The Energon Pub

News Credits: 129 · Thu Jan 20, 2011 8:19 am

the thing is you have to grab your ankles to get it:

$300 @ TFSource

http://www.tfsource.com/products/view/product_id/673/

I know, they're free to price it any way they like. That's how supply and demand goes.

I'm just as free to point out that they now use their site for price gouging where before it was just eBay. But hey, at least they're avoiding the eBay fees.

News Credits: 5749 · Thu Jan 20, 2011 9:10 am

Yeah, but if you go ahead and order Nemesis Prime with it you save a whopping $5.95.............................that's a savings of almost $6.00!

News Credits: 2 · Thu Jan 20, 2011 9:25 am

My current train of thought.

I could buy it right now.....

I have the money......

Goes on ebay for more.....

its pretty awesome.......

Dammit....... why wont my hand move and select buy??????

ah crap. maybe after a few beers.......

I think im gonna take the risk and buy it. Need to truly meditate on the consequences tho

News Credits: 7 · Thu Jan 20, 2011 5:39 pm

That F'n blows! I was hoping that they were going to restock him since their one email said they were getting out of stock FP items. I thought that it would be cheaper than ebay, but it's actually $50 more than what I've seen it go for recently. Dildos.

News Credits: 1 · Thu Jan 20, 2011 7:24 pm

Don't hate the playa, hate the game!

Sometimes, in this hobby, you snooze you lose. I don't regret passing on Shadow Commander myself ... good 'ol City Commander's good enough for me.

Thu Jan 20, 2011 8:11 pm

I said gottam thas ah whole latta cheddah. And to think I could have bought one at clearance at bbts all those months ago. Might want to consider buying another Protector to pay for the entire Causality line.

Thu Jan 20, 2011 8:42 pm

I do hate that I passed this up when I had the chance to buy, but That is too rich for my blood. I do understand the whole "supply and demand' business, but I still fell like that is rape..........and with no KY or nothing.....

News Credits: 7 · Fri Jan 21, 2011 3:33 am

Ummm... yeah, I know the game just fine. That still doesn't make this particular piece a good buy.

Fri Jan 21, 2011 8:32 am

Ain't worth it. If you really want Shadow Commander just keep checking B/S/T lists on your favorite TF sites. I got Shadow Commander with Nemesis Prime for $170 shipped. No knock-off.

News Credits: 8 · Fri Jan 21, 2011 6:25 pm

Nemesis251 wrote:Ain't worth it. If you really want Shadow Commander just keep checking B/S/T lists on your favorite TF sites. I got Shadow Commander with Nemesis Prime for $170 shipped. No knock-off.

Scored him at botcon this past year..$120.. The guy had 6 of them and sold em in 5 minutes.I picked up a nmmey prime for 35 MISB. A month or so ago BBTS had loose lots of FP parts for the all of the commander sets.. I bought 3 of them..Not enough parts to make a full set but it makes for excellent custom fodder.

News Credits: 668 · Fri Jan 21, 2011 7:15 pm

...playing the game? Oh please, save it.

This is price gouging, plain and simple.

Yes, the item is rare, I don't dispute that.
Yes, they can price it however they wish, I don't dispute that.

There's no reason for them to milk this thing to the tune of a car payment, other than they can.
And this is one of the reasons why I refuse to buy from TFSource. They love to jack up their prices and squeeze every little penny they can get their hands on.

If they didn't do stupid stuff like this, I would be more willing to order from them. Well, this and that whole "There's a no return policy on this item" crap.

If you can't handle that part of the business, don't do business.

News Credits: 1 · Fri Jan 21, 2011 10:19 pm

It's no more crap than every other drastic increase in price for any toy. You can say it's all price gouging, really.

If you don't like it, don't order it. I won't myself. But I don't really see much reason to get mad about it. It's how the hobby works.

News Credits: 668 · Fri Jan 21, 2011 10:45 pm

Gauntlet101010 wrote:It's no more crap than every other drastic increase in price for any toy. You can say it's all price gouging, really.

If you don't like it, don't order it. I won't myself. But I don't really see much reason to get mad about it. It's how the hobby works.

There IS a difference.

Charging $15.99 for an item listed at $12.99, such as BBTS does, is not price gouging, yet people bitch about it.

Charging THREE times the price is gouging, plain and simple. And TFSource is notorious for it.

