Bandai DX VF-31

[kajnrig]

7 minutes ago, SpaceCowboy said:

On the one hand, I might be done with NY.  On the other, I think this is shitty Bandai.

Bit of column A, bit of column B, methinks. A store that normally places a high priority on customer service and communication suddenly doesn't, and a store that has notoriously bad customer service and communication lives up to its reputation.

CnP'ing my MK reply as it's the last post of the last page:

Anyway, heard back from MK. The gist of it is:

- If Bandai decides to do anything, MK can't talk about it before Bandai does. (Understandable.)
- If Bandai reproduces this toy, MK will offer it for sale.
- If MK offers it for sale, they will give priority to... me, at least, and presumably all other canceled preorder customers as well, as well as offer a (nonspecific) discount on price plus shipping. (Dunno if this will hold true, I wasn't and won't be expecting it to hold true, but I'm certainly not dissuaded from giving them another go either way.)

[jenius]

If they do store credit it will hopefully be in yen... I'll apply it to my purchase and buy exclusives elsewhere going forward.

[Charles_Xavier]

After this fiasco, i am going with Anime Export for TWEs. At least they have fulfilled all the POs they taken for the 31A if I am not wrong.

I rather pay a bit more than go through this crap.

[funkymonkeyjavajunky]

My two cents...no, I will not cancel my order (NY already has my money). Yes, I will wait a bit longer. I have no idea what the hold up is, but I am pretty sure that NY will--eventually-- fill my order, or refund me my money. The fact that they ask for payment up front (back in October), and it's now past the release date listed on their site, with no follow up email, is very bad customer service. There are only so many online retailers that sell these toys, so cutting one out of the short list is a tough call.

Yes, a lot of us are seriously pi**ed.

Edited April 5, 2018 by funkymonkeyjavajunky

[Kinzoku VF]

1 hour ago, MacrossJunkie said:

Edit: okay wow... I just went back and read through the last couple pages. I guess NY has been really dropping the ball here

 

Unlike some other retailers though, looks like NY are still waiting for some stock to trickle in, like 1 or 2 maybe slightly more, every 3 days...They didn't just remove the product page as if it had never existed. 

The few who received their NY orders had been placed around the 6th/7th October. Maybe they will at least manage to honor and ship all October preorders however long that takes.

Seems obvious by now they won't be able to fulfill all orders (if any ! *gulp* ). Hopefully the ones sent will be shipped in chronological order, and limited to 1 instead of 3 or 5 (whatever the amount might be) for multiples orders and dupes refunded. Far from a great outcome, but 'fair' considering the situation. Better 1 than nothing right?

There are at least 2 issues at work here: extremely slow delivery from TWE for web stores. Pretty sure they prioritised orders they knew were from 'genuine' customers rather that fake businesses TWE accounts. For the other shipments (the ones that obviously looked like they were from stores), no one truly knows the extent of the pbs. QC issues at the factories? Batches that have yet to be finished or sent? Slow Shipping from HK to Japan? A container full of DX lost at sea? Take your pick.  

Then, that PO window that was left opened far too long for a TWE (it was sold out everywhere else by the end of October/early November yet NY were still taking orders...should've been a red flag. Heck, even their last HMR Ostrich PO didn't stay opened longer than a day!?... ). Not sure how long Mycombini etc had theirs opened for, but those shops got greedy and took in way more orders than they knew they'd be able to secure.

On a sarcastic note....the more people cancel and request refunds, the more chances to eventually secure one! Come on everyone, mass cancellation needed for all Kairos paid for before the 10th October .....Go bananas \/.

 

 

 

[spacemanoeuvres]

Still no word here either. Will definitely source web exclusives somewhere else next time.

Kicking myself for putting all of my eggs in one basket and I cant express how disappointed (i.e filled with murderous rage) I will be if NY don’t come through in the end. 

[Kanedas Bike]

38 minutes ago, kajnrig said:

As far as I'm aware, none of us here at MWF who ordered from them got theirs. If you spoke to others and they didn't get theirs, either, that raises some questions...

Some (I want to say a slim majority?) CDJ customers got theirs, but like NY and MK and presumably others, some customers didn't.

