I'm pretty anal about paint apps. I don't care how rare a toy is. If its scratched or sloppily painted, I won't buy it. If I find defects once I open it, I'll sometimes buy a second but instead of returning the first, I'll give it to my kids. They're not nearly as picky as I am.
I had a look at the legacy of BB 3 pack at TRU and of the 10 or so that were there each had bad paint apps. I also tend to look at each toy and pick the best paint apps. Sometimes you do get some weird looks off people, but hey I want a decent toy. I have only bought a second toy twice due to dodgy paint apps they were Uni Sunstreaker (missing yellow paint around the Autobot Symbol) and Sideswipe (Loose joints) both were discounted. I have had mixed success with online purchases. I even returned a Optimash Prime due to a scratch on his faceplate
I'm usually pretty picky as well, but since ROTF toys are still very rare here, I can't be too picky either. It's basically a store situation which dictates grab whatever you can get or no ROTF toys at all. Anyway.... my Soundwave has a bit of a f'd up silver shoulder paint app and one Starscream has a tiny mold scratch (probably from the metallic wrapper in the packaging process). So, really minor complaints here.
That's about how it is for me but fortunately I've had no major problems with anything,one or two minor paint issues but that's about all.
I'm really picky about paint apps on the face. I think that's the absolute worst area to have QC screwups. So I'd buy another one if the head was really bad. Another thing that I absolutely hate is bad chrome applications. I've never had much of a problem with that on G1 reissues and such, but on a few Henkei figures the chrome has been all scratched, or like it's barely covering the plastic underneath. The front headlights on my Henkei Ironhide even looked tarnished out of the package, which was weird. I try my hardest to not go out and buy a replacement figure though, because it can get really out of hand. If I let my OCD tendancies control me too much, I would be finding more and more things wrong with figures, to the point where I wouldn't be happy with any of my figures. I guess there is a certain level of QC mistakes that I feel you have to accept, because in the end they're all imperfect, mass produced figures off a factory line. Like other people have said, you might have to buy two or three more until you get a figure that doesn't have an obvious mistake somewhere on it.
I'll have a quick compare of a couple if I can, looked at three Act. Bulkheads today before picking one. I'm usually pretty lucky though, only one I've had an issue with this year is Ani. Sunstorm, who is missing a missile. As I got him from a very kind member during the sale fiasco, I can't really complain.
minor defect or something easily fixed- i can cope. TFU Powerglide's too-tight screw problem, for example was ok. but a floppy mess, really bad paint apps, and even damaged packaging are all dealbreakers for me.
i would say 'very' but the leader rotf prime i just bought only had 1 side of his cheek painted silver. so i guess i have to say 'not at all'.
I really am not fussy at all. The only transformer I really "checked out" before I bought were the Sunstorm/Shockwave Tarhet exclusives. And that was because of all the posts on here. My Sideswipe is missing a little paint on his back bumper, and i don't care in the least now. Although when i first transformed him, I was a little bothered.
In the store, I get pretty OCD about comparing various figures to get the one that looks the best, has the best paint apps, etc... but I'm weirdly opposite when it comes to mail order; like firehawc, I'm just happy getting stuff in the mail and can't wait to open & play with it (unless it's horribly defective for some reason). From this thread (& others), it sounds like many of us get pretty OCD in the store when picking out TFs.
On average, I'll probably look at about 4 examples of the same figure before making the pick. If there's only one, I'll just buy it and make do with what I get. The things I am fussiest about are the head, and problems with the plastic. There's always some paint app problems, but when they're on the head, it's much harder to ignore. Sometimes you'll see white plastic stress marks around a pinned joint. Sometimes you'll see where the plastic was attached to the sprue, and it's been twisted off, taking some of the plastic with it. Sometimes you'll see misfitting mold lines. Sometimes ugly scratches. I didn't used to be as obsessive. But I bought one or two figures with problems that I really should have noticed before I bought them, and ever since I can't help it.
Not all that picky-ish. I'll look at a figure or two and try to get the best one possible. I've also returned a few figures, though I don't partswap. I got an Animated Samurai Prowl who was misassembled, a Ratbat that was barely holding together, and a Shockwave that fell to bits far too easily. However, each of them, the second one I exchanged it for was just fine. As for mail ordered, I've been pretty lucky. Especially for figures like Henkei.
I'm not very picky and will usually just grab the first copy I see of whatever figure I'm looking for, unless there's clearly something wrong with that one. And by "clearly wrong", I mean stuff like heavily damaged packaging, figure damaged or missing pieces in the packaging or massive highly visible flaws in the paint applications (ie - "there's a huge fingerprint on this", not "OMG one paint app is misaligned by half a millimeter OH NOES!!!"). I usually get excellent versions of figures just going by luck and haven't had to return anything for being defective in a long time.
I always inspect things for optimum paint apps before I buy them, but as long as its not something superly noticable (like a huge missing spot or giant scratch or missing piece), I dont mind THAT much
Yay, I'm not alone. I spent last weekend picking through every toy on the shelf at several different stores. I figure I can't control all the paint apps but I can at least be OCD about the ones I can see through the packaging. Sometime's it's weeks after I first see something in stores before I find one that's purchase-worthy. I've got several unopened Transformers stacked up in the corner of my room, ones that are the best I've seen but still not quite perfect. If I find a better one, I buy that and return the first one back to the store. I tell myself at least it's not as bad as returning an opened toy just because I don't want it anymore. Actually I think I may as well go ahead and open most of these now, with the ROTF toys landing there aren't going to be any more shipments of Animated or Universe stuff. ...but I've got a few ROTF things for the stack now. What's really insulting is when I buy something and find one that's better still in another store the same day.
Even if they have two dozen of the same figure I will lay them out and go through the paint apps until I have the choice for paint aps. After that understandable process I'm fairly picky about defects. Mechanical problems your aware of can eat away at you until you either disregard them, or buy a new toy. I lost my animated megatrons missle. Ordered another one on hasbro toy shop and found the missing missle the same day the new megatron arrived. It was just eating at me that my perfect toy was incomplete. The double just wound up being complementary anyway. Sideways for ROTF is hard to get good paint on. The factory throws completed toys in a bin before they are packaged so they rub against each other, That mid grey silver paint scratches easily. Rampage winds up looking like a much cleaner toy even though his character is about being a burning mass of fuel and tar.
I'm not too terribly picky, really. If the shelves have alot of the figures I'm after I'll compare, but if there's only left I'm gonna grab it.
