The Energon Pub

Today I (finally) got my G1 style Movie Jazz in the mail from Target.

His card looks like someone stood on the card and skated on the bubble down the toy isle. The bubble is so scuffed I could barely see the toy inside. He seemed fine so that's at least a consolation.

Next I got in my Classics Ramjet that I ordered new off Amazon. I knew that a brand-new Seeker would always make me feel better. Yeah. HIS card looks like someone just kicked it down the toy isle. The top part of the bubble is caved in. It was in a box, so it wasn't shipping damage. It's just caved in.


Now these figures weren't going to stay on the card, but if I were a MIB kind of collector, I would be royally messed over. I COULD talk to the sellers but it took Target two months to send me my G1 style movie Jazz. I don't want to go through that again.

What happened? Has anyone else had this happen to them? Do retailers send stock that isn't so pretty anymore to online buyers because they can't see the condition of the packaging before they buy it?

I once worked at UPS. We weren't very careful with handling over there. One something audibly shattered and I was told it was no problem.

So only the figure packaging was messed up, and not their shipping box(es)? Sorry to hear.

I once got a Classics Bumblebee from HTS whose box looked like some animal chewed on it. And from BBTS, my Titanium WWI Starscream's box was caved in quite a bit on the bottom. Both toys were not damaged though.

Whenever I order from amazon, there's always dents and what not, but thankfully I haven't had something quite that bad. No scuffs, just the random dents in the bubble, which is still pretty annoying though.

i guess when you order from a company like hts or amazon, you're bound to get dented and messed up packages.... but with ebay, youre package should stay mint as long as the sellers says its *mint*. individual ebay sellers know how to pack and keep stuff in good condition.... just recently got some stuff from ebay and no problems with the packages.... i also recently got some stuff from hts, i got bubble scratches, pieces of the card ripped off, dents, and all that stuff.

That really SUCKS.

I got my Skywarp MP from BBTS and it came pristine, so I have no beef there.

BUT Amazon...I got in on that $25 Primus deal and one came slightly crumpled (just a corner) but not totally bashed like you got.

I'm not sure if you can, but I thought I heard you can take stuff back to Target for a refund/exchange if it arrives damaged (but only if Amazon/Target was the vendor...if it was an Amazon Storefront for an independent seller, you pretty much have to take it up with them I think)

ouch, i'm sorry to hear that...and i was one who thought that American online retail shops would really take good care of their shipped items. the only online transactions i've done so far are eBay and Yahoo! auctions (though i believe that they closed this now) and so far (except for one seller in England who sent me a boxful set of loose TFs NOT WRAPPED in bubblewrap!) all of the sellers have proven exceptional in taking care of the items so that they won't get damaged during shipping.

It's hard to avoid with ordering online I guess. I haven't had anything like that happen to me but it's always something that worries me because I hate buying stuff with ruined packaging. Sucks if it ever happens to me...almost happened once. I'd rather ruin it myself if it has to be.

Gauntlet101010 wrote:I once worked at UPS. We weren't very careful with handling over there. One something audibly shattered and I was told it was no problem.

I second this, and I'll raise you 3 years at Fedex Ground. Some of my co-workers would even have competitions on seeing who could make the loudest noise dropping boxes in the trailers.

I had more sense though, since I worked the unload, I knew what was inside of every package I touched. There were 8 trailers a night I would unload with absolutely NOTHING breakable inside. Most were clothes and other things yard tools and fancy meats. Yeah, that's right, we would get a trailer filled with styrofoam boxes, each containing about 60 lbs. of meat, in some case, it was even dog food (seriously, they had different brand stickers on each box, and these had a dog and cat on them and the name was Barf World)!

So I would have a little fun and tip complete walls over on whoever would be working with me. It would be funny (they did it to me too), plus it made it easier to unload by picking up the boxes, rather than reaching up 8 feet and trying to reach the boxes on top (some of those trailers were 100% full).

mosh wrote:So only the figure packaging was messed up, and not their shipping box(es)? Sorry to hear.

That's exactly right. The shipping boxes looked pretty good actually. They came through the normal US mail.

Reading through this post, I'm amazed that ANY package gets to its destination in one piece!

Yes, I did order Jazz directly through Target. I'm not worried about replacing him since I WAS planning on opening him anyway. I just would have liked the choice to keep him MISB.

I too have had better luck with eBay sellers. I think it is because it's easier to get eBay involved then it is getting Amazon involved.

I've made three purchases through Amazon.com (directly from them, not a reseller) and all of them came through in pristine condition and an incredibly short time frame for a company of their size.

I'm sorry to hear you guys had such bad experiences though.

You have to take into consideration who is going to pack your bots with care. A place like TFsource who deal with Transformers specifically and are collectors themselves, or Target who sells everything from TF to lawnmowers?

Thats why Ebay TF sellers usually ship with more care than a bigbox store, they often are collectors themselves.
I know when I sell bots on ebay, I package them with care because I would HATE to receive a bashed in box.

Although, I knew a guy who received a bot in a mountain dew box, and the bot was wrapped in a sweater for padding, so no theory is bulletproof.

