EXPIRED: [US] #41999 Crawler Exclusive Edition set is now available on [email protected] US

TheLoneTensor

Defenders, you can try to champion Lego's IT practices all you want, but with the resources available to them, it's embarrassing that any single consumer is faced with either a wait time or weird message about how their order may or may not be in the system. These sales aren't surprises, nor does Lego not have months of preparation time. It doesn't matter that it only happens a few times a year, either.

Either a system is scalable or it is not. If it is, ramp it up for the peak times. If it's not, make it so. It's ridiculous that what should be an ordered progress of stock being sold devolves into this nebulous "customer service" "VIP points not available" "promotions will be applied later" cloud of BS. It's beyond ridiculous that this happens every single time as well.

sidersdd

Just received a message saying my order shipped.

Legofanscott

Poor old 42009 is getting no sales at all thanks to this thing.

Im way more excited to eventually own that set than "The Boss"

Lego should make every lego set limited edition, can you imagine the sales boost theyd get :o

The world would go Lego crazy!

TheLoneTensor

^I couldn't agree more, but you either get #41999 now or you pay out the nose later (not a fact, yet, but likely). #42009 will be around for a while yet, and can be grabbed during Black Friday/xmas/May 4th specials.

This is, of course, assuming those specials don't follow the decent into lameness that the past few years have witnessed. It certainly will be interesting to see how the perpetual free shipping plays into things.

Legofanscott

tensor said:

^I couldn't agree more, but you either get #41999 now or you pay out the nose later (not a fact, yet, but likely). #42009 will be around for a while yet, and can be grabbed during Black Friday/xmas/May 4th specials.

This is, of course, assuming those specials don't follow the decent into lameness that the past few years have witnessed. It certainly will be interesting to see how the perpetual free shipping plays into things.

Do you reckon these are now all sold out online? was close to getting one last night but decided not to as i thought id have plenty of time to get one :(

Schwallex

cloaked7 said:

It is amazing to me that some people are making excuses for LEGO and their 'much in need of an upgrade' ordering system. What if they were manufacturing bricks that had inconsistent colors?

Oh but they are. My 5767 Cool Cruiser had four different shades of yellow. My 8157 Ferrari had three shades of red. And two shades of white is pretty much par for the course these days for any set with white parts.

What was my point again? Ah yes. I'd rather have them invest into fixing their product than into fixing their website.

(And yes, that's a false dichotomy. In an ideal world they'd fix both. And in our world they're apparently fixing neither. But I digress.)

is frustrated and runs off to purchase more LEGO to forget his frustration with LEGO

madforLEGO

Legofanscott said:

tensor said:

^I couldn't agree more, but you either get #41999 now or you pay out the nose later (not a fact, yet, but likely). #42009 will be around for a while yet, and can be grabbed during Black Friday/xmas/May 4th specials.

This is, of course, assuming those specials don't follow the decent into lameness that the past few years have witnessed. It certainly will be interesting to see how the perpetual free shipping plays into things.

Do you reckon these are now all sold out online? was close to getting one last night but decided not to as i thought id have plenty of time to get one :(

Well I would say check online. If they are out of stock will ship on Aug 16th then I would say they have some left.
If it literally saysSold out, then probably not.

madforLEGO

I just got a shipping confirmation for my order

TheLoneTensor

Legofanscott said:

tensor said:

^I couldn't agree more, but you either get #41999 now or you pay out the nose later (not a fact, yet, but likely). #42009 will be around for a while yet, and can be grabbed during Black Friday/xmas/May 4th specials.

This is, of course, assuming those specials don't follow the decent into lameness that the past few years have witnessed. It certainly will be interesting to see how the perpetual free shipping plays into things.

Do you reckon these are now all sold out online? was close to getting one last night but decided not to as i thought id have plenty of time to get one :(

Like @madforLEGO said, check online. Best case scenario, they have more and come back in stock (but you won't know when, so it could easily re-sell out). Worst case scenario is that they are sold out online for good, and your only hope now is a retail store. You could try calling some retail stores, as most offer shipping if they have stock (not free though, it'll probably be about $15).

