sure is hard to stick to, i tired to quit collecting 1 year ago....it didn't work out. And with all seriousness i don't think i can stop.
i have been collecting for about a year now and perosnally i don't think i can stop collecting. at this stage anyway. but i hope the comment about it becoming a rich man's game never becomes reality. that would be very sad indeed. it just really bugs me that a toy can be sold for that much AND be bought by someone! you'd all know it's things like that which fuel the frenzy and keeps a toy, as beautiful as it may be, at such a high price, pretty much making it impossible for anyone to reasonably obtain. and don't get me started on the flippers, people 'in the know' and whoever else may have better access than most of us to such desirable toys who obviously watch this board very closely! and as much as i'd love to own just one of these toys, i'll continue to let it pass by until i can get one for a reasonable price. i refuse to pay the equivalent of a couple of mortgage payments for a toy. there's still a wonderful world of kaiju outside the mother, yes? just my 2 cents. sorry for the ramble, folks!
I'm not sure what everyone is crying about. It's not a 'rich mans' game. That's just silly. Certain things...when hype driven..go for high flipped prices. It happens with western stuff, eastern stuff, art everything...etc. Just enjoy the hobby. Just because a bunch of people start to flip stuff shouldn't deter anyone from collecting. Certain people on this board are still looking for their grails simply because they refuse to pay flipper prices. Other people jump at the chance and pay outrageous prices. It's a fun hobby.
If contemporary toys suddenly blew up and I was priced out, I'd collect lesser known vintage. If lesser known vintage toys blew up and I was priced out, I'd collect vintage trading cards. If the vintage trading card market blew up, I'd collect whatever. I just see pain and frustration when you only focus on the current flavour of the month. Perfect time to start collecting certain Space Troopers or RxH or SB fight figures.
Or Gargamel fight figs that show up regularly on Mandarake, MIB for $18. The KT Mother probably wasn't the first one flipped, I've already seen all 3 offered for $1200 each. The important thing to remember is that the prices won't stay this high if no one buys them.
yes, this was one of the points i was trying to make. plus i was not saying that it's a rich man's game, just that it would be sad if it became that way.
OK maybe I made too broad a statement by saying collecting kaiju was becoming a rich mans game. Let me clarify: If you're mainly going after and collecting super limited items like bemon, anraku, disc monster etc etc. IT IS a rich mans game. You're pretty delusional if you think otherwise. If you're patiently waiting to find a bemon for 100 bucks you'll most likely wait forever. More power to people who refuse to pay this, really I think it's great that you refuse to pay outrageous prices. Supply vs demand will pretty much keep the prices where they are though. Do I think it's awesome? Of course not. Also nothing is making me stop collecting, everyone has their own taste and threshold as to what they will spend. I just am happy with what I have for now, so a break seemed logical. Factors like current pricing, the economy, coupled with wanting non kaiju items and basically not to be on a computer all day hunting all weighed in. I'm not going to stop forever, geez. I love kaiju and I'm a collector at heart.
All you have to do is look at what people were paying for Galtans a year ago, and look at what they're going for now. The keyword is patience.
RxH too. Just gotta weather the storm. I've gotten Anraku (non-list) and Bemon figures for retail or just SLIGHTLY above ($50-$75 above.) Not delusional, again, you just gotta keep trying, asking, hunting, waiting. It can be a LONG wait, but I've only been collecting since Nov 06, not that long when you think it over.
I find this has turned into an interesting discussion about costs of these figures we collect. I also find it ironic that the entire thread is filled with people saying "I want one" , but two pages later complaining that they're all being flipped on yja and elsewhere. This is a public section of the forum folks. Flippers read this board. What do you think is going to happen? If they see a crazy demand for it, they're going to try and rook you. It also doesnt help when people spend $900 on a figure (not naming anyone in particular, I've overpaid myself from time to time), but still..the prices come down if you have some patience and wait it out as was mentioned. As for this being a rich man's hobby, it depends on what you want. If you want original marusan and bullmark vintage pieces in minty condition, then yes...a rich (wo)man is what you need to be. For the other figures mentioned, patience is the key. Our collections didn't grow overnight, yet lately all I see is people buying up everything they possibly can. Ask yourself if you're buying it because you like it, or are you buying it because everyone else wants it...you don't have to collect it because so and so wants one. It doesn't matter much to me these days, I buy and trade what I like, and most of that has little to no interest around here these days so I'm a happy camper. I don't have much of a point here, these are all jsut random observations of someone on the outside of this mother toy...this is a hobby and it's supposed to be fun. Don't let it stress you out or bankrupt you. You don't always have to keep up with the Joneses.
