hey guys, i'm headed over to Seoul for a few days in october now i'm aware i'm the first poster in this thread hahaha but anyone been there and found any luck with Korean transformers? after all Sonokong and Mocom are from korea
I'm in South Korea right now but so far no sightings of Transformers outside of Osan (where I'm currently stationed). A small Korean-run kiosk vendor in the Osan BX (base exchange) does sell some ROTF Voyager figures; Ratchet, Recon Ironhide, Nebular Starscream, and I believe Mixmaster. I might be missing one more character. But the prices are pretty steep for these guys; $58, pfffft. Also just saw that this same kiosk vendor is selling DOTM Voyager class Ironhide and Optimus Prime for $58 each (ouch!) and DOTM Leader class Sentinel Prime for $99 (double ouch!). Yeah, highway robbery. Good luck trying to move those, Korean vendor. The BX itself has crap - not a single Transformer for sale, though it does have some Testors paint sets and brushes, and an air compressor (but no airbrushes - huh?). I'll have to check Seoul and see if I can find anything better selection- and price-wise there.
Not a lot going on here. I hope you guys don't mind, but about 25 years ago, I got a toy that was a Redwings/Houraioh bootleg that was all brown and had a mugen calibur head in Seoul. If anyone has heard about or seen this weird thing, I'd like to see pictures of it again since I no longer have mine. I think I got the places that were green and red reversed.
Dongdaemun Toy Market has a few Prime RiD figures. A couple shops had Voyager Prime and Megatron, as well as the Bumblebee/Starscream two-pack. Didn't see any Deluxes or Cyberverse. Prices seemed to vary, one shop had the voyagers for about 49,000 KRW and the two-pack for 55,000, while another shop (the big one with the Lego signs) had the voyagers for a more reasonable 37,400. Haven't seen Prime stuff at any of the big name department stores yet.
The Home Plus department stores now have some PRID stuff. The one I was at today had Wave 1 Voyagers, Cyberverse Commanders, and Legions, as well as the Optimus Role-play helmet and Bumblebee blaster. No deluxes or Botshots. Prices for the Voyagers was W44,900, same as with DotM, but the Cyberverse figures were each W1000 cheaper, at around W13,900 and 7,900.
Wow, sorry for reviving a completely dead thread but was hoping for some help. I'm in Daejeon right now for business and was hoping to maybe find some TF's to eventually take back home with me but so far it's been a complete shutout. I actually thought I would be able to find tons of stuff here but I was so wrong. The only decent stuff I've seen so far were at a local Homeplus. MP Bumblebee(movie) and MP Sunstorm, neither of which interest me at all and a reissue Sixshot. Guess collecting isn't really big here? Was hoping to get some older MP's and also MP Prowl but doesn't look promising at all.
Korea isn't really the best place is it? There are some hobby stores in Sindorim station and Yongsan station. Otherwise I can't find anywhere that is like Japan or Taiwan. Does anybody know of any hobby stores in Seoul that sell rare or 3rd party transformers? Has anybody ever had stuff shipped to Korea? Any trouble from customs?
I'm a new collector and I've had some luck recently. Found MP-10b Black Convoy at Sindorim Technomart. (Might still be one left. They had 4) Lots of AM line bots too. Yongsan gets a lot of the newer stuff, but you can find an AM there once in a while. Picked up Terrorcon Bumblebee there a few weeks ago. Dongdemun Toy Market has stuff, but requires some searching through lots of tiny shops. Found a decade-old Vector Prime and a Nemesis color scheme Dark of the Moon Jetfire Optimus last time. Korea obviously doesn't have the best selections, but if you're willing to hunt a bit you'll find some good stuff. I've also had TFSource ship to me here without any problems so you've got that option too!
Never found any place that had rare or third parties while I was in Korea, and I was there for 3 years. Occasionally you can find them at Home Plus or emart, but those will tend to be a limited selection of what's currently being released. Like the posters before me noted, the prices can be steep compared to stateside. On the plus side, you can happen upon some great deals (for Korea) when you do find them. I once picked up a box set that had a voyager and 2 deluxes in it for 45,000. Happened across a few Takara (Japanese) MPs another time for less than 100,000. As far as shipping and customs is concerned, I'll say this much: If you are military, ship thru your APO address. Customs isn't horrible in Korea, but they aren't great either. While they may not have issue with the toys themselves, you will likely NOT receive notice that you have a package, and when you do be prepared to pay a 20% import tax on the declared value of the package. I found this out the hard way one Christmas. If you can take a hop to Japan to go shopping ... do it!
Hey guys, I'm heading to Seoul the end of this month and will be staying Myeong-dong. Any good shops to check out? How is the selection there for Transformers and other Western brands, like Marvel Legends, DC, etc?
I will be also in Seoul in september and looking to buy some Masterpiece figures. Any suggestions? Thanks
When I was living in Seoul, it was extremely difficult to find collectible toys. Most department stores have toys for kids, but I couldn't find a collectible toy shop at all. Of course, this was 8 years ago, but I don't think anything has changed.
With the advent Korea's own transforming robots, Transformers toys are now truly shelved in shelfwarming corners. I predict the only Transformers that will be imported will be the Bumblebee movie toys. With no Studio Series. And maayybbee the Cyberverse toys.
Studio Series is only being sold online and at Toys R Us here. And finally in December the only new toys are Studio Series, Power Charge and DJ Bumblebee. Very minimal, but disappointing. I was hoping whey also import the Speed Series Legions.
I'm going to Daegu and Seoul in June. Where would be my best bet on finding Tobot toys? And older Tobot lines? Also, have you seen Tobot Troll and Bigtrail on shelves? I can't find them online at all.
아름다운가계 thrift stores have plenty of used Tobots being circulated. If you're fluent in korean and a have a bank account or okay with buying in person, you could shop for used items on sites like m.bunjang.co.kr and Naver 중고나라.
Any collectors living in Korea? I’m looking to sell off some of my third party legends. If anyone is interested PM me.