Tell me I'm not mad

[TrisCompany]

Hi, new to the site. Been a big fan of SW since a boy. Never had an AT AT so bought one off ebay. Had a baby, started to watch SW Rebels. I like watching it more than the baby. These two things triggered something within me ad I've now started to collect MOCs and am all over the place . Have bought 7 or 8 Palitoy logoed MOCS a mix of states. Also started getting Tris, several ROTJ cards and a boxed Tie Interceptor, c40 cards so far. I have no space for it all... I can't afford it.. I'm out of control.

I'm hoping that I'm not alone.

Is this normal? I can't believe I'm so addicted.

Any tips for self control?

(Also looking for a Luke Bespin Tri- for no particular reason, looks cool).

I've put some favourite cards on the book case (in front of family photos). Should I be worried about sun damage? (they are all graded and dressed to kill in acrylic).

Cheers- great forum by the way. Am impressed by the commitment , camaraderie and knowledge of the community.

James

 

[indianawars]

Welcome to the site

I think you could compare it to gambling - the buzz you get from bidding/winning an item, finding something you've been looking for a while - even the postman knocking the front door with a parcel. It's extremely easy to over spend, or compulsively buy something. When I started collecting 11 years ago I did just what your doing. In the end I had to sell everything to pay off the credit card I was using to buy these items. I remember my attitude then was, 'if I don't buy it now, will I get another chance to buy it!?' believe me when I tell you, there is always another chance of buying the same item again. You will never be happy with your collection because there is always sometime else you want to add to it. Your priority should be home, food, bills, then a little something for yourself - otherwise your be selling your collection off in no time...

 

[Grant_C]

Welcome to the site James.

Star Wars collecting is highly addictive.

Just check out the showcase section.

Good Luck.

 

[itfciain]

I'm not sure I should comment on this :lol:

People have already got standing orders set up to my account !

 

[Palifan]

I'd love to know which 7-8 Palitoy logo MOC's you have and by the way you're not sure how many you have you may well have a slight problem :lol: (worry not though as I think we've all been there and welcome to the forum )

Ian

 

[Richard_H]

Going the way you are you will suffer from burn out and will not enjoy your collecting. Take your time - prices should come down soon when the bubble bursts.

 

[Michael Sith]

Great analogy in regard to gambling.

SW becomes an addiction, as Rich says, take your time..... Prices are very high at the moment due to a raft of reasons, not forgetting the new film.
Planning, searching, saving for a piece is all part of the fun.

If you are looking to make purchases, check the FS threads on here, as you will not be ripped off as you may be on ebay etc.
Plan your collection, look at the limelights on here, and choose what you want to go for, anything you have at the moment that was an impulse buy, or part of the addiction, that may not sit with what you are deciding on as your plan, put up FS or to trade on here, for pieces that fit your planned strategy!

Get some pics of what you have so far up on a thread, then we can see it and you have a reference point as your collection grows, and builds.

Be responsible and keep it all in perspective, the bills have to be paid, food on the table, family to look after, then anything spare, go for it.

My advice is to use the forum, look listen and learn, there are fantastic sellers on here, Iain, Chaz B and many more, and everyone will give sound and solid advice.

Welcome aboard, and good luck

 

[Bonsai_Tree_Ent]

Hi, new to the site. Been a big fan of SW since a boy. Never had an AT AT so bought one off ebay. Had a baby, started to watch SW Rebels. I like watching it more than the baby. These two things triggered something within me ad I've now started to collect MOCs and am all over the place . Have bought 7 or 8 Palitoy logoed MOCS a mix of states. Also started getting Tris, several ROTJ cards and a boxed Tie Interceptor, c40 cards so far. I have no space for it all... I can't afford it.. I'm out of control.

I'm hoping that I'm not alone.

Is this normal? I can't believe I'm so addicted.

Any tips for self control?

(Also looking for a Luke Bespin Tri- for no particular reason, looks cool).

I've put some favourite cards on the book case (in front of family photos). Should I be worried about sun damage? (they are all graded and dressed to kill in acrylic).

Cheers- great forum by the way. Am impressed by the commitment , camaraderie and knowledge of the community.

James

James, when I first read this I took it to mean you like watching Star Wars Rebels more than you like looking at your baby?! Think I got that wrong!

I do have a tip for you... keep away from carded figures and boxed vehicles for now, and focus that energy and enthusiasm on putting together a nice loose set. You mentioned that you don't have the space and cant afford to keep up buying carded so a loose set is the answer... and as others have said - collecting is a marathon not a sprint. Take some time to smell the roses along the road otherwise you'll just feel like you're 'accumulating' rather than collecting. Good luck with it and hope to see you posting more on this forum!

 

[sith-smith]

Yep it's addictive. And Palitoy MOC is a financial minefield at the moment!!

My suggestion is to get some kind of goal and set a monthly budget/limit.

You could of course just do the 'I buy what ever I like/looks cool' approach, but that can cause problems if money is limited, and of course space!

I, like others would always recommend starting with the basic complete loose figure run.
Then maybe expand on it with some of the more notable variations (Blue Snag, Large Head Hand, VC Jawa)

You could then try the same with vehicles/playsets, though keep in mind that they will take up far more room.

MOC is a very expensive hobby, depending on what you go for and the condition you want. I think it is very import to set a limit if going down that route, unless you have more money than sense...which recently a lot of people seem to have!

Most importantly, remember that there are far more important things in life than a Star Wars collection. You ideally want it to be something that adds to your enjoyment of life rather than something that potentially can have a negative impact on things that really matter.

