[X] My Assistant

Queue (as of May 8th, 2024): around 169 books

When do you think the queue is going to be empty?
The queue will likely never be completely empty as it includes a lot of my own books as well.

Should I wait until the queue is empty/almost empty to commission?
No, please feel free to commission regardless of the size of the queue. Commissions take priority over my own scans.

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Hey there folks. Things have calmed down quite a bit, so I'm tentatively opening scan commissions again.

I've been working with a professional scanner in Japan, which means doujins are scanned professionally in Japan.

That means:
- you can buy from any store that only ships inside Japan
- no need to worry about international shipping
- no need to worry about customs
- "fast" delivery and scanning (queue is getting kinda long and is causing delays, but should still be faster than importing the book)
- lower costs

Of course there are some disadvantages:
- You don't get the physical doujin
- Due to the way they are scanned, some text might get cut off.

Attention:Professional scanners in Japan use document scanners to scan all doujins/manga sent to them. That means they are cut and cropped before they are scanned.
This can result in parts of the art or text being cut off.
Not all artists are aware of the page size limitations and end up writing/drawing well into the spine of the book.
This is a common downside in the industry (as can be seen in digital editions of some doujins sold on DLSite and DMM), and scanning pages individually greatly increases costs. If you believe this limitation is a problem I might not be able to help you without charging substantially more.

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Do you do [insert fetish here]?
Yes. I don't mind and neither does my contact, so please don't be embarrassed about commissioning more niche material.

Which stores can you buy from?

So far I have been able to get doujins from these stores:

[www.nagomi.ne.jp] Nagomi
[www.mandarake.jp] Mandarake
[melonbooks.co.jp] Melonbooks
[www.suruga-ya.jp] Suruga-ya
[www.doujinshop.net] Kiraruku
[toranoana.jp] Toranoana
[booth.pm] Booth
[alice-books.com] Alice Books

How long does it take?

That depends mostly on how long the store takes to actually ship the items ordered. Assuming you order from any store other than Suruga-ya (that takes weeks to ship sometimes) and that there are no other problems, the scans can be delivered in as little as 3 days after ordering. Worst case scenario it might be 5-8 weeks between ordering and getting the scans (I'm terribly sorry, the queue is a bit long now causing delays).

How much does it cost?

Total cost can be calculated as:
(Price of the items)+(Shipping)+(Store Fees)+(Scanning Fee)+(Commission Fee)+(Paypal fees)+(10% Tax where applicable)

Price of the items:
This is self explanatory. Some stores include tax in the price, some do not and you should pay attention to that.

Shipping:
Some stores like Suruga-ya give free shipping if you purchase over a certain amount. For all the others it varies, but generally it is in the vicinity of 500 yen + taxes.

Store Fees:
Some stores like Suruga-ya charge "handling fees" for orders under 5000 yen.

Scanning Fee:

Black and white doujin at 300 dpi in PDF: 60 yen + tax per item
Black and white doujin at 300 dpi in JPG: 110 yen + tax per item

Color/mixed doujin at 300 dpi in PDF: 165 yen + tax per item
Color/mixed doujin at 300 dpi in JPG: 220 yen + tax per item

Color/mixed doujin at 600 dpi in PDF: 440 yen + tax per item
Color/mixed doujin at 600 dpi in JPG: 495 yen + tax per item

Doujins bigger than A4 format, doujins that are too thick, or books printed by big publishers are priced differently. When in doubt, please ask me first.

Commission Fee:

25% on all orders.

How do I pay?

For now, Paypal is the only payment method I can use. Payment must be made up front, in Japanese yen.

Do I pay using "pay for services" or "send money to friends/family" on Paypal?

I think I figured out how Paypal calculates fees, so you can use the "services" option now if Paypal charges you a flat fee to send to friends/family. I have adjusted prices to offset the cost, but it should still be cheaper than the flat fee Paypal charges for sending money in some countries.

How do I order?

- Contact me through DM, e-mail (rizeltrans@gmail.com) or Discord (Rizel#2544) and let me know what exactly you want, and from which store.
- Costs are calculated
- Payment is sent
- I handle everything from that point onwards, from buying the items to ordering the scans
- Scans are delivered

How do I get the scans? Do you upload them to the galleries here?

After I receive the scans from my contact I will upload the files to a service like Mega and send you the link to download. After that they are yours to do as you please, and you can upload them here and share with others if you so choose. Normally I don't upload them here unless I am specifically asked to.

Can you get CG sets/Games (CDs/floppies)?

Yes, but due to the nature of physical media I cannot guarantee the disks will be readable. Second-hand stores have no warranty on physical media, so order at your own risk.

Can you get items from Yahoo Auctions?

Yes, but understand that prices for auctions are not always fixed and I can only place bids once I have received payment.

How big are doujins format-wise?

The vast majority of doujins are (Japanese) B5 format. Rarely they are as big as A4, but they do exist, and bonus materials included might be A4 format as well. This information is usually included in the product page of online shops.

How thick is too thick for scanning?

2.5cm is the limit before the fees increase. Since paper quality and density affect thickness, unfortunately it is hard to estimate by number of pages alone. Tankoubons are usually ok, but anything approaching the size of a Comic LO for example is definitely over 2.5cm.
99% of books scanned so far are under 2.5cm.

How do I know if a book is a doujin or released by a big publisher?

Books released by big publishers have ISBN numbering.
As a rule of thumb, if a book is being sold in big name stores like Amazon, Honto, Yodobashi, Honya Club, Kinokuniya (i.e. not only on Melon, Tora, Alice or Booth), it is a book made by a big publisher.

Why are the books cut/destroyed in the process?

Most books are bound together using glue, and glue residue on the pages damages the scanners used to quickly scan the books. That's why pages are trimmed as much as needed to make sure the equipment will not be damaged.
The loose pages are then destroyed afterwards to comply with Japanese law.

Can you scan a book without destroying it?/Can you scan page by page?

For very special cases I can scan it on a flatbed scanner page by page with minimal damage to the original book.
Fees would be calculated per page and can negotiated based on the book.

Do I need to credit you if I upload them?

You don't need to, but it would certainly be appreciated.

Can I see some of your scans before I order?

Sure, just check my galleries under the uploader name rizelbr.

Do you translate as well?

Yes, though I do not do translate as often anymore.
Contact me if interested.

Anything else?

All transactions are final. After an order has been placed with the store, it is impossible to cancel it. I know it sounds ridiculous, but there is absolutely no way of negotiating with doujin stores.
This is something I do on my spare time, so I won't handle too many commissions at once. Your commission might be refused if I don't have the time to handle it.
Also, I reserve the right to refuse any commission.

This post has been edited by rizelbr: Today, 17:34

If this service is still available, sent a Discord DM ;p

Will contact later

Sent you a dm