Bricklink questions

[Dominic]

Does anyone know of a US shop with low prices and mega huge stock?

[Cylo]

On 10/30/2019 at 11:20 PM, Dominic said:

Does anyone know of a US shop with low prices and mega huge stock?

I don't know any US shops, but DDBricks in Thailand has lots of stock, last I checked has over 3000000 parts and 30000 lots, and they offer free shipping above 100 I think

Their prices are pretty good too

[crockalley]

Re: minifig torso complete assembly. 

Does it seem Bricklink is splitting this category into plain and decorated? Right now, the standard category has 4000+ items and the "decorated" category has only about 400 listings. Interesting change. 

[caperica]

Is it just me, or is Bricklink worse since the Lego takeover? Before, I was looking at around $200 for Jerac's Y-wing and other similar sized MOCs from maybe 5-7 sellers. Now, it seems like I would spend more like $400 from more than ten to fifteen sellers... Kind of annoying, since I don't want to buy anything at that price

[Jerac]

You need to actively put all super-expensive sellers on your dislike list so they don't get suggested. There are many sellers who have everything in stock but for absurd prices (like .50$ for a single 1x2 plate in common color) and their stores end up high on the list.

Then another thing you can do is to go through the parts list and uncheck everything you already have in your collection, because the highest component of the price is actually the lot count. If you can trim just 50 positions from the 250 position list, you will greatly reduce amount of the shops required, and most likely the price will get lower by far more than 20%.
Ultimately though, the more popular a MOC is the more expensive their parts will be, due to increased demand. I do all I can to limit expensive pieces, but some are unavoidable and mistakes happen (like picking a more expensive jumper variant). 

[Csaba]

I bought ~700 pieces spread over four wanted lists on BrickLink last week. I hoped that my wanted lists would automatically update to state that I know have these pieces but, this hasn't happened. Is there a way to automatically update my wanted lists to show the items I've ordered or am I stuck going through them manually?

[Flak Maniak]

Boat hull pieces. Why are the boat hull front pieces, 64651, so much cheaper/more plentiful on BL than the related parts, like the boat hull middle 95227, or the boat hull front riser 64645? Kept seeing 64651 in stores for cheap, less than $2, and thinking, well, I should buy some, and surely someone else will have the other hull parts. But... Perhaps not? What's with the supply discrepancy? Are the middle parts and front-risers in much higher demand for some specific reason?

I mean I get that they might be used in larger numbers in larger boats alongside just one 64651, but...

[TeriXeri]

20 hours ago, Flak Maniak said:

Boat hull pieces. Why are the boat hull front pieces, 64651, so much cheaper/more plentiful on BL than the related parts, like the boat hull middle 95227, or the boat hull front riser 64645? Kept seeing 64651 in stores for cheap, less than $2, and thinking, well, I should buy some, and surely someone else will have the other hull parts. But... Perhaps not? What's with the supply discrepancy? Are the middle parts and front-risers in much higher demand for some specific reason?

I mean I get that they might be used in larger numbers in larger boats alongside just one 64651, but...

Expanding a boat with straights simply is more common then making more boats.

And 64651 in Reddish Brown also was in more sets for a longer time, from 2009 onwards, while the straight parts appeared in only 2 sets in 2015 and now 2020,

The 2020 set (Barracuda Bay) is a €200 set, and had supply issues since it's release, while the 2015 set is retired.

Just like straight Train rails are way more in demand compared to curves, especially 9 volts that aren't produced anymore.

Edited July 11, 2020 by TeriXeri

[MAB]

Yes, plus remember that a lot of BL sellers are builders themselves. I've sold quite a few boat hulls, but nearly always keep the middle sections for myself. AFOLs often don't want the same distribution that LEGO supplies. Then it is down to basic economics - parts many people want are expensive, and excess parts many people don't want are cheap. That is why it is good if you can come up with a novel use for an unwanted part.

Also, in the UK, the Ninjago Movie Destiny's Bounty was very cheap for a while last year, so many of them were parted out. That had a reddish brown hull but not middle sections, which is where a lot of current stock would have come from.

[Flak Maniak]

Was browsing Brickset earlier. Looked at a couple BrickHeadz' pages. Why is Sweet Mayhem's secondary-market price so weirdly high? Other BrickHeadz, older ones, with prestigious licenses, don't go for that much. What's the deal? Why's this 2019 set jumped up to $40 already?

[TeriXeri]

7 hours ago, Flak Maniak said:

Was browsing Brickset earlier. Looked at a couple BrickHeadz' pages. Why is Sweet Mayhem's secondary-market price so weirdly high? Other BrickHeadz, older ones, with prestigious licenses, don't go for that much. What's the deal? Why's this 2019 set jumped up to $40 already?

LEGO Movie 2 Brickheadz were exclusive to Target and Walmart, and only 5000 produced each.

https://brickarchitect.com/2019/2019-year-of-the-exclusives/

Edited July 17, 2020 by TeriXeri

[Cara]

<solved>

[Flak Maniak]

Anyone ever had a BrickLink seller ask for a phone number? Placed an order fairly recently and the seller sent a BrickLink message asking for my phone number in order to send the package. I thought it was a little weird, but I gave them my number because it's not THAT strange for online stores to ask for one. But it was the first time I'd been asked on BL. They're shipping from Poland -> USA, if it matters.

[nwbricks]

On 7/27/2020 at 1:30 AM, Flak Maniak said:

Anyone ever had a BrickLink seller ask for a phone number? Placed an order fairly recently and the seller sent a BrickLink message asking for my phone number in order to send the package. I thought it was a little weird, but I gave them my number because it's not THAT strange for online stores to ask for one. But it was the first time I'd been asked on BL. They're shipping from Poland -> USA, if it matters.

