As many of you know there were some great deals last Thursday aka "Epic Thursday" on both Amazon and Walmart online. Well the first part of my order from Walmart online came in this morning (an SSD) so I went to my local Walmart to pick it up, and I saw exactly what I didn't want to see, an SSD box with creases and one broken seal. I literally picked it up from the online order counter and walked straight over to customer service and returned it. When I got over to the customer service counter there was a guy in front of me returning 2 SSD's for the same resason (boxes in horrible shape). Also it didn't with the outer cardboard Lego box, shouldn't it come in this box?? My DS did when I purchased it from Lego awhile back. So frustrating on so many levels, but at least I got a full refund, just really wanted that SSD at $335, but personally I'd rather pay the full price of $400 and pull one of the shelf at Lego in pristine condition, I know I'm extremely picky, but that's something I can't change when it comes to my passion for MISB Lego. I still have some smaller (well $100 - 150 sets, so not that small) that I should be receiving from Walmart later this week and I'm hoping for better luck, and I hope any of you that also ordered via Walmart online have better luck too!

Happens with every retailer, sorry to say. Even LEGO when they ship items. Sorry to hear about your loss... ;-)

Happens with every retailer, sorry to say. Even LEGO when they ship items. Sorry to hear about your loss... ;-)

Yeah, it is what it is, and I realize this is something we will always deal with when it comes to Lego investing. I just edited my comment and added in that I noticed the SSD that I returned didn't come in an outer Lego box, like my DS from Lego did. I know it's just another box, but you can't beat an MISB inside of another nice cardboard Lego box. Should the SSD be in that outer box? Or is that just for the DS? Or do you only get that outer cardboard Lego box when purcahsing through Lego, does anyone know?

Was it problematic dealing with Walmart on the return? The reason I ask is that I just recevied the Pet shop in the mail from Epic Thursday sales and I noticed that the tape was undone. Its too big and expensive of a set to chance anything is missing in the box so I'm just going to return it. I got two more from Amazon on Epic Friday so I'm good for now. I got two SSDs from Amazon and lucky no issues with the boxes but unfortunately this is not always the case!

Was it problematic dealing with Walmart on the return?

The reason I ask is that I just recevied the Pet shop in the mail from Epic Thursday sales and I noticed that the tape was undone.

Its too big and expensive of a set to chance anything is missing in the box so I'm just going to return it. I got two more from Amazon on Epic Friday so I'm good for now.

I got two SSDs from Amazon and lucky no issues with the boxes but unfortunately this is not always the case!

No the return at Walmart was hassle free, just needed receipt and photo ID. Did your SSD's from Amazon come in the outer cardboard Lego boxes that I was talking about in previous posts?

I'm a bit confused on what you mean by outer lego cardboard boxes; The SSDs came in the standard box (i.e with the Pictures, set number age pieces etc) in a bigger Amazon boxes stuff with brown paper and air bubbles. One SSD came in its own box from amazon the other arrived in a massive box with the SSD and two Petshops all packed together. The boxes aren't mint per se but they are in very good condition with some "shelf wear." I dont think it will affect me on the resale value (I hope at least )

Sorry for double post but FYI the SSD is back in stock from amazon.com for 336 with free prime shipping

As I stated yesterday, I received a damaged r2d2 from amazon. Ordering online is basically a crap shoot. It is becoming quite obvious that a lot of packages are just thrown around during shipping. At least amazon gave me 10% off the set for the damaged box.

I'm a bit confused on what you mean by outer lego cardboard boxes; The SSDs came in the standard box (i.e with the Pictures, set number age pieces etc) in a bigger Amazon boxes stuff with brown paper and air bubbles.

One SSD came in its own box from amazon the other arrived in a massive box with the SSD and two Petshops all packed together.

The boxes aren't mint per se but they are in very good condition with some "shelf wear." I dont think it will affect me on the resale value (I hope at least )

Here is a picture I pulled from google images of a 10179 in the outer cardboard Lego box:

http://www.sell.com/2686RZ

I do not own a 10179 (wish I did), but the Death Star that I have that I purchased from a Lego store came just like this, in a nice (extra/outer) cardboard box that is fitted perfectly to the orignial Lego item's box. Also many other ebay listing's I've seen for big Star Wars sets have these brown cardboard Lego boxes, and then once you open the brown box inside you have an MISB set in it's regular box. I know it's just a brown cardboard Lego box, but it's a nice addition when you're spending in the $300+ range, and it helps with storage because it gives you that extra protection. Hope this all made sense :)

Perfect sense, the SSDs definitely did NOT come in that extra box from Amazon.

Perfect sense, the SSDs definitely did NOT come in that extra box from Amazon.

Yeah, I guess that's one of the perks of buying directly from the Lego store, problem is you're going to spend $400 for an SSD, and not $336. Plus I don't know if having that extra cardboard Lego shipping box will really make a difference in profit when it comes to selling, but it definitely doesn't hurt to have. I know I find a UCS item more appealing when I see it in an extra Lego shipping box, but that's just IMO, and like I said before I'm super picky and a bit extreme. Regardless an SSD for $336 in good shape, even without that Lego shipping box is a very, very good deal. On that note Amazon.com here we come!