atease, this is great advice from a seasoned veteran. Seriously, in the short time I've been here I've noticed an increase in what I perceive as hype. I feel like it's a fine line we walk between hype and excitement for the toys. It just seems more hypish lately, maybe I'm wrong. In any case I do agree about the patience. Just look at some of the items that have appeared on the board lately at what appear to be "bargains". I've overpaid by an extreme measure on one item that I can think of so far because I had to have it right then. Guess what, 8 months later I could have saved myself about 50% (OUCH!) Live and learn. I think it's a good discussion to have as collectors anyhow.
I'm not sure I would call myself a seasoned veteran, but I've seen a lot of people come and go on this board due to burnout, overspending, etc. You make a great point about seeing decent deals lately on the board for other types of toys. It was all I could do to keep myself from buying that astro mu figure koji sold yesterday. $50? steal. at the end of the day, we all feed into the hype machine in some way. if there was no demand for the figures we all know and love, we wouldn't have anything to collect. the big thing is to stay within your budget. there are a lot of great toys to be had for under $50. A LOT. if you love something and want to splurge once in a while, by all means do it, but at the same time remember that if you're buying it because everyone else loves it at the moment. other people aren't funding your budget or paying your bills...
I think that a lot of people like to act like they're not part of the high prices and insane lust that happens when a figure like this rises like a tidal wave...but we all are. This board is the best focus group for flippers ever made (for what we talk about here) just like the k.r. board is for western shit. It's such an important point it's worth repeating a million times: if no one pays the high prices, the prices will go down. often below retail on a lot of items...this toy will be no exception...there's been very few pieces that buck that trend, and even they are still infants in the world of toys compared to vintage bullmarks, marusans, etc. I really want one of these but I don't even think I'll pay the new retail price...too bad there are many who would have bought that one on KT regardless of the price. that does take away a bit from the "fun" of the hobby, but doesn't ruin it completely. the fine art world has insane pricing, but you can still enjoy the art in galleries, museums, and books...even if you can't always buy an original for your collection. sort of a weird tangent: a few weeks ago the NYTimes ran a cover story about food stamps in the US: over 1 in 10 people in this country use them...so to many people in this country, paying anything for the shit we like is insane...it's all relative. this is a luxury...a complete luxury...so why freak out about the price of a Maza when a lot of people need food stamps to eat?!?
Secretly, we've ALL put some outrageous bids down on items--come on, admit it to yourself. So, my personal "restraint" (as Lixx called it) is definitely in effect with respect to the Mother. I think it is a wonderful sculpt, and those (like Lixx, et. al.) that scored the Garimpo GID (for what, 100 bux with shipping?), it was truly a GREAT score. However, I now see (an occasional GID and) the newer RM Black Hole ver. (in vastly growing numbers) and prices (e.g., 50,000 yen) that are unimpressive with respect to the sculpt itself. Lixx and atease have well-founded, and experienced, advice---something is always gonna whet our whistles. Treasure hunters, average collectors, and (yes) flippers will always exist. The ultimate measure is not 'did they flip' or 'how much did you pay', but 'what fortitude and discipline did you exercise'. Thanks to all for making this one gangbusters of a hobby!
Another RM Blackhole version being flipped on YJA for the 'buy it now' price of 73,000yen. What are you waiting for!
Don't worry, if you miss out on that one Mandarake has an RM version for a mere $750 as well! Good to see all these went into the hands of people who really love the figure.
I don't think so, they flip all day long, nothing new about it. Hahahahaha, what about their $1,000 Anraku? Sometimes their prices are sooooo weird. But not in this case I guess because suckers are paying that much for these Mothers. All any of us can do is laugh at them, though.
They need to start putting diamonds or 24 carat gold in for the eyes of these mothers. That way at least there is something intrinsically valuable about them to justify the insane starting prices. I kid but you know what I mean...... Actually today I was looking through some old Bemon threads and noticed the same reactions (Nov 2006 to be exact) for the prices of bemons then. People were gasping at the 300-400 range. Now we're on the 500-700 range with these. C.
