Need advice
 

Hi Im just starting out collecting and Im looking for a nice skeletor or marvel action figure preferably graded. My budget is around $300. Any help would be greatly appreciated

Size?

8" or smaller

well you got your 6" ones which are Marvel Legends then i think marvel select is like 7-8" and the smallest Marvel Universe which is 3.75" or 4".
Also are you getting more than one figure ?

you're just starting? why the need for graded toys?

seconding what timothy said. only hardcore guys bother with graded figures. its such a small minority of our community. why graded?

I really thought the majority of people went with graded...well in that case Im really interested in a collectible skeletor or batman/spiderman. Looking to hold onto for years and hopefully increase in value but dont really know whats worth buying

ah he wants to flip them.
don't think any of the current stuff will be worth a lot for a reallllyyy long time,

I wouldnt even think about trying to sell it for years. Im a big fan of the skeletor figures and marvel figures. I just dont want to overpay for something since Im just starting out

"hopefully increase in value"? That shouldn't be the reason to buy a toy or collectable. It's not like gold. Most stuff doesn't retain it's value in the long-run. If you're looking to invest for your retirement or whatever, open a savings account.

If ever, in my opinion. The current toy market is like the 90's comics market. Too many folk buying to keep figures MOC. Supply will outweigh Demand so the price will just drop

The good thing about graded figures is the simple fact that you know exactly what you're getting, but this insurance comes with a price. In the other hand the grading increases the figure's value, just like a certificate. When starting a collection, I wouldn't make it my priority, except if you're looking to get your hands onto some really high class figures.

If you're getting into collecting for profit. You've got it all wrong. You will lose money, that's all. Especially with graded figures. They cost a LOT to get graded and the number of graded collectors is far smaller than loose or even MoC collectors. Find yourself a nice MoC figure and buy a case or clamshell for it. Grading is a waste of money. Your $300 budget will net you one graded figure. Or if you bought loose in good condition, you could get a ton of figures.

^ This. Don't collect for profit, collect for fun. That doesn't mean that I haven't sold my share of figs on eBay for profit, but I like to trim down my collection from time to time and I usually use the $ I made to buy something else really cool that I want more at that moment. I like to open most of my stuff but I also have a pretty nice MOC collection as well...As far as Skeletor, You could go with the MOTU Classics, I don't have one but he's pretty awesome!!! Marvel Legends sounds like the way to go for your Marvel stuff as well...Good Luck and HAVE FUN WITH IT!!!

Thats the first I've heard of a graded toys, but I've only been collecting for about 8 months. Collect what you love for fun, that said, a lot of collectors still buy and sell things as well. Or, at the very least, sell some of their collection. I'm working towards getting a booth at a flea market to sell various kinds of toys, comics, and pop culture, not just to try and make a little money, but also because when I move into an apartment in the next year or so I wont be able to take it all with me and have room to display my prized pieces. Collecting for profit, or solely buying and selling wouldnt be as fun as coming across a toy you love, or a toy from your childhood, and buying it and keeping it and letting it bring up all those memories...After that, collecting becomes an addiction :p

Say your talking old school vintage Stars was carded 12 back its huge money but you add a graded one thats high like a 8 or above the stuff goes into the stratosphere! Same as comic books do I have seen it happen . There are guy who just go to shows to buy things they think will grade high to roll the dice !

A toy can sell for 10 -20 even more some times what guide price is . There is a HUGE market for premo 70's -80's graded figures and comics . The guys who buy this stuff have pockets with no bottoms who just want them for PURE investments and they will ONLY touch that graded stuff. But most of them are not toy guys they just want to say they have them.

But myself I can't enjoy a toy behind thick plastic let alone MOC. I always opened mine so I just buy as mint as i can find for the money I have to spend . I think it will run you 40-50 bucks to have a figure graded buy CGC. They may have gone up though . I just snagged a few vintage mego batman figures and have them on display instead of behind pastic :)

I think another thing to consider (which has been brought up intermittently) is history.