Amazon.com is notorious for bashing in bubbles. They usually just throw in some air packs for padding. Thats fine and everything, but they usually overstuff the box, which dents the bubbles. Amazon and pristine packaging do not go together. HTS is just as bad- sometimes they package with no bubble wrap or air packs. Don't get me started on Amazon Japan- they are worse than Amazon in the US- I think the most they (Amazon Japan) ever use is some kind of tissue paper- they even cut down the boxes to save money. Amazon fulfills Target online orders- so its all the same crap in a box. E-Hobby can be bad at times as well. They usually double box a large shipment, but if the package gets dropped you get lovely corner dings. I know we complain about resellers, but for some MISBers its our only option when we cant find it ourselves. I had an ebayer use a crappy old box to send me a Unicron- it got bashed in- not very crush proof. He replied by saying it had plenty of padding.... idiot- doesnt know how shipping boxes are rated (ie crush test).

I can imagine that for MISB collectors, it is a real gamble no matter who you order from.

I would say your best best for getting beautiful boxes and bubbles would be online retailers that offer a collectors grade option.

Xgamer wrote: Don't get me started on Amazon Japan- they are worse than Amazon in the US- I think the most they (Amazon Japan) ever use is some kind of tissue paper- they even cut down the boxes to save money.

I agree that Amazon JP is terrible, but I'd actually welcome them cutting down the boxes. The one they send me are always far to large for their cotent. So the first time a heavier box is set upon them they go splat. Interestingly enough the contents came through ok, probably because I usually order books. I even had to go to the custom office once because the package was falling apart, so they couldn't send it on via normal mail.

Delivery side question, does anybody know who USPS uses to ship in Germany? I think it is UPS and I'm starting to get worried. According to their track feature they tried to delivery my package on Tuesday (funny how I was there the whole time, but nobody rang me, I'm starting to believe that the delivery man rang the wrong flat. He high-tailed it out of their, too, if I hadn't been primed to jump at any vehicle noise I'd never have made it in time to even see him).
And they haven't tried again so far. Unfortunately I can't find the info who they use, when they deliver and how often they try on their page.

Good that I am no "Mint in Box" collector. Most stuff comes in in very good shape, with some rare cases of dent boxes. But it happens. The pricier the item, the more care people usually give on the package. So a $9.99 bubbled card figure may not necessary fair too well. Not much you can do about it, as long as you are getting stuff from the mail. Just be glad when your toy is ok. I know it can suck pretty bad.

Sarri wrote:

Xgamer wrote: Don't get me started on Amazon Japan- they are worse than Amazon in the US- I think the most they (Amazon Japan) ever use is some kind of tissue paper- they even cut down the boxes to save money.

I agree that Amazon JP is terrible, but I'd actually welcome them cutting down the boxes. The one they send me are always far to large for their cotent. So the first time a heavier box is set upon them they go splat. Interestingly enough the contents came through ok, probably because I usually order books. I even had to go to the custom office once because the package was falling apart, so they couldn't send it on via normal mail.

Delivery side question, does anybody know who USPS uses to ship in Germany? I think it is UPS and I'm starting to get worried. According to their track feature they tried to delivery my package on Tuesday (funny how I was there the whole time, but nobody rang me, I'm starting to believe that the delivery man rang the wrong flat. He high-tailed it out of their, too, if I hadn't been primed to jump at any vehicle noise I'd never have made it in time to even see him).
And they haven't tried again so far. Unfortunately I can't find the info who they use, when they deliver and how often they try on their page.

USPS is not fully integrated into other countries' postal systems- so sometimes the info isnt updated....ever. I would also like to point out that USPS didnt get an EMS award this year, which means our postal service must be doing bad in terms of international shipping. The USPS rep is Vice Chair for EMS... thats just sad.

http://www.ems.coop/site/Main.php?Oid=308&Lid=1

Xgamer wrote:USPS is not fully integrated into other countries' postal systems- so sometimes the info isnt updated....ever.

But it was updated in my country, it stated when it arrive, when it went into customs, when it got out of customs, when they "attempted" to deliver it. Just no reaction since then.

The only 2things i remember getting online were a Classics Soundwave whose box and figure were fine and an RID Megatron which both werent harmed either.

P.S. Did All RID Figures come without instructions as there wernt any with my RID Megatron,

Hmmmmmmmmm.

well today i just got an item in the mail today. the seller on ebay listed the item as new, but when i got it the box already had the factory sealed tape cut on it . anyone know how to report people like this on ebay?

Ah, properly whining works. Guess what just arrived, yep, the missing box (via DHL). Boxes shows some wear, btu seems fine otherwise. I'm going to open it later, right now I'm too high from actually getting it. For those interested, it should contain MP Skywarp.

Sarri wrote:Ah, properly whining works. Guess what just arrived, yep, the missing box (via DHL). Boxes shows some wear, btu seems fine otherwise. I'm going to open it later, right now I'm too high from actually getting it. For those interested, it should contain MP Skywarp.

congratulations! yes, receiving items long-overdue actually overshadows the bad parts of long shipping times...as long as the items are still in one piece! trust me, i never fail to get a high whenever i call the post office and the lady there tells me a parcel has arrived for me. w00t!

It's nice to know that with the ridiculous prices for shipping through UPS, FedEX, and USPS, that after paying all that money to send a package the package gets kicked and thrown around and treated like ****.

They should either charge less for their crappy service, or people who treat the packages that way should have their employment instantly terminated.

HTS package came in the mail a week or two ago. Inside was Leader Brawl, Cybertron Scout Shortround, and four robot heroes. That's all that was inside the box. And the box was big enough to pack four leader class figures into it. Somehow, magically, there were no major eyesore dents or dings in the boxes. But like others here have said... If I were a MIB collector, I'd have been extremely hacked.

And I just got in on the Amazon.com $25 Primus game. Wish I had read this first... I just let an Ebay auction for a $32 Primus with Unicron head go because I decided to go with Amazon since they were cheaper. Great...