"Collectors" can be so crazy - short rant

[Bromine]

Well, we've seen it happen with action figures, trading cards, etc.: People see the big bucks on the secondary market, and they begin stockpiling Darth Mauls and expect to retire in a few years. Now it's apparently happening with U.S. currency!
The new dollar coin has been released into the U.S.. The mint is cranking them out like crazy. However, apparently they are still hard to find in many places because people are reportedly hoarding them. Many people believe that since it's the first issue of the coin and it's also in the year 2000, it will be a valuable collectible.
This is why I think people hoarding their change are nuts: First of all, there's going to be something like 2 billion in circulation by the end of the year. Not exactly rare. Second, you can buy MINT CONDITION rolls as well as year 2000 proof coin sets from coin dealers, so a grubby one you get as change from your grocer isn't going to be very nice in comparison. Third, if EVERYONE is saving them, hoping to sell them, there will never be a very high demand for them.
I know this isn't SW-related, but it's an interesting example of collecting gone crazy, IMO. So what do you think?
Remember, it's not that people are saving one or two as a souvenir; people are reportedly HOARDING every dollar coin they can get their hands on.

[Jedieb]

Good post Bro. I blame the hysteria on those creepy George Washington comercials voiced over by Michael Keaton.

That is exactly what happened with both the EP1 & POTF2 lines. People think these are going to make them rich but they're sadly mistaken. If they ever thought to calculate the time and resources it took them to acquire their collection they'd realize they're only going to LOSE money!

Collect what you like, not what you think will be worth something. And remember, you're never going to have the world's biggest and greatest SW collection, so don't even try. Just collect what makes you happy.
MTFBWY

[Jedi Master Kyle]

good points! potf2 toys will never be worth much more than they are right now. collecting what makes you happy is the only way to go. if you're into collecting for investment reasons, get into real estate.

[mez7]

hope none of you americans get mad but ive got a rant of my own about this new "golden dollar"
im canadian as some of you know, and we have had the "golden dollar" (or loonie) since like '91 all golden like just like the one your government has just released,
couldnt you have gotten your own style instead of copying ours, talk about no imagination, would it really have been too hard to make something original up, how many other colors of coins are there to make and you had to choose golden, jsut proof that the american government is tryingto assimilate us canadians into your culture

- for any person collecting the new "golden dollar" in 10 years it will be worth guess what????



can you guess???





come on you can do better that that




here you go





really now




$1, one denero, uno dollaro, one buck, yup thats it, same thing happened here people held the loonie, or toonie (which is our silver with gold insert center $2 coin) and there not worth any more than when they got them for change at the 7-11, bromine said it right when he said theres not going to be a great need for these, theres like 2 bill, they dont deteriorate like bills so they last longer, there fore will be able to be found pretty much anywhere.

sorry in my pro-canadian views made anyone mad. but im canadian so i have to try to find fault with americans copying us any way i can,
doesnt mean i hate any of you

[bronto]

The golden dollar isn't the only American coin that looks Canadian. What about every other coin.

Question for my fellow Americans. How many times have you gone through your pockets looking for change to put in the vending machine? You have something in your hand that looks like an american quarter, dime, nickel, or penny (same size, same number printed on it) only to find with closer inspection that it's Canadian!

So, were these another case of Americans copying Canadians, or should we in the words of South Park
"Blame Canada!" I've always thought you guys were copying us.

[Jedieb]

Don't worry mez7, no one here is offended by your remarks. We Americans ignore Canadian comments the same way a Rhino ignores a flea. Oh, it might irritate you sometimes, but it's not really a threat or anything.
I love you crazy Kanucks.

[mez7]

you guys know you want to be like us,
and its easy to tell our money from yours, ours has all sorts of animals on them and are worth half as much.

in a few years we'll have no bills at all just change,
so if you copy us in all the other coin designs as well ill know somethings up,

our government is now working on the 5 and 20 $$ coins,
have you guys seen any 2$ coins down there, there silver color with a goldcolor center, they look neat,

and if your 2$ coin looks like that ill send a moose to the white house or something


<H2>EH!!!</H2

[jjwr]

As Bronto pointed out all of our change looks the same anyways so why should the dollar be different? Course the question is who copied who on all the other ones(pennies, nickels, dimes, quarters)? Just curious which came out first. I could care less either way, I think the golden dollars are cool and got a few for myself cause they're neat.

