Current Yamato Valk toy pricings

[slaginpit]

Is it me or are the recent valks pricy?

I bought the Fire Valk for $270CAN

the VF-19S is $299CAN

the VF-17S is $349CAN

comparing to what you get with the 1/3000 SDF-1 at $367CAN its getting harder to justify buying these really nice toys

All these prices dont include shipping. Whats going on?

[Knightdramon]

As I've said on other forums, it's not Yamato's fault.

The difference between them in YEN is minimal. The YF-21 cost like 22200 yen or so back in the day, the newest and most expensive VF17 costs 24000 yen before tax. Understandable difference.

The difference in the exchange rate is what kills it for many people, myself included. What used to translate to roughly the same price without one decimal [for example, 10000 yen used to be around 95-100 USD or less] now is much, much worse. Now 10000 yen are around 150 USD!!!!

That being said, for the difference in quality, build and size, Yamato has pretty decent raises in retail in the past few years. Compare it to Takara's rise in price with each passing new mould Masterpiece [Grimlock 15000 yen, Rodimus 19000 yen, Convoy 25000 yen] I find the 100-200 yen VERY reasonable.

Exchange rates and a weak dollar, my friend.

[pud333]

Is it me or are the recent valks pricy?

I bought the Fire Valk for $270CAN

the VF-19S is $299CAN

the VF-17S is $349CAN

comparing to what you get with the 1/3000 SDF-1 at $367CAN its getting harder to justify buying these really nice toys

All these prices dont include shipping. Whats going on?

As the other guy said: the exchange is killing North Americans. As a fellow Canuck, I totally understand your pain.

[slaginpit]

Well I guess I will wait and see if there is a price drop Maybe then I will get it. Or there might be some alternate ugly color version of the VF-17S for a lesser price that I can pick up

[Phalanix]

One of the reasons I skipped on the VF-17.

[BlueMax]

Well, if everybody waits for the price to drop or for cheaper versions later on on sale... well the irony is, if nobody buys the 1st one, Yamato wont make the next one.

[Loop]

I'm so addicted I buy them anyway, I miss the days of being able to get more for my dollar. At the same time though I can't miss any of the releases at this point.

Now if Yamato started putting out gatbage, then yes I'll give up, but at this point I can only say that I think they are getting better.

[BlueMax]

I'm so addicted I buy them anyway, I miss the days of being able to get more for my dollar. At the same time though I can't miss any of the releases at this point.

Now if Yamato started putting out gatbage, then yes I'll give up, but at this point I can only say that I think they are getting better.

Actually I'm pretty much in the same situation right now

[Dutch]

The vf-17 definetely seems to expensive, I wish i had one though.

I just got back into collectings macross valks after selling off my whole collection a few years ago. I just bought: VF-25s, VF-11c, VF-0s with ghost booster set and VF-19s. And I plan on buying a YF-21 and YF-29.

It's going to be a very exspensive year for me

I hope newer valks don't go past the $300 mark.

[slaginpit]

Well, if everybody waits for the price to drop or for cheaper versions later on on sale... well the irony is, if nobody buys the 1st one, Yamato wont make the next one.

That is a non issue. From the posts I see there are plenty of people not being hurt by the current pricepoints. Gives us lower income earners a chance at owning one

[OmegaD3k]

It's not just Yamato. Pretty much all Valks are overpriced. For example, Bandai releases so few of their Macross figures, that the only place to get them (if you haven't pre-ordered in the first 24 hours) is eBay, and here are the current prices (without shipping!):

YF-29 - $499.

VF-27 - $350.

VF-25 renewal - $299.

Point being: $300 seems to be the new norm. Best thing to do is wait for a sale. :/

Last year was brutal in regards to new releases. Seeing how there are no new valks until the very end of the year, this may give us a chance to save up for the future. I'm already saving up for a few VF-4's, which should be out by the end of the year.

Edited February 3, 2012 by OmegaD3k

[Knightdramon]

It's not just Yamato. Pretty much all Valks are overpriced. For example, Bandai releases so few of their Macross figures, that the only place to get them (if you haven't pre-ordered in the first 24 hours) is eBay, and here are the current prices (without shipping!):

YF-29 - $499.

VF-27 - $350.

VF-25 renewal - $299.

