Glossary

🦄 A little bit of positivity for everyone :D

General

1/* - The scale size ratio, 1/1 meaning the model’s size is the same as the original object’s size. For things like mecha, a 1/144 scale is commonplace, for figures it's more of a suggestion. Identically scaled figures for a specific character can vary as much as 30% in size, even from the same company.

Big 3 - Not Shounen Jump’s big 3. It’s the nickname AmiAmi (Amico), Hobbysearch (HS) and HobbyLink Japan (HLJ) have due to them being the most popular sites for buyfagging.

Bin/Binned - Bin as in bargain or clearance bin. A figure is said to have binned when the demand is way lower than the supply, forcing retailers to discount the figure to get rid of the unsold stock.

Bishoujo - Figures of cute anime girls, this is often it's own category at many stores because buyers of these rarely overlap with other categories.

Booth - Owned by Pixiv and effectively their official storefront service. Many Pixiv artists use booth to sell their merch which is wide and varied from acrylics to dakis to GKs and so on.

Bootleg - A fake, or counterfeit figure that illegitimate sellers try to pass off as real/authentic. They are usually recasts or QC rejects from a legitimate production run, the quality is often poor, with poor paintwork and the faces will almost invariably look bad or have an "off" look to them.

Busou Shinki - Poseable mecha musume. It has an anime. Manufactured by Konami. Wikipedia

BQ - Beach Queen. A series by Wave which are usually 1/10 scale with the character in a swimsuit on a yellow stand. They have a tendency to be pretty mediocre but there are occasionally some which are pretty good. While rather rare, there are a few which are made of polystone.

BJD/Dolls - Ball jointed doll, usually larger scale than statues with customizable and interchangeable parts, clothes are made of actual fabric. Can be bought in parts or pre-assembled as a specific character.

Cast Off - Also Known as Castoffable, a feature of a figure whose clothes/outfit can be removed.

Dakimakura - Often shortened to daki, a type of body pillow from Japan, usually 160cm x 50cm. Dakimakura are also known as “hugging pillows”. You will want to buy a cover for it, which normally feature an anime character. Both front and back sides of the cover feature the respective character. More info.

Detolf - Popular glass display cabinet from Ikea. Generally considered good value. More info.

Doujin - Self published works, they can be derivative works or completely original. Does not have to be porn (e.g. doujin music, doujin games).

Dragon Dildo - A dildo shaped like a dragon’s imaginary phallus, used as a meme in unboxing threads. It’s never dragon dildos. (Unless it’s an unboxing thread on /v/, in which case it is).

Exclusive - Figures or accessories for a figure meant to be sold at one specific store, including but not limited to the manufacturer’s site. It’s not rare for a figure to be both exclusive and limited.

Figma - Jointed figures usually 5-6 in/12-14 cm tall (Around 1/12 scale), manufactured by Max Factory. Figma are sculpted to resemble characters in an accurate fashion to their respective anime. The word is also often wrongly used to call any pose-able figurine. 5000 - 9000 Yen range.

Forwarder - Use when you can pay for your items but you need a Japanese address. You pay for the item and have it sent to the domestic address of the service. Repacking multiple orders into one shipment is also available. The forwarder then sends the item(s) to you, for a fee.

Garage kit (GK) - Models that are privately made (Read: Not official products). They are usually sold unpainted and not assembled. They vary greatly in molding detail, assembly difficulty, and pricing. See this to use as a general guide with step-by-step assistance.

Gashapon (Bandai) / Gachapon (Tomy) (Capsule Toys) - Super cheap statues. Most stand no more than 4 inches. Almost always have multiples figures in a series (100-500 Yen each).

Gunpla - Short for “Gundam plastic model”. Plastic model kits of machines manufactured by Bandai of the robots featured in their Gundam franchise. These come unassembled, but usually colored and with instructions. Gunpla are poseable after assembly.

Holy grail - The ultimate unobtained prize of your buyfagging. i.e. that one thing you don’t currently own that you do want to own above all else. If you have "multiple grails" then none of them are grails.

Hotglue - To ejaculate with the force of a thousand suns onto a figure. Only attention whores do it and those who only do it because they see others doing it have immediate regret. The odds of your pre-owned figures being hotglued by their previous owner is very low but never zero.

Joint - A point of articulation on a figure in which the limb bends.

Kuji - Real life gacha/lottery game, like Banpresto Ichiban Kuji, Taito Honpo Kuji, SEGA Kuji, etc. where players draw raffle tickets for prize items. Every draw is guaranteed a win, but chances of getting a large prize like a figure is usually very low. You’re far more likely to get a pen, can badge or folder. Kuji games are only available at Japanese convenience locations, so overseas collectors must obtain the prizes secondhand through Mandarake, Yahoo! Auction Japan, Terraformer or other collectors.

Limited - Companies will sometimes produce only a preset amount of figures to be produced and distributed. Once they are all bought and sold, those are the only figures in that run that will ever be in circulation. Such figures are priced very highly, and ascend in value very quickly. Sometimes bundled with games or DVDs.

Lewd - Not decent; obscene, lustful, vile, slutty. Stirs the loins of men.

MFC - MyFigureCollection, huge database of figures and merchandise, it also has a trade/sale section for its users. As usual, avoid the community like the plague. Do enjoy its collection managing features.

