said the quality is some what lacking. The under panel/back of the head popped off a bunch while transforming which was slightly annoying but easy to pop back on and didn't deter/damage the unit. The panels for the inside of the shins have a tendency to pop out.

The thing I would say the worse is the paint application. After I finished transforming him I noticed paint flecks everywhere. :(

I think that this unit would be excellent if it had a bit more quality. The overall mold and articulation is superb and the scale fits in nicely with the Masterpiece line. Overall I'm happy I have him (I got the X-Transbot one also which is not even close to this guy) and he'll sit in my cases next to my other Masterpieces.

He looks great ONCE transformed and if you can get him to stay that way. Same as all the other reviews...overpriced, way too loose parts (broke the tire), panels dont stay locked in, scratched paint. Will NOT be transforming this guy again. Had hard time changing faceplate also. Its a shame because both his modes look excellent and they have all the slots to lock panels in.....

I was super excited to get this piece. The mold is wonderful and the price seemed very reasonable for a 3rd party piece.

Then it arrived. When I began transforming it, I initially thought it was a parts-former because panels would pop off without applying any real pressure. Joints weren't super loose but I would've preferrred them to be tighter. Then I noticed all the paint scratches which really annoyed me.

If you're like me and rarely transform your toys, this will make a great display piece but I'd wait for a sale on this guy. Otherwise, I'd skip it and wait on Takara/Tomy.

If you're looking for playability, you may want to pass this one by. If you're happy with a decent G1 homage, it doesn't get much better. It's worth will depend entirely on what type of collector you are.

For the most part, Cubex's quality control seems very low. Before I even took the truck out of the tray, I noticed one of the fold down panels behind his front tire was snapped in half. Furthermore, the snapped off piece was nowhere to be found. Meaning it was packaged like this. Cubex packaged a broken toy, missing half a panel.. First impression.... BAD.

I can appreciate what they were trying to do, but most of the plastic is very cheap. The transformation is clever, and very well engineered, but the brittle plastic panels, and tight joints make for a terrifying transformation experience. I was very careful and still broke off a headlight (they rotate for optional concealment) It just popped out in 2 pieces and had to be Krazy glued back in... There are a few places showing stress after just one transformation, and a bit of paint has already chipped off, where panels come in contact with each other. It's not the worst I've seen, but for $70, I expected better.

It isn't all bad. Once I got past my initial distaste with the quality, my impression warmed up a fair bit. All paint apps are very carefully applied, and the colors are bang on. His robot mode looks incredible, and that suits me well enough. I don't really handle my figures much, so personally I can look past brittle plastic. And truthfully, once everything's clicked into place, it feels much sturdier.

He's not as top heavy as he looks, and the joints are all pretty tight, so there are zero balance issues. The articulation is incredible.

Verdict: I'm glad to own it, and I may have even rated it 4 stars, if not for that broken panel... I knew I was taking a risk, but the over all quality is poor enough that I actually feel a little guilty about the money spent. It's a beautiful shelf piece, that I'm terrified to ever transform again.