Are you still having fun collecting?

[poncho]

i think the increase in scammers and reproduction items have killed some of the interest for me. also the current price hike (as in looking for nice loose figure or common moc and it going way over what its actual worth is in my eyes) has dampened by enthuiasm.


i enjoy looking looking at other peoples collecting habbits these days on the forum and seeing some fantastic pieces.

but i will always be a collector at heart and will always look whats for sale because i love vintage starwars :lol:

 

[itfciain]

I think the best part of collecting is at the start - then you are free to buy whatever you want as you don't have a focus or a goal - the joy of getting loads of packages through the door is like having loads of Christmases

As your collection grows then you 'need' less and less - if you remember the sticker albums - the best it was always the start when you just filled it up - it was only when you got most of the way through - and every other pack came with a Tim Breaker that it became 'harder'

However the joy of finding a missing player - or in our case a missing item from a focus or a collection is still there and is probably amplified by the hunt - but they are a lot more few and far between

 

[Jez]

Almost any MOC purchase is still a big chunk of my disposable income gone.
But the fun in this whole hobby for me is the thrill of the hunt, and that has nothing to do with money.
It doesn't matter how much cash you throw at collecting, if you don't put the hours in you won't find the gems.
Any idiot with unlimited funds can go on eBay right now and put together an AFA 85 Kenner full run.
Collecting is about building relationships and helping each other out to find tough pieces.

Snap, True, True & True

What I am more aware of is the unbelievable amount of dick heads, scammers, thieves and morons there are out there! But this is also balanced with meeting and dealing with some true gentlemen, some really knowledgable and friendly people who have become friends.

Couldn't agree more

Best of all is the community, SWFUK is a wonderful place and im so glad to be a part of it but it think as were all a bit older now, a lot of the ego and childishness has gone from the hobby (although not all unfortunately). The fact that people will travel for hundreds of miles to sit down for a curry and a pint with a bunch of likeminded blokes really is testament to how strong a community this is and i cant really imagine that happening 20 years ago.

Nailed it.

Now, not always as much. I think the competition, prices and all the backstabbing, cons and just plain weirdness has taken its toll and so at times it seems more of a hassle.

Hopefully that might change.

At least I still enjoy being part of a community

I know how you feel Gary, fortunately i don't see much of that negativity you refer to on this forum.

Although I do think people need to contribute more to the forum and not just sit in the background waiting to PM someone every time they sell something cheaper here than on eBay.
I fully agree that bargains are still to be found if you have the time to keep looking, 'Lord knows I try.'
It's a shame that in most cases now greed seems to be prevailing over common sense with prices in our hobby, meaning the joy of what collecting is to me is being tarnished somewhat by the rising prices. My main reason for my post is - It was more fun because it wasn't so expensive

I understand you point. I'm actually having more fun though because my collecting has evolved into more than just procuring Vintage Star Wars. The socialising, the conventions, the meets, the help, the generosity.
This forum makes me a richer man, ever though i have less cash.

Throw in a recent surge of collectors who are all about bragging rights rather than collecting or just plain fun means my patience is severely tested.

The community is also severely fragmented and perhaps everyone should just take one step back, chillout and remember its supposed to be fun.

Point 1, totally agree. Point 2, severely fragmented? I must be missing something :?: I'm not aware its severely fragmented.

Back in the days mentioned I enjoyed building up a loose collection and having a good number of vehicles and playsets too - collecting in a vacuum I assumed that what I knew about having a Star Wars collection was all there was to know.

Becoming a part of the 'community' over the past 2-3 years has been like peeling through the onion layers of knowledge, and I have enjoyed that aspect tremendously. I realise now how little I knew back in the 90s, and the minutiae of detail and research that becomes apparent to a longterm engaged community member is fascinating and I am still learning...

Excellent, totally agree.

Too many wankers with two much money and no desire to contribute except to hoover up as much cash as possible.

When people ask me about my hobby it used to be followed up with 'that's cool' or 'I loved those toys' etc and now conversations are totally dominated by 'how much is this worth' or 'I brought this for £xxx did I do alright?'. Yeah you did alright if you brought something that you love and is going to bring you warm fuzzy feelings when you look at it. Else you got a trophy, next time why don't you just show me your bank balance.