 

[jedisearcher]

Sensible advice so far

I'd add that it makes sense to take a look at what you're collecting and think whether it makes sense. You just can't collect everything, no one can, and you'll end up swamped with stuff and you'll never complete anything. Think about what you really like and focus on them. If you try and buy everything you'll end up getting burned on stuff and you'll make a loss when you realise you don't want it any more.

And don't get obsessed with grading. The extra money you're spending on graded stuff you can use you can use to buy more stuff for yourself. Once you've seen some AFA 75's or 80's you pretty much know what anything non-graded you buy would get. You just don't need to waste your money. There are plenty of great acrylic cases around so buy them, they look just as good as a graded version. If your worried about authenticity then ask on here, or check out things on any of the resources out there.

Chris

 

[peekaygee73]

All good advice so far. As someone who hasn't been on the forum long I'd add:

Use this forum. You'll be able to ask questions and read threads to improve your knowledge. There's a lot of fake/crap stuff out there at the moment and prices are sky-high so you need to be careful. Don't worry about missing out on things if you've hit your budget for the month; most stuff will be around again sooner or later.

Remember that collecting is meant to be fun, so don't let it get in the way of the important stuff.

 

[Robstyley]

You're off your trolley mate.. completely bonkers! Mad as a bag of frogs. You're in good company. Sounds like you're going for it! I would calm down a bit if I were you otherwise you may lose the bug as quickly as you got it :wink:

 

[itfciain]

You're not alone

[youtube]OcxQJi5TGMY[/youtube]

 

[Grant]

Slow it down Dude. You'll hit either hit burnout or you may end up with with stuff you don't want if you decide to narrow your focus or change direction. Just a thought. G

 

[paulcalf]

You are not mad!

 

[mumbo]

Great post you've obviously been bitten bad :lol:

Some very sound words of wisdom which you should take on board, I think many collectors get that initial rush/buzz and spend more than they should (happened to me but on a smaller budget and mostly loose figures).

I would definitely recommend starting off on a loose run and go from there, maybe this will lead you to a focus character and you can then go for some MOCs of this figure, but like many have said prices are insane at the moment :shock: the bubble may not burst and could just keep creeping up as the fever gets worse :?:

Stick around on the forum and you'll be able to pick up some cheaper items from trusted sellers compared to eBay which is full of reseals and fakes which can easily fool an inexperienced buyer.

Use the knowledge hidden within this forum and you'll be fine.

Welcome aboard

 

[beginner]

Welcome James,

i must say, you need a Jedi robe, is there not one for sale? .....reminds me of something

can someone help me too, please :mrgreen:

 

[TrisCompany]

Hi, thanks for the warm welcome and the advice, much appreciated, thanks very much. I've taken it all on board.

I've already made a couple of big mistakes, undoubtedly!!

I bought a recarded Wicket from Ebay, it was £13 and thought it was a bargain until I looked more closely. I'd already pushed the button then waited a week in vain for somebody to out bid me. They didn't. Probably too late on the Palitoy advice unfortunately..

Somebody asked about the Palitoys.

I've amassed an alternative version of Palitoy's with real life battle damage. I've got a 30a Luke, his head has broken the bubble- card is decent though and weapons still taped, I just bought the 30a Ben from ebay with the hinge- love that card, probably overpaid, also have a 30a Lando with pen mark on the back- definitely overpaid. As well as for no particular reason 2 palitoy 41 back lobots (no idea why I did that) and a 2-1 b 41 or 45 palitoy which is creased to the max. I also just bought the 12a Palitoy Sand people from ebay- i didn't have a tusken raider-overpaid. My pride possession is a 70 grade 12a han , the card is faded (spent too much on it, but you only live once ((or do you))).

Unfortunately for my wallet I'm drawn to the MOCs and especially the Palitoys. I have a collection of loose from my childhood which I need to revisit and see if the Yak man is in there.

I really appreciate the advice on prices being a minefield, i'm sure I've overpaid on all of the above, especially the Han, and spent a fair bit... I'm not that fussy though on quality or them being graded so have picked up some rare cards at hopefully a fraction of nm price (but still probably over the odds), realtively happy with the motley crew of half damaged and faded misfits- which might save me some money- although might mean they're with me til the grave.

I've also bought some esb and rotj cards. Thinking about it, quite a lot of money-in total.

Still...

I've put some of the favourites in front of me on the bookcase, it's weird, but I get a genuine sense of real satisfaction from seeing them (I'm hoping i'm not alone). Some better pieces, an afa 80 Boba ROTJ 77 back desert scene, an afa 80 31 back luke bespin, han 12a Palitoy and an afa 75 esb imperial stormtrooper 41 back- what a card that is. I'm also a big fan of jawa on his esb card, a great image, the little guy packs a big punch.

I've looked at the showcases and there is some unbelievable efforts going on. Special mention to Gary OMG. The Fett run and the Palitoys! Phenomenal.

I think it's amazing to own something of which there might be less than 100, in some cases, in the World. I really enjoy also learning the mistakes and finding out more, I'd like to become more knowledgeable, it's a real privilege to be able to own some of these things.

Any idea on how many 12 a or 40+ grade 30 a Palitoys there are out there anybody? Can't be that many, even my mate Luke with his burst head is still pretty special I reckon.

Cheers guys,
James

BTW I've got an option on a bespin Trilogo Luke- afa 75- how much would it be worth paying please?

 

[Paul Armory]

You're not alone

[youtube]OcxQJi5TGMY[/youtube]

Preciously what popped in my head when I started reading this thread! :lol: Bravo.