|
Post by phoenixx on Aug 10, 2009 13:39:38 GMT -5
Well, I can't personally help with your Revochips (I have something like 200 points already myself), but I asked TokyoHunter about the HNK point trade-in and the Revochip trade-in programs awhile back and he was willing to help me cash them in for a fee. I'm not sure if I'm going to do it simply because I'd have to send the chips to him, paypal him his fee, wait around forever (hoping the chips make it to him), then paypal him shipping...all for a silly little mini figure or gold parts. I just don't think that it's worth all of the effort, still I may do it at some point.
Of course, keep in mind that I've also spent a good chunk of cash through him on both Assemble Borg and other Revo exclusives, and I've sent other clientelle his way, so that may have been an offer specifically to me. Honestly though, it couldn't hurt to email and ask him personally, the worst that he could say is no. FYI, he's on vacation until the 16th of August, so he will not be replying to emails during that time...
Also, (as someone else said to me awhile back) if you are paying a 50% to 80% markup on AB, you are getting raped, and need to find a new source. I won't disclose exactly what I pay, since I get special rates for multiples and for being a regular customer, but I pay WAY less than a 50% markup per figure. He also generally holds my figures (at my request) for a bi-monthly shipment to save a little on EMS shipping. Plus, I get tons of freebies out of the deal, last month it was a bunch of extra individually bagged parts (including parts for the previously unreleased Jarknoid Zain, that was an awesome little surprise). Next month it will apparently be (I've been cautious to announce this prior) a WonderFest clear Mr. Assemble, an AB fan, and some more random parts...
I've NEVER asked for anything extra or special (as tempting as it may be at times), it's entirely his call when and how he does these things. I likely get special treatment since I'm such a rabid AB and exclusive Revoltech fan and a regular customer that has sent many customers his way. So please don't expect this kind of treatment right off the bat and/or pressure him about these kinds of things.
Also, I've heard others complain that he "gouges" by charging such a high fee, so I just want to clarify some things. Part of his markup covers the cost of having items shipped to his home and/or the travel into Akiba to pick things up in person. In addition to the costs of obtaining the items he has to process and handle the items, package the items for shipment, receive orders, and keep everything organized. It's just like any other merchandise based business, except that he generally deals in much smaller quantities of far more rare items than some place like HLJ.
It's not a free service, he has to make money just like everyone else does, and he regularly works VERY long hours to perform this sevice. I know that I regularly receive emails from him at 1pm EST which is around 2am Tokyo time and sometimes even later than that...and he was getting absolutely crushed by WonderFest orders before and after the con...
All of this said, bottom line, I doubt that he makes much money per item when all is said and done. So, if you're looking for some AB or other rare items and are tired of ebay, give him a shot, you won't be disappointed. I probably shouldn't even be telling people all of this, but maybe it will give some insight into how proxy buyers work.
|
|
|
Post by mpchi on Aug 10, 2009 15:31:56 GMT -5
Thanks for shedding some light on the proxy buying business. For me, they are not the issue at all. Its a service they provide and service cost money. I am glad they are around as I wouldn't be able to get what I got the past years on a few of the exclusives and discontinued items. Its just the fact that having a middle man adds up on the cost...a lot, having AB line being a mail order exclusive. So for something like a AB, which normal cost $25-30, its like $50 now. Plus it needs a lot of add-ons to make AB collecting fun. So the cost can really add up. Let alone getting the mini Mr. Assemble with the Revochips. My interest on this line is growing for sure, but at the same time don't want to dig a big hole for me to fall into, when I try to tighten my toy budget a bit. Just too bad. I managed to find another 2 small size black joints for my mini red Jarknoid's hips. So rather than using the giant joints for the shoulders, now it can use the medium ones, which looks perfect! Better looking than using the small ones. The full size figures has bigger shoulder joints anyway. Sweet.
