D-Style Ingram AV-98 2

Ok, so I got a bit cocky because I successfully painted a couple of Transformers. I decided to actually paint this D-Style kit. Its the 3rd one Ive done, The previous two I did not paint, however I tried my luck. Luck was nowhere to be found. First mistake was I decided to try a new brand of spray paint. Ive had luck using duplicolor car paint so I obviously switched it up because that makes sense to switch when youve already found what works. So this new paint went on rough because its a base color. It went on shiny but dried rough and flat since it was meant to be wet sanded. So I clear coated it. All it did was makes the roughness shiny. Instead of scrapping the kit or repainting (I had already applied water slide decals- which by the way are necessary if you paint the kit because the kit comes ready to snap together with factory decals and has some paint details out of the box.) Anyways, the end result wasn't too bad. A little rough, but looks nice enough to me. Since these are plastic kits, I stuff any empty spaces with sculpey to give it some weight. If you decide to panel line with a Gundam and decide to clear coat over it, clear coat carefully because the clear may eat into your panel line ink and make the lines look blurry. I may redo this kit in the future properly so that it shines like a new gokin...Maybe.

Ultraman Candy Toy

Once in a while I like to just take random shots of my collection. This little Ultraman is quite intriguing. Its a simple candy toy, but it is just so well done. The quality is good and it has an LED color timer! It cost me 7 bux and it's more bang-for-your-buck than the much more expensive Ultra Act figure which I reviewed here on my blog a while back. And it comes with a piece of gum. Check out my review for this guy on CDX.

Stormtrooper fun

Somehow I always end up pulling my Shogun Stormtrooper off the shelf. Either to check it out or terrorize our dog. This day, I've chosen just to take a quick snapshot outside.

Tankbot- Sankan Oh bootleg

Ok, so here is an interesting one. Its a very nice diecast of Sankan Oh. The only difference is that this one transforms into a tank. Very cool. I love the 80's packaging and artwork. I couldn't get myself to transform him. I dont know if it's a tough toy or a fragile one so until I find out, he stays in his styro bed.

HLJ.com, BBTS or AMIAMI.com?

I've come across a few posts in recent times about people asking who is better/cheaper- HLJ, BBTS or AMIAMI?

I've dealt with both for sometime so I will give a little rundown of what I've come across. I will not write down what I've read about these stores from other people, just my experience.

HLJ.com

Location: Japan
Years dealing with them: About 11 years
Payment details: Paypal, requires payment upfront for preorders, will not hold items during payment processing which may cause items to become out of stock (has not happened to me) will send payment request if Paypal payment agreement not setup when ordering in stock items.
Customer Service: Very Good, emails responded to promptly, any problem I've ever had, they have provided satisfactory resolution. If items are defective, tehy will send defective part if available in their parts bin, or they will get from manufacturer. Some items require returning back to Japan out of your pocket, but they will reimburse your shipping costs.
Preorders: Yes, paid up front with early-bird discount.
Pricing: Not the cheapest company to preorder with. However they have recently been discounting their items below MSRP. They have some pretty awesome sales if you are patient, you will get some incredible deals. I love their sales.
Shipping: Discounts/Free shipping promotions on EMS, SAL shipping is CHEAP and not overly slow to me here in the US. Shipping of products does take a little longer to process than other places but very reliable. They pack using cardboard sheets and shrinkwrap and/or air pillows which help keep shipping costs low. Sturdy boxes and neatly sealed. They do not guarantee mint boxes. I have received only a small amount of crushed boxes over the years, none in recent times.
Negative experience: None
Additional notes: As some of you may know, I have done reviews for HLJ on collectiondx.com. However this does not sway my opinion of their service. I have dealt with them years before I started doing reviews.
Favorite item ordered from them: Wow...tough question...too much to remember
What I would change: Allow preorders without upfront payment. As long as that feature is not abused by trigger happy buyers.



BBTS.com
Location: USA
Payment Details: Paypal/Credit Card
Years dealing with them: About 3 years
Customer Service: Very Good, emails responded to promptly. I had a problem with an item being defective, they promptly sent UPS return label for exchange. Nice to be able to call and talk to someone or ask questions if needed.
Preorders: Yes, can be put into Pile of Loot. What is POL? You can store items in a pile of loot to save on shipping costs or to give time to save up the cash without losing out on the chance to buy something that sells out quick. They will store the items for 6 months. At the end of 6 months, they will charge you and send items out. Credit Card needed for that service. Preorders can be cancelled.
Pricing: Not the cheapest out of the 3 for Japanese items, but fair for the most part considering. Occasional sales.
Shipping: They offer USPS and UPS. Takes a couple of days to ship after payment. Packing is great, the best packing of the 3. Very generous bubble packing. Recently, they started using a new type of bubblewrap that doesn't pop even if you step on it!. Very cool. Boxes are sturdy and neatly taped.
Negative Experience: I ordered a Shogun Golion jumbo. They shipped in a nice big box. However, they threw out the OUTER NUMBERED BOX! So I do not know the number of my very limited Jumbo. They did respond to my problem and stated that they didn't have the boxes anymore. However, they did state that form that point on, they would send the jumbos out with boxes. Your welcome.
Additional notes: They have the option of upgrading to Collector Grade boxes to assure that you get a factory fresh item box. They hand pick your item, wrap it in plastic and carefully pack it for you for $2.00. Not bad, although my non-collector grade items have for the most part come to me in excellent shape. Pile of Loot is an awesome feature! Store items in your loot til youre ready to pay and save on shipping!
Favorite Item ordered from them: Shogun Warriors Golion Jumbo
What I would change: Nothing comes to mind.

