Hey gang!

Just an exploratory question for right now. As many of you no doubt know, since I started collecting Joes again a little over a month ago, my focus has been on the figures released in the movie lines pretty much without exception. Well, I started looking at the Duke Jungle Team Commander figure which was originally released with a version of Channing Tatum's head. But I think the decision Hasbro made to release it with a head that is more of a nod to the old ARAH figures was a smart move.

Well, I looked at that, and then started feeling nostalgic. And, now I am feeling a full blown on crush for the 25th Anniversary figures. The Gung Ho is an improvement on the figure I loved as a kid. So, too, are the Sgt. Airborne and Altitude figures improvements on the Airborne and Ripcord figures I loved. I always ran a four man team as a kid, and pretended that they all had parachutes: Gung Ho, Ripcord, Airborne and Duke (the Duke with the big tan backpack).

Well, darn, if those 25th Anniversary figures don't bring back some great memories. Then I started looking at the Stormshadow figures. So cool. Even ol' Destro's chrome dome made me feel nostalgic.

Am I nuts? Is it possible for a 43 year old guy to have room in his collection for the modern, movie-based figures, while still collecting the updated figures of his youth?

If I decide to go ahead with this (LOL @ "if". More like...when), what's the best way to do this? Make a list of what I'm looking for on the Marketplace specific to the 25th line, or start scouring the threads that people are listing with what they have. I only ask because while I see threads like the one Bucky has posted listing several 25th anniversary figures moc at $10, the post he made is a little under 2 years old. I don't need them to be moc. If the figures have all the accessories, and are tight with no real noticeable issues, I'm good with already opened. I am certainly not against buying the figures carded. Part of the experience growing up was getting the figures carded, carefully pulling them out, clipping out the file cards, and appreciating the incredible artwork on the front. I spent hours at a time watching the cartoons back when all we had to record on was a VCR, and a stack of VHS tapes. No computers with DVD recorders. I wish I had my LG External Blu Ray burner back then. I could have put all the cartoons on one disc, and just looped them infinitely!

I don't even know if I'd use these for customizing. I might buy a couple duplicates to use for fodder, but the ones I've been looking at this morning are so well done...I don't really want to mess with them.

The ones I'm looking at right now are Altitude, Gung Ho, Sgt. Airborne, Hit and Run, Alpine, various Snake Eyes, Storm Shadows, Cobra Commanders, Destros, Hawks, Roadblocks, Rock N Roll, Stalker...

Oh, who am I kidding? I want them all. I just want to buy them, stick them on their stands, and put them on a bookshelf so I can look at them whenever I want to.

Do people collect both? Or, do most people collect one or the other? I like the new figures, and the realism that comes with them. But, those will never tug at the ol' heart strings the way these figures from my childhood will, and are.

Thanks guys, as always, I appreciate your input.

Bill

Make a list. Go year by year from YoJoe.com, and figure out which ones you want.

Look through all the versions of the characters released, and select one of them to collect. Whichever one you feel is best. You don't need 25 snake eyes figures, you need the one that you think is the best.

Decide if you want them complete or incomplete. If you collect incomplete and arm the figures with http://www.marauderinc.com/ weapons, you'll save money and likely prefer the end product.

Send the list to this guy.

viewtopic.php?f=21&t=33967

and this guy

viewtopic.php?f=21&t=23674

And see what you can get.

Then work through methodically starting with figures that are 3-5 years old. That seems to be where the best prices are on figures. Post the list in the marketplace here.

Then you can work Ebay, hisstank, yojoe forums etc. Sign up to the scammers and toy deals gone wrong page on facebook.

Go year by year, and never try to buy figures in the year that they are released unless you really want them. Have a target for every 3 month period, and a budget to stick to.

Set a specific overall budget for the figures that you want for a given year. For example, you can aim for an average price of 5 dollars for a loose complete figure and 4 dollars for an incomplete one, $10 for a carded one (or as suits you) across the desired figures for a year.

You can do better or worse, but have that figure in mind. Challenge yourself to obtain the figures for as close to the chosen price point as you can manage.

Go to joecons and conventions in your area. There are deals to be had and obscure figures to be found.

If you purchase lots, put the ones that you don't want to keep here in trade.

If a figure can't be obtained for a reasonable price, customize one and keep it in place until you obtain one for a reasonable price. Or don't bother with obtaining it, and keep the custom instead.

Plan out where you are going to display them.

And enjoy the madness. The victories and challenges of collecting are a joy to be had. And keep us up to date on how to it's progressing - I do enjoy our little chats.

/edna

- R

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With summer coming up you may also want to try hitting some yard sales and flea markets. I have found some great deals there. I have found figures I didn't have and some great fodder figures. Sometimes you can find some of the older figures that just need a little touch up paint and thy look good as new. You may want to give those a try also.

