To me - and dare I say - a lot of other AFA collectors, collecting a sealed figure, be it Transformers, G.I. Joe, Visionaries, M.A.S.K., He-Man etc, they collect them for the feeling that they get when they hold it in their hands. A feeling that can only be experienced, and for that brief moment sends us back in time to when we first saw these figures. Not only this but we also regard them like relics, a piece of history which need to be preserved so that future generations can know the true origins of these franchises. It would be a shame to have these lost to future generations. This is nothing new, Victorian Dolls, Matchbox Cars, Original Sindy, Original Barbie, Steiff Bears, Rupert the Bear Annuals, the list goes on. Welcome to the world of toy collectors.

 

I use to be a MISB collector. Worked my butt off to collect boxes, until I became very sick. Then it hit me that I could die and I wasn't enjoying my TF's as I should be and started opening them up one by one. Now I have very few that are still in boxes and I enjoy my collection a lot more now then when they were all prisoners in their cardboard boxes. I say to each there own, but what good is a collection to brag about, if you can't touch it?

 

Wraith, man...even though you are one of "us", I have to correct you where you're wrong...on toys, generally yes an autograph is usually frowned upon but in just about any other collectibles like comics and sports cards/memorabilia, autographs increase the value and make items sought after...in fact AFA is the only grading company who degrades the item if it's been autographed. Grading companies in the other collectible hobbies don't, and in fact have seperate services for autographs like CGC, BGS and PSA.

Again another who assumes that because we collect AFA/MISB, we don't have any Transformers loose...I know quite a few who try to collect both MISB/AFA & loose if at all possible, including myself. Also, it's not all about bragging rights because it's painfully obvious if we post anything positive about collecting MISB/AFA more than half the people on these forums want to chime in with their broke ass opinions, like "free it from its plastic prison", "they need opening, why keep them locked up", or "I just don't understand it, so I hate it"... So really what's to brag about?

I'll tell you what I don't understand, why most in this community collects/buys anything and everything Hasbro releases under the Transformers name... I can't see spending hundreds or thousands of dollars for stuff like the movie and prime toys, to me they aren't Transformers because they don't resemble the toys or the characters I (ME) grew up with. The difference is, I don't go into movie or prime toy threads and spread the hate...it's not my thing, but I realize others enjoy it so I (ME) can respect that... Not saying I don't like all modern toys as I do however collect Classics/Generations, 3rd Party, and Masterpieces that homage in some way or another their original 1980's toy.

 

Op - I never mentioned collectable cards. Also I said an autographed comic does not increase in value unless the sig can be verified. This is the case when you come to sell it, sad but true. As for grading I don't know about that, but definitely for selling when it comes to comics, they will ignore the signature.

 

I think AFA is a waste of money. A lot of toys have excellent packaging. If I AFA'd my Dark of the Moon toys, I wouldn't be able to feel the moon craters on the packaging.

 

Yeah, but what if you one day dropped it or it got scuffed on the front, or something fell on causing a dent or even bursting open the packaging?

I like my collection protected, because you can't be too careful.

 

I used to manage a comic shop, so I'm telling you right now in most cases autographs do increase the value... Also, CGC grades autographed comics and grades them under a different scale specifically for autographs, but with all autographs regardless of the hobby it does have to be authenticated to fetch big money. Sorry to say but the toy industry doesn't really have a lot of famous people to sign things outside of the Star Wars realm... However, there are a lot of sought after signatures in comics like Stan Lee, Todd McFarlane, John Byrne, Frank Miller, Alan Moore, Steve Ditko, Neal Adams, Jack Kirby, John Romita (Sr. & Jr.), Alex Ross, and the list goes on... However, that is one thing I've never liked about the way AFA treats signed toys...CGC usually has a representive at just about every decent sized convention where comic authors/artists are booked as guests...so much easier to get the comic certified when a representive is standing right there. On the other hand, AFA usually only shows up at the major conventions like Star Wars Celebration events, SDCC, and usually any cons that are in the Atlanta area.

 

I don't disagree, but as of recently (maybe the recession who knows) shops have been reluctant to purchase comic books at a higher price with signatures, saying that they can't verify the sig, or is that just their way of trying to get you to part with it for less.

 

Anyway, back on topic.

Bottom line is if there is a market for it, then they will sell, and there is a market for cased and graded figures, like it or not, it is not going to go away any time soon.

