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El Duque wrote:Check this out!

I've seen worse on ebay. I am willing to bet that they held back a few just so they could mark them up when people got into a frenzy trying to find them.

Well, they're free to charge whatever they want ...

Of course, if it doesn't come with Wildrider or Rodimus, it ain't worth it!

Gauntlet101010 wrote:Well, they're free to charge whatever they want ...

Of course, if it doesn't come with Wildrider or Rodimus, it ain't worth it!

That's right and we are free to call them lousy and not buy from them.

What a dick move.

Now we know why they sold out of preorders so fast.
Damn I never knew they would do that. Disgraceful.
All an online outlet has is its name and reputation. They really shot themselves in the foot on this fail.

Spread the word: Boycott TFSource.

I don't think that a total of 20 figures would have amounted to a hill of beans when it comes down to the fact this set sold out in LESS THAN A DAY anyway... I might be misteaken, but it sounds like these pieces were from cancelled pre-orders anyway! I see that it's their product and they're free to do whatever they wish to do with it, and the $300 price point I saw it listed on their site at was still below EVERY SINGLE ONE of the 21 completed ebay listings I saw!

However, they listened to the fans and pulled the listing from their site; saying that they'd raffle them off for sale at the regular retail via a lottery-system... It still gives anyone who wanted one a shot at getting one! Did they have to do that? HELL NO! But this is the same company I've bought from before, and will do so again in the future! I have faith that this won't hurt anything I've come to expect from TFSource's reputation! -Whenever I've had to contact them, TFSource's customer service has always been pretty top-notch, as helpful as can be, and I applaud their decision regarding this issue!

Gauntlet101010 wrote:And to me, if they're charging market price it isn't gouging, just an expencive toy.

You and I are just not gonna agree.

I think stock collections are those limited edition toys. I guess that is the reason why it is expensive like the Shadow Commander. However, collecting stock toys are worth it because it shows that we can afford to buy them.

A friend showed me the highlights of the TFW thread on Shadow Scythe, and it was eye opening.

Curt has made it so I will not be a customer, after this. I hadn't been one before, but I considered it when they got Protector in before BBTS, but I didn't cave, and I won't be a customer now.

There was a bunch of postings on Facebook. Seems not everyone here got the whole story.

Before we get to the postings, let's look at some facts:

1.) They were allotted 300, and RobotKingdom was allotted 300.

2.) TFSource claims they completely sold out of their 300.

3.) They say right on the item's page that they don't accept returns, cancellations, etc. it's also their policy on all items they carry.

4.) You can't cancel preorders with them. (Needed to reiterate this.)

5.) They have a personal assistant that is supposed to tell people that the item they're looking for is in stock, etc. And people used it, waiting for one of these to come in.

5.) They had 20 in stock when this whole thing started.

Now, onto the posts that were DELETED from Facebook:

TFSource on facebook wrote:Well most are actually coming from the TFsource secret stash... and then a few anticipated cancellations... amazing what is in that secret stash, so much saved up for rainy days.

So...they flat out LIED. They said they sold out of these, when in fact, they actually held some of the stock back for "rainy days". Plus, I thought it wasn't possible to cancel with them? So, they held back 20 of them, ignored some existing orders, and ignored personal assistant wait lists to make *THIS* happen:

TFSource on facebook wrote:It's been selling for $350 - $500 on the secondary market ever since we announced it. If we sold for less, they would be bought for that much and sold on the secondary market for that much. Complain all you want, that's the reality.

They're more or less admitting that they have every intention of doing what eBay sellers do, and SCALP them for the highest amount possible. Because of shady practices like that, people stop using eBay and go to TFSource, BBTS, and Toy Arena. eBay is a last resort!

Oh, and it should be noted that Scythe's page was stated to be one per person, yet several people were able to order multiples. So they can't even enforce their own rules?

On top of all of that, they've canceled people's preorders in the past, and then a week later say that they have that item in stock at a higher price. Not to mention, the credit card issue where people's cards were used to buy iTunes music, and apparently a laptop. Oh, and the laptop was after they had supposedly fixed their system.

All of this adds up to TFSource being among the shadiest group of sellers, I've ever seen.

Yeah, it's their exclusive.
Yeah, they can price it however they want.
But they're scalping, they're ignoring preexisting customer waiting lists (the raffle also violates the trust of those on the waiting list), and they admitted it with glee, basically.

Again, I say: A dick move.

Plain and simple.

If you want to buy from them, that's fine. If you can't see why this makes people angry, then you're either oblivious and can't get it, or ignoring it and refusing to get it.

