Dr.H
08-15-2005, 07:34 AM
It can be very hard to get many Original Japanese Garage Kits in the USA or Europe, so in this thread I will try to explain how we use Yahoo Japan Auction to buy many production and show only kits.
Yahoo Japan is alot like Ebay since Japan does not have an Ebay of their own.
The pages of Yahoo Japan are in Japanese so most of us can not read them but there are tricks to getting around it that I will discuss later.
The first thing you'll need to do is make it so your computer can read Japanese characters. Using Windows XP: Go to the Start menu then click on Control Panel.
In the Control Panel click on the Date,Time,Language,andRegional Options button with the picture of the calender over the Earth next to it. Once there click on the Regional and Language Options button with the globe next to it.
This will open up a new window, in this new window click on the Languages tab at the top of the window. In the Languages window you will see a Supplemental language supports box, in that box click on and check the box next to Install files for East Asian languages, next click on the Apply button at the bottom of the window. At this point you may be asked to put in your Windows XP disk, put your disk into the cd drive and follow any dirrections given by the computer from there. After a restart of your computer you should be able to read Asian Characters. (NOTE: Since I do not have Vista I'm not familiar with it's language settings)
Next step is the set up an account with an Import agent that will bid on auctions for you and ship them to your home for an small service charge. This is important because most sellers will not sell or ship goods outside of Japan.
Here is a list of Import agents:
Shopping Mall Japan: http://www.shoppingmalljapan.com/
Akibado: http://www.akibado.com/index.html
CELGA: http://www.celga.com/
Rinkya: http://www.rinkya.com/
Most of us have been really happy with Shopping Mall Japans prices and service.
Next thing that might come in handy is a free translators. While it is hard for translators to convert Japanese to english it is usually enough to get the idea of what is going on in the auction.
AltaVista-Babel Fish: http://babelfish.altavista.com/
WordLingo: http://www.worldlingo.com/en/products_services/worldlingo_translator.html
Google: http://www.google.com/language_tools?hl=en
I will add translators and import agents as more become available.
Ok now lets get to the auctions:D
Here is the main window for Yahoo Japan Auctions : http://auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/
Here is the link for the WHF, which is a show where alot of original garage kits are sold: http://search.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/search?sb=desc&desc=whf&auccat=0&acc=jp&apg=&f=0x62&s1=end&o1=a&alocale=0jp&mode=1
Here is the big general search for figures: http://list4.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/2084023789-category-leaf.html?f=&alocale=0jp&mode=1
Here is a more specific one: http://list4.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/2084040570-category-leaf.html?apg=3&f=&o1=a&alocale=0jp&mode=1
This will get you started. There are alot of more specific searches for different anime shows, sculpters, characters, goods, and companys.
I sure our fine members here would be happy to add searches to this thread that they like or info that they personaly find useful.
**Before you bid, make sure you read and understand the auction description thoroughly. Watch out for hidden prices and surcharges added on after the auction ends. Be wary of new sellers and items located outside of Japan. As with any auction system - if it sounds too good to be true - it probably is.
Yahoo Japan is alot like Ebay since Japan does not have an Ebay of their own.
The pages of Yahoo Japan are in Japanese so most of us can not read them but there are tricks to getting around it that I will discuss later.
The first thing you'll need to do is make it so your computer can read Japanese characters. Using Windows XP: Go to the Start menu then click on Control Panel.
In the Control Panel click on the Date,Time,Language,andRegional Options button with the picture of the calender over the Earth next to it. Once there click on the Regional and Language Options button with the globe next to it.
This will open up a new window, in this new window click on the Languages tab at the top of the window. In the Languages window you will see a Supplemental language supports box, in that box click on and check the box next to Install files for East Asian languages, next click on the Apply button at the bottom of the window. At this point you may be asked to put in your Windows XP disk, put your disk into the cd drive and follow any dirrections given by the computer from there. After a restart of your computer you should be able to read Asian Characters. (NOTE: Since I do not have Vista I'm not familiar with it's language settings)
Next step is the set up an account with an Import agent that will bid on auctions for you and ship them to your home for an small service charge. This is important because most sellers will not sell or ship goods outside of Japan.
Here is a list of Import agents:
Shopping Mall Japan: http://www.shoppingmalljapan.com/
Akibado: http://www.akibado.com/index.html
CELGA: http://www.celga.com/
Rinkya: http://www.rinkya.com/
Most of us have been really happy with Shopping Mall Japans prices and service.
Next thing that might come in handy is a free translators. While it is hard for translators to convert Japanese to english it is usually enough to get the idea of what is going on in the auction.
AltaVista-Babel Fish: http://babelfish.altavista.com/
WordLingo: http://www.worldlingo.com/en/products_services/worldlingo_translator.html
Google: http://www.google.com/language_tools?hl=en
I will add translators and import agents as more become available.
Ok now lets get to the auctions:D
Here is the main window for Yahoo Japan Auctions : http://auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/
Here is the link for the WHF, which is a show where alot of original garage kits are sold: http://search.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/search?sb=desc&desc=whf&auccat=0&acc=jp&apg=&f=0x62&s1=end&o1=a&alocale=0jp&mode=1
Here is the big general search for figures: http://list4.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/2084023789-category-leaf.html?f=&alocale=0jp&mode=1
Here is a more specific one: http://list4.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/2084040570-category-leaf.html?apg=3&f=&o1=a&alocale=0jp&mode=1
This will get you started. There are alot of more specific searches for different anime shows, sculpters, characters, goods, and companys.
I sure our fine members here would be happy to add searches to this thread that they like or info that they personaly find useful.
**Before you bid, make sure you read and understand the auction description thoroughly. Watch out for hidden prices and surcharges added on after the auction ends. Be wary of new sellers and items located outside of Japan. As with any auction system - if it sounds too good to be true - it probably is.