The day before yesterday I re-did my Cobra setup when removing my figures from their rows, I realized one of my Vipers from the Viper Pit 6 pack had a snapped O-ring and was just suspended in his standing position. At first I was just like " oh well, another O-Ring broke, I'll just have to get another", but then I started thinking about it and it really made me angry. These figures NEVER got played with, I've had them for about a year, and they went from TRU to my shelf, no abuse, or neglect or anything. I did notice that right out of the package the rings were alot tighter then the ones my joes came with in the 80's but geez, if their gonna just snap after 11 months, I'm definitly not gonna invest in any more.

Has anyone else had problems with these figures?

Oh, and the final kick to the groin is that when I did go to pick him up, his legs then buckled and his crotch fell to the floor, bounced a few times and completely disapeared. So even if I did have a spare O-Ring, I'm now missing a piece of a toy that shouldn't have broken in the first place.:mad:

It was a poor design in the first place. I bought about 15 of the Viper packs. I have spent hours with a Dremel shaving the crotches, attaching new Orings that are big enough because the ones on most figures in the last few years was to small, Shaving the inside around the head and shaving around the neck of the figure to makes these figures usable and not break whenever I use them...

Makes you wonder what's the real quality of today's materials, how come 20+ year old MOC figures have intact o-rings? and yours are breaking after 11 months... incredible :rolleyes:

I'm not sure who is actually manufacturing the o-rings for Hasbro, but they are certainly from lower quality rubber

In the case of the Viper Pit sets, the probably wasn't so much the quality of rubber as it was the o-ring being too small. If you take one out of a Viper you will see it will pretty much fit inside a standard size o-ring. This also caused a problem with the legs speading apart because the t-hook was being pulled too hard.

I've found a lot of the 5 packs over the last 4 or so years had o-rings that were too small. Many had broken before or just after being removed from the package. The greenshirts pack was another bad one. With the Viper set, I took the figures all apart, replaced o-rings and used a new razorblade to shave down the inside of the crotch so that the t-hook didn't put pressure on it and snap it, as it did your figure. I also shaved the front of the ball joint on the head so the Vipers weren't staring down at their shoes. Making these three revisions to the Viper set made all the difference and they were great after that. If you're doing more than one set it can be pain to go through though.

i think the smaller o ring is probably the culprit. could also be the use of the BAT crotch too? but isn't it pretty widely accepted that toys now aren't built like they used to be? especially with joes, having been so huge back when, i'm sure hasbro was willing to put more money into them, as opposed to now, when standards have dropped and they're not so big of sellers. doesn't make a broken toy any more useful though...

i think the smaller o ring is probably the culprit. could also be the use of the BAT crotch too? but isn't it pretty widely accepted that toys now aren't built like they used to be? especially with joes, having been so huge back when, i'm sure hasbro was willing to put more money into them, as opposed to now, when standards have dropped and they're not so big of sellers. doesn't make a broken toy any more useful though...
I tend to like the Quality of the newer Joes, No Broken thumbs on newer figures like the older ones. I just dont like using older figures for dios and stuff because I have broke to many in the past few years. The softer plastic is greatin my opinion.

This has happened to me as well. I have lots of Viper Pit Vipers and their o-rings are snapping like dad's waistband (there's you a mental image). I want to unload all of my Viper Pit Vipers though, so if anyone wants them let me know.
Sam

Well, after I modified the Pit Vipers' necks and crotches, I immediately changed their o-rings(without even knowing about this problem that some of you were unfortunate enough to run into).

I don't think it has anything to do with the BAT waist. At the same time, I do agree quality has gotten worse compared to before.

I also thought of a nifty idea to use the B.A.T. lower legs for. The 2002 Alley Vipers, 2003 Spytroops Alley Vipers, and the Urban Strike Team Alley Vipers can be improved with just a minimal amount of repainting and a lower leg swap. What do I mean by this? Well, use those BAT lower legs, attach them to the Alley Vipers, and repaint the back of the legs to match the color(s) of the Alley Vipers. Here's a pic to illustrate:


http://img17.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=57958_Kevlar_122_620lo.JPG

I did a writeup about this when the Vipers first came out. The problem is the Bat waist slot and the T hook for the Viper legs doesnt line up just right and it puts lots of stress on the crotch. The O ring is also far to small and this compounds the problem. Just switching the O ring will help, but the crotch is still taking forward pressure from the t hook and will eventually break unless you trim it a bit. My post shows in detail with pictures how to fix this and also fix the neck joint. Hope this helps.

http://forums.yojoe.com/showthread.php?t=42025&highlight=viper+articulation

I've had 3 cobra officers from the tru six pack that needed the O rings replaced. What really sucked is that some genius decided to have their torso glued together. These guys where just on display as well.

If you take one out of a Viper you will see it will pretty much fit inside a standard size o-ring.

I just noticed this with my CP #101 Dragonsky figure. His O-ring fits inside the standard replacement ones that many dealers sell