Who says this hobby is on the downhill slide

[USMCCHET92_96]

2005 I prolly spent a few hundred dollars on figures
2006 Maybe a few hundred more then 2005 thanks to SS and Hottoys
Hell its only Feburay and I am soon to surpass the 500 mark
With all the cool, and generally more expensive, stuff coming from SideShow (Star Wars mostly) and Hottoys(Movie Maniacs) this will prolly be an expensive year for me.
No I dont think the hobby is dying
it maybe getting more expensive but its not dying
and Damnit I priced parts for my new PC (current one is 3 years old and isnt up to Windows Vista requirements) and thats gonna set me back at least 2 grand in hardware alone.
yup this year I see alot of Top Ramen in my future
Oh well I needed to loose weight anyway

[papsedj]

lotta carbs in those damn noodles John...

[One Bravo Four]

I've been pretty licky.

My ability to remain steadfastly loyal to Her Majesty's Armed Forces have prevented me from spending obscene amounts of money on 1/6th.

Fortunatley, for me anyway, there is a real scarcity of modern British kit and figures.

As long as this continues, and Britons are ignored by the boutique manufacturers like Toy Soldier and ACE, then I'll be just fine.

[GUNSLINGER]

perhaps 'dying' is too head-strong a word, but changing (like those skyrocketing prices !) is a better word i guess.

a thought just hit me head as i was typing .... when's DML gonna make a new fig !!!

[Crazy Chocobo]

yup this year I see alot of Top Ramen in my future
Oh well I needed to loose weight anyway

Top Ramen is actually pretty bad for you. Like papsedj said, lots of carbs. Maybe if you only ate one every other day... =)

The hobby's mostly looked better, IMHO, even though my last purchase was sometime in 2005. Sure, prices have gone up, and stuff is few and far between, but the quality looks much better. Might as well buy one good thing instead of ten crummy ones.

[Mlatch221]

Not dying but certainly altering. In one sense, I miss the days of multiple releases of similar figures since it provided ample gear at reasonable prices. On the other hand, the rehashing and market saturation was putting a big drag on the hobby. I don't know about the rest of you but I lost interest for a while; it was all so much, so often. The market has diversified, matured and has started to aim at a more discriminating customer base. The positive is a greater range of product and a focus on serious hobbyist. The negative is higher price and less availability.

I'm not sure that we've seen a balance point reached just yet but I certainly see the situation improving from where it was in, say, 2005.

[Just Clay]

I miss the days of the 21-25 dollar figure and accessory sets. I can well afford the HT and other higher priced figures coming out, but I see a real problem with there not being an entry level figure on the market. For this hobby to thrive, folks need a mass market lower price point figure to get started with. Kids especially, after all they are the next generation of basher collector and if they don't find this hobby as kids, it's a pretty good bet many will never see it as adults.

[grizzerr]

Yeah I'm right there with you Chet......starting out to be a good year for 1/6. As to computers I just upgraded, but not even going to consider Vista till it's beeen out for a while and bugs are worked out.

[USMCCHET92_96]

Yeah I'm right there with you Chet......starting out to be a good year for 1/6. As to computers I just upgraded, but not even going to consider Vista till it's beeen out for a while and bugs are worked out.

I cant I play games and Crysys and Hellgate London are coming out soon. Its all about DX10 for me

Clay your right they need a good entry level figure and generic accessories

[Starkiller]

A year ago the idea of spending $129 (70 odd quid here in the U.K ) on an action figure seemed crazy to me , until a brainstorm caused me to send for the Hot Toys Elder Predator . Followed by the 3 Colonial Marines . I am currently waiting for the Endoskeleton , Robocop and Alien Warrior and suddenly $129 dollars is not that high a price to pay for items of such high quality . I've been a model maker for many years and paying similar prices for kits never seemed to be a problem but 1/6 collecting almost seemed like a "guilty pleasure " rather than a legitimate hobby . Obviously all that has changed ,thanks mostly to Hot Toys and I offset the guilt by bashing custom figures for a relatively low cost . Entry level figures to entice kids into the hobby are thin on the ground here , but there is hope on the horizon with the popularity of the Doctor Who line . Military figures are no longer as popular as they used to be , but this is down to political correctness more than the tastes of the kids and the failure of BBIs entry level "Elite Force" line (as well as the 1/18 range ) was due to the fact that they were not stocked by any of the major retailers . Generally though , I think the hobby is in good health and if that means that the age of the demographic has raised then that's the way 1/6 will evolve and indeed, survive .