Point being: $300 seems to be the new norm. Best thing to do is wait for a sale. :/

Last year was brutal in regards to new releases. Seeing how there are no new valks until the very end of the year, this may give us a chance to save up for the future. I'm already saving up for a few VF-4's, which should be out by the end of the year.

Bandai's valkyries retail from 14000 to 18000 yen, actually cheaper than Yamato's offerings bar the VF1.

It's just that they are so limited AND reissues are scarcer than before AND the dollar is weak compared to the yen AND there's people hogging some of them BECAUSE some others are willing to pay BAD EXCHANGE RATE+SHIPPING FROM JAPAN TO US AND AGAIN WITHIN THE US + PROFIT to the actual seller.

Again, the actual japanese prices aren't bad but more than often we're seeing a bad exchange rate coupled with rarity and scalper heaven prices.

[pud333]

Well, if everybody waits for the price to drop or for cheaper versions later on on sale... well the irony is, if nobody buys the 1st one, Yamato wont make the next one.

Eh. Enough people buy the valks upon release. I buy based on how much I need that particular valk. The VF-19 Kai I didn't absolutely need, so I waited for a sale, and I got a deal. I love it, so now I want a Blazer, but I will wait for a sale on that as well since I know the stock is abundant. The 17, I couldn't wait, so I bought it at the full price. I don't regret it one bit; I LOVE that valk. The 25 renewals, I knew stock would be in short supply, so I preordered and I was glad I was able to get them. The older valks that are still on the market, like the 11C, I just waited until a big HLJ sale. The 4G I might wait on for a sale, but since it is an exclusive, maybe not. I haven't decided yet.

The vf-17 definetely seems to expensive, I wish i had one though.

I just got back into collectings macross valks after selling off my whole collection a few years ago. I just bought: VF-25s, VF-11c, VF-0s with ghost booster set and VF-19s. And I plan on buying a YF-21 and YF-29.

It's going to be a very exspensive year for me

I hope newer valks don't go past the $300 mark.

The 4G will be over $300 I bet.

Edited February 3, 2012 by pud333

[ae_productions]

Eh. Enough people buy the valks upon release. I buy based on how much I need that particular valk. The VF-19 Kai I didn't absolutely need, so I waited for a sale, and I got a deal. I love it, so now I want a Blazer, but I will wait for a sale on that as well since I know the stock is abundant. The 17, I couldn't wait, so I bought it at the full price. I don't regret it one bit; I LOVE that valk. The 25 renewals, I knew stock would be in short supply, so I preordered and I was glad I was able to get them. The older valks that are still on the market, like the 11C, I just waited until a big HLJ sale. The 4G I might wait on for a sale, but since it is an exclusive, maybe not. I haven't decided yet.

The 4G will be over $300 I bet.

Do you mean the VF-4? God, I hope not. But the VF-4 will be a web exclusive. I have a distinct feeling in my gut that you may be right. In which case I better start planning that bank heist.

[Reïvaj]

[...] I hope newer valks don't go past the $300 mark.

Keep dreaming, that's for free

[Phalanix]

The 4G is a whole different story... it's a must buy. XD

I don't think the VF-17 was worth it for the price, it just look so plain (although I can appreciate something that's not a regular VF-1).

[Lupin The Third]

I'm not sure that I buy the argument that it's a exchange rate issue. I started buying Yamato valks in the early days (until about 2004)but lost interest when it turned into one reissue after another. In the last couple months I've gotten back into the hobby big time picking up the SDF-1, YF-19 Weathering Version, and VF-1S Renewal (yes...a renewal but I never owned a Rick/Hikaru valk previously) along with some of the Bandai Chogokins. Getting back into the hobby has been stunning in terms of the cost however. All my "old" valks are still new in the box and on discovering this forum recently I've been seriously reevaluating whether I want to bother. The problems my fellow collectors are having with joints, shoulders, etc are stunning given the price of these figures. At least in the beginning the figures were 7800-9600 yen (if you look at the 1/60 scale)...now they're about twice that or more (22000 yen is the average now). So this really isn't an exchange rate issue. While the exchange rate sucks it only means we're paying ~130 for what used to cost ~100... that doesn't excuse a price point nearly three times that of the line's introduction especially given how these figures seem to literally fall apart even when treasured on a shelf...boy that's a fair way to treat your supporters Yamato (and Bandai)...

