Sideshow Ahsoka (Rosario Dawson) Premium Format

[Augen]

I think these are porcelain, but for me easy pass even at price parity, much less 3-4x.

[ukshaun]

Originally Posted by Augen

I think these are porcelain, but for me easy pass even at price parity, much less 3-4x.

I think XM use the same material, as their statues tend to weigh more than Sideshow 1/4 pieces.

[AC_808]

Dude, isn't porcelain more fragile than polystone? With that price, it's risky.

[ZenLogikos]

Originally Posted by ukshaun

Ahsoka Tano, Porcelain Statue by Lladro
$2276.00

Why is this so expensive?
I think the Sideshow Ahsoka PF looks way better

Originally Posted by ukshaun

I think XM use the same material, as their statues tend to weigh more than Sideshow 1/4 pieces.

Lladro is a company that has established itself as selling high end product/collectibles/figurines, that transcends a lot of the 'pop-culture' stuff we collect. I.e. status symbols, heirlooms. (Carmella on 'The Sopranos', had a Lladro figurine...)

Then factor in 'porcelain', which has been around for centuries, and has always had high-end connotations. Some Lladro stuff can go for tens of thousands of dollars.

XM DO NOT use the same material. Not even close. Porcelain is primarily clay and other minerals, fired in a kiln - 1200-1400 ?C. Then, it is colored or 'glazed', and fired again. The glaze gives the finished product a typical glossy finish. This is how toilets are made...

XM use 'cold cast porcelain' which isn't porcelain at all. Porcelain is fired at high temperatures. Cold cast porcelain is the same thing as polystone, except that instead of stone powder mixed with resin, it's porcelain powder mixed with resin. If you put our resin statues in a kiln, and fired it like porcelain is, it would melt down...

Porcelain IS more brittle than polystone/cold cast porcelain. And glazing porcelain is a different process than the way our resin statues, and almost everything else, is painted.

[Silas Loki]

Originally Posted by ZenLogikos

Lladro is a company that has established itself as selling high end product/collectibles/figurines, that transcends a lot of the 'pop-culture' stuff we collect. I.e. status symbols, heirlooms. (Carmella on 'The Sopranos', had a Lladro figurine...)

Then factor in 'porcelain', which has been around for centuries, and has always had high-end connotations. Some Lladro stuff can go for tens of thousands of dollars.

XM DO NOT use the same material. Not even close. Porcelain is primarily clay and other minerals, fired in a kiln - 1200-1400 ?C. Then, it is colored or 'glazed', and fired again. The glaze gives the finished product a typical glossy finish. This is how toilets are made...

XM use 'cold cast porcelain' which isn't porcelain at all. Porcelain is fired at high temperatures. Cold cast porcelain is the same thing as polystone, except that instead of stone powder mixed with resin, it's porcelain powder mixed with resin. If you put our resin statues in a kiln, and fired it like porcelain is, it would melt completely...

Porcelain IS more brittle than polystone/cold cast porcelain. And glazing porcelain is a different process than the way our resin statues, and almost everything else, is painted.

I can't believe any collector will buy this Lladro piece for any other reason outside of investment. The piece, in terms of detailing, is not much better than you'd find on a cheap plastic toy.....which tells me, the ultra details we cling to in this hobby, isn't the point of these Lladro pieces.

[ZenLogikos]

Originally Posted by Silas Loki

I can't believe any collector will buy this Lladro piece for any other reason outside of investment. The piece, in terms of detailing, is not much better than you'd find on a cheap plastic toy.....which tells me, the ultra details we cling to in this hobby, isn't the point of these Lladro pieces.

Absolutely. Porcelain detail has gotten better over the years, but being able to pour a resin mixture into a mold and have it harden without applying heat is the ideal substance to use for our purposes.

The only thing going for the porcelain is that it is still typically 'one piece', i.e. more statue-like. What we call statues, has moved more and more towards 'kits' that we have to assemble upon receipt. That instruction sheet for the new Prime 1 1/3 Predator comes to mind.

I'd prefer one solid piece, but I know it's separated into pieces for multiple reasons, chief among them being preventing breakage in transit.

[ukshaun]

Originally Posted by ZenLogikos

Absolutely. Porcelain detail has gotten better over the years, but being able to pour a resin mixture into a mold and have it harden without applying heat is the ideal substance to use for our purposes.

The only thing going for the porcelain is that it is still typically 'one piece', i.e. more statue-like. What we call statues, has moved more and more towards 'kits' that we have to assemble upon receipt. That instruction sheet for the new Prime 1 1/3 Predator comes to mind.

I'd prefer one solid piece, but I know it's separated into pieces for multiple reasons, chief among them being preventing breakage in transit.

Presumably Porcelain pieces can never suffer from leaning issues?

[qz33]

And of course even the "solid" pieces usually consist of kit pieces just glued together at the factory.

Keeping laying down that education Zen...

Here is a specific thread for this piece.
http://www.statueforum.com/showthread.php?t=166398

Originally Posted by ZenLogikos

Absolutely. Porcelain detail has gotten better over the years, but being able to pour a resin mixture into a mold and have it harden without applying heat is the ideal substance to use for our purposes.

The only thing going for the porcelain is that it is still typically 'one piece', i.e. more statue-like. What we call statues, has moved more and more towards 'kits' that we have to assemble upon receipt. That instruction sheet for the new Prime 1 1/3 Predator comes to mind.

I'd prefer one solid piece, but I know it's separated into pieces for multiple reasons, chief among them being preventing breakage in transit.

[Silas Loki]

Originally Posted by ZenLogikos

The only thing going for the porcelain is that it is still typically 'one piece', i.e. more statue-like. What we call statues, has moved more and more towards 'kits' that we have to assemble upon receipt. That instruction sheet for the new Prime 1 1/3 Predator comes to mind.

That's a whole other point of discussion. Being a self confessed JND fan-boy, I find it super hard to think of these modern figures as statues.....and especially not in the traditional sense.

These figures are more akin to, and have more in common with static dolls. I don't see this as a bad thing, being a doll collector (for those in the know) carries a lot of artistic and high end connotations.

I'd be happy to see a clearly defined split between pure statues (which are rare as can be - in the traditional sense) - and these hybrid dolls.

The Lladro piece is neither "statue" or doll, but would fit more within the category of figurine......ah, but we humans love our categories don't we?

[Straken-SWE]

Originally Posted by Silas Loki

That's a whole other point of discussion. Being a self confessed JND fan-boy, I find it super hard to think of these modern figures as statues.....and especially not in the traditional sense.

These figures are more akin to, and have more in common with static dolls. I don't see this as a bad thing, being a doll collector (for those in the know) carries a lot of artistic and high end connotations.

I'd be happy to see a clearly defined split between pure statues (which are rare as can be - in the traditional sense) - and these hybrid dolls.

The Lladro piece is neither "statue" or doll, but would fit more within the category of figurine......ah, but we humans love our categories don't we?

We certainly do.