Lootefisk

tensor said:

Defenders, you can try to champion Lego's IT practices all you want, but with the resources available to them, it's embarrassing that any single consumer is faced with either a wait time or weird message about how their order may or may not be in the system. These sales aren't surprises, nor does Lego not have months of preparation time. It doesn't matter that it only happens a few times a year, either.

Either a system is scalable or it is not. If it is, ramp it up for the peak times. If it's not, make it so. It's ridiculous that what should be an ordered progress of stock being sold devolves into this nebulous "customer service" "VIP points not available" "promotions will be applied later" cloud of BS. It's beyond ridiculous that this happens every single time as well.

The question is what are the penalties to TLG with a poor web presence 3-4 times per year? Is anyone here who experienced these problems taking their ball and going home?

If it doesn't negatively affect the bottom line than it would be silly to ramp their web presence up beyond what is needed 99% of the time. It's just simple economics.

BrickDancer

^Or the inverse question of: If they ramped up their website capabilities at a cost of X, how much revenue increase would they expect?

What is important to remember that it is mostly a one time investment expense with little increased maintenance cost long term compared to the existing infrastructure.

cloaked7

Lootefisk said:

The question is what are the penalties to TLG with a poor web presence 3-4 times per year? Is anyone here who experienced these problems taking their ball and going home?

Yup, I have. Many times. I just ordered the BTTF set from amazon instead of LEGO. And, have trimmed back other orders many times because of their lackluster ordering system.

Lootefisk said:

If it doesn't negatively affect the bottom line than it would be silly to ramp their web presence up beyond what is needed 99% of the time. It's just simple economics.

Well, as I responded above it has. So, how long should LEGO go without upgrading their I.T. systems? Until they see actual data that proves they are losing sales? And, how would they know? Also, it isn't just simple economics. Or, it shouldn't be. Do they not clean their store windows until someone complains? Or, until they notice a drop off in sales? You can rationalize not doing all kinds of things using the thinking "it hasn't hurt sales". If a company has that mentality they have the wrong mentality. A company should always look beyond the economics. Putting profits, or economics, first is a terrible way to make decisions. Whether it be with customer service, your web presence, your quality control.

Also, it's a very thin pancake that doesn't have 2 sides. What about the added business they would gain if their website was great?

spicemind

I called the Pleasanton, CA store today around 11 am PST and luckily they had one left. I was fortunate that they allowed me to place a hold on it and I went and picked it up a little later.

I have been looking to get into building Technic sets, so this set and #8043 are the first two on my list.

TheLoneTensor

Lootefisk said:

tensor said:

Defenders, you can try to champion Lego's IT practices all you want, but with the resources available to them, it's embarrassing that any single consumer is faced with either a wait time or weird message about how their order may or may not be in the system. These sales aren't surprises, nor does Lego not have months of preparation time. It doesn't matter that it only happens a few times a year, either.

Either a system is scalable or it is not. If it is, ramp it up for the peak times. If it's not, make it so. It's ridiculous that what should be an ordered progress of stock being sold devolves into this nebulous "customer service" "VIP points not available" "promotions will be applied later" cloud of BS. It's beyond ridiculous that this happens every single time as well.

The question is what are the penalties to TLG with a poor web presence 3-4 times per year? Is anyone here who experienced these problems taking their ball and going home?

If it doesn't negatively affect the bottom line than it would be silly to ramp their web presence up beyond what is needed 99% of the time. It's just simple economics.

Oh really?

From http://shop.lego.com/en-US/Your-Satisfaction

"As a company, our history goes back more than half a century. In 1932, a carpenter-turned-toymaker founded the LEGO Company with the belief, "Only the Best is Good Enough" -- which remains the guiding principle of our company today."

madforLEGO

As I would hazard to guess that this Exclusive is only found at LEGO you can try to find them on Amazon.com but I have a feeling if you do it is not going to be cheap, as Amazon does not sell Technic itself, but I'm sure 3rd party guys would love to sell you one for 300 dollars.
Again stuff happens, I have seen TRU have issues with their site in the past for BOG50 for LEGO, and you know how they stopped that?
Raised all of their LEGO retail pricing to be 20-40% above RRP.