Edited February 13, 2012 by Lupin The Third

[Archer]

^While I agree with much of what you are saying, I think we all have to realize that these manufacturers are catering to a very niche market, even with popular series like Macross Frontier coming out (although, in terms of what Yamato makes, much of it really is very niche market stuff since they don't cater to any very recent series). That in itself drives down the number of units that these manufacturers can sell to the audience, and it even gets worse when the target audience is soo split in terms of preference over what valkyries, etc. that they like.

Therefore, every $1 you spend on a valkyrie will probably be worth a little less in terms of what goes into the figure itself, with the remainder of that dollar acting as a buffer in order to actually make profit even with a small amount of units sold.

As a perfect example, take a similar series: Gundam. Gundam, like it or hate it, is a lot more popular than Macross. Whether you hate gundam with all of your living passion or you don't mind it at all, it's simply obvious that it is a more popular series, both internationally and domestically in Japan (1/1 scale Gundam anyone?).

For $180, I picked up a metal composite Gundam Origin, and for that same price, I bought a vf-27 from Bandai. Although I can't argue that the VF-27 was a bad toy in anyway (really, it was quite a great toy and a LOT of fun), the Gundam Origin is simply a much more refined piece, with rock SOLID engineering and detail, and the whole thing just feels more thought out. Why? I'm guessing it's because Bandai can sell more units of the Origin than the Vf-27 simply due to the popularity of both the rx-78 and the prospect of the upcoming origin anime, so they can invest more heavily in the figure (producing more units as well), and thus driving down the cost while increasing their own profit margin.

Couple all of this with the fact that valkyries have to transform with very intricate parts work, and you're bound to get slightly less refined figures with hit or miss quality. Honestly though, with the way both Yamato and Bandai are improving macross-wise (MUCH better quality), I wouldn't worry too much anymore about bad QC, as that is quickly becoming a thing of the past.

I hope that helps, but those are really just my opinions!

[Renato]

I'm not sure that I buy the argument that it's a exchange rate issue. I started buying Yamato valks in the early days (until about 2004)but lost interest when it turned into one reissue after another. In the last couple months I've gotten back into the hobby big time picking up the SDF-1, YF-19 Weathering Version, and VF-1S Renewal (yes...a renewal but I never owned a Rick/Hikaru valk previously) along with some of the Bandai Chogokins. Getting back into the hobby has been stunning in terms of the cost however. All my "old" valks are still new in the box and on discovering this forum recently I've been seriously reevaluating whether I want to bother. The problems my fellow collectors are having with joints, shoulders, etc are stunning given the price of these figures. At least in the beginning the figures were 7800-9600 yen (if you look at the 1/60 scale)...now they're about twice that or more (22000 yen is the average now). So this really isn't an exchange rate issue. While the exchange rate sucks it only means we're paying ~130 for what used to cost ~100... that doesn't excuse a price point nearly three times that of the line's introduction especially given how these figures seem to literally fall apart even when treasured on a shelf...boy that's a fair way to treat your supporters Yamato (and Bandai)...

Excellent user name and avatar. Even though there are several points in your post that I disagree with, Lupin is just too awesome to argue with.

[Omegablue]

Surprised none of you hit on the actual reason.

It's not only Valks. I use to pay $30 for a Figma three years ago with Shipping to South Africa, and now I'm paying $50 and above.

When researching that, the problem actually lies in the price of oil. No jokes.

The companies that transport the materials to the factories hiked up their prices for transport.

Then the factories transporting the produced figures to the wholesellers hiked up their prices for transport.

The shipping to your home, where ever it is, hiked up their transport fare.

By the time it reaches us, we're paying a percentage for every bit of increased transport cost involed in that specific figure.

Another example, Alter's standard 8inch PVC statues back in 2006 were 30$ to 40$ retail. Now they're 70$ and above without shipping.

Who's to blame... the corporate f@ckers and bankers endlessly increasing taxes to fill that bottomless worldwide debt they created.

[boyarque]

Omegablue has a point...even for transformers, a Deluxe size toy nowadays are 20-30% more than 4-5 years back....and not only that, their sizes are getting smaller for their classes!

