6 replies to this topic

[thenerdieststore]

I am interested in starting to collect Battle Beasts / Beast Formers and I have spent about an hour looking them up on ebay. What are some basic tips for collecting these?

 

Should I look for them with the weapons? 

 

Is there any sites that sell these besides ebay?

[Beastformers]

Well one important thing to take into consideration is the condition of the Beasts, are you satisfied with just the figures in any condition or do you want them to be in the best possible condition complete with weapon, or is this something you might consider tracing in the future? If you answer this question for yourself you can safe yourself a lot of effort and $ because most collectors start of being not to picky with the condition while in time they realize they rather like the figs in the best possible condition resulting in the fact they´ve to replace their earlier purchases to update their condition. 

 

Obviously the complete beasts are more expensive but if that´s the way your willing to go or think your heading there in time its better to go after them right away. 

 

That said you can take your time building the collection one by one hunting them via Ebay or asking around here. Overall this can save you some $ as well because you might be able to find figures for a bargain but it can also take a lot of time before you find the figures you want in the condition you´d like them in. Another thing people tend to forget is the shipping cost. Because if you go after individual figs or small lots of figs the shipping costs in the end all add up quite a bit as well resulting in the fact that some people rather try to buy bigger lots which are maybe more expensive but they save the time of searching and the amount of shipping. 

 

There´re are quite a few ways to get there but time is not really working in your advantage because with the day these Beasts grow older and they become harder to find resulting in prices to rise. Checking Ebay is a good way to get a feeling with the actual and current market value of these vintage beasts but it all depends a little on the way your willing to go. 

 

So as soon as you´ve made up your mind regarding these issues your ready to go out on the hunt. 

Enjoy the Beasts!

[GM4WALLS]

I am currently adding Beasts a couple of times a week. As mentioned, a figure with weapon and working rub can be expensive. If that is not a concern, I have been picking up lots of Beasts in various conditions at a $3.65 per figure average. Low price is $1.23 for figures with missing limbs, high is $4.70 for more desirable figures without weapons. If you want weapons, but complete figures, but be prepared to pay a premium.

[CaffeineSanta]

I have more than doubled my BB collection trading with Bachamn
My advice would be to put in some requests here on the board. 

[Ericnilla]

make sure you do a lot of research before just buying blindly, everyone has a different idea to what they are worth. Your best bet for a deal would be buying lots on ebay, but you dont always get weapons that way. Take your time and make sure you pay what you are willing to pay, never pay what someone tells you to its worth without asking around here first.  Look at the "what its worth" Battle Beast thread and ask questions there.

 

and trading is always an option here on the forum, take be9ines advice and make a post in the Wants section.

 

Take your time and enjoy the chase.

[bachamn]

I am interested in starting to collect Battle Beasts / Beast Formers and I have spent about an hour looking them up on ebay. What are some basic tips for collecting these?

 

Should I look for them with the weapons? 

 

Is there any sites that sell these besides ebay?

1. As others mentioned it's a lot to do with how concerned you are with condition, there are plenty to be had in "acceptable" condition and I know plenty of collectors who are fine with that. But as mentioned, this can come back to bite you if you decide later that you'd rather have mint figures (I'm still trying to replace 2 or 3 of the figures in my 1-76 set, and I've been working on that for over a year now). Also, try and buy them in lots and when doing so try to keep the price per figure between $2-3 at the most. After you've built a decent base, then start going after the individual figures you want, but I'd try to do it here as much as possible because eBay will always be more expensive for individual figure purchases.
2. If you want them, but they often cost as much if not more than the figure itself. Another thing to consider early on as hunting down the weapon by itself will usually cost more than if you bought the figure complete in the first place; I also ran into this when I decided to get a complete set.
3. You can find them on eCrater and other merchant sites, but for the most part you have eBay and here as the primary Western markets. Yahoo Auctions Japan and Mandarake are two Japanese sites where you can find them, including the Japan exclusives, but that's a whole different (expensive) ball game 

I can help get you started with a trade if you like, I was still waiting to hear back from you on that TMNT ooze if I recall

[thenerdieststore]

 

1. As others mentioned it's a lot to do with how concerned you are with condition, there are plenty to be had in "acceptable" condition and I know plenty of collectors who are fine with that. But as mentioned, this can come back to bite you if you decide later that you'd rather have mint figures (I'm still trying to replace 2 or 3 of the figures in my 1-76 set, and I've been working on that for over a year now). Also, try and buy them in lots and when doing so try to keep the price per figure between $2-3 at the most. After you've built a decent base, then start going after the individual figures you want, but I'd try to do it here as much as possible because eBay will always be more expensive for individual figure purchases.
2. If you want them, but they often cost as much if not more than the figure itself. Another thing to consider early on as hunting down the weapon by itself will usually cost more than if you bought the figure complete in the first place; I also ran into this when I decided to get a complete set.
3. You can find them on eCrater and other merchant sites, but for the most part you have eBay and here as the primary Western markets. Yahoo Auctions Japan and Mandarake are two Japanese sites where you can find them, including the Japan exclusives, but that's a whole different (expensive) ball game 

I can help get you started with a trade if you like, I was still waiting to hear back from you on that TMNT ooze if I recall

 

 

Sounds perfect! Shot you a pm just now. No bullets used but that prime minister went down easily

 

Thanks everyone for the tips. I will go about this one slowly.

Edited by thenerdieststore, 09 June 2014 - 08:34 AM.