PE-11 Scouting Force X

Perfect Effect makes some surprisingly nice stuff. (see PE DX01 RC for a very nice example) Despite their main lineup being really small figures, most being based on the cassettes of Soundwave and Blaster, there was one set I always had my eye on but couldn't quite pull the trigger on...until now. One tied into something other than Soundwave's circle of minions that now become weapons for City Commander & Friends. Thought RC was parts-former-y? You ain't seen nothing yet! I'm talking PE-11 Scouting Force X, baby!

Scouting Force X is a set of three robots that piece together into a tiny little old timey camera mounted on a tripod. Kinda sounds familiar, doesn't it? Almost like that Transformers character Reflector. I'm sure it's just coincidence. Everything has a place to go to either form a part of the camera, or store inside something that does. Colors are purple and white with a good chunk of exposed green in the back, silver for the camera lens, (and what a camera lens it is!) and some black details. (and for the tripod) There's also a couple of tiny touches of gold. But just how big is it? Well, my lovely assistant RC will demonstrate...as will Topspin, whom happened to be lounging in vehicle mode in the background.



And the side view, giving a good look at that monster of a lens:



As I said, this set is mostly a parts-former. I'll show off just how many parts there are in a bit, but first how about a look at the base body? They all transform the same; unfold the legs, bring the shoulders up, adjust limbs as desired. So my lovely assistant will show off SFX-01 Edge, who's only difference mold-wise to the other two is his belly. It's got a shutter/iris thingy. Detail-wise, he's got 01 on his leg and green bands.



Now, just how crazy is the parts-forming? 24 pieces crazy, and some of them, such as the scabbards for the daggers, are extremely tiny. Speaking of tiny...



RC is roughly Deluxe size, slightly shorter than First Edition Arcee. These guys make her look like a giant, they're so wee! A Legends class figure, heck, even Micro Morpher Cyclops is bigger than them! And I don't care one iota!!! Why? Because of THIS:



They may be small, but holy scrap they're not screwing around! Let me tell what each of these guys get out of this armory's worth of guns and blades. All three get a dagger and a scabbard for said dagger that plugs onto their butts. Edge also gets the two bits of the Viewfinder for his shoulders, two sides of the lens for arm pads, and two of the three guns that were stored in the lens. SFX-02 Shield (identified through the 02 mark on his leg and his red bands) gets the final gun and adds a barrel extension and sight to make it a sniper rifle, his shield made from the bottom of the camera, (obviously) and shoulder rocket pods made from the camera flash. As for SFX-03 Bullet, the 03 tagged blue banded guy? He gets what's left of the camera flash, combines it with the tripod for a gatling gun, and what's left of the lens gets used for his jet pack. This is the standard configuration, and each part aside from the bits for Shield but including his shield is marked with the number that matches who is technically supposed to wield it. The daggers and guns are all the same, so they don't get numbered either. But you can equip them however you see fit.

However...they can make a super weapon! One way it can be done is to plug it into Edge's belly and the hole in the middle flap of the shield placed on its side:



Yes, it's so silly that RC is doubled over laughing at it she can't take it seriously. How about ditching the shield and going handheld with this lenszooka of death?



...RC is really good at rolling on the desk laughing her skidplate off, isn't she? That or she thinks this is even more ridiculous. I can't blame her, honestly. HUGE WEAPON...itty bitty robot.

You know the shocking thing about this set is to me? It's utter lack of metal. I'm not talking about die-cast metal. I'm talking about screws, pins, etc. There's just one little bit of metal, and that is in the tripod/gatling gun to let it spin freely when closed up. Yet they don't feel like they're about to fall apart at all, and for such tiny figures they look amazing. Articulation is impressive as well, with 12 points each, and most of those being ball joints. The joints also feel pretty snug for the most part, with only the shoulders being a tad looser than I'd like. (easily fixable and may just be mine) Getting the weapons to fit in their hands can be a tad scary at first because the fit is so tight. Shield's shield handle also fits in his hand tightly, but the hinge itself is floppy when not in its tucked away position.

One other thing I discovered about the Perfect Effect stuff I have as of this review was that their weapons use the same size pegs as Cyberverse figures. RC's swords and guns won't work due to how they're designed, but her sniper rifle fits perfectly!



...And of course Bullet just had to try out the already large weapon of a girl at least twice his size. And gets a facepalm in response.

So, is the set worth it? Yes. Yes it is. At TFSource, this should be about $90. A good price versus TFC Toys' Photron set, which while bigger, is $125 and has a VERY different aesthetic. (but a much more realistic camera mode) There's also the black Night Ops version and the set has also been retooled in the heads and chests for PE-12 Assault Force X as an homage to the Diaclone camera robos. (you could also say the original G1 Reflector toy, but that's just silly!) I'd recommend this set any day of the week all day long...unless you really have it out against tiny converting figures. The camera mode is nice, but this set shines in their armed to the teeth robot modes.

Bravo! Nice review, DB!


I, too, own this set and really can't elaborate any more on these little fellas' as Detective Barricades reviews are near flawless. But I will leave you with my personal photo gallery; some in-package shots that will show you everything from the box, to the inner tray....and oh yeah, I also purchased the Reprolabels upgrade decal set that goes with this trio:












And the Reprolabel upgrades...

Better images of the sticker set as well as a sticker map of the PE-11 Scouting Force X, Reprolabel upgrades can be seen here.

My PE-11 Scouting Force X set along with Reprolabel upgrades (still unapplied) are up for sale! So if this is something that interests you, be sure and PM me! I can offer these at a really sweet deal. I'm just looking to upgrade to the Deluxe sized TFC Photron figures.

Well if you don't mind them not looking all that much like Reflector in robot modes...

On a side note, this may be the last of my easy repost reviews, as now I can't copy/paste my work from the old site. :(

Nevertheless, I'll still get the reviews redone, it'll just take a bit longer.

Detective Barricade wrote:Well if you don't mind them not looking all that much like Reflector in robot modes...

....you make a good point. I just wish the PE-11 crew were a bit larger, though. The size scale compared with everything that's come out for the Decepticon camp since then (3rd party) really leaves these guys "underfoot." When displayed together. And that really bothers me, I guess.