The Energon Pub

[Bumblebee21]

that waist gap is ugly

Dude, he has what seems to be a ball-joint-ranged waist... just let that sink in

ok it sank in.
meeeeeeeeeeeeehhhhh
i dont care unless that price goes down

What would be a decent price for you? Like what is the max price you would you agree to.

between 170-180.
not that low but much lower than the "official" price

[william-james88]

between 170-180.
not that low but much lower than the "official" price

You know me Bumblebee21, I get queasy with that word being used, even if its in quotations. The only official price is the price this Japanese toy sells for in japan, in its own market. And that makes sense right? Its like when BBTS was first giving preorders for Wave 1 of TR and everyone thought the "official" price had gone up. but no, it was just them taking advantage of the hype, the retail price was the same as the year before. So it hadnt gone up and BBTS' price wasnt official at all. So its the same thing here but with a higher margin. Or better yet, its like those Japanese online stores that sell the G2 CW sets for $200. Would they call that an official price? Of course, you can write as you wish, but you will know I can't refuse to explain this everytime

Anyways, at this very moment, any of us can preorder MP megatron for $175-$177, with no orange plug. Do any of you think I should write an article about that in case many dont know and think that anything below $200 is a pipe dream?

[Kurona]

between 170-180.
not that low but much lower than the "official" price

You know me Bumblebee21, I get queasy with that word being used, even if its in quotations. The only official price is the price this Japanese toy sells for in japan, in its own market. And that makes sense right? Its like when BBTS was first giving preorders for Wave 1 of TR and everyone thought the "official" price had gone up. but no, it was just them taking advantage of the hype, the retail price was the same as the year before. So it hadnt gone up and BBTS' price wasnt official at all. So its the same thing here but with a higher margin. Or better yet, its like those Japanese online stores that sell the G2 CW sets for $200. Would they call that an official price? Of course, you can write as you wish, but you will know I can't refuse to explain this everytime

Anyways, at this very moment, any of us can preorder MP megatron for $175-$177, with no orange plug. Do any of you think I should write an article about that in case many dont know and think that anything below $200 is a pipe dream?

I think you should just write an article about Takara prices in general since I've seen so many people not able to understand that the higher prices they buy Takara toys at are completely dependent on import charges and the value of the yen compared to their respective currency - ie things that Takara has nowhere near any degree of control over.
Not saying anyone on this thread thinks Takara itself is the reason for the high prices, but yeesh, wander onto youtube for two seconds...

[Bumblebee21]

well the offical price is 24000 yen.
yeah it makes sense.
yes but i dont know about customs in florida
so now im conflicted
i was gonna get mightron but i dont know. now im thinking if i go with my original plan and save to get him. idk someone who has mightron tell me whos is better

[william-james88]

between 170-180.
not that low but much lower than the "official" price

You know me Bumblebee21, I get queasy with that word being used, even if its in quotations. The only official price is the price this Japanese toy sells for in japan, in its own market. And that makes sense right? Its like when BBTS was first giving preorders for Wave 1 of TR and everyone thought the "official" price had gone up. but no, it was just them taking advantage of the hype, the retail price was the same as the year before. So it hadnt gone up and BBTS' price wasnt official at all. So its the same thing here but with a higher margin. Or better yet, its like those Japanese online stores that sell the G2 CW sets for $200. Would they call that an official price? Of course, you can write as you wish, but you will know I can't refuse to explain this everytime

Anyways, at this very moment, any of us can preorder MP megatron for $175-$177, with no orange plug. Do any of you think I should write an article about that in case many dont know and think that anything below $200 is a pipe dream?

I think you should just write an article about Takara prices in general since I've seen so many people not able to understand that the higher prices they buy Takara toys at are completely dependent on import charges and the value of the yen compared to their respective currency - ie things that Takara has nowhere near any degree of control over.
Not saying anyone on this thread thinks Takara itself is the reason for the high prices, but yeesh, wander onto youtube for two seconds...

I had that article written out a while ago but always feared it was too patronising. Ad since then, I didnt really encounter that again. People understood. Only now do I see it come again but unlike the previous cases, there is a difference between buying from the US and Japan that goes beyond the price.

I do always have this post handy if ever omeone wonders what's going on with the price differences though takara-tomy-transformers-legends-thread-p1740815.php#p1740815

[william-james88]

well the offical price is 24000 yen.
yeah it makes sense.
yes but i dont know about customs in florida
so now im conflicted
i was gonna get mightron but i dont know. now im thinking if i go with my original plan and save to get him. idk someone who has mightron tell me whos is better

We wont know who is better until we get this guy in. And I suggest you wait. By the time this guy comes out, there will be more people willing to sell their mightrons. And by the time he comes out, you will know which one is better.

