Special Sauce

At some point it would seem like the shipping will cost as much as the toy itself.  Well hopefully we'll start seeing more US retailers carrying Bandai and Arcadia stuff so we don't have to get bent over for overseas shipping.

Bump

On 5/7/2021 at 9:40 AM, Duymon said:

amazon.co.jp roys are dropping a bit. 

using amazon's built in currency converter I was able to get this item shipped /w dhl to the US for under 300

Cool.  Hopefully the GBP set drops like that when it comes out.

2 hours ago, peter said:

I like this thread, breathes new life into my Yammies. 

 

Thought I posted these here, but I guess not. 

 

 

@peter Great outdoor shots!

3 minutes ago, borgified said:

It's either you get/not get at Nin Nin @Special Sauce. I've heard mixed results, so take your chances I guess. 

Edit: I've got my pre-order already and I'm good with not spending another 40-ish k yen on another DX 1J + GBP Full Set.  

@borgified Ok thanks, good to know.

9 minutes ago, Sanity is Optional said:

Yup, it's a matter of opinion. I like the extra leg, chest, and backpack bulk on the armored VF-25. Though fighter is the best mode for it, looks like it's from an old SHMUP arcade game.

I haven't heard the term "SHMUP" in years!  My favorite types of games 

8 minutes ago, Angesdad said:

The combo available at Nin Nin for 39,890 right at this moment.

@Angesdad I hate that they want immediate payment.  What's their reputation like?

6 minutes ago, M'Kyuun said:

I feel the same way, along with obscuring the beauty of the valk.  It's like this   plus  with guns and thrusters. 

LOL agreed. 

On 1/31/2021 at 7:50 AM, xoxokin said:

Yamato 1/48 + Bandai Dx

@xoxokinThis is visually appealing for both it's number of Valk's and for giving my Obsessive/Compulsive tendencies their fix for the day.   

1 hour ago, M'Kyuun said:

I think I'm a bit of a lone dissenter in that I don't really care for the massive Armor Pack on the VF-25. I love the 25's lanky proportions, so if I choose to armor it at all, I go with the Super Pack, which leaves most of that beautiful battroid mode bare.  I still feel the same way towards the VF-1- I never cared cared at all for the GBP armor, but I love the look of the FAST Packs. 

Unlike the GBP, I think it's cool that Kawamori designed the Armor Pack to transform with the VF-25; that was always a huge shortcoming, IMHO, of the old GBP armor.

I'm of the same mind as you @M'Kyuun I prefer the super packs as well.  I have an Ozma renewal with super packs and I much prefer that sleeker look.  I plan to get a Alto renewal, hopefully soon, and I'll get the super packs for him as well.  I'm not a big fan of the armor.  Too busy for me.

On 4/30/2021 at 5:20 PM, jvmacross said:

It truly is one of the most unique PT Valks ever released from any company.....and it continues to set Yamato apart from the pack of other PT VF makers....

Congrats! 

...and welcome to the Yamato 1/60 VF-1A Cavaliers Owners Club.....

Thanks!  Can't wait until it gets here.  

Just putting this update here in case it happened to anyone else besides myself.  So I pre-ordered from AE but after contacting them about the order they told me that even though the order went through and they charged me for it they wouldn't be able to supply the VF-1J set because someone before me got their order processed first.  That didn't make sense to me because it should only process the orders they have an allotted supply for but whatever.  They have since refunded the money they took from me for the order so I'm all set in that regard.  I'm still not pleased by the whole situation but at least I got my money back.  I still won't order from them again after that experience.  Maybe it's an outlier but given experiences I've had over the years, something like this has never happened, which really makes me wonder what's really going on. 

On 4/22/2021 at 9:09 PM, jvmacross said:

The Yamato VF-1A Cavaliers is somewhat HTF....it only had one run and it was not a "must get" valk at the time of release.....it's appreciation in value came later once Yamato went out of business and "The Panic" set in.....it has never had a re-release from Arcadia and likely will never have one....with that said, it's value and desireability/collectibility has more or less peaked....

I have no links to recent auctions sales from YJA...Mandarake is not a great measure for the market price for the majority of Macross collectibles, but they do have one that they sold recently....

https://order.mandarake.co.jp/order/detailPage/item?itemCode=1159971929&ref=list&keyword=マクロス VF-1A&lang=en

With that said, If you wanted to acquire one I am fairly confident that you would be paying about 300-400 USD for one plus international shipping (which currenty is pretty high).....I would say 470 USD shipped is pretty close to market price.....keep in mind that condition also affects the final value of anything...is it new, used, displayed, transformed?  Is it missing any parts or packaging materials....what is the condition of the box?  In the end, the price will also be determined by how much you are willing to pay for it and how much the seller is willing to accept to part with it....never hurst to ask for a better price or make a reasonable counteroffer....good luck!