|
|
|
Post by mechamasterj on Aug 11, 2009 8:57:01 GMT -5
Just wanted to add to TKH fan base lol. I have been dealing with him for quite some time as well. He is a great guy, and can go out of his way to get you some exclusives (though he does not offer this to all) He primarily deals with japan only web and mail in orders, not so much with japan auctions. However, he is expanding his business signifcantly, and is starting his own online store, in which he will offer tracking down exclusive, limited, out of production, event only, and super rare items. He has helped me get plenty of hard to get items for us foreign folk (got my alter sai rockamn zx kits at WF for me). His prices are fair when you consider the many things that phoenix has mentioned, and the fact that he does have a day job and does this in his spare time which leads to late hours, he doesn't have much help currently either. Btw he does auction some of his items on ebay, but they can get quite high when that happens..... he'll be placing some awesome items on ebay soon. Also, his prices are in yen, and he wants payment in yen, so the exchange rate plays an important role in how much you pay in the end. Business for him is booming, and yes he only makes about 100 to 200 yen on most orders, he does charge more for event exclusives and other requests out of the norm. Also, he lives over half an hour from most toy dealing shops, so he has to commute and that costs money and time (which he doesnt have a lot of). Once again i cant stress enough how great of a guy he is and how helpful he has been to me in the time i have been dealing with him. I strongly suggest going to him for any of these exclusive items...... tell em Jose R. sent ya lol! tokyohunter.blogspot.com/
|
|
|
Post by phoenixx on Aug 11, 2009 12:24:42 GMT -5
@mmj:
Thanks for the backup there bro, you pretty much covered everything that I missed. I really have to stop keeping my posts open all day at work and adding to them as I have time, they get so long and jumbled in that process. ;D
I don't bother him with non-business too much these days because he's so busy, but he really is a great guy to chat with and to do business with...speaking of which, he just emailed me...
Anyway, I can't wait, Doom Diver and Zain (and my freebies) are only a few weeks away from being in my hands. I've been waiting for Doom Diver for sooooo long now, there are so many great looking parts in this kit and I've already seen a ton of awesome custom kitbashes on the website and in the cataloges. Plus, I've been waiting for more Zain parts (and that awesome red AB body) since getting those teaser parts a couple months back now...
Very soon...
|
|
|
Post by mechamasterj on Aug 11, 2009 22:40:52 GMT -5
just got zain, very nice, and now i can finally mix black with red parts!! Still contemplating on jeeg..........but he is just so damn ugly lol.
|
|
|
Post by phoenixx on Aug 12, 2009 11:43:05 GMT -5
Yeah, Zain's parts are fantastic!!!
Yeeg is actually awesome, I wasn't sure how much I was going to like him, but his heads are actually some of my favorites. his outer head looked really odd in the promo images, almost like he had, well, boobs on it. Once you see him in person though, it's actually an awesome design. The location and design of the mouth is sweet, and the big bulbous veiny head spheres really notch up the creepy factor.
His inner head is quite possibly my favorite of the bunch, they sorta mimicked the mouth on the outer head on the inner head, but added some tubing looking pieces to it as well. Plus, his extra parts include a working "circular buzzsaw" part, a morningstar club-like part and this great, yet odd, mechanical/arthropod/crustacean like piece...really a bizzare combination, but also very cool. I think that I actually like him better than Xo...
On a related note, I noticed something interesting about the naming schemes the other day but forgot to post it. It's actually kinda sad that I had not noticed this before, but...
The first AB's names are Mr. Assemble, Baron, and Cyber...A, B, C. The first Jarknoids names are Xo, Yeeg, and Zain...X, Y, Z...
Not the biggest revelation, just a neat little tidbit that I hadn't noticed prior...
|
|
|
Post by BaBiLoN on Aug 13, 2009 13:53:33 GMT -5
Hi everybody, I am sorry to ask this at this time, but I am seeing this Line of figures only in pictures but I see them really rare getting sold online. I am really interested in getting one but don't know How. Help Please. Thanx
|
|
|
Post by Cyrano on Aug 13, 2009 15:19:15 GMT -5
Hi everybody, I am sorry to ask this at this time, but I am seeing this Line of figures only in pictures but I see them really rare getting sold online. I am really interested in getting one but don't know How. Help Please. Thanx Nothing to apologize for, bro. There are a lot of ways to go about getting them. Right now you can find all of them except Zain and Doom Diver on eBay by searching for "assemble borg." That's probably the easiest way, although maybe not the cheapest. Alternatively, you can have a proxy service purchase them through the Japanese website and then send them to you. You can find a lot of good suggestions for proxy services around here, I personally use TokyoBuyers (http://tokyobuyers.blogspot.com/). Toy-Wave also has a limited stock available. Good luck!
|
|
|
Post by Cyrano on Aug 21, 2009 22:13:56 GMT -5
I just received my first full-fledged ABs, and OH MAN. I've been looking forward to them all year, but everything is even cooler than I was expecting. Building random stuff is incredibly addicting! The Barrels Speeder and Xo both came with mini-Jarknoids, and Mr. Assemble and Yeeg both came with bonus Zain parts in the box. I guess Kaiyodo is including them as a random bonus? Here are my first two assemblies: Some random beastie made with all the extra parts from A+B+X+Y+Z and the extra Zain sets Metal Gear REX (A+B+BS+Y+Zx2). I'm pretty happy with how this turned out.
