Current going prices for Mego figures

[livnxxxl]

After just reading and watching the Brown/Maroon ape auction end a little while ago from another thread it gave me an idea to start a new thread regarding the going prices for Mego's.

There seems to be a lot of price fluctation opinions and ideas regarding what people will pay for items vs. what the item actually goes for on average in auctions and in the market place here.

I think that it would be a great thing to be able to start some kind of an on line real time price guide to give people here an actual reasonable and inteillgent idea of what their figures might sell for if they wish to sell them.

There are also new members that are joining every day and just starting their collections. A lot of them have no idea as to what to pay for Mego figures without the fear of getting taken advantage of and or ripped off by some wolves in sheeps clothing so to speak.

What do you say that we all come together here as a group collectively and try to shed some light on this subject?

Your input would be greatly appreciated. Also please keep in mind that this list should not include thrift store, garage sale and or flea market type of sales or finds in the wild. Those type of rare finds would be unrealistic data in most cases here in the market place and would really distort the true price listing ranges.

Perhaps if we can get enough accurate input going here we can make this a sticky at a later date or even perhaps a link to a created online guide web site. This way information could be readily available and easily accessible vs. having to do the search and find method with the forums and or eBay looking up each individual price for figures to get an idea of the true market value. That can be very time consuming and perhaps even frustrating for some individuals with rather large collections or pieces to sell.

Ok to start things off and get the ball rolling lets choose a Mego figure to start with and then build off of that and go from there.

Lets start with the most common figure....regular issue Batman

What do you think would be a reasonable and fair going rate for a completed all original Batman in mint condition? I know that there are many variations of this and other figures so lets just stick with the basics for right now.

Thanks in advance for all of you input in help making this guide a reality.

[Megospidey]

I believe this is the reason this sticky thread was started:

The Going Rate - Mego Talk

[rche]

have you checked out the 'going rate' section D?

[livnxxxl]

OOps! No I have not seen that until now. I must have been absent when that thread was created. Thanks gang!

I see now that the thread was created in late August of last year. I was definitely gone at that time. Also that thread looks like it is geared mainly toward auctions only? I still have not read it yet. Going there now.

[Toyman_Chris]

I know that the going rate thread is there. That can be a helpful tool in knowing what the "going rate" is, however, as we all know it's sometimes hard to know when you have paid to much.

ie: I just sold a Batman on Evilbay. It was pretty snazzy but listed as repro cape, gloves & emblem. I was honestly surprised it went for $61.00. Now, should I be? Going rate lately on that has not quite been that high. Has it?

Anyway. I think the going rate thread is great to post evilbay auctions, etc. I think having an honest collector insight about what you will and won't pay for certain items can be helpful.

Heck, on the brown/maroon ape soldier that D is discussing, one member was at half the price as another. It's nice to see that kind of diatribe and learn from it.

Just my two cents....keep the change. hehe

[rche]

^^ ha ha. Looks like MS and myself were typing in tandem.

Of course, the going rate is looking mostly at very good condition carded items or extremely rare loose items. So in the scheme of the Apes thread, a brown/maroon ape might not be seen as rare enough to warrant a post there, and I am sure a loose cowled Bats won't make it to that forum.

Batman is also a difficult call as there are so many production changes that can make a price difference. I would consider an early nylon suit to be worth more than the later versions until you get to the cloth stickers.

I would say for the most popular Megos - just look up a Benbarb sale and then divide that by 2.

[Toyman_Chris]

I would say for the most popular Megos - just look up a Benbarb sale and then divide that by 2.

That made me smile.

[MIB41]

I think you offer a wonderful idea. But here's the problem. There is so much that goes into price besides just a brief description. Let's take the "regular issue" Batman. When you say there are other variations besides the mint qualifier well... that is exactly where price can differ. Are we talking type 1 or type 2 body? Are we talking boxed, carded, or loose? Translucent belt or solid? Stirrup body suit or full body? See what I mean? Here you offered what on the surface appears to be a very basic figure that actually has a myriad of variations. And based on those variations you can get a different buyer willing to pay a different price depending on his needs. I've also come to learn that as soon as I think I've got a particular figure nailed in market value, it suddenly changes.

What makes it change? Periodically we get an influx of new collectors in this format. When that happens you typically see a temporary spike in prices as those newbies try and price the landscape. And sometimes it's just plain old fashion demand by the collectors. Some characters periodically flood the marketplace, which drives the price down. As that supply dries up and availability becomes limited again, the price often starts creeping back up. So it's very hard to determine a one-price-fits-all mode. I wish it existed! At the end of the day it's whatever makes a buyer and seller happy.

[livnxxxl]

Ok, I am back after scanning over the thread. That is nice and a great idea and definitely a help. However, That was not my exact intentions. My idea here is to basically list the fair market value of loose figures and have one list vs. several different posts once again to have to sort thru.

