jonogunn wrote: ↑December 12th, 2022, 10:13 pm I wonder where it ships from exactly. I assume americas will get theirs first. I’m in the pacific end of Canada so i I’m guessing we wouldn’t get it as fast
They generally ship Haslabs from Chino, California near LA. Sometimes shipments also come from Elmwood, Illinois but it's only a portion of the shipments and it doesn't seem to have anything to do with the final destination.
Since I imagine there are first time Haslab backers here, I'll offer up the following.
It will almost certainly come FedEx. Hasbro hasn't used anything else to the best of my knowledge since Hasbro Toy Shop was replaced with Hasbro Pulse several years back. It especially makes sense on a large package like this. It will likely be close to a 3 foot cube. It will likely weigh over 30 pounds. The Postal Service would charge an arm and a leg for something like this, even a big client like Hasbro.
If you intend to resell or gift this, budget $150 for shipping.
When this arrives, there will be a signature required to deliver the package. Standard policy on all Haslabs.
It may be smart to test it out. Sometimes there are defects on these things. The Haslab Sentinel had weak knees. Hasbro didn't offer any support to people who complained. It was a fixable issue by prying open a panel and using a screwdriver to tighten screws that secured knee joints. Not everyone was comfortable doing that. If there's something actually missing, they may have a limited stock of extras for a replacement. Out of 30,000 Galactuses, there were some QC issues. The most common was that joints on the extra included figures and one of their bases were too tight. Heat will fix that temporarily. Some people broke theirs when posing the figures. I am not aware of anyone who successfully got a replacement. The main Galactus figure was quite good. I have only heard of one QC issue. One person got one where the electronics in the head did not function. Hasbro sent him a replacement head.
These packages come double boxed. I have seen a couple with minor imperfections/dents to the inner box, even so. The contents are always quite secure.
Essentially, if there is something easily fixed, it's on you to fix it. If there is something easily broken, you take the risk of breaking it; there's no sin in watching somebody else's YouTube review to watch out for problem areas. If there is a missing piece or mechanical/electronic defect, Hasbro should take care of you.
There will be no second run.
Recently, a shipment of Haslab Transformers headed to Taiwan were damaged beyond salvage in a storm. Hasbro fully refunded everyone in all of Taiwan who backed that campaign, cancelled their orders, and sent them all a $60 Pulse Exclusive Transformers set as a consolation.
This is truly a special, rare piece.
If any of what I just said makes you uncomfortable, I'd highly, highly recommend keeping it in the box and selling it.
There is no guide to when or if you'll turn a profit selling this. Unicron and the Star Wars Sail Barge now sell for enough to make a $1000 profit on eBay. People selling Galactus are taking a $50 loss over what they paid, when you factor in fees and shipping. People selling Transformers Victory Saber are making around a $90 profit. On a large item, you'll almost always be better off selling locally or selling the smaller items piecemeal like the Minipufts and Egon's Journal. Don't be shocked if you barely break even or lose money. In general, crowdfunding resales are moving that direction. Be gracious if you end up making a thousand dollars per pack and don't brag too much about it. Not only will some people get nasty but more importantly you may give people the wrong impression that reselling crowdfunded items is easy money and those people may go out and spend money they don't have and lose money.
30 years from now, maybe all of this stuff will be priceless. For right now, the general trajectory of crowdfunding projects is that they sell for a modest profit or a modest loss. There were too many of us backing too many of these things, in general. And buyers are currently tight with money. That might all change when tax refunds come in and the new year's inflation adjusted Social Security payments start. Eventually, people will be looser with money. But right now probably isn't the best time to sell.
But if you regret buying it or are scared of breaking it, stick it in storage somewhere. Don't open it. And even then maybe watch a review first because there are hard limits on anybody's ability to replace this.
Just a bunch of holiday advice to anybody new to Haslabs.