You raise a fair point there J. It's **** to see good guys like you get disheartened though.

I understand the concerns about prices but if I was in a position where I was unable to afford to continue then I'd just change my habits. Get more involved in the community, cons, FF etc. Look at other foci such as oddballs, comics, novels, etc. SW for me is much more and bigger than the standard set of action figure related accessories.

That's pretty much what i said above!

When I came back to collecting about 3 1/2 years ago I thought I knew abit but looking at all the stuff on here, on RS and the SWCA it blew my mind. It's been a huge learning journey and I've learned quite a bit, but the real fun is knowing there's such a lot still to learn.

It's like you are my brother from another mother

So Yes, I'm having fun collecting, and SWFUK is a big part of that.
The community spirit on here is something I haven't found on any other site. The level of expertise, advice, and simple plain old fun means I will be a member on here for years to come

Good news, we need guys like you Jeff

I spent today looking for some prizes I can send to Jez for his competition instead of trying to add to my collection and it was a damn good day, won't be able to send him much but I know he'll appreciate it and I know whoever wins it will be happy to receive something from the forum.

I am pretty upbeat about not spending money on SW for the next few years - as Grant said I'll get my fix by enjoying what other people post in latest acquisitions.

I feel sorry for genuine SW collectors that don't know about SWFUK - because without it most of them that are priced out of buying will loose interest and miss out.

You Sir are an absolute gent, thank you. And Grant is right about that!

I think what actually killed it for me for a bit was the Facebook groups. Full of scammers and dickheads and just general investors not collectors. I am sure these people existed way before the internet and I was fine when it was just the forums, but now you get to see some of the worlds biggest excuses for wasting oxygen. I have now left most of the groups and only remain in a few and of course the forums.

Agreed, FB appears to breed inbreds.

I am going to Celebration Anaheim in a few weeks time as part of a group, and hopefully meeting a load of new like minded people. This has also contributed massively to my enjoyment of the hobby.

Great post Ben. We're gonna have a blast mate.

But i will always be a collector at heart and will always look whats for sale because i love vintage starwars :lol:

Fanboy for life.

I think the best part of collecting is at the start - then you are free to buy whatever you want as you don't have a focus or a goal - the joy of getting loads of packages through the door is like having loads of Christmases

True, the beginning for me was great. But its still awesome now

 

[ODB]

Throw in a recent surge of collectors who are all about bragging rights rather than collecting or just plain fun means my patience is severely tested.

The community is also severely fragmented and perhaps everyone should just take one step back, chillout and remember its supposed to be fun.

Point 1, totally agree. Point 2, severely fragmented? I must be missing something :?: I'm not aware its severely fragmented.

Yes the community is sadly hugely fragmented, you've got the facebook groups that don't mix with the older forums lot. There is a definitive split between the vintage and modern collectors with snobbery on both sides, there is also a lot of rivalry/disagreement between forums. There doesn't seem to be a unifying factor between them that exists in other collecting communities that I have seen.

 

[Robstyley]

**** yeah!! All over it, enjoying it more than ever. Get a massive buzz from my loose figure collecting and starting collecting MOC's in the last couple of years has been a joy. Not worried about prices, I just don't collect the silly money stuff and still enjoy it on the budget I have. Long live SWFUK!

 

[Pomse2001]

I am still having a lot of fun, but I agree many of the items have been more expensive since I startede to collect and I wish I have bought some of the more rare items many years ago.

But we can all still be lucky to find some cheap stuff and I think we all still learn something new about our hobby every day. I know I learn something new every day :lol:

 

[phreatobite]

I am still loving collecting - I am much more discerning now but only because I've not long bought a house.

Almost everything I've learned about collecting has been from this forum. The sheer amount of information amongst community members is staggering, I learn new stuff all the time.

Every day I wish I could go back in time and convince my dad to go into those toy shops we walked past.

 

[x-pack]

To be blunt, no, I don't enjoy collecting star wars toys these days. It's because of prices and the amount of repro stuff.

