eBay madness

[natelite]

i know...let's all ask lego to re-release 6080 as a legend set!!! unless they already done so. in that case can we request for a third release? :-P

i like to collect some castle sets too...i just got myself a copy of 10176 after seeing all the hype about discontinued castle sets. seems like they may be a good investment too besides star wars lego. :-)

[gylman]

I know people who have lots of 1980's castle sets misb in their basements. The sets are out there.

Ben

They can feel free to contact me at Euroricks. I need this last one for my collection.

[Hobbes]

Slightly OT:

Just received this through the BL wanted item notification:

7760 MISB @ $3500 (Edit: gone - can't believe someone bought it 8-

[ellerb]

They can feel free to contact me at Euroricks. I need this last one for my collection.

Well, the people I know are holding on to the sets unfortunately. One guy has multiple copies of misb small and mid range sets in his basement just to use for the pieces... I also need a 6080 misb. It is amazing that fans wouldn't even sell one copy of an old set they have multiples of.

Ben

[snefroe]

Slightly OT:

Just received this through the BL wanted item notification:

7760 MISB @ $3500 (Edit: gone - can't believe someone bought it 8-

[gylman]

Agree that in absolute dollars, the 800$ for 6080 is not so stunning .Its just that this castle usually goes for about 60-80 dollars without the box, and that i have never seen any castle go for this much money before on eBay (Bricklink prices are often inflated like crazy, I think as bargaining starting points).

Also, in 6 months tracking MISB castle sets, this was the first MISB 6080 I saw (I dont track europe consistently, so I may have missed one), and there isnt one listed on Bricklink.

[Hobbes]

still, i think you guys are taking these market mechanisms waaaaay to serious. sure, 6080 for 800 $ is rather high, but 122 dollars for the other smaller castle is not particularly extra ordinary. i don't think 200 dollars for a castle set this size is such a big deal. Don't forget, many people buy model trains and very often pay 200+ euro for just one engine...

I've never complained about prices in the low hundreds. I see those prices as "not OK", either, but they just follow the supply-and-demand basics. I accept that. I don't have to pay the price if I don't want to.

But 6k5 for a set - any set - is just ridiculous. So is 3k5 for a single engine.

I've come to terms that I'll probably have to pay my

[Jipay]

Bricklink seems like our number alternative : rebuilding the sets by buying pieces from different sellers |-/

[gylman]

Bricklink seems like our number alternative : rebuilding the sets by buying pieces from different sellers |-/

Well, that goes back to the whole collector thing. Building it from parts, with scans from Peeron, is ok for some sets. I do that all time with old sets, then after a couple of weeks/months they go back to the parts bins. But the ones you wanted to get MISB or in excellent boxed condition because of sentimental value or wanting to "have a full set"- it's not gonna do it.

Like has been said - supply and demand. No more MISB sets are being made of these old classics. It's not like they made millions of them. Every year a few more of the sealed sets "die". As long as Lego remains so vibrant and popular with adults, prices are bound to go up.

I've been buying Lego on eBay for about 6 years. I've never seen prices significantly go down on any major subgroup of sealed set Lego, and some clearly have gone up over time (castle at the top of the list, trains too).

[natelite]

I've been buying Lego on eBay for about 6 years. I've never seen prices significantly go down on any major subgroup of sealed set Lego, and some clearly have gone up over time (castle at the top of the list, trains too).

i am definitely hoping for this. :-) maybe in 10 years i can retire... :-P

but i think only the classics go up in price. the failures actually fall. groups like ufo, insectoids, i see being sold on ebay for next to pennies. the hotties like those you mentioned (castle, train etc) are the only ones that keep increasing in price.

i also noticed for star wars, some of the redone sets actually fall in price. for eg, 7150 y-wing and advanced tie is actually very close to msrp or lower. i think it is because tie advanced was redesigned, and y-wing is about to be re-designed and released....so the old ones become "unwanted" much like the old b-wing and old a-wing.

[Cpt.Thok]

Congrats. Buying Lego on eBay is fun.