So to blame Yamato and Bandai alone for price hike is quite unfair, imho. Inflation is global, we just have to live with it...

[Archer]

Lol, yeah, omegablue is right, that totally is the underlying issue to why prices in general are increasing globally. Truly a masked issue indeed.....

[Knightdramon]

Surprised none of you hit on the actual reason.

It's not only Valks. I use to pay $30 for a Figma three years ago with Shipping to South Africa, and now I'm paying $50 and above.

When researching that, the problem actually lies in the price of oil. No jokes.

The companies that transport the materials to the factories hiked up their prices for transport.

Then the factories transporting the produced figures to the wholesellers hiked up their prices for transport.

The shipping to your home, where ever it is, hiked up their transport fare.

By the time it reaches us, we're paying a percentage for every bit of increased transport cost involed in that specific figure.

Another example, Alter's standard 8inch PVC statues back in 2006 were 30$ to 40$ retail. Now they're 70$ and above without shipping.

Who's to blame... the corporate f@ckers and bankers endlessly increasing taxes to fill that bottomless worldwide debt they created.

While I do get what you're saying about oil and you're correct, the retail price for Japanese figures hasn't risen that much, and you're quoting USD prices for products sold in Yen.

As I've said at the top of the thread, retail price [in yen] for, say, the VF19S isn't that much higher than the retail price for the YF21 with fastpacks. But the exchange rate back then was far more favourable to the dollar than it is now.

The price of oil has to do with the figures getting smaller, since retailers [at the US, primarily] refuse to buy the figures for a price higher than what they do now, so [hasbro] toy companies have to make do with essentially reduced budget sold at the same price point as before.

[Omegablue]

While I do get what you're saying about oil and you're correct, the retail price for Japanese figures hasn't risen that much, and you're quoting USD prices for products sold in Yen.

Been ordering figures for some stores in South Africa, and dealt with wholesellers in Japan when buying bulk for over ten years now. Especially at the moment as I'm aiding a friend set up his on-line store here.

And the Japanese retail price in yen has risen drastically in Japan, especially over the last few years. My few contacts in Japan continously complain about this.

Example, the 2nd editions of Evangelion figures by Kaiyodo in 2003, which were 8inch and came in big packaging were 1800yen retail. Now the tiny Revoltech Evas also by Kaiyodo but are 4inch and come in smaller packaging, start at 2400yen retail. And might I add that the first Revo Eva in 2007 was at 1600yen.

This is cause the figures are made in China, and there already are added the initial transport costs.

But the exchange rate back then was far more favourable to the dollar than it is now.

Yes it was, which is why the increase from 2005 to 2008 in figures wasn't felt badly by us in the USA and Europe. At that time the figures started to get expensive in Japan, but the YEN and Dollar exchange played to our advantage, as then both economies were stable, and the new shipping taxes to air frights were not fully implemented. That includes from the Chinese factories to the Japanese wholesellers.

Another example, just compare the yen prices of the 1/48 from 2003, to the yen price of the 1/60 v2 from their intial release.

The price of oil has to do with the figures getting smaller, since retailers [at the US, primarily] refuse to buy the figures for a price higher than what they do now, so [hasbro] toy companies have to make do with essentially reduced budget sold at the same price point as before.

Well this has more to do with the sad fact that the owners of the companies and their share holders, all want to see an increased profit with each year. With the production costs rising each qaurter due to inflation, their only option is to save on the materials producing the products. Thus making smaller figures, or more expensive figures if kept at the same size. Simple as that.

It's a vicious circle that always eats more out of the tail that is us - the customers.

[Knightdramon]

Sure thing, Revoltech in general has gotten more expensive, Hot toys figures have gotten more expensive, but this thread was specifically about Yamato valkyries and it still stands pretty clear that people quote USD prices, along with the exchange rate, for things that are sold in Yen.

1/48 cost around 14.000 yen before any japanese taxes, non bundled 1/60 v2.0 cost 9800 yen.

Across most toy companies I'm getting products from, I specifically find Yamato to be much better off in the case of product received in analogy to money spent and raises across the board. Hasbro went against the rising costs of oil [since we're talking about a US product and no yen relation to the final consumer] with downsizing the figures and essentially compromising their quality. Hot toys went with a big FU to the rising costs versus compromise and basically upped their retail prices by 40-50 USD. Bandai decided to do whatever they want and produce only one-two SOC per year, make smaller SOC specs and have half of them be online exclusives, and drastically decrease their production line put out.