 

Seriously, who would want to AFA Dark of the Moon toys (or any movie toys for that matter)? You want to talk about a waste of money, that right there would be a good example of it...so if that is your example I can see why you'd feel it's a waste of money and I'm sure most AFA collectors would agree with you. Graded Bayformers toys = huge waste of money, lol!

 

I can't wait for AFA Tuner Mudflaps to hit eBay!

 

Will probably be posted on eBay by the same people who whine about AFA being a waste of money...

 

Seriously though, any toy is gradable, and in the future, say in 30 years time, these movie toys will be someones childhood memory which they wish to recapture (shudders at the thought of bayformers doing this), and then it will have been worth getting it AFA'd and keeping it in pristine condition. not because you can get a nice chunk of money from it (that is really up to you what you would sell it for), but because you had the foresight to keep it in perfect condition and allow someone to recapture their childhood.

I have read loads of comments questioning AFA's authority on grading toys, they are the authority because they know their business and don't have anyone other than UKG to contend with. Both are the "experts" because an expert is just some who everyone else goes to for that type of thing. I could be an expert toy grader, but that is not my profession and I don't have any work to show for it, thus I am not the expert, these guys are. They don't need anyone else to teach them about it because they are the apex of this type of profession, if others want to do it, they would be the ones teaching. Everything has to start somewhere.

 

You know what I dont get? Why do they keep those dinosaur bones locked up in those museums? You gotta free those bones from their prisons, maybe play pick up sticks with em or make some soup. How can you enjoy them all static ike that? I will never get it.

 

lol that is a perfect analogy. Dinosaur bones are relics, 30+ year old toys still in their sealed boxes are relics. Nuff Said!

 

AFA

I see what some people say as valid but having AFA is better then not having AFA..you would never really know if you had a fake or real.. its just a touch of added security and yes they can get it wrong anyone can. But they try I think and yes toys can be WAY overpriced Collect cause you love it not to turn a profit I say.

 

I wish I could agree with you here, because I have come around to like the presentation of AFA figures more and more lately. However, I have a ko afa graded beachcomber in my collection that reminds me no one/auhtority is perfect. I also have to say that I haven't heard anything like that happening since then though.
my 2 cents

 

Whoamidri
If you let AFA know about the KO, they will buy it back from you, Im almost certain. I doubt they want the mistakes out there any more than someone would want a KO in their collection.

 

Stupid question, but what is AFA? Is it like MISB? Or is it some kind of rating?

 

Did you even read through the thread?

On topic:
For those that don't understand the AFA thing, it's really kind of simple: You know an old MISB toy is going to cost a lot. If you pay a lot of money for it, it would be stupid to open it when you can find unsealed versions of the toy. it would also be stupid not to protect it, since any ding, smudge, scratch, or tear is going to decrease the value. AFA isn't about trying to flip a toy and make it worth more, it's about protecting what's already worth a lot. I think a lot of people see those ebay auctions all the time and make the wrong assumptions about what the market really is. That's not a bad thing in and of itself, it's a bad thing that people don't bother thinking about it before they say something dumb about it based on a bad assumption.

Some people have a narrow focus with their collecting habits. At some point in time they may have nearly all possible versions of a character or they may complete a line that they like. If they're still into collecting, then going for an unblemished MISB version of something they may already have several versions of already could be a worthwhile goal.

In my own case, I collect Skywarp and Thundercracker. I have tons of different G1 SW & TC toys. At some point, it would be really nice to have sealed versions of the US and Japanese G1 releases. How much do you think that's going to cost? Yeah, a lot. If I drop that kind of money on them, then I'm damn sure going to either seal them up in a protective box or have them graded.

Why have them graded instead of just making my own box? Like it or not, AFA are pretty much the only ones around. People have their opinions about them and some of the work they do, but in the end, it's all we have. As long as the AFA grade is sealed inside the box, then that's a baseline everyone can recognize - an independent organization has certified that the item is original and sealed it up. People can argue about the grades, and argue about the few frauds that got past AFA, but at least it's something. If I seal it in the box myself, there's no sense of authenticity attached to it should I decide to sell it - no one could ever tell whether I sealed the box myself, or if I ever opened the case or the box inside and swapped something out. AFA at least tries to provide some assurance there.

If you're one of those people who can't understand why anyone would keep a toy MISB, then (no offense intended) you're either not thinking very clearly or you haven't been collecting for a long time - as I said above, there are good reasons for collectors to have MISB toys, and only the ignorant would assume that an AFA box is the only version of the toy that the collector has in their possession.