Toy collection- UPDATE 9/20

James Kenobi 1138

Master Member
RPF PREMIUM MEMBER
**********************UPDATE IN POST 45***********************

Thread updated, question answered and no need to continue Thread.

Thanks again to those with sage advice.
 
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Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

James, give Puzzle Zoo a call at Northpark mall. They buy and sell, but could also probably give you some contacts as well
 
Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

I had thought about them, and also Dallas Vintage toys.

I really want to have some type of ball-park figure before I talk to anyone, just to level the playing field a little.
 
Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

from what ive read there was so many star wars figures made during the mid 90's eg the star wars power of the force line that you would be lucky to get what you payed for them. you might get good money for variants but don't plan on retiring any time soon.
 
Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

I know, but there is more then just those toys so I'm looking for a 'best guess' from an expert.

Like I said, I'm not looking for top dollar or anything close and I have no misconceptions I'm sitting on a goldmine. But I do want a ball-park on what the value is on what I have.
 
Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

I'm not an expert by any means, but I was in a similar situation a couple of years ago when moving to another state.

Basically, I came to the conclusion that if you sell each piece individually, you'll get a better price IF you can find a buyer for it. Selling everything in one shot is almost like selling a comicbook collection, because the potential buyer is most likely going to be a local shop and they will try to give you the lowest price possible. Not only that, but they'll also try to make an offer on only the good stuff you have and still leave you with the rest that they deem 'worthless'.

As a matter of fact, the best offer I could get was about $0.50 to $2.00 per figure and that was the good stuff! Needless to say, I made room for more boxes in the truck than I planned on taking with me.

So yeah, anyone out there need an instant collection? :lol

Of course, each area is different and your luck may be better than mine.
 
Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

Over the years I read/heard so much, so many different stories it's hard to know what is a realistic value.

For example, one piece I have is the original 'fuzzy' Chewbacca doll from the 1990s. I've seen several at local cons priced at $400, which means a dealer should offer $150-$200 for it. (I've seen enough Toy Hunter episodes to know how the game works).

Does anyone know a good online price guide ?
 
Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

I know it sounds lame, but the main reason I don't want to post a link to my album is someone stealing my pics for eBay or something.
 
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Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

My advise:

1. Call the local stores and see what they'd offer (they're going to need information on the whole thing however)
2. Check eBay for 'Star Wars Collection' and see what others that look like yours are going for
3. Keep the 'fuzzy Wookie' from the 90's and sell that for high dollar as you're going to take a loss on everything else.

eBay is a great resource and has pretty much taken over the 'what is this worth' question.
It's worth what someone is willing to pay for it which depending on the time and place may be high or low.

Fantastic images by the way, I can see why you don't want to share ;)

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My advise:

1. Call the local stores and see what they'd offer (they're going to need information on the whole thing however)
2. Check eBay for 'Star Wars Collection' and see what others that look like yours are going for
3. Keep the 'fuzzy Wookie' from the 90's and sell that for high dollar as you're going to take a loss on everything else.

eBay is a great resource and has pretty much taken over the 'what is this worth' question.
It's worth what someone is willing to pay for it which depending on the time and place may be high or low.

Fantastic images by the way, I can see why you don't want to share ;)
 
Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

Actually, this mentality will pretty much guarantee you will be selling these pieces on your own. The fact that you saw 'anything' simply listed for a given price hardly suggests you should be getting 'half' from your would-be buyer. The second you try and barter by saying you saw it listed for 'whatever' someone is simply going to tell you to sell it yourself.

People can list for whatever they like but in the end, the price 'especially at cons' gets beaten down. Dealers have expenses. Everything from travel to set-up. Shops have expenses. You will not get far dictating what you suspect a dealer should pay you. In the end, you take the best price given or sell it yourself. If you want to know what an item sells for, check Ebay like every dealer on the planet.

