Speck,
First...thank you for getting these images up. It's an awesome surprise to see so many variants!!
I hate to rain on the parade of images...but the Thor II A & B variants have issues.
The Thor A does not have the lasers on the LT & RT as the prime does. Your CAD designer should remove them from the A variant.
The Thor B also does not have the "same" lasers on the LT & RT as the prime does...but it does have an ER Small Laser in the RT...so maybe that one can stay. The LT laser needs to be removed & a CT laser needs to be added.
I am the sculptor, so I can answer these questions. The answers come down to a few reasons, mainly, cost, ease of assembly, and Dark Age Minis.
First, let's talk about cost. Given the way masters are made and part counts work, more parts=more cost. I was aiming to reduce the complexity and reduce the number of parts that needed to be both 3D printed and molded. So, IWM is only casting 1 torso, and providing different arms with each config.
Why not make them separate pieces you ask? Ease of assembly. Tiny parts are always a pain to assemble, and, on top of that, those lasers are so small and so integrated to the torso, there would be no good way to separate them.
Lastly, take a look at the Dark Age minis, all of them use the laser housings on the shoulders:
So, logically, how did I reconcile this?
For the A, the housings are permanently on the 'Mech, and there simply isn't a laser there. Just don't jewel the laser, and that should make some logical sense.
For the B, it is a simple matter of weapon and art being slightly different. The same way the Marauder's AC appears to be on the CT, but is actually in the RT. If you want, I can ask Ray about possibly getting some errata going on the B config.