[Bromine]

Well, I wouldn't mind the American gold dollar coin so much if they hadn't just copied our commemmorative quarter idea as well! Back in 1995 (I think it was '95) Canada issued 12 different quarter designs, one for each province and territory. They did the same thing for '99 and again for 2000. Now the U.S. has the same thing, only instead of all at once, only 4 are released each year. Kind of a bummer.

I don't know if it's because times are changing, or because the U.S. has a bigger consumer base, but I don't remember the hype for the Canadain quarters, loonie, or toonie being anywhere near as big as the U.S. dollar or quarter sets. Seems every other commercial or infomercial is for a map to mount the new quarters on (I've seen around half a dozen different brands) or for rolls of the new dollar.

I still have the first year loonie and toonie and the last year dollar and two dollar bills saved away, but just for sentimental value.

Here's what I think WILL be worth something years from now: Power Rangers. Yes, Power Rangers and similar TV shows. Maybe even Ninja Turtles. These toys were very popular with kids, but they weren't considered collectible, to my knowledge at least. This means that in 15+ years, adults will hopefully have fond memories of these toys, and be interested in mint-condition stuff which will be hard to find. And no, I don't have any Power Rangers stuff hoarded away.

[Jedi Master Kyle]

when it released the loonie in '87? now who's laughing? :

[bronto]

Oh yeah, the quarter map. I need to get one of those.

[Bromine]

That would look cool hanging on the wall...too bad it's going to take several years to be completed.

[jjwr]

I've got the quarter map, I think the quarters are pretty cool and try to get each one as they come out.

The sad thing is some of these quarters are selling for $1 or more already.

[Bromine]

$1 or more!?! Yikes!
If you manage to get them all at regular price, all 50 will only cost $12.50. Not a bad deal.

[mez7]

wow you can actually buy a quater for a dollar,

now thats funny

[SPY007]

I used to collect beer cans when I was a kid. Then President Jimmy Carter's brother Billy was a noted drinker. I didn't take long for somebody to come up with the brilliant idea for Billy Beer. Collecters and thegeneral public went nuts. I can't go to a swap meet, antique show or garage salenow without seeing a few. They are worth NOTHING, yet everybody that has one seems to think they have great value. And to the Canadian that thinks the US is copying their gold dollar, that's aboooooooooot the silliest thing I've heard all day!

[Dalethria]

all I have to say about collecting is this...

Don't buy the same figure over and over again. If it is a different mold of the same character, okay that is fine. I just hate companies that reuse the same stupid mold and make "new" figures. I have a friend that buys EVERYTHING. He does complain too that they are the same toy, but he still buys it. It is a disease collecting stuff. I have the bug too, but I refuse to buy the same fig again and again

Dalethria

[Bromine]

Yeah, that annoys me, too. I really don't understand all the "completists" out there. If it was a set of, say, 50 figures or something, I could understand, but new figures will continue to be made until people stop buying them. I think that's why some people are so overly critical of the whole line. I keep hearing how this figure is dumb and this character should never have been made and how evil Hasbro is for producing this character before that one. My opinion is if you don't like a character, then don't buy it!
I have a complete collection; a complete collection of every figure I like.

[Dalethria]

Yes!!!

We are in total agreement. I have to admit I have a lot of Luke's, but I don't have them all. I like to display my figures on a shelve so all can see, but I don't need to have that one alien in that one scene to complete the entire recreation. Also, the only reason I have so many duplicates anyway is another friend realized how crazy it was collecting all of them, he gave most of them to me.

All in all, don't buy what you don't want or like. It is a waste of money and you should only collect things that matter to you. I don't need IG-88...but I did need the Big Han on the Taun Taun for 20 dollars hehe

Dalethria

[Jedieb]

First off, congrats on snagging the 12" scale Han and Taun Taun for such a great price Dale. It's one of the best figures Hasbro made in that scale and one of my favorite pieces. I have to plead guilty to being a completist of sorts, which forces me to buy Obi-Wan rehashes. It's probably because of the price point that I try to buy at least one of everything. With the 12" line I'm much more disciplined, I just buy what I like. Eventually I may treat the 4" scale the same way but I'm not quite there yet. There are plenty of other things I've paseed on though; Epic Force, Micro Machines, and card variations. I pity the collectors who are into card vaiations. For me, .0001, .0002, .0003, & .0004 are just numbers, not reasons to buy 4 different versions of the same figure.