This is a little of a catch up post for me.
I actually bought this some months back and have not properly updated it here on my site.
This was a very exciting purchase for me and like all my other exciting purchases, E was there with me when I bought this - it is arguably one of the rarest Masterforce figures to obtain and probably one of the rarer Japanese exclusive Transformers out there.
However, rare as it could be, there seem to be a fair few people that have this piece (some not unused).
The figure is Masterforce Minerva (or Minelba), the very first female Transformer toy.
C-303: Minelba MIB
Box = C9.5
Toy = C9.5, unused
Paperwork = complete
Sticker sheet = unused
Damn sweet...!
Minelba headmaster figure
Beautiful box art
Close up shot of the Minelba transtector
Box side
Back of box, very slight flap crease
Tech specs
The money shot
Unused paperworks packet (never opened, it appears)
Close up shot
The money-er shot - 2 pieces of unused Minelba (I've since sold the loose one)
A Shameless plug... Minelba with other rare TF gems...
One day, H_D hopefully I can get this beautiful piece in this condition! Wow. Great haul again! Congrats!
ReplyDeleteAdam! How fast were you man. I just posted it 2 minutes ago. Awesome speed my friend! =)
ReplyDeleteI saw a Minerva in box once, in Osaka. Man, just seeing it in a store was awesome..........then I looked at the (over) 100,000 yen price tag on it. Dreams got shattered in seconds.
ReplyDelete@H_D: Heh, oops...got excited by your haul. ;0
ReplyDelete@gage: Yup. Crazy prices indeed. Minerva is between $1,000-$1,500..hmm..maybe H_D can sell his loose one to us, eh? :p
@ Adam: this is a crazy nice piece huh? I think I should put C-301, 302 and 303 next to each other for a photo session. That'd look a lot like a family portrait.
ReplyDelete@ gage: When did you see the Minelba in Osaka? I suspect its at least more than 6 months ago. 100,000yen would probably for considered "cheap" in today's market if its like mine and unused.
It's damn crazy how these things appreciate in price in such short spans of time, absolutely buck fuk crazy.
@H_D: Mmm, that would be sweet to see! A very expensive family photo, but priceless nonetheless!
ReplyDeleteBlame the super crazy appreciation for Japanese Vintages on the weak exchange rate? What other factors do you personally think are contributing to the trend?
The price increase for Transformers in recent years are just stupid and insane. Don't understand how a simple repaint of Nightbeat (no retooling) can cost so much!!!
ReplyDelete@Anonymous: you and me both! Personally, the maximum amount justified to cough up for a vintage piece is USD$1,200 only. Anything above that is considered not worth it anymore, IMHO. Surely the collecting bubble would burst on the prices one day? Or would we continue to see even more ridiculous figures say 5 years down the line?
ReplyDelete@ Adam: So you will only pay up to USD$1200 for vintage? What if its Black Zarak or something and it costs $1800 Or Dinoking, Guard City, Battle Gaia which cost $1500 - $1700 average? Don't plan to get those? Can a normal person get those with average grad pay in SG at SGD$1500 to $2000 only. Bloody almost one mth pay.
ReplyDeleteHow much will you pay for minelba?
Saw the Minerva in March 2011 in Osaka. I think the actual price was 109,600 yen. I didn't even ask to see inside the box, because it was too painful.
ReplyDeleteGage, I bought this MIB Minelba in early April from a shop in HK that sources it's stuff from Tokyo and Osaka on a weekly basis. If you saw a Minelba in Osaka arn March and then it's gone, there is a very good chance it is this exact minelba you see in the photos here!
ReplyDelete@Anonymous: I would love to get those aftermentioned type of vintages one day, if I am exremely lucky. As those vintages cost above $1,200, it would have to be seriously thought out as there are more important things to weigh before committing to such insane prices. FYI, when I get a Vintage/s, I don't pay in full, and as I have trusted sellers I get my stuff from, we work out -somehow or rather, a payment deal berween two parites. ;o
ReplyDeleteIMHO, No point blowing one mth pay in SGD on a vintage, that's just plain incomprehensible.
@H_D: Cool, so your Minelba might have a very interesting story to it! Small world, eh? as this could be the prestine piece sought after whilst sitting in the Osaka shop spotted!
@ Adam - blowing 1 month SGD pay on a figure is just too extreme. Even blowing 1/2 mth pay on a figure is too extreme. I wonder how collectors like H_D do it nowadays. its awesome, yet crazy.
ReplyDelete@ H_D - interesting that that your Minelba coudl be the one that Gage saw!
@Anonymous: I can't comment on how H_D does it, as we all have our means and ways of collecting, right?! The secret will go with us till we are old and grey!
ReplyDeleteI think spending more than 25% of one's earnings per month on figures is probably too much, not to mention 50% or even almost all of it. How would a person survive otherwise.
ReplyDeleteEverything in moderation, I say!
@H_D: Hmm, personally for me anyway, somehow it works out in the end. ;o
ReplyDeleteBetter to put down investment in property/ shares. I do the latter. So, financially, I have other means of finance, live with my parents for the time-being, and am not married. No house or car commitments..and at this point, can afford spending 50% of my monthly income on the figures on my mini-wish list. Eh, I have friends in the same boat as me, and the most of us are doing fine. ;)
i need a new job!
ReplyDelete@Anonymous: We need to work for the same company as H_D, yah?! ;o
ReplyDelete@ Adam and Anonymous: What I do is considered extremely boring to most normal people... so you better be sure! =)
ReplyDelete@H_D: As long as it pays for the bacon! Boring job or not, no problem! ;o
ReplyDeleteAdam, I dont agreee with tht. if its boring and you have to do it everyday, it could drive me crazy
ReplyDeleteTrust me Adam. My job is not everybody's cup of tea. While I myself LOVE it, many people will find my job incredibly boring.
ReplyDelete@Anonymous: Yup, agree that repetitive job scope is not for everybody!
ReplyDelete@H_D: Try me! :p
Hi Heroic Decepticon and other TF collectors on this page! Some of you are maybe on the TFW2005 forum. Anyway, just stumbled on this post dating back to 2011. Two weeks ago a Minerva in identical conditions went for over $2000 on Yahoo, and a loose, yellowed and incomplete one for $500. Prices went totally insane! I will happily stick with my Korean KO, I guess.
ReplyDelete