How early do the waves show up....

... in the Asian ebay seller stores?

For each other wave released, how early did the come up?

A month? Two months? A week? Two weeks?

I'm curious because I just can't wait for Wave 3 and I wan't them ASAP! Everyday I search ebay to see if any came out.

I know POC Spirit came out about 2 months early and was selling for like 20$ shipped...

Anyone has an idea on average?

The first stuff that shows up I think comes from the factory workers/china. I would wait since I don't like buying stuff from websites I can't read. But others do. The stuff will show up eventually West coast first then it moved east.

dont be surprised if you don't see "presales"
from the China sellers for some of the impending bits.

Originally Posted by Gyre-Viper

dont be surprised if you don't see "presales"
from the China sellers for some of the impending bits.

Boo! I want them now! ; )
I'm like a kid before Christmas. IMO this is the best wave ever. That SE, Duke and Shock trooper are some of the best figures ever!!!

Originally Posted by Gyre-Viper

dont be surprised if you don't see "presales"
from the China sellers for some of the impending bits.

Why?

Originally Posted by lardman

Why?

Hasbro has rumored-ly put a lock down on china leaks, in the past, with previous lines. Where you'll get a bunch of stuff coming forth through the grey market and then... ...nothing. I'm not saying that's what happened as I have no proof... but I'm not the only one who has speculated that with POC doing so well at retail (well, wave 1 at least)
...that Hasbro might be protecting their investment more so than not considering the popularity of waves "3" and "4."

also if the waves are coming early like the previous waves... the china sellers might have simply missed the boat (pun intended). i have some leads on some stuff but by the time I'd get them... they might be in stores and I'm not paying puffy prices for something that could end up at retail by the end of the year, as has been speculated on the boards since wave 1 showed up early. I was offered a finished black hiss and declined because that means they're probably gonna show up sooner than not. the only reason I support the grey market is for review purposes and canceled items. otherwise I'd much rather actually support the line at retail. especially POC.

Another thing to remember is... if the first two waves coming early have hindered China seller sales... I mean who is really gonna buy a Recondo at their prices and wait 4 weeks when you can order them from someone in your state on ebay.... the China sellers might simply be apprehensive. there were carded Jungle-Vipers on ebay a couple months before they hit retail for like $24 and no one bought em. And it's not like anyone knew wave 2 was going to hit pre-October.

I mean the black hiss viperkingdom had up had to be relisted because no one wanted to pay $100 for it. the china sellers also had the AWE and Ice Cutter up about a month before they hit retail and no one seemed to notice. it never got front paged... they were relisted as well a few times, I believe. in fact they were on taobao before that.

Another thing to keep in mind is the China sellers also sell Star Wars etc.
if that's where the money is... that's what they're going to concentrate on.

on a related note... there have been some pretty rare things that have shown up through the china sellers lately that if no one bids on them but one person... they'll relist it for a longer auction period. I think the shill bidding is finally working against them for the most part.

IF waves 3 and 4 start showing up through China in the next couple of weeks... while I'd be tempted to jump on them ... I'd be just as apprehensive considering POC's knack for showing up unexpectedly at retail.

Originally Posted by Gyre-Viper

Hasbro has rumored-ly put a lock down on china leaks, in the past, with previous lines. Where you'll get a bunch of stuff coming forth through the grey market and then... ...nothing. I'm not saying that's what happened as I have no proof... but I'm not the only one who has speculated that with POC doing so well at retail (well, wave 1 at least)
...that Hasbro might be protecting their investment more so than not considering the popularity of waves "3" and "4."

also if the waves are coming early like the previous waves... the china sellers might have simply missed the boat (pun intended). i have some leads on some stuff but by the time I'd get them... they might be in stores and I'm not paying puffy prices for something that could end up at retail by the end of the year, as has been speculated on the boards since wave 1 showed up early. I was offered a finished black hiss and declined because that means they're probably gonna show up sooner than not. the only reason I support the grey market is for review purposes and canceled items. otherwise I'd much rather actually support the line at retail. especially POC.

Another thing to remember is... if the first two waves coming early have hindered China seller sales... I mean who is really gonna buy a Recondo at their prices and wait 4 weeks when you can order them from someone in your state on ebay.... the China sellers might simply be apprehensive. there were carded Jungle-Vipers on ebay a couple months before they hit retail for like $24 and no one bought em. And it's not like anyone knew wave 2 was going to hit pre-October.

I mean the black hiss viperkingdom had up had to be relisted because no one wanted to pay $100 for it. the china sellers also had the AWE and Ice Cutter up about a month before they hit retail and no one seemed to notice. it never got front paged... they were relisted as well a few times, I believe. in fact they were on taobao before that.

Another thing to keep in mind is the China sellers also sell Star Wars etc.
if that's where the money is... that's what they're going to concentrate on.

on a related note... there have been some pretty rare things that have shown up through the china sellers lately that if no one bids on them but one person... they'll relist it for a longer auction period. I think the shill bidding is finally working against them for the most part.

IF waves 3 and 4 start showing up through China in the next couple of weeks... while I'd be tempted to jump on them ... I'd be just as apprehensive considering POC's knack for showing up unexpectedly at retail.

Interesting...Well If they do come out early, i'll probably just get a Shock trooper cause that's gonna be the next impossible find and especially since I live in Canada, they might come out even later...anyways, this wave is the most anticaped wave for me. Except Lowlight next year, but the rest of that wave doesnt interest me...aw well I guess i'll have to wait...

Thanks for that summary Gary. I always enjoy you and Roshan's insights into the gray market.

I have found it a fascinating area to watch (and to participate in, on occasion) these past couple of years.

I assumed that it would only be a matter of time before Hasbro interdicted in some fashion on the gray market.

Did you ever find out anything about why VK went down around the time of the SGT. SLAUGHTER sales prior to SDCC?

Any new insight into the orange Volcano Viper?

Originally Posted by Mermaniel

If they do come out early, i'll probably just get a Shock trooper cause that's gonna be the next impossible find

He won't be though--he's packed 3 to a case. Assuming that wave hits in any kind of respectable numbers (and it probably should, seeing as it will be timed right around or just after the huge holiday shopping season), we should all be fine.

Originally Posted by TheRealDubya

He won't be though--he's packed 3 to a case. Assuming that wave hits in any kind of respectable numbers (and it probably should, seeing as it will be timed right around or just after the huge holiday shopping season), we should all be fine.

Awesome, well I might just have to find an SE. Its the best one ever made IMO.