Phil's
Operation Combination Iron Lift,
Micromaster Collection Iron Lift,
Micromaster Collection Destron Iron Lift
and
Universe Hightower
Review


Operation Combination Iron Lift

Iron Lift is the SixBuilder team's version of the Constructicon Hook: A crane arm & cab turntable mounted on a truckbed. I find the name for this vehicle slightly odd - Gran Arm (Grand Arm) is used for the wheeled bulldozer and I can't help feeling that the names are slightly more appropriate when swapped. Here the vehicle is cast in white (as is Mixing's chest) and the crane arm in blue. Unlike the original Hook the crane arm doesn't extend but for some reason bends in the middle (?) while the small hook on the of the arm does bend.

Here begins the copy & paste from Digger's review: To Transform: Centre the crane arm & cab so the arm points forward. Fold the front of the vehicle down to form the legs. Stand. Fold out the arms.

Standard articulation for a Micromaster is present on the robot mode which isn't anything special lacking some of the extra moulding seen on other Sixteam members. The revealed legs and body are both an orange colour the same as that used for Digger's vehicle mode.

To form SixBuilder take Iron Lift's robot mode and sit it down by bending forward at the waist. The top of the toy is then locked onto the shoulder - Iron Lift is the left arm - and the left hand is attached. The hands can't be swapped round on SixBuilder, you're stuck with Iron Lift as the left arm.

Iron Lift's design is resurrected wholesale years later to make the Minicon Longarm.

Iron Lift was sold in Japan in 1992 in the Operation Combination TF-01 SixBuilder set.


Micromaster Collection Iron Lift

Iron Lift is toy number 3 in the 2003 Micromaster Collection release of SixBuilder.

Iron Lift swaps the white for red while the orange becomes yellow and the blue of the crane arm becomes grey. The red would seem to be influenced by the Build Team member Build Cyclone/Hightower who was also a red crane.

He comes with the left fist for SixBuilder which is moulded in the same yellow plastic as the body for Treader (the truck), but with most of the yellow obscured by dark grey paint.


Micromaster Collection Destron Iron Lift

Iron Lift's Destron chase repaint 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 on both cabs. 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 Iron Lift comes with the chase version of the left fist, but moulded in the same green as all the Micromasters in the set, that his Cybertron counterpart has.


Universe Hightower

Hightower is one of the Constructicon homages in the Universe Devastator set to be named differently for whatever reason - usually copyright ! He aught to be Hook, and everyone knows it. The green used for the toy is less bright than that used for the Destron SixBuilder release, closer the green of the original Constructicons. There's more paint applications - purple is used extensively on the body of the robot and the cab windows - while the crane arm is cast in black. Personally I'd have preferred purple (as used on the original Constructicons) but other wise it looks good.

Hightower comes with both of Devastator's fists. I look at these and see that they're mainly painted black with just the actual fist painted purple. Both colours are over the same green plastic as the rest of the toy. Examination of the earlier coloured SixBuilders shows that the fists are moulded on the same parts sprue as Treader/Longhaul so I can understand that they're moulded green. However on G1 Devastator both fists and lower arm attachments/launchers are purple. I feel the use of black here detracts from the combined Devastator toy and would be painting these PLUS SixBuilder's waist & gun, the shovel on Bonecruser, Scavenger's Excavator arm and Hightower's Crane Arm purple if my painting skills were up to it !


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