The toy era you're coming from is very soft. That said, (not trying to give you a hard time) the collectible years you've mentioned aren't very desirable give or take a couple pieces here and there.

And yes, I actually made a living off collectible toys (even wrote price guides for several markets) years ago. Sounds like you have a target piece or two and the rest is filler. Sell the big stuff yourself and move on. A dealer will cherry pick you anyway and nobody goes for "it's all or nothin' anymore. Too many other guys behind you willing to make a deal.

Good luck though! :thumbsup

NOTE: A good shop or dealer will appraise your collection for a fee. Ones expertise costs money. You can find any number of appraisers via Google. It's easier doing it yourself searching 'sold' auctions via Ebay. By the way, if you're talking about the 96 12" fuzzy chewbacca; those sell for about 35.00 Something like the Han figure you've shown above goes for about 5.00 (retail)
The Death star escape...12 bucks. Ebay is a wonderful 'free' price guide.



Over the years I read/heard so much, so many different stories it's hard to know what is a realistic value.

For example, one piece I have is the original 'fuzzy' Chewbacca doll from the 1990s. I've seen several at local cons priced at $400, which means a dealer should offer $150-$200 for it. (I've seen enough Toy Hunter episodes to know how the game works).

Does anyone know a good online price guide ?
 
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Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

Rylo, would you be willing to look at everything and just give me a shot-in- the-dark starting value?
 
Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

Is there some particular reason you have an aversion to doing this yourself? You don't need anyone's help. Simply search the lowest (successful) completed auctions on Ebay. That's what anyone else (dealers included) would do. Ebay is a living 'up to date' price-guide. There is no secret method to it..prices are what they are; it's quite simple.

Based on what you've shown/mentioned already, I doubt you'll find anyone willing to take everything. You'll be better off taking the higher end pieces and selling them yourself. Sell the rest in lots if you simply want rid of it.

Good luck!



Rylo, would you be willing to look at everything and just give me a shot-in- the-dark starting value?
 
Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

Mostly because I don't want any cash. I don't want to 'sell' anything, so I'm less interested in what single items cost.

I'm more interested in a trade.

For example: the value of everything, all my stuff is $1000 and a dealer might offer me $350-$450.

Then I can trade everything, the whole lot, for one higher end collectible, maybe a carded figure they paid $350-$450 for and had priced at $1000. They get the whole lot, don't actually have to pay any cash, and I trade up from a lot of average stuff to just one item I really want.

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That's why I was hoping an expert could look at everything as a whole and say 'Yeah, that's all worth about $800 in sales'.
 
Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

I'm currently selling my collection as well. I have around 125 carded SW figures MOMC, plus multipacks, and a few vehicles. They're almost all newer than the Saga blue cards that came out around AOTC. I used Ebay as a price guide, and after much debate, I seperated my SW collection into two groups. One group of figures are ones worth $3 or less, and the other are worth more. We have a town event this weekend (a hot air balloon fest if anyone is curious). It's the only BIG event my town has, and it pulls in thousands of tourists. My family always has a garage sale during this weekend, as there are so many people in town, and we live near the park it is held at, we would be fools not to have one during this time.

Last year a guy stopped by and bought $700 worth of my personal collection after just mentioning it to him that I was thinking about selling my stuff. I thankfully already had an inventory list with prices, but had planned to list them on a few websites. This year, I am putting the figure worth $3 or less in the garage sale for $3.50 a peice, or 3 for $10. With all the kids, tourists, etc in town, I might as well try it. Conversely, I had a lot of them listed for $2.50-$3.50 on my inventory list, using Ebay as a price guide. So I may "make" more money by selling them in the garage sale. (Even if I paid $5 for each of them originally. :facepalm )

However, I'm not doing this with anything else. The other SW figures I'm going to list on the internet, as will my comic books, LOTR collection, and other items. In fact I did the same with my LOTR collection, and overall it's worth around $250-$350. I just don't want to take the time to sell each one individually, and would prefer to sell them as one big lot. It's taken me years to decide if I want to do it or not. But with college and everything bearing down on me, I have to do something.

