Michael Kontraros: Vampire Queen

[Helm]

Hi Franck,
the figure is from a reputable dealer and the box itself otherwise seems legit so there is not really a reason to be suspicious in my opinion.
JOEY



Hi Smithy,
I like the design of this figure very much, so I may return to it in the future but now it goes straight to my GA since I am just too dissapointed with it.
I dont think it is really fair to compare miniature manufacture and car manufacture - well, maybe in this case you could maybe argue that to recieve a figure with flaws like this is similar to buying a car with a half of its hood scratched. I dont mind some flaws, but in this case it is just too much, too obvious and simply just lazy.
JOEY




Hi Steve,
I dont really care that much about the packaging of the figure, the only significance of a metal box as a package is to make sure that the miniature doesnt get damaged while it is in the transit, which is not this case. I have written about it here just to prove a point.
JOEY

The significance is the metal box is part of the package you get with a genuine figure, now you say you don't have this. That seems at odds with you buying it from a legimate source. Which is why I suggested you contacted who you bought it from as there is clearly something wrong here
Steve

 

[Michael Kontraros]

Hello everyone. I had a phone call 5 minutes telling me about this post, so I thought that the dissent thing to do is write a comment too.
Joeyer, sorry to read that you are unhappy with our product. It would be very easy to send an email and send you a replacement at once. We have an excellent customer service.
We have sold the last 5 years more than 7000 miniatures. It is normal that there are going to be some miniature – copies that were not checked closely enough to see the miscast. That’s why, if there is a complaint, we ask for pictures and then we send a replacement.
Now I would like to note some things

About the scale:
- This is a 54mm female miniatures, sculpted by me and it is a part of a line “the Queen” (werewolf, vampire, zombie and mummy queen) This is the only sitting miniature. The all the other are standing and if you see them, you will see that they all are 54mm. And trust me when I say it, I used my anatomy kit to sculpt them, and it is a 54mm.
Regarding all that,
a) - it is a female miniature
b) - The exact size from miniature to miniature, from sculptor to sculptor and from company to company always has small differences. This is normal. We are not 3D printers. We are humans.

So, Joeyer you are wrong at this one

CASTING:
As I read your comments and see the pictures, the problem at the casting is at the body of the “queen” (at 1 of the 7 parts). Not to the whole miniature.
It is a very complex miniature, with a lot of parts (7). One of them skipped the quality control.
You are correct and we are very happy to replace that.

PACKAGING:
We stopped the using the metal boxes 2.5 years ago.
Few are using custom made – printed cardboard boxes for these reasons:
- - They are more professional since it is custom made (and trust me when I say it, more expensive than the tin boxes)
- - It is more difficult to copy them, since everyone can by a tin box and put a sticker on it, but you can’t easily copy this box, since you need min order of 2000 pieces
- - After a lot of checks we came to the conclusion that the cardboard box is safer for the miniature. If the tin box was mistreated during shipping, the tin box was damaging the miniature. This does not happen with the cardboard box
- - It is lighter and the shipping cost is less, so it is better for the modeler

So we prefer to pay more money and upgrade because we respect our clients – fellow modelers and because we wanted to be professionals as a company.
Joeyer, If you have complaints or like a replacement all you need to do is contact [email protected] (or through facebook, Instagram, contact form and so on)

Life is easier if you think simpler J
Whatever you need let us know

Best regards
Michael Kontraros

 

[JOEYR]

Hello everyone. I had a phone call 5 minutes telling me about this post, so I thought that the dissent thing to do is write a comment too.
Joeyer, sorry to read that you are unhappy with our product. It would be very easy to send an email and send you a replacement at once. We have an excellent customer service.
We have sold the last 5 years more than 7000 miniatures. It is normal that there are going to be some miniature – copies that were not checked closely enough to see the miscast. That’s why, if there is a complaint, we ask for pictures and then we send a replacement.
Now I would like to note some things

About the scale:
- This is a 54mm female miniatures, sculpted by me and it is a part of a line “the Queen” (werewolf, vampire, zombie and mummy queen) This is the only sitting miniature. The all the other are standing and if you see them, you will see that they all are 54mm. And trust me when I say it, I used my anatomy kit to sculpt them, and it is a 54mm.
Regarding all that,
a) - it is a female miniature
b) - The exact size from miniature to miniature, from sculptor to sculptor and from company to company always has small differences. This is normal. We are not 3D printers. We are humans.

So, Joeyer you are wrong at this one

CASTING:
As I read your comments and see the pictures, the problem at the casting is at the body of the “queen” (at 1 of the 7 parts). Not to the whole miniature.
It is a very complex miniature, with a lot of parts (7). One of them skipped the quality control.
You are correct and we are very happy to replace that.

PACKAGING:
We stopped the using the metal boxes 2.5 years ago.
Few are using custom made – printed cardboard boxes for these reasons:
- - They are more professional since it is custom made (and trust me when I say it, more expensive than the tin boxes)
- - It is more difficult to copy them, since everyone can by a tin box and put a sticker on it, but you can’t easily copy this box, since you need min order of 2000 pieces
- - After a lot of checks we came to the conclusion that the cardboard box is safer for the miniature. If the tin box was mistreated during shipping, the tin box was damaging the miniature. This does not happen with the cardboard box
- - It is lighter and the shipping cost is less, so it is better for the modeler

So we prefer to pay more money and upgrade because we respect our clients – fellow modelers and because we wanted to be professionals as a company.
Joeyer, If you have complaints or like a replacement all you need to do is contact [email protected] (or through facebook, Instagram, contact form and so on)

Life is easier if you think simpler J
Whatever you need let us know

Best regards
Michael Kontraros

Hi Michael,
thank you for your reply.

First of all, the common misconception I see here is that I was attacking your product range as a whole - which is simply not true, I was just describing my experience with one of your products as it was delivered to me. The thing is - this is my first impression with your product, so I think you can understand my conclusion. Anyway, I dont think that any producer should be afraid of a bad review - because if the major customer experience is overwhelmingly good, the one negative opinion just becomes the exception that confims the rule (at least this is how I see it when it comes to reviews).

And to your notes:
SCALE - Ok, I believe you.
CASTING - I dont agree with you at all on this point simply because the face of the figure is not just one of its many parts - in my opinion it is the crucial part of every figure and I think that it needs to be thoroughly checked on every casting.
PACKAGING - if you dont use these any more then you should have changed the description on your website (I checked and it is already corrected).

I am going to contact you as you have suggested, just need to make more pictures of the miniature.
JOEY