71012 - Minifigures - Disney: Series 1

[loki221978]

cool just curious

[Curtis]

16 minutes ago, Brian Briggs said:

Maybe it's just me but I consider the concept of blind bags to be ethically a little questionable. You lure people into buying more than they actually intended to buy while accumulating unwanted items. So smooshing in moderation is totally okay as a countermeasure.

Exactly.  This is similar to how I feel about the Marketing industry in general.  At some point you've got to become smarter than the gimmicks in order to thrive.

[The Lurker]

Top tips for smooshing 

1- go to shop

2- buy all minifigures insight

3- ask an employee if there is more in the back, if so buy them too.

4- go home relax and smoosh away.

5- take all the ones you dont want back the next day for a refund.

 

p.s i love the disney minifigures

Edited April 19, 2016 by The Lurker

[Alpinemaps]

When Series 14 hit, I was smooshing at Legoland California one day.  One of the cashiers saw me doing it, brought out a new box, told me to buy it, smoosh at home, and return whatever I didn't need.

They actually encouraged me to open up bags if I was worried, and that I could return those to, but I told them that was sketchy and unfair.  I don't think they care, because they use a lot of the current CMFs for the minifigure trading.  So they open up bags all the time.

Other times, I've had shops direct me to certain cashiers (at locations around the park) who are known for their smooshing skills.  I know everyone laughs at the "3 second smooshing" technique, but I've actually seen Legoland employees that can do it with amazing accuracy.  

[Curtis]

1 hour ago, Alpinemaps said:

When Series 14 hit, I was smooshing at Legoland California one day.  One of the cashiers saw me doing it, brought out a new box, told me to buy it, smoosh at home, and return whatever I didn't need.

They actually encouraged me to open up bags if I was worried, and that I could return those to, but I told them that was sketchy and unfair.  I don't think they care, because they use a lot of the current CMFs for the minifigure trading.  So they open up bags all the time.

Other times, I've had shops direct me to certain cashiers (at locations around the park) who are known for their smooshing skills.  I know everyone laughs at the "3 second smooshing" technique, but I've actually seen Legoland employees that can do it with amazing accuracy.  

The more you do it the faster and better you get at it.  I totally got wrapped up in the hunt for Mr. Gold craze of Series 10 and got pretty fast at it.  I bought very few, but smooshed a ton.  I could easily see a Legoland employee figuring out a pack in 3 seconds.  Once you know the unique pieces of each figure in a series it goes much more quickly.  I think this series might just be one of the most difficult due to similarities and a lack of accessories between figures like Micky-Minnie, Daisy-Donald, Alien-Cheshire, and Mr. Incredible-Sinestro.

[Mos_Eisley]

3 minutes ago, Curtis said:

The more you do it the faster and better you get at it.  I totally got wrapped up in the hunt for Mr. Gold craze of Series 10 and got pretty fast at it.  I bought very few, but smooshed a ton.  I could easily see a Legoland employee figuring out a pack in 3 seconds.  Once you know the unique pieces of each figure in a series it goes much more quickly.  I think this series might just be one of the most difficult due to similarities and a lack of accessories between figures like Micky-Minnie, Daisy-Donald, Alien-Cheshire, and Mr. Incredible-Sinestro.

Syndrome.

[Darth_Raichu]

1 hour ago, Alpinemaps said:

Other times, I've had shops direct me to certain cashiers (at locations around the park) who are known for their smooshing skills.  I know everyone laughs at the "3 second smooshing" technique, but I've actually seen Legoland employees that can do it with amazing accuracy.  

I was making fun of the 1 second per pack claim.  Three seconds per pack is doable depending on the series and how much the person practices 

I personally prefer the more relaxed 5 seconds per pack technique

 

[exciter1]

[legopocalypse]

[Alpinemaps]

I was making fun of the 1 second per pack claim.  Three seconds per pack is doable depending on the series and how much the person practices 

I personally prefer the more relaxed 5 seconds per pack technique

 

The problem with the 5 seconds per pack technique is someone could come along and develop a 4 second technique. What would you do if that happened?

[loki221978]

5 minutes ago, Alpinemaps said:

The problem with the 5 seconds per pack technique is someone could come along and develop a 4 second technique. What would you do if that happened?

 

[Darth_Raichu]

7 minutes ago, Alpinemaps said:

The problem with the 5 seconds per pack technique is someone could come along and develop a 4 second technique. What would you do if that happened?

I would be forced to unseal my 3 seconds technique.  Just because I prefer the 5 seconds smoosh does not mean I do not know how to do 3 (or 2? )

[oneknightr]

41 minutes ago, Alpinemaps said:

The problem with the 5 seconds per pack technique is someone could come along and develop a 4 second technique. What would you do if that happened?

Reminds me of There's Something About Mary.

"You heard of this thing, the 8-Minute Abs?"   

[Darth_Raichu]

1 minute ago, oneknightr said:

Reminds me of There's Something About Mary.

"You heard of this thing, the 8-Minute Abs?"   

The only thing that "There's Something About Mary" reminds me off is hair product 

[Alpinemaps]

Reminds me of There's Something About Mary.

"You heard of this thing, the 8-Minute Abs?"   

