The Decision Thread

[SuspectimusPrime]

IMO it's better to collect toys because it's something you enjoy rather than as a form of investment. If people want to invest their money, they're better off buying stockmarket shares, blue chips or just opening a long term savings account at a bank.

Agreed, it's never a good idea to mix business and pleasure . If making money from a hobby ends up souring, it may change one's perspective towards that hobby as well.

...the cost of shipping gets relatively cheaper per kg with larger and bulkier boxes. But the wait is frustrating.

Is this a constant rate or does it becomes cheaper exponentially? Unless the savings becomes a drastic amount, then its hard to justify - say the cost of shipping per figure drops from $20/fig, to say $8/fig which roughly the cost of travel for making a local acquisition.

As I said, the wait is frustrating... but also part of me is kinda fearful that I may be putting all my eggs in one basket, if you take my meaning... i.e. if anything should happen to that one box during transit, then an entire year's worth of TF purchases could be compromised. So... should I:
a) Ask my friend to send me the Arms Micron toys, book and MP Sunstorm first in one package, then United Artfire and the MPs in a second box later on (and pay for two shipments), or...
b) Stick to my original plan and just be patient. Possibly pay extra for registered or insured postage since it's a single shipment. Although that can get really expensive which would probably negate any savings made from a single shipment... might be cheaper to get them sent to me in 2-3 shipments.

I think either way you should get some insurance, because unlike eBay and purchases from online stores, there will be nobody else to turn to if that unfortunate mishap does occur.

Just to throw some more concerns into the mix , responding to each option respectively:
a) In terms of chance of a mishap occurring, there's a greater chance that it will occur if you increase the number of deliveries. Say chance of surviving transit is 99%, then to expect that to occur on all three goes, you're asking for 0.99 x 0.99 x 0.99 = 0.97; or a 3% chance that a mishap will happen to at least one box.
b) A larger box may be stacked with other larger boxes during transit, and those other larger boxes may contain heavier items which may cause damage to your package/contents upon transit (crushing or tossed together during transit).

Having mentioned that, the great majority of my collection has been bought outside of Australia (at least 80% in the last few years, due to price or availability) and I've only ever had one delivery issue, and that was with China.