# PL Halloween/Michael Meyers Value?



## Zorro (Jun 22, 1999)

Hi Guys. Could somebody give me a ballpark price of what this kit is going for these days? Thanks!


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## djnick66 (May 2, 2008)

I dont know if its particularly collectable or not, but two local shops have a couple for about $19 each.


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## jaeg (Oct 21, 2008)

I think Culttvman had one that he sold for $30.


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## Cro-Magnon Man (Jun 11, 2001)

I would have said 'if it's not worth much yet, then hold on to it for longer'. But many kits, even 1960's and 1970's kits, have still not appreciated much up to now. All the time I see vintage kits selling on the e-place for less than the cost of a newly-produced Tamiya or Airfix kit. 
This is good when we're buying old kits, but it can be disheartening to see many of them selling so cheaply when we've got one stashed away which cost quite a lot!


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## Dave Metzner (Jan 1, 1970)

Model kits are a lousy investment. (Of course then again, the Stock Market ain't great right now either.)
The reason to buy kits is to build them! Collecting kits as an investment is not a good way to get rich! 
And collecting new kits (produced within the last 7-10 years) as an investment is kinda like sticking your money in a coffee can and burying it in the back yard!
I'm sure that Round Two is going to re-issue every Polar Lights kit that they can... So Don't expect that stash of Old PL kits to become fabulously valuable anytime in our lifetimes!

Dave


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## the Dabbler (Feb 17, 2005)

Oh Rats ! I'm RUINED.....ruined I tell ya'.


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## Auroranut (Jan 12, 2008)

Don't worry Dabs- I'll help you out and buy your old kits for $5 a carton (that'd have to include shipping to Australia of course).
I'm more than happy to help mate.:thumbsup:

Chris.


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## the Dabbler (Feb 17, 2005)

Sniff, sniff, geeze, what would I do without friends like you guys, sniff, sniff. You're such pals. sniff, sniff..............hoooonk !


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## Auroranut (Jan 12, 2008)

That's cool Dabs. :thumbsup: You can always count on me to do the right thing(?) when I can. That's what friends are for.

Chris.


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## Zorro (Jun 22, 1999)

See below.


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## Zorro (Jun 22, 1999)

PM Moderator said:


> Model kits are a lousy investment. (Of course then again, the Stock Market ain't great right now either.)
> The reason to buy kits is to build them! Collecting kits as an investment is not a good way to get rich!
> And collecting new kits (produced within the last 7-10 years) as an investment is kinda like sticking your money in a coffee can and burying it in the back yard!
> I'm sure that Round Two is going to re-issue every Polar Lights kit that they can... So Don't expect that stash of Old PL kits to become fabulously valuable anytime in our lifetimes!
> ...


Oh, I bought em' all to build. Except for that case of Go-Carts I snatched right after the "The Great Toho No No".


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## Dave Metzner (Jan 1, 1970)

That case of Go Carts is that famous exception to the rule, Even then if you sell them all at the best price you won't be getting rich.
The problem with collecting as an investment is that for every one Go Cart kit that you could buy and realize significant increase in value, there are probably 25 kits produced at the same time that you can't give away today! (including alll the PL kits produced that same year!)
I still maintain that collecting model kits as an investment is a fools errand! This from a guy who's sitting here with at least 1000 kits stacked on shelves in the next room! 
I know how little old kits are worth, because I've started trying to liquidate some of the stuff I've accumulated over the past thirty years!

Dave


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## deadmanincfan (Mar 11, 2008)

PM for you, good moderator sir...


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## Cro-Magnon Man (Jun 11, 2001)

PM Moderator said:


> I know how little old kits are worth, because I've started trying to liquidate some of the stuff I've accumulated over the past thirty years!
> Dave


And it's not just kits; nearly every collectable I try to cash in, be it comics, magazines, old advertising, old postcards etc., even after holding on to them for 15 or 20 years, only just breaks even.


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## Scheisseler (Jul 11, 2007)

Zorro said:


> Hi Guys. Could somebody give me a ballpark price of what this kit is going for these days? Thanks!


Going back to the original question: maybe not surprisingly, this kit seems to go for more money around Halloween. I didn't buy it when it was originally released, though my interest was piqued over a few different Halloween seasons -- and just as quickly crushed when I saw what it was going for on eBay. Then I think I finally bought it in May or June of last year for a pretty reasonable $25.


