Best way to collect all minifigs in a theme

iso3200 · October 2013

I'm a bit late to the Superheroes party but having virtually completed my CMF lineup I'm looking to collect something else. I enjoy the chase, the aspect of *having* the figures I want - but not the expense.

I've probably been kickstarted around now as some of the smaller SH sets are going/have gone EOL and I don't want to end up paying silly money in a years time for a character.

Until now, I've only really bought sets that I want to build, or grabbed the extra one here or there to trade or put by for a rainy day.

Trading sets and minifigs on here is all part of the fun, and after practically giving up Lego as a hobby in the summer, I've been sucked right into it again. I have a big build project (10179 MF) to see me over the cold months, but the collector part of me is wanting to get going as well.

I don't have much interest in the builds of the SH, I just want the minifigs.

I know I could just buy the minifigs off Bricklink or eBay - but it's a little dull - and seems a pricey way of doing it.

For those of you who just want the minifigs, how do you find the best/cheapest way of getting them all? Is it really worth buying a set, whipping out the figs and selling the build on eBay? From what I've seen, the sets without minifigs go for next to nothing - and then it's minus the fees of course.

I've missed the Argos 3 for 2 both times as I had other things on (and no money!) and I guess that's it for this year is it? Or will they likely do another sale like this before Xmas?

Does anyone have a *system* or *method* they like to adhere to? Or is it just the age old bargain hunting and canny buying?

CCC · October 2013

iso3200 said:

Does anyone have a *system* or *method* they like to adhere to? Or is it just the age old bargain hunting and canny buying?

And trading on here.

rancorbait · October 2013

The cheapest way of getting the minifigs you want is taking them out of the boxes in a store, but I wouldn't recommend it. :-P

I've always used bricklink but I haven't actually thought that much about what was cheaper. If you can find a bricklink store with multiple figures (for a good price) that you want, I would probably go with that.

vitreolum · October 2013

Trading is a great way to get them. You can always get a good deal on something you don't need and find someone who does. It also makes everything more challenging and fun than simply buying them. There will always be a few you probably won't be able to get, but with a little patience and luck it can be done for the most part.

CurvedRoadPlate · October 2013

I waited and watched the clearance sales to get the figs from sets I was not crazy about. Watching the forums here can help you find those sales. Some figs I am hoping they release in the new wave of Super Hero sets to make them more attainable (like Nightwing)
I'm not even going to try to get the convention exclusives.

icey117 · October 2013

Being lucky to get hold of a rare kind of Polybag that is not easily available on the other side of the atlantic and exchanging them has helped me quite some times...

iso3200 · October 2013

CCC said:
And trading on here.

I'm running out of things to trade... I didn't think people would have many doubles of these sort of minifigs either compared to CMFs where multiples are aplenty.

drdavewatford · October 2013

You're setting yourself up for a world of pain and expense if you're a completist and have set your sights on the Super Heroes theme. While the minifigs from retail sets can be sourced relatively easily, good luck trying to get hold of the Comic Con giveaways and other exclusives that are in short supply and seriously expensive.

Oh, and avoid Star Wars - that'll cause you even more sleepless nights.

;-)

CCC · October 2013

iso3200 said:

CCC said:
And trading on here.
I'm running out of things to trade... I didn't think people would have many doubles of these sort of minifigs either compared to CMFs where multiples are aplenty.

You'll be surprised. If you can get an army building set cheap or lots of popular CMF, you might be able to trade 10 army builders for a few decent licensed minifigs. Not comic con exclusives, but ones that only appear in the expensive sets.

Also if you can get hold of stuff no-one else can (it happens occasionally) then it puts you in a decent trading position. I bought about 25 Frodo polys and 10 Thor polys back in July 2012, and some Friends ones too, when they were new out in the US and before anyone knew they would be in the Sun promo in the UK. I managed to trade many of them for other decent past polys I had missed, or other minifigs I wanted and sold the rest when I had finished trading. (Those were the days people would pay £10(!) for a Frodo poly on BL and ebay.)

It's all a case of keep looking and knowing not just what you want, but what other people are likely to want.

iso3200 · October 2013

drdavewatford said:
You're setting yourself up for a world of pain and expense

;-)

I think we all do that to some extent don't we...