[Omegablue]

Sure thing, Revoltech in general has gotten more expensive, Hot toys figures have gotten more expensive, but this thread was specifically about Yamato valkyries and it still stands pretty clear that people quote USD prices, along with the exchange rate, for things that are sold in Yen.

Hince why I used the word example. To show it's not only Yamato. People here use the USD price, as most of us deal in that currency, and that's the knock in our wallets.

1/48 cost around 14.000 yen before any japanese taxes, non bundled 1/60 v2.0 cost 9800 yen.

Oops, meant how they've increased in price during their own timeline. Sorry for not being more specific there.

However when you compare the 1/48, to then the 1/60v2 bundled, then to the new VF-22, and now to the VF-17, the increase is vast when considering they're from the same company and most likely have the same amount of plastic. This is where the oil increase is in yen. Let aside the exchange rate.

And again here.

Yes it was, which is why the increase from 2005 to 2008 in figures wasn't felt badly by us in the USA and Europe. At that time the figures started to get expensive in Japan, but the YEN and Dollar exchange played to our advantage, as then both economies were stable, and the new shipping taxes to air frights were not fully implemented. That includes from the Chinese factories to the Japanese wholesellers.

Across most toy companies I'm getting products from, I specifically find Yamato to be much better off in the case of product received in analogy to money spent and raises across the board. Hasbro went against the rising costs of oil [since we're talking about a US product and no yen relation to the final consumer] with downsizing the figures and essentially compromising their quality. Hot toys went with a big FU to the rising costs versus compromise and basically upped their retail prices by 40-50 USD. Bandai decided to do whatever they want and produce only one-two SOC per year, make smaller SOC specs and have half of them be online exclusives, and drastically decrease their production line put out.

I don't fully agree with everything there. Sure Bandai DX VF-25 v2 is not as great and solid as a new VF-19. However it still has die-cast and more tampo printing, and it cost me in yen retail without shipping, what my 1/48 in 2004 cost me without shipping. Of which that 1/48 was Yamato's second attempt on a tried design (VF-01 v1), which is pretty much what the VF-25 v2 is.

At the end it's dependant to numerous denominators across the many toy companies. However fact is each of them have increased the costs or shrunk their quality due to inflation.

Ok, so you're mentioning bananas, I mentioned apples, but we're both talking about fruit here, bud.

[Reïvaj]

IIRC, Graham once mentioned Yamato’s costs have increased 2.5 times in the last years.

[Knightdramon]

Hince why I used the word example. To show it's not only Yamato. People here use the USD price, as most of us deal in that currency, and that's the knock in our wallets.

Oops, meant how they've increased in price during their own timeline. Sorry for not being more specific there.

However when you compare the 1/48, to then the 1/60v2 bundled, then to the new VF-22, and now to the VF-17, the increase is vast when considering they're from the same company and most likely have the same amount of plastic. This is where the oil increase is in yen. Let aside the exchange rate.

And again here.

I don't fully agree with everything there. Sure Bandai DX VF-25 v2 is not as great and solid as a new VF-19. However it still has die-cast and more tampo printing, and it cost me in yen retail without shipping, what my 1/48 in 2004 cost me without shipping. Of which that 1/48 was Yamato's second attempt on a tried design (VF-01 v1), which is pretty much what the VF-25 v2 is.

At the end it's dependant to numerous denominators across the many toy companies. However fact is each of them have increased the costs or shrunk their quality due to inflation.

Ok, so you're mentioning bananas, I mentioned apples, but we're both talking about fruit here, bud.

Yeah, it's not like I'm arguing for the sake of arguing, it's because we both have valid and good points

I can understand the price increase in relation to, say, the VF1 V2.0 to the VF22S to the VF17D. First of all, all three are not the same size, the VF1 has a lot, lot more uses and recolours in and it's the RX-78 Gundam of the macross fame. The 22S is quite bigger and while I don't have the 17S on hand, it's big, more complex than the 22S [meaning more parts] and has die-cast on the internals. So I can see the (sudden) increase in retail.

