Is it worth it?

[FarEast]

I’ve noticed in a lot of threads regarding Chinese made clones of existing Tokyo Marui weapons and one of the main arguments that crops up is “But is the Marui worth the extra $250.00 USD?” now for many of us it’s a hard call, but for even more of you it’s not realised that the price of a Tokyo Marui weapon outside of Asia is an artificial price making it an even more bitter pill to swallow.

 

“What’s that you say! Marui prices in the US are artificial?” Yes some of the members here have already discovered through one means or another ways of purchasing Tokyo Marui guns direct from Japanese stores and exporting them to either Europe or the US, One such company that offers this service is Echigoya (www.echigoya.co.jp) they have even set up an international page www.echigoyaint.com that allows non Japanese speakers to purchase the latest models directly from Japan.

 

So how cheap is a Tokyo Marui, well for non-dedicated hobby shops that stock Tokyo Marui products sell them at the typical recommended retail price issued by Tokyo Marui but how about the major Airsoft retailers??? Well taking our example Echigoya, whom only really carry Marui products, you’ll pay ¥20,462 JPY or $169.85 USD or £86.51 GBP for an M4A1 carbine (New version). Yet in the US you’ll pay $275.00 USD, that’s $105.00 USD more!

 

So let’s take a look at something a little more fancy, lets say the new M14 Socom. Anyone owning the Marui version will vouch for the quality of this product. Now this rifle’s RRRP is ¥48,090 JPY or $399.26 USD or £203.33 GBP. Yet here in Japan you can pick them up for as little as ¥26,930 or $223.59 USD or £113.86 GBP yet in the US you will pay over $360.00 USD, yet again we see a huge difference of around $137.00 USD almost half towards another gun!!!

 

And this seems to be across the board for all guns produced by Marui, so why do they cost so much? One of the main reasons is that Tokyo Marui does not export directly to the US or Europe and distribution and wholesales is controlled by 3rd parties that purchase from Japanese wholesalers and then sell on to European or North American wholesalers. Confused, well try this:

 

 

As you can see anyone in the US or Europe are normally 4th down in the chain on items coming out of Tokyo Marui so obviously everyone is going to place a mark-up on the products to get a cut of the profit.

 

Now a lot of people might argue that the mark-up is due to importation of these products but even using a famous Hong Kong based online retailer I was only quoted $76.93 to ship my product. Yet I can get it sent cheaper via EMS Japan through Echigoya.

 

So is the extra money worth it?

[Bengali]

hadnt heard of that site before, but www.echigoyaint.com isnt working for me, i tried www.echigoya.com and its all in Japanesse????

 

the inflation over here in the UK is ridiculous, ordering from hong kong and paying shipping and 17.5% tax si still cheaper than buying here, often by a lot, infact a lot of things are cheaper to order from the US aswell. seems here in the UK we get stuck with the highest prices.

[FarEast]

thanks for the info, the international site is down but they will reply to all english e-mails via the following webmail:

 

Ｍａｉｌ：info@echigoya.co.jp

[Anachronism327]

I knew there was an increase, but didn't know that much...

 

that's it! I'm going to japan with 2000 bucks in my pocket and buying what the heck I like!!! LOL

[evo12]

Last time I checked the echigoya international site, it hadn't been updated for a while; at least a year and half if not more. I guess back when Shane was working there, he got lazy.

 

The only US retailer that I know of that orders direcct from Marui would be Poweredge because of the sheer bulk they order. It also explains why they have relatively low prices when compared to other US retailers.

[Anachronism327]

Really? is that how PE gets their guns cheaper?

[FarEast]

The only US retailer that I know of that orders direcct from Marui would be Poweredge because of the sheer bulk they order.  It also explains why they have relatively low prices when compared to other US retailers.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

If they told you that they are lying! Tokyo Marui will not sell direct outside of Japan, one of the main reasons is that they do not want to be held liable for any legal action regarding copyright infringement. They probably order through someone like Sanken who are a 1st level purchaser.

[Slug Pellets]

It would be nice if prices of Mauri products outside of Japan were less but as you point out as they filter down, the various handlers are bound to take their cuts and inflate the price .

 

Personally I think the Chinese 'clones' vs. Mauri originals is an unfair comparison for people to make. Firstly you have the artifically weak Yuan keeping export prices low, and perhaps more importantly theres the morally dubious copying process itself.

 

I don't lump all Chinese made guns into the 'clones' catagory as some companies are coming out with more original stuff. I also accept that virtually all the airsoft companies outside of Japan started by copying the basic designs. However when I see a gun come out of China thats a complete rip off (including the manual and box art sometimes!) then it does make me a little uncomfortable.

[The Chef]

You working for these guys FarEast?? heheheh

 

in all truth, I understand the middle-man mark-up and its a necesary evil. If this shop of yours can get thier international website up and running and have the customer service equivalent of say WGC, then they should be on to a winner. I always like to shop around for the best prices, but do hinge a lot on customer service too. There is nothing worse than being mucked about.

 

Its nice to be able to browse a website for the items you want and see the cost and be able to understand it.

 

But as you say, if the difference between a marui gun and a clone was say £10-20, I would probably pay the extra. As it stands, the extra £100 is not worth paying.

[FarEast]

hahahaha, no actually beleive it or not i don't work for Echigoya but they have been very very good to me and the team i play for over the years and don't charge us the tax on alot of things.