To open or not to open!

[Leroy]

Hey Guys,

 

I'm torn, I've got just over 50 carded 25th Joes, 5 two packs and with the Toy fair pics Im really keen to get the new figures. With the cards being different and awesome figures like Lowlight and the new Snake-eyes i'd really like to put them together

 

Sooooooo to open or not to open. Thoughts?

[DarthJoe]

If I were you, I'd keep them MOC and to try to win a lot of loose 25th Joes on ebay. I've seen some pretty decent sized loose lots go for around $100-$150...where you'd only end up paying $2-3 per figure.

[BigBot84]

I'd say keep 'em MOC.

[ARROW]

I'm an opener myself, but I'll chime in and add my voice to the other two and say keep them MOC--and get some spares that you can open.

A lot of 25th Ann. figures are easy to come by and prices are still very fair, so you should be able to fill the roster up quite quickly and for not a lot of $$$

[Viper Hunter]

Depends on the purpose of collecting them to begin with? Is it an investment of sorts? Something to one day be sold away and profited off of? To me, keeping a toy unopened is like having a girlfriend you never have sex with, hoping one day to sell her off as a virgin, "unopened" play thing.

 

They're TOYS...open them, play with them, pose them, accessorize them and even paint, customize or swap parts on them for enjoyment beyond having a wall cluttered with unopened toys, for mere bragging rights or future retirement investment. An unopened toy has no more (personal) value than a PICTURE of an unopend toy.

 

My retirement plan...

 

 

My TOYS...

 

 

DON'T TOUCH!!

 

 

[spystreak]

leave itin the package sell it later

[Peter]

I'd base it on whether you can ever see yourself selling them and if space is an issue in your home. Another factor is how you prefer to display them.

 

When it comes to Joes, I personally prefer finding them loose on ebay, so this is not an issue. DarthJoe's advice is pretty good. I recently bought the SDCC Slaughter in package and am having a VERY hard time forcing myself to open him. To keep my vintage Joe spending at a fairly low level, I've told myself that I will only buy the ones I had as a child as far as MOCs go.

[Leroy]

Good points VH. I only kept em moc cause I like the cards I am an opener normally but the overall look of em packaged took me back. I'm pretty sure I'm gonna do it. All my old joes are out and I still love them.

[BigBot84]

To me, keeping a toy unopened is like having a girlfriend you never have sex with, hoping one day to sell her off as a virgin, "unopened" play thing.

Did you just compare having a relationship with a woman the same thing as collecting a figure?

[Storetrooper]

do whatever makes you happy. How much money do you really think your going to get for them. Some sure you'll fetch a few bucks for down the line but really how many people are still sitting on 1995 Power of the Force figures? Any one want a monkey face Leia or a Steroid Lando?

[Viper Hunter]

To me, keeping a toy unopened is like having a girlfriend you never have sex with, hoping one day to sell her off as a virgin, "unopened" play thing.

Did you just compare having a relationship with a woman the same thing as collecting a figure?

 

In a roundabout way...yes! @loll@

 

In simple terms, to have and only VIEW, is not the same as to have and HOLD, and yes, having a toy to only LOOK at, is (in my opinion) the same as having a "toy" (use your stunted imagination here) to only look at.

 

In other words....

 

I see little thrill, enjoyment or "value" in either of these two scenarios...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

and if ANY of this discussion over "to open or not to open" is taken serious, someones got an anal retentive serious lack of humor problem. Our hobby and collection is ours to do and keep as we like.

[CaptainTriumph]

I always buy two so I'm the wrong one to ask I guess....

[Dake]

Yeah, if you're keeping them carded as an "investment" you're wasting time and resources b/c there are a few thousand others out there doing the same thing. But, if as you say you keep them carded b/c you like the looks of the cool vintage packaging, then you may as well keep them that way. You should be able to get most anything loose that you want to play with in hand and the newer ones just get better and better.

[CaptainTriumph]

Yeah, if you're keeping them carded as an "investment" you're wasting time and resources b/c there are a few thousand others out there doing the same thing. But, if as you say you keep them carded b/c you like the looks of the cool vintage packaging, then you may as well keep them that way. You should be able to get most anything loose that you want to play with in hand and the newer ones just get better and better.

Who buys them for an investment?