And before anyone asks, no, I'm not in the market for a Shadow Scythe or a Shadow Commander (which is what this thread was started on), so I have nothing to lose here. I do, however, take issue with greed and admittedly shady business practices. We all should. And some do, and to those who do, I commend you.

If you'd like to see more detail, here's the TFW thread: http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transform ... ource.html

Again, I say: A dick move.

Well, it's sneaky. I suppose you could say it was a dick move, yes. I hear that, once in a blue moon, TFSource does accept cancellations on pre-orders, but it's difficult to do with them.

Although I can't say I'm angry about it. Even if it's a sneaky move, it's my money and I'll choose to spend it ... or NOT spend it where I will. No anger, but I'm definately not gonna buy things that are WAY overcharged.

You're right on the money on one point, though. If they think ebay sets the standard, they'll be losing customers.

300 bucks...

Yeah, that's scalping. Pure and simple. I don't care. Yes, they can charge that much. Doesn't mean they should.

Autobot032 wrote:A friend showed me the highlights of the TFW thread on Shadow Scythe, and it was eye opening.

Curt has made it so I will not be a customer, after this. I hadn't been one before, but I considered it when they got Protector in before BBTS, but I didn't cave, and I won't be a customer now.

There was a bunch of postings on Facebook. Seems not everyone here got the whole story.

Before we get to the postings, let's look at some facts:

1.) They were allotted 300, and RobotKingdom was allotted 300.

2.) TFSource claims they completely sold out of their 300.

3.) They say right on the item's page that they don't accept returns, cancellations, etc. it's also their policy on all items they carry.

4.) You can't cancel preorders with them. (Needed to reiterate this.)

5.) They have a personal assistant that is supposed to tell people that the item they're looking for is in stock, etc. And people used it, waiting for one of these to come in.

5.) They had 20 in stock when this whole thing started.

Now, onto the posts that were DELETED from Facebook:

TFSource on facebook wrote:Well most are actually coming from the TFsource secret stash... and then a few anticipated cancellations... amazing what is in that secret stash, so much saved up for rainy days.

So...they flat out LIED. They said they sold out of these, when in fact, they actually held some of the stock back for "rainy days". Plus, I thought it wasn't possible to cancel with them? So, they held back 20 of them, ignored some existing orders, and ignored personal assistant wait lists to make *THIS* happen:

TFSource on facebook wrote:It's been selling for $350 - $500 on the secondary market ever since we announced it. If we sold for less, they would be bought for that much and sold on the secondary market for that much. Complain all you want, that's the reality.

They're more or less admitting that they have every intention of doing what eBay sellers do, and SCALP them for the highest amount possible. Because of shady practices like that, people stop using eBay and go to TFSource, BBTS, and Toy Arena. eBay is a last resort!

Oh, and it should be noted that Scythe's page was stated to be one per person, yet several people were able to order multiples. So they can't even enforce their own rules?

On top of all of that, they've canceled people's preorders in the past, and then a week later say that they have that item in stock at a higher price. Not to mention, the credit card issue where people's cards were used to buy iTunes music, and apparently a laptop. Oh, and the laptop was after they had supposedly fixed their system.

All of this adds up to TFSource being among the shadiest group of sellers, I've ever seen.

Yeah, it's their exclusive.
Yeah, they can price it however they want.
But they're scalping, they're ignoring preexisting customer waiting lists (the raffle also violates the trust of those on the waiting list), and they admitted it with glee, basically.

Again, I say: A dick move.

Plain and simple.

If you want to buy from them, that's fine. If you can't see why this makes people angry, then you're either oblivious and can't get it, or ignoring it and refusing to get it.

And before anyone asks, no, I'm not in the market for a Shadow Scythe or a Shadow Commander (which is what this thread was started on), so I have nothing to lose here. I do, however, take issue with greed and admittedly shady business practices. We all should. And some do, and to those who do, I commend you.

If you'd like to see more detail, here's the TFW thread: http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/transform ... ource.html

Complete agreement. Fansproject should no longer provide this group with exclusives.

Just another reason I avoid dealing with them when at all possible.

So the logic is let's say Takara decided to reissue G1 Dinobot Swoop, they should price it at USD$250?
Since thats the second hand market price......

Counterpunch wrote:Complete agreement. Fansproject should no longer provide this group with exclusives.

This.

Wow everything deleted... almost like... it never happened... no canceled preorders... no 20 up for 350... no raffle... no fan made death threats... like the Keyser Soze of Transformers' Usual Suspects... gone like a fart in the wind. Adds to the legend of the figure itself.

