Let's be clear: I'm not a MISB collector, I love seeing my collection, posing figures, even transforming them (weird, I know). However, I also like to have things to look forward to, rainy day and all that. Right now I have 6 figures in their boxes that I'll open and play with at some point, but not today because I'm still enjoying the last figure I opened. Am I the only person here that does this?

Edit: I always open them to give them a quality check and then rebox them and stow them away.

 

I have to at least check them asap, I don’t want to wait to long and find defect or break that is return worthy only for the return refund window to be closed

 

Generally I open things as soon as I get them. Since I do a lot of my shopping online anymore I want to check immediately for defects so I can start a return within the proper time frame if necessary. Plus, I collect other action figure lines besides Transformers so outside of slow months like this one where nothing is really scheduled for release... I generally don't have times where I have nothing brand new to fiddle with once a week or so.

 

This. I started collecting again only last year after a 10 year hiatus. The first figures I got in 2021, I saved a couple, opened one or two months later even. But as I started watching figure review vids and learning about the current TF toy landscape, it's in your best interest to open ASAP if you are planning to open, and check for QC issues/defective toys. I have been very lucky I think, I've bought several figures, and no issues to the point where I felt the need to return. It would be devastating to open a figure weeks/months later, only to find a major QC issue.

 

Not with every figure, but I do this with my Lego & occasionally I’ll do this if I don’t have room to display things.

Is it bad I’ve got a HasLab Unicron sealed in his box just plonked in my spare room for now? I’m not a hoarder, I swear these are getting sorted!

 

That floating Unicron head on the box looks pissed that you haven't opened him yet.

 

I always save something for later and I wish I could exhibit some of the same patience and restraint in other areas of my life. As it turns out though, I opened both Jackpot and Slammer and my well of unopened toys has run dry until Tigatron and Blaster arrive from BBTS. Someday.

When I pre-order Transformers I maintain this fantasy they're all going to come together in one box and I'm going to open them all at once and have a huge battle right here on my desk, but it doesn't work out that way.

 

Outside of Amazon Warehouse buys (I always look at those immediately), I admit I save a majority of figures until "I'm ready" for them without even opening them. I've been doing that for pretty much all media and such for as long as I can remember (games, movies, toys, etcetera) and, yes, days/weeks/months/years later it has come back to bite me sometimes. For me it is more about ownership, having the item first, so that when I'm ready it's there for me. I also tend to apply Toyhax labels to most of my figures and like to wait until I see if they are doing something I might want to the figure before I get my oily fingers all over them, heh.

 

I wait until I have a "need" to open something new, as most of the toys I'm buying now are just updated iterations of a character I already have. I have had Leader Galvatron sitting in a box for a couple weeks now and Kingdom Cyclonus for half a week now.

 

99% of the time I open them immediately...

...but I have one 2011 RTS Laser Prime that's still sitting unopened in a closet. I got it in a 4-figure assortment where I wanted the other 3 figures, and said to myself, "That's enough new TFs for one day. Let's save this one for a day when you're jonesing for a new TF." And then it just never seemed like the right time to open it. And at this point, more than a decade later (how is this possible?!), it feels like opening it would have to be some sort of special occasion.

 

Oh yeah I typically have a few "rainy day figures". At one point I think I had like 20 or more figures that I hadn't been able to open for a couple of months (life gets busy sometimes... and BBTS insists that you ship your POL).

Don't feel too bad. I got mine from Pulse in April and didn't open him till Christmas day... not because it was Christmas per se, but we've been remodeling the basement and with work and life it was the first good opportunity I had to pop him open. It is so worth it when you do!

 

I get 'em out as soon as possible. I only save some for later if I receive a large POL from BBTS and it takes days to open all of them. Either way, the task can be daunting. I like to power through it when possible.

 

7 unopened? LOL. I started back collecting with WFC Siege. I still have Siege Megs, prime, magnus, hoist, ratchet, starscream, soundwave, wheeljack, smokescreen, snapdragon, skylynx, jetfire unopened. That's just from Siege. I just buy more than I have time to open and mess with. On average I open 1 figure per week, because no time and laziness.

I agree that given the QC issues with WFC, you should open to inspect before it's too late to return/exchange. However, to do a proper inspection, you have to take it out of the box and transform it, which consumes a lot of time, if you're opening a commander class for example. I just don't have the time. After work I have chores. But when I do get time, I like looking at my 30+ unopened figures and deciding which one I'd open this week. Currently buy more than I open so I have a growing backlog.

But if it's a used or Amazon warehouse figure, I open right away just to check it without transforming.

 

He’s definitely doing an Ultra Magnus isn’t he, “open, damn it open!”  

Thanks man, feels so good to be reminded of this. I could open him now, but with me being in the middle of decorating I just wouldn’t appreciate it the same. And I want this to be an event! Plus this way if I change my mind for some crazy reason and sell him, at least he’s still sealed.

 

I don’t save but I buy one at a time. I get the box and it’s instantly open.

 

I open pretty much everything right away these days...both to check for issues and to have fun with it. Every TF gets TF'd at least twice before it goes onto the shelf. That being said, I do have some figures still sealed in their boxes from years ago that I may or may not ever open. I accumulated a lot of things really quickly in late 2017/early 2018 after I returned to collecting and some of them have never been opened. I also have several stragglers from a long time ago that were gifted to me after I left collecting in 2007 (25th anniversary Reissue G1 Optimus...Mechtech Leader Bumblebee...Universe Decepticon 3-pack of redeco'd Cybertron figures). I kinda doubt I'll ever open any of those.

 

If I pick up one or two at the store, I’ll open right away. If I get a stash shipment from TCP, TFSource or BBTS, then I’ll take my time. I want to take my time and enjoy each one in turn.

 

I open dem sumbitches as soon as I get them home.

 

I sometimes save them for later with the idea I might need a pick-me-up. Other times, get too busy to enjoy them so I wait. Lately because of being immunocompromised and the current situation I only buy online and for stuff to die off of it before opening.

 

I actually am in the same boat and even a little worse. I have yet to take Haslab Unicron out of the box it was shipped in. I meant to open over Christmas break but got sidetracked and never got to update the mancave to fit the beast. Luckily just prior to Unicron arriving I finally opened and set up MotUC Snake Mountain otherwise there would be yuge boxes waiting to be opened.

As for the original question not normally but on occasion I tend to. Most recently SG Jetfire arrived the day I got notice of SG Starscream being charged, so I am saving opening those two to open for the next big snowstorm we get in New England. I have a plan to take some photos in the backyard to recreate some SG Fire in the Sky scenes. Prior to that I would say it was waiting the two years for all the SS Contructicons to arrive. Not Transformers but I also waited until all the Matty Collector Voltron Classics arrived before opening. So to answers the poll question would be none of the above.