Rant about the for sale thread these days

[skooternb]

Anyways, I just feel like a lot of people are collecting Hot Toys just for the sake of it. Because it's the IN thing currently and to aim for 100% movie accurate or what's so ever is just silly to me. A lot of people always go for movie accuracy and the so called "high end standards" with rooted hair or keeping the joints as hidden as possible. It's not how these toys are suppose to be. They shouldn't always follow the same formula. That's how DC Universe Classics got boring.

Someone else liked this post, and I agree. There will always be 'investors' in luxury items like these and i do my best to avoid them. I collect what I love and if I choose to sell I make sure it goes to the right person. Make it about collecting again, and we will see a burst in the bubble and a return to collectors, not investors.

Sent from my GT-P7510 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Darkseed]

i guess my conclusion is that i miss the old days when members like darkseed were the majority, not the minority.

I totally agree with your post, I rock! Everything else spot on as well....

 

[Darklord Dave]

All respect to the original poster, but we see threads about how the forum has degenerated or how it isn't like it used to be all the time but with no suggestions on how to change it to make it better.

There's a suggestion forum - what would you change to make it more of a user friendly environment?

 

[freestylex06x]

hahaha well i said it was merely a rant. there really isn't a practical way to make it better. it seems like it is a good thing that this site has boomed with way more people despite the negatives i mentioned. it shows our hobby has expanded. maybe it will die down depending on hot toys.

 

[Icedrake707]

before you guys say stuff like "then don't look at that thread" or "then don't buy them", please understand that this is just a musing about the state of the for sale thread these days.

i've been on these boards for a while now (even longer as a lurker), and it seems this board as lost a lot over the past few years. i remember when the there was a more collective community on here with less childish arguments and more enjoyment of this hobby. now it seems (with the rise of hot toys mainly) that the quality of these boards has diminished and become much more negative and less enjoyable.

now, i acknowledge that everyone is free to do whatever they want with their money and collectibles but sometimes i look through the for sale thread and it just pains me to see ppl abusing the boards. first of all, many sellers are on here just to sell. even more baffling is the insulting prices they put on their figures expecting ppl to actually pay that much. before you say "you mad because you can't buy them", please know that this isn't the case at all since i have stopped collecting hot toys for a while now. i know there are those out there who have clicked on for sale threads to laugh at the rip off some board members are trying to pull.

i guess my conclusion is that i miss the old days when members like darkseed were the majority, not the minority. they collected for the sake of loving the hobby, not to flip figures or complain about everything. for example, even a while ago there was a college student member on these forums calling me an uneducated person just because i disagreed with him on a figure's aesthetics and because he reads the economist every month. this is just a thread to discuss your thoughts but i predict there will the usual suspects bashing me.

You have to understand sometimes people list items for above the average price. People usually attach a sentimental value to items as well. If the item is rare or sought after it demands a premium. Many people lose jobs or are forced to sell items they don't want to part with; so they list the items high. People can chose to buy or not to buy at the seller's price. If the seller is asking 10X the normal price they should probably be made aware but if it slightly over value then people should ignore it and let them try to sell the item.

 

[Lejuan]

People usually attach a sentimental value to items as well.

Good point. If I'm not prepared to part with a figure except for an insane amount of money, there's nothing wrong with putting it out there to see if someone bites. It wouldn't be a question of me being greedy, it'd be more that if I don't sell it I'm more than happy to keep it on my shelf - but if the price is right for me, that'd work too.

 

[Hamanu]

Yah, its a combination of several factors. I, too, don't want to part with any of my figures, but, when I was considering that I might sell my SS Star Wars figures, I had no idea what I'd want for Vader.

I paid nearly $200 for him (with shipping and customs) and I treasure him a great deal. I've no intention of selling him ATM (instead, he sits in his box since I've changed flats and had to drop a bunch of stuff at my mum's place LOL), but would probably not consider parting with him for less than $300. Is that too much? Likely. Is it fair? No clue and don't care.

 

[Monger]

I think in all the time I've looked through the sales threads, I have maybe seen ten listings that I would consider "good" deals. It amazes me how intense the scalper prices are on here. I swear people charge not just Ebay prices, but well above Ebay prices. Either that or entirely misinformed prices. I will see an opened figure maybe missing something for more than retail price...when the figure can still be easily acquired from Sideshow and such at retail. It leads to threads where the only person responding is the creator, of whom has been bumping the thread for months without doing any decent lowerings of prices.

Two things in particular annoy me

1) When you see the OP has bumped the thread something like 100 and says prices have been reduced many times and then you still see them at absurdly high prices. Makes me wonder how hard they were trying to rip off prior.

2) Sob stories. The "can't afford to collect anymore" or "need to narrow down my collection" excuse that is immediately followed by ABSURD prices. It is especially common on threads trying to sell expensive custom figures like Rainman stuff. I mean seriously if you bought a 1/6 figure for $600 then you should have your ____ together. Of course that same figure will be going for something like $2000 so they can make insane profits for no reason.

 

[thenammagazine]

It is especially common on threads trying to sell expensive custom figures like Rainman/Beto/one1scustoms/Kato stuff. I mean seriously if you bought a 1/6 figure for $600 then you should have your ____ together. Of course that same figure will be going for something like $2000 so they can make insane profits for no reason.

Fixed, and...

 

[Darth Con]

I hate flippers on new products that have just been released.

 

[cokebabies]

I wonder if he knew that the Economist is a weekly periodical. . .anyway, moving along.

https://www.theonion.com/articles/according-to-the-economist-nasa-is-an-industrial-s,11532/

 

[cokebabies]

Thanks for that. I think I've made some profits and some losses. I try to look at it as money that I now have that I would not have otherwise.

