A Tale of an Auction

lightning2000 · Post by **lightning2000** » Tue Mar 15, 2005 6:14 pm

Hello folks,
Take a look at this auction on eBay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... RK:MEWA:IT

Auction #6950991169

Bidding looks to be getting out-of-hand but it shows to what lengths some people will go to complete a collection or acquire a coveted piece.

Lightning2000
www.themotorpool.bigstep.com

smh_1021 · Post by **smh_1021** » Tue Mar 15, 2005 7:10 pm

I noticed that a few hours ago - the sad thing is that I have even seen some of the standard issue Dragon Armor pieces being auctioned as though they were Limited Production 'Exclusives'. From what I remember, I think that an individual ended up 'pre-ordering' 60105 and 60106, which will be generally available King Tigers (available for around $$15.00 or $16.00) for about $71.00.

immeww2 · Post by **immeww2** » Tue Mar 15, 2005 7:23 pm

I always find it amazing what bidders will pay for certain things on EBAY. I guess that's what makes EBAY what it is.

Mr. Football · Post by **Mr. Football** » Tue Mar 15, 2005 11:22 pm

I think I'd be fine to go ahead and let go of my extra Wittmann Tiger 60001 for that price....and it has 4+ days to go yet!!!!

Oddly enough, if you look at the current high-bidder's ('CrazyCheezeHeadShrinker') profile, you'll see that his latest purchase was another 60001 Tiger for $129 bucks. I wonder why he'd bid so much for this one too?

Check out how much his 60002 Summer Tiger is going for:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... eName=WDVW

Nice to know that just a couple models that cost me less than $100 to acquire could fetch around $1000 bucks should I need to sell. Dragon Armor is really hot right now.

pwedeswe · Post by **pwedeswe** » Wed Mar 16, 2005 1:50 am

Crazy prices indeed. I have 6 of the same 60001 Wittmans mint in box and its certainly got me thinking ... I bought these quite early on when they were still sitting on the shelves in shops. Thinking I should have bought more now.

But I am not into this hobby as an investment so would rather all these limited editions and cyber hobby exclusives go away & have everything easily available.

I missed out on that last Schwere Cyber Hobby Tiger but was not too fussed as it was almost identical to an earlier one (except for the Number, and a track link on the front of the tank) ... I would certainly swap one of my 60001's for the 'Schwere' though - thats for sure ..

I wonder if it's Wittman mania or Tiger mania or speculators thinking that the first edition will make them an easy buck?

Cheers - Pete

Jorg · Post by **Jorg** » Wed Mar 16, 2005 10:17 am

pwedeswe wrote: But I am not into this hobby as an investment so would rather all these limited editions and cyber hobby exclusives go away & have everything easily available.

I totally agree.

Post by **aferguson** » Wed Mar 16, 2005 12:51 pm

it's interesting; back when a lot of the xd stuff went through the roof price wise i didn't like it. I had no intention of selling my precious collection but at the same time became very reluctant to open and/or 'play' with my stuff because of its high dollar value. Took a lot of the fun out of it for me for a while.

I much prefer my hobby to be fun, if non-profitable. I can look elsewhere for investments...

lightning2000 · Post by **lightning2000** » Wed Mar 16, 2005 2:19 pm

I agree with you that its tough to start looking at a hobby from a purely speculative standpoint and that it takes some of the joy out of collecting.

As a retailer, what we've seen is alot more people purchasing in multiples with the thought that they can enjoy one and perhaps make back their money by selling the second at a later date. I imagine this phenomena exists in other collectable sectors (dolls, giftware, etc.) and that dollar fever is now starting to make its way into the military collectible market. Look at how old GI Joes have escalated in value along with old toy soldier sets.

I think that Ebay's impact and the burgeoning global marketplace are both causing and affecting the way in which collectors see their hobby. I also think that "the limited edition" craze is helping to fan the fires, which wont dissipate anytime soon...

Lightning2000
www.themotorpool.bigstep.com

KAMIKAZE · Post by **KAMIKAZE** » Fri Mar 18, 2005 8:45 pm

That auction just blows me away! Do you remember when Voyager Toys had quite a few of those early tigers in the shop Mr.Football?I bought a bunch because I use them for wargaming purposes.All my 1/72 scale armor is out of the boxes and lined up in a drawer.

There is sometimes a fine line between collecting and having fun.You know where my priorities
lie!

Mark

Mr. Football · Post by **Mr. Football** » Fri Mar 18, 2005 9:21 pm

Mark, yes...I remember. Richard (Voyager's owner) had a bunch of them, for several months. I remember they were just $9.

I love that place. Have you seen the big 1/6 Tiger I they have on display in the 1/6 figure room? Awesome! They sell those things!

KAMIKAZE · Post by **KAMIKAZE** » Thu Mar 24, 2005 10:49 am

Yes.I bought one of them! That thing weighs a ton and while I can physically lift it,I cant get my arms around it.It is sitting on my workbench
in the garage.I keep telling myself that I'm going to paint it one day but I NEVER seem to get around to it.The tracks and some of the resin parts are kind of brittle so you have to exercise care when moving it around.
I don't regret buying the beast though.

Mark

Mr. Football · Post by **Mr. Football** » Thu Mar 24, 2005 11:49 am

Mark,

You ought to take a picture of it and post it here. I'll host the photo if you don't have a webhost.

Those things are quite impressive.

Small Scale Military Headquarters

A Tale of an Auction

A Tale of an Auction

mind-boggling

Re: mind-boggling

Good Point