19
Jul
2021
15:14

Tom Servo Replica

Etsy won’t allow reviews this long so I figured I’d post this here in case it helps anyone who’s thinking of getting a Tom Servo replica from MST3KBots. I don’t think I have anything to say that MANY other reviews haven’t already said, but I think it’s important to reiterate what you’re getting into here. If you just want the short summary: Amazing, near-perfect Servo replica. Really your only choice if you want one. Be patient as it will take a long time to get to you (ignore Etsy’s delivery estimate) and don’t expect responses to any messages. Now the longer version.

Tom Servo Replica

Firstly, as pretty much everyone has said, the Tom Servo replica is amazing and stunning, and to be honest, after a lot of searching, this shop is pretty much the only way you can get one. The parts are all extremely rare and out of production (even the paint is currently unavailable anywhere at the time of this review) so building your own, while maybe not “impossible” seems just short of that. He’s much bigger in person than I expected!

One important detail (to me, anyway) is that the head is not screen accurate. Screen Servo has a horizontal seam around the equator of the clear globe while this one has a vertical seam on each side, and also while Servo did go through several iterations on the show, the later most well known versions have a second “lid” on the bottom of the plastic globe at the top of the “neck”. I would guess that this is completely beyond the control of the maker though as these are the only snack dispensers widely available, I think and adding a second lid to every build would also increase the cost and build complexity. I wonder where he gets the accurate heads for the show builds!

As mentioned in many reviews, you are going to be waiting for this for a long time. The shop always says “In stock” which I personally find very deceiving as it’s apparently almost always a month or two before it will ship. Mine was purchased on May 26, with an estimated arrival of June 4-8. When nothing had shipped by mid July, I sent a message but got no response so I opened a ticket to get a refund. The seller then responded very courteously and explained what was going on and said he could ship mine out the next day, which he did.

Also as mentioned in reviews and something I personally experienced, this seller apparently almost never responds to messages. Before I bought, I sent a message asking about the head detail I mentioned earlier, but never received a reply. This made me very hesitant to buy from this shop, but all the reviews seemed to indicate that everyone did indeed eventually receive their order even if was months later, so I felt fairly confident that I would eventually receive what I’d paid for. And as mentioned, I didn’t receive a reply to my order inquiry until I opened a ticket. This isn’t meant as a complaint or anything so much as to just let any future buyers know what to expect. The seller is incredibly busy (with good reason) so chances are you aren’t going to get a response to your messages.

I intend to either try and add a fake “seam” of some kind to more closely match Servo’s look, or perhaps replace the globe with a more accurate one if I can ever snag one on Ebay or somewhere.

None of this is at all intended to slander the seller or warn anyone away, I just think everyone should know what they’re getting into. You will receive a stunning Servo replica (with only two slight, and likely unavoidable screen inaccuracy) though you will wait far longer than Etsy estimates and will likely not get any reply if you send a message or question.

All that being said, obviously, I still bought it as I felt it worth it, and this shop may be my only chance to ever own one!

8 Responses

  1. Tjodalv says:

    I ordered mine on April 18th and have yet to receive mine. You ordered yours over a month after me and got it. I am very upset with this.

    • Heath says:

      Oh that sucks. It may be because I opened a ticket requesting a refund. I know he had a last minute rush order from the actual show for some upcoming promo materials that set him back. I have never heard of anyone who didn’t eventually get theirs though, if that’s any comfort.

  2. Tjodalv says:

    Yeah, he told me all about the show thing and he had to make more puppets for the show blah blah blah. The fact he told me he was going to send mine out after Memorial Day and never did got me rather upset.

  3. Tjodalv says:

    Here is a screenshot of what he said to me on May 5th.
    https://imgur.com/SGzouhM

  4. Tjodalv says:

    Update: While I didn’t put in to request a refund, I DID open a ticket for a never received item with Etsy yesterday. Today…I get a tracking number.

  5. Tjodalv says:

    It came in today! Absolutely love it! I put a Review there as Abaza Gorath. Looks so damn good!

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