Yeah, my economics are truly warped. My cycle is usually: buy HT, decide I don't want it, sell at minor loss, be happy that I now have money again (despite the fact that it's less than I started with).

 

[a-dev]

Yeah, my economics are truly warped. My cycle is usually: buy HT, decide I don't want it, sell at minor loss, be happy that I now have money again (despite the fact that it's less than I started with).

That has no doubt been the case with me and I aim to solve it in the future by thinking hard about what I'm buying and the timing of what I'm buying. If it doesn't fit with my collecting mantra or whatever, if its something I have any suspicion I might end up selling then I won't buy it in the first place.

On the topic of people pricing high - again, I can kind of understand it. I only sell because I'm in a position of badly needing money - so of course the more I can get the better. Now if I put something for sale and it sells immediately because its apparently such a good price part of me will then wonder 'jeez, how much could I have gotten for that'. Again in times of needing money (where it isn't just to buy more toys) and when theres a finite amount of things I actually don't care to have anymore.

I'd rather price high and gradually lower it than price too low and be left wondering.

 

[EVILFACE]

This reminds me, I need to go bump my sales thread.

And maybe raise my prices too.

Don't forget to include "add 4% for PayPal fees" to it.

 

[King Darkness]

Don't forget to include "add 4% for PayPal fees" to it.

Thanks for the tip, will do

 

[Hamanu]

Don't forget to include "add 4% for PayPal fees" to it.

LOL. The sales tax is finally making a headway into internet sales. Though the states haven't yet figured out how to force online retailers across the board to charge it, our innovative community has.

 

[Wah]

I used to look through the "for sale" threads daily for about a month hoping that I would find way better deals on a board like this then on ebay. To my dismay not even close. Prices on this board are usually on the norm ridiculous. So I stoped altogether and now don't even click the "for sale" threas at all anymore even though I'm in need to buy a whole lot of stuff! Just gotten too ridiculous. To the point where prices on ebay are looking more reasonable to me now, which is scary in itself, but that should tell you the state of the "for sale" threads here. Of course you should be able to make a profit, no doubt. But just like any other types of business or people selling things in general, placing a premium is one thing on products but pricing them in the absurdity stratosphere is a whole nother thing.

 

[die]

I heart Sideshow Freaks. Almost all of my experiences here have been excellent. I'm not saying that there aren't things that could be better but as a whole, I still have faith in the community. I have gotten some really great deals on this board and been treated with respect and I truly appreciate it. I'm gotten some great pieces here, most of the time when I make somebody a fair offer they accept it and respond in a timely manner.

As for the prices, it's just the nature of the beast. If somebody is charging too much, send them an offer. If they say the price is firm, just move along. I've seen $100+ price differences on figures, so it pays to do some research. Sometimes eBay is cheaper but more often Freaks have the better deals.

 

[joshh]

I Personally was never ever intending to sell my Hot toys, that is the only thing I have or that I used to have before I started collecting DC and Marvel die cast figurines.
I checked for "SOLD" items on ebay and unsold items as well as retail prices and other prices in the board AND also how much I paid for the items. Then after revising all, I tried to set a price (NOT based in need because I am not in a need of selling them) that was lower than the "SOLD" on ebay, "fair" to the market value, "close to retail" but "less or a bit more" than what I paid. In the end I ended up listing all my figures there in the thread for less than what I paid. Considering that I traded 8 clones for the Secret Project and Leonidas, that puts them both at $415 each, now look at my post and you will see that the secret project is not even $300.
I started offering free shipping because I wanted to get rid of the other figures before I posted my HT .

I do see some sellers asking crazy prices, that happens specially with overseas sellers (no offense) but I also imagine their currency is higher than ours and that they paid high shipping and import costs, thus adjusting the price.

I listed my Mark VI battle damage ver. for $400 because the less popular mark IV sells for that all the time. I paid $300 for mine + $20 shipping, so as you see my profit margins arent those of scalpers.
Look for example at LT Jim, I listed it for a price that gives me around $80 of profit. the thing was shipped to me for $268 and it is almost impossible to find it now. on ebay it has "SOLD" for $400 and will keep rising!! Thus I decided to sell lower than ebay to appeal to the community.
Of course there will always be smartass buyers who will look and look for THE ONE that ended up lower among 100 higher and be like "oh see, it sells for $300" lol.

I had buyers also asking me to settle for prices, I have refused them because my prices are fixed. I cant be taking up more losses.
I paid as you saw almost $400 in trade for the Secret Project, which I love that figure to death, and the dude wanted me to ship free and take $20 off. The buyers need to understand that prices are set sometimes because that is the fairest price the seller can take to not incur in a big loss.

 

[Lejuan]

Considering that I traded 8 clones for the Secret Project and Leonidas, that puts them both at $415 each

I do see some sellers asking crazy prices, that happens specially with overseas sellers (no offense) but I also imagine their currency is higher than ours and that they paid high shipping and import costs, thus adjusting the price.

Of course there will always be smartass buyers who will look and look for THE ONE that ended up lower among 100 higher and be like "oh see, it sells for $300" lol.

I had buyers also asking me to settle for prices, I have refused them because my prices are fixed. I cant be taking up more losses.
I paid as you saw almost $400 in trade for the Secret Project, which I love that figure to death, and the dude wanted me to ship free and take $20 off. The buyers need to understand that prices are set sometimes because that is the fairest price the seller can take to not incur in a big loss.

This is pretty rich from the same guy who accused me of being a scalper because I responded to your wtb King Leo thread with a price of $410 - or was it $400 - shipped that included an extra cape and set of hands. You claimed you'd found one on ebay for $325. And then something about being an "ignorant bastard" and "mother ____er piece of ____ scalper".

Nice revision of history. I bet you look in the mirror and see David Fassbender when the reality is more like George Costanza fresh out of the pool.