[jwyss234]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ukmu

Generally KO's are from the same factory . In fact, 95% of the time they are seconds or what they call "overflow" production.

Say HASBRO orders 400,000 of a figure. And day after day they churn them out. Half way through the day they hit their quota. They are not going to change over the moulds during the production run and have employees standing around. They simply finish the day and change the moulds end of shift. These are not the property of HASBRO (or who ever ordered them) but they are not for sale either.

In the real world everything is for sale and they often find their way out. Sometimes right away, sometime 7years later. This isn't always the case for sure, but just like in America the generic root beer is canned in the same place as the name brand root beer. The Johnson's and Johnson's baby wipes are he same as Equate with a different sticker. In the end, often they are the same product, but not always. I just happen to know two people in the States that work in a baby wipe factory and a root beer factory. They told me the A&W is the same as the Kroger cans except the cans have different paint.

Drifting off a bit but the point remains, KO's are more often than not the same quality. Sometimes they are missing a step but other times the same and in the odd case-better than original.

Also to 80USD original versus the 45USD KO, that is a savings of 35USD and tuna sammy's aside, if you do that ten times every two years that is a free 4K tele on Black Friday. Every little bit matters.

Well said. I've bought a few figures on eBay that originally came from China and they all fit with what you described. My DCUC Wally West Flash was an overflow figure that I was able to buy early and for less money. And my Mirage and Arcade Ninja Turtles are made with the existing molds with very little difference between them and the original. Same for my PAK Rise of the Tomb Raider Lara Croft. Aside from getting a figure early, the best reason to buy a KO is because you like the figure but not enough to pay the price for the genuine figure. And that applies to figures with huge aftermarket prices as well as figures like Captain America which are still available.

However, one point against KOs is the quality. Most of the figures I've bought have been good quality but the figures were in producation at the time. I purchased a set of the Movie Star TMNT figures and was less than pleased. I knew there were some differences between the KOs and the originals which was fine. But my hands felt skuzzy after handling them and they had a bit of a smell. Fortunately, I was able to use them as the test subjects for my first paint wash which seems to have helped them. But I still debate on tossing them. I guess my point is that most of the time you'll be ok but you may get burned.