EDIT - I also spoke to a professor I know who collects comics, and he said that he didn't think any of my local stores would even think about buying my comic book collection. He said my best bet would be to just list them on Ebay or Craig'slist. So I don't know about your area, but apparently mine is not friendly to buying large amounts of anything right now. XD Having said that, I'm totally taking my collection with my next time I go to St. Louis to see if the stores would be willing to buy it anyway.
 
Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

I have almost 170 carded figures starting with the original 1995 line and almost another 60 figures in either a 3 pack or with a vehicle. Plus micro machine vehicles and playsets, loose figures, etc....

You know what, here's a link to my junk. If anyone wants to give a guess on the value, post up.

Be sure to check both pages: *Link Removed*
 
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Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

Dude. Not sure what you're not getting. You have to price the individual items to get a total. Starting to feel like I'm taking crazy pills here.

There can be no estimated value without some research. An expert isn't going to magically know the value of every piece in your collection without a little homework. They certainly wouldn't do it for free either!





Mostly because I don't want any cash. I don't want to 'sell' anything, so I'm less interested in what single items cost.

I'm more interested in a trade.

For example: the value of everything, all my stuff is $1000 and a dealer might offer me $350-$450.

Then I can trade everything, the whole lot, for one higher end collectible, maybe a carded figure they paid $350-$450 for and had priced at $1000. They get the whole lot, don't actually have to pay any cash, and I trade up from a lot of average stuff to just one item I really want.

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That's why I was hoping an expert could look at everything as a whole and say 'Yeah, that's all worth about $800 in sales'.
 
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Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

Dude. Not sure what you're not getting. You have to price the individual items to get a total. Starting to feel like I'm taking crazy pills here.

There can be no estimated value without some research. An expert isn't going to magically know the value of every piece in your collection without a little homework. They certainly wouldn't do it for free either!

I get that, but from the beginning I've stressed I'm looking for an expert, someone possibly with years of experience, who can make an educated guess..... or just take a shot in the dark.

Seriously, I'll take any guess.

All I've asked for was a starting number from someone who knows this stuff, and was willing to help a fellow RPFer out.

I never, ever asked anyone to do my homework for me.
 
Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

I took a look at what you have and quite honestly, aside from the Pocket Superheroes and D&D stuff, you don't really have anything that other collectors can't obtain anywhere else for dirt cheep. I know that sounds harsh, but the market is what it is these days.

Btw, I have many of the SW figures you posted plus a nearly complete 12-inch line and most of the large ships/vehicles, but I just couldn't let them go for the prices I was offered. I had the same problem with my Star Trek, G.I. Joe, Drogon Models and my wife's Barbie collections, too. The market is just too saturated with items from that era.

Even wanting to trade all of it for other stuff (as you noted), you have the same things that everyone else has, so it's going to be a challenge finding someone who wants it. :(

With that said, I wish you luck in this endeavor. :thumbsup
 
Re: Is anyone here a toy collection expert?

This is a issue most collectors are encountering these days. Kids who wished they would have saved those toys in the box from the 60's or 70's, decided to horde stuff from the 1990's and on. The market is so saturated with "mint in the box" items now. Nothing is really rare anymore unless it was a variant figure that shipped one to every couple cases. But for the most part, every collector out there bought numerous boxes to put away in hopes that they were investing in retirement and that is just not the case. Even comics from the 80's and 90's went that route. Sure, a few have increased in value, but most collectors saved them mint in bags so the demand is just not there.

And I will second Rylo's advice... The amount of time it took to make this thread and keep replying , you could already have been on eBay and compiled a list. You cannot guess on a collection, just research... And it sounds like you hope someone else will do the footwork for you :lol

Just don't expect to even get 50% of what the value is unless it is rare.
 
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