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Advice on buying a collection

choob99choob99 Member Posts: 147
edited January 2012 in Buying & Selling Topics
Not a whole lot of specifics given on the lot, but I think its a good deal that I should jump on, but wanted some advice from the folks here, I'll list what the person is listing the set as. The road squares that are listed are the older type of green and grey city roads, so here is the info, what do you think of the deal? Should I jump on it?

Huge lego lot, comes with 14 road squares, lego train engine, train carts and tracks, big parts of a pirate ship, unopened small sets in boxes, alot of instructions, and a ton of legos. Train engine takes D batteries not sure if it is complete. Moving at the end of the month and they need to go, on e bay 10 road squares went for over $100, and the train set go for upward of $250, whole lot is a steal for $350. If you piece it out it probably worth double or more.

Comments

  • choob99choob99 Member Posts: 147
    Also the person says that the lot of lego's is over 30 pounds
  • LegoFanTexasLegoFanTexas TexasMember Posts: 8,409
    Condition is everything, you need to see it to know if it is a good deal or not. Is it full of megablocks and pennies, is it dirty, etc.

    Some collections are easy purchases and some are easy passes.
  • choob99choob99 Member Posts: 147
    It is all 100% lego, he sent me some pics of it, I am gonna inspect it before I decide to buy, really just wanted advice on the price of it
  • avoiceoreasonavoiceoreason Member Posts: 224
    Take off say $85 for the road plates (14 x $6/plate) and that brings the Lego cost down to $265. Take off say 5lbs to adjust for the weight of the plates and the inevitable junk/scratched or damaged lego and you are paying >$10/lb for the Lego ($265/25) which is at the high end of normal (and this is of course assuming the seller isn't including the instructions in the weight).

    Not a train expert and not sure which train it is or if it is complete or not, but in general, based upon the above calculations, it doesn't seem overly compelling unless the lot includes a bunch of minifigs and/or complete sets.

    Just my opinion of course based on the info provided.
  • princedravenprincedraven Essex, UKMember Posts: 3,768
    @choob99
    My concern would be that he is not comparing like for like.
    Saying some road squares went for over $100 on ebay means very little he will be quoting the most expensive sale I would think and ebay prices tend to be inflated by having to pay ebay fees, paypal fees, postage, etc..
    Again to quote that a train went on ebay for 'upward of $250' is kind of irrelevant as he then states that the train he is selling he is "not sure if it is complete", so that could mean it is worth very little depending on how much is missing.
    "big parts of a pirate ship" - that comment would concern me too, if there are only big parts, it would not lead me to think they were particularly looking after the sets.

    Not from the US so have no real idea on value in dollars, so will not comment on that.

    All in all I would agree with LFT, go see it with an open mind, I think you will get a good feel for whether you think it is worth what they are asking once you see it first hand.
  • doriansdaddoriansdad CTCMember Posts: 1,337
    Personally I never buy used unless I can see it in person first. Nothing more disappointing than receiving dusty, cracked or faded pieces.
  • choob99choob99 Member Posts: 147
    I'm headed there on Friday to take a look at the set, he is moving out of state the very next day, so I'm gonna make an offer of $200 and see where that goes as I stand in front of him with the cash, hopefully I can get it for a cheaper price that is if I even want it after seeing it
  • princedravenprincedraven Essex, UKMember Posts: 3,768
    ^ good luck, hope it turns out to be a good find. Everyone loves a good bargain find.
  • JCoolJCool Member Posts: 47
    So what happened with this sale? I only ask because the description is IDENTICAL to one that was posted on Craigslist in Raleigh yesterday. I just called to speak with the seller and he said someone was coming to look at it tonight... so I'm a bit confused. Did this sell? Did the guy move without selling it and is now selling it in Raleigh? The price did seem a bit high, did anyone identify which train was included that uses D batteries? (appreciate any help here)
  • choob99choob99 Member Posts: 147
    He moved to NC before I could get to MD to take a look at it! lol
  • tk79tk79 Member Posts: 329
    lol, that's pretty funny..."it's a small world after all".
  • LegoFanTexasLegoFanTexas TexasMember Posts: 8,409
    @choob99 - cash in hand can make a world of difference... just watch Pawn Stars, as Rick points out over and over, he has stacks of $100 bills, ready to lay on the table, while his offers may be "low" sometimes, he has what people want, "cash money".
  • JCoolJCool Member Posts: 47
    Lol - go figure!

    So he sent me some pictures of the lot. Looks like $350 is on the high end of things for it, not much in the way of value other than a few boxed sets that no one is buying and a train that is likely incomplete that no one is buying either (the train is certainly not worth $250). I'll send the guy an offer and see what happens.
  • choob99choob99 Member Posts: 147
    @JCool I think he would go lower in person with cash as @LegoFanTexas said, he does seem to have a lot of instructions, no clue how many of those complete sets are in the tote but if there is a lot of those completed it would be worth $200 or so, good luck to you, I was sorry he moved so fast
  • JCoolJCool Member Posts: 47
    @choob99 Thanks. Sorry you missed him before he moved. I'm thinking $200 is probably a fair offer based on the pictures so far, we'll see if he feels the same.
  • JCoolJCool Member Posts: 47
    So I went and saw the collection. It's a decent mix of old town, some pirates, and the train mentioned above. I even saw instructions for a Metro Park & Service Tower! The bad news is that the Lego was not in the best of shape - some dirty, most of it very well loved and played with. The bins definitely had pet hair strewn throughout as well. I tried to offer the guy about $200 due to the condition but he couldn't go down that far - but he was willing to go to $275.

    Might still be a good deal for someone... I just don't have the time that's needed to clean all of it up to make it worth it.
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