Reviews & Tips for ordering TFs from Online Retailers?

[Tech Spec]

Originally Posted by dark_rage

Ok, just another question, BBTS's shipping is USPS ground shippping or USPS express, so what courier would I expect at my door if I ordered from either of them? A Canada Post or UPS delivery man?

It should be Canada Post who delivers to your door.

BBTS has a 25% off sale right now which is definately worth checking out.

[jourdo]

This may or may not be the appropriate place for this, but does anyone know what ever happened to GreenPigToys? I used to use them, and them bang they were gone.

[ChrisW]

I ordered MP Megatron from Robot Kingdom. Shipping was expensive but once it shipped (which took a week or two) it arrived in about 3 days. Excellent condition too, and no customs fees. I'm considering a second order with them once they get their current problems sorted out.

I took advantage of Digital Toys' Binaltech sale and got BT Swindle for $25. I got Classics Ramjet & Cliffjumper at the same time. Shipping was reasonably priced but took a while - 3+ weeks. I also got no shipping notification eMail from them. They still have cheap Binaltechs, so I may get a few more from them.

Kool Toyz has expensive prices for items, but cheap and fast shipping. I got Classics Prime, megatron, Starscream, and Rodimus from them and while I paid extra for the figures, shipping took less than a week.

ActionHQ looks expensive; BBTS also seems a bit expensive, though their prices are getting better. I quite like the Pile Of Loot concept and am considering placing an order from them in the near future.
I'm also thinking about getting MP-01 from TFSource, though I might get DVD Prime from TRU instead now that he's on sale.

[kidkid]

Originally Posted by ChrisW

I ordered MP Megatron from Robot Kingdom. Shipping was expensive but once it shipped (which took a week or two) it arrived in about 3 days. Excellent condition too, and no customs fees. I'm considering a second order with them once they get their current problems sorted out.

Hey, ChrisW. What is the website for Robot Kingdom?

[Super_Megatron]

Originally Posted by kidkid

Hey, ChrisW. What is the website for Robot Kingdom?

They just went out of business.

[ChrisW]

Originally Posted by Super_Megatron

They just went out of business.

Permanently?

Their webside indicates a service interruption but I was assuming it was only temporary.

For those who want to see for themselves:

http://www.robotkingdom.com

[Shepp]

i've ordered stuff from kooltoyz, bigbadtoystore, and action h-q.

kooltoyz is great to deal with. i've never had a bad exprience with them.

bigbadtoystore lets me decide when stuff is shipped, a really nice feature


as for action-hq, i've ordered twice from there. both times for a robotmasters figure. expensive shipping, and i never received the items. ever. when i asked, they said a certain percentage of their shipments tend to go missing while en-route. usually before they leave the country. though i'll look through their listings from time to time, i shall never order from them again.

now as for shipping, i avoid UPS like the plague. not because of brokerage fees or anything, but i've yet to receive an intact package through them. i've actually refused several packages because of the condition they were in. they looked like they had been run over or through a trash compactor.

USPS and Canada Post i've had the most luck with. interestingly enough so far i've only had to pay duty on boxes they've opened and inspected. though in those cases i've had to pay duty on full retail price, regardless of how much i paid for the items (unless i paid more, then they gouged me for that). and i've only had one MISB item ever opened by customs (i suspect that if it had gone by courier it would have been opened as well).

as for purolator and fedex, i havent really received much through them to get an opinion. but i'd rather go with USPS and Canada Post

[Dark Rage]

Originally Posted by Shepp

USPS and Canada Post i've had the most luck with. interestingly enough so far i've only had to pay duty on boxes they've opened and inspected. though in those cases i've had to pay duty on full retail price, regardless of how much i paid for the items (unless i paid more, then they gouged me for that). and i've only had one MISB item ever opened by customs (i suspect that if it had gone by courier it would have been opened as well).

as for purolator and fedex, i havent really received much through them to get an opinion. but i'd rather go with USPS and Canada Post

Shepp, do you know how to actually calculate how much in duty fees one can expect to pay from packages from either Japan or the US?

I'm kinda worried that I'll have to pay for a lot more than retail by ordering on the net.

[kidkid]

Originally Posted by dark_rage

Shepp, do you know how to actually calculate how much in duty fees one can expect to pay from packages from either Japan or the US?

I'm kinda worried that I'll have to pay for a lot more than retail by ordering on the net.

Not trying to scare u. I can tell u....they can charge fees that u can never imagine...it is all about luck...i haf once got something shipped over from Asia...The duty is more than the item itself...crazy...isn't it? Oh well....u can't really complain either...

[chaingunsofdoom]

Originally Posted by dark_rage

Shepp, do you know how to actually calculate how much in duty fees one can expect to pay from packages from either Japan or the US?

Thanks to NAFTA there's no duty from toys from the US. They'll convert the US value to Cdn. using the daily bank rate, slap on GST/PST and add Canada Post's $5 fee. Anything near $20 USD should not be tagged.

If you think they screwed you on any charges, send them back a letter and the tiny Customs form, explain their error and you should get a cheque a few weeks later. Don't forget to charge them for the stamp you used to mail it to them because it was their error.