[YES] Taz the Sabertooth Tiger Partial by NazFX Studios The item being reviewed is 4 years old and may not reflect the makers current style, or work. Maker Information NazFX Studios Year of Project2022 Completion Time (?)4 - 6 Months ETA AccuracyYES - the ETA was accurate An ETA is the Estimated Time of Arrival for a project. In other words, an estimated turnaround time. An ETA is not a deadline. Review Date29 August 2022 RelationshipThe maker is NOT a friendThis relationship was indicated by the reviewer at the time this review was written. Review InformationReviewerTwitter: RivaloWolf Prior ExperienceYes, this is my fourth fursuit Wear Time10 Informed Maker of IssuesThere were no issues of the makers fault. Though when I had misjudged the color of a fur swatch we ordered and it arrived looking more red than I had expected, she worked with me on a solution that allowed the original purple of the design to come through via the National Fiber Technology dye while complimenting the fur I had misjudged. It was a great solution to fix a design mistake on my part. Taz the Sabertooth Tiger Positive ProjectThis item was a commission Paid: A Lump Sum of $3000 - $4999 Initial Contact: November 2021 Completion/Ship Date: March 2022 Shipping Origin: Australia Type: Partial Style: Toony Padding: None Specialties: None SpeciesName: Sabertooth Tiger Found in: Felidae(?) Features: Hair / Wig Concept Art Photos of Completed Product Overall Initial ContactI applied at her limited opening and heard back very quickly, within a day or two I would guess. Maker CommunicationShe was very responsive and professional in her communication. She would send progress photos and ideas regardless of being prompted and was always excited to share and chat ideas that either she or I had. Responses were timely and during her set work schedule. Toward the later stages of the project, she would send videos detailing features and ideas as the WIP of the head came together. Project Completion TimeVery satisfied. She adhered to a reasonable schedule and was clear that her patreon projects would be running alongside our fursuit projects so that it was understandable (and admirable) to see her hopping between them as monthly deadlines rolled around. I believe my head and Kalula's heads were the only fursuit commissions taken in this batch, and mine was the first of the two to be started. All and all it felt like a quick experience as the pace was reasonable for a quality product and had updates throughout. Overall Project Quality15/10, I'd expect nothing less than someone as professional and high quality as Naz. She really brought my character to life and with such attention to detail and care too. By far the most professional, enthusiastic, caring and just overall fantastic artist I've ever had the pleasure of working with. I would definitely say she exceeded my expectations.. I've watched her bring characters to life as plushies with insane detail for years now, and although it was technically a gamble seeing as though she had not made a big cat fursuit before, between her plush and fursuit making work I had confidence that she'd do a great job and she absolutely did. Components Head Wear SatisfactionThe head is by far one of the most comfortable heads that I've worn. It's very easy to breathe in as the mouth is aligned with the open cavity of the saber. No heat or condensation builds from your breath, and largely the front of your face is not covered by the foam so overall it is much less hot than your traditional fursuit head. The front of the head was built from a 3D scan of my head and is printed beautifully to fit via expanding foam in a 3D printed mould. The top of the head is built on a baseball cap and can be tightened from the plastic clasp in the back, the head is also a zip on via a zipper in the back of the head hidden by the mane. The head is not as heavy as you'd expect, the nose is relatively hollow and the nostrils are open with a removable head fan fastened on the inside. I will say that the weight does press on the brow, so if I choose to have my chin inside the mouth area instead of just below, it's possible that it will sag slightly down my brow with movement and time.. but it does still fit extremely well and follows my face around as I thrash about. The vision is moderate. The actual eyes are harder to see out of and I have a very limited range of vision. I want to guess that it's 70° side to side vision and like 10° up and down vision. Now, the mouth is very open so it's easy to see around if you were to look through the mouth instead. Visual SatisfactionThe head itself is breathtaking. The attention to detail is immaculate, with careful and high quality features from anywhere from the whisker spots to the shine of the teeth. As you can see in the photos, Naz went above and beyond in creating the props that were essential to my characters, namely the chains, and making them have a luster and weight that comes across as lifelike without being an inconvenience or pain. The side view of the face is my favorite part. She nailed the elongated face and dipped nose bridge that made my saber more of his own character as opposed to a normal cat base with longer fangs. This truly brought to