Cpt. Thok

[gylman]

I've been buying Lego on eBay for about 6 years. I've never seen prices significantly go down on any major subgroup of sealed set Lego, and some clearly have gone up over time (castle at the top of the list, trains too).

i am definitely hoping for this. :-) maybe in 10 years i can retire... :-P

but i think only the classics go up in price. the failures actually fall. groups like ufo, insectoids, i see being sold on ebay for next to pennies. the hotties like those you mentioned (castle, train etc) are the only ones that keep increasing in price.

i also noticed for star wars, some of the redone sets actually fall in price. for eg, 7150 y-wing and advanced tie is actually very close to msrp or lower. i think it is because tie advanced was redesigned, and y-wing is about to be re-designed and released....so the old ones become "unwanted" much like the old b-wing and old a-wing.

In general, the small sets (100 parts or less) don't appreciate much with time. Only the big ones (200, and especially 600+ parts) do. There are rare exceptions for special sets that have great figs or special parts.

Medium sized and large MISB Adventurers sets are doing very well (even the stinky series like Dino and Amazon)

Old West (but not a big theme)

Paradisa, OMG! very well, but also not a big theme

Town definitely increases in value, but not as much as some of the others unless very classic

Good technic sets (i.e. nothing from this century except re-releases) always go up in value.

There are relative minor themes that don't value well over time

-Insectoids almost never come up MISB, only small sets

-Rock Raiders (but the big set can get very expensive MISB, always more than retail).

-Arctic

It may be too early to say , but so far I have seen that Bionicle NEVER appreciates in price. The serious builders regard them as parts packs, nothing more. There is no sentimental value to having "Takua and Pewku" in your colection :-) (although I personally love that set!, along with the Boxor)

I agree that some of the less interesting SW sets are starting to decline. I would predict that in general, Star Wars sets will not appreciate as much as more classic themes, and may ultimate decline, because they are dependent on being visible in the current pop culture. Star Wars is very hot now, but won't be in a decade.

[Brick Miner]

Medium sized and large MISB Adventurers sets are doing very well (even the stinky series like Dino and Amazon)

Old West (but not a big theme)

Paradisa, OMG! very well, but also not a big theme

Town definitely increases in value, but not as much as some of the others unless very classic

Good technic sets (i.e. nothing from this century except re-releases) always go up in value.

you forgot to mention larger pirate sets... BSB, SES, and ITP can get very high... nearing 350-400 for MISB. that is almost 4 times retail price. smaller pirate sets... not so much.

also i have noticed recenlty (within the past 3 months) that MIB (not sealed) Western sets are going for a tremendous amount *wacko* 45 USD for Sheirff's Lock up ??? i don't get that ??? from all i can tell its a fluke :-|

- BM

[snefroe]

There are relative minor themes that don't value well over time

-Insectoids almost never come up MISB, only small sets

-Rock Raiders (but the big set can get very expensive MISB, always more than retail).

-Arctic

hm... a 'high' price seems relative to me. you get lots of insectoids on a regular basis on ebay, including the big ones, they never reach a high price category compared to the Galaxy Explorer or an old space station, but they normally get the niminum price on bl. no MISB, true, but what old space set in MISB do you get these days?... usually, it's a more or less complete space set, including non-originel parts (god i hate that!), an instruction book and the box. if you're lucky the plastic is still inside. Most large space sets with boxes in good condition sell for 100 euro. So it basically comes down to this: if you want a set like that then you'll probably spend about 100-150 euro on one set a month or so... unless you're filthy rich and get everything at the same time on bl...

i very often look for large, old town sets on ebay, just for fun... g... these houses get a very high price as well, even though it seems classic 'town' doesn't really have a high profile in the lego community.

if you're asking me, there is a fairly large group of adult collectors who don't care about current lines or the internet communities, they just collect lego in all silence... i think those people are pushing up the price

[natelite]

if you're asking me, there is a fairly large group of adult collectors who don't care about current lines or the internet communities, they just collect lego in all silence... i think those people are pushing up the price

incorrect. you are forgetting the asians, actually the south koreans. they are probably lurking in some korean language forums which you do not know about. the japanese fans are also numerous. i've seen many "japanesque" names on brickshelf...not sure how many are japanese-wannabes though. :-/ but judging from the sale of sets on ebay to these bidders i gotta say the population is fairly large.

also, as i thought about it more, could it be the south korean buyer is actually a foreigner expatriate? usually those have a commanding salary so it is likely he/she has a huge bank account to afford those ridiculous prices.

[Hobbes]

Whoops, there's the 7760 again...

[Jipay]

What's this set ? And how comes the image is computer generated ?