So I was able to get this from the seller for that Mandrake price plus shipping which ended up being about $60USD,  But it's got tracking and should arrive fairly quickly.  Box is also in excellent like new condition.  Toy is excellent as well.  He was the only owner and it was never displayed.  I'm pretty happy with the sale, assuming it doesn't get damaged in shipping but he packed it pretty well.  The Mandrake example had a damaged box and who knows now many owners it had or how many times it was transformed/handled.

4 hours ago, eXis10z said:

I like to keep things simple. 1 thread for 1 release. If I want any info regarding a figure I go to its dedicated thread. There will always be many pages of "chit chat" and "redundant info" regardless how we separate the thread into general info or PO, etc so may as well leave everything regarding a particular figure to its dedicated thread. For eg, I am interested in VF-1S but not 1D I can easily see if there's any new updates, info or posts for the thread.

It works pretty well in 1/6 figure forums I frequent.

I second this.  My experience has been this way in other forums as well.

8 minutes ago, jvmacross said:

29 minutes ago, Anasazi37 said:

Yeah, I was really surprised by how fast it sold out. I snagged mine in the first 10 seconds and when I checked back a few minutes later, it was sold out. I think that's a new record.

You can, but when you add up the service fees and shipping fees, it's not too different from having AJ ship directly to Tenso and then have Tenso ship to you. You become your own proxy, in effect. And Tenso will hold your stuff for a bit, so you can combine things for shipping. They do make their money on shipping. It's not terrible, but you do notice the higher price.

Cool.  Maybe I'll try it out at some point.

16 minutes ago, Jade20X said:

I had used Tenso when I purchased the Arcadia 1/3000 SDF-1 Macross Premium Finish a few years back. It was about a $75 USD service/shipping fee for the item, and it was the only way I could have gotten this item sent to the US. The shipping was fast; the packaging was only decent but definitely should have been better; the SDF-1’s box arrived with some slight dents and minor creases—I was a little upset at this considering it was a $500 item.  The service got me what I needed, but I hope to not have to use it again unless absolutely necessary. 

That is a lot but it's nice to have the option

12 minutes ago, Chronocidal said:

My habit of trying to get at least two of every release started with the VF-25s after my 25G came with no crotch plate, and solidified when the VF-171s started spontaneously exploding.  If Bandai wasn't going to provide replacement parts for their failures, I was going to at least buy some insurance, and hope I could kitbash one good figure out of two if the worst happened.

The quality control got better over time, but then it started to be a crapshoot on whether the shops would even be able to fill orders, so the second order became a backup to just get one in the first place.  

@Chronocidal Wow, I can see why you'd get multiples

4 minutes ago, F360 said:

shipping from Tenso to USA can still be expensive  and a small service fee.  

@F360 Good to know.  Is there a thread on here that talks about it and peoples experience using it?  I don't want to derail this topic with unrelated stuff

25 minutes ago, weiser21 said:

They ship them to a Tenso address if it cannot be shipped to the US.

@weiser21 I saw people mention this but I didn't know what they were talking about until I looked it up.  Seems like a nice option.

2 minutes ago, weiser21 said:

The scalper price on amazon.jp seems to be trending downwards.

Do buyers in the US use proxy's to purchase from amazon.jp?

2 minutes ago, Kicker773 said:

 

 

@Kicker773 that GBP stealth armor.....damn.  That's niiiccccceeee.

2 minutes ago, Sanity is Optional said:

In my case I usually buy 2, and only open the second in the event that the first has defects.

Why don't I just sell the second? Mainly because I haven't run out of space yet. I probably ought to have a big sale of all my extras.

Gotcha, I figured people had various reasons.  I could make room for doubles but I'm find with having just one of each myself.  Provided there's nothing wrong with it.  

Man, seeing all these pics is making me miss my old 1/48's.  Only one I really regret selling was the Stealth 1J with the super packs and my Low Vis. 1A.  Maybe someday I'll try and get them again.  Love all these customs. 

12 minutes ago, jvmacross said:

LOL...I have to admit other than a VF-1J and a VF-1S Hikaru that I bought used....mine are all MISB....did not realize that the Kaki-1A DYRL-type came with decals...still....does not really make me think Bandai would not release separate TV and DYRL VF-1A CF's....they have taken the distinction between TV and DYRL VF-1's to a "Hole 'nother level" that has even surpassed Yamato's guidelines with the release of the "so-called" Focker VF-1S....there never was any lineart that distinguished the VF-1S between it's TV and DYRL appearance...other than the markings, such as the yellow and black head markings....

But who really knows......

I'm curious why some collectors hold onto MISB versions of the toys that they already have.  Why do you do it @jvmacross?

1 hour ago, gulan said:

i totally forgot about this preorder and slept through it.  did amazon jp offer oversea shipping on this one?

Consider yourself lucky to have missed it.  A lot of shenanigans going on with the retailers that sell this stuff.  I honestly don't trust but 1 or 2 of them at this point.  I think it's just better to wait until it's released from now on and pay a small markup.  At least until we start seeing the fruits of the BW HG deal realized.