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## MonsterModelMan (Dec 20, 2000)

PM Moderator said:


> That case of Go Carts is that famous exception to the rule, Even then if you sell them all at the best price you won't be getting rich.
> The problem with collecting as an investment is that for every one Go Cart kit that you could buy and realize significant increase in value, there are probably 25 kits produced at the same time that you can't give away today! (including alll the PL kits produced that same year!)
> I still maintain that collecting model kits as an investment is a fools errand! This from a guy who's sitting here with at least 1000 kits stacked on shelves in the next room!
> I know how little old kits are worth, because I've started trying to liquidate some of the stuff I've accumulated over the past thirty years!
> ...


Simple Math: 1000 kits at $25.00 per kit = $25,000.00 which would be some real coin to someone who needed a car or downpayment on a house. Might not be rich but isn't chicken feed either!

I see this as a very static savings plan with no interest...but none the less money that is still useable if they are sold. I doubt that they will sell for less than what was paid as it was originally sold at...I don't see anyone making alot of money but in a pinch...product is money!

MMM


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## Dave Metzner (Jan 1, 1970)

How much do you sell on flea bay?? Try 500 kits at 2 bucks each less e-bay fees!
Trust me there's not 1000 $25 kits here!
These are mostly aircraft kits - sure there are a few 25 dollar kits maybe even some 50 dollar kits but nothing close to 25,000 dollars!
I don't have any desire to spend hours posting this stuff on flea bay to get bids on about 50% of it.....I'm going to contact one of the guys who buy collections and let them haul about half of it out of here and hope to collect something like the dollars I spent to acquire the kits....(mostly a little over wholesale)

If someone wants to buy the whole shebang for 25K I'll kiss him on both cheeks!

Dave


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## razorwyre1 (Jan 28, 2004)

Cro-Magnon Man said:


> And it's not just kits; nearly every collectable I try to cash in, be it comics, magazines, old advertising, old postcards etc., even after holding on to them for 15 or 20 years, only just breaks even.


thats because in the olden days nobody collected much of anything except coins, stamps and butterflies. none of the stuff youve mentioned was though of as being of any lasting worth, so it wasnt kept. toys and models were played with and broken. same with all this other stuff. the reason that it became valuable years later is because so little of it survived and people were willing to plunk down hefty coin to indulge their nostalgia, or complete what was them a unusual collection.
these days for every fanboy who keeps anything in mint condition, there are a thousand others who do the same, so the stuff doesnt acrue in value at all. 


MonsterModelMan said:


> I see this as a very static savings plan with no interest...but none the less money that is still useable if they are sold. I doubt that they will sell for less than what was paid as it was originally sold at...I don't see anyone making alot of money but in a pinch...product is money!


only as long as interest in the subject matter is there. otherwise, the value can drop. collectibles are only worth what someone is willing to pay to have it.


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## Mitchellmania (Feb 14, 2002)

PM Moderator said:


> I'm sure that Round Two is going to re-issue every Polar Lights kit that they can... So Don't expect that stash of Old PL kits to become fabulously valuable anytime in our lifetimes!
> 
> Dave


That's good news!!


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## TAY666 (Jan 8, 2000)

Actually, one of the biggest reasons most kits aren't worth a whole lot is because of ebay.
Why would anyone pay top dollar, when there are 5, 10, or 100 other listings for the same exact thing?
That is why original Aurora kits are not worth what they were worth 10 years ago.
Back then, they were harder to find, and people thought they were rarer than they actually were.
Once ebay got in the limelight, and people started digging this stuff out, it soon became apparent that there were a lot more kits out there than most people thought.

Most kits won't ever see what they were going for at retail.
The liquidation prices that places like TRU, KB Toy, and Big Lots were selling for killed a lot of price pressure also.
Heck, I am surprised that the Drej Alien is now hitting about $10 on ebay.
I've got over a dozen of them that I nabbed for under $1 (plus shipping)

Sure. You can get a decent price for almost any kit.
IF you can wait for just the right buyer to come along, and you have enough visibility for them to find you. But if you are just trying to clear out some kits and don't want to wait, or go through the hastles, then there is no way you are going to get back what you spent for them.


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## Zorro (Jun 22, 1999)

I started buying kits speculatively a number of years ago as a way of defraying my vintage Aurora collecting/building costs. I would generally only buy "new" kits when they were on close-out or at greatly reduced prices and then use them for resale or trade. TRU put the long box monsters and the Revell Superhero repops on sale at $4.99 each around late 2000 and I grabbed a bunch of those. When PL went out of business and kits started showing up at Big Lots at $3.99 each I grabbed a bunch of those too. The only time I purposely took an investment "risk" on collectables was when I purchased four X-Plus Disney Nautilus's from Hobby Link Japan at $35.00 a pop. A year later, they were averaging around $200.00 a piece on eBay and I sold 3 of them in that price range. They turned out to be a good investment and paid for several more kits in my Aurora collection.