 

I want to have two options to display them in my house!

[xhairs]

If I were you, I'd keep them MOC and to try to win a lot of loose 25th Joes on ebay. I've seen some pretty decent sized loose lots go for around $100-$150...where you'd only end up paying $2-3 per figure.

 

im with you on this keep them moc if you like the card art.

[Dake]

Yeah, if you're keeping them carded as an "investment" you're wasting time and resources b/c there are a few thousand others out there doing the same thing. But, if as you say you keep them carded b/c you like the looks of the cool vintage packaging, then you may as well keep them that way. You should be able to get most anything loose that you want to play with in hand and the newer ones just get better and better.

Who buys them for an investment?

You'd be surprised how many people say they still do this!

[CaptainTriumph]

Yeah, if you're keeping them carded as an "investment" you're wasting time and resources b/c there are a few thousand others out there doing the same thing. But, if as you say you keep them carded b/c you like the looks of the cool vintage packaging, then you may as well keep them that way. You should be able to get most anything loose that you want to play with in hand and the newer ones just get better and better.

Who buys them for an investment?

You'd be surprised how many people say they still do this!

Thats crazy talk...its an action figure not stock!

[CapnJeffro]

You'd be surprised how many people say they still do this!

 

Ever since 40 Year Old Virgin, people think that unopened toys are a gold mine. I get that quite a bit from people who know that I collect action figures.

[Dake]

You'd be surprised how many people say they still do this!

 

Ever since 40 Year Old Virgin, people think that unopened toys are a gold mine. I get that quite a bit from people who know that I collect action figures.

No no... it goes back to before that. It was the mid-90's when action figures went through the roof. There were mainstream news articles on "Collectibles as Investments".

[Devilbat]

Personally my priority is to find as many Joes as I can on mint cardbacks; I'm a MOMC collector first and opener second. It's harder to back up and find mint cardbacks later unless you buy factory cases of figures, and even then they can come out of the case bent and creased sometimes. So I try my best to find them on mint cardbacks, and I can always go back and find ones to open later when package condition isn't an issue.

 

I just like the whole package, no pun intended. (lol) It's fun for me to appreciate toys in mint packaging, especially when they come packaged in retro-styled packaging like the 25th Anniversary Joes do. It goes back to that thrill of seeing the new stuff for the first time on the store shelf. And when you have cool packaged toys and figures, you can preserve that feeling. Plus it just looks so dang cool on display, if you do it right that is. And, I have to admit...finding and collecting toys in mint packaging appeases my twisted obsessive-compulsive tendencies. It's theraputic really. (lol)

 

Now I also love having loose stuff to pose and display. I could never strictly have a MOMC/MISB collection of anything. I mean, like so many others have said...these are toys we're talking about here. They can't be fully appreciated unless you hold them and pose (play?) with them. But then it's like a vicious cycle for me also, when I love a given figure, I then want to preserve a mint specimen in mint packaging.

 

Leroy, my advice is to sort through your stuff, and if you find any specific favorites, or any figure for that matter that is on a mint cardback...save it and keep it sealed. If the cardback's not mint, open it up and have fun. Why not enjoy the best of both worlds, like I do?

[Viper Hunter]

There are ways to open these toys, without damaging the packages or boxes. The word "mint" obviously refers to something never opened and in excellent, almost new-like, condition, which is a term used to evaluate an items value, as in re-sale value.

 

I never throw away the cards or the boxes for any of my stuff, even from back in the 80's and have it all nicely saved, but the toys inside are definitely out and loose. I have small displays of the figures standing in front of the cards they came in and it looks just as nice as if they were still in them.

[Crimson Twins]

Open em up. Play with them, pose them, appreciate the sculpt and articulation up close.

 

I love the people that complain about how some figures don't have enough articulation or accessories, and then you find out that they're MOC collectors. What does it matter then if the toy's just going to sit in one position for the rest of it's life with you?

 

Anyway, open them.

[Leroy]

Thanks guys for the input, I did indeed open them, with my 3 year old boy choosing who to open and telling me whose good and whose bad. It was awesome. It's funny to see a 3 year olds interpretaion, Snake eyes= bad but Timber= good. Basically if they were bright colors, good. Grey or black bad. Glad I did it. The only down side, now I'm ready to fill those gaps through eBay