Not that I am beating up on the other idea. It is a start. Correct me if I am wrong, but I also see that it is currently and mainly for carded mint figures. Therefore, that would not include any data for loose mint figures which are more commonly sold here in the market place than carded items. I think that IMO the two databases could coincide together without issue. There is the carded database which is already created and then this new database thread for loose figures.

What do you think about that? Is it ok to proceed with this idea? I am just trying to help and not hinder. Thanks!

[livnxxxl]

I know that the going rate thread is there. That can be a helpful tool in knowing what the "going rate" is, however, as we all know it's sometimes hard to know when you have paid to much.

ie: I just sold a Batman on Evilbay. It was pretty snazzy but listed as repro cape, gloves & emblem. I was honestly surprised it went for $61.00. Now, should I be? Going rate lately on that has not quite been that high. Has it?

Anyway. I think the going rate thread is great to post evilbay auctions, etc. I think having an honest collector insight about what you will and won't pay for certain items can be helpful.

Heck, on the brown/maroon ape soldier that D is discussing, one member was at half the price as another. It's nice to see that kind of diatribe and learn from it.

Just my two cents....keep the change. hehe

I will take your two cents. Thanks for your input Chris. I see that you get what I am striving for here. I believe others here will to.

[livnxxxl]

I would say for the most popular Megos - just look up a Benbarb sale and then divide that by 2.

Sadly, That formula is about true in most cases.

[Megospidey]

D - I think all of this was discussed in a thread while you were gone and the best conclusion the community came up with was the GOING RATE idea where completed auction prices were posted for the community to peruse.

And I don't think it is just for carded figures...loose figure prices are welcome too I believe.

The conclusion we came too was that the market (i.e. eBay) would determine values and prices...so the thread was started.

It takes lots of current posts though to make a thread like that work. Otherwise, the prices become rather "obselete" after a certain period of time.

[k2]

i say give it a try and see what happens, i know it is a thread i will look at everyday and give input where i can

[livnxxxl]

I think you offer a wonderful idea. But here's the problem. There is so much that goes into price besides just a brief description. Let's take the "regular issue" Batman. When you say there are other variations besides the mint qualifier well... that is exactly where price can differ. Are we talking type 1 or type 2 body? Are we talking boxed, carded, or loose? Translucent belt or solid? Stirrup body suit or full body? See what I mean? Here you offered what on the surface appears to be a very basic figure that actually has a myriad of variations. And based on those variations you can get a different buyer willing to pay a different price depending on his needs. I've also come to learn that as soon as I think I've got a particular figure nailed in market value, it suddenly changes.

What makes it change? Periodically we get an influx of new collectors in this format. When that happens you typically see a temporary spike in prices as those newbies try and price the landscape. And sometimes it's just plain old fashion demand by the collectors. Some characters periodically flood the marketplace, which drives the price down. As that supply dries up and availability becomes limited again, the price often starts creeping back up. So it's very hard to determine a one-price-fits-all mode. I wish it existed! At the end of the day it's whatever makes a buyer and seller happy.

Thank you very much for your positive info. All very true. However, I believe that we can change that to some degree by creating this thread.

Indeed prices are going to fluctate and the reason for that being is that people really do not know what to pay for something. Just as an example one person may think that $56.00 is a great price to pay for a Maroon Ape. Another person may look at that purchase price and say man that was crazy! I would never pay that. This is where we need to come together and find a happy medium. A standard if you will.

I truly do believe that if this guide takes off like I want it to that it will eliminate the guess work on prices. Will it be the end all definitive price guide for people to live by? No, Probanly not. However, it would be nice to think that once it catches on that a lot of people will be more in line with the prices that we "think" something is worth. Instead of bidding or buying or selling an item blindly it will give everyone a better idea and perhaps put prices more into perspective.

I figure that we would start with the most basic common figure of Batman. The one most commonly often found. Does that sound better? It is just a starting point and we will get to and cover the rest of the variations as time passes.

[livnxxxl]

D - I think all of this was discussed in a thread while you were gone and the best conclusion the community came up with was the GOING RATE idea where completed auction prices were posted for the community to peruse.

And I don't think it is just for carded figures...loose figure prices are welcome too I believe.

The conclusion we came too was that the market (i.e. eBay) would determine values and prices...so the thread was started.

It takes lots of current posts though to make a thread like that work. Otherwise, the prices become rather "obselete" after a certain period of time.

Thanks Derek, I really do appreciate the info. It helps bring me up to speed on what I had missed out on.

I am not disagreeing with you I just thought that I had read that it was for minty carded figures as of now. I definitely do not want to try to reinvent the wheel here or cross paths by any means. I am just looking to try and establish some standardized prices on the loose figures.