[clhuke64]

Unfortunately, I have been away from one of the hobbies, that I love so dear for quite some time...real life has a tendency to get in the way at times (just spent 6+ months taking care of an ailing mother with dementia)…..My question/thought to everyone who reads this post, both new warriors and a lot of old friends is, am I the only one who is shocked/amazed at the prices for 10+ year old figures/parts ? Dragon figures 50-60 dollars and up, 21st century toy parts/figures at amazing prices for items I gave away 5-6 years ago. Is this because of the decline of our much loved hobby ?.....please let me hear your thoughts/comments....hope to hear from all and some dear friends.

Thanks
Craig

 

[SoloSam]

I doubt it. High prices are a sign that something is desirable and
that collectors are (probably) willing to pay top dollar for it. Anything that’s a few years old has probably become scarce and therefore can command higher prices for the examples that remain.

If people no longer had an interest in the hobby, you would be seeing low priced products going unsold.

 

[magpie]

Just be grateful you don't want to ship stuff to the UK, the import tax is crippling. Where as I'd order a few figures and tons of loose gear, I now just get a few bits loose now.

 

[Davinator65]

First of all, I am sorry to hear about your mother. The people who have dementia are very hard to care for. You have my undying empathy for taking care of your mother.

No, our hobby is not dying. The parts that are $50 and up , as SoloSam has said, are highly desirable for collectors. Example are the guns. Some are highly in demand by collectors of 1/6, while most are not. But the 21C sets...you can buy at a high price or low price, depending on the set and which guns they have in the set.

 

[shazzdan]

We have all given away or sold stuff cheaply when we were younger only to discover that it is worth a fortune today. If the stuff wasn't highly desirable today, it would still be worth nothing.

 

[Goobikza]

$50-60 for old dragon figures? must depend on the figure, some sites can't give them away.

 

[RifleR4ider]

I just got into this hobby, and every time I decide to buy a figure I really like I just have fast food for a day or two and do some overtime at work. Because yes the prices do seem a little steep for a recent university graduate like myself...

 

[shazzdan]

Fast food costs a lot more than cooking at home. When I need to save money I stop buying fast food and prepare all of my meals at home. We had pumpkin soup last night and the entire family (5 people) was fed for $5 with plenty of leftovers. This morning we had scrambled eggs and toast and it cost around $4 to feed everyone - including the freshly squeezed juice. We are having chicken-salad sandwiches for lunch that only costs a few slices of bread and some left over chicken because the salad is grown in a pot on the windowsill (our mayonnaise is home-made). If we didn't need to buy meat, the entire family could eat for a week on $30-$40 and the food is a lot healthier than take-out. We could eat for even less if I expanded our vege garden. For example, last night's soup would have been free.

Food has never been cheaper in the entire history of civilisation. The trick is to buy in bulk and to stay away from processed, packaged crap.
It costs around $9 for a 20-pound sack of rice or $8 for a 25-pound sack of flour. Either of these would feed us for weeks
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Great-Value-Long-Grain-Enriched-Rice-20-lb/10315883
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Great-Value-All-Purpose-Flour-25-lb/12444466

40 pounds of ketchup - enough to last for years - costs $35.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/6-Pack-Heinz-Ketchup-114-Oz-0-05-Oz/197687308

Instead of buying bread, trying making tortillas at home - you only need flour, salt, and fat/oil. If you buy the above 25-pound bag of flour, the ingredients would cost less than a dollar a day.
Homemade Tortillas | Taste of Home

So, cook at home and we will all have a lot more money for 1:6 stuff (and be healthier too).

 

[Davinator65]

...

LOL! But this is true! But ketchup...I think there is an expiration date on those...LOL!

 

[shazzdan]

Ketchup is mainly sugar, vinegar, and salt. All three of these are preservatives. It keeps for years in a cool pantry.

 

[zhukovsattic]

I've been selling loose parts now for a few months, and I've noticed a couple of things. The WWII collectors seem to kitbash quite a bit more than others. Also, European customers pick up some of the better Hasbro and 21st items fairly often (I can guess distribution of these was less in Europe back when they were being sold?).

Also, lesser quality parts still sell really well on ebay. There seems to be a market for cheaper, less accurate items.

 

[RifleR4ider]

Shazzdan - Thank you sir, duly noted! Only problem is I’m not a good cook lol, but I’ll learn!

Zhukovsattic - I actually buy 21st Century Toys and Dragon items myself, just for the nostalgic values because these were around when I was a kid, couldn’t afford them back then.

 

[shazzdan]

Shazzdan - Thank you sir, duly noted! Only problem is I'm not a good cook lol, but I'll learn!

Youtube my man! Learn by watching someone do it on Youtube. There are tutorials for everything on Youtube. I learned to tile my bathroom by watching Youtube. I learned how to replace the screen in my phone by watching Youtube. I learned how to make ceramic pottery from clay dug up in my garden by watching Youtube.

Here is one for tortillas. Looks like it took her less than half an hour.
How to make Soft Flour Tortillas - Como Hacer Tortillas de Harina - YouTube

If you screw it up, try again. It will only cost you a few cents worth of oil and flour.

 

[clhuke64]

First of all, I am sorry to hear about your mother. The people who have dementia are very hard to care for. You have my undying empathy for taking care of your mother.

Thanks for the kind words Dave, nice to see old friends still on OSW......I was shocked to see that David Cotes (ActionMan) passed away, I have no words for that loss..we became great friends through this site.

 

[Davinator65]

Thanks for the kind words Dave, nice to see old friends still on OSW......I was shocked to see that David Cotes (ActionMan) passed away, I have no words for that loss..we became great friends through this site.

So glad to see your still kicking!:clap

Yeah...so sad... And I found out that he didn't even have enough money to go back to the UK... Man...if I had know this, I could of spared a couple of hundred bucks for the donation drive... Well, he got his wish and went home. Rest in Peace my friend.

 

[reaver80808]

Gotta agree with others here. I think the prices reflect rarity in many cases and sellers know they can charge more for desirable items that collectors need.
Look at how boxed figures jump in price once their run is ended. If you miss pre-ordering something, you are looking at almost double price in some cases once stock dwindles.
I bought the Verycool female shooter VCF-2026 (newer line) for the price of £98 on pre-order. If you can find one on sale now on ebay it is £250 on average, and I even saw one today for $599.

It's not decline. If anything it's not enough stock for demand.