Boxing and contents.
Pretty similar to Generations Springer's concept and packaging. Included is a black and white portrait of his box art cover and the instructions manual.
Robot mode
Well, if we are going by G1 design, then Sandstorm lacks his head guard just as classics Inferno and Grapple did. At first glance, I was left aghast on how his propeller wings stretched out. In fact, speaking of G1 aesthetics, this Sandstorm doesn't look anything like his G1 counterpart. It wasn't until later that I discovered he is a representation of his IDW design. Neat. Takara eventually released this mold down the line too but I'm not too sure what to make of that version either. Takara's yellow is more darker which is a reminiscence of his G1 cartoon colors and there are more orange in other areas as well. However, if we were to go by G1 cartoon colors, Sandstorm's legs are plain black whereas the Takara version is fairly similar to that of the Hasbro release.
As for the figure, he looks nice. He is a remold and tweak of Generations Springer. Probably due to his wings, he does have some trouble standing at times. His wing-like wheels does look awkward, but you'll get over it. My only gripe besides his standing issue is that his right bicep flap is loose whereas his left bicep flap is tight. It's probably just my figure though. He also lacks the rotor blade Springer has. Sandstorm's gun also has only one missile while Springer had two. Sandstorm's weapon discharge is more of a pull-spring where Springer's is push-base. Good to be different I guess.
Comparisons to Springer robot mode
I feel both are unique in their own designs. They can swap weapons which is a goodie. Both figures are excellent.
VTOL aircraft
His propellers was pretty much the reason why Springer's blade was omitted. Since he could fly with his wheels, it would make the rotor blades look redundant. He has a landing wheel but his other landing gear, which is usually the shin for this mold, is more thicker than the one Springer has. In the cartoon, Sandstorm was a copter so he probably would had looked the same as Springer had he kept that design. I'm glad he did looks different which gave this figure more variety. You can also play with his wings a bit to give him same novelty.
Once you play with Springer, transforming Sandstorm isn't too tough though some areas are transformed differently in comparison to his green counterpart.
Comparisons
No qualms here. Just a side-by-side look on the two figures. I had trouble sticking Sandstorm's weapon under his cockpit. The one you see here is supposedly upside down from the official format. Hey, if it works, it works right? I ended trading their weapons with one another to have some fun.
Dunebuggy (Springer comparisons as well)
I felt this was the highlight of this figure. I was really amazed by how the Dunebuggy mode turned out. I guess those big wheels were good for something. Once again, despite sharing the same mold, I like how Hastak made something that look and feels different to that of Springer's. The pics says it all. If I was to raise a stank about this mode, I thought some of Sandstorm's tabs didn't peg well namely his windows though his orange roof covers it for the most part. Nevertheless, good job Hastak.
Conclusion
This guy will do as your classics Sandstorm lineup until they do release the actual G1 looking Sandstorm down the line someday. If you loved Springer, you will definitely owe yourself a favor and pick him up. Have a nice day!
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