However, I love being part of this community, and I really enjoy looking at other vintage toy lines. Farthest From is the highlight of my collecting these days and that's mainly down to the community.

 

[Hothrebel]

Yes !!

 

[Frunkstar]

Simple answer from me - yes loads

 

[Princess Raya]

In a word, yes! I've probably been a bit of a bull in a china shop so far, but have learnt an enormous amount from being on here. I've quickly learnt that the fun is in the hunt, in finding a bargain and in learning something new every time I read the forum. Success is a journey, not a destination.

 

[Mr. Bob A. Feet]

Seeing how I've only just started collecting again I would say most definitely yes, in fact I've spent so much time on Ebay and various other sites the last few weeks I think I may have a problem!...the only upside is I'm not loaded or I would probably bought a metric ton of stuff!

 

[stratpack]

I couldn't have picked a worse time to start collecting MOC's again - about 6 months ago. Not only because of the hike in prices but I also moved home. Double whammy.
I sold my collection about 11 years ago (mostly modern right enough) and vowed that was me done. I was sick of collecting, the prequels, Hasbro, over-exposure and sick of the SW=£ mentality (which has now grown to epic proportions). I had already competed my vintage loose collection though and never parted with it. Sooooo glad I didn't!!!

But yeah I do miss the 90s when you had to go to the little collectors shops every week and see what they had picked up at the fairs etc. If you were looking for a figure/ship they'd pick one up for you. I remember actually phoning up every week to see what they had, saving me a train fare. As much as ebay was great at the start I don't know how many times I was burnt by sellers being dishonest with their descriptions. Nothing beats buying stuff in person.

As I'm starting again, exactly as Iain says, I don't have a real focus. My goal was to have some cards of the characters I had when I was a kid, luckily that's mostly Jedi ones! An aside goal was to have a carded example from each film, which I've only just managed to achieve recently. I've been very lucky thanks to some of the folks on here as I would never have considered buying some of these figures on Ebay - I just don't trust it anymore for vintage SW.

All in all I'm still enjoying it but I'm taking my time and only buying when I can afford it. Luckily I'm at the cheaper end of the market still. I can completely understand why others have plateau'd further up the scale though.

 

[Palifan]

To be blunt, no, I don't enjoy collecting star wars toys these days. It's because of prices and the amount of repro stuff.

However, I love being part of this community, and I really enjoy looking at other vintage toy lines. Farthest From is the highlight of my collecting these days and that's mainly down to the community.

I'm kind of with x-pack on this one but still look at both Star Wars and other vintage lines every day. I feel happy enough with what I have although every now and then something new comes along that I pick up. These days it's been more looking into other vintage toy lines and picking up a little of this and that. I do however still get a buzz from a new purchase and spend hours moving things around in my toy cabinet.

This forum is great though for hearing what's going on and looking at members new pick ups and collections. It's filled with great information as well as working like a vintage toy gallery.

Ian

 

[naughtyjedi]

I love getting broken ships and trying to repair them. ALlows me to rifle through stalls at cons hoping i can get a piece I need.

I recently completed my not so Mint MOC Leia collection. Not mint MOCs are reasonably cheap I think and I really like the busy cardbacks with offers etc. I have 8 MOCs now. Haven't paid over £90 for any of them.

I love trying not to finish my loose run, missing out means i get to look harder and I can wait it out. 3 to go... but no hurry. Then I amuse myself by thinking "should I save up for a blue snag", or admit that other things are part of the loose run.

Loose cardbacks, unlikely to ever have one of each due but its fun picking them up. The ones I love are the ones that have been written on or marked when the collecting was ongoing. I know then that they were part of something. A loose cardback tells a story.

Marvel comics. Love getting bargains here. Picked up a load in an ebay auction for £1. Real nostalgia trip there.

Then (aside from my modern focuses) I contemplate if I should start a new vintage focus.. and thats fun in itself. Hmm.. Micro collection.. maybe

Are you still having fun collecting? Answer YES. My advice would be if you are getting too bogged down try to return to why you love the stuff you are collecting. Does it HAVE to be mint? Does it have to cost £10000s to get the same Nostalgic thrill off it.

