Lessons you've learned in collecting

Discussion in 'Transformers Toy Discussion' started by Shockwave9227, Sep 30, 2011.

  1. brr-icy

    brr-icy MP Collector

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    this^ although i haven't sold anything that i bought like that yet
     
  2. NotoriousBIC

    NotoriousBIC Prime Suspect

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    Patience, endless amounts of patience...
     
  3. iDarkDesign

    iDarkDesign None shall stand all shall fall

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    I've learned that most fellow collectors are dicks and just want to make money of of other collectors but when they want to buy something for themselves they only want to pay next to nothing.

    That said I love that couple of fans helping each other. And I mean really helping each other with collecting and with getting certain figures.

    Also, this board needs a "Child of the 80's" section. I can't really connect with the last wave of collectors :(  (that's me getting old)

    iDD
     
  4. The_Black_Sheep

    The_Black_Sheep Willyna...

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    The biggest lessons I've learned from my years as a TF Collector have been all about willpower. The amount of money I wasted on A/E/C & Bayverse figures... Ahhhh I don't even wanna think about it. I'd go into a store & I'd spot something new & then I'd ask myself "Do you really want it? Really?". Sometimes I'd buy it & regret it later. Other times I'd save that money & put it towards something I'd really want (a G1 on eBay).

    Ahhhh the lessons we learn the hard way... :/
     
  5. Cyber-Scream

    Cyber-Scream Well-Known Member

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    Don't try being a completist unless your rich and have a shit ton of room. In other words: just get what you want, not what you think you need.
     
  6. Snake_eyes1975

    Snake_eyes1975 Well-Known Member

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    Wisdom on your 3000th post....Thats pretty cool.
     
  7. videriant

    videriant Well-Known Member

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    Ebay:
    1) Do this as a hobby, not for money. Don't buy it as an investment or to be a scalper.

    2) Prioritize. Food, family, friends, females come first.

    3) At the end of the day these are toys and that is Hasbro's primary market. Those billions upon billions of Bumblebees being sold allow Hasbro to make the Spacecases.

    4) Exclusives are made for a reason. Don't be a hater.

    5) You will always miss out on something.

    6) You will find an amazing deal that evens out missing out.

    7) US thinks Japan gets all the good stuff. Japan thinks US gets all the good stuff. Sucks to be European.

    8) If you take into consideration time and gas spent, hunting for items in stores can be just as expensive as buying online.

    9) Make friends on the boards. Help them out and they'll help you out in return.

    10) All Megatron movie toys will sucks. But buy them anyways as they'll be worth $200 in the future.
     
  8. seekerblackout

    seekerblackout Banned

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    I disagree on #10. ROTF and DOTM Voyager Megatron are quite good. That's why they're the only Movie Megatrons I own
     
  9. Steevy Maximus

    Steevy Maximus Old School Snarkster

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    These should be the "Golden Rules of Collecting", and I'm NOT just talking Transformers.
     
  10. Nez Pierce

    Nez Pierce @evildanish

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    1. Overpaying to get a mass release figure early is shortsighted and foolish.

    2. Don't take lowball offers (or rejection of them) personally.

    3. Own your collecting; don't let it own you. That would be the path to excess.

    4. Robot Heroes are awesome!
     
  11. wildfly

    wildfly Fermenting pork tube.

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    Always Paypal from your credit card balance:

    1) Even the (supposedly) best sellers go rogue sometimes.

    2) Paypal may not be able to get your money back.
     
  12. Phoenix Blaze

    Phoenix Blaze Brain Waster

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    Just buy it.

    If you see something and you're unsure but it feels sort of like a good deal or maybe it's a figure you don't see often, just buy it, you can always sell it later.

    Too many things I've passed over due to feeling iffy. Oh how I regret them all.
     
  13. Dolza_Khyron

    Dolza_Khyron Well-Known Member

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    third party add on kits makes the value of shelfwarming repaints triple the moment they're announced :lol 
     
  14. seali_me

    seali_me RIP January 2018

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    there's always a price errors before, during and after sales. applies to any product.
     
  15. TrueNomadSkies

    TrueNomadSkies Well-Known Member

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    Yeah, because when you don't pick shit up on sale, then the sale ends & you realize that you want it afterwards.

    qq
     
  16. Raiju

    Raiju Navel Shocker Veteran

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    Flickr:
    When you sell, your merch apparently isn't worth even half what you originally paid for it (even if it's MISB).

    When you buy, their merch is apparently worth twice its weight in gold.

    "You snooze, you lose," and other snarky cliches brought to you by the Interwebz. =)
     
  17. Bass X0

    Bass X0 Captain Commando

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    This is what I learned too.
     
  18. knoted

    knoted Resistor Transistor

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    I have a tendency to buy way too many of a mold I love.

    For example, ROTF voyager Starscream.. I simply bought too many of them
    and in some ways it got beaten by the new DOTM deluxe mold...of which I bought many by now as well. ( I buy my stuff online...retailers around here rarely have the stuff I want..)

    I sold some of them though... at a loss ... Oh well, the MISB items I have, DO guarantee I'll have mint versions of those molds on the looooong term, as time will slowly wear down the ones I have on my desk.
     
  19. Rodimus Mike

    Rodimus Mike MP & TF Collector

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    Pretty much live by this but never use the instructions to try to transform your figure,after it took me 3+ hours to transform ROTF Leader Prime that was the last time I ever looked at a instruction sheet,and its funny but the second time I transformed him back to his bot mode without that infernal waste of paper I did it in under an hour.

    Hasbro should just scrap the whole instruction sheet altogether they are useless.That is my lesson.