Mystery Mini Set Hunting
- jagpop
- Posts: 3314
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Mystery Mini Set Hunting
How does everyone go about completing their sets or even just obtaining the ones they really want? I've been lucky enough to pull the ones that I have been seeking from boxes at Target. The rest I tend to be patient on eBay and snag them once I feel it's a deal. I don't see very many mystery minis out in the wild like at flea markets and swapmeets.
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Re: Mystery Mini Set Hunting
Mine has been 100% buying them retail and on eBay. I wish it was easier.
- Geescube
- HoF 2016 & CotM
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Re: Mystery Mini Set Hunting
retail when the series first hits. Trade for extras for anything else i need.
- Quazimoto
- Posts: 924
- Joined: Mon Mar 09, 2015 8:17 pm
Re: Mystery Mini Set Hunting
Since I don't have the ability to go out and hunt in stores much... If the MM set is one I want at least half the figures from, I'll order a case online and hope to trade any extras for ones I might not have gotten in it. Otherwise, I'll try for a layout and send my Brother to GameStop (which is quite literally the only place around here to find new MMs on the regular) or just hit up the sale forums or eBay.
- BigHow
- Posts: 288
- Joined: Thu May 07, 2015 4:30 pm
- Location: Los Angeles, CA
Re: Mystery Mini Set Hunting
Every time I go to Frank & Sons or a Con, I always bring a bunch of my extra minis with the hopes of finding a booth to do some trades. And I'm almost always disappointed.
I'd say that 90% of my mini acquisitions are from Hot Topic, Gamestop, and Target. The remaining 10% comes from trades with the cool cats on these boards.
I'd say that 90% of my mini acquisitions are from Hot Topic, Gamestop, and Target. The remaining 10% comes from trades with the cool cats on these boards.
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http://www.fixitinpost.org - Infrequent Pop Culture Thoughts
Looking for any of the following Pop Protos: Teen Wolf 1985, Astronaut Snoopy, Halloween/Pilot Snoopy, Woodstock, Wicket, Skeletor, Target Bullseye, Sugar Bear, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Topanga (from Boy Meets World)!
- Shinfo13
- Posts: 1124
- Joined: Sun Jan 17, 2016 10:48 pm
- Location: San Dimas, CA
Re: Mystery Mini Set Hunting
I only collect a few sets (Fallout and Anime) so not too bad for me. I generally try to pick up stuff out of boxes I know are fresh where I can hopefully use a box layout posted somewhere as a guide to grab whatever higher ratio minis I can. Once I start getting close to a full set I'll forget blind boxes and simply go on ebay or find trades on here.
I do have one awesome tip though and it is definitely YMMV. I know of a Gamestop or two that opens their mystery mini boxes and puts them on display for purchase individually at the normal $6 price. I've had some excellent pickups in the past finding 1/72, 1/36 or exclusive figures this way. I just went in the other day and they had just unboxed all the GS Batman MMs so i was able to grab a few for a pal that was missing them which was awesome. I asked one of the managers once why they did this and he simply said it was because they sell much better when people can pick and choose since they're hesitant to buy and get duplicates. Makes sense really. I've tried almost every GS in a pretty widespread area around me and only 2 do this so always keep your eyes out. My experience is that some stores still have glass display cases on the wall somewhere they previously used for displaying phones or controllers and some have been converted to store mystery minis and other blind bag figs.
Oh and I work at Target so I've been fortunate enough to run across a MM that someone cheated and opened up only to dump on the shelf. I've been lucky that way too.
I do have one awesome tip though and it is definitely YMMV. I know of a Gamestop or two that opens their mystery mini boxes and puts them on display for purchase individually at the normal $6 price. I've had some excellent pickups in the past finding 1/72, 1/36 or exclusive figures this way. I just went in the other day and they had just unboxed all the GS Batman MMs so i was able to grab a few for a pal that was missing them which was awesome. I asked one of the managers once why they did this and he simply said it was because they sell much better when people can pick and choose since they're hesitant to buy and get duplicates. Makes sense really. I've tried almost every GS in a pretty widespread area around me and only 2 do this so always keep your eyes out. My experience is that some stores still have glass display cases on the wall somewhere they previously used for displaying phones or controllers and some have been converted to store mystery minis and other blind bag figs.
Oh and I work at Target so I've been fortunate enough to run across a MM that someone cheated and opened up only to dump on the shelf. I've been lucky that way too.
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- Katers
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Re: Mystery Mini Set Hunting
I stalk stores (both online and IRL), visit collectable locations (yay Frank & Sons), and any local conventions. Traded a few here, and I've been lucky in that some of my other online groups have other rabid collectors in the same boat as me (too many commons!). These boards have been an absolute find though, and ultimately buying a mini scale to keep with me in stores saved me hundreds in not buying duplicates!
- POPtor WHO
- Posts: 499
- Joined: Fri May 22, 2015 4:46 pm
- Location: The Who-niverse
Re: Mystery Mini Set Hunting
Shinfo13 wrote:I do have one awesome tip though and it is definitely YMMV. I know of a Gamestop or two that opens their mystery mini boxes and puts them on display for purchase individually at the normal $6 price. I've had some excellent pickups in the past finding 1/72, 1/36 or exclusive figures this way. I just went in the other day and they had just unboxed all the GS Batman MMs so i was able to grab a few for a pal that was missing them which was awesome. I asked one of the managers once why they did this and he simply said it was because they sell much better when people can pick and choose since they're hesitant to buy and get duplicates. Makes sense really. I've tried almost every GS in a pretty widespread area around me and only 2 do this so always keep your eyes out. My experience is that some stores still have glass display cases on the wall somewhere they previously used for displaying phones or controllers and some have been converted to store mystery minis and other blind bag figs.
I have one GS near me that does this as well. It's actually where I got my Syringe Freddy (but that was a lucky blind buy of the last box they had ). I mentioned to the store manager that I thought this was awesome and he told me that his manager didn't like it and told him to stop, but that they have gotten such a positive response that he was going to keep doing it anyway! hard to argue with actual sales.
as for the OT discussion, I started out just buying a couple at retail every visit, but since I've become addicted I've started buying entire cases off the shelf at Target/Walmart.
Ebay for rares, older Minis and ones I absolutely have to have.
I just preordered my first case, Retro Video Games and will do the same from now on, I think.
I also bought a sealed case of TWD series 3 on ebay and a "supposedly" sealed case of 12, TWD series 2 on Amazon...I did get a rare in this one but I also got doubles (and a triple + a GitD, so 4 of the same) of 5 characters. So I missed on 4 1/12s but what are ya gonna do?
- kiptrip
- Posts: 869
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Re: Mystery Mini Set Hunting
Being international doesn't help much, so I ebay whole sets with exclusives if I can find a good deal.
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