Do you buy brand new or used ones?

[potato]

There were items released before I collected them, for example some Master Replicas items. I wouldn't buy now a MR prop that was still factory sealed, because MR is long gone. Get it now?

i believe most of use are talking about "when you have a choice would you get it MISB or used". your case of pursuing older figure/item that has been long discontinued/sold out is a different story, beggars can't be choosers. when you're late on the bus you have to take whatever is available, MISB or used, depends on your budget & availability & how long you are willing to wait.

but i don't understand the part where "I wouldn't buy now a MR prop that was still factory sealed, because MR is long gone", because even if an item is "long gone", there's bound to be MISB ones available, unless it's uber rare limited quantity or ancient old, or you're saying even if a long gone item that is MISB is still available you would rather get a used one??? you do know for very old items, it's difficult to have it in tip top condition even if it's displayed in a dust-free temperature controlled environment. So if it's an really old item i would favor MISB over used, even if the price of the MISB is 20% more, for really old items.

and if you are paranoid with missing parts or damaged item you can always ask if seller is willing to check & verify the item. It's not difficult to open up MISB and put everything back MISB, those tapes can be easily removed without damaging and sealed back. If it uses those normal tapes you can just use a new tape.

 

[dendory]

I try to buy new, but many of the pieces long sold out are only available used. As for the price, every figure I've ever looked for has been more expensive used than the MSRP of the item when it was still available.

 

[jkno]

i believe most of use are talking about "when you have a choice would you get it MISB or used". your case of pursuing older figure/item that has been long discontinued/sold out is a different story, beggars can't be choosers. when you're late on the bus you have to take whatever is available, MISB or used, depends on your budget & availability & how long you are willing to wait.

but i don't understand the part where "I wouldn't buy now a MR prop that was still factory sealed, because MR is long gone", because even if an item is "long gone", there's bound to be MISB ones available, unless it's uber rare limited quantity or ancient old, or you're saying even if a long gone item that is MISB is still available you would rather get a used one??? you do know for very old items, it's difficult to have it in tip top condition even if it's displayed in a dust-free temperature controlled environment. So if it's an really old item i would favor MISB over used, even if the price of the MISB is 20% more, for really old items.

and if you are paranoid with missing parts or damaged item you can always ask if seller is willing to check & verify the item. It's not difficult to open up MISB and put everything back MISB, those tapes can be easily removed without damaging and sealed back. If it uses those normal tapes you can just use a new tape.

When discussing readily available collectibles, and having a choice most people would buy factory new, and that is quite understandable and not disputable. Not sure if there would be even a long discussion about it, excepting when you can get an opened, but complete and perfect condition item for much less than original from distributors/shops. Otherwise everyone would prefer factory sealed readily available collectibles.

But the long sold out items are different, and seems I'm not the only one mentioning this. Consider the fact that some MR collectibles for example are already decaying, like the grips/t-tracks on a few rare and expensive lightsabers. I wouldn't buy any of those without knowing the exact condition of the prop, and that means seller opening up the box and checking them out. And not every seller wants to open up a factory sealed item to check it out.

When I say used it is not like someone took the lightsaber or the blaster out and played in the backyard with it until it fell apart - used in the collecting world could also mean that it is complete and in perfect condition, and that it was displayed in a nice glass door cabinet, far from the sun, with no dust etc. There were situations when people bought props which were new factory sealed and had issues - look at the pretty recent EFX problems with Vader helmet dome scratches, Luke helmet paint issues, studio scale TIE Fighter with cockpit problems etc. - they are now sold out for a few years, I'd like to see how would you get a replacement for a cca $1000 (or more at current market prices) limited edition item now. Then back on figure land there are some HT figures with rubber suits that might have problems even if kept MIB, maybe even more if so, due to dryness in the original box.

And in the end you should consider the international location of some buyers, not everyone lives in US to be able to easily ship stuff back for refund. I don't know how you prefer your collectibles, but for me, if an item is long sold out, I will not buy a factory sealed one, unless the seller verifies it to be damage free first.