They had the Snowman redeco of the Superion kit. It started at $45 or 50 (can't remember), and it kept jumping, higher and higher as their stock dwindled. By the end, they charged something like $125 for the last 2 or 3 sets.

Yeah, they have the right to price it however they want, but that doesn't mean they should. Yeah, someone will have more money than brains and pay the price they're charging, but that still makes TFSource the villain in the situation.

They're exploiting a weakness and doing so proudly. No, I'm not buying it, but I do have a right to complain. If people sit there and do nothing, they'll just continue to rip people off.

If TFSource knows that the majority of the fans are against their tactics, they might change their practices.

ToyArena does the same thing. He did it with the Superion set, the Crossfire 2 set, and this is one of the reasons why I don't buy from him either. But at least he has some semblance of a return policy.

TFSource's whole deal is basically "U BUY, U STUCK, LOL SUK 2 BE U. U MAD?"

News Credits: 1 · Sat Jan 22, 2011 1:23 am

I dunno, man. Their a business. They're out to make a profit. It's not like they're holding a gun to your head, making you buy a TF you feel is overproced. Making a profit by overcharging their goods doesn't make them a villain by any means. It just makes the people who buy overpriced goods kind of foolish.

Unless they just really gotta have it. I have to admit to a few "foolish" buys myself.

You get what I mean? If you go to a store you know overcharges their goods, you can't really get mad when you see something you like cost way more than it's worth. I can get being mad about it if you feel you were ripped off after you bought soemthing, but I just can't get behind the idea that they're "the villain" for prices their goods too high.

News Credits: 668 · Sat Jan 22, 2011 7:43 am

Gauntlet101010 wrote:I dunno, man. Their a business. They're out to make a profit. It's not like they're holding a gun to your head, making you buy a TF you feel is overproced. Making a profit by overcharging their goods doesn't make them a villain by any means. It just makes the people who buy overpriced goods kind of foolish.

Unless they just really gotta have it. I have to admit to a few "foolish" buys myself.

You get what I mean? If you go to a store you know overcharges their goods, you can't really get mad when you see something you like cost way more than it's worth. I can get being mad about it if you feel you were ripped off after you bought soemthing, but I just can't get behind the idea that they're "the villain" for prices their goods too high.

It's one thing to charge a little extra. Everyone does that.

They have an item on hand (possibly multiples, wouldn't surprise me), and they know it's highly sought after.

They know someone will be weak and cave and pay it. Pay it 'til it hurts. Yes, I do blame the people willing to pay that price, I've been that person a time or two in the past.

But this is exploiting said person's weakness. I dunno, maybe it's just me, but I find that to be wrong. Just because you can, doesn't mean you should.

TFSource never got that memo apparently.

$700-1,000.00 for a complete Fort Max? Understandable. I wouldn't pay it and haven't, but it's an understandable price.

$300.00 for this? Maybe with Prime included and a slew of accessories. As is? Nah.

I bought Classics Optimus MISB and the D.I.A. Clone Commander set for like $145.00 or so. That included shipping.

Granted, I got lucky, I don't deny that, but other folks have found City Commander, with the accessory pack and an Ultra Magnus for less than $200.00

This...is just Shadow Commander and they want 300 friggin' bucks for it! That's insane. That's the sign of an opportunist. I don't like people who would do such a thing. Profit's one thing, and they're entitled to a profit, but this just goes well beyond that.

Buy the combo for $353.95 and save $5.00? Seriously? You don't find that at all despicable?

And I see that I was right. They acquired a small amount, meaning plural (they're down to 1, btw). I could see them charging that price if it was their absolute last one and they're going to milk it one last time, but the entire case, or cases? Naw. That ain't right.

News Credits: 1 · Sat Jan 22, 2011 9:56 am

They know someone will be weak and cave and pay it. Pay it 'til it hurts. Yes, I do blame the people willing to pay that price, I've been that person a time or two in the past.

But this is exploiting said person's weakness. I dunno, maybe it's just me, but I find that to be wrong. Just because you can, doesn't mean you should.

But that's the thing: nobody is holding a gun to their head. And if they aren't patient enough for cheaper ebay prices, well, that's also their own fault isn't it?

Price gouging only works if you're willing to buy the product. As consumers it's ultimately up to us, not the sellers, to decide if the price is right to buy.

