71010 - Minifigures - Series 14 Monsters

[RogerWilco]

I also opened one of my boxes from minifigures plus, but I received the expected distribution.

[Pseudoty]

not a smoosher in public or at home. I cut the tops and confirmed. 

Not sure if BP still has a minifig wanted/needed thread. On a positive note you did get extras of some Rares like the Witch but I know that doesn't mean much when you need a complete set of 16. Not at home now but I should be able to cover you on the ones you need. 

[sharky1999]

Ha! I had never heard of that... had to google it.  Now selling for $49.95 on Amzn... could have been a good investment!

Yeah the 2 reviews on the Amazon listing are great.

[Guest brickcrazyhouse]

Not sure if BP still has a minifig wanted/needed thread. On a positive note you did get extras of some Rares like the Witch but I know that doesn't mean much when you need a complete set of 16. Not at home now but I should be able to cover you on the ones you need. 

Thanks I've got three more to open. hopefully tonight, and will see what it ends up short and over, for trades.  

 

[HappyHawkeye]

To all of our Brickpicker customers, I hope that I can answer any and all questions and put any concerns to rest here. I will include photos of strip-style boxing for a different series at the bottom of this message. 

1. In our many years of experience, strip-style boxes always receive the exact same 60 minifigures that a display box receives. 

2. For those who are concerned that the box will have a different resale value, that simply has not been true in our experience either. A buyer's primary concern is that the box is factory sealed and contents are guaranteed. With this packaging, both of these concerns are still put to rest. This series has still received the highest demand of any series we have had yet, and we are still keeping our prices raised as we did because we know this packaging will not stall demand.

3. If anyone would like display packaging, we will be ordering that once we sell out of this shipment. However, we purchased enough to last until Halloween, so display boxes will not be sold in our store until Christmas time. I also want to note that our pre-order price will almost certainly not be offered again on this series.

I hope to convey my sincerest apologies for this inconvenience. I know that consistency with the agreement is one of the important elements in a pre-order. However, I hope that I can also answer any questions and concerns here. We could have made the choice to reject the supply and send it back for the correct packaging, but because we know that timeliness is the most important factor in the pre-order, and the value would remain unchanged, the decision was made to accept the goods in the packaging our suppliers were given.

Once again, all contents remain the same. The shipment date estimate remains unchanged. The value is unchanged. And most importantly, this is still the best series to invest in yet.

 

 

I haven't smooshed mine yet, but it sounds like all of these statements are now not so certain?

I chose not to cancel my order based on this info, expecting to get three full sets. And I'm guessing I'm not the only one. Hopefully this isn't a widespread issue.

Edited September 15, 2015 by HappyHawkeye

[gregpj]

I haven't smooshed mine yet, but it sounds like all of these statements are now not so certain?

I chose not to cancel my order based on this info, expecting to get three full sets. And I'm guessing I'm not the only one. Hopefully this isn't a widespread issue.

I'm pretty sure the boxes are hand packed so the strips probably are too... people aren't perfect so I would expect that mistakes in the distribution are not that uncommon. The reality is that LEGO never promises a specific distribution in the 60 packs (they are blind bags after all) so expecting them to be perfect isn't fair.

Maybe we should move these posts to the "LEGO quality control thread" ...

[HappyHawkeye]

I'm pretty sure the boxes are hand packed so the strips probably are too... people aren't perfect so I would expect that mistakes in the distribution are not that uncommon. The reality is that LEGO never promises a specific distribution in the 60 packs (they are blind bags after all) so expecting them to be perfect isn't fair.

Maybe we should move these posts to the "LEGO quality control thread" ...

I've had cases before that are off a couple here & there from expected distribution- that doesn't worry me too much & I don't expect them to be 100% perfect every time. But the distribution brickcrazyhouse described seems a little outside a reasonable margin of human error. Although as I reexamine what he got, it seems like it was in his favor. 3 Zombie Pirates? Yes please!

