Buzzetta

BTW I tell @PeteFromPetesBasement all the time that there is better information to be found here than the dirt sheets on Facebook and Instagram. I want to thank all of you for demonstrating that. @Lazyboy @Randall Dowling @James J Johnson @The Lions Den Now, maybe he will show off a few things he has picked up over the years...

Don't you 'shia' me.

Don't

I did not know it came to fruition but I remember taking part of that survey they emailed a couple of months ago asking us to evaluate the membership program. Wait, Do you mean? Do you mean that they might have... listened?

That can be a detriment though. I am not going to start tagging names but I have a good memory. There is a semi active board member, (who used to be more active) that once said, that he was disappointed by a sale and condition and just decided not to do business with that person again and said, lesson learned. I, myself, felt compelled to stay silent when someone on the boards tried screwing me over. I was only around for three years and as some people made me realize, they will jump to defend him because he has cool books. Turns out, in the last few months we found out he had screwed over a number of people behind the scenes until you privately got him to make right on it. eBay is so large so that we can have a sense of indifference. If something arrives damaged I am protected so long as I use PayPal. There are instances that I personally know of and instances where another board member showed me his messages where people on here tried to negotiate 'friends and family' payments into the deal. Those are the transactions that go south VERY quickly on Facebook where I am a little more blunt. There was a GI Joe thread complaint where someone said that this guy took the money and ran instead of shipping the product. We all asked why not contact PayPal? Well because he paid friends and family. Okay... too effing bad. This guy basically told you he was going to rob you as soon as you spoke to him. And yet... there are people that try and violate those rules around here. "You can have it for $X or $Y F&F" through PM. When my friend Rich was looking for a book he had a few offers like that come in. Told him to ignore every single one of them. I am rambling... I have zoom codes to sort through...

I agree with that in relation to comics. Some say eBay is as well. However, when it came to GI Joe toys and Lego, I did better on Facebook, with stronger prices, and quicker sales. But then you have to ask yourself, is CGC here to promote a slabbing service or to promote an environment to sell their product? Clearly they "tolerate" the sale of their product on a board hosted by them. We have a hall of shame for a reason. The boards are self policed but with no real teeth of enforcement. I have heard conversation where several people conducted business through PM over the years because they were on a "list." We have made the rules much like a facebook group to determine who should not be doing deals be it a hall of shame or a probation list. But CGC keeps a "laissez faire" approach to that. If they were truly invested in providing that venue then they would ban members upon selling or buying infractions. In a FB group the group administers will kick someone out. Here, CGC hands it off to the community to decide whether or not they personally want to deal with that person while still allowing the transgressor to be present. At one point when we learned that Chip Cataldo was trying to conduct business behind the scenes through PM despite being on a no trade list, Arch was asked if PMs could be disabled for members who had committed marketplace infractions. CGC ultimately did not and still maintains a hands off approach to what goes on here. They allow it, will moderate the non-compliant listings, but do not regulate the actual trade or sale, or arbitrate complaints if a transaction does not result in the satisfaction of an offended party.

Seriously? I signed up when it was free when it started and they extended it. I am still on the fence for whether or not I will pay for a membership. It honestly depends on whether I actually have access to purchasing the exclusives. If I am shut out like I would anywhere else I figure that is money that need not be spent. I believe the best way that they could make a membership 'valuable' is to always give premium pulse members an advance window to purchase on every product.

Had to leave before - I apologize for not responding... realized I answer two out of the three quotes.

I do not think we are as important (on a message board) as we like to imagine. How many active participants are there in relation to the growing number on Facebook? Hey, I could be wrong... but at one point Hisstank and YoJoe were the places to go for GI Joe information. Now it seems that GIJoe ARAH 1982-1994 and GI Joe Trader PX are 'THE' Facebook groups to be in to know what is going on with Joe.

I assumed that they were receiving money for that to be honest. After all, they are affiliated with eBay with their authentication service.

I have casually mentioned this in the moderation thread and here is how I see it... As of now, I assume that the money generated from the boards > than the cost of running the boards. However, eventually I see more and more companies drift toward social media and let places like FB handle all web responsibilities. It varies with the vision of each individual. For example, Hasbro is MUCH bigger than CGC and they do NOT have a dedicated message board. Instead they reach out to fan sites and they utilize Facebook to unveil new product and interact with their customers. Then you have a group like Lego. Lego recently saw the value of having a message board and BOUGHT Bricklink. For those unfamiliar with Bricklink, aside from eBay, Bricklink hosts the largest second hand market for Lego and hosts a community message board like we have here. What will CGC do? It might be a conflict of interest for them to host or buy a market. Lego does not 'grade' their product so the market is determined by desirability. The condition of product is determined by the vendor. Bricklink gets a percentage of the sale. If CGC were to buy an auction house or something like eBay, there would be a conflict of interest since the higher the grade means the more valuable the book, which if sold on their site translates into a larger commission. I see CGC eventually shutting this place down and doing what Hasbro does on Facebook. Are the boards really worth all that trouble? If the boards shut down, where am I going? I will interact with people on Facebook. If the boards shut down I am still sending books to be pressed to Joe and I am still going to have things graded. Are the boards valuable to me as a comic buyer? Absolutely. But if they are not valuable to CGC or if CGC feels that their end of the information chain can be distributed in a more cost effective way then I assume they will eventually do so.

This thread...

That's what I thought after you guys set me straight with my Crime Suspenstories 15 that I thought was trimmed from a few months ago. Pete had texted me that he was finally selling a few things and that he had listed it on eBay as 'trimmed'. I wrote to him that it might be a miss-wrap and a miss-cut but he should ask you guys because you all would know more than I do. Glad this worked out.

@James J Johnson good idea @The Lions Den

“Yous” ? 😂

The body is spot on especially the legs. I am trying to make out if they are using a short hair version or pony tail version. Personally for this figure, I would like to see a short hair version. The face though is a slight cartoony but I would prefer that over something like they did with the 25th. I actually have a Resolute Scarlett so maybe a head swap would work. I am liking this though as well as Roadblock. My only issue with Roadblock is that I always looked at the original as wearing a sleeveless t shirt. Maybe they gave him a painted t-shirt underneath because I don't know if I would want him walking around in body armor 24/7. I like the updated head sculpt though more than the 6" version. Overall I hope this is final production. Destro... I think that is a reissue.

@STORMSHADOW_80 I was flip flopping tonight to sell off another major part of the Joe collection... I was looking at prices and then I just saw this... 2nd Wave Retro line has some new sculpts and / or parts. I want that Scarlett and will be selling off the others when that is released... If I gotta get it on eBay then so be it. This is 3.75"

ohhhhh... that IS a good idea. I just bought this computer and expect it to last at least 8 years... but I never buy an extra in advance and I always regret that. Seriously, good idea.

Number pad version... Old habits die hard..

This is actually me... for real...

Oh and one more thing... Remember when the season's con exclusives go on sale for members.

Not for nothing but as much as I am sometimes quick to point out missteps from Hasbro I really have to hand it to them that they have stepped up their game and really been a leader when it comes to bringing the comic con experience to your computer. They are hosting their own virtual con after having already used Facebook as a vehicle to unveil new product. They have just announced a virtual cosplay contest. I am genuinely impressed. I am not going to participate. But, I am genuinely impressed.

Ha! As soon as I sold mine I regretted it and was happy to pick an even nicer replacement up. I really like this version and it's a keeper in any collection. You wound up with an extra gun though. Now you need to find another one to complete it.

Here is my entry to the "First Issue of a Timely Publication" Club... ! And on a more serious note... Another book that arrived this week.