|
|
|
Post by recca74 on Aug 21, 2009 22:25:39 GMT -5
WOW! Very nice. Those look awesome, Cyrano. Makes me wanna take up AB again. I totally need those! Glad your first sets turned out so nice.
|
|
|
Post by mpchi on Aug 21, 2009 22:42:40 GMT -5
Yeah. Those look fun. Very nice. Love the fact that you can turn guns, cannons, feet, limbs, into any parts you can imagine.
|
|
|
Post by mechamasterj on Aug 22, 2009 13:41:15 GMT -5
man i like how you used the mini revlo joints to make toes!! i gotta get cyber and baron while i still can!
|
|
|
Post by Cyrano on Aug 25, 2009 14:07:21 GMT -5
Heya czacen, looks like those images can't be directly linked. I tried copying and pasting the link, but it goes to a members-only section. Could you upload them to photobucket or something similar?
|
|
|
Post by czacen on Aug 26, 2009 8:42:22 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by mechamasterj on Aug 26, 2009 23:43:11 GMT -5
cant wait for those to come out and those evil minions look kinda cool too
|
|
|
Post by recca74 on Aug 31, 2009 9:11:48 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by phoenixx on Aug 31, 2009 12:52:42 GMT -5
I thought that the release of DD was tomorrow, as in September 1st...but yeah, I'll hopefully have two coming in (via EMS) by the weekend, along with two Jarknoid Zain figures, and a handful of freebies. Of course, that's partly dependent on when TH gets them in, so I may have to wait as long as middle of next week before I actually have them in hand...
Either way, I can't wait for the Doom Diver. I know that he's not necessarily everyones favorite, and cetain parts of the the standard configuration aren't necessarily mine either, but there are some truly fantastic parts coming in that kit that I can't wait to combine with the existing parts...
My plans are to take an extra long weekend either this weekend or next specifically to play around with the new kits, take some new images, some overall images, and maybe finally get some of my kitbashes online. I have a ton of images laying around that I haven't had the time/effort to scale and upload from the past few months. So hopefully this will motivate me to finally do so...
|
|
|
Post by recca74 on Aug 31, 2009 14:22:33 GMT -5
I thought that the release of DD was tomorrow, as in September 1st... It's already 9/1 in Japan because of the time zones.... sure it's a few hrs before any of the stores are open....but still...LOL! Looking forward to seeing the new set in action. DD is probably my fave so far of the new Jark's. The accessories are quite nice though! I love the possibilities of this new release. Are you getting a couple of these or just the one for now??
|
|
|
Post by phoenixx on Aug 31, 2009 14:45:31 GMT -5
I'm snagging up a pair of the Doom Diver. I have two of everything else, so it's kinda my standard purchase for Assemble Borg items. I really wish that I could justify more of the Barrels Speeder (heck, I'd take 10 more of that set if I could), and the Doom Diver, and I'd love more of the extra parts from the first wave figures also...I just can't justfiy more of the figures themselves... My biggest "problems" at this point are display/storage space (despite adding shelving to my office just last year I'll be out of space again by the middle of next year at this rate), the fact that I still enjoy the core Revoltech lines as well, and (of course) that money isn't welling from my backside. I'm trying to budget room and money because the next wave of AB is looking fantastic, from the new body designs and unique parts to the Tri Striker finally being released, that is going to be another must have doubles lineup for me. The wave following that, outside of the crab, may be the first singles wave for me. The designs look interesting, but so far there doesn't seem to be much in the way of bonus parts. Of course, this will likely change and I'll be eating my words by next year, but we'll just have to wait and see. The wave after that will be awesome as well if they turn out anything like the design art, which they undoubtedly will... Damn Kaiyodo, between the regular Revo releases, exclusive, and Assemble Borg, they're stealing all of my extra cash!!! Sad thing is, outside of getting everything free, I couldn't be happier ;D
|
|
|
Post by mechamasterj on Aug 31, 2009 15:36:08 GMT -5
lucky you that you only concentrate on revlos....... unlike me, limited and web only figs seem to be whats in with all the lines i collect. I am considering picking up one more speeder bike but........ i may be just content with one, or have to be....... just too much going on for me right now...... at least I have my megman zero kits......... still waiting for yamaguchi to do something in that area...
|
|