How much are you prepared to pay?

[RifleSmile]

I can remember the first ever podcast we did and I interviewed Iain on it, he said during that interview words to this affect 'we've all been there, you start collecting, you pay £50 for an item, then £100, then £200 and it goes up'.

I was back in the infancy of collecting again and at that point had probably only spent £60/£70 maximum price at that time and thought to myself, can't see my spending £200 for an item. Roll on 18 months I have spent a couple of hundred quid on several items since and just before Christmas made my largest purchase which was £600.

Would I go above this amount, Yes I would as long as I had the funds readily available and it was something I could justify spending the money on then without doubt.

Totally agree Stuart and find lots of parallels with my collecting journey over the last year. Started off on a wide focus of ROTJ MOCs, then managed to pick up a bargain 12 back from Iain of all people. When I took delivery of it, the artwork, the logo blew me away far more than any of the ROTJ MOCs and that was that - next I knew I grabbed a couple of "budget" 12 backs in the £200/300 range and recently went as high as £600.

To fund these, Ive sold on a lot of my early MOCs, which has been a good thing for me and helped me find a tighter focus (Kenner 12/20/21 backs)

Would I go higher in price? Yes absolutely but primarily through selling to upgrade. Ive definitely slowed down vs my first six months which I think is a common trap!

Nicky

 

[Robstyley]

I am in the same boat as you mate, I set out to complete a loose set and would like to do so but it's not going to happen anytime soon. I have all of the first 79, am still after a few variants and have 4 of the last 17. I don't want a VCP at 500 quid or a blue snag at 200+ or a trilogo Fett at 100+ etc. The prices have just got too high and like you I won't pay it. 3 or 4 of the last 17 are now out my price range.

I think everyone has a limit but everyone also has a different budget and expectation of what they'll spend on vintage. The cheapest loose figure in my cabinet other than my childhood Squidhead is a mint Han Hoth I got for £2.75 and the most expensive is a mint Barada I bought off Iain for £45. I don't buy high value items. Ive overspent a few times for sure, we've all got carried away but I always have a limit in mind and if it goes higher I usually bail out. Have always managed to find another one with a little patience.

 

[lejackal]

I think with alot of items patience is very much key to getting a good price and I also agree that there is a limit on certain items. I would very much like a Luke Stormtrooper as I never had one as a child and was very envious of those friends that did but on the other hand the sculpt for his head is awful and £100 plus for a good one is too much in my book. I do still stand by original statement of the sky's the limit for the right item assuming funding it through sales. That said given my current focus of KayBee stickered items I'm unlikely to find much that costs four figures and even less likely to sell everything I've got to fund one Yak Face

 

[kingshearer]

I hear stories of people paying 50p for figures in charity shops Toy Polloi ( a youtuber who's probably on here ) recently acquired a Yak Face for £1.50 and like he says along with Lejackal in his previous message patience is the key. In the past I've had no patience and sometimes get obsessed with getting a figure and budget outside my means! I've reined it in recently and will never pay more than £30 for a last 17 figure or Blue Snag (since I have all the rest). I think as your collection grows you get more content with it and become a little more savvy and less desperate when buying additions. I may pcik up the odd stormtrooper etc for army building but won't pay more than a fiver.
For carded Palitoy figures I still have the new collector mentality but fortunately the prices of those things are way above my budget now.

 

[DickieM]

As keeps being mentioned, patience is the key. It's so tempting to dive in on that overpriced xyz on such as Facebook, petrified that if you don't it'll be sold within minutes and you'll miss out.
At the end of the day, except for a few items, none of it is particularly rare and will come around again soon.

 

[palitoyjunky]

Sometimes u have to bite the bullet and pay over the odds more often if ur a top end collector :!: As said if u pass on a rare sought after piece u don't know how long u will have to wait for another and following a trend, chances r it will cost more in the future :!:

 

[varangian]

I've paid well over $100 (+50 pounds) for customs.

 

[Woolyniner]

Thanks for the replies, I think what's apparent is that it is very much a personal thing. Fortunately there are still plenty of great budget friendly items out there. Vehicles are largely priced well, and one day I may start collecting card backs which are fun to get and very affordable.

 

[kingshearer]

Thanks for the replies, I think what's apparent is that it is very much a personal thing. Fortunately there are still plenty of great budget friendly items out there. Vehicles are largely priced well, and one day I may start collecting card backs which are fun to get and very affordable.

Check out Mr Palitoy's cardback collection truly amazing I wish I did that years ago when people were probably giving them away.

 

[Rebel_Runner]

I'm a bargain hunter, simple as that. My pride and joy is my loose run which is based around my childhood collection, so I only try and add variants and minty upgrades when I feel I can pick something up at less than market rate (what ever that might be!!!) which is getting rarer these days.

I love picking up cheep card backs and battered old Mocs. Gives me a sense of achievement and also stokes the nostalgia of my childhood...its win-win.

 

[edd_jedi]

Plenty. I don't have an upper limit so to say, but I won't pay more than I think something is worth. I will never pay £1000 for a trilogo carded Yak Face for example. Or £150 for a loose pop-up R2. I know they are not rare enough to warrant those prices.

 

[Pomse2001]

It depends on which item it is. Some of the very rare items I think I would never find for a £100

Sometimes I buy lots and get the items for a good price, other times I need to pay a normal price or extra for a figure, moc or a box that I really want.

I have learned my lesson not to pay a little extra for an item that I really want. In 2005 I did the same as you I saw a ESB book with tape on danish moc on auction. It sold for £60 and I would not pay more than £50. I have never again seen one again for sale moc and it is the last book with tape moc that I need to complete that part of my collection. Today I would have paid more just to get it.