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Thread
:
Getting Rid of My 25th Collection
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07-11-2018, 02:20 AM
Commando73
Cobra Viper
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Tennessee
Posts: 119
As arguably one of the somewhat older collectors on here (I'll be forty-five in November...) I can attest to fluctuating feelings about my overall G.I. Joe collection as a whole, and how there's been an ebb and flow to it over the years...
I've also learned alot about myself and what works for me. First of all, I've learned never to sell anything unless it's an absolute emergency. I can't think of a time whenever I've sold a portion of my collection over the years where I didn't regret it later. I've always regretted getting rid of any of my G.I. Joe stuff over the years, even the modern stuff. There's a deep-rooted reason why I've bought any of this stuff, whether it be fur to the coolness factor of it all, feelings of nostalgia, or both. Even if I get in a place where I'm focusing on another property...say, like I'm all about Star Wars, or Marvel, or Transformers, for example, and I neglect G.I. Joe for awhile, like I'm so prone to do, I know that I'll eventually make my back around to G.I. Joe. In my younger days, I'd get involved with another line or property, and I'd convince myself that I'd have to sell one collection to be able to afford another. Then whenever I'd turn my attention back to the original one, there I'd be, wishing I hadn't sold my stuff in the first place. It was a silly, impatient, and short-sighted way to be as a collector. So nowadays, unless I'm 100% sure I want rid of something, I hang on to it all, knowing that eventually, even if I lose interest or think I need the money terribly for something else, I'll want to take it out and appreciate it again. I'll use a relatively modern example; back in 2007, it was an exciting time for me. My father-in-law had bought a storage building, one of those pre-built wooden things, complete with a roof, windows, and everything. I had taken-up a whole back bedroom in my in-laws' house with my collectibles (We were living in an apartment above their garage at the time...), so he got the idea to get the storage building. Well, he had it set-up right behind our apartment in the back yard, and I decided it should be climate-controlled and finished out; if I was gonna store my stuff in it, I was gonna do it right and make it a man-cave/hide-out where I could keep my stuff. So I sheet-rocked it, painted it, put down wood flooring, and we even ran electricity out to it like a small house. I'm telling you, it was the perfect little collector's hang-out. I had a desk out there, shelving, and space to store my stuff in two little lofts. It was glorious. (lol) I even had a tv and all my gaming systems set-up out there, and I logged alot of gaming hours, too. Anyway, about the time I got my building all finished out that summer, I was in the process of acquiring a nearly-complete DTC collection, and then the 25th Anniversary stuff hit. I ordered those first two five-pack sets, and I remember being so excited because new G.I. Joe toys were being produced that hearkened-back to the original ARAH stuff I grew up with. I even went out of my way to make sure I got mint boxes...I don't remember how that was possible, whether it was offered that way, or just that I recall noting the boxes were mint by happy accident. ANYWAY...I remember pressing the button on those little plastic logos that would play the cartoon theme song, and just the excitement of seeing modern versions of old favorites, with updated details and sculpting...it was great. I ended-up selling them, and now I can't even remember why. I even remember having a nearly-complete set of silver-logo figures, all on perfect cardbacks...I would order them by the case to ensure they were mint, and I sold them. I still regret it. Fortunately I was able to buy most of them back when Hasbro re-released most of them on the regular "white-border-and-logo" cardbacks, and so far I've managed to hold onto them all, but I never did replace my silver-logo anniversary hooded Cobra Commander and Roadblock I had. Going back even further than that, I used to have a 98% complete TRAHC set of figures, all on mint-perfect cardbacks, and I sold them, too, reasoning that there were "superior" versions of these figures available, that I wouldn't miss them. But I do, terribly. I regret selling them so much, especially since I had painstakingly sought-out the two-packs on-foot at brick-and-mortar stores, scouring the shelves to find the most-mint cardbacks, which I did, and I used to love dragging them out from time to time and appreciating them. But I sold them, and I regret it to this day, just like I regret selling my original anniversary stuff. Heck, I even regret selling my GvsC/Spy Troops/VvsV collections. I didn't simply appreciate them for what they were at any given time...I would liquidate any figures I thought would eventually be obsolete or out-dated. And yes, most of the modern stuff has exceeded the quality of the somewhat older stuff, especially the Rise/Pursuit of Cobra stuff that most of the more-recent modern figures are built upon, but...it's always nice to back-up and look at where you've been sometimes and reminisce, instead of always looking to where you're going. So, my advice is to make sure it's a have-to case when getting rid of anything...
The other thing I've learned is that I'll never own everything I want. I'll probably never own a mint/complete loose G.I. Joe collection. I'll probablly never own a U.S.S. FLAGG in my lifetime, or a Defiant Shuttle Complex, or any number of all the vintage vehicles or playsets I want...and that's okay. I can simply get what I can afford and enjoy what I do have, and not worry about getting everything I want. If the opportunity presents itself to own a "grail" item, awesome. It's fun to hope that kind of thing may happen in my future. If not, well...I'll survive without it just fine, and the sun will still come up tomorrow. So since I've come to realize I didn't have to be a completist-type collector to be happy with my collection, I've enjoyed collecting so much more. It's not the stressful experience it has been in the past at times. For example, I want some of the club exclusives so bad I can taste it, especially that Tiger Force Roadblock, to name one, but I can't necessarily afford an eighty-dollar-plus G.I. Joe action figure right now. Maybe someday. So I'd chime-in with others and advise not to give-up on a collection because it won't be complete...the holes in my collection do not diminish my enjoyment of what I do have in any way.
Finally, I've learned patience. What you want will always be available at some point, maybe for more, or even for much less than you expected to pay, but it can be had. Just don't assume you'll never own a given item, and don't lose hope if you do. It makes for a much happier, healthier collector, in my humble opinion.
Now, if it's simply a matter of wanting to pass something on to a younger generation for them to enjoy, I'm all for that, if it's truly what your heart is telling you. I've given some of my Star Wars stuff to my little girl, and there's nothing like it, to see a little one enjoying the same thing you did...it's one of the best feelings in the world as a collector.
I've given up on some collections, and I've been perfectly fine, with zero regret. But I've always regretted getting rid of anything G.I. Joe-related. Even if I know there'll be a better version of a given figure coming, I remember that there's a good reason I got something in the first place...there was a love and appreciation that inspired my decision to own it, and I'd like to preserve that feeling for as long as I can. Maybe I'm too sentimental that way, but it's true for me. My ultimate advice to anyone would be to sleep on it and meditate a few days and really make sure you want to get rid of a given collectible. Make your decision based on what your heart says and not your head...your head will tell you something better will come along, or that you need the money, or it's taking up too much space. (Geeze...I'm beginning to think I'm a hoarder.) (lol)
__________________
Fear not the weapon, but the man who wields it.
Last edited by Commando73; 07-11-2018 at
02:37 AM
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