The Lament

[SoundwavePerth]

Every time a new wave is released ( such as Potp) there is always that 'urgency' to get the latest figure. The fear of missing out - paying overs or the impatient tax.

For those lamenting about not finding anything at the moment, here are some words of consolation.

I stepped away from buying any transformers after picking up Bruticus (combiner wars) end of 2016... I decided to get back into it at the end of last year and still managed to get every figure i wanted - all from retail, all on sale.

I was just reviewing the March acquisition section on this site, and see people fawning on picking up Brawn, Gnaw, Fangry etc.... Most of these are still sitting on shelves now.

I picked up 4 Gnaws the other day (for $7 each). In December, Trypticon for 149, Galvatron and Astro train for $30.

Maybe I'm just the Tortoise late to the party, but these toys are mass produced, mostly if you can wait, you will pick up for a bargain.

For the ones you must have, well go get 'em, and if you miss out at first, they will turn up later on sale.

I must admit, I still get swept up in the hype and had to rush out to get a Devastator (still havent opened) or Grimlock currently. PoTp will soon turn up in Kmart and you can have the last laugh when you get them up at a better price. Some lucky bugger found a 20% off sale at Toyworld and picked up all these POtp cheap.

Anyway, that is my rant, just trying to easy any stress. The fear of missing out is the best commercial tool pushed onto the public.

[UltraMarginal]

I totally agree, I do wonder how many of the people who have gone out hunting and paying impatience tax for these Power of the Prime figures are going to be complaining about them all shelf warming in a couple months time?

I feel like the apparent desperation for this line is more intense than previous lines, I wonder if it's because there are dinobots.

I did a similar thing with animated, sure I had to dig around for some of the figures but I was very late to the party in deciding to get a full cast and I picked up many of them on a sale or even clearance over a 6 month period. Of course there were a few that were hard to get or that I had to buy online from somewhere which was a lot less spoilt for choice back then.

Perhaps my anxiety is helped by the fact that I have literally dozens if not over 100 unopened toys that I'm still working my way through so I have plenty to open at any time if I have the time to go to the cupboard and get one out.

[Thurmus]

Could not agree more.

[kwanzaabot]

Oh yeah. Agreed for sure.

I missed out on a lot of CW and I'm having a hell of a time finding them for reasonable prices (thankfully all I'm really interested in are the Combaticons and Constructicons, and maybe Armada Megs), but I've gotten so many TR figures for reasonable prices now that PotP is rolling out and everything is going for cheap online.

And now I'm holding off on PotP for a while, too- I figure Mr. Toys Toyworld is charging too much, and I feel that Big W or Target might be more reasonable, once they finally get some stock.

[GoktimusPrime]

I paid full prices for my POTP toys, but I'm not going to complain when they come out later at cheaper prices. I understand that I am paying more now, but it does save me time and effort hunting them down later. I am paying for the convenience of having them sooner rather than later. If I want my time wasted then I'll go shop with Voldemort Collectables. :p ;)

[Bidoofdude]

Saw an Air Raid for $35 once, thought I'd be able to find him for less at retail later on. Never saw one again. I do have one now though, 2 years later.

I don't like taking risks, especially with the shoddy distribution and stuff disappearing sometimes. Brawl and Vortex disappeared from my sight the moment I looked back at them, and I hate the stress of having to go back and get stuff I missed, because it takes funds from current stuff and a lot more searching. I've been eyeing the specialist Autobots set for about 3, maybe 4 years now, but I've never pulled the trigger because there's so much new stuff coming at every corner.

[BigTransformerTrev]

I live in the bush. No toy stores so no chance to go hunting for ‘bargians’. It’s either order online or don’t get the toy :(

[griffin]

Sometimes it really bites, seeing something being cleared out for much cheaper than what I paid for it (or imported it for, because it was cheaper than regular retail pricing here), but as a long time collector, there have been enough figures in the past that I've missed out on here because I was waiting for a sale, for me to not take that risk if prices are acceptable... or it looks like it isn't getting a big release here (like TF5 Voyager Nitro & Scorn - they only ended up at Target, and disappeared nationwide within days of being first sighted).

[DarkHyren]

I agree with the original post, I'm fine with waiting for most toys (so long as I actually get them if I ordered them...) if it means I save money as I'm personally not in a position to pay Mr. Toys/Toyworld/TRU prices.
Granted it can mean I miss some things but it's a risk that I have to take.
In saying that there are times that I want certain toys as soon as they come out, either because of the character or because everyone else is raving about them and I want to join in the fun, but if it means paying more then what I think is a reasonable price/what the toy is worth I just wont do it.

[GoktimusPrime]

At the end of the day, it is about managing risks. If I really want a toy, then I prefer to buy it sooner rather than later. If it's a toy that is lower on my wants list then I'll put it off and accept the risk that I may miss out on it. But we're talking about, really, independents charging marginally above RRP. The max RRP for a Deluxe is $30, so paying say $37 for a Deluxe means $7 above RRP. Unless you're a full time student, this probably isn't going to break your finances. I can afford this, but it means that I get the toy sooner. I expend more money but save time. Others may like to expend some more time if it means saving a bit more money - fine. But you're either spending money or time. Either way there's a trade-off.

There are people who pay WAY above RRP for older toys. This means that you got the toy much later at a much higher price - expending both time and money. There's no trade off here, and IMO this would be a greater source of lament. And I have met a number of collectors who are financially compromising themselves by collecting like this. I recently spoke to someone who admitted to buying an old toy at way above RRP and spent the next month eating Mi Goreng for breakfast, lunch and dinner. There are people who admit that they can't afford things like furniture, cars, going out, travelling, rent etc. because of how much they're spending on toys - and these are SINKs! :eek: I've even met people who have families who spend beyond their means on toys. :(

How much people want to spend on toys is up to them, but IMO it ought to be financially sustainable. Yes, I paid independent prices for my POTP, but it hasn't financially affected me. It's something that I can easily afford and saves me time.

