[behindthemask]

I've made a few myself.. and seen beautiful ones submitted on this site, deviantart, ebay etc.. Jin Saotome being the top end.. I've seen some of his custom works sell for $1000+ for 1 figure. So my question is when buying a custom how much determines value? I can understand if you used 1-2 base figures.. take the cost of them, cost of supplies and time to make it.. are all factors in a custom work's cost.. If you simple repaint a figure but do it nicely is it worth double or tripple the cost of the base figure? I've made customs some batman some iron man.. and Curious what mathematic rate should I apply for a fair price return? I don't expect $1000 for a repaint..but I do expect some level of compensation for effort/time.. any feedback would be great

[trebleshot]

Well, ultimately what sets the cost of any custom is what people are willing to pay for it. As far as what makes up, let's say, an "MSRP" for a custom, I think there are several factors that should be considered:

• Availability in regular retail (can it be bought off the shelf instead?)
• Number of donor parts included in the custom
• Number of mods made to existing parts (excluding paint apps)
• Number of new parts built for the custom
• Overall size of the custom
• Number of paint apps (both base coat and details)
• Level of detail for new parts
• Level of detail on additional paint apps
• Overall quality of work
• Reputation of the artist/custom builder

Anyway, that's how I see it.

[Xcaliber037]

Quote:

Originally Posted by behindthemask

I've made a few myself.. and seen beautiful ones submitted on this site, deviantart, ebay etc.. Jin Saotome being the top end.. I've seen some of his custom works sell for $1000+ for 1 figure. So my question is when buying a custom how much determines value? I can understand if you used 1-2 base figures.. take the cost of them, cost of supplies and time to make it.. are all factors in a custom work's cost.. If you simple repaint a figure but do it nicely is it worth double or tripple the cost of the base figure? I've made customs some batman some iron man.. and Curious what mathematic rate should I apply for a fair price return? I don't expect $1000 for a repaint..but I do expect some level of compensation for effort/time.. any feedback would be great

Art is a hard world to survive in as my wife taught me. Thats why it's more of a hobby for me (a very fun one mind you). Time/effort are where you loose mostly. You want to try to cover your costs but in the end its all about exposure. Jin's customs sell because they're a Jin piece. The Mona Lisa prob cost Leonardo $20 in supplies

Here's one we did
http://www.toyark.com/spider-man-2099-a-22444/

[Symbiote]

I find customizing a very fun and addicting hobby too. I do question what constitutes a decent price for a good custom and agree with what trebleshot points out. Lately, I've been just doing simple repaints on my own collection. The most nagging defect with customs is dealing with joint rub to where the paint starts to wear off the joints if you mess with them too much. I've read some how to articles on jin saotome's site but I feel that I am still trying to nail down my skill and having fun with this hobby along the way.

[sabretoothe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by trebleshot

Well, ultimately what sets the cost of any custom is what people are willing to pay for it. As far as what makes up, let's say, an "MSRP" for a custom, I think there are several factors that should be considered:

• Availability in regular retail (can it be bought off the shelf instead?)
• Number of donor parts included in the custom
• Number of mods made to existing parts (excluding paint apps)
• Number of new parts built for the custom
• Overall size of the custom
• Number of paint apps (both base coat and details)
• Level of detail for new parts
• Level of detail on additional paint apps
• Overall quality of work
• Reputation of the artist/custom builder

Anyway, that's how I see it.

he pretty much nailed how it should work. the whole custom toy thing is quite fickle but it's how i pay my bills and i've been doing it for about 2 and a 1/2 years now.

[behindthemask]

so u sell them on ebay? if so do u start them at the price u want to get or like Jin and have the starting price low to start a bidding frenzy?

[sabretoothe]

click the "my items on ebay" button and take a look. I've started putting a reserve on the more labor intensive customs that i do, not to be a greedy ass or anything like that but i've reached the point where i'm not willing to let something i've worked on for over 3 months go for $26.51, i don't think anyone would be happy about that. it's all up to the buyer when it all comes down to it. A good way to view custom toys is as works of art, in a non traditional medium.

[sabretoothe]

bidding frenzies are any sellers dream, my biggest was the first district 9 mecha toy that i did a while back, it was up to $5300 then my account got hacked by some bastards in denmark. it ultimately sold to a very happy buyer who i'm ultra appreciative for but when things get that high that's when you get worried about "am i actually going to see anything of this or is it just some guys screwing with the bidding?"