Site sponsor TFsource has announced on their Facebook page that they have gotten a new shipment of Fansproject Shadow Scyther, the rare and now sold out repaint of Protector. This highly desired item is listed at $299.95 / $304.95 depending on grade of the box. As of this article's writing, the item is listed as out of stock, however the price is still listed. You can see the listing by clicking here. We'll keep you updated on any further developments.

Hmm.. you guys are a day late with this news...
TFSource HAD 20 more Shadow Scythers in stock, originally priced at a shocking $359,95 each.
However, this enormous price-hike (albeit at current approximate market value for Shadow Scyther!) for their own FP exclusive caused a 'slight' sh*tstorm on TFSource's Facebook page and on the TFW boards, which caused TFSource to quickly pull them of their site, after first 'lowering' the price to $299,95 / $304,95 and writing some snarky comments on their Facebook page about keeping / cashing in on a secret stash.

Considering the backlash this caused, I'm sure Curt and the rest of the TFSource crew would like to downplay this as much as possible, so I'm not surprised that they are now 'playing dumb'. I've read rumors that they are going to raffle them, but I'd say it's more likely that TFSource will just sell them off on e-Bay...

But yeah, this all happened yesterday... (and TFSource cleaned off all evidence of this from their Facebook page). Anyhoo... Shadow Scyther is currently NOT in stock at TFSource (although it seems 2 out of the 20 were sold at the $299,95 price point).

I was just disappointed that it cost so much... I was gonna pick one up to see what it looked like on a Classics Rodimus, but not at $300+...

I didn't even realize they pulled that bit of info from their Facebook page...

I keep reading how TFSource is a great site to buy from, but I'm not sure I like how they're handling this. I mean, how could the owner of the site, NOT know they had more to sell, and NOT know about the price that his site was charging for them? Just admit yinz made a mistake(Yeah, I'm from Pittsburgh, deal...).

Curt from TFSource has actually posted several messages in relation to their handling of things on the TFW2005 board topic I linked to above, starting with this post. That's two of the three sides to every story accounted for (Curt's, the disgruntled FP fans' and the truth)! Curt does indeed admit that TFSource and their Facebook mods handled this situation terribly.

I suspect if they'd been listed at the original price someone would have bought all 20 off the bat and trickled them on to eBay for an even more extortionate price anyway.

I posted on their Facebook page about this but they made a very good point. If they were to sell the figures at the regular price then some of us would just buy them ourselves and resell them on eBay for $360.00. The way I see it they did right when they lowered the price but I am sure even they did not anticipate such a high demand for the figure.

It's a tough call, because there are quite a few factors.
This was a TFSource exclusive for the US, with a very limited amount of units available. The demand for this item was way higher than anyone expected (I mean, Henkei Wildrider and SG Hot Rod, who wear the Scyther armor with the most style, aren't really the most common TF's around).
And yes, no doubt people would have jumped on 20 more SS's for the original price, just to sell them on at 6 times the original price. However, that's not really the point or even TFSource's problem / responsibility.

People actually think it was a dick move by TFSource because lots of people had already asked TFSource if there would be a restock of SS's, directly after the first batch sold out, and back then they were told there would be no restock!

I know companies like Ticketmaster actually do the same thing: directly selling on concert-tickets to scalpers at higher prices so they too can profit from the expected demand-fueled price hike when compared to the face-value of a concert ticket. But this is done covertly, exactly to avoid the backlash this would cause if it was publicly known! TFSource, however, were naive enough to do this publicly. But the idea is the same: selling something you have a monopoly on for inflated prices, just because you can!!! That somehow just doesn't feel right and fair...

alldarker wrote:People actually think it was a dick move by TFSource because lots of people had already asked TFSource if there would be a restock of SS's, directly after the first batch sold out, and back then they were told there would be no restock!

So 6 months ago they ordered X number of sets and sold X number of preorders. So now a few people have failed to pay for or cancelled their order or FP have made more available to TFSource or whatever, which they couldn't have forseen. Would it have been less of a dick move for them to tell those that enquired that it was likely they would get more or was it best for them to tell them not to count on it whilst there was still a chance to get one at a recent price?

We wanted to give TFSource a chance to explain what was going on before we posted about this. We were being responsible news members looking for more information, trying to respect all parties rather than report something that could be potentially harmful, and then have to retract (and possibly lose a sponsor) depending on what information was found out. Sadly, we did miss a lot of the knee jerk reaction to it. But I believe we are justified in our attempts to get representations from all sides before alarming everyone.