Uh, oh......Secto Viper Repro Gear!

[FireFox91]

Re-releases of a character in the updated style usually has no impact on the value of the vintage figure. They are very different and usually have different collector bases. Most people I know seem to collect one or other style, usually not both. However when near identical things like the vehicles are re-release, then yes I say they cause the value of vintage to go down.

[j_inmon]

I'm referring to the modern figures. Basically, the way I view it, Hasbro is rereleasing hard to find figures from the modern line in the 50th, mostly from poc and 30th releases. It is bringing down the value of the original (30th or poc modern era) releases. Casters are releasing hard to find parts and pieces such as the Secto viper helmet, bringing down the price of the original (vintage). They both have the same effect, the only difference is who is producing them.

[Geek-Viper]

Interesting point. But it just brings us back to the discussion 10 pages or so ago. The value of your collection only has 2 reference points.

1. What it means to you.
2. What you can get for it right now.

If you bought Joes expecting the price to never drop(and I don't mean you specifically J ), someone needs to teach you something about investing. Nothing never drops in price. It's only a matter of whether you can get out while the getting is good.

[j_inmon]

Lol don't look at me, I now have a bugg fully manned with (repo) helmeted Secto Vipers and will soon have a decent sized squad of modern era Iron Grenadiers and Steal Brigaders. I'm just curious if people being against repos because they bring down the value of the original also feel the same way about the modern rereleases we will be seeing with the next wave of the 50th. If the entire objection is it brings down the price of the original, the same must be said for a lot of the new figures we are getting this year

[hotdog]

i never liked most of the new stuff, there are always a few gems i really like, and a few i've army built. but lets just say.. like.. my love for the 25th alley viper never corresponded with a decreased love for the original. vehicles yes, as firefox said. tomahawk blades alone would run 10-15 each, so most people have just opted for the new eagle hawk or whatever. sellers missed the boat on that - holding onto those blades, they should have sold them a few years ago while the getting was good. but the same goes for reproductions, if i would have made and sold black skystriker tail fins 7-8 years ago i could have sold tons, but i wasn't interested. now that they are out there, price wise people just opt for the new skystriker. so it effects everyone. it really is a fluid market, which makes it hard to predict as an investment. you gotta be into it because you like the line, or because you share it with your kids or something. for me its both. gi joe is an amazingly cool part of my childhood i got to share with my kid, and i've gotten to share with hundreds of other collectors over the years.
I guess that plays to geek viper and firefox's points.

[FireFox91]

I'm puzzled by the concern of the value dropping on items that are only a couple of years old because of re-releases. Were these items from just a few years ago actually worth significantly more than their original prices? For me, I see that as simply still being within a window to meet the demand that wasn't met when the item was first released. I just don't see it as being the same as re-releasing an item that was created 30 years ago.

[j_inmon]

I'm puzzled by the concern of the value dropping on items that are only a couple of years old because of re-releases. Were these items from just a few years ago actually worth significantly more than their original prices. For me, I see that as simply still being within a window to meet the demand that wasn't met when the item was first released. I just don't see it as being the same as re-releasing an item that was created 30 years ago.

Look at (modern) Low light. He was a very limited release, and was going for 40 to 50 dollars before he was rereleased in a two packs with night viper. Great figure, but way to overpriced in my opinion. Joe's from 30 years ago had a wide release. It was a different time. Pretty much any Joe you wanted from a years release could be had simply by going to the store in that year. You might have to thumb through a few pegs, but you could find them. Modern figures seem to suffer from limited releases and scalpers. One per case if you will. Take the Rock viper for example, never saw him in stores, but if I want one, it's a good 30.00 on the secondary market, simply due to the limited quantity realeased during poc/ 30th. The poc/30th were some of the best realeses for the modern era in my opinion. But limited distribution. My point is, if people say it is immoral to produce repos because it devalues the original, then these rereleases must also be immoral, because they have the same effect, that is devaluing the original (modern) release. My own personal feeling is, it is good for the hobby, and if it gets more people into Gi joe, the more the merrier.

[j_inmon]

For me, I see the scalpers/elitist mentality as the downfall of the hobby. That to own a figure you had as a kid now often times requires a substantial investment wether it be a completly original secto viper, or a modern Big Boa. I don't care what anyone else thinks about my collection, or if they are impressed or not. I bought whatever figure because I have great memories of that figure or always wanted one. it's one per case/fss exclusive/only available in the convention set/worth big bucks because everyone lost x small part and so on that make the hobby far less enjoyable.

[hotdog]

i agree with a lot of what you mentioned j inmon. i got a sour taste for scalpers early on in the 2004-2006 lines. by the time the modern figures came out i realized that if i just waited until the line rebooted, which it seems to frequently do, i could pick up the old figure dirt cheap, or even get a repaint of the figure very reasonable at retail. that coupled with the elitism really got me down about collecting for a while. but i too just collect what i like, I'm no longer chasing what someone else says is cool just so i can feel a temporary inclusion in the toy of the week club. i collect what i think is cool, like when i was a kid. i have microman predators (3 3/4) right along side my funko aliens (3 3/4), zombie vipers, customs and my joes.

[3DJoes]

I used to care about repros. Then I bought a house and sold a ton of vehicles and carded figures.

Now that I can't afford all original parts for my vehicles, and I think I've conquered the completionist disease, I'm happy to buy repro parts for display. Funny the difference a couple years makes.

Hotdog, I love the black Skystriker fins. Picked some up on eBay. I wish more folks would make prototype spec parts. For instance, look at the photo on the back of the MOBAT box... It'd be great to make a cannon that looks like that, as opposed to the one we got at retail.