---

Anyway, heard back from MK. The gist of it is:

- If Bandai decides to do anything, MK can't talk about it before Bandai does. (Understandable.)
- If Bandai reproduces this toy, MK will offer it for sale.
- If MK offers it for sale, they will give priority to... me, at least, and presumably all other canceled preorder customers as well, as well as offer a (nonspecific) discount on price plus shipping. (Dunno if this will hold true, I wasn't and won't be expecting it to hold true, but I'm certainly not dissuaded from giving them another go either way.)

Appreciate the update kajnrig.

I'm watching MyKombini just to see if they re-list the 31a at a higher price, if I get really bored then I might be inclined to start stalking YJA to see if I can catch them there, but that's tinfoil hat level of conspiracy theory. I give them credit for giving me my money back, I'll give them my repeat business if there is a re-release and they list it without significantly increasing the price.

I'm watching N-Y to see if they are able to secure enough stock and if not how they handle the monies that people have already paid. As much as I tend to dislike N-Y I have to give them credit as they've historically been pretty solid with TWE. Slow shipping times and our perception of their customer service are different issues.

And Bandai...well, they've never really had much love for Macross (fans). I've been honestly surprised with how much they've invested since Macross Frontier, from DX Chogokin to HiMR.

Anyway, as one fan to many others I just hope this cluster gets worked out in a favorable way.

-b.

[Kanedas Bike]

Would also add that the lack of 31A's showing up at Mandarake also speaks to the scarcity of this release.

Not sure about YJA because I don't frequent those auctions at all...

-b.

[spacemanoeuvres]

Read Em and weep the last few 31a’s sold for 46000 JY. 

That’s way too rich for my blood. If NY doesn’t come through then I’m done with this valk. 

[Slave IV]

6 hours ago, jrhudson311 said:

I like hearing about people ccancelling so when they do get there stock in I might be able to get another that was rage cancelled by someone else.

Really? Not I. Especially after I've already offered them more money not to cancel their orders and give to me instead. It's highly likely that any cancelled orders will not be listed at original preorder price so all they are doing is helping NY instead of a fellow collector.

 

[spacemanoeuvres]

1 minute ago, Slave IV said:

Really? Not I. Especially after I've already offered them more money not to cancel their orders and give to me instead. It's highly likely that any cancelled orders will not be listed at original preorder price so all they are doing is helping NY instead of a fellow collector.

 

Yeah I was surprised you didn’t snag someone’s P.O. 

The forex has tanked since October as well so people getting refunded in USD are only getting back a little more than 90% of what they paid. 

Edited April 5, 2018 by spacemanoeuvres

[Chronocidal]

I'm just holding onto mine until NY says one way or another what's going on.

If they only offer store credit, I figure that'll at least cover all of the armor and super pack orders for the next few years.  

[Kinzoku VF]

3 minutes ago, Slave IV said:

Really? Not I. Especially after I've already offered them more money not to cancel their orders and give to me instead. It's highly likely that any cancelled orders will not be listed at original preorder price so all they are doing is helping NY instead of a fellow collector.

 

Must admit, it was tempting, but I'd end up banging my head on a wall if NY do come through with the order....Plus it looks so sweet...and 'realistically' themed DXs ( is that even a sentence) are few and far between to give that one a miss....

[SpaceCowboy]

I do place this at the feet of Bandai though, because they have a history of making very small quantities of their DX toys in the past, and in this case, it isn't just NY that is having trouble, but multiple retailers. 

Honestly, I wish Bandai would just stop making the DX line if they are going to support it this poorly.

[hal9000]

I would like to offer some hope to those that have none.  My 31a from Nippon arrived this morning and is currently making my work day brighter. So have some hope, I ordered and payed back on Oct 6th and I have mine.  Patents may win out.  

[Slave IV]

Yeah, I think the smart move is to just wait and see without stirring up any s#!+ and just let the stores do their thing. 

I wouldn't worry about PayPal unless you actually used PayPal funds to pay (highly NOT reccommended). As long as you used a credit card or bank funds through PayPal, your card issuer/bank should have you covered if anything goes wrong. 

Of course, anyone who is so mad at a company that is helping us get toys we are not supposed to get that they want to swear off that company, I'm here to help you do that as painlessly as possible. 