And I'm sure people are solely going to Amazon US instead of LEGO because of a lackluster system.. I'm sure it has nothing to do with 0% Sales tax charges at Amazon vs LEGO (who has a presence in almost every state).

Should LEGO update their site? Sure, but then again my order did get through and I got an albeit late confirmation of my order and I'm guessing their site is back to normal today.
So if people want to stop buying from LEGO.com that is fine, and your right as a consumer, plus it will speed up the system then for the rest of us wouldn't it?

Crowkillers

sidersdd said:

Just received a message saying my order shipped.

I got mine earlier today as well...

gmpirate

^ double check it wasn't the Mech. I received notification for the mech only and I ordered just before midnight last night.

Crowkillers

gmpirate said:

^ double check it wasn't the Mech. I received notification for the mech only and I ordered just before midnight last night.

I had my order in seconds after the 41999 went live, I got the Hot Dog Cart polybag.. 2 of them actually because I put in another order for 2 BTTF sets with 2 minifigs to hit the $75 free shipping mark..

This is what they sent me for the shipping confirmation..

YOUR LEGO® ORDER
IS ON ITS WAY!
Paul,

Your LEGO® order has shipped. The tracking number is ************. It may take up to 24 hours for your tracking information to be available on the shipping courier's website. After this time, you can track the progress of your parcel by clicking here. Contact Customer Service if you have any questions regarding your order.

Please note: If your order contains a Pick A Brick, it will be shipping separately and should arrive 13-18 business days from the date you placed your order.

Order Summary
Order Number: **********
VIP Number: *********
CHECK MY ORDER STATUS
ORDER DESCRIPTION
Description
Qty
Price
40078 LEGO Hot Dog Cart V46
Item: 400781
USD 0.00
41999 4x4 Crawler Exclusive Edition V46
Item: 41999
2
USD 199.99
Sub Total USD 399.98

Crowkillers

I had $150 in VIP points too which was pretty sweet...

Crowkillers

My tracking finally got updated... Scheduled Delivery is August 3rd out of Missouri...

doriansdad

madforLEGO said:

The problem with that logic though is there is a limit of 2 per person.
Yes yes I know there are ways to circumvent that, HOWEVER LEGO seems very intent on stopping those who try to thwart that limitation, including at the stores from what I have been told.
So again I wonder how many orders will be cancelled in LEGO really is stomping on resellers.
But I would say the limit 2 is one reason why it lasted as long as it did before running out of stock.

It is not sold out anywhere across the globe, only backordered for 2-3 weeks. Limit 5 everywhere else besides the USA. I'm not going to get into circumventing restrictions but it is safe to say alot of folks are ordering many multiples. It just perplexes me how they are still accepting orders worldwide. I guess only time will tell what those placing orders now will receive since so many are sure only 20k will be mailed out.

Lootefisk

tensor said:

Oh really?

From http://shop.lego.com/en-US/Your-Satisfaction

"As a company, our history goes back more than half a century. In 1932, a carpenter-turned-toymaker founded the LEGO Company with the belief, "Only the Best is Good Enough" -- which remains the guiding principle of our company today."

A mission statement is something pretty to put on your website. The bottom line for TLG is that this mismanaged website fiasco has been an unqualified success. If an item is OOS I'd suggest that more concern should be placed on production rather than overclocking your website.

Bandit

I'm not going to get into it and waste any more time arguing, but I think they are indeed only making 20,000 of these, and once they sell out, it's done. They're not making any more 'non-limited' editions. And I don't think they've sold anywhere near 20,000 so far, that's ridiculous.

cloaked7

^ Personally, I'd be fine if they only made 20K. And, it's not because I have a stack of 10 in the corner. I only bought 1. It would be neat for LEGO to say it's going to be limited to 20K and stick to that.

rocao

Warning: major continuance of derailment follows:

cloaked7 said:

It is amazing to e that some people are making excuses for LEGO and their 'much in need of an upgrade' ordering system.