[nickvree]

Quote:

Originally Posted by trebleshot

Well, ultimately what sets the cost of any custom is what people are willing to pay for it. As far as what makes up, let's say, an "MSRP" for a custom, I think there are several factors that should be considered:

• Availability in regular retail (can it be bought off the shelf instead?)
• Number of donor parts included in the custom
• Number of mods made to existing parts (excluding paint apps)
• Number of new parts built for the custom
• Overall size of the custom
• Number of paint apps (both base coat and details)
• Level of detail for new parts
• Level of detail on additional paint apps
• Overall quality of work
• Reputation of the artist/custom builder

Anyway, that's how I see it.

I assume those aren't in order, because the quality of the work should be #1; if your custom sucks, it probably won't sell for much, lol

But yeah, this list is pretty much it.

Also, the demand for certain characters/universes is a big deal too; if you make the most awesome version of a 1991 GI Joe that never appeared in the cartoon, that was a vehicle driver, that never made another appearance... well, there probably won't be any demand for it.

[Superquad7]

Just to add to the mix here, a trend I've observed is that most customs don't end up having the resell value that they initially sell for. I've seen people who have bought a custom off of eBay try to resell it quite a time later without being able to get the original asking price.

I really think trebleshot is right on the money and what nickvree said above my post here has a lot to do with the value as well, as more popular characters will always be easier to resell.

Another thing to keep in mind is that customs are a niche within a niche. What I mean by that is that toy collecting is a niche hobby and custom figures are only a fraction that fraction.

If you are creating a custom to sell, consider your resources that are your cost up front: materials and time. Your paint and the figures used cost upfront (unless you're able to get those for free, which generally isn't the case with most artists). Most people don't work for $1 or $2 per hour, and creating artwork is skilled labor. Most skilled labor has a bottom of $10 per hour. That is also relative to quality of output as well. Also, while this may be the case, an artist is always going to come out ahead with the least amount of resources put into a piece, as anything more than cost is profit for the artist.

[sabretoothe]

nailed it.

[trebleshot]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nickvree

I assume those aren't in order, because the quality of the work should be #1; if your custom sucks, it probably won't sell for much, lol

Definitely not in order of importance, though quality is already a factor in most of my points. The "overall quality" part was in reference to the custom as a finished piece (both visually and functionally).

And agreed on the point about character selection. While some may deride toymakers for releasing too many toys of a given character, they know the popular characters are what sells.

Quote:

Originally Posted by superquad7

Just to add to the mix here, a trend I've observed is that most customs don't end up having the resell value that they initially sell for. I've seen people who have bought a custom off of eBay try to resell it quite a time later without being able to get the original asking price.

I really think trebleshot is right on the money and what nickvree said above my post here has a lot to do with the value as well, as more popular characters will always be easier to resell.

Another thing to keep in mind is that customs are a niche within a niche. What I mean by that is that toy collecting is a niche hobby and custom figures are only a fraction that fraction.

If you are creating a custom to sell, consider your resources that are your cost up front: materials and time. Your paint and the figures used cost upfront (unless you're able to get those for free, which generally isn't the case with most artists). Most people don't work for $1 or $2 per hour, and creating artwork is skilled labor. Most skilled labor has a bottom of $10 per hour. That is also relative to quality of output as well. Also, while this may be the case, an artist is always going to come out ahead with the least amount of resources put into a piece, as anything more than cost is profit for the artist.

Also really good points.

It also reminds me of another point: pay attention to the market, especially any trends that might come up. Supply and demand have a hand in any kind of commerce. So before you decide to make a custom, it might be wise to check around and see who else might have done it or is doing it first and what those have sold for already (if at all).

Unless, of course, you're just doing it for yourself and have no intention of selling it.

[cellardoor]

I can weigh in here with a specific example. I've just nabbed a Hunter Knight custom MU Wolverine. He's styled in street clothing, using the variant Jim Lee head, new paint apps, new torso, Origins legs and metal claws. It's a great looking custom and i'm very pleased to have won it and am paying the princely sum of $25 (about £15). I've dropped more than that on loose variant MU figures so it's really a case of the seller dictating the price. I put my last bid on about an hour before it ended, not thinking i'd get it. To me it looks like a £30 plus figure, due in no small part to it being unique and well crafted.
Interestingly, i've been after the variant wolverine head for a while, losing a bid on the packaged figure that exceeded what I paid for this custom.