[Hollowpoint]

I am of the same mind there Starkiller. At one point, I would never have even considered buying a figure over 100 smackaroonies. Wished I could have, but never thought I would. Then as of Feb. 19th, 2005 (yes I have the date memorized,as it was the date I got to met Doc T, Gaiagear and Von Cougar) I went and spent 500+ at Toys 2 on three USCM and loose parts and some other boxed fig. It all went downhill from there. But I do miss the starter figs. With DML just producing the WWII German and only the specialty guys doing modern, you need to spend the money these days to get what you want.

[oliver]

I miss the days of the 21-25 dollar figure and accessory sets. I can well afford the HT and other higher priced figures coming out, but I see a real problem with there not being an entry level figure on the market. For this hobby to thrive, folks need a mass market lower price point figure to get started with. Kids especially, after all they are the next generation of basher collector and if they don't find this hobby as kids, it's a pretty good bet many will never see it as adults.

I whole heartedly agree. Hasbro pulling out of the 12" market really stung the more affordable figure selection. And 21CT, after coming out to such a strong start with their cheap blister pack basic figures and multitude of great carded sets, just dropping out hurt too. I look at the stuff they put out between 1996 and 1004, and when they were on their game they were rock solid. Power Team Elite is still out there, but not available anywhere near many folks up north. Otherwise, they'd be a good replacement. (I won't even comment on the BBI mass market figures. They're just not up to par with what they're supposed to replace.) But that's the only place where I see the 1/6th hobby hurting too.

Other than that, the 1/6th hobby seems to be thriving. ACE, TS, HT, and the like are putting out great stuff. More than enough to keep my Hasbro Joes in upgrades for years to come. I know I'm spending more these days too.

[cargochute]

I've been pretty licky.

My ability to remain steadfastly loyal to Her Majesty's Armed Forces have prevented me from spending obscene amounts of money on 1/6th.

Fortunatley, for me anyway, there is a real scarcity of modern British kit and figures.

As long as this continues, and Britons are ignored by the boutique manufacturers like Toy Soldier and ACE, then I'll be just fine.

"licky", "licky"? dude I'm not going to ask as I don't want to hear about your weird sexual practices.

[IsamuHam]

I miss the days when it hurt to shell out $35 dollars for a DML SDU figure...which is already six years ago. Remember TRU's 21C SWAT figures? $29.99 big dollars. It hurt then. Now the pain is different. Now, the pain is "will I have enough $$$ to pre-order the HT (or SS) figure in time before it disappears in the market?".

21C are good for entry level figures. Their wespons are pretty good too! The best entry level figures are the old DML figures. The older figures are only about $20 ~ $25 dollars a pop on the internet (Ebay or online store). They are also the best sources for kitbash material.

Just my two cents.

[mattlocke06]

for me my buying time for 1/6th is during tax season. last year i got over 4500 bucks back from uncle sam and i spent 500 bucks on my figures and vehicles.this year im not spending as much, maybe around 150 bucks.

[Porkins73]

Way back then I used to have a rule-of-thumb for 1/6 procurement. "Not buying any figure over 3 digit price tags". I'm happy and keeping to my resolution until I break the barrier with a Hot Toys fig I just gotta have. Was guilt ridden for a week or so swearing not to spend again the rest of the month on 1/6 (well, you know the outcome eventually... they don't call us plastic crack for nothing you know )
Today, I am already spending 2, 3 times the amount I spent on that HT fig, for a single Medicom figure.
Yeah, you are right John, 1/6 ain't dying. But I think I will soon be with this rate I am going !!

[Oaktown]

I just added up what I've gotten in terms of figures (I collect Marvel Legends too) last year and added it to what I have preordered in 2007 and ... I'm too embarrassed to spill the number!

This is the golden age of what I collect (1/6th movie figures) so I figure buy 'em while they're makiing 'em. That's what I tell myself anyway!

[the angry orc]

yah i never would have thought i would consdier a $55 figure cheap...but when compared to the hot toys seals and predators and aliens and marines...man it gets crazy expensive.