It's a little odd, but it might be for the courier to reach you 

[Flak Maniak]

No idea why the phone number was supposedly needed; the package got here today (significantly sooner than I thought it would), and I never got a call about it or anything. Whatever.

[MAB]

There is a recommendation that international mail has the customer's phone number or email address on it, and some countries enforce this. So sellers often ask for it for international mail, as if the receiving country refuses it, not only does it get returned to the seller meaning longer time to get to the buyer but the seller also has to pay again to send it.

 

[hagridshut]

On 4/24/2020 at 4:25 PM, caperica said:

Is it just me, or is Bricklink worse since the Lego takeover? Before, I was looking at around $200 for Jerac's Y-wing and other similar sized MOCs from maybe 5-7 sellers. Now, it seems like I would spend more like $400 from more than ten to fifteen sellers... Kind of annoying, since I don't want to buy anything at that price

I've purchased a few items, both before and after LEGO Group announced its purchase of Bricklink, and I haven't noticed a difference.  However, I'm generally not buying pieces to make large MOCs.  

I have a theory that demand on Bricklink may be driving up prices.  With people being stuck at home due to the pandemic, they may have more time to build with LEGO.  More time to build projects that were previously on hold means that more customers are looking to buy LEGO pieces.  

General quality on Bricklink seems unchanged.  I generally only buy from shops that explicitly state that they are smoke-free homes or businesses.  One tip I think might be helpful for new buyers buying sets, is to look for stores that also say they replace damaged pieces.  I've gotten used minifigures in "good" condition that are in essentially new condition, and other "good" condition minifigs that have gouges in the head, torsos, or legs.

[MAB]

On 8/7/2020 at 12:05 AM, hagridshut said:

I have a theory that demand on Bricklink may be driving up prices.  With people being stuck at home due to the pandemic, they may have more time to build with LEGO.  More time to build projects that were previously on hold means that more customers are looking to buy LEGO pieces. 

I've sold quite a lot on BL over the past few months, an I agree with this. Within a couple of weeks or so of the lockdown, things were starting to move faster there. I ended up putting up prices by 25-30% and still made some decent sales. Thsi is across sets, parts and minifigures.

[Flak Maniak]

What's going on with the 2020 summer Ninjago orcs, Moe and Murt? Every time I've checked, Moe's price has been significantly higher, despite him containing strictly fewer pieces. What gives? This is an opportunity for arbitrage; for someone to just buy a bunch of Murt, remove a piece and sell it separately(!) and then sell the fig for more.

[MAB]

13 hours ago, Flak Maniak said:

What's going on with the 2020 summer Ninjago orcs, Moe and Murt? Every time I've checked, Moe's price has been significantly higher, despite him containing strictly fewer pieces. What gives? This is an opportunity for arbitrage; for someone to just buy a bunch of Murt, remove a piece and sell it separately(!) and then sell the fig for more.

The pricing is probably because Moe is only in 1 set, compared to 3 for Murt. And (some) people not realising that you can make a Moe from a Murt. However, maybe it is not that good an investment - Moe has sold 117 in total in 6 months worldwide, whereas Murt has sold 1985 times. 

[cosmic]

Hello all, a few questions about Bricklink.

1. I am interested in ordering several SDCC superhero minifigures from Bricklink. In the event that I order it and it either does not arrive or is not real, am i entitled a complete refund? 
 

2. Is it possible for some or even all listings of a particular SDCC figure be fake or fraudulent? Meaning if there’s only 2 Green Arrows is it possible both are scams?

3. Does Bricklink have a system to hold fake sellers accountable? And has anyone bought an SDCC figure online before? What sellers do you trust for SDCC figures? I felt like eventually all the figures would be bought up

[1980-Something-Space-Guy]

I don't think Bricklink handles fraudulent listings like eBay does. Always make sure to pay by PayPal, and they'll protect you in case you get scammed.

[MAB]

On 12/1/2020 at 7:43 PM, cosmic said:

Hello all, a few questions about Bricklink.

1. I am interested in ordering several SDCC superhero minifigures from Bricklink. In the event that I order it and it either does not arrive or is not real, am i entitled a complete refund?

2. Is it possible for some or even all listings of a particular SDCC figure be fake or fraudulent? Meaning if there’s only 2 Green Arrows is it possible both are scams?

3. Does Bricklink have a system to hold fake sellers accountable? And has anyone bought an SDCC figure online before? What sellers do you trust for SDCC figures? I felt like eventually all the figures would be bought up

1. You are entitled to one, but that does not mean you will get one. You will need to make sure you pay using a method with a complaints system such as PayPal.

2. It is possible that fakes are on BL although unlikely. Hence it is possible two items are fake. Check the seller. Do they have a long history of selling quality items that are not fakes? If so, you have a very good chance to receive the real thing. If they have no feedback, or have 100s of rare figures, are located in China/Philippines/Vietnam/Malaysia, then the chances of getting fakes goes up.

3. No. It is done on trust and feedback.

You can ask the seller for more information about an item, where they got it, whether they have other SDCC proof (entrance ticket, lanyards, etc). Both sellers on BL look legit. The one from HK looks like a collector / investor as they have a number of SDCC items and similar.

 

[Takanuinuva]

Hey is this spam? 

I got this in my email saying I owe an invoice? But when I go to the bricklink site. There is no invoice message at all.

And I haven't sold anything in quite a long time. 

Should I be concerned? 

[Takanuinuva]

Sorry to bump but I would really like an answer.