I wasn't making excuses for them; I was saying I find it understandable that they don't have a world class fulfillment infrastructure immune to showing strains a few times a year.

People have been throwing around superlatives like "unacceptable", "inexcusable", "absurd". If people really feel that way, does that mean they won't be ordering from them until it's improved? Because if they still do, it means that it actually is acceptable and excusable. And in case some of you are going to steadfastly deny that you'll ever use [email protected], the fact remains that the few times a year when their website shows the strains of traffic, they are in fact still selling out of product.

cloaked7 said:

What if they were manufacturing bricks that had inconsistent colors? Would you be saying - 'well, they aren't Toyota and it's just plastic.'

Do you seriously think LEGO's website quality is as important as its brick quality? Bricks are its core business, its retail website is not. You can still buy from a number of other retailers, and in fact, that's the more common experience. You can't substitute the quality of its bricks.

Which restaurant is more likely to do well: one whose food is terrible but has no wait, or one whose food is the best in town but has a long wait?

cloaked7 said:

Either you are a best of breed company that demands high standards across the board or you aren't.... The point about Walmart and Amazon is that they are examples that it can be done, so in my opinion there is no excuse. Period. Either you pride yourself in being the best or you're mediocre. If you're the best you want to be the best in every facet. Your stores, your customer service, your product, your warranty, your software applications.

TLG has a heavy emphasis on quality, but I don't recall them ever saying they will be the absolute best in every facet of their business, and they shouldn't because it's just not possible. Is Amazon's Kindle Fire the best tablet? Not many seem to think so. Is Amazon's Instant Video the best video streaming experience? A userbase comparison would suggest otherwise.

My using Walmart as an example was actually to highlight how poor their e-commerce operation is and how it is much more relevant to compare it with Amazon since they are both retailers at their core with online sales an order of magnitude higher than that of TLG's. During Walmart.com's LEGO sales at the end of last year, some products could not be found by the site navigation or search tool and instead had to be found via web engine searches. In some instances there were two product pages with different prices for the same item. Some items were actually out of stock but that wasn't evident until entering the checkout stage. Getting a hold of a live customer support person was considerably more challenging than it is with Amazon or LEGO.

My point isn't that LEGO [email protected] is exonerated by simply being better than Walmart, but that we should at least be trying to hold companies to the standards set by their peers. Broad statements like "this day and age" don't mean much to me if you aren't able to cite examples where [email protected] is lagging behind its real competitors. I have personally witnessed countless instances of e-tailers suffering from high traffic, and if you haven't, you need only browse the forums of some of the general deals sites to watch it unfold. I've personally experienced website outages due to high volume from Walmart, woot, HP, Microsoft, Sony, Dell, newegg, Home Depot, Lowe's, Macy's, K-mart, Sears, Barnes & Noble, all of which are either retailers or high tech companies that should handle it better than LEGO [email protected] but don't.

cloaked7 said:

You know why Disney is so successful? They clean windows before they get dirty. They sweep floors before they need it. Sounds crazy doesn't it? One of Walt's mottos was 'no chipped paint'. That goes back to when it was a kid and saw the carousel from a distance. It was colorful and bright with all the horses and lights. Then, when he got up close he saw chipped paint on the horses and burnt out light bulbs. He told himself that if he ever had a carousel it would not be like that. There would be no chipped paint! He took that and built an empire.

Have you ever ordered from Disneystore.com? I have, and the experience is much worse than [email protected] Regardless, are you really trying to say that the entirety of the reason Disney is successful is because they do preemptive cleaning? Their intellectual property has nothing to do with it, huh? Also, I'm pretty sure I've found myself waiting in lines at Disneyland that were much longer than those at Knotts Berry Farm. It's a wonder they're still in business.