 

[x-pack]

To be blunt, no, I don't enjoy collecting star wars toys these days. It's because of prices and the amount of repro stuff.

However, I love being part of this community, and I really enjoy looking at other vintage toy lines. Farthest From is the highlight of my collecting these days and that's mainly down to the community.

I'm kind of with x-pack on this one but still look at both Star Wars and other vintage lines every day. I feel happy enough with what I have although every now and then something new comes along that I pick up. These days it's been more looking into other vintage toy lines and picking up a little of this and that. I do however still get a buzz from a new purchase and spend hours moving things around in my toy cabinet.


Ian

Same. I love what I have and enjoy going through things and displaying them in a different way ...otherwise known as 'playing with your toys' :wink: It's kind of complete for me - there's nothing left I want - well not that I can afford anyway. Last weekend I finally made a start on identifying all the repro weapons. Not really sure what to do with them now just in case one or two of them are real :?

 

[Grant]

To be blunt, no, I don't enjoy collecting star wars toys these days. It's because of prices and the amount of repro stuff.

However, I love being part of this community, and I really enjoy looking at other vintage toy lines. Farthest From is the highlight of my collecting these days and that's mainly down to the community.

I'm kind of with x-pack on this one but still look at both Star Wars and other vintage lines every day. I feel happy enough with what I have although every now and then something new comes along that I pick up. These days it's been more looking into other vintage toy lines and picking up a little of this and that. I do however still get a buzz from a new purchase and spend hours moving things around in my toy cabinet.

This forum is great though for hearing what's going on and looking at members new pick ups and collections. It's filled with great information as well as working like a vintage toy gallery.

Ian

Good post^^^. This past few months Iv seen myself finish with SW collecting and start picking up other stuff. Unused Skateboard decks that I used to skate as a teen. Also just last week I picked up my first MOTU carded figure, again one I had as a kid. It is really refreshing to work on something non SW for a change but It's still cool to see what you People are picking up tho.

 

[Robstyley]

Good post^^^. This past few months Iv seen myself finish with SW collecting and start picking up other stuff. Unused Skateboard decks that I used to skate as a teen. Also just last week I picked up my first MOTU carded figure, again one I had as a kid. It is really refreshing to work on something non SW for a change but It's still cool to see what you People are picking up tho.[/quote]

I think you're right mate. I still enjoy collecting SW at the moment but it can be refreshing to pick up other bits. I bought an eagle eyes Action Man recently and a carded Mr T. I like looking for other stuff. I have a couple of skateboards I use but if I had a bit more space I could easily collect old decks. I think if you have a collecting mentality and like retro stuff as I do there's so much you could collect. I have to keep a lid on it :lol:

 

[Grant]

Good post^^^. This past few months Iv seen myself finish with SW collecting and start picking up other stuff. Unused Skateboard decks that I used to skate as a teen. Also just last week I picked up my first MOTU carded figure, again one I had as a kid. It is really refreshing to work on something non SW for a change but It's still cool to see what you People are picking up tho.

I think you're right mate. I still enjoy collecting SW at the moment but it can be refreshing to pick up other bits. I bought an eagle eyes Action Man recently and a carded Mr T. I like looking for other stuff. I have a couple of skateboards I use but if I had a bit more space I could easily collect old decks. I think if you have a collecting mentality and like retro stuff as I do there's so much you could collect. I have to keep a lid on it :lol:[/quote]

We're all just big kids chasing childhood memories. Hopefully still having fun doing it. It's a good distraction from the daily woes. 8)

 

[Section 8]

When i first started re-collecting which was not that long ago, I had virtually no spare cash so had to rely on small gains on buying and selling. I used to watch Ebay for joblot bargains which despite being described as "well played with" they would often have one or two perfect figures or a rarer variant mixed. I'd keep the perfect figures for my loose collection and sell on any doubles, variants and the beaters often at a small profit with just some better pictures and description. I'm disappointed at selling my loose collection as my plan was to start again and build in the same way, but Ebay has gone crazy with competition, prices and repro crap, so I'm far less inclined to deal this way.

I still enjoy collecting, but am often now limited to the often unridiculous prices found on this forum.

Still fun, just not as much fun.