Forum - View topicL> Figurine collector, I need help!
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Kitsúne
Posts: 2 |
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Hellooo ANN members,
I am trying to find a good source to buy PVC figurines from. I know of 1999, HLJ, Hobby Fan. I read not to trust ebay, but what about Amazon? Many figures I want are out of stock, on pre order or simply too damn expensive on these websites . To remedy this, Amazon seems to have bigger collection than these sites. Other sites offer limited figurines, varied prices and have really bad customer support. I only bought one figurine from Hobby Fan and the support is slow, and my item had a problem with it. I also heard a thing called "pre order limbo" and how workshops in China are contracted to make figurines that over exceed the pre order limit. Which can take a very long time, pushing your preorder back by months. But now, I want to buy some more and I want to know my options. Pros and cons of each, if possible. has anyone had good experiences with websites? How is the legitimacy of these websites? Is the blackmarket really that big of a problem? I seriously spent the last 10 hours looking online, and its giving me a headache. I can't find a solid answer from anyone, I thought I would come here to ANN cause I heard great things about the maturity of this community. Thank you |
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Sailor S
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AmiAmi is very reliable and they ship things out securely. I've never had a damaged product from them, and they certainly don't deal in bootlegs. If you're looking for figures that have been out for awhile, then I'd suggest Mandarake, or highly rated sellers on Amazon. eBay is a crap shoot. You have to be savvy with how they list things. They can't call a bootleg an authentic version, but they can call it a Chinese version, or some other bullshit name and say they never claimed it was authentic. For that reason, I'd use them as a last resort sort of thing.
As for cons about AmiAmi, well if you want a good figure, then you'll likely have to play the preorder game. For things like Good Smile Company figures, this isn't an issue since they have a certain preorder period, and they'll fill whatever preorders they get. But, if you're dealing with certain figures like the Megahouse P.O.P One Piece figures, they have a very limited print run, and you have approximately 2 minutes to get an order in once they open. And that's being generous. As for Mandarake, the main downside to them is a bit more of a markup and the fact that they only ship via EMS which is pretty pricey. For this reason, when you're looking at figures there, you'd be well served to use Amazon to compare prices. Many times they'll have a better price when you factor in the exchange rate and shipping costs. Hope that helps. |
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Kitsúne
Posts: 2 |
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Thank you for the reply, so you would say Amazon is a good place to order from then? |
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potatochobit
 Posts: 1373 Location: TEXAS |
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amazon is usually very over priced
the reason is - you are buying older 'out of print' figures I suggest you stop doing that if the product is on amazon and it is close the MSRP price, it's fine to buy if you are looking for older figures check mandarake every few days the only reason you would be charged EMS shipping is if your order exceeds the SAL airmail requirements, or if you live in a place like Africa or Italy - in that case, you have bigger problems to worry about there are lots of counterfeit nendoroids and shining wind figures on ebay but ebay is still a good source. just don't be foolish. obviously, if it's 15$ and free shipping it is not authentic. remember there will always be NEW figures made collecting old stuff is fun, but save your money for the new if you cannot find older items at reasonable prices you should learn to preorder things you really want it is basically the model the figure industry uses now |
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Jon182
Posts: 105 |
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You could go to Dannychoo.com, they have a section on figures, as well as a list of retailers. I wouldn’t worry about pre-order limbo as most companies make more than enough, and usually re-release popular figures.
Bootlegs can be a problem, even with the more realistically priced figures. I wouldn’t say you should avoid sellers from Hong Kong or China, but you should be wary. Amazon and E-bay should always be your last resort, due to the fact that the prices are jacked up. I’ll second the recommendation for amiami, the prices are reasonable, usually packed well and delivery is quick. I’d just warn you to be careful when choosing shipping options, EMS can be expensive. |
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victor viper
 Posts: 630 Location: The deep south |
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I've bought a few figures directly from Amazon. Every now and then, they will have good deals (often on new Kotobukiya figures), made even better with free shipping/Amazon Prime. However, the Amazon marketplace is kind of a crapshoot. There are many trusted sellers that have Amazon storefronts (Robert's Anime Corner Store, Toys Logic, Anime King, and many others for example), but there are also many sketchy sellers on the Amazon marketplace who dabble in bootleg figures and/or price gouge for (legitimate) out of print figures. A few months ago, a whole bunch of Black Rock Shooter figures flooded the Amazon marketplace that were very clearly bootlegs.
My Figure Collection has a database of sellers and feedbacks. Also, if you search for the figure you're looking for, MFC's listing for that figure will indicate if there are known bootlegs out there. Also, the other users will sometimes post comments when the figure shows up pre-owned on AmiAmi or Mandarake. |
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Maidenoftheredhand
 Posts: 2634 |
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For out of stock figures I second Mandarake and I've heard good things about Ami Ami preowned items.
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Ortensia1980
 Posts: 803 Location: some town near Amsterdam |
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I second this. I've bought a couple of figures on ebay years ago and they were authentic. Can't remember any of the names of the sellers or if they're still on ebay though. If the price on ebay is really low like potatochobit said, then it's obviously too good to be true and a fake. |
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potatochobit
Posts: 1373 Location: TEXAS |
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kotobukiya has a USA distribution service here in america
amazon is one of the official retailers but they do not always carry alot try kirinhobby or entertainmentearth or toys logic if u want US based items, there is even otaku fuel on the bright side, kotobukiya USA tends to sell things cheaper than their japan division and shipping is much more reasonable than coming from japan about the preorder comment - sometimes, even when 'more' is prodcued than preordered, that doesnt mean your favorite online shop will place a 'second' wholesale order of the product. there has to be enough demand to merit it. also, most ebay sellers now tell you if a product is made in china, they want to sell cheap products, not get in fights with everyone in america. many people are fine with counterfeits which is understandable considering the high prices of some items. I myself am on the fence with dakimura, I think the prices and selection of some licensed products are ridiculous. |
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Sailor S
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Made in China doesn't mean anything. Nearly every single official figure is made in China too. In fact, often times the exact same factories that make the official Good Smile Company figures (for example) also make the bootleg products. The difference in quality is obvious when you're looking at the product itself, but if the seller is using stock photos, then you're really taking a gamble. There are certain giveaways, but you need to be on the lookout for them. Like I said, one of the terms that basically means bootleg is "Chinese version". And of course, like you said, if the price is too good to be true, it is. |
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potatochobit
Posts: 1373 Location: TEXAS |
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although everything is made in china, most officially licensed items won't say 'made in china' in the description, they will usually say from japan
like in america, your ford taurus does not say, "80% of this car was made in china" what it actually says is, "this car was assembled in america with 20% domestic parts" |
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Sailor S
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Just pointing out that every single figure box of official figures that I've seen says Made in China. Same as the bootlegs. So a made in China description is completely meaningless. Now, if they claim it's the officially licensed product and it turns out to be a bootleg, then you have something to stand on and you should be able to get your money refunded from eBay or Amazon since the seller was misrepresenting the product. |
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