Most of us, including myself, a European, use the dollar in our exchanges and while items have grown more expensive due to the yen, the final price we're quoted in USD does not realistically reflect that raise because the exchange rate is so screwed up. If the exchange rate was more favourable then the price hike wouldn't put that much of a dent in our wallet. Paying 130 usd when I used to be paying around 90 for the same amount in Yen is not cool...

Nevertheless, it's a tough time to be a collector, or an importer to be more precise.

[Omegablue]

Nevertheless, it's a tough time to be a collector, or an importer to be more precise.

This worries me. As it feels this industry is hanging onto it's established collectors, and fialing to bring in younger collectors to the hobby...

Could be wrong, but that's how it feels from here, to Lego to die-cast collectors.

[Knightdramon]

I don't know, young collectors will be skeptical of unloading close to 300 USD on a toy. Seeing as there's constant re-issues, re-releases and v2.0 of many figures, I think that the market is hanging pretty nicely onto the respective collectors...

[Vifam7]

This worries me. As it feels this industry is hanging onto it's established collectors, and fialing to bring in younger collectors to the hobby...

Could be wrong, but that's how it feels from here, to Lego to die-cast collectors.

These toys have always been targetted at 30-something 40-something adults. Few "young collectors" buy these toys. Either these toys are too expensive or Macross is simply not an anime they care much about having a toy of.

As more of the core 30-something 40-something collectors are steadily satisfied, the market for these toys dwindles. At the sametime, the subject matter (the Valk type) becomes less popular. Which means each successive release gets more and more expensive. I think we're simply seeing this right now.

Edited February 13, 2012 by Vifam7

[1/1 LowViz Lurker]

To me the cost should not matter so long as the overall quality steadily increases If you plonk down $300 and are very satisfied with the toy, vs paying less but being angry about them falling apart or not liking the toy in general you are still better off paying more while being happy.

Thankfully macross really only has a few mecha in it and then the enemy mecha, while gundam has so much different stuff in a single show.

I think yamato can survive better with macross due to how in the show often the differences in mechs is just a new head or change in the paintscheme. This can be a blessing for the guy on the tight budget since he can still afford to get everything in a show if he saves up or waits for sales. But in the meantime, those who have the money to burn and where money is not as big an issue can see the increases in quality over time and have some incentive to buy shiny new things each year to upgrade their collection.

Lets take the yf-19 as one example: those who like this a lot are ready to see this updated in line with the vf-19. It is popular enough to make the effort to redo it worth the time and many would be ok with a new update to it provided the increase in quality was present. If the revisited version was not better than the old toy, there would be no reason for those with lots of money to care about buying. As long as people in the high end market keep buying and have reasons to keep buying (quality gradually getting better and standards getting higher; incentive to see and buy "the new shiny thing") then the companies have nothing to worry about since customers are kept happy.

Some releases seem more 'safe' than others so perhaps this factors into it too? If you make a a risky toy of a mech that was not really appealing to the general fan of the show due to limited exposure or whatever, there is more reason to charge more for it because of the danger of having only a few hardcore fans of that toy to sell to which is why only the hero valks seem to get done.

The guys that want that stuff made into toy form should just accept that they are a small group and eat the cost if they want to see future stuff otherwise the risk would be too great and you will only see popular mechs. (I suppose fans of macross work at these companies so this helps a little)

I think preordering also helps: the company guages your interest in something based on how many can't wait to give their money earlier than necessary. Higher numbers might mean cheaper price since they can say whether enough people desire to see the toy created over something else. Maybe the fanatic is all these companies care to sell to anyway? I can't understand bandai's reason of making things hard to get unless they figure only the high end collector is all that matters and everyone else should be ignored. (the web exclusive BS is annoying - you would think that would only hurt them?)

Edited February 20, 2012 by 1/1 LowViz Lurker

[Omegablue]

To me the cost should not matter so long as the overall quality steadily increases If you plonk down $300 and are very satisfied with the toy, vs paying less but being angry about them falling apart or not liking the toy in general you are still better off paying more while being happy.

Agreed. But for alot of us that are stuck with expensive shipping, that figure ends up being $500, and that's when on the collector's shelf leaves a monkey on the back.

Edited February 21, 2012 by Omegablue

[Roy Focker]

Don't forget the rising cost of shipping too.

[treatment]

it's all about the sucky exchange rate.