I've been on a liquidation jag lately and have sold a lot of those remaining kits I bought on sale from TRU and Big Lots. I've "averaged" a three-fold return on most of them although a few have gone for much more than that. And a few others you can't _give_ away. It all comes out in the wash.

I guess what I'm trying to say is - I don't sell kits if I attach a personal value to them. I had a pretty big vintage Aurora collection once upon a time but I've slowly divested that collection by selling to other Aurora collectors at what I think has always been a fair price - sometimes a good bit _less_ than what I originally paid for the kit. My feeling about selling the Aurora collection is completely different than selling kits I never cared about in the first place. Selling off the Aurora kits involves a genuine feeling of "finding them a good home" and putting them in the hands of collectors that will feel the same joy that I did when I first acquired them.

Selling the other stuff is purely "business".


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## Auroranut (Jan 12, 2008)

Zorro said:


> I guess what I'm trying to say is - I don't sell kits if I attach a personal value to them. I had a pretty big vintage Aurora collection once upon a time but I've slowly divested that collection by selling to other Aurora collectors at what I think has always been a fair price - sometimes a good bit _less_ than what I originally paid for the kit. My feeling about selling the Aurora collection is completely different than selling kits I never cared about in the first place. Selling off the Aurora kits involves a genuine feeling of "finding them a good home" and putting them in the hands of collectors that will feel the same joy that I did when I first acquired them.


I for one can't thank you enough!! The ones I've bought off you (and the ones I'm yet to buy) have found a good home and I'm grateful for the opportunity to have them.

Chris.


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## Zorro (Jun 22, 1999)

Auroranut said:


> I for one can't thank you enough!! The ones I've bought off you (and the ones I'm yet to buy) have found a good home and I'm grateful for the opportunity to have them.
> 
> Chris.


And it makes me really happy to see you getting the same thrill out of them that I once did, Chris. Your passion for the hobby is infectious. :thumbsup:


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## Auroranut (Jan 12, 2008)

It's a lifetime addiction, and there's not a greater drug in the world!!

Chris.


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## Dave Metzner (Jan 1, 1970)

Oh I'm still addicted! I'm looking at that big pile of kits back there and trying to decide which 500 to sell so I can keep buying the new ones that I want. This isn't a hobby it's a sickness!
I'm looking at shelves full of Hasegawa WWII German and Japanese fighter planes that I'd like to sell so I can make room for that Trumpeter 1/32 Crusader that I just gotta have!
I'm really not well!
I'm going to sell hasegawa Stuka kits but I've just bought Eduard Fw190 kits------go figure!
I need to join Modellers Annonymous! "Hi I'm Dave and I'me a modelholic!


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## Auroranut (Jan 12, 2008)

Have you got the Eduard Me110 with the 1/4 scale instrument panel yet?....

Chris.


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## TAY666 (Jan 8, 2000)

Zorro said:


> I started buying kits speculatively a number of years ago as a way of defraying my vintage Aurora collecting/building costs.


I hear ya.
That is what my PS kit sales are for also.
I buy a big lot of kits at a decent price. Break it down so that others can buy just what they want.
If I break even, then I usually got someting from the lot that I wanted for myself.
Upgraded box, or new box or instructions for my collection, or whatever.

If I end up making money, then it goes right back into getting more kits, or the next lot that may have one item I want.

Sadly, I have had to resort to selling from my own personal collection the past couple years to fund things like my trips to WF. After going through my stash, and honestly assessing what I will probably never build. IT really makes me stop and think before pulling the trigger on another purchase. I've got to be sure, that it will some day find its way from the kit closet to the workbench.


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## Cro-Magnon Man (Jun 11, 2001)

It is all money well spent, guys. Sure, we buy 'too many' kits and later want to sell some, and we reflect that this makes it a sort of mania, but most people I know spend even greter amounts of money, even more addictively, on things which they consume there and then, and which they have nothing to show for later, or which are certainly harmful to their health.
We're lucky that we can buy model kits 'cos we want to, and can sell them when we want to. That's money that we aren't spending because we 'have to', and which we can show something for. I'll bet the average teenager in Britain spends more in a month on their mobile phone(s) than we do on our model kits.


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## razorwyre1 (Jan 28, 2004)

strangely, ive discovered that if the outside world steps in and causes you to lose most of your collection, it will break the collecting jones. it happened to me and to a few others ive known. its actually very liberating. i am findingmyself falling back into my old ways and want to break it before it gets out of control again.


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## BadRonald (Jun 2, 2000)

I'm thinking of selling some of my kits and buying a new bass amp.I would get more use out of a new GK amp. Kits stored away in a closet are doing me no good!


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