[Kinzoku VF]

31 minutes ago, SpaceCowboy said:

Honestly, I wish Bandai would just stop making the DX line if they are going to support it this poorly.

Thing is with a company like Bandai the internal structure is far from straightforward. They have hundreds of teams working on different projects all at once, thousands of different franchises. It's not just the Macross line that is affected. Having to budget and time everything so that all other releases can also keep up their dates must be insane. If you look at the amount of releases they have every month from different lines across the board, there's bound to be hiccups.

Come on Bandai, an NY, FFS just burp us out that Kairos!! 

[seti88]

56 minutes ago, spacemanoeuvres said:

Read Em and weep the last few 31a’s sold for 46000 JY. 

That’s way too rich for my blood. If NY doesn’t come through then I’m done with this valk. 

As long as bandai doesn't pull an arcadia and lists the next 31a at that price, doesn't matter what the after market prices it.
Demand and Supply...

[Shukenzero]

Only a few people have the 31A locally but the prices are going up. It's around $345 at the moment. There's a little stock still available. 

[Kanedas Bike]

1 hour ago, spacemanoeuvres said:

Read Em and weep the last few 31a’s sold for 46000 JY. 

That’s way too rich for my blood. If NY doesn’t come through then I’m done with this valk. 

Yikes!

 

23 minutes ago, Slave IV said:

Yeah, I think the smart move is to just wait and see without stirring up any s#!+ and just let the stores do their thing. 

I wouldn't worry about PayPal unless you actually used PayPal funds to pay (highly NOT reccommended). As long as you used a credit card or bank funds through PayPal, your card issuer/bank should have you covered if anything goes wrong. 

Of course, anyone who is so mad at a company that is helping us get toys we are not supposed to get that they want to swear off that company, I'm here to help you do that as painlessly as possible. 

Hey, it's just the one store that's having "still" having issues - again the amount of and "loudness" of the complaints is just a byproduct of how many people on the boards use N-Y. That statement isn't meant to say the complaints are justified or not. Personally I struggle with which side I fall on, but I never had an order for the 31a with N-Y. Be patient or not to be patient. The only thing that makes me feel strongly is if it comes that N-Y cannot secure stock they should issue refunds, not store credit - but that is my personal preference. 

The only other store that's been discussed re: not having stock is MyKombini and they just gave us our money back (in YEN), I never contacted them about my order. Order placed. Deposit paid. Balance Requested - paid within 6 minutes.

Anime-Export by all accounts came through with all orders as did Loopaza with the orders that opened up a few weeks ago, they were just ridiculously slow with shipping some orders. I'm assuming Big-in-Japan did as well, I don't recall reading any complaints about them and the 31a.

-b.

[kajnrig]

36 minutes ago, Shukenzero said:

Only a few people have the 31A locally but the prices are going up. It's around $345 at the moment. There's a little stock still available. 

Do you live in Japan? Is this indicative that the supply shortage is affecting locals as well, not just third party sellers?

[Shukenzero]

1 minute ago, kajnrig said:

Do you live in Japan? Is this indicative that the supply shortage is affecting locals as well, not just third party sellers?

I'm in Hong Kong. I can tell you no import tax etc is heaven compared to London. I can buy stuff from the US and Japan without the hassle of that £60 ask from delivery men.

Anyways, the supply shortage is being felt here too. The Kairos shot up in price immediately, and I haven't seen many units in shops. Mirage's unit was fairly abundant, for reference. A few months back, when the shop I go to opened up the preorders, I preordered. They managed to fulfil their deliveries, as did everyone else within the few days it started shipping from Japan. So I guess because of the proximity of the HK dealers with their Japanese counterparts, they got the first batches. After them, if the product is too hot, you're outta luck. I did want another Kairos but the price is too high right now, but it's probably a case of wait and pay more later.

[Charles_Xavier]

http://tamashii.jp/importance/127?wovn=en

Bandai issued an apology for the delivery delay for their March items. We don't see the 31A there so it seems there is no delay at all for the 31A to begin with, or there is SOME delay but because they could still deliver by 31 March, hence it's not considered a delay.

In short, if Bandai could not produce enough or is late in delivering, they will issue official statements. Hence for what MK and NY been telling us, I take it with a pinch of salt.