My 10188 arrived in the outer Lego box and in pristine condition....unfortunately few other sets I have ordered online arrived in the same condition. My question is this......who is removing these DSs and SSDs from the LEGO boxes they come in from TLG? Somebody at some point is. This sucks for me and a few other people on here that demand their boxes be in pristine condition, I know Ed has previously stated that he has learned to become much more forgiving when it comes to box condition, I unfortunaley will not ever so I will be forever dealing with returns exchanges ect.it has become second nature to me anyhow now as I expect a set to arrived damaged in some way or another.

My 10188 arrived in the outer Lego box and in pristine condition....unfortunately few other sets I have ordered online arrived in the same condition. My question is this......who is removing these DSs and SSDs from the LEGO boxes they come in from TLG? Somebody at some point is. This sucks for me and a few other people on here that demand their boxes be in pristine condition, I know Ed has previously stated that he has learned to become much more forgiving when it comes to box condition, I unfortunaley will not ever so I will be forever dealing with returns exchanges ect.it has become second nature to me anyhow now as I expect a set to arrived damaged in some way or another.

Exactly, that's what I want to know, who the heck is removing these boxes?? I know I may sound ridiculous, but like you Stephen, I take a ton of pride in my Lego collection and demand pristine condition, otherwise it will bother me knowing it could be in better condition. It's almost as if for every 5 items I purchase online, 3 or 4 get returned haha. I have had a lot of luck with TRU lately though, but as far as these UCS sets, why are people removing these shipping boxes? To keep for themselves maybe? Who knows but it's definitely frustrating when you receive a creased up set with broken seals, it happens all too often. Sorry for my rant everyone lol

FYI October with Lego is double VIP points month. So net SSD from lego for 400 will net you 40 bucks in VIP money (which is as good as cash for us ) meaning 360. Its still more than Amazon right now but make the difference a bit smaller if you really want that box.

Unfortunately, some of the best deals out there subject us to the crapshoot that is online ordering. The satisfaction that we feel from getting something at a good price online is often replaced by the frustration we feel when the package arrives and it looks like someone folded it in half, or kicked field goals with it in the back of the UPS truck, etc. ***see Ace Ventura Pet Detective*** For the sake of this discussion, I will relay my successes, and multiple failures with online orders. The safest bet so far for me has been ordering from Target. They actually put AirPaks, or whatever you want to call them, in the boxes to insulate the products. The downfall to this, is that they usually ship via UPS. UPS has always been notorious for delivering beat up looking packages. This is usually offset by the care that the Target warehouse employee has taken to package the items well. Walmart has a 50-50 success rate for me. It seems like their packing process may not be streamlined enough to deliver a consistent packaging experience. I do that that stuffing a bunch of wadded up paper haphazardly into a box is not good practice. The results have been about the same with Amazon, a 50% success rate. With this, it is less obvious whether the damage happened in transit, or if a creased box was sent from the warehouse originally. Usually the things that come from Amazon can be overlooked...a tiny crease here and there. But if you are pickyabout condition, and I certainly am, go with Target. Also, when it comes to shipping companies in particular, my experience has shown that FedEx seems to take the best care of packages once they have received them. UPS comes in dead last. One in four UPS packages arrives in acceptable condition. I hope this is helpful. This information is obviously based on just one person's experience, but I have many years worth of experience receiving packages, LEGO or otherwise.

FYI October with Lego is double VIP points month.

So net SSD from lego for 400 will net you 40 bucks in VIP money (which is as good as cash for us ) meaning 360.

Its still more than Amazon right now but make the difference a bit smaller if you really want that box.

Valid point, I almost forgot about that, thanks!!

I received two Queen Anne's Revenge sets today from Walmart, and interestingly they came packaged together in a LEGO packaging box just like I would get from LEGO if I bought two sets. It is kind of nice really. The sets were in great shape. Still waiting on the SSD from Walmart. I am hoping for the best.

I received two Queen Anne's Revenge sets today from Walmart, and interestingly they came packaged together in a LEGO packaging box just like I would get from LEGO if I bought two sets. It is kind of nice really. The sets were in great shape. Still waiting on the SSD from Walmart. I am hoping for the best.

That's good news, glad to hear you had better luck. I actually ordered 2 Queen Anne's also, but I'm still waiting on them to arrive, my SSD was in awful shape though which you probably already read about earlier in this discussion. Fingers crossed the rest of our orders will be in good shape ;)

That

My Walmart order is still being processed so keeping my fingers crossed.

My SSD and R2 I ordered from Wal-Mart arrived in pristine condition. No damage what-so-ever.

My SSD and R2 I ordered from Wal-Mart arrived in pristine condition. No damage what-so-ever.

further evidence that supports the "crap shoot" theory!

further evidence that supports the "crap shoot" theory!

Haha yep, I'm a firm believer in this "crap shoot" theory

I wonder how many of these damaged boxes have been returned and re-sold. I'm guessing some of these have been through a few collectors' hands.

My Buddy ordered the SSD from Walmart last week and he told me it arrived in the original Lego outerbox. Further note I returned the petshop to Walmart that I received last week and was open. No issues with the return but they did tell me they would not refund the shipping cost. it was only 97 cents so not a big deal but something to keep in mind if you ever have to pay a lot for shipping from Walmart.