I've just started to get interested in this but I know practically nothing, and given the cost of this hobby, figured it might be good for me (and anyone else) to get any pointers from the old pros.

Retailers: What's the best places to buy from? Are there any places to steer clear from?
Manufacturers: Who's putting out some of the better quality figures on the market? Likewise, is there any companies with a track record for dodgy product?
Terminology: I can gather that 1/6 is bigger than 1/8 but exactly what does it mean.. what sort of size is that anyway (since imaginary characters don't exactly have real world measurements anyway)? Any other words that one might run across, care to explain?
Plus any other pearls of wisdom you might care to share from your many years.

P.S. I've heard about figures falling over of their own accord a bit.. what's up with that? Surely Japan has come far enough in technology to make sure that the model you spent 5000 yen on doesn't topple from it's base by now? If it happens do you just have to make with the glue?

If anyone else is as lost as me, post up your questions :)

It depends on your country isn't it?

But I use HLJ.com. The shipping is pretty low for me although I'm sure if I tried harder I could get stuff cheaper. So far they have been very reliable.

As for quality, look no further than Alter x Good Smile x Mac factory. These guys make the best stuff. Kotobukiya is decent but not as good. There are quite a lot of firms though.

Scale means just that. But they can be deceiving. 1/8 is the standard and they look just fine. Every anime character has a set height even if they are imaginary characters.

Figurines that stand on one leg have a tendency to warp and lean after a while unless they are properly designed. PVC is a malleable material after all. It's not unbalance per se but more of the leg completely bending over. 

It depends on 3 factors. The material used, the pose and the base.  

tjhan pretty much covered everything needed to say, so I'll throw in something else.

Just to warn you that this hobby that you intend to pursue is very expensive and stopping it would be very hard, given the addictive nature of puchasing those figurines, and watching new releases coming out from japan. 

crayotic: wow thanks for starting this thread. Am a figure noob here too and thirsty for more figure advice.

tjhan86: Just curious on your shipping choice with HLJ. Are you using SAL? I've heard that SAL's rougher with their deliveries? Was your crushed packaging of Bakuten Meg due to their poor handling?

I suppose. It's much cheaper with SAL and since we live so close, the difference in time isn't much. Out of the many packages, only 2-3 were crushed and there's no dmg to the items. 

Of course, if you're shipping resin/polystone stuff you b etter get EMS.

You know, these looney Japs probably have some sort of measurements stashed aside for anime characters lol. 1/6 just means 6 of your little figurines stacked on top of one another should be the about the height of the character. Err, meaning that's about 26-27cm x 6.

Oh, and here's a tip: Get the figures out of their boxes whenever you can, especially if you're like me in a hot hell-hole like M'sia. Or if it's summer. I used to keep the real pretty ones in their boxes (you know, the Mint in Box obsession of toy collectors).

And apparently storing them in my room wasn't enough. I opened them up around 6-7 months later and the PVC was all sticky and oily. Man, I regret that. Just a heads-up.

It's crazy, coz I never actually considered thinking about what they're made out of. Just assumed it'd be the typical hard plastic style models that I'm used to with McFarlane, etc...

Great tips though, because I'm a hoarder and I definitely want my stuff to last. Sucks about the one legged flop over thing though.

And too late Tsubaki, I've already put an order through :D Hopefully SAL shipping treats me alright (I'm all the way in New Zealand)

If I'm not wrong McF uses the same material. But American and Japanese toys do use varying materials.For example, Japanese resin is white resin, which doesn't stink, while American ones are yellow resin, which is fart-stinky. 

Regalia, this is the first time I heard of the oily thing. I'm in Singapore, so the climate is about the same and all my figurines are now in their boxes. I have seen many advanced collectors store their stuff in boxes for years and not heard any complaints about stickiness. Is that oily and stickiness removeable?

If it isn't, I may have to start doing shifts lol. Take 10 out at once for one month each, then rotate. 

SO crayotic, what did you buy? 

Well to be honest I have no clue what McFarlane use, but they look pretty darn rock solid whatever they are, and certainly in no danger of getting finger imprints on them if you poke them in the face like that Pinky Street Sakura :)

And re. what I've bought/preordered: 1/8 Melissa Seraphi PVC.
I have no clue who she is or what she's from, but once I saw the pumpkin I was sold like Martha Stewart stock. Glad to hear that Good Smile is a quality company as well.

Meh! That loli's hawt, but not good enough to make me part my money.

>>> Regalia, this is the first time I heard of the oily thing. I'm in Singapore, so the climate is about the same and all my figurines are now in their boxes. I have seen many advanced collectors store their stuff in boxes for years and not heard any complaints about stickiness. Is that oily and stickiness removeable?

Well, this happened to two of my figures. Before the end of last year, I wasn't really a hardcore collector of these figures. So, after I bought them, I didn't have anywhere to put them. And soon after I left for Australia, leaving the figures in their boxes under my desk. My room does have a huge window where sun comes in right at noon. I believe that if life was normal and my room was used and ventilated now and then this wouldn't have happened. Alas, I was away for nearly a year, and my parents never touch my stuff. So, when I got back...

The stickiness was, under closer observation, a slight combination of melting (?) of the PVC and the transparent plastic holding the figure. And I have no idea why it got oily. Maybe if we cut open the figures they have stuff in them? Lol. Anyway, oil could be cleaned, stickiness kinda disappears but the texture of the figure, so to speak, goes down the drain. 

Air conditioning and storage in coller places help. (My room is like a oven at noon without the air-con).Haha, I don't think rotation every month is necessary, but don't leave it for 3/4 of a year like me. =D 

It may possible be decomposition of the PVC. If you leave it in the sun, the UV rays break it down. 

My room has the climate of a permanant autumn, so I'm not too worried. But I'll be placing one little satchet of silica into each box just in case. 

My room has the climate of a permanant autumn, so I'm not too worried. But I'll be placing one little satchet of silica into each box just in case.

Please tell me that your air-conditioning isn't switched on for 24 hours. ~.~ 

Only when I'm in the room (which is quite often).The windows and door are always closed so it's nice and dry inside.

The oil is from the PVC itself, a little cleaning would do the trick. It's also not advisable to store your figures in a warm place or where the sun hits because it will melt the PVC. Over time, PVC figures will also have the "leaning syndrome".

As for the scales, 1/8 usually means that the figure is 7-8 inches. 1/6 is 11-12 inches...do the math. Although there really is no standard measurement for all figure companies, so scales might differ from one publisher to another.

Good Smile Company, Alter and Kotobukiya are some of the best publishers in the business.