Yes, Comic Con will not be on my hitlist just like I don't need Mr Gold. It would have been nice to find him but spending marriage breaking amounts of money on single minifigs is not part of my master plan!

cody6268 · October 2013

I wonder why Lego did not have a Superheroes Collectible Minfigures line, as I believe Mega Bloks had before

goshe7 · October 2013

^Why sell a licensed minifig for $3.49 when you can package him with a bunch of bricks and sell him for $19.99 or more?

I suspect it has to do with the details of the licensing agreement. I'm just happy that the Super Heroes license has allowed a number of polybags. Not like SW where most polybags are just bricks without minifigs.

goshe7 · October 2013

As for the original topic, I would offer a couple suggestions. One would be to wait for clearance deals. You rarely will find an entire line or collection go to clearance, but it is cost effective. After patiently waiting 18 months, I have been rewarded with Wolverine, Magneto, and Deadpool. :) Even if you miss the clearance deal, you can usually catch the price depression on BrickLink where a number of people scoop them up and then try to quickly flip the minifigs.

It's true that selling a set minus the minifigs isn't profitable as a single transaction. I choose to compare it to buying the minifigs outright. I did this with the Superman Lex Luthor powersuit set. Clearance purchase for about $13, sold Lex for $2 and the rest of the set for $5. So net out of pocket for me was $6 for Wonder Woman and Superman. Hard to beat that price.

Another way I convince myself I'm getting a good deal is by cost averaging. Do either of the above (or both) with multiple sets. I only need to keep one set of minifigs for myself. Then sell the rest, including the desirable and profitable ones, to further drive down my out-of-pocket cost.

Jezzatheshed · October 2013

I only collect themes which are out of production, at least that way Lego cant add to the collection before you complete it.
I reckon that the Lone Ranger sets are going to be an example of this as the film is awful and I cant see the license continuing. I reckon the sets will get heavilly discounted and Wild West builders will also want the non figure items too. So some cool figures and a "closed" set. But then what do you do with 6 identical Lone Rangers?

CCC · October 2013

Jezzatheshed said:
I only collect themes which are out of production, at least that way Lego cant add to the collection before you complete it.

Do you collect them once they are out of production, or during their run?

There is the alternative of collecting what you actually like, and not worrying about it being complete in terms of what lego produces.

Jezzatheshed said:

I reckon that the Lone Ranger sets are going to be an example of this as the film is awful and I cant see the license continuing. I reckon the sets will get heavilly discounted and Wild West builders will also want the non figure items too. So some cool figures and a "closed" set. But then what do you do with 6 identical Lone Rangers?

LR was always going to be a one and done line, wasn't it? The male western minifigs in this range are actually very good for non-licensed crossovers, since they have no fleshie printing on the torsos. So you can easily build a yellow-skinned cavalry, and the bandits also look good with yellow heads. What to do with 6x LR? Change the head, and he is a sheriff. Maybe change the hat colour and leg colour to give some variation if you want to use all six.

Jezzatheshed · October 2013

I always try to collect at discount, Ive got really good at hitting the big four supermarkets for big discounts, however getting some of the bigger sets can prove awkward, Ive made a massive mistake with Diagonally by not getting one from Tesco last year so out of 130 Harry Potter figures Ive got 123!
My Star Wars collection is the easy one, Ive just framed 96 figures from this series but I'm not being completist over them as I know I will never get close to having them all but I'm happy with how cool the ones Ive got actually look framed up. Of those 96 figures a lot have come from heavilly discounted sets from the big four and as many have been purchased at Carboot sales. I find that kids will often split mini figs from Lego sets, then they turn up in boxes of non Lego items at Carboots(rake around in boxes). However being non completist has given me one serious test of reserve. I found a boxed Turbo tank 7261 for £20 at a boot complete with all the "rare" figures- I built it, looked at it, then sold it for £80 to someone I knew who desperatly wanted one..Lucre overcame completism!

CCC · October 2013

Auto correct stole your Diagon Alley.

Best way to collect all minifigs in a theme

Comments

Shopping at LEGO.com or Amazon?

Howdy, Stranger!

Quick Links

Categories