Really?

[Randy Ryan]

OK, I understand collecting stuff, but come onnnnn!!!

http://cgi.ebay.com/COX-BLACK-WIDOW-GAS-POWERED-MODEL-AIRPLANE-RTF-NIB-/380335654083?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item588dc584c3

[Jim Kraft]

But hey Randy; It comes with strings.

[Steve Helmick]

Strings or not, I wouldn't even pay the shipping for that POS.  Steve

[Glenn (Gravitywell) Reach]

How many of you guys have 25-50 kits and a hundred or more motors.....collecting is collecting.  If you don't use it, your a collector! LOL

[Randy Ryan]

How many of you guys have 25-50 kits and a hundred or more motors.....collecting is collecting.  If you don't use it, your a collector! LOL

Me, but none, I MEAN NONE are worth that much, and I have some by far more rare stuff then that. Then again, I always say that something is worth what someone will pay for it, regardless of what I think, I'm just amazed at how much some people will pay I guess.

[Clint Ormosen]

How many of you guys have 25-50 kits and a hundred or more motors.....collecting is collecting.  If you don't use it, your a collector! LOL

HEY! I resemble that remark.

[wwwarbird]

 I notice stuff on the 'bay fairly often listed with completely insane prices like this. Every once in a while I'll put an example on my "watch" list just to see what happens with it. Usually they don't end up selling at all. I don't really know what the sellers are thinking with that approach. There is also the fact though that an item is always or only "worth" whatever someone is willing to pay. There are some real suckers out there, in a case like this I guess you can just be glad your not one of them.

[Randy Ryan]

HEY! I resemble that remark.

I don't, well sorta. I only have one kit, a Brodak Nobler, but I do have about 300 engines.

[Bill Little]

That particular seller tends to have some "questionably" high prices for many of their auctions.

Regardless if it is one of a kind and never produced, etc., etc., I cannot see paying that much money for any 1/2A RTF.......

Big Bear

[Bill Morell]

You would have to know Willie to understand his mind. If he was buying that 1/2A from you he would only offer $20 then try to sell it for what he is asking.

[Joe Mig]

It started out as a 3000.00 buy it now a few months ago and he keeps bringing down the price after it does not sell.   

[john e. holliday]

True collectors are a straonge lot.   How many of those RTF Cox's of that design have you seen?   You also see he has a make offer on it also.   I am not a collector and would pay the price some people ask for their items.   It is something like selling kits and engines at VSC or contests sites.   I had my set prices and a few guys didn't argue.   But, one individual kept trying to get me to sell at half of what I wanted.   Let him have one kit.   Found out later he sold it to someone else for twice what I was asking.   Now the kits stay at price I am asking.   Also you have to remember some of these collectors are trying to get a value for insurance purposes.

[Randy Powell]

I'm afraid I only keep stuff I plan on using. I do have a half dozen kits, but plan to build all of them (well, I do have an Umland Chipmunk kit I'll never build and will probably sell). I keep only engines I am using and tend to sell off stuff that is just sitting in the drawer. A couple of backups, that's it.

And I wouldn't pay a dime for any Cox RTF. But that's just me.

My son once paid $300 for a piece of cardboard. It was a mint condition Magic; the Gathering Black Lotus card, but in the end, it's just a piece of cardboard. What something is worth is really just what someone thinks it's worth; what they are willing to pay for it.

[John KruziK]

Maybe his wife told him to get rid of some of his junk. And at that price he'll have it forever!

[John Stiles]

Maybe his wife told him to get rid of some of his junk. And at that price he'll have it forever!

Man I heard that! Been there............Awfully presumptuous to think you could buy one of those from Western Auto in 1950 sump'm and keep it in the box long enough to hit the $$$$$$jackpot!

[Brett Buck]

I notice stuff on the 'bay fairly often listed with completely insane prices like this. Every once in a while I'll put an example on my "watch" list just to see what happens with it. Usually they don't end up selling at all. I don't really know what the sellers are thinking with that approach.

