77 replies to this topic

[ironmask]

Well put.

[BaltanII]

Now I never paid a dime, I was anonymously donated my purple Ammonite from some seller at the time, but as the only valuable figure to come into my hands through a channel I don’t necessarily know, I am left wondering! Going to have to make a point to dig it out and check, with pics here.

[SmokinGun]

Most if these fake figures were purchased in lots on ebay under fake names and false accounts. Or received from other collectors after getting them from Forbes. And I'm sure there are plenty of other people who bought figures from him or his fake accounts who aren't aware of LRG at all and would have no knowledge of his past or who he is.

 

If someone thinks they may have a dyed MUSCLE figure. Maybe the best case is to use dye color remover. Fill the clear cup with the dye remover and leave that figure in for a few hours or days to see if the solution changes color. Only way to know if your have a genuine MUSCLE figure or a fake. 

[fuzzbuster]

Anyone who seriously collects Muscle....

I agree with the the basic sentiment of what you are saying, but only within the context of what people here consider a "serious" collector.

 

In the past ten years I have met about 20 people out in the world that have M.U.S.C.L.E. collections, and roughly 5 times that via non-LRG internet interactions. Not a single one I had spoken to had ever heard of AKIA, LRG, or any other toy forums. Some had heard of Nathan's M.U.S.C.L.E. Page, but most cite social media as their sole source of info, if any. The only other website that comes up in these conversations is Ebay.

Many of those from North America have never even heard of Kinnikuman, or only have a vague idea that the line was copied from a Japanese franchise.

 

Most of these collectors are far less interested in the information about the toyline and it's history than the figures themselves. They may have browsed a few websites to glean some very basic information, but are more interested in where to obtain some figures than their backstories. Most only consider color within the context of whether or not they like how it looks, and the majority of them seem to only be interested in the original flesh variety when it comes to filling out a full 233. They have never heard of a class system, and respond with a confused chuckle when told about it.

 

The thing is, many of these people would consider themselves serious collectors. They like the toys, buy and trade them, and enjoy having their favorite sculpts on their shelves. They would be mystified by anyone referring to their collecting habits as casual, because for many of these folks collecting is not a primary focus in their lives.

In their eyes, they are serious collectors in the regard that they have sought out toys, added them to their collection, and enjoy the collections they have. To be more invested in a hobby than that goes beyond being merely serious about your collection.

 

Regardless of what some here think, there are many more people in the world that have M.U.S.C.L.E. collections than those that are or have been represented here, and to those outside of the LRG vortex, we are more than serious collectors. We are zealots.

[jkaris]

Now I never paid a dime, I was anonymously donated my purple Ammonite from some seller at the time, but as the only valuable figure to come into my hands through a channel I don’t necessarily know, I am left wondering! Going to have to make a point to dig it out and check, with pics here.

Don't!

 

I bought that from that guy who was selling it around that time CloneWars and had him send it anonymously. I wanted to remain anonymous, but I'd rather out myself now than have you mess up that figure.

 

Edit: It's possible that he got it from Alex. Still, I'd suggest that you just grab another purple to compare it to, and test that way, versus nicking it.

Dyed figures tend to fade significantly over the years.

[BaltanII]

Oh damn! Well thank you so much for that, and the concern is appreciated, but I wasn’t going to cut the figure anywhere! All I intended to do was more closely examine it, compare with any other purple figures, and post pics. I haven’t even gotten to the container with it yet. Little dude is safe even if he is faked!

[ironmask]

Any more movement here?

[fuzzbuster]

Veers' article on this subject will likely be published within the next week or so.

[BaltanII]

I still didn’t dig out my figures but will try this week.

[Ridureyu]

Suddenly I remember how the board game figures were selected by molding trees, and Forbes is the "only" collector with a complete light purple/grape tree - including a grape claw.  I wonder if it's dyed, too...

[zero]

Several people bought dyed figures until they discovered that they were dyed.  The question should be why would someone sell a dyed figure as real.

 

Why would several people buy figures and pay arforbes money and then dye them and blame arforbes.  Hilarious.

[jphat]

Jroc, u can tell that story brother. I have been honest and 100% genuine with everyone in this community, those who have my post divorce collection will know I’ve always been good to you, fair, and taken care of you. I have been out of the toy hobby for 5 years, let it go, had to.....So my name shouldn’t be brought up unless you want to buy anything I have left (shameless plug). As for Alex, he deserves karma in a big way, it will come around. I’m sorry you guys have been getting scammed or have in the past, I just never had been. I was vocal back in the days yup, still am!! And?? Yeah... but I’m a good guy, always will be......
And to the crybaby who got banned for me wanting razzes, send me your address, I got a bucket for your tears I want to send ya....

Just when I thought I was out...

Lol

J def had my back on the Forbes lb claw incident. (http://blog.uofmuscl...ebruary-16th-2/)

I told him what happened just cuz I thought it was a funny story and he blew up on Alex over it. I told him I didn’t want him to jeopardize being able to use Alex (Hi AR ) in the future over it and he still told him how F’d up it was and tried to get him to make it right. J’s always been honest with me.

Also- to the person that got the claw after me, it was only fine to you because of how much I cleaned it lol

[atilary]

Thank you, I was the guy that got that claw after you. It did indeed look fine to me. Also, this is the first time out of my house in two weeks and I'm sitting in line at the pharmacy writing this and it feels very odd.

[jphat]

Thank you, I was the guy that got that claw after you. It did indeed look fine to me. Also, this is the first time out of my house in two weeks and I'm sitting in line at the pharmacy writing this and it feels very odd.

You’re welcome! Lol
Stay safe and good luck!

Also- if anyone thinks they may have a dyed figure, try looking at it under a black light before you cut it in half.

Purple should look pink under uv light, salmon looks kinda white. Use a couple class c’s to compare.

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[zero]

The user is professor terry from university of muscle blog
Funny nothing about him in the write up!Bones is a liar scammer and a complete piece of shit
I would not trust anything he says

I’ve met Bones. Great guy. You - I don’t know you at all.

[BaltanII]

So, we have a winner?

Radio silence, but "somebody else" comes to the defense.

 

If I didn't have a job, I'd probably have dug out my Ammonite by now, but thank goodness for working remotely.

[cloning007]

Ive met Bones (nick) before and let me tell you he is a complete scum bag, he gave me like 3 class A figures and when i tried to pay him he wouldnt take the money, Talk about a piece of dog turd 

[Krangala]

It's a shame that an article (how to dye figures) that was published way back in the early days was used to such nefarious ends. But how were we to know that would be the end result? 

 

We were such a small and tight knit group that we didn't see the threat lurking within the community until it was too late. Now we're stuck diligently learning how to spot these fakes, and educating new collectors to be cautious.

 

The cure for it, is to deal with trusted individuals, and root out any suspicious activity, and expose any secondary accounts of the culprit(s).

 

But that also means we have to constantly talk and share information about their activities, not only keeping the culprit relevant, but in a way, stroking their ego. Surely it's a sad little existence being a member of a fandom, but not really being able to interact with the core fandom.

 

I'm glad this place exists. I'm glad we have such good people in the community, and I'm glad we freely share information and opinions. We might have differing opinions, but we are united in our love for these tiny silly toys, and that is more important, I think, than any disagreement. 

Edited by Krangala, 12 April 2020 - 01:08 PM.

[ManofV]

Nicely put. It seems so easy to change Orange to Salmon and dark blue to purple. It is a minefield no doubt. I have hundreds of figures of which I am yet to sort through. If I come across any class A's I will be examining them very closely.