All of this is not to say that I think LEGO [email protected] can't be improved, because I do. I think the site is too graphic heavy, and makes the mobile experience quite cumbersome. The VIP points account history leaves a lot to be desired. I wish the invoicing would reflect the actual cost after discounts more clearly. But it is also evident to me that they are trying and they do care. Their browsing feature that incorporates tagging and multiple filters blows away how all other websites display LEGO products, including the holiest of holy, Amazon. While their inventory tracking isn't exact down to the very last set, their backorder indications and estimates are reasonably accurate, and it's a rare case where a product is purchased as available and then cancelled after the fact, circumvention of restrictions notwithstanding.

graphite

rocao said:

TLG has a heavy emphasis on quality, but I don't recall them ever saying they will be the absolute best in every facet of their business

Perfect? no.. but if you're going to have a company motto like that any "good" company *should* want to carry their motto into EVERY aspect of their business. Otherwise there is no point in having the motto in the first place. That is why companies like Nike have "Just do it" and not something more demanding of them. Just do it is exactly what they perform to when having a bunch of sweatshop kids make their shoes.

Crowkillers

Bandit said:

I'm not going to get into it and waste any more time arguing, but I think they are indeed only making 20,000 of these, and once they sell out, it's done. They're not making any more 'non-limited' editions. And I don't think they've sold anywhere near 20,000 so far, that's ridiculous.

You're right about them only making 20k of the limited set... They may bring out an upgrade body pack for people who have the 9398 crawler though... that would be the only scenario that makes sense.. But I doubt that would happen either..

There is no point in selling a set with more parts and more labor involved in packing to compete against another set in the 9398 which is essentially the same set, I mean who is going to buy a set with less parts for the same price..?

20,000 sets really isn't that many though... Especially when many many many resellers with no interest in technic what-so-ever are the ones buying them up...

While I don't think they sold 20,000 yet, it won't be very long at all until they sell them all... Counting the 2 that I got, I know of a total of 16 of them purchased online right in my very small city through Lego shop at home...

ColoradoBricks

At my store, they had a limit of one per customer and even with that restriction, they were expecting to be OOS before the week-end.

@Crowkillers, I can't wait to see what you are going to come up with those dark-blue and silver parts :)

rocao

graphite said:

Perfect? no.. but if you're going to have a company motto like that any "good" company *should* want to carry their motto into EVERY aspect of their business. Otherwise there is no point in having the motto in the first place.

Who said they don't *want* to? I didn't. I said they don't claim to be the best.

That motto was established in or around the 1930's. Are you suggesting, eighty years later, because there is a company that chooses to invest so heavily in infrastructure -- to the tune of $6.4 billion in 2012 -- that they actually incur an annual net loss of $39 million, that LEGO should drop their motto because they have an e-commerce site that is merely the best in their industry and better than most outside their industry, but not the overall best? And if they drop that motto, will you guys then have the sensibility to not begrudge them for these very occasional hiccups, not because by nearly every measure of business practicality their website serves its purpose, and not because by nearly every other facet of their corporate identity they actually are the best, but because it no longer violates your principles about truth in mottos?

Crowkillers

ColoradoBricks said:

At my store, they had a limit of one per customer and even with that restriction, they were expecting to be OOS before the week-end.

@Crowkillers, I can't wait to see what you are going to come up with those dark-blue and silver parts :)

I am a bit interested in the wheels... Not so much the blue/silver parts because there are going to be so few of them.. It's really tough to work with part restrictions.. :(

I wish Lego would bring out different colored Technic parts packs..

rocao

I believe my LEGO store had a shipment of ~10 sets. The sales volume of our store is below average, so if we assign an average of 20 sets across the ~100 brand stores, that accounts for 2000 sets. By my guess, that leaves plenty to account for those that have already been sold online such that the ones that will be arriving as "backordered" are still part of the 20k limited-edition.

If I recall correctly, the previous times when initial productions were numbered limited-editions and then followed by general stock, TLG made us aware beforehand that would be the case. This was true for the UCS Millenium Falcon, Santa Fe Super Chief, and Star Wars advent calendar.

cheshirecat

From the Eurobricks forum, apparently this was posted by Kim on the ambasador forum...

