Hello everyone, I've been a huge fan of Lego for 30 years and I'm just wondering what the general concensus is of how far to pursue those sets we "grew up" with? Should we track them down now again regreting ever having sold them, or is the best thing to cherish the memories and enjoy the latest ranges?

Any help would be appreciated

Well it depends on what era of Lego you are talking of. Generally the older a set, the higher its value. When you get past the 1970's mark most sets become more expensive.

It really depends on the person. Me, I enjoy buying older sets that I grew up with, but given the choice I'd rather get my hands on the new sets coming out now. I don't generally sell my sets unless I need to make room for more, or I have some sets that I don't really care for. I'm gonna sell some of my SP1 sets soon.

Basically there is no "general concensus", do whatever you will.

Edited May 4, 200915 yr by Algernon

I never sold my childhood lego, so I luckily don't have that problem. They're all safely here with me.

Getting discontinued sets is quite a moneyhole, especially if you want them unopened in boxes. People ask ridiculous amounts for even the smallest MISB sets on Ebay and Bricklink, sometimes over ten times worth the original price of the set.

There are two themes I wish to buy that are discontinued. Luckily they were never fantasticly popular and still not to expensive on eBay. So I do buy every now and then. Otherwise I just get some of the minifig parts and elements I would like off of bricklink.

Well, I'd love to track down some of the wonderful sets of my childhood. I was born in 1981. But I often want my bricks to be clean, unused and the set to be complete. So I prefer MISB sets, but these are often unaffordable. I do buy old MISB sets, but veeery rarely. They are so expensive! And normally the ones I buy are smaller MISB sets anyway. However, I also love the new sets. They're a good recompense for the missed old ones.

Edited May 4, 200915 yr by legotrainfan

Thanks for the feedback all, it is such a difficult one!! I'm v.picky re quality etc and am not sure I could take the risk on ebay etc...

I have found that my tastes have changed over time and what I once thought amazing as a child is now meh. The fantasy and imagination I brought to a set is what made it great and not the set itself. Today I prize the concepts or entire series of certain themes rather than particular sets. Because I MOC and don't collect, I often buy parts or sets that mesh well with say Crusaders of Blacktron as a theme and ignore the actual sets.

Besides I have digital instructions for all my childhood sets and more than likely the parts to rebuild them if I wanted to. Maybe consdier getting instructions and building something similar yourself.

There are many factors deciding this, but I would follow the "instructions" below, which could help.

Question 1: Do you like the new sets over the old sets (A)or the old sets over the new sets (B)?

answer A: You have enough money to buy both? (1) or is your budget/roomspace limited (2)

-----answer 1: Buy all sets at a rate of your choiche if no other mayor negative effects are in effect (like problems with family, feeling of "addiction", the approchement of the entering of a/the Dark Age).

-----answer 2: Buy the new sets first and possible REALLY WANT TO HAVE old sets first, and do this at a not too fast rate, enjoy your sets to the MAX, take down your builded sets after you enjoyed them enough to create up new space.

answer B: You have enough money to buy both? (1) or is your budget/roomspace limited (2)

-----answer 1: Buy all sets at a rate of your choiche if no other mayor negative effects are in effect (like problems with family, feeling of "addiction", the approchement of the entering of a/the Dark Age).

-----answer 2: Buy the old sets first and possible REALLY WANT TO HAVE new sets first, and do this at a not too fast rate, enjoy your sets to the MAX, take down your builded sets after you enjoyed them enough to create up new space.

I've never sold or thrown away a set. I'm something of a packrat, and every time I get rid of something in perfectly good condition because of whatever reasons there are for getting rid of things, I find that's about when my need for it crops up, and I have to go rebuy it again. For LEGO sets, it's not possible, so I haven't gotten rid of any set, ever.

Older sets that are MSIB are not always available for purchase. And as more time goes by, such conditions for any set gets rarer and rarer. So if you do see one, and it's one of those sets you really want, there's no reason not to purchase it. On the other hand, if you're not terribly concerned about owning the actual set and are interested in the lowest cost possible, you can download/figure out the instructions, buy the bricks off pick-a-brick and bricklink, and rebuild it. Or cross your fingers and wait for a re-release, which TLG does every so often. For the former, I'd suggest using peeron, which has complete set inventories for a lot of sets and instructions as well. Most of my old sets are currently in boxes, and I plan on bringing them out and replacing whatever parts I discover are missing with what stuff on bricklink. I'm pretty sure those are few and far in between though.

I'm not terribly crazy about picking up old sets that I've missed, but if I do find a set I want at a decent price (no more than 150% MSRP, roughly adjusted for inflation--a quick check at the inflation calculator says $100 USD in 1980 is about $260 today, and $100 USD in 1990 is about $165 today), I'd weigh my enjoyment of building the old set with what I can get from the next sets I'm planning on buying spending the same amount. Sometimes current sets get discontinued suddenly, so that factors into the equation too. And if it's worthwhile, only then would I go for it.

Personally, while I take exception to some of the new sets released, there're always other sets to buy, so it's very rarely really worth it. There are always new sets that I want. For example, I might forgo the new farm/construction/transportation sets, but that just means I'll have the money for more Star Wars classic sets, including the Death Star and Battle of Endor playsets. That, and when stores discount certain sets (like this past weekend), they become more worthwhile to pick up than at full MSRP or slightly inflated prices, so I might end up picking up a set I'm not terribly into at a discounted price. So only if there's nothing new to buy and nothing about to come out that I'd like to buy, would I seriously consider an old MSIB set. But this is my method, and deciding on which set to buy is a personal thing, entirely dependent on how you enjoy your sets.