Ding ding! Winner winner chicken dinner.

[damnsanders]

Would it be acceptable to smoosh a series 12 or 13? Ones that have been out for a while but can still be found on the wild. Certainly everyone has had a chance to get what they need by now. What is an ample time frame for smooshing vs just buying? I smoosh btw.

[lodibricks]

Google Image searched "6 minute abs" and the results are funny, almost a dialogue between them.

[binici]

All this smoosh talk is making me want to smoosh something...

[mfortunek]

5 minutes ago, damnsanders said:

Would it be acceptable to smoosh a series 12 or 13? Ones that have been out for a while but can still be found on the wild. Certainly everyone has had a chance to get what they need by now. What is an ample time frame for smooshing vs just buying? I smoosh btw.

The statute of limitations on anti-smooshing regulation expires six months after the series is released or two months after the street date of the subsequent series, whichever comes first. 

[damnsanders]

The statute of limitations on anti-smooshing regulation expires six months after the series is released or two months after the street date of the subsequent series, whichever comes first. 

Got it! Lol

[rcdb1984]

smooshing makes women think of mammograms lol

[TheOrcKing]

I imagine some people may see smooshing in the same way counting cards is considered as cheating when in either case it is simply someone who understands the limitations and can work around them without breaking the game and its rules. Perhaps going back to the old way of buying mystery packs randomly without a care in the world leaving everything to the hands of fate would be easier and seem morally better yet when you consider there are typically sixteen unique characters in a single series, what are the chances of obtaining all in one run should I have only bought a sporadic pile of sixteen packets? I could have a very unlucky run where barely four of those bags were minifigures I had wanted meaning I now yield twelve I did not (between possible repeats and/or unwanted characters). Although I usually find a usage for such extras down the road; any one of those could have gone home with someone else who actually wanted them had I just figured out who was in there while at the store.

Realistically there is no way of knowing how many of these do fall into the hands of those who wanted them (he wanted the ninja but found a snowman, she desired an elf yet ended up with the animal trainer, etcetera) and at the current price of $4 a pop, a person especially a child with a limited allowance is not willing to shell out bare minimum $64 for a stack of characters and leave the whole thing to chance for a complete set or at best the few characters they desired the most.

There will always be characters more desirable than others just as certain sets being sought after more so than others. Funny thing is some of the times where I had difficulty spotting specific minifigures was probably more due to a few excited kids grabbing a handful of packs before I got there than some nameless reseller with a nice sorting basket.

[Robertx]

5 minutes ago, TheOrcKing said:

I imagine some people may see smooshing in the same way counting cards is considered as cheating when in either case it is simply someone who understands the limitations and can work around them without breaking the game and its rules. Perhaps going back to the old way of buying mystery packs randomly without a care in the world leaving everything to the hands of fate would be easier and seem morally better yet when you consider there are typically sixteen unique characters in a single series, what are the chances of obtaining all in one run should I have only bought a sporadic pile of sixteen packets? I could have a very unlucky run where barely four of those bags were minifigures I had wanted meaning I now yield twelve I did not (between possible repeats and/or unwanted characters). Although I usually find a usage for such extras down the road; any one of those could have gone home with someone else who actually wanted them had I just figured out who was in there while at the store.

Realistically there is no way of knowing how many of these do fall into the hands of those who wanted them (he wanted the ninja but found a snowman, she desired an elf yet ended up with the animal trainer, etcetera) and at the current price of $4 a pop, a person especially a child with a limited allowance is not willing to shell out bare minimum $64 for a stack of characters and leave the whole thing to chance for a complete set or at best the few characters they desired the most.

There will always be characters more desirable than others just as certain sets being sought after more so than others. Funny thing is some of the times where I had difficulty spotting specific minifigures was probably more due to a few excited kids grabbing a handful of packs before I got there than some nameless reseller with a nice sorting basket.

The issue is all the people that cherry pick the valuable ones and leave commons. To me it's wrong. And I have never bought one of them and it's mostly due to hearing people bragging about I bought 10 figures and got 10 hot dog guys. I'm more into Lego for building the sets anyway. And whatever figures come with them. It just cracks me up. Everyone here is SO MORAL yet that is looked upon as fine. Whatever. 

[Guest brickcrazyhouse]

22 minutes ago, Robertx said:

Everyone here is SO MORAL yet that is looked upon as fine. Whatever. 

It may seem like that here quite often but everyone has their own moral compass and grey area that depends on the time and day. this is a small fry issue but as a consumer it can be frustrating. I used to smoosh but now i'm to lazy and just grab a handfull, then buy the missing ones, via Ebay. Lego store employees have helped me before, which was cool. 

[pete411]

I've always felt that going around and cleaning out stores of one or two figures in a set is a **** move. That's my belief. There are genuine collectors/kids out there that want an entire set and don't want to pay your stupid $7 mark-up + shipping. I have no problem with reselling sets that sit on the shelves for over a year that folks have had ample opportunity to purchase, but have somehow missed out. We're offering them a service and taking on the risk and effort in order to hopefully make a profit.

Smooshing for complete sets on the other hand is perfectly OK in my book. I'll get off my soapbox now. Thanks.