Diamond Select Star Trek III Phaser

[Shark]

Diamond select toys will soon be releasing the "Star Trek III" Phaser! Here is a video preview of it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVb-tWuc6Ns

It has all the features you might expect, no surprises - a cool prop. Depending upon how much I like it I might pick up a second to make on of the Phasers from the TNG episode "Final mission".

[Lonewolf]

The Diamond Select website has them available for pre-order at $39.99 plus shipping each.

https://www.diamondselecttoys.com/star-t ... nic-phaser

[Shark]

Ah cool, I would've never looked there. Entertainment Earth has them for $34.99 if one felt like buying from them.

https://www.entertainmentearth.com/prodi ... XiIus7wY6I

[Lonewolf]

When a new product comes out, check the website of the manufacturer. If you've got a problem with the merchandise, they've got a personal stake in it because you ordered from them directly.

[Shark]

Logical and helpful tip!

[Lonewolf]

Same reason why I buy GK kits from people I know. If I have a problem with any kits from companies like The Delta Quadrant, MVM or .JPG, I know that I can send a PM to Eric, Del or Jimi and they'll make it right. I know each of them personally (in meat-space), and I know they stand behind what they produce.

[Shark]

My Phaser has shipped! I wound up ordering it from Entertainment Earth, hopefully all is well.

[Tesral]

My Phaser has shipped! I wound up ordering it from Entertainment Earth, hopefully all is well.

I just ordered one. Tis my favorite phaser.

[Shark]

As I've stated on another forum:

Well I got mine. It feels hollow and cheap, like "made for $.53" cheap; in fact, I had to snap one side of it together. It only has two sounds and a really uncomfortable grip, though to be fair that has more to do with the design than the replica. So while I'm glad I got one, I'm pretty sure I won't need to ever get another. The TMP and TWOK Phasers I have from DST are flawless and don't feel cheap at all. Oh well...

[Shark]

Dang, Shark...
and you were looking forward to it too...
is this replica phaser "customising fodder only' grade? is there any silver lining?

that's a shame to hear,but I do hear a lot of similar feedback on this particular replica -
and as discussed elsewhere, I don't think its a case of 'fan-overexpectation/nostalgia"
it's just a lack of attention to detail, and caring about how the prop/artifact would be handled by end users.
(Apparently, it's intended as a 'wall mounted/glass cabinet display", so, it is less designed as a handleable prop...
or, apparently it was intended to be 'dropped' and used in the cosplay circuit?
different folks are trying to justify the result different ways).

There doesn't seem to be, from interior shots (some folks took it apart already...)
any design anticipation for people to put rebar/little bits of metal inside, to give the prop more 'gravitas' when interacted with.
The lack of sounds is also a shame... some other scratch fan builds have a velocity-tapering RaspberryPi/arduino onboard, with a hall-effect sensor and pressure sensor or trimpot in the dial on top (or a rocker switch, which looks GREAT on TOS/TMP era phasers IMHO).

as a brief digression...
Part of the excitement of The Eye of Error's kickstarter, will be in FINALLY
printing decent priced OHT/transparency 'gels' for to recreate 'authentic' styled PADDs and Tricorder displays,
I've acquired a couple of tricorder garage props from the local "Trekkie group", in a ST:Voy style.
not to mention finally recreating the dolphin v3 phaser.
Or, actually wearable borg optical props...

Back to TOS/TMP phasers...
"The Wand Company" 'deluxe' prop, and Adam Savage's 3 prototype props... they've spoiled this fan as to what quality can be - it even has a carry-case, and "lock"...
it's metal, it feel 'dangerous' when interacted with, looks great in display...

Hey Kobayashimaru, I was looking forward to it and I'm glad I have it and glad they made it but it's not without issues. Ardent fans of this particular prop will love it; it's cheap, it's plentiful, it's got lights and sound. Casual fans will love it as much as I do and I do love it, I look forward to playing with it in the morning.

I think part of the problem rests in the fact that this Phaser was only fired twice, once in Star Trek III and a handful of times in the TNG episode "Final mission" and as I recall from that episode, it had the same sounds as the Cobrahead Phaser in use at that time. It is a very nice base for customizing/enhancment! And I honestly feel it could be dropped with regularity without major breakage. Most of the electronics are clearly in the P1 as it is the heaviest component, which has the effect of making the Phaser top-heavy, which I think is why people are adding weights.

This one doesn't feel to be at the same engineering level as the TMP/TWOK Phaser. I also noticed it doesn't have an auto-shut off, it just stays on until the user turns it off; unlike it's predecessor. So yes, it doesn't seem to have the bells and whistles of it's counterparts, which is a shame because I think it's a decent platform. That and the 'safety' sounds are awful and, I think, pretty useless.

Were I to get another one, I would wait for one in the $20 range.