[UltraMarginal]

I live in the bush. No toy stores so no chance to go hunting for ‘bargians’. It’s either order online or don’t get the toy :(

That's totally different, if I was in your shoes I'd probably buy everything from BBTS, and other online retailers (toybotimportz et al).

but for city folk I can't think of a time when wave 1 of a series wasn't hanging around for months and being included in at least one sale. sure if it's something like the movie voyagers that had a terrible distribution (and it was widely understood to be the case) grab it when you see it, or buy it online. Late wave toys are the same, they often only turn up in limited quantities so it's well worth grabbing them when you see them.

[BigTransformerTrev]

That's totally different, if I was in your shoes I'd probably buy everything from BBTS, and other online retailers (toybotimportz et al).

but for city folk I can't think of a time when wave 1 of a series wasn't hanging around for months and being included in at least one sale. sure if it's something like the movie voyagers that had a terrible distribution (and it was widely understood to be the case) grab it when you see it, or buy it online. Late wave toys are the same, they often only turn up in limited quantities so it's well worth grabbing them when you see them.

Fair point 👍

[GoktimusPrime]

I went and picked up 2 Prime Masters from Target today, but in doing so I made a 35km round trip and since I was going home in rush hour traffic, the total time spent getting these toys was 2 hours! :o

Had I just bought these toys from Kings Comics as I did with Metalhawk, it would have cost me an extra $5. Just $5. To me that's worth paying to save me 2 hours of my time plus however much fuel I expended in my 35km round trip! And I didn't find any other TFs that I wanted, so I'm glad that I paid the slightly higher prices at the independents as it means that I don't have to keep going on these trips over and over and over again hunting for these toys. The combined amount of time and money spent travelling just is not worth it.

I'll admit that today's purchase was impulsive. I'm gonna wait until the other Prime Masters appear at my own immediate locals or if I happen to be at a department store doing other shopping and I find them. But not worth these special trips just to buy them.

[plakstift]

I picked up 4 Gnaws the other day (for $7 each). In December, Trypticon for 149, Galvatron and Astro train for $30.

I would kill for a few more Gnaws, where on Earth did you manage to score them for $7 a pop!?

[Gouki]

I live in the bush. No toy stores so no chance to go hunting for ‘bargians’. It’s either order online or don’t get the toy :(

There is a Toyworld in Swan Hill, and you know it. I should ask the frizzy haired blonde if they're getting the new stuff, tomorrow. Target should be stocking a full range this year, too.

[BigTransformerTrev]

There is a Toyworld in Swan Hill, and you know it. I should ask the frizzy haired blonde if they're getting the new stuff, tomorrow. Target should be stocking a full range this year, too.

So? I haven’t lived anywhere near Swan Hill for nearly a year - I don’t even live in that state anymore. You might as well have said "There is a Toys'R'Us in London, England, and you know it" since I used to live there too.

The town I live outside of now makes Swan Hill look like Melbourne in comparison. There is a service station that has a couple of plastic cap guns and that’s it for toys.

But hey, thanks for taking the time to instruct me on what I know.

[Gouki]

Geez so sorry my telepathy failed me, so I didn't realise you had moved when your profile still said Murrawee yesterday. No need to be a dick about it. You knew Target Swan Hill was getting a full range this year did you?

[BigTransformerTrev]

. No need to be a dick about it.

Errr.... you were the one that was quoting me and making it sound like I was full of crap when I said I live in a town with no toy store. I didn't go out of my way to bother you or infer you were being less than honest.

However if my response was too full on I apologize.


You knew Target Swan Hill was getting a full range this year did you?

Besides keeping abreast with developments in my brothers family I have no idea what is going on back in Swan Hill, let alone what their chain stores are stocking.


Edit:


I didn't realise you had moved when your profile still said Murrawee yesterday.

Yes, in retrospect I can see how that could have been misleading. However since I'd talked about how I'd moved so many times on here over the last year I kinda assumed everybody knew, which I shouldn't have. I've changed my local so there will be no further confusions.

[Omega Metro]

I’ve generally just given up with local retail anyway so I don’t bother looking much. I honestly get much more excited to have a LTC or BBTS parcel rock up at my door than waste fuel and time trolloping around Perth looking for an overpriced deluxe or Voyager.

[SoundwavePerth]

I would kill for a few more Gnaws, where on Earth did you manage to score them for $7 a pop!?

Hey I stumbled upon them at Hobbyware house (https://www.hobbywarehouse.com.au). I had never heard of it before, but I actually saw it come up as a google ad I think. All legends were $7. I put up a post on facebook with the link, and I think on this site somewhere. The sale has ended though sorry mate.

As for everyone else arguing the merits of retail vs online. My first point was about 'the fear of missing out' and the hype surrounded by a new line such as POPT. Everyone stressing, and driving KMs just so they dont miss out.

Sure enough they are now appearing in retail everywhere ( and a kmart or a target might be more convenient than travelling to Toyworld or a hobby shop.

If you want the figure (and willing to pay) go an get it. Otherwise, its fair to say you will find it elsewhere, its not gone forever!

I picked up Rodimus and Grimlock when they hit Toyworld for (89 and 49) and have no regrets. I made a concious choice not to buy the deluxe at $34.95 at the time, thinking I will get them later at kmart - but classically backflipped when someone spotted them at another store near me a week ago. It is $10 total extra, but hey thats the standard RRP it will save me a visit to the shops another day.

If I ever see Optimus on a 20% off sale down the road, I may even think about picking him up.

Whatever works.