Reasons You collect

I recently started to question why Some people collect. For some it appears just to be to buy.. Limelight.. Then buy more. It has made me wonder if I am still the only one who does it as the toys remind me of my youth and for the thrill of the hunt. Thoughts?

Little bit of everything Todd, nostalgia, the hunt and acquisition, the display...feels like investment is becoming more and more prevalent recently. I guess now some items are commanding truly astronomical prices that is to be expected.

I also love the social aspect of it. Gotten to know some really good people over the past few years, most of them on here.

A mixture of things for me. I sold most of my personal collection that I've had for 20 years this year in order to fund MOCs that I actually wanted. I had a big leaning towards Palitoys with the logo on the front. For whatever reason they were the most visibly pleasing for me, and I think they look even more amazing when they are displayed together. I managed to complete my 12 back run, 6 of which were Kenner, but I find the Kenner logo so dull, probably because it is so common.

Another reason is a sort of child like addiction. The desire to have something new, waiting with excitement for it to arrive, then when it does, I stare at it for a while holding it, then I've had my fix and am desperate for another.

Other reasons would be that I think us collectors will look after these pieces so they survive as long as possible as a piece of history. If I'm lucky enough to have rarer piece than all the better. Nice to know I own something very few others do. A funny little one was my 12 back Takara Luke I bought, which when I got it graded, they give it a harsh 60. Thing is, I asked for a population report, and it showed 9(80) 1(Y75) 1(60). So, I have the only graded 60 on the planet Earth lol. There may be several ungraded that would be given a 60, but for now mine is the only one in a sealed case with an AFA label.

I'm a mixture of the above comments and I find that as time is going on I'm moving into other vintage items that I remember from my childhood. I still pick up the odd modern thing as well like the most recent Judge Dredd figures around at the moment but again this is probably a childhood thing as I grew up with this character and you could get this sort of thing back then.

I've never been in it from an investment point of view and must admit that there is an extra thrill to finding things at toy fairs ect rather than just buying online. It's nice to be able to handle things and see them up close and also quite often I see something from my childhood that I completely forgot about.

You're certainly not on your own Todd and I love the fact that you have two different areas at home to display both Star Wars and non Star Wars items. There's always room in a collection for the odd Evel Knievel or Steve Austin

Ian

For me it's 100% the toys reminding me of my youth with my grandma I remember being a kid playing with my star wars items when I lived with my gran they meant the world to me and so do the memories I always did and always will love Star Wars in every aspect this is why I collect for those that have looked and read my post on showcase will know I had my collection stolen years ago so I've had to struggle and fight to get it back the nostalgia and feeling like a kid again and of course the whole community that's involved that's my only investment I do hope more people collect for these reasons but as someone said because of value it will attract different interests

tiefighterboy said:

I recently started to question why Some people collect. For some it appears just to be to buy.. Limelight.. Then buy more. It has made me wonder if I am still the only one who does it as the toys remind me of my youth and for the thrill of the hunt. Thoughts?

Click to expand...

Im innit for the same reasons you are todd

Boring answer, I'm afraid: Nostalgia, pure and simple. And even removing the nostalgia aspect, I absolutely love the design of the cardbacks and figures. Just brilliant.

Of course, once you decide on something to collect the thrill of the hunt does become a major part.

What I did not expect was the social aspect. Even if I stopped buying tomorrow I'm pretty certain I'd still be on here as I've made some good friends on here. So pleased this place exists.

It's not investment for me. I cannot believe prices will continue to rise although the success of TFA certainly won't see the market correction that was hoped for. Also, when I collect something I consider what it'll be worth after I'm gone. Wouldn't want my daughter to be left with a legacy of worthless junk. From that perspective VSW are not a good investment. They're degrading and matter to no generation as much as they matter to ours.

Pure nostalgia and the thrill of the hunt for me Todd.

poncho said:

tiefighterboy said:

I recently started to question why Some people collect. For some it appears just to be to buy.. Limelight.. Then buy more. It has made me wonder if I am still the only one who does it as the toys remind me of my youth and for the thrill of the hunt. Thoughts?

Click to expand...

Im innit for the same reasons you are todd

Click to expand...

Same here. All my original collection, which still makes up the majority of what's present, was picked up when collecting didn't hurt the bank balance so much. I can't say why I collect these days because ...well ...I don't really! However I could bang on all day about why I started collecting. Basically pure nostalgia and the fun of finding things in the wild. No greed. No ridiculous prices. No focuses (not that there's anything wrong with focuses). Just a love of my favourite toys from childhood

If it was Star Wars buried in a pile of carboot sale items, or maybe hidden at the back of a shelf or store room, then that was god damn exciting!

Gotta agree with most of the above. I didn't have the greatest childhood (not the worst either) but the fondest memories I have all involved Star Wars. I used to love the thrill of the hunt at boot sales ( I started attending them around the age of 14 - back in 1989 :? , and every other stall used to have tonnes for sale) however these days finding anything vintage is as rare as 'rocking horse sh!t' and to be honest isn't worth the early morning get ups anymore.