AMIAMI.com

Location: Japan
Payment Details: Paypal only. Payment request sent when items ready to ship and after one week of non-payment.
Years dealing with them:  About 2 years
Customer Service: Haven't had the need to contact them for any problem resolution. Emails answered promptly.
Preorders: Yes. Cancellations are not permitted once order is placed or run the risk of ordering privileges being suspended.
Pricing: Best prices of the 3 by a good margin at times
Shipping: You never know shipping costs until you get invoiced. Most people use HLJ shipping estimates to get a rough estimate of what the shipping will cost with Amiami. Keep in mind Amiami tends to use thicker boxes and paper packng material, so estimate may be higher. The fastest of the 3 when using EMS, even faster than BBTS with Priority Shipping! I get packages 2-3 days after payment! Orders packed and shipped within one day of payment. Downside is that EMS is darn expensive. Seems more expensive than HLJ even though rates are the same. Might be because of the weight of the packaging used. They use VERY sturdy high quality cardboard boxes and stuff the hell out of the box with crumpled up paper. Not newspaper, but those long rolls of paper that are perforated. Nice, but heavy. Great if you want your stuff fast and pretty.
Negative Experience: This would be my fault, but I cancelled a good portion of my preorder last year due to some problems and they threatened to suspend me from buying. So I caused the negative experience. However they empathized my situation and helped me out. Keep track of what you preorder!
Additional Notes: None at the moment
Favorite Item ordered from them: SOC Daitarn, SOC Daltanious and Yamato Liger
What I would change: Ability to view preorder page to see what has been preordered. It is VERY easy to click preorder on stuff and then be surprised by a big payment request when you least expect it. The good thing is that you can request a list through email.

I use all 3 for different reasons. HLJ is great for it's sales and non-scary shipping costs. BBTS is great for it's Pile of Loot, quick preorder offerings and collector grade items. Amiami is great for FAST EMS/shipment preparation, packaging quality.

Hope this helps. I am probably forgetting stuff but you can check em out:

hlj.com
bbts.com
amiami.com

Ultraman DX Figure Invaders: Baltan

You guys know I love cheap vinyl figures, so here is another that has been added to my collection. it is the Ultraman DX Figure Invaders: Baltan. It's a Banpresto prize item but I manahed to get my grubby hands on one. It comes in a nice box and when you take the figure out, it is in 2 baggies. The top half and lower half which must be put together. It easily comes together. It's a good deal bigger than your standard Bandai sized vinyl. Baltan is shown here with an Ultraman DX Ultraman figure of the same series.

Box

Baltan

Look at this face!

DX Ultraman fighting DX Baltan

Lilliput and Pink robot tin wind-up

For a little while I caught the tin bug, but not for the huge dollar vintage tin. Instead I wanted to pick up cheap replicas. I managed to buy these two before the bug sorta wore off. The Lilliput I believe is important because it supposedly is the first robot toy ever made. The replica is easy to find and very cheap. The pink robot was bought to keep him company.

Marvel Shogun Warriors comic #1

Yeah, so this is issue number 1 of Shogun Warriors. Absolutely worthless in the comic community, but I hold it dear as it symbolizes a craze that started then and continues now. It was kinda corny the way it was executed but hey, at least they used cool robots. I know what your thinking, "why is it framed?" don't worry the frame cost me a dollar, same as the comic.

Robot & Washing Machine

What can I say? It's a toy of a robot that humps a washing machine. Seriously. Seriously cool. My first purchase was not very successful at humping properly so I exchanged it. This time I left it in the package so I would not be disappointed a second time.

Transformers stuff

Have I ever told you guys that finding any new Generations/RTS toys is darn difficult? Well around here (North Jersey) it is. I only just found Thundercracker and that was an amazing feat in itself since I just about gave up on finding him. But here he is in all his repainted glory.

