beyblades

[hockeymom]

okay... I feel a little silly posting this, but I am asking for my 10 yr old son.

do any of you have any experience with beyblades? My son has 4 which I know are the real thing (sold by Hasbro), however, today at a mall we saw some which were in Japanese packaging and had no mention of Hasbro anywhere on them, there is very little english anywhere on the packaging. So my question is, could these ones be counterfeits? or is it just a direct-import from Japan so it has a difference in packaging (I don't believe Hasbro distributes them in Japan, just in N.A.). I did allow him to buy one on the condition it could be returned to the store without a problem, so needless to say the toy is not being used until I found out something more about this particular one. here is what else makes me suspicious:

- it is in a sealed package inside the box, however the beyblade itself is already assembled, it does however have a separate sticker package. I know the Hasbro ones had to be completely assembled.

edited to add: this one is called a "dragoon" A-41, box also mentions MG system


- doesn't appear to have a clear cover thing for the bit chip

anyone out there a beyblade expert? these appear to be all the rage right now and very hard to find, I just don't like to see kids getting suckered into getting counterfeits.

 

[monorailmike]

Hi there. I am by no means an expert on Japanese toys, but let me try to help. Is there anything in english whatsoever? Either on the box or somewhere on the toy. Look for a name like Bandia or Takara. These are some of the major companies in Japan. My guess would be Takara as Hasbro tends to get the rights to sell them in the states (ala Transformers), and Bandai sells on their own here. Can you tell if the construction is on par with the US blades? Counterfits are usually quite inferior in build. Look, if possible, at thickness of plastic pieces, and quality of joints for similar construction between the two. Let me know how things pan out. If it helps take my advice seriously, I'm a 28 years old, arrested adolecent who dismays co-workers with my knowledge of toys and cartoons that their children like.

Cheers!

Whoops: Forgot to add, that what I do know is that packaging does vary greatly, from country to country.

 

[monorailmike]

Hi there. I am by no means an expert on Japanese toys, but let me try to help. Is there anything in english whatsoever? Either on the box or somewhere on the toy. Look for a name like Bandia or Takara. These are some of the major companies in Japan. My guess would be Takara as Hasbro tends to get the rights to sell them in the states (ala Transformers), and Bandai sells on their own here. Can you tell if the construction is on par with the US blades? Counterfits are usually quite inferior in build. Look, if possible, at thickness of plastic pieces, and quality of joints for similar construction between the two. Let me know how things pan out. If it helps take my advice seriously, I'm a 28 years old, arrested adolecent who dismays co-workers with my knowledge of toys and cartoons that their children like.

Cheers!

 

[Monorail Lime]

BeyBlades are made by Takara in Japan. As monorailmike points out, Hasbro licenses their products for release over here. Usually it is hard to fine the Japanese versions of toys in the states when such an agreement exists, as Hasbro actively discourages their import to retain the profits for themselves. Importation and resale of the toys is not illegal, and in spite of corporate discouragement happens quite often.

Long story short... if it says Hasbro or Takara it is legit, if not it is a knock off.

 

[hockeymom]

Hi, thanks for the help!! I'm not really up on these toys, but it made me suspicious. Here is what the only english on the box reads:

"slayers system" The Evolutionary from of the Baygoma. Power up for the 21st Century. (I think it was probably supposed to be "form" and not "from"?) This one is a Dragoon V. I didn't see this name on the Beyblade website.

It also says "bit chip", "attack ring", "weight disk", "spin gear", "blade base" by each diagram of the parts. The instructions are all in Japanese.

the company name (?) shows TT (one red T, one blue T) and HONGLI underneath.

this one also appears to be magnetic and from the side pictures on the box it would appear there is also a magnetic stadium thing available. Also says "POWER UP" on the side.

also shows "starter set" in English and it does have a picture of the cartoon guy (Kai?) on the front and says 2002 up on the top near the hang flap.
I have let him try it out anyway, and it does appear to be equal to the others (real ones), it spins very nice & smoothly. what is throwing me off is the fact that it is pre-assembled (except for the decals) and no clear cover on the bit chip. maybe the pre-assembly could be something to do with import reg's?

thanks!!

 

[Monorail Lime]

Sorry, but it sounds like a knockoff. But if the quality is as good as the real thing, it doesn't really matter right?

 

[hockeymom]

Originally posted by Monorail Lime
Sorry, but it sounds like a knockoff. But if the quality is as good as the real thing, it doesn't really matter right?

He is very happy with it, I just don't care for the idea of the counterfeits!! It was no more expensive than the others anyway and like you said if the quality is as good as the real thing it doesn't matter. but I am going to get him to stick to the real ones.

I noticed that there are some of these selling on ebay also and being listed as "new". that always makes me leary too, that and "rare"!!


thanks both of you monorail guys!!

 

[monorailmike]

Hard to tell. It sounds to be legit. I did some searching on the web, and found a store in Taiwan selling the Beyblades. You might have one from there, as there was a picture (I'll try attaching) matching your description. The fact that you said it is similar in build leads me to believe that you have a legit import Beyblade. Trust me when I say that knock offs are made with thinner/less plastic.

Here is the picture I found.

 

[hockeymom]

Originally posted by monorailmike
Hard to tell. It sounds to be legit. I did some searching on the web, and found a store in Taiwan selling the Beyblades. You might have one from there, as there was a picture (I'll try attaching) matching your description. The fact that you said it is similar in build leads me to believe that you have a legit import Beyblade. Trust me when I say that knock offs are made with thinner/less plastic.

Here is the picture I found.

That is the one!!
The plastic on it actually seems to be even a tad thicker than the real ones. It seems to be every bit as good, the plastic seems to be nicer also.

just curious, what search engine did you use? I tried webferret and couldn't find much to go on.

thanks again!!

 

[monorailmike]

Glad to hear it. I would hazard to say it's the real thing. I just typed Beyblade into google. And then picked out the sites that made mention of toys or Japan. I forgot add that the counterfits would run a bigger chance of being hunted down by using the "official" characters on the package. That's not to say they wouldn't do it. I also meant to add again that packaging does indeed vary from one country to the next. I've seen how some DragonBall Z figures come packaged in Japan, in an magazine ad. I would think that it was a fake if I didn't know better.

 

[Maria]

Thanks for posting the box´s pic! I was wondering what a beyblade was! :lol:

 

[hockeymom]

Maybe the magnet is going to be a new feature? The store he bought it at was also owned by an oriental family, so I would assume they do some direct importing. They sold many different toys, comics, etc.


Maria - these things "battle" each other, they are a spinning top type toy. I know years ago there was a game called "Spin Tops" or something like that and it was a similar idea, although these ones are much more sophisticated!! Boys love them (of all ages!)

 

[Chester&Hester Enthusiast]

Originally posted by Maria
Thanks for posting the box´s pic! I was wondering what a beyblade was! :lol:

Me too... lol