Since only 20.000 copies were/are made - this is probably being sold out pretty fast everywhere.
I've just had confirmation that the backorder sets on [email protected] are indeed part of the 20.000 sets produced, so they will be exclusive and I have also been reaffirmed that only 20.000 copies will be made of this set.

TheLoneTensor

rocao said:

I wasn't making excuses for them; I was saying I find it understandable that they don't have a world class fulfillment infrastructure immune to showing strains a few times a year.

People have been throwing around superlatives like "unacceptable", "inexcusable", "absurd". If people really feel that way, does that mean they won't be ordering from them until it's improved? Because if they still do, it means that it actually is acceptable and excusable. And in case some of you are going to steadfastly deny that you'll ever use [email protected], the fact remains that the few times a year when their website shows the strains of traffic, they are in fact still selling out of product.

It's one thing to boycott, it's another to simply strive for excellence, and demand such in things you support. Whether or not it ends up on the bottom line (and it does, albeit difficult to quantify), it's perception, and polish, and the general concept of we are doing it because it's a best practice, not just the most efficient way to haul in money.

rocao said:

Do you seriously think LEGO's website quality is as important as its brick quality? Bricks are its core business, its retail website is not. You can still buy from a number of other retailers, and in fact, that's the more common experience. You can't substitute the quality of its bricks.

Which restaurant is more likely to do well: one whose food is terrible but has no wait, or one whose food is the best in town but has a long wait?

You didn't include option C: The restaurant that has the best food in town and has no wait. That's my pick.

rocao said:

TLG has a heavy emphasis on quality, but I don't recall them ever saying they will be the absolute best in every facet of their business, and they shouldn't because it's just not possible. Is Amazon's Kindle Fire the best tablet? Not many seem to think so. Is Amazon's Instant Video the best video streaming experience? A userbase comparison would suggest otherwise.

This isn't about Lego touting how good their Tshirts or party plates line are, it's their supply chain, and again, excellence in all aspects of business (heck, and life) are worth striving for, worth taking effort towards. Sloth in all forms, is imho, among the worst of human failings.

rocao said:

All of this is not to say that I think LEGO [email protected] can't be improved, because I do. I think the site is too graphic heavy, and makes the mobile experience quite cumbersome. The VIP points account history leaves a lot to be desired. I wish the invoicing would reflect the actual cost after discounts more clearly. But it is also evident to me that they are trying and they do care. Their browsing feature that incorporates tagging and multiple filters blows away how all other websites display LEGO products, including the holiest of holy, Amazon. While their inventory tracking isn't exact down to the very last set, their backorder indications and estimates are reasonably accurate, and it's a rare case where a product is purchased as available and then cancelled after the fact, circumvention of restrictions notwithstanding.

I agree with a lot here, but when it comes down to it (and is really the only issue here), preparing and scaling for performance spikes on a website is not that hard, nor is it outrageously expensive (if you're smart). Honestly, the wheels have already been invented, and there are lots of things they could do that are very cost effective and serve great impact to the website health. It's like if some kid smears his ice cream cone lips over the front door, of a Lego store and the team couldn't find paper towels. Do they leave it there? Do they say "well, people walk past it to spend their money anyway, so we shouldn't bother cleaning it up." "Nobody's going to turn around and walk away and boycott us because of a little ice cream mess" No, they clean it up, because leaving it there simply looks bad.

rocao said:

Also, I'm pretty sure I've found myself waiting in lines at Disneyland that were much longer than those at Knotts Berry Farm. It's a wonder they're still in business.

Nothing to add here, just a holler out to Cedar Faire :)

rocao

cheshirecat said:

From the Eurobricks forum, apparently this was posted by Kim on the ambasador forum...

"Since only 20.000 copies were/are made - this is probably being sold out pretty fast everywhere.
I've just had confirmation that the backorder sets on [email protected] are indeed part of the 20.000 sets produced, so they will be exclusive and I have also been reaffirmed that only 20.000 copies will be made of this set."

Thanks for posting. That was a response to our query, and I already thanked Kim for the fast response.

