Hell take Epic Heroes,Transformers Titanium Wave - G1 Ultra Magnus Figure£19.99 Transformers Takara Re-Issue Collector's Series #10 Soundwave £129.99, Now I know that it is a Japanese import but that price? Many more are doing the same and creeping prices upwards. You see a listing for something at say £39.99 three weeks later £45.99 three weeks later £59.99 is there any REAL reason why?

COME ON STOP RIPPING US OFF!

Cause they hate us

because they know that we're already ripped off they think we won't kick up too much of a fuss if they raise the bar a little more.

Thats the thing, we already pay over the odds for everythig. Why is it say that a 14.99 toy in Argos costs 39.99 online? Why is it that they can justify the 25 quid pricetag on items like Classix Ramjet who is currnttly going in most B&M stores for £7.99 ?

They can't justify it, but they can get away with it... they can set any price they want, that's the problem...

I stopped shopping with Epic Heroes years ago and never looked back ever since they f**ked me over by shipping me a clearly f**ked up BT hound (the box was messed up like some one had tried to take the toy out to steal it) and when i ordered a Re-issue Prowl (before TRU had them in) I canceled the order finding out that TRU UK was getting them in stock but a month later one shows up on my door step and they charged me 10 more then RRP for it so i sent it back at cost f**kers

then they went away and came back with a new web site but still the same team but they say they got thier ass in gear (Powerglide knows)

any ways they are a rip off Xybertoys.com are cheaper and have fast free shipping plus they wrap each box in a plastic sealed bag to keep it really mint I have yet to have one even slightly dented. plus when i ordered MP SS they gave my 2 free SVC figures

I remember the days of Ellismodels before he switched to selling Die Cast cars he was cool and cheap it was like £1 more to get the japanese basics rather then the hasbro ones

It was at the start of Galaxy Force when EH’s prices went crazy, up until then you could buy the majority of TF stuff (both imported and domestic) for retail or 25% more tops. Now their prices are so steep they’ve sort of slipped off my radar, they do occasionally have some good sale items on eBay, picked up a reissue G2 Convoy for £20 + free p&p a year or so ago and I always found their customer care to be good. Why do they and other online retailers charge so much? Because there is a market of TF fans, most likely professionals with plenty of expendable cash, who don’t have time to shop around and are happy to pay over-inflated prices to get the TFs they want.

I’d personally recommend to all collectors to find an Asian dealer you feel comfortable using and buy all your stuff from them with the proviso they mark all goods as gifts and mark the price down, the savings you make are astronomical and all you need is a PayPal account.

Thats the thing, asian sites take AGES to get product to the UK and more often than not the delivery charges are high. Xyber well I have ordered from them before but the waiting killed me, 2 fraggin weeks! Damn I miss TRIPITAKA TOYS and ELLISMODELS...

Delivery charges are high but that’s counterbalanced by the cost of the product; for example I pre-ordered MP Megs for £45 from an independent Kawloon dealer and got him only a few days after release with no C&E duty, from a UK dealer I’d have had to pay £65-£70+ and have to wait a good couple of weeks for it to arrive.

Paid £42 for my E Sky Lynx, £20 - £30 for each of by Binaltechs, £13 - £30 for the other Encores etc, etc – it all adds up to big, big savings plus I get the stuff faster than I would from a UK dealer.



I’ll give you an Amen on that, Tripitaka toys were brilliant and much missed.

B&M?
I can't for the life of me place it...

(Still need a Ramjet, really pissed I passed him up the one time I saw one. Still, didn't have the money

B&M = bricks and morter?

yeah tripitaka were cool only only really started using them just before they closed so i guess i missed out their

Wonderful TOYS? Romantic notions?Erogenous bubblewrap?Super collider?They were fantastic, fast delivery items delivered without even a dent...

Has anyone tried hobbylinkjapan here? Im sure they might be able to send stuff at a reasonable price?

Also, non-toy TF items, like Japanese books, CDs, DVDs etc are available from either amazon.co.uk OR from the English site of amazon.co.jp (go there and near the top right corner, click "English", then type "Transformers" in English in the search box).

I have but I got stung on customs once the 2nd time I wasn't but they do take some time to ship ok they are based in japan so I can understand that but... for the same prices I can find a more local dealer... unless its special items like mugenbine, microman and SIC

Well, there is your answer. The UK has VERY high import taxes, so it is very difficult for any of you to order online as you have to pay the import tax yourself.

Plus, as TFs usually come in big boxes, it is hard for dealers to ship them back privately. Thats why you see mainly starwars figs and smaller figs at nerd fests in the UK: they have smaller boxes.

You also have to understand that TFs just arent that popular in the UK for dealers to warrant the hassle of importing.

One of the many reasons that I dont live in the UK.

If you just want the standard TF's that are on normal retail in the UK www.thetoyshop.com is quite good. It's the online store for the entertainer

And yes I agree that xybertoys are great, in fact today I just received my first package from them. It was a Japanese stockade. Very mint and they shipped it to Spain free of charge. I'm buying an MP 05 from them next month when my wages come in

I regularly use HobbyLink japan, and they have been pretty fantastic with everything I have ordered thus far from them. I tend to stick to having stuff sent by EMS, which works out a bit more expensive but is trackable, which gives me a bit of peace of mind. I have only been stung for import tax maybe 2-3 times out of the several dozen times I have ordered - my best piece of advice is to keep the cost of each order reasonably low, which will help when your items get into the UK.

UJ

isnt £25 the bar? well I guess if you buy a lot of cheap stuff your sorted

i spoke to parcel force the other day regarding custom fees...

you can avoid the clearance fee if the sender pays the VAT and declares it on the customs form

i'd rather pay the VAT upfront on large orders rather than gamble & pay the clearance fee - i need to get in touch with BBTS and ask them if they can make this happen

I'm interested in what feedback you get from BBTS ... I've always found them very inflexible with regards to shipping.