   They are thinking about just listing it and relisting it, and eventually the one guy in the world that "must" have it will eventually wander by. I don't know if that ever works out, but you can relist it *lots and lots* of times before it's obviously going to lose money.

    I see the same thing with old radios all the time. Someone has listed the same Zenith console radio over and over for the last year or so, at a price that is not as crazy as this one, but still pretty absurd. It doesn't cost much to do a 30-day listing and if someone does decide to pay it, he wins.

     Brett

[wwwarbird]

You would have to know Willie to understand his mind. If he was buying that 1/2A from you he would only offer $20 then try to sell it for what he is asking.

 Who's Willie?

[Bill Morell]

He is the guy that is selling that item.

[PJ Rowland]

Its funny Brett is prety close to the money.

I run an Ebay store as a 2nd job ( Vintage Hifi + Refurbished electronics / 2nd hobby I love collecting Vintage Computers / Vintage electronics / Vintage  specifically Game consoles from 70's 80's.....

There is certainly a market for getting what you consider " A fair price " some may see it as overpriced but thats what its "true" value is. For example, I recently completed a collection of 60 Vintage Nintendo pieces, now only 60 were EVER released. The final 3 cost me $3150 USD. Now that might seem like alot of brass to spend on soemthing that back in the day woul dhave cost you no more than 15 - 25 $$ however. Limited examples are avaliable and thats partly why its commands the price it does.

In my travels I have seen guys listing these items indivually for Silly amounts ( maybe 1/3rd more than street value ) eventually you sell it. If you have Power Seller status on Ebay there is no cost at a relist so its the law of averages. I can track through my site how many page views, links to objects, unique hits each item has...as well as tracking who has it on their watched list..  I get amazed when 600 odd people look at something for 20 watchers....... but the law of averages dictates eventually the buyer will come along who says " Wow got to have that " and is happy with the price.

On the flip side, I get heaps of people asking to do it cheaper one guy said " Why should I buy your 1975 JBL retro speakers for $600 when I can get a pair from costco for $80 " .....  



Looking at that listing : Its always about Boxed examples. Why I dont know - Ive seen people collect Shipping cartons of games - just the box they ships the other boxes in - and what do you think they sell for ? I can tell you : $ 250 - $300 for a shipping box - plain as mustard... Not even the Box of the games! I think thats absurd... but I wouldnt say no to having one in my collection.. HAHH

There also is a movement now toward people seperating components :
For Example....... Mint boxed Donkey Kong might fetch : $350
or :
Pulling out the Box selling that : $140
Pulling out the Foam inserts : $ 40
Pulling out the instruction manual : $85
Pulling out the original batteries : $ 50
Selling the Game itself in Mint  : $ 220

Total :  $535

That is consertative pricing but accurate figures - thats a shame its going down that path. -

[Bob Reeves]

I was buying Unimat lathes for a while, ended up with 4 of the silly things. When I moved to a larger lathe and started selling the Unimats didn't take me long to see I could double my money by parting them out.

[Dick Pacini]

As they say in the used car industry, "There's an ass for every seat."

[Dwayne]

What about continentalhobby he's selling a Fox .35 for $125.00 a Fox 25 for $110.00 and my fave, a Fox 45 C/L for $225.00

[Chris McMillin]

Willie often comes up with cool Mexican Cox models that are way more interesting than this one. He had the Lodello Cox Stuka in the desert camo with the snake down the side which was snapped up at a pretty high price. This one is ugly but there are collectors out there that must have it and they will pay. I like Cox, Wen Mac, Testors, Aurora models for their appearance and place in model airplane history. They have their detractors but then there are a lot of model pilots that were better than the detractors and flew them well and often.
There is a Yahoo group site dedicated to RTF and 1/2A models and engines and I think it has more members than PAMPA.
The guys that cannot see the intrinsic value in others collections are often those that think their own possessions are really important. I don't like Old Time but I think Rusty Brown's Taurus or Jim Kraft's models are very nice.
What's with the hate, guys? It's Spring, live a little!
Chris...

[john e. holliday]

Hey Chris,  my retired pastor used to say to us,  we can't hate anything or anybody,  we like it or them a little less than the others.