And..... for those of you who want a spare 31J Kai or getting your first piece, keep your eyes peeled from 13 April onwards cos that's the release date.

http://p-bandai.jp/item/item-1000120437/?_ga=2.154509681.810567086.1522948050-1976694818.1522948050

[funkymonkeyjavajunky]

Umm...offering store credit instead of refunding your payment adds salt to the wound. If a business can't deliver on an item, why the hell would I want to risk a repeat? 

[Slave IV]

52 minutes ago, Kanedas Bike said:

Yikes!

 

Hey, it's just the one store that's having "still" having issues - again the amount of and "loudness" of the complaints is just a byproduct of how many people on the boards use N-Y. That statement isn't meant to say the complaints are justified or not. Personally I struggle with which side I fall on, but I never had an order for the 31a with N-Y. Be patient or not to be patient. The only thing that makes me feel strongly is if it comes that N-Y cannot secure stock they should issue refunds, not store credit - but that is my personal preference. 

The only other store that's been discussed re: not having stock is MyKombini and they just gave us our money back (in YEN), I never contacted them about my order. Order placed. Deposit paid. Balance Requested - paid within 6 minutes.

Anime-Export by all accounts came through with all orders as did Loopaza with the orders that opened up a few weeks ago, they were just ridiculously slow with shipping some orders. I'm assuming Big-in-Japan did as well, I don't recall reading any complaints about them and the 31a.

-b.

Totally agree that any store that cannot deliver should offer refunds. Thing is, if people are contacting them with threats of paypal disputs, it's human nature to not want to make someone's life easier when they are threatening and making your life harder. I'm pretty sure NY did already give some refunds and if they can't deliver, they will refund anyone who's left them alone. Anyways, I have no stake in this unless someone wants to take up my offer. Just don't get why people get so worked up over toys. Enjoy it and don't make things more difficult than they need to be is all I'm trying to say.

[Ipsquitch]

It sucks that this topic is my first trip into the MW forums (Hi everyone!), but for those who are looking for when when others ordered their 31a from NY to get an idea of when they may get theirs shipped... I placed mine on Oct. 6th, about 6 hours after the pre-order opened, and I still waiting. I did try their live chat feature, but I'm pretty sure that it's either a bot driven system or they use an off-site help desk company, so I'm guessing the chance of getting a "non-canned" response is close to nil.

[ridgebacks]

5 hours ago, MacrossJunkie said:

I did. However, Nippon Yassan still has made no movement with this. Not even a processing order status. Is this the same for everyone else that ordered from them?

I'll get back into weathering when I get a new airbrush. The one I was using is having airflow issues and I haven't been able to get proper support with regards to fixing it.

 

Edit: okay wow... I just went back and read through the last couple pages. I guess NY has been really dropping the ball here....

Yup. No update whatsoever other than "paymant-ok".

 

 

[WaferMouse]

Not sure how retail law acts on the international scale, but in the UK at least a retailer has a responsibility to put the customer back in the position that they started in on a broken contract ie. providing a refund in the same manner as they received the funds.

If they've got a lot of POs that will fail it's likely that first-line handlers have been told to offer only credit, but if you dig your heels in you may get a cash refund. Bear in mind that the people that read your emails probably have nothing to do with the cause of the issue, so be as kind as you can.

Again, all the above is just based on my professional experience in the UK, so not sure how relevant it is globally. Caveat is very emptor.

Edited April 5, 2018 by WaferMouse

[Kanedas Bike]

24 minutes ago, Slave IV said:

Totally agree that any store that cannot deliver should offer refunds. Thing is, if people are contacting them with threats of paypal disputs, it's human nature to not want to make someone's life easier when they are threatening and making your life harder. I'm pretty sure NY did already give some refunds and if they can't deliver, they will refund anyone who's left them alone. Anyways, I have no stake in this unless someone wants to take up my offer. Just don't get why people get so worked up over toys. Enjoy it and don't make things more difficult than they need to be is all I'm trying to say.

You're making a good point, and you're not wrong that we (collectors/this community/people impacted) should put this into perspective, it is literally just a toy. It the human nature part that you referenced that kicks in and we want our toy, because we're big kids and at the end of the day we want what we want and feel the sting of disappointment. And the added sting that we may have to pay more if we want said toy, or that we may never get it at all.