life the face shape I had imagined and fallen in love with when I adopted this almost were-beast type design from squeedgemonster, each angle was very well articulated. The only negatives I would consider are the front view is a little bit goofy. We had chosen an eye that would be somewhere between toony and the 3D glossy anime eyes that are occasionally used to give more orb like shaping to the eye. From the 3D model it looked perfect, and from the side it is perfect, but from the front you can see it overhang over the mesh material of the eye and appear overset (as in, the mesh is technically laid on the bottom of this cone/visor and thus goes underneath it rather than being flush from the opening of the yellow into the eye mesh. This, combined with the black corners of the mouth stretching into the cheek a bit widely make the front angle a little harsh compared to the perfection of the side. I would like to re-emphasize that the front view, along with every other view, is a near perfect recreation of the concept art. Because the mouth is more open, you would likely have to wear a black balaclava underneath to avoid your mouth/nose from being seen. The symmetry is perfect, all fur textures and lengths lay well into each other. The mane itself is made of an alternative wig like material called NFT or National Fiber Technlogoy and is shaped using a mixture of cosplay wig spray and a type of glue at the tips to hold its signature spikey shaping. It is very long and swooshey, and will flail around without losing its shape as I move. Now because it is glued/sprayed, it does have a crunchy material and is very delicate to friction while risking stray hairs breaking loose or shaping being lost. I've treated it with a lot of care, and even then it's lost a bit of integrity just in shipping, though you can't quite tell its frizzint without looking close. Naz has said that reapplication of these materials will be natural in maintaining its shape over time, and it can be washed with water. The NFT is custom dyed to match the character. Hands Wear SatisfactionVery easy, lined four fingered paws. The cuffs are items you put over top them before putting the paws on, as they do not slip past the fingers. They do slide around on my hand and arm, I also do have baby wrists. The paws are padded to achieve their shape but do not prohibit use. Quality is fantastic. Visual SatisfactionThey look fantastic. She gave me the option to pick what type of paw shape I'd prefer (namely, should she try to match the hands on the ref), of which I believe I chose a standard paw. The paw is standard, I wouldn't say it looks more beasty feline and is definitely on the cute paw pad side. That being said, there are longer claws and claw sheaths that add color and make them appear more feral and I love that. Tail Wear SatisfactionI haven't had the opportunity to wear the tail much on its own. But it is standard to large shape and a saber nub. It has two loops that would slip through a standard to thin belt. It incorporates both the mahogany reddish color used in my stripes and the purple nft used in the mane. Visual SatisfactionVisually it looks pretty good from the side angle. The NFT is probably too long here and is added to the tail almost to point upward, so though it's lipped to face upward at the base the weight and gravity of it all pulls it down so it's a bit waved, lumpy and awkward. So I would say the tail is a bit goofy and weird looking compared to the rest which might be able to be mended by cutting or removing the NFT. Special FeaturesThis suit is loaded with features, many of which I've outlined in previous parts of this review. First, the head is moulded to fit my face which is honestly super cool and worthwhile. There is a fan in the nose, a removable septum piercing, and a slot in the neck for a portable charger to attach to the fan and be activated with a button. The saber fangs are screw offs, they're removable! The chains, piercings, cuffs, and septum are 3D printed and covered with a beautiful shiny stretchy velvet material, the chains attach and deattach via pressing and squeezing them apart in the back. The teeth and eyeliner are coated in a scratch/wear proof material and are printed custom colored as well. The jaw moves slightly depending on where it rests on my chin, as well as when I open my jaw. The snap back hat inside is adjustable. The mane is swooshy and hides a zipper along the back of the head. RatingFursuitReview rates by asking the question: Would you recommend this maker? YES This review has been marked with a positive rating. This means the reviewer would recommend NazFX Studios. Final Comments1000/10. Naz is a professional, kind, communicative artist and expresses excitement around your project and the techniques that will be used. She has a stunning eye for bringing any character to life, no challenge is big enough. I would without a doubt recommend her to anyone, I've genuinely become such a big fan through this experience and would be happy to gush about the experience any time. Are you the maker of this item? Would you like to leave an official response? Click here. In case the button above doesn't work, you can click here to launch the maker response form.