I've also recently come to realise that it's specifically 'Return of The Jedi' items that invoke the best memories for me (I was 8 when Jedi came out and it's the only film I can remember my dad taking me to watch (on one of his infrequent visits ) so I've now decided only to collect Jedi toys and have recently cleared out most of my non-jedi items (plus it helps with storage as there's not much room left in the loft :lol: )

I'm gonna agree with most of the above by saying I agree with most of the above There are three reasons for me:

I'm very much drawn towards the toys I had as a kid, even the ones which are less popular. I'd love a Vader's Star Destroyer playset as it's one I enjoyed as a kid.

I'm also drawn to some of the toys I DIDN'T have as a kid but desperately wanted; yes, Palitoy Death Star, I'm looking at you!

I also admire the packaging from an 'art' perspective. There are MOCs I own (and some I don't) which I give me joy by simply looking at them.

I don't see them as a long-term investment, and I'm not buying them as such. I'm also a Doctor Who fan; the market for new merchandise is insane and there's money to be made in some of it in the very short-term; however, the prices for 60s merchandise are very much dropping.

Same as you Todd. However, a lot of my enjoyment is building replica props and not only the toy / memorabilia collecting. Pure nostalgia for me though thats why i just built a Han in Carbonite. Its one of my favorite ever scenes/props from the films.

I still get enjoyment from seeing someone limelight a £10,000 item and a £1 item. Problem is that too may people seem to think that money buys everything, but it cannot buy you memories.

99% nostalgia for me.

Can't be ego stroking as I don't limelight :lol:

The other 1% is being a bit OCD. It's hard for me not to try and complete the various things I collect.

Nostalgia and the fact carded figures are modern art!

Same here. I don't have a big collection of vintage so i'm appreciative of everything I have. I can't afford to buy for the sake of it so I'm more selective and buying something that relates to what I remember as a kid appeals to me more. Not necessarily what I had back in the day, sometimes it can be something I wanted but never managed to pick up.

One example of this. I got the B-Wing for xmas 84, but never had the pilot. 6 months later I found a bin full of Trilogo B-Wing Pilots while on holiday with my family. Got told 'no' that day and never saw a B-Wing pilot at retail again. When I finally got back into vintage in recent years getting a carded B-wing pilot was one of my starters.

Good question, as I've been thinking about this recently. I started collecting as an adult only 6 months ago, and since then I've bought some stuff I had as a kid and lost, and some stuff I never had. I thought it was all about the items I had as a kid only, the memories and all that, but for Xmas I picked up an Ewok village and I'm pretty pleased with it. So I guess I collect for a mixture of reasons. My main memories are from the ESB and ROTJ eras so I'm more likely to collect for that rather than ANH or Trilogo/POTF.

All great answers guys, for me its pure nostalgia, my parents were monsters but my relief was allways star wars, back then i could get lost in a galaxy far far away with the toys, they are like old friends.
My collection is loose with a few jedi moc cards thrown in, i don't have a focus, just getting back what i had as a kid and a lot of the figures i didn't have to, i love the loose figures, great that you can just pick them up and be transported back, i've been collecting about six years or so now, and i have most of what i want, need to find a lot of weapons for them, but i'll get them sorted eventually, i also have a large modern collection, love both modern and vintage, and again i only collect for the fun of it, not looking at investments, especially the modern stuff as it won't keep its value
I still enjoy the thrill of the hunt, finding the odd figure at car boot sales, very few and far between now though, and at conventions, i think like most of us i've had bargains through here, from the likes of Iian, certainly most of my moc have come from him, i stick to the budget cards, the well loved ones with a bit of history behind them, i am thankfull for this place, made some great friends through here glad to be a part of the community

I think this is why i enjoyed the Secret Santa so much. Getting some surprise vintage SW figs as a gift was a pure hit of nostalgia and revealed that excitement I thought buried over by the layers of time and adulthood.

Great replies guys and goes to show why the forum has always been my home. I was starting to get down about the hobby, mostly from FB pages, not to start a debate, as it appears all they seenm to do on there is buy in hurry in order to post a pictures then repeat on daily basis, nothing else (Maybe that is the only use for Facebook..dunno). Some people seem to have a warped sence of what collecting is about. It's about sharing knowledge, setting back and enjoying your collection...not just about buying for ****s sake.

Thanks again guys.

agree with the above , most of my collection has been my original sw toys and ones pick up at boot sales over the years as the interest never really went away, many an x wing and other ships has been customised over the years when younger the horror, never paid modern money for anything as I feel uncomfortable with todays prices for what is plastic (but plastic with great memories for me), still do find some vintage at boot sales and still love the buzz of the find at pence prices.
I collect other toys that stir memories as micronauts , matchbox etc so usually manage to find something at boot sales there's still fun to be had in the chase