And yeah, thats the MSRP, sure, but its not the retail price of this toy. Its a suggested price, but not the retail price. I wrote about how to interpret that MSRP in this post from a while back takara-tomy-transformers-legends-thread-p1740815.php#p1740815

And in any case, you said you wanted it to be lower, and all those Japanese sites have lowered it, by a lot. And customs in florida should be fine. HLJ caters to the American public, they have for longer than anyone else. If they are not putting an orange plug, its because they know it will be fine (thats my assumption). Also, as an outsider, I find it very funny that americans fear their government will be strict on toy gun laws (but thats for another time).

And one last thing, we can ask here, are any fellow Americans buying from a Japanese site?

[Bumblebee21]

I know I'm going to wait.
It seems like hlj is 177 how much is shipping usually from them and can I cancel a preorder from them or is it final

EDIT: I saw the price at AE is cheaper which has the cheapest shipping and wouldn't get caught at customs

[william-james88]

I know I'm going to wait.
It seems like hlj is 177 how much is shipping usually from them and can I cancel a preorder from them or is it final

EDIT: I saw the price at AE is cheaper which has the cheapest shipping and wouldn't get caught at customs

yes AE is cheaper and if you are in the states, it wont get caught at customs regardless since you dont have duties to pay so that part doesnt change.

AE and Nippon Yassan are similar. With AE you pay for the toy upfront and cant cancel, and you pay for shipping when it comes in.

With Nippon Yassan, you pay for everything all at once. You can even choose shipping.

All the prices for shipping are here, you can convert them by googling "curency converter"



It goes from $25-$40.

[Bumblebee21]

Well then I guess I'll have to hlj bc I don't want to pay upfront and I want to be able to cancel if necessary.
What's there shipping policy do they have it somewhere on there website I can never find it

[william-james88]

Well then I guess I'll have to hlj bc I don't want to pay upfront and I want to be able to cancel if necessary.
What's there shipping policy do they have it somewhere on there website I can never find it

I dont know their shipping policy, but maybe Ironhidensh can help you out with that, he deals a lot with them (I dont deal with HLJ at all).

[Bumblebee21]

Well then I guess I'll have to hlj bc I don't want to pay upfront and I want to be able to cancel if necessary.
What's there shipping policy do they have it somewhere on there website I can never find it

I dont know their shipping policy, but maybe Ironhidensh can help you out with that, he deals a lot with them (I dont deal with HLJ at all).

Well hopefully he see this

[Seibertron]

Not sure where I'm going to buy MP-36 Megatron yet. Most likely a Japanese site such as HLJ or AmiAmi, as well as a backup purchase from a US seller. I've bought gun Megatrons before from overseas and never had a problem. Customs isn't going to seize it, especially if he's packed in robot mode. They've got bigger things to deal with. Now, if it was a marked case from Takara Tomy of Masterpiece Megatrons, that might be a different thing, but for the average consumer, I wouldn't really worry about this because customs deals with tens of thousands of packages every day probably and doesn't have time to go through each and every one. I'm assuming that BBTS is doing the orange plug to protect themselves moreso in case customs looks at a large shipment of Megatrons coming in to the US. Individual purchases should go under the radar.

I'm ordering MP-36 Megatron just like I would any other Masterpiece figure. None of this worries me because I've never had a problem with customs, not once, in the almost 20 years that I've been buying Transformers from overseas stores or sellers.

[Bumblebee21]

So seibertron you've ordered from hlj right. Do you have an estimate of How much it would cost to ship it to the us and if you can cancel an order

[Burn]

So seibertron you've ordered from hlj right. Do you have an estimate of How much it would cost to ship it to the us and if you can cancel an order

You can cancel a pre-order right up to the point they request payment, and that doesn't happen until they've received their stock.

[Ironhidensh]

Well then I guess I'll have to hlj bc I don't want to pay upfront and I want to be able to cancel if necessary.
What's there shipping policy do they have it somewhere on there website I can never find it

Shipping depends on how quickly you want it. Anywhere from a couple weeks to a couple of days.

I usually get the 5 day FedEx Shipping which, for a figure this size, will probally be 25 to 30 bucks. I pay a little extra because I'm impatient.

[Bumblebee21]

So seibertron you've ordered from hlj right. Do you have an estimate of How much it would cost to ship it to the us and if you can cancel an order

You can cancel a pre-order right up to the point they request payment, and that doesn't happen until they've received their stock.