But again, you're not wrong - perspective is key, it's just hard to come to that moment of zen when you're in the midst of that situation. 

-b.

[Kinzoku VF]

10 minutes ago, Slave IV said:

Enjoy it and don't make things more difficult than they need to be is all I'm trying to say

Kinda hard considering how much those companies charge for their products nowadays. If I was loaded with money and could afford to get triples of everything I don't think I'd care one bit, nor would I make a huge deal about it. I'd just pay $500 or whatever it's current value and problem solved. Unfortunately that's not my case....I'm already finding hard enough being able to afford those ridiculous prices as it is, don't need the additional stress not knowing when or if I'll even get what I've paid for.

[Slave IV]

2 minutes ago, Kanedas Bike said:

You're making a good point, and you're not wrong that we (collectors/this community/people impacted) should put this into perspective, it is literally just a toy. It the human nature part that you referenced that kicks in and we want our toy, because we're big kids and at the end of the day we want what we want and feel the sting of disappointment. And the added sting that we may have to pay more if we want said toy, or that we may never get it at all.

But again, you're not wrong - perspective is key, it's just hard to come to that moment of zen when you're in the midst of that situation. 

-b.

I get it. I like and want my toys too. But I also realize there is always a shinier new toy to fulfill my needs. Zen is actually part of my name so I guess that's something.

1 minute ago, Kinzoku VF said:

Kinda hard considering how much those companies charge for their products nowadays. If I was loaded with money and could afford to get triples of everything I don't think I'd care one bit, nor would I make a huge deal about it. I'd just pay $500 or whatever it's current value and problem solved. Unfortunately that's not my case....I'm already finding hard enough being able to afford those ridiculous prices as it is, don't need the additional stress not knowing when or if I'll even get what I've paid for.

Yep...To me, everything in the toy collector world is way overpriced these days. Just a few years ago, spending over $100 on a single toy was a huge deal to me and I would only consider it if it was something extremely special to me. Now, any POS figure costs more than $100 and we buy them like candy. Even a $20 toy seems to be worth only $5 when you compare it to what we used to get and the other stuff that's available today. So you know what? I suck it up and recognize that I am a collector...it is in my blood and something that I enjoy. I continue to buy overpriced toys because I enjoy it. There is absolutely no bad stress involved (except the one time I know my money was stolen, and even then, it was just a "I learned my lesson" ordeal). I get a new toy...great! I miss out...oh well, too bad for now but maybe I can still get one somewhere else or just move on. Either way, it's all part of the excitement of being a collector. I think a lot of the stress people have is unnecessarily created by themselves. 

[Sanity is Optional]

NY seems to be busy on their end, after almost 24hours they still haven't finished processing a credit card payment for the VF-1A.

Which, honestly, is an encouraging sign. It means there's something for them to be busy with.

[505thAirborne]

Good to see that the sellers on Ebay are keeping it classy with the DX VF-31A.  

https://www.ebay.com/itm/DX-Chogokin-Macross-Delta-VF-31A-KAIROS-General-Machine-Action-Figure-BANDAI-NEW/132569217637?_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D2%26asc%3D44039%26meid%3D5816c039a4c049e3b5d136d52ea31913%26pid%3D100011%26rk%3D6%26rkt%3D6%26sd%3D372238356933%26itm%3D132569217637&_trksid=p2047675.c100011.m1850

[Shukenzero]

I'm wondering what happened on the Bandai side of things. All the preorders in HK were fulfilled via third parties obviously, but how come even companies in Japan had trouble sourcing them?

[rdrunner]

3 minutes ago, 505thAirborne said:

Good to see that the sellers on Ebay are keeping it classy with the DX VF-31A.  

https://www.ebay.com/itm/DX-Chogokin-Macross-Delta-VF-31A-KAIROS-General-Machine-Action-Figure-BANDAI-NEW/132569217637?_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D2%26asc%3D44039%26meid%3D5816c039a4c049e3b5d136d52ea31913%26pid%3D100011%26rk%3D6%26rkt%3D6%26sd%3D372238356933%26itm%3D132569217637&_trksid=p2047675.c100011.m1850

I was expecting at least $700 before I clicked in... but it makes you wonder if they will ever close a transaction at these prices?