Sunday, May 1, 2011

[Lantz's Corner] Dragonforge Power Cables Review

If you're like me and in this hobby foremost for doing conversions, you've probably run across a time when you need a power cable or seventeen. Space Marines, Imperial Guard, Orks, Sisters of Battle and Chaos Space Marines all immediately come to mind for instances such as this. We all know about using GS and guitar strings to accomplish these tasks, but are their any alternatives that aren't sticky or frustrating to work with? I'm here to tell you, yes, yes there is. A while back I found that Dragonforge had a new line of pewter products including power cables, so I decided to give it a shot. More after the break.

Now, Matt here at MWC is friends with Dragonforge's Jeff, but that won't create a fickle cloud of subjective reviewing for me. In fact, this may make my review even harsher just to compensate for personal feelings. It may almost be cruel (watch out, Justin. Galaxy Gobbo is next!) I'll notate my cruel remarks in red for emphasis. So let's get started, ya' jerks.

I ended up purchasing the sample pack of power cables, as I wanted as much variety as possible. One thing I was concerned about was scale; another reason to go with the variety pack. For those of you that want a specific size, I've laid out each size from left to right, largest to smallest with a Space Marine Plasma Pistol for comparison:
Just To Clarify, Size Isn't Something I'm Normally Concerned About.

Another thing that needs to be taken into consideration is the amount of bend you can get out of these things. With GS you can of course get all the bend you want. And with guitar strings you can get a good amount of bend, though having to overcompensate before placement is an annoyance. Below is about as much bend as I could get without getting tools involved before it started to crack under the pressure. So while GS is superior in this respect, you can still get a good amount of bend out of this thing:

Deciding to push the limits of this thing as much as possible, because I just hate Jeff so damn much. I wanted to see if these things had a reuse value equal to guitar strings. Unfortunately the answer is no; cracking was aplenty when attempting to flatten the bend back out and getting it back to original form is quite the task:

So singular figures aside, how do these things look on conversions? I assumed right off the bat they'd be awful, like Jeff's face, but ended up working a few conversions with them that turned out quite well:
Try Not To Gawk In Jealousy At My Skills

Other points of interest include shipping time, which was about average, and probably would have been faster if Jeff wasn't out to get me. Also note from the second picture that these do come with a bit of flash, but seeing as these are merely cables and not detailed models with nooks and crannies, this is easily dealt with.

Pros
Less sticky and time consuming than GS
Less work than guitar strings
Good detail
Very sturdy

Cons
Less bending capacity than GS
Less reuse value than guitar strings
Jeff

Conclusion
Overall a great purchase. These things will save you so much more time than crafting your own power cables and are much easier to work with than guitar strings. You can't beat the pricing either; 15 cables for seven bucks is quite a steal. I'll be ordering more of these in the near future.

*Note: For those impervious to sarcasm, any text in red is not to be taken seriously and is only there to make myself giggle uncontrollably for minutes on end. Thank you.

~Lantz aka Sinaura

6 comments:

  1. I was tempted to buy some, but something about this "Jeff" guy doesn't sit right with me. Though, I'm not sure where this animosity comes from since I've never met him. Weird.

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  2. Heh... watch you back Lantz.. watch you back..


    Naa all good harmless fun..thanks for the review.. Just wanted to let you know Ill have more sizes soon to.. well for everyone but Lantz..he gets none ;)

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  3. Saw them in person yesterday and they look great. Also, anything that is better to work with than guitar strings is aces in my book. I will have to give them a shot when I get to my Orks.

    And come on guys, Jeff is great.... FOR ME TO POOP ON! ( Nothing but love for Dragonforge ;) )

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  4. Can't wait for more options on those!

    Wait, none for me? Well, this certainly isn't going to help my next review of your products, sir. Doesn't bode well for you at all.

    *jots notes down on "The List"*

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  5. That's good to hear you approve, because I have a set on the way for some of the cables as well.

    Also, just to let you know I've nominated MWC for a "Stylish Blogger Award"!

    More details at:
    http://feralique.blogspot.com/2011/05/news-stylish-blogger-award-nomination.html

    :)

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