Okay thanks.
There should be reviews out by then, if I need to cancel .
EDIT:Ironhidensh I just saw your post. So if I want a couple weeks delivery it should be cheaper right.

[Ironhidensh]

So seibertron you've ordered from hlj right. Do you have an estimate of How much it would cost to ship it to the us and if you can cancel an order

You can cancel a pre-order right up to the point they request payment, and that doesn't happen until they've received their stock.

Okay thanks.
There should be reviews out by then, if I need to cancel .
EDIT:Ironhidensh I just saw your post. So if I want a couple weeks delivery it should be cheaper right.

Yeah, probally about 10 to 15 bucks.

[Bumblebee21]

So seibertron you've ordered from hlj right. Do you have an estimate of How much it would cost to ship it to the us and if you can cancel an order

You can cancel a pre-order right up to the point they request payment, and that doesn't happen until they've received their stock.

Okay thanks.
There should be reviews out by then, if I need to cancel .
EDIT:Ironhidensh I just saw your post. So if I want a couple weeks delivery it should be cheaper right.

Yeah, probally about 10 to 15 bucks.

Alright that sounds great.
Thanks for all the help with my questions
Sorry bout all the questions

[Burn]

Sorry bout all the questions

Nothing wrong with asking questions. From what I know, you're new to collecting so it's good to ask and learn from everyone elses experience.

Another option you might want to consider is wait for the subsequent second run. By then you'll have copious reviews and you'll know for certain of any potential QC issues.

[chuckdawg1999]

[I see you are torn about this NYC and I understand. I do truly believe that the orange plug issue is only for US sellers and not the consumers/buyers/fans themselves. But I do understand that you dont want to be the one person this happens to and be stuck without a toy you spent money on.

So this is the best suggestion: wait.

LoL so patience is not a strength of mine. I am leaning toward sucking it up and getting it from a domestic retailer, especially since I found one who told me they're going to get them without the orange plug. I figure I'll pay the premium as insurance. If customs opens and siezes 1 out of 100,I'm usually that 1 lol. But like you said, this won't sell out, so I panty of time to make a decision.

Can you not just remove the plug after you open the box?

I'm sure you can. I believe many people who order from BBTS do just that. Not sure how clean the plug comes off and how much work it'll take to take it clean off, but the plug really is a secondary concern. Not having it seized by customs is my bigger concern. I think I'm too risk-averse to try and will end up paying the "insurance" by getting it domestically.

Keep in mind, the issue isn't removing the barrel, but how it's put in the first place. Back with MP-05 I heard stories from quite a few people whose Megatrons had glue on the outside of the barrel, and the plugs removal caused damage to the toy. The box will be modified too, and many people reported that it looked like a rush cut and stuff job.

[Bumblebee21]

Sorry bout all the questions

Nothing wrong with asking questions. From what I know, you're new to collecting so it's good to ask and learn from everyone elses experience.

Another option you might want to consider is wait for the subsequent second run. By then you'll have copious reviews and you'll know for certain of any potential QC issues.

I guess you could say I'm new to collecting. I've been getting them since I was 7 but didn't really collect them. I'm new to collecting MPs yes.

True but can I wait that long. Won't that be the Hasbro Asia release.I'm just going to hope that it will be flawless. Takara doesn't want to make the same mistake as they did with mp-05 it seems live they've working on this one for a while.has there ever been a masterpiece that wasn't flawed or had any imperfections.

[Ironhidensh]

So seibertron you've ordered from hlj right. Do you have an estimate of How much it would cost to ship it to the us and if you can cancel an order

You can cancel a pre-order right up to the point they request payment, and that doesn't happen until they've received their stock.

Okay thanks.
There should be reviews out by then, if I need to cancel .
EDIT:Ironhidensh I just saw your post. So if I want a couple weeks delivery it should be cheaper right.

Yeah, probally about 10 to 15 bucks.

Alright that sounds great.
Thanks for all the help with my questions
Sorry bout all the questions

Don't sweat it. They were good questions, and you can never ask too many of those. Besides, it makes old men like Burn and I feel useful.

[Bumblebee21]

If you meet me I'm a shy person. Y'all aren't that old.

So I'm gonna wait a while and save the money up. Here's hoping he's good.

[Burn]

Here's hoping he's good.

He'd better be, considering how long we've been waiting for him!

[nycPrime]

Hmmm Seibertron's post makes sense and is swaying me to order from Japan. Decisions!