Package

Jet Mode

Robot Mode

I also managed to find these about 2 months ago but it was the very last I would see of them. I almost didn't buy Bumblebee because I figured he would litter all the pegs in no time. Alas, no, he was never to be seen again. The same goes for WreckGar. I love motorcycles and I love this character so it was only natural I would want to find him, and find him I did. Last time I ever saw him on a peg. And believe me, every time we hit up Babies R Us I hit up TRU or on my way to work and back there are 2 TRUs so I hit them up frequently and never see anything good. Eventually I'll Get around to opening it and showing you guys.

Reveal the Shield Bumblebee

Reveal the Shield Wreck-Gar

While taking these pics, I got the idea to grab my Generations/RTS/Classics figures off my shelf and group them all together for a picture. No reason other than I did it because I can.

I finally managed to grab a Masterpiece Megatron recently. He actually didn't come with that orange cap thingy. I'm a bit ashamed to admit that I have not transformed him..let alone really pose him for that matter. The purple hue is not an issue with the camera, it's my color LED strips that I have in my display case.

Takara Masterpiece Megatron

I also managed to get a Masterpiece Prime. This is that Last Shot or whatever its called..meaning that this release is the last time they use the mold. Although Takara is hard at work on a new MP Prime mold. Smaller but probably cooler.

Takara Masterpiece Optimus Prime Last Shot Edition

Golgo 13 figure

A little known fact: I absolutely LOVE Golgo 13. I don't know what it is about this character but he is just damn awesome. If you have Netflix, you owe it to yourself to check the series out. It was originally a Manga in Japan, but was made into a couple of full length animes and series. Basically, he is a hired gun who always completes his assignment no matter how ridiculously impossible the job may be. He gets it done and done clean. He may get brought in by police but they can never pin anything against him. He is the man and the ladies know this, so be prepared for lots of sex scenes in the show. He's got this guy that modifies his weapons to his specs and whatnot. Just watch it/read it. I'm trying to get the Hot Toys version of Golgo 13 but it's commanding ridiculous prices on eBay so I will have to wait on that. For now, I bought a small 7" clothed figure in fatigues. I haven't taken him out of the box, but it's OK, he is still one mean son of a b.

Brave Gokin 09 - Griffon Type J9 (Flight Unit Version)

Not sure if I showed you guys this yet, but I picked this up used in great condition. Can't say the same for the box and styrofoam that looked like they were run over a few times by a car. This figure is dead sexy, seriously. It's a thing of gokin beauty. Paint is amazing and detail is top-notch. Retail is $14000 but they've been known to be found on clearance for about $60US. If you run across this, BUY IT.

DOTM Voyager Shockwave and Skyhammer

I found these two guys right after they were freshly stocked. I was very glad to have found shockwave because it seems like he is impossible to find locally now. Skyhammer is rare but I have seen him a couple of times. Hopefully your luck is better when looking for Shockwave. Look for future reviews of these guys on collectiondx.com

Retail: $19.99

Shockwave

Skyhammer

Some new cheap bootleg robots- Macres Valkyrie & V Robot Iron Car

I knew I had to pick these two guys up. I had this knockoff valkyrie in different colors as a kid and felt some nostalgia for it. What I love about it is that they renamed it "Macres" which is obviously supposed to look and sound like Macross. It's called a Battroid Valkyrie but instead of Gerwalk mode, they call it a "Giant Moth" mode.

I love Iron Gear and can seem to get enough of these into my collection. Trying to piece together my original plastic Iron Gear. Almost there. These were easily found in Chinatown in the 80's as a kid for about $2. There were so many different robots to be found back then. Now it's cheesy knockoff Power Rangers/Spiderman figures that are found.

Valkyrie Box

Contents

Valkyrie figure

Iron Gear KO

THE ROBOT SPIRITS Doraemon: Nobita and the Steel Troops - Zanda Cross

Here is my new Robot Spirits Zanda Cross figure. It's actaully not too bad for a PVC figure. Has a nice weight to it. Comes with spare antenna and alternate hands. Also comes with a chick figure. Don't know name. Review coming soon.
Retail: 3500 Yen

Box

Zanda Cross

Little chick thingy

My cheap vinyl

Just wanted to show you guys some cheap vinyl I've been collecting recently. Some characters I actually know and some were just either really cheap and/or really cool. Mostly Bandai stuff and from $3-$10.

Soul of Soft Vinyl Kamen Rider The First 1

Masked Rider Kuuga (not vinyl, but cheap wire framed figure)

Ultraman

Jet Jaguar

Masked Rider Den-O (not vinyl, but cheap wire framed figure)

Skyzel

Accel

Robocon

Masked Rider Ryuki (not vinyl, but cheap wire framed figure)

Kamen Rider V3 Soft Vinyl Figure

Legend Rider Kamen Rider Black

Robopecha

Aka Ranger Soft Vinyl Figure

Kikaider 01 Soft Vinyl Figure

Gosei Pink

STAY TUNED FOR MORE!