Everyone, don't forget that we have the Ambassador category for asking these types of queries be sent on to the LEGO CEE team. As much as we like making our own speculation, sometimes it's good to go straight to the source :P

LegoFanTexas

^ Does this mean I should start a thread in the Ambassador category asking when DS and FB will retire? :)

rocao

^ You can, but thankfully we have a wise Ambassador in place to filter out the inane requests from the valid ones.

LegoFanTexas

Funny... you are a funny man... :)

How about asking if DS will retire, only to be replaced by a DS Mk II? :)

Or... how about asking if a Police modular is in the works?

Or... :)

Thanos75

@Tensor .....Cedar Faire?...is that related to Cedar Point in Sandusky

TheLoneTensor

^Yeah, they own it, and a bunch more http://www.cedarfair.com

Totally off topic, but really nice amusement parks, Cedar Point being their crown jewel. Going there three weeks from today, in fact.

Thanos75

I used to live in Cleveland so we spent all summer there....I'm suprised they allow people from the state up north into Ohio...hehe...

Sorry for the sidebar you may now return to your regularly schedualed program.

sidersdd

FYI, Rockefeller Center store still has some, albeit marked up to $220.

Bumblepants

Just a small FYI, I ordered my Crawler while the site was giving its error messages about not being able to use VIP points, freebies not in the bag, and the free shipping not being applied. Despite this, once it shipped, they had fixed the shipping back to free, gave me my Mini Mech, and today applied the appropriate amount of VIP rewards to my account all without me having to do anything to correct it. Only downside was being unable to spend VIP points and having to re-enter my shipping and billing info. Anyway, come black friday or next big thing day, I would suggest just ordering despite the messages if you really want something.

dougts

^ exactly my experience, except I have not been credited VIP points as of yet.

Lootefisk

Lego mall of America store currently has 3 of these in stock.

atxlee

Was fortunate enough to pick up a copy at the Mall in Burlington Ma on route to Boston for a weekend trip.
Was told that more will arrive at the Ma store on Monday.

gmpirate

^ It could just be an assumption. I was told the same but when I went back into to confirm he checked the paperwork and said there would not be a delivery. Seems he just "assumed" when he told me earlier.

Has anyone else heard if there will be further shipments at their stores?

sidersdd

ColoradoBricks said:

Actually, I would have rather not having the hot dog cart, if history repeats it self it usually damages the larger box. The the top/cover of the #41999 does crease easily.

As @ColoradoBricks predicted, I received my set with the hot dog cart underneath it, which produced several scratches and a hole in the box. Ugh! Let's see how well customer service handles this.

cloaked7

So, how much will it hurt the value of the set if it is opened to find out which x of 20K it is? Or, will it boost the value to find 1 of 20K, 2 of 20K? That is, will a set with a very low number sell for a more?

madforLEGO

sidersdd said:

ColoradoBricks said:

Actually, I would have rather not having the hot dog cart, if history repeats it self it usually damages the larger box. The the top/cover of the #41999 does crease easily.

As @ColoradoBricks predicted, I received my set with the hot dog cart underneath it, which produced several scratches and a hole in the box. Ugh! Let's see how well customer service handles this.

I got my set and opened the shipping box, and kind of the same thing, which the cover of the box facing down with the Hot dog cart underneath it, luckily it did not pierce the box, just dented it near the lower right hand corner, and creased the point of impact to the corner. Would not have been this way had they not used the large shipping bubbles which caused the box to bow out a bit, causing pressure when being shipped which caused the damage I think. One has to wonder why not put the main product in first then put the bonus polybag in the side of the box where it would least do damage, but I guess you get what you pay for in the labor at the warehouse.

So not terrible but kinda disappointing as it is a limited edition box, but in any case a few bumps will not cause me to call LEGO CS, but I can totally understand why those with holes in the box would do so.
I will say also that it is a really neat box with a nice finish on it not like that of a typical LEGO box.

Crowkillers

Both of my sets came perfect and were not affected by the Hot dog cart polybag... The main problem when getting sets from Lego is that they pack them in a box that is too big which leads to the sets bouncing around in the box...