I never wanted to buy this, but for different reasons. More than anyone i am hurt that you people have been waiting so passionately and this is turing out the way it is. More than that i am amazed and now a bit worried (not accusing) but may be somefolks on this forum are driven by sideshow extended ecosystem. Here is how this process will play out unless all of you keep pushing sideshow:
1) they will say they cannot gurantee perfect pieces
2) they will offer the cash back or partial refund which is already accounted for in the margin and hence the steep cost - no loss to hottoys and ss
3) you will see some sideshow's so called advocates for a lack of better word for it - who will give justification that this is big, heavy, defects happen, etc etc.
4) if it was one odd breakage / scratch i wld myself advise the person to take a cash back and settle it out but these are too many issues to call it qc issue.
5) you will soon see - experts will come in who will come up with an easy fix.
6) sideshow will maintain the steep price on their website and soon include a disclaimer to buy at your own risk.
7) not many will buy from them and you will see some advocates start posting that other resellers have fresh stock. Which in reality will be the sideshow stock thrown on to resellers.
8) the resellers will sell at slightly lower rate so many will flock their websites and accept these defects as the cost will be lower and by then it will reach a take it or leave it scenario.
9) finally sideshow will post as sold out. And now the remaining laggards will also buy from the resellers just so that they dont miss out, even if this will be defective.
Same thing happens when a product somes out. You will see so many posts which are, i am buying 2,3 etc.... And the heard mentality follows it cause they plant it that way. Obviously i am not accusing anyone in specific but i have seen too many fake reviews on several online forums. If you remember there were a bunch of people who was doing this on amazon... Getting paid and creating demand. Sucks but anything can happen in todays world.
Once again i am not accusing sideshow but i have seen exactly the same thing in samurai pred where finally an ardent fighter like me advised a person to accept a broken peg cause there was no way he was going to get anyhting more than a 40 bucks.
Long answer short, hope this is regulated by some consumer forums / legal association cause this is not how they should behave in todays world, these are collectibles and very expensive ones. They have to be defect free, mint, need no fix, no paint, no repair... No matter what anyone says. It is an obscenely expensive item to go through what you all are going through.
Hope side show proves me wrong and steps up and helps all of you to get a replacement or fix it themselves. After samurai pred experience i decided i wont buy anything more than 350 usd from them as thts were i draw my line and hence this car was never bought. Hope many follow this path unless sideshow and HT changes.