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I have a box with a bunch of carded 25th figures in it that I was saving for my son, but his tastes quickly evolved and I don't think he's going to want them. He prefers customs and superheroes (but especially customs of superheroes, ). If you're interested, I can take pics of what I have. let me know

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Dr Bindy, that would be great. Just a few snapshots to let me browse through. Bucky is looking through his, too. I've given him a pretty good list of what I'm looking for. It will be easy to copy and paste once I see what you have available.



Some great advice here. Thank you, and a big thank you especially to Raptor for his expansive response.

I'm a bit limited in how much I can get around. I can drive to a few of my local TRUs, and have, but getting out, and walking through conventions, or flea markets, is a bit more than I can do presently. I might go to one if I feel up to it, but it's just easier to do most of my building online, if that avenue is available.

These 25th figures are like a dream come true. They take the spirit of the figures I loved as a kid, and updated them to be much more functional. They made some really smart business decisions. Now, if I could only get Hasbro to intervene with Criterion, and influence them to reissue a Blu Ray copy of The Last Emperor without the terrible aspect ratio. How do you take an epic, and cut it down to 2:1? LOL, sorry. I'm a huge film buff, too.

I don't really have any advice for you, but I am 43 as well and have been collecting 3 3/4" figures since 90. the only 3 3/4" line I didn't collect all those years were joes after about 86 or so because I just didn't like them at all. I got back into joes specifically because of the 25th line and getting new taller thinner versions of the same characters that I thought were really cool looking. and I mostly stopped collecting joes again once the film line started because again I didn't like they way any of them looked, and I don't really like figures made in the likeness of some actor I may or may not dislike in the first place. but a lot of people don't seem to even like the 25th line much anymore and prefer the figures that have come afterwards and have modern takes on the look of the characters, I also am not that into those because I think modern military style is boring.

raptor gives a lot of good advice above. I would say slow down and think about what you really want first, don't spend all your money impulsively. like they said there are several modern versions of a lot of these characters and most of them are not particularly increasing in value at a speed where you need to worry. look through them all and decide which version you like most of each character.
(just for an example) you say the 25th gung ho is a major improvement over the vintage one. well before you buy that 25th gung ho have you seen the new gung ho that's coming out soon that everyone has been looking forward to? a lot of people including me don't think the 25th gung ho was all it could have been and think this new one is a major improvement. but you should have a look and decide for yourself before you bother getting the 25th version.

also as a long time collector I never ever recommend getting into collecting to people. its a terrible thing to do with your time and money unless its just something you really feel some need for. there can be a lot of fun collecting but there is also a lot of stress of trying to get things, and trying to keep up with things, and things you were looking forward to coming out and being done crappy, and just waiting and waiting, and having nothings new for months then having a flood of stuff all at once and you cant afford it all at that moment, and things come out that no one seems to find in stores except the people that sell it on ebay for 3 times as much, and running out of room to display the way you want, and buying some over priced hard to get figure and have the same figure rereleased afterwards in a set or something, or having as better easy to find version of that figure come out later on, or fear of natural disasters ruining your collection, or judgemental spouses or parents or whoever giving you crap, or plastic discoloration on your favorite rare piece, or the boxes full of things you wanted so bad and now have no interest in and don't know what to do with it to get it all out of your way, or having people make avatars of the cuts they got on their hands from customizing and then trying to make a funny avatar to be part of the gang and then the rest of them change their avatar and now your avatar is just a lame old joke no one gets anymore, or mental illness from talking to your only friends who are your action figures, and what ever else I am forgetting.

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Thanks, newwavepop.

I'm thinking things through quite a bit, and I'm going to have some more time once I see what's available before I'll pull the trigger, if I do. I wouldn't buy any 25th until the end of May, so I'm not concerned about impulse buying. I'll decide what I want to do, and if they fit into my overall collection goals.

You make a lot of good points, and those are things I will consider for sure.

Sudden Death another option is if you on Facebook is to join some of the Buy/Sell/Trade GI Joe boards on there... seen some selling 25th for $8 each..

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Good idea, roguetiger, thank you. I might just do that if there are ones I can't find that I really want. I'd rather stick with our board to start. If I'm going to give my money to anybody, I'd prefer to give it to our group of folks. I'm sure there is some carryover, but I really like the people here.

It seems like there is someone that can regularly be found that is selling off their 25th figures. Since you are starting off with practically nothing, getting a set like this is probably your best bet. The number one reason for this is you can get them for cheap if you buy in bulk. $3-4 per carded figure is absolutely possible.

One of the best places I have found to buy, sell, and trade GIJoes is this Facebook group... https://www.facebook.com/groups/TradeYoJoes/
Many of the forums like this one are good too. But I think Facebook creates a better sense of honesty from the sellers. That doesn't mean there aren't dirtbags there. There are dirtbags everywhere. But in general, problems there have been low.

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hi newwavepop.

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