Nendoroid (“Nendo”) - A palm sized 4 inch/10cm tall SD proportioned figure manufactured by Good Smile Company (GSC) with limited pose-ability (super movable Nendoroids offer a bit more). They come with an assortment of accessories depending on the character. Nendoroids released after 2011 (#300 or later) have near-universal interchangable head, face, hair, hands, legs and body parts, Pre-#300 nendoroids might be harder to share parts with. Kawaii as fuck. 3500 - 9000 yen range depending on popularity, complexity and amount of accessories included.

Nendoroid Doll - A gateway drug to dollfagging, A 14cm tall SD proportioned BJD doll with fabric clothes, compatible with Nendoroid head parts and hand accessories. Very light on accessories and expensive at 8000-12,000 yen. Clothes and shoes also sold seperately. Best enjoyed when you have lots of Nendos already, you can also buy 2000 yen Nendoroid doll bodies and make your own custom Nendo dolls from one of your existing Nendo heads.

Nendoroid Petit - An even smaller incarnation of a Nendoroid (usually 2 in/5cm) manufactured by Good Smile Company (GSC). These have less articulation than regular Nendoroids but often come in bundles or blind boxes.

Plamo - Short for “plastic model”. A plastic model kit of giant robots, Mech, and military based figures. Many/Most are kits which must be assembled by the consumer. Details are added through paint or stickers.

POP UP PARADE - Often shorted to PUP, Good Smile Company's budget line of figures. Size is roughly equivalent to a 1/10. Quality is similar to a well done prize figure with more consistent quality. Usually 3,900 Yen.

Prize figure - Figures, usually statues, that are prizes for UFO catchers in Japan. Manufacturers sell these for people who can’t win or play them. They vary in quality, but are usually inexpensive, usually 1500-3000 yen, and can vary in from 1/8 to 1/6 in size.

Proxy - Will buy items on your behalf so you don't need to create accounts on Japanese stores. Can cost more but is generally less work than using a forwarder.

PVC - Polyvinyl chloride is a soft plastic material that most figures are made out of. It has a delicious aroma, especially freshly opened figures. Avoid exposition to heat and UV radiation.

Recast - An unofficial bootleg reproduction garage kit, made by taking molds of an original with varying degrees of quality. Recasts of recasts are not unheard of.

Revoltech - Jointed figures like Figma, but manufactured by Kaiyodo. Slightly stylized and usually featuring robots, dudes with guns, and other /m/ related stuff. Also has a Queen’s Blade line. Competes with the Robot Damashii brand. Similarly priced to figmas.

Robot Damashii - A line of pre-assembled poseable robots manufactured by Bandai.

SD - Super deformed, another term for chibi, exaggerated proportions such as small bodies with large heads to accentuate facial expression.

Statue - Non-poseable figure. One of the most accurate figure portrayals of the characters they are based on. Usually not wallet-friendly, with prices from 9000 Yen and more.

Sader - An infamous Chinese bootleg of Clayz’ 1/6 Saber figure. Highly sought after.

Swivel - A point of articulation on a figure in which the limb rotates.

Wonder Festival (Wonfes) - An industry trade show which happens twice a year and where lots of upcoming figures are announced and premiered. Pre-orders for Wonfes announcements usually open shortly afterwards.

Y!AJ - Yahoo! Auctions Japan, an auction site in Japan.

Delivery

EMS - Express Mail Service, fast but expensive, also handled by your national post system in most cases. Can be subject to customs taxes in most countries. Trackable and Insured up to 20,000 Yen (base, you can pay to raise the insurance limit). Expedited air, only takes 2-3 days overseas at the fastest, though it may stall for longer in customs.

DHL - Wizardry. A private carrier service that is quick as fuck but rapes your wallet. Expedited air. Tracking and signed delivery is standard and provides many more options for managing your delivery.

Surface Parcel - Also known as sea mail, it travels across the surface of the Earth, usually by container ship. Insured up to 10,000 yen, tracking is available but updated very infrequently. The slowest shipping speed available but the most cost effective for large or heavy orders. Usually costs 25-50% of expedited DHL/EMS but you must tolerate 1-2 months delivery time from Japan to the US, 3-4 to Europe. Just order and forget, future you will get a surprise package a few months from now. Is often used to evade customs delays in certain countries but not all. Not available from every store or forwarding service due to a pattern of impatient customers issuing chargebacks when they think their package is never gonna arrive.

Japan Post discontinued international SAL since COVID-19 started and has yet to bring it back, no cheap shipping for you.

USAL/Unregistered SAL - The cheapest way to ship. Does NOT have delivery confirmation, tracking, or insurance. Also, slow as fuck. Can be delivered in 10 days or 3 months. Highly risky shipping method. Only use this if you are confident that it will get to you safely (Read, your federal postal service is not shit).

RSAL/Registered SAL - For a fee of 410 yen, you get tracking and insurance up to 6,000 yen. You must sign for the package upon reception. Still slow as fuck delivery since it’s literally SAL with tracking. You can track it on Japan Post until it leaves Japan and on your country’s mail service once it lands there. Tracking doesn’t always update correctly or quickly either, since uploading the scan info has the lowest priority in a mailman’s day.