According to this poll, 13.64% of folks here have obtained their vintage toys from private sales/trades. And equal amount have obtained their vintage toys from regular local retail stores like Kmart, Target etc. (I'm part of that group). The majority (63.64%) get their vintage toys from online secondary sellers.
Maybe get someone else who's willing to post by cheaper means. Either way, postage from Japan gets relatively cheaper if you post in large boxes. That's why I currently have a bunch of toys purchased in Japan just sitting for me in Japan... waiting for some other pre-orders to come through, then get the whole thing shipped off in a single lot. The wait is excruciating though! XO