Anyway, I think the more AFOLs we are, the higher the prices will go. And it seems to me that we are more and more everyday. Not only at EB, but in other places. And as natelite said, there are plenty of non english speaker AFOLs in Asia.

[snefroe]

if you're asking me, there is a fairly large group of adult collectors who don't care about current lines or the internet communities, they just collect lego in all silence... i think those people are pushing up the price

incorrect. you are forgetting the asians, actually the south koreans. they are probably lurking in some korean language forums which you do not know about. the japanese fans are also numerous. i've seen many "japanesque" names on brickshelf...not sure how many are japanese-wannabes though. :-/ but judging from the sale of sets on ebay to these bidders i gotta say the population is fairly large.

also, as i thought about it more, could it be the south korean buyer is actually a foreigner expatriate? usually those have a commanding salary so it is likely he/she has a huge bank account to afford those ridiculous prices.

not really sure what i'm incorrect about *wacko* i don't think asians are buying belgian lego on belgian ebay... waaaaaay too expensive to send it up to Japan and you need to understand dutch or french if you want to know what's being offered...

[Hobbes]

What's this set ? And how comes the image is computer generated ?

It's the little blue engine from 1980 *wub*

The CAD pic is just the general pic for this set the bricklink database has, it's not from the seller.

[gylman]

also, as i thought about it more, could it be the south korean buyer is actually a foreigner expatriate? usually

This is a relatively new thing. There have always been large numbers of AFOLs in Asia, but there has been a clear change in buying patterns in the last couple of months. There must be something going on in the Lego community in South Korea. I see about 6-10 SK buyers going crazy with classic lego sets in the last couple of months, with prices for castle sets especially at levels double or triple what they used to be. Hopefully it will pass and prices will go down to earth.

I don't follow train at all, so I can't say if the same thing hasn't been going on there.

[Brick Miner]

if you're asking me, there is a fairly large group of adult collectors who don't care about current lines or the internet communities, they just collect lego in all silence... i think those people are pushing up the price

incorrect. you are forgetting the asians, actually the south koreans. they are probably lurking in some korean language forums which you do not know about. the japanese fans are also numerous. i've seen many "japanesque" names on brickshelf...not sure how many are japanese-wannabes though. :-/ but judging from the sale of sets on ebay to these bidders i gotta say the population is fairly large.

also, as i thought about it more, could it be the south korean buyer is actually a foreigner expatriate? usually those have a commanding salary so it is likely he/she has a huge bank account to afford those ridiculous prices.

not really sure what i'm incorrect about *wacko* i don't think asians are buying belgian lego on belgian ebay... waaaaaay too expensive to send it up to Japan and you need to understand dutch or french if you want to know what's being offered...

im not sure what you were incorrect over either... as i think both of you are right !!! id say there are a large number of AFOL who don't care about internet communities, and are just collectors... then there are the South Koreans 8-

[gylman]

Here's another example. Another 6080 going on sale wiht good condition box and plastic inserts, etc. The current top bidder is North American (he lost out on the mint one last week, and is clearly settling for the lesser one). But......... a bidder with zero feedback..... registered on ebay yesterday..... from South Korea..... is lurking in the bidders. How much you wanna bet this SK new ebayer will win the auction, at any cost!

http://offer.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?View...em=160020493014

Incidentally, there is another SK buyer, the one with -1 feedback, who bid and then apparently did not pay for a way of Dior Homme black waxed luster jeans W30. :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D

Clearly, there's something going on with South Korea and Lego castles...... a Lego mystery of sorts! Are there any SK Eurobricks members who could enlighten us?

[Brick Miner]

i hope these SK are keeping them MISB and not opening them... if so, the number of "holy grail" copies is diminishing at a rapid rate !!! and us collectors are going to be left paying infinite amounts of money !!!

i mean, there are plenty of openned copies out there, don't horde the MISB !!!

when i was bidding on a PERFECT MISB Fort LEGOredo, i got out bid twice by the same SK, on two different auctions !!! i guess he needed two prefect ones... i mean, he could have gotten a lesser one at a much cheaper price, because i would't have up'ed the bidding so high !!! :-D but i guess he didn't know that !!!

- BM

[gylman]

At least they are not cornering the world's market on Dior Homme black waxed luster jeans!

[gylman]

Final update to this saga.

Apparently that epfoolish dude ended up not paying for the item!

http://feedback.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?...16014238&de=off

Dickhead!