Action figures obviously saw a rise in popularity about 40-50 years ago and depending on what you collected there are certain "eras" for lines (MOTU, GI Joe 3.75, Transformers= 80's, 12 inch GI Joe, Mego=70's etc)

More importantly these figures were not bought to be collected but to be enjoyed.

Collecting is more of a recent phenomenon as kids who had these toys back then are looking to have a second wind so to speak. And then you have people like myself who grew up in a world where toy collecting became more permissive and you had the internet to look this stuff up and talk about it on Toyark- which I think fuels toy collecting for the younger audience.

OVERALL, the bigger point is as several people have pointed out, only really really old figures which as MISB/C and are in really good condition are worth any value. This is because that back in the day these toys were typically ripped open immediately and beaten to hell, so all specimens are usually in poor shape. The expensive ones come from people who found unopened storeroom packages with figures who never saw the shelf and in a few rare incidents (quoting Toy Hunter) people who were disciplined enough as kids to not open them.

Additionally, modern toys don't carry this high collectors appeal because of the awareness surrounding MOSC value vs opened value and also high distribution rates etc.

As everyone else said collect toys for the love the hobby etc etc but since you asked....

First of all if you want to invest in anything, do some research on your own. Any good advisor will tell you to invest in things that you can relate to or see in your everyday world. If you don't understand toy collecting and the collector mentality then you need to learn.

Also if you want to make as much money as possible don't buy the toys already graded especially if you are looking at modern toys. Try to find the toy in mint condition and then pay for the grading yourself. This is true for comic books as well.

Agree with most, collect because you like it, not to because you ultimately want to make money on it.

Having said that, since your budget is high, you can't go wrong with Hot Toys. They typically maintain their value or increase over time. Since you are a fan of Spidey, they did just show the figure for Amazing SPiderman 2. Not sure if you're strictly looking for figures or would venture into statues, but NECA made a really nice one not too long ago.

40 -50years ago really like what ? action figures were not old enough to be worth anything back then if they were even made ?

Yeah if you want awesome figures that will look great and aren't likely to lose you money if you someday sell then Hot Toys are probably the way to go.

What are you, 15? lol He-Man is already 30+ years old. G.I. Joes date back to 1964. That's 50 years right there. Weren't old enough to be worth anything back then? Toys weren't made with the intent to collect. They were made to be played with. The reason toys from back then are valuable is because of that fact. Not many exist in excellent condition. That's what started the collecting craze. Now it's made people think any toy is worth a fortune and it's also made toy companies manufacture rarities. Variants, short packing, etc. Creating a demand when there's no need to.

To the OP: there's really nothing much else I can add that hasn't already been said here. Think it over before jumping head-first into the deep end of the pool. While the water may be warm and inviting, it might be more shallow than it looks.

Star Wars says hi. :)

Also, the term Action Figure came from G.I.Joe advertisements in 1964, when it debuted (as DHeezy81 pointed out). It was a way to get boys to want to buy what was essentially military-themed dress-up dolls. Sort of the boys' version of Barbie (which debuted in 1959, btw).

Go get the new 8" Marvel Legends Spiderman Line that is hanging on the shelves at stores. The Spiderman is great.

I'd say you might want to look into Hot Toys and Sideshow figures. They are bigger at 12" but super nice and collectible if you want to go high end stuff.

If you're referring to the ASM2 Marvel Legends Infinite figures, they are 6", not 8".

I think that in any Hobby there is a possibility to make a profit. People collect and someone is always buying. There are people making money regardless of what other people believe. There are always toy theme treands picking up. However, you have to be really good and be able to read the market. Constant studing of the market is extremely important. There are other factors like being lucky too. Not every purchase is going to have a profit, however, I would not discourage anyone from entering the toy hobby for profit purposes.

By the way, I only collect to re-live my 80s childhood. I started collecting about 15 years ago and I already know that I could sell some figures at a good profit.

Just my two cents...