 

[potato]

But the long sold out items are different, and seems I'm not the only one mentioning this. Consider the fact that some MR collectibles for example are already decaying, like the grips/t-tracks on a few rare and expensive lightsabers. I wouldn't buy any of those without knowing the exact condition of the prop, and that means seller opening up the box and checking them out. And not every seller wants to open up a factory sealed item to check it out.

And in the end you should consider the international location of some buyers, not everyone lives in US to be able to easily ship stuff back for refund. I don't know how you prefer your collectibles, but for me, if an item is long sold out, I will not buy a factory sealed one, unless the seller verifies it to be damage free first.

I did mention some items will also suffer from wear & tear even if you display it in dust free environment, for many years things oxidize, the process is much slower when they are in the box, unless the MISB box is stored in humid/hot environment, some materials like rubber/pleather tend to stick to their plastic trays but like i said depends on materials, for Electronics of course once it passes the launch period warranty pretty much is non-existence, I'm not sure how MR packs their stuff but if it's simple tape most seller would be happy to check/test if for you, since the trouble of dealing with refunds is much costly, and unless it uses special packaging that can't be resealed like Blister packs. A non-refundable unless faulty deposit to sellers in case he opens up to check and no issues but buyer wants to cancel should cover the value of MISB -> MIB.

In short if you know what materials are used, and have an idea on the lifespan on those materials, it should help you judge whether it's better to get a MISB or BIB. But electronics tend to be a hit or miss, but the ironic part is lower end toys with electronics tend to last forever while higher end ones tend to be less reliable. As long as there's no batteries kept inside the MISB compartment.

Also another thing is location, for Sideshows it'd be easier for folks in USA, but in overseas, i believe they might ask you to destroy the item with proof and send you a new one, but it definitely cost a bomb to ship a PF back to US from overseas.

 

[jkno]

I did mention some items will also suffer from wear & tear even if you display it in dust free environment, for many years things oxidize, the process is much slower when they are in the box, unless the MISB box is stored in humid/hot environment, some materials like rubber/pleather tend to stick to their plastic trays but like i said depends on materials, for Electronics of course once it passes the launch period warranty pretty much is non-existence, I'm not sure how MR packs their stuff but if it's simple tape most seller would be happy to check/test if for you, since the trouble of dealing with refunds is much costly, and unless it uses special packaging that can't be resealed like Blister packs. A non-refundable unless faulty deposit to sellers in case he opens up to check and no issues but buyer wants to cancel should cover the value of MISB -> MIB.

In short if you know what materials are used, and have an idea on the lifespan on those materials, it should help you judge whether it's better to get a MISB or BIB. But electronics tend to be a hit or miss, but the ironic part is lower end toys with electronics tend to last forever while higher end ones tend to be less reliable. As long as there's no batteries kept inside the MISB compartment.

Also another thing is location, for Sideshows it'd be easier for folks in USA, but in overseas, i believe they might ask you to destroy the item with proof and send you a new one, but it definitely cost a bomb to ship a PF back to US from overseas.

I collect props, helmets and studio scale models from 2007 and I know quite a bit about them. Unfortunately not all sellers open up their items because there are people who are interested in buying MIB, with all its good and bad. There will be no destroying the item with proof and send you a new one with Icons, MR or EFX because these are items long sold out, with small editions - neither with long sold out Sideshow stuff. On some props/models you need to assemble them to be sure they are damage free, and that the parts connect as they should be. The EFX TIE Fighter had issues with the big hexagonal wings not attaching properly on some models, replacements were sent to the buyers by EFX.

No one has a really clear idea how long these new collectibles last, we can only guess, no matter if we talk about props, helmets, HT/SSC figures, busts, statues etc. We might have some old toys that we got when we were kids and are still like new today, but not sure the new stuff is that durable anymore. We can only guess how long the rubber on figures can last, or the PVC before it will degrade, or the metal before it rusts or oxidizes, or the plastic before cracking on joints. I own a few full metal props like a Sterling ANH E-11 blaster or a MGC ROTJ E-11, and these being solid metal will most likely outlive everyone in this board. But other things might not be as durable.