Hello everyone. I'm Funasen, in charge of CSM development.

​" KAMEN RIDER BLACK SUN" is one of the projects to commemorate the 50th anniversary KAMEN RIDER, and was announced on April 3rd of this year.


Official page here

It was announced this October,
The director is Kazuya Shiraishi, who is also known as the director of the currently released film "The Blood of Wolves Level 2" and is a leading figure in Japanese cinema.
Screenplay by Izumi Takahashi,
And two people who are familiar to special effects fans,
Concept visuals: Shinji Higuchi
With special skills manager Taguchi Kiyotaka participating, I'm sure it will be a fantastic show.

There are currently interviews with the three of them posted on the official website, so please take a look.
Please also follow our official Twitter account!

Official Twitter is here


Now, in order to make "KAMEN RIDER BLACK SUN" an even more interesting show, we would like to ask for your help, so we are currently running a crowdfunding campaign! (The campaign period is until November 29th. Only one month left!)



Your support will directly contribute to improving the quality of the program, so we hope you will participate and play a part in this new project.
There are various courses available, including the right to appear as an extra, the right to view setting materials, the right to talk shows, and even the "right to become a monster"? Each course is full of interesting things, so please check out the website above.

Among them, BANDAI is offering the following gifts.
A surprising reprint!" KAMEN RIDER BLACK TV Power DX HENSHIN BELT Kingstone"



The epoch-making HENSHIN BELT that first appeared in 1987, with a red center that glowed, made sounds, and rotated to match the transformation scenes on TV, is making a comeback!
This is a reproduction product that has been further enhanced while retaining the concept of the original product.
*This product is a crowdfunding reward and is not scheduled to be sold at PREMIUM BANDAI or other stores in Japan.

Of course, the original molds no longer exist, so we redesigned and developed the product from scratch to optimize specifications to suit modern environments and technologies.
Today, we would like to introduce three features of this product.


<1> The power of television through “sound recognition”!



This time, it is the same "TV power," but unlike the original product, the mechanism has been changed so that it is activated by recognizing the "sound" of the image.
At the time, the product's transformation was triggered by a sensor that detected flashing light, but the sensor could only be pointed in a specific direction, and as you can imagine, the flashing light caused many problems over the years, so we began looking for other methods.

In fact, our company has a legendary electronic gimmick engineer who was in charge of developing the "TV Power HENSHIN BELT" back then, and he still works in the same department. He advised us that "that system only works well with CRT TVs," so after discussing possible solutions, we decided on sound recognition technology.
(Incidentally, the Professor was also involved in the development of the O-medal and Wizard Ring. He is a true legend.)

I had been wondering why the video was not responding when I played it on my computer, but I learned something new from this experience.
This is a reprint that has been adjusted to be optimally activated in the current environment.


＜2＞Not just electrical technology, but also attention to design
HENSHIN BELT has a simple shape, but this is what made me realize how difficult it is to trace.
In this way, through several stereolithography outputs, fine adjustments were made many times to create the characteristic curved shape. (More shape data than this is saved.)



In addition, a release technique called "surface slide" was used in creating the mold, which allowed the area around the operation buttons, which were separate parts on the original product, to be integrated into one piece.
The advantage is that plating each part separately results in color variations and combinations that inevitably occur during mass production, but by plating them as one part, the assembly process is eliminated, resulting in a continuous, beautifully shining body.



Of course, we paid attention to the back as well, and it is a straight reproduction of the original product! The show logo is beautifully engraved on it.



We are currently working hard to develop a product that can illuminate a wider area than the current product.



Some of you may have noticed when looking at the belt introduction page, but as part of the DX HENSHIN BELT series, we have changed to a more stable belt format that can also accommodate extension belts!
An extension belt is also included. It is also compatible with display pedestals.
We are currently making design changes to make the waist size slightly larger than previously announced!




<3> There are two modes: a reproduction mode of the original products and a mode used in the movie!
This has also been upgraded to allow you to choose between two modes, which will be familiar to CSM users.
In the reissue mode, the "beep beep" sound that was used to transform the products at the time is reproduced, creating a simple setup that will immerse you in nostalgia.
In the movie mode, the transformation sounds from the movie are included! Other sound effects are also included, and they can be activated by pressing buttons.
(As expected, the original audio data for the video no longer exists, so we have recreated some parts to resemble the original.)

We believe that for toy users, both modes will be genuine transformation sounds, so by making them two modes so that they can be enjoyed together, we hoped to broaden the scope of possibilities for creativity when it comes to the mode used in the movie.
We will continue to refine the product to make it even more enjoyable.

Applications are accepted until November 29th!
This product would not have been born without this crowdfunding project.
Please apply!

Actually, there are still some secrets that I can't reveal... so, the next update will be
"looking forward to."


That's all for today's blog.
Next week's update is scheduled for Monday.

See you next time!