[JinSaotome]

Trebel nailed it, "what someone is willing to pay." All his points are spot on. Except he's missing one.

• Is it Deadpool?

Heh... Let me expand on the ebay part tho. Ebay is a fickle, brutal, and bizarre platform. All you need is two people who want the same thing back enough and you will have yourself a bidding frenzy as you put it. And those bidders take into account all the points Trebel made. But at the same time I've had customs that I thought would blow people away end for way less than I figured. The sale of the custom could depend on the current market as well. Is the SDCC about to start/going on, and people are saving their money? Spending it that week, or spent it the week after? My sales are always crappy around that time. Is it right before Christmas, and bidders are looking to get a custom for a boss/friend/husband? Did a major comic/action movie come out to spur the interest of a related custom? Is gas so freaking expensive nobody has any disposable income?

Before the Transformers movie hit, the first one, I got my hands on some of the figures. I customized them a bit, mainly repainting them and adding weapons. They sold for under $100, one buyer didn't even pay. Then 4 days later after the auctions ended the movie premiered. Suddenly the same type of customs I had this week shot up into the hundreds, and yes, thousands. The custom I relisted that the buyer never paid for? It ended up selling for about $800. Just because of the movie.

All that factors in I've found because I've been doing this for many years and I still haven't found the perfect way of selling my customs on Ebay. Doing commissions is even harder! How do you justify the price you're asking to someone? Back to Trebel's list. But then the buyer will also have a MSRP in their head.

So many factors it's really hard to gauge what a custom is going to sell for unless it's Deadpool apparently...LOL! For some reason every custom I see of him ends for a nice amount not matter what it looks like, what 'era' its based on, etc. No other comic character I know of demands that much interest. Which is why I'm really hoping for the movie!

[trebleshot]

Thanks, Jin. I figured asking if it's Deadpool would be automatic. Like asking for a price quote.

[Superquad7]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JinSaotome

Trebel nailed it, "what someone is willing to pay." All his points are spot on. Except he's missing one.

• Is it Deadpool?

Heh... Let me expand on the ebay part tho. Ebay is a fickle, brutal, and bizarre platform. All you need is two people who want the same thing back enough and you will have yourself a bidding frenzy as you put it. And those bidders take into account all the points Trebel made. But at the same time I've had customs that I thought would blow people away end for way less than I figured. The sale of the custom could depend on the current market as well. Is the SDCC about to start/going on, and people are saving their money? Spending it that week, or spent it the week after? My sales are always crappy around that time. Is it right before Christmas, and bidders are looking to get a custom for a boss/friend/husband? Did a major comic/action movie come out to spur the interest of a related custom? Is gas so freaking expensive nobody has any disposable income?

Before the Transformers movie hit, the first one, I got my hands on some of the figures. I customized them a bit, mainly repainting them and adding weapons. They sold for under $100, one buyer didn't even pay. Then 4 days later after the auctions ended the movie premiered. Suddenly the same type of customs I had this week shot up into the hundreds, and yes, thousands. The custom I relisted that the buyer never paid for? It ended up selling for about $800. Just because of the movie.

All that factors in I've found because I've been doing this for many years and I still haven't found the perfect way of selling my customs on Ebay. Doing commissions is even harder! How do you justify the price you're asking to someone? Back to Trebel's list. But then the buyer will also have a MSRP in their head.

So many factors it's really hard to gauge what a custom is going to sell for unless it's Deadpool apparently...LOL! For some reason every custom I see of him ends for a nice amount not matter what it looks like, what 'era' its based on, etc. No other comic character I know of demands that much interest. Which is why I'm really hoping for the movie!

That's so very helpful, Jin!

I would really love it if you posted some tutorials on "How to Make a Successful eBay Auction" and some other things.

Also, feel completely free to post the tutorials you host on your site here (thus giving you more exposure). I can also resource anything shared in Radicons as well, and then cross-promote things here.

Thanks for all you've been contributing here lately; it's very much appreciated!