Phil's
Operation Combination Gran Arm,
Micromaster Collection Gran Arm,
Micromaster Collection Destron Gran Arm
and
Universe Buckethead
Review


Operation Combination Gran Arm

Well for a start here there's some poor transliteration going on - Grand Arm would seem more sensible. Then, looking at the whole team, the Gran Arm name is perhaps more suitable to the crane (cranes have arms) where Iron Lift might have been better here.

Gran Arm is what I would have called a digger when I was younger, but am informed is a front end loader. It's a four wheeled vehicle with a shovel at the front that raises and lowers. He's the SixBuilder team's equivalent to Constructicon Scrapper except that he's a) red and b) forms the chest, not the leg, of the combined robot.

TF: Fold the shovel as far up & back as it will go. Fold the front of the vehicle down & forward. Stand. Fold the head up.

This is the 22nd Micromaster combiner part I've reviewed and this is the first time there's anything interesting to say about the articulation. Yes it's Micromaster standard: bending, but linked, knees & hip and turning shoulders. But the arms can't raise forward more than 30 degrees because of the vehicle's front wheels hanging off his chest ! Revealed colour here includes the black of the legs - they're black on every version of the toy so I think they're moulded with the vehicle wheels - and the white of the arms & head just like the bodywork of Iron Lift's vehicle mode.

To form SixBuilder's chest take Gran Arm's robot mode, folding his head down and bending his legs forward at the waist. Fold the shovel down onto his back and place him into the cavity on the chest piece with the shovel pointing up

Adequate vehicle mode but the robot mode is hampered by the wheels hanging off the chest.

Gran Arm was sold in Japan in 1992 in the Operation Combination TF-01 SixBuilder set.


Micromaster Collection Gran Arm

Gran Arm returns in 2003 as toy numberer 4 in the SixBuilder Micromaster Collection. He swaps the red for an orangey yellow and the white for red. This may be a homage to the BuildBoy/Wedge robot - both are at the centre of their combined forms.

Gram Arm is packed with the blue chest of the combined robot and it's head which is painted black & silver over yellow plastic indicating that it, like SixBuilder's hands, are moulded on the same sprue as Treader.


Micromaster Collection Destron Gran Arm

Destron Gran Arm's chase repaint *finally* puts him in colours resembling the G1 Constructicons. The green used here for most parts is a brighter shade than that used on the original Constructicons, while purple is used for the windows & Decepticon symbol. Chase Destron SixBuilder pieces were packed between 1 and 2 piece per box of 12 SixBuilder pieces - 2 complete sets in each. However due to the Constructicon homage this chase set was in demand more than the others for a long time.

Destron Gran Arm comes with the chase version of the combined robot's chest & head that his Cybertron counterpart has.


Universe Buckethead

Oh dear. Buckethead. What an awful name ! What stopped Hasbro from using Scrapper for this Constructicon themed re-release ? Similar to the Destron Gran Arm the green used here is lighter and more purple paint is used for highlighting parts of the toy.

Buckethead is packed with just the chest of the combined robot.


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