I find the price for this set outragous as well. But ... villainous? Opportunistic? If they were trying to sell food or water to starving people or weapons to their country (that could turn the tide) at a time of war at rediculous amounts I'd agree with you, but this a a hard to find toy. Saying their store isn't worth it because of blatant overpricing is one thing ... saying they're villainous and opportunistic is taking that just a step too far.

Sat Jan 22, 2011 11:00 am

I've had nothing but impeccable customer service from TFSource. Just like I have a right to put my Botcon SG Rodimus on eBay for $500 (damn shame that bubble burst), any online retail store including TFSource, BBTS, even KOToys have the right to sell something they own for whatever they judge its worth to them. If interest wanes, prices will drop from TFSource, I'm sure.

News Credits: 1235 · Sat Jan 22, 2011 11:24 am

I was just thinking that if they were able to secure a small supply of these, maybe they had to pay more for them. I doubt they got these at the wholesale prices of when they were new. They probably got price gouged themselves but felt it was worth the risk and they could make some profit off it. But if somebody is willing to pay that much for the kit then that's just the american way. Supply and demand is what drives up prices.

Sat Jan 22, 2011 9:25 pm

LOST Cybertronian wrote:I was just thinking that if they were able to secure a small supply of these, maybe they had to pay more for them. I doubt they got these at the wholesale prices of when they were new. They probably got price gouged themselves but felt it was worth the risk and they could make some profit off it. But if somebody is willing to pay that much for the kit then that's just the american way. Supply and demand is what drives up prices.

Well this depends. I USED to go to this comic store in my area (Heroes and Dreams- and people, DO NOT go in there). There was a Harley Quinn Marionette my wife wanted for our anniversary. The retail was 300. They "gave me a slight deal" and knocked it to 275 since it was an anniversary present. I bought it and later found out from a former employee that they bought 3 of them a wholesale for 50 each. Now I know that they want to make a profit BUT why that much?? 200 would have been a good enough profit and I wouldn't be as pissed. And yes, they sold all 3 for that price with the same "it's our last one" as they did me. Back then I didn't do any online shopping and didn't have a clue.

I'm sorry, but I think us, as a consumer, should have the right to complain about price gouging. I stopped shopping at TFsource after they charged me 3 times for the Crossfire set for Bruticus. It took me a week of arguing with them because they "couldn't see" what I was talking about. And I also think they overprice alot of their stuff.

News Credits: 1 · Sat Jan 22, 2011 9:43 pm

If you had checked ebay, you'd have found a better deal. Again, the consumer must do his homework before putting down that kind of money. They can't just trust that the retailer won't overcharge because he thinks something's worth more than it is or because it's suepr rare.

Anyhow, I dunno if charging $300 is price gouging in this particular case; markup is how stores stay in business. If everyone else was selling for $200, I'd have to agree their markup was too steep, but I'm unfamiliar with this product. But I'll agree it's low that they said it was their last one when they had 2 more.

Mon Jan 24, 2011 6:51 pm

The thing is it was priced at 300 in the Previews catalog a subscriber for comics gets at the store every month. That's why I never thought anything of it. During that time, also, I wasn't big on doing Ebay, due to paranoia of getting ripped off. They tried this on me a few times. One time with a Mitch Faust print of Supergirl- bought it for 10 and tried to sell it to me for 100 (would cut me a "deal" and let me have it for 90). Not to mention that they tried to sell me a damaged Frank Miller Black and White Batman statue. There is a difference between making a profit and gouging........

News Credits: 1 · Mon Jan 24, 2011 7:01 pm

If it's listed in Previews as $300, then that's what it's worth. There's recommended prices for all these products, that's how they determine what's fair. Retailers don't just pull prices from thin air after all.

Generally markup tends to be far, FAR lower than the price stores get them. It's not price gouging, it's just how it works.

News Credits: 8 · Mon Jan 24, 2011 8:44 pm

Patience is a virtue my fellow seibertronians..God bless BBTS's vintage department. check my sig and thread in the BST forum...

Tue Jan 25, 2011 5:11 pm

Gauntlet101010 wrote:If it's listed in Previews as $300, then that's what it's worth. There's recommended prices for all these products, that's how they determine what's fair. Retailers don't just pull prices from thin air after all.

Generally markup tends to be far, FAR lower than the price stores get them. It's not price gouging, it's just how it works.

They didn't get these from Previews. They bought them from someone just trying to get rid of them. That is a difference to me. I know a profit needs to be made, but that is gouging in my opinion.