[jerryherb]

every time i got my hands on a sealed box of series 13 i ALWAYS found 3 unicorns and 3 hotdogs (smooshing). this must be new if it there are inconsistencies. same experience with the simpsons cases when i was breaking them down into sets. they were very consistent (if sealed). im not talking about peg boards here, just the plain cases of 60

Edited September 15, 2015 by jerryherb

[gregpj]

I've had cases before that are off a couple here & there from expected distribution- that doesn't worry me too much & I don't expect them to be 100% perfect every time. But the distribution brickcrazyhouse described seems a little outside a reasonable margin of human error. Although as I reexamine what he got, it seems like it was in his favor. 3 Zombie Pirates? Yes please!

For sure it does seem way off, but I can imagine so many different reasons... Between being hung over, or having a co-worker drop a stack of bags into your working pile, or some jerk who just doesn't care.

just finished first box (hanging clip) from minifigureplus, and the distribution was off(compared to whitefang). Was only able to make two complete sets.  

1. werewolf = 3

2. Z pirate =3  (-2)

3. mad scientist =5

4.witch =4 (+1)

5. plant guy =4

6. fly guy =2 (-2)

7. Spector =4

8. Z cheerleader =3

9. Tigress =3

10. gargoyle = 5 (+1)

11. skeleton =4

12. Z rocker =4 (+1)

13. Z business man =4 (+1)

14. banshee =4 (+1)

15. Bigfoot =2 (-2)

16. vampires =4 (+1)

 

 

 

Is it just me or is that only 58 polybags? Doesn't seem to add up to 60 and I tried a couple times. The zombie frankenstein rocker is 5 to a case which is what made me add it up.

[wsuskee]

Speaking of 13 I made another run yesterday and still out of 14 everywhere.  I dont get this set as they are barely selling on ebay auctions for what you can find them in store for.  At 2 different Targets I asked for series 14 and they both brought out a brand new box of series 13.  I now have 6 more hot dogs and 6 more unicorns but still have yet to see series 14 on my side of the state(WA.) 

[stackables]

For sure it does seem way off, but I can imagine so many different reasons... Between being hung over, or having a co-worker drop a stack of bags into your working pile, or some jerk who just doesn't care.

Is it just me or is that only 58 polybags? Doesn't seem to add up to 60 and I tried a couple times. The zombie frankenstein rocker is 5 to a case which is what made me add it up.

Yep, that is only 58

[tabolton314]

Speaking of 13 I made another run yesterday and still out of 14 everywhere.  I dont get this set as they are barely selling on ebay auctions for what you can find them in store for.  At 2 different Targets I asked for series 14 and they both brought out a brand new box of series 13.  I now have 6 more hot dogs and 6 more unicorns but still have yet to see series 14 on my side of the state(WA.) 

I've seen them in quantity at every Fred Meyer I've stopped at.  Maybe try there?

[gregpj]

Yep, that is only 58

Thank you... worked late last night (and the kids don't care) so I didn't trust myself.

[LEGOmaniacs]

I got my strip style case from minifiguresplus last night, I didn't have time to count the bags or smoosh, I just cut it open to confirm what it was. Hopefully I'll have some time after work tonight to verify contents. When I do I will post them here.

[jerryherb]

I got my strip style case from minifiguresplus last night, I didn't have time to count the bags or smoosh, I just cut it open to confirm what it was. Hopefully I'll have some time after work tonight to verify contents. When I do I will post them here.

strip style as in pegboard? i thought those are 80 or 100 count... this is what target gave me one time and it was way more than usual 60. if youre only getting 60 (on a beg board) from MFL you got ripped off and they were probably picked through

Edited September 15, 2015 by jerryherb

[KShine]

That short count of Zombie Pirates must explain why I have so many - please feel free to come and get them.

[seapotato]

My TRU restocked on these. There were 3 boxes I think.

[LEGOmaniacs]

strip style as in pegboard? i thought those are 80 or 100 count... this is what target gave me one time and it was way more than usual 60. if youre only getting 60 from MFL you got ripped off and they were probably picked through

These aren't the pegboard cases, I would have loved one of those. They come on thin plastic sheets with spaces for the polys to attach one above the next. At the top of the strip is a plastic hook to hang them from an end cap. I've seen them at TRU before but not many other places. I'll include a picture when I post my findings.

[TheGallows]

Just bought some of these had a quick feel instore on a fresh case and a opened one, I got

x4 tiger ladies

x2 witches

x1 wolfman

x1 banshee

x2 plant guys

I would like to get to 50 tiger women though.

[jerryherb]

These aren't the pegboard cases, I would have loved one of those. They come on thin plastic sheets with spaces for the polys to attach one above the next. At the top of the strip is a plastic hook to hang them from an end cap. I've seen them at TRU before but not many other places. I'll include a picture when I post my findings.

please provide the picture. a sealed case is a sealed case (3 rows of 20 in a cardboard box). what MLF is selling does not sound like a case to me hence no consistency.

[gregpj]

strip style as in pegboard? i thought those are 80 or 100 count... this is what target gave me one time and it was way more than usual 60. if youre only getting 60 (on a beg board) from MFL you got ripped off and they were probably picked through

Someone posted a picture of what the strips look like..

http://community.brickpicker.com/topic/14691-71010-monster-minifigures-series-14/?do=findComment&comment=494352

MFP confirmed it is 60 to a case... Basically three strips of 20 in the LEGO shipping box with no display case inside.

[jerryherb]

never see those before. sound like these are not the cases youre looking for. get your money back and move along

Edited September 15, 2015 by jerryherb

[sjohn1010]

I just got done smooshing my order of 60 from TRU. They came loose in a cardboard box, but I got the exact distribution of a 60 count box. The packer must had opened a box of 60 and sent what's inside to me.

[Guest brickcrazyhouse]

For sure it does seem way off, but I can imagine so many different reasons... Between being hung over, or having a co-worker drop a stack of bags into your working pile, or some jerk who just doesn't care.

Is it just me or is that only 58 polybags? Doesn't seem to add up to 60 and I tried a couple times. The zombie frankenstein rocker is 5 to a case which is what made me add it up.

OPPS I typo-ed that one.there were 6 franknrockers, 1 more then expected.  

[ChristopherJB]

I have devised a formula to max out profits on this. The key is finding a TRU that has ample supply which I did on my recent trip to Richmond, BC Canada.
Last week, when this was released, there were 15 boxes on the shelf. I walked in with a basket that has 16 pockets which I custom-made.

Key is 5 seconds per grab, then dump it into the basket for sorting.
5x16 = 90 seconds per set. Give or take an extra 30 seconds here and there.
I managed to sort about 15 sets in 30 minutes. Mind you, I was also cleaning extra Tiger Woman and the Spider Lady. I went back the next day and everyone asked me why there's no Spider Lady and they can't find any.

So 15 sets, 30 minutes, 15x16 = 240 packs.
Excess Tiger Women nets about 100% profit.

1 set is about 3.99x16x1.12(sales tax) = 71.64CAD, approx 55USD
sell for 89USD on ebay plus shipping, net profit of about 30USD after taxes.
So 30USDx15 = 450USD, so pay per hour ends up about 150USD/hour since it takes about an extra hour or 2 to repackage and ship.

For most BPers, 5 seconds per minifig pack should be easy. If you spend more than 5 seconds on each pack, you are doing something wrong.

Spider Lady is one grab, split second, done.
Witch, squeeze your fingers around, find the broom, done (2 seconds)
Werewolf, squeeze hard around, find the bone, max 3 seconds
Cheerleader, piece of cake, 3 second grab, grab 3 balls, done. 1 ball = head, 2 balls = 2 pompom

The one I'm stuck on is banshee, takes me 8 seconds, so it all avergages out to 5 sec.

So if you follow this formula, you should be able to haul in $150USD/hour based on quick grab. I've trained myself enough now that I can grab two packs at the same time, left hand on one, right on the other, this would reduce the smooshing time to about 3 seconds and the packs will still look brand new.