The Energon Pub

Eh, I guess that mindset would save me money...because I wouldn't buy anything then. To me, without character (even if it's character and backstory I had to make up myself) it's just a hunk of plastic.

My problem is preordered items atm. I know I have the munition-er set coming, and I want it. So I'll take the hit. Getting in over your head, well that's on you.

If you're buying everything, then you need to make some serious cash. I don't do movie toys so that saves me money, but I'll buy just about everything else for my neo-G1 collection.

What makes it hard to get stuff is time. Some things rarelt hit the shelf. Mindwipe comes to mind.

IF it's really bad get a second job!!!!

1) Pre-order what you like.

2) Have a TO BUY and a NOT to buy List. Not to buy list would contain something you felt 50/50 about it. So you just have to make the decision to put it on the to buy or not to buy list and stick with that decision.

3) Also do not go toy hunting/shopping if you have nothing specific to buy.

4) Kinda like the opposite of no3. Only go buy the toys that you have preordered or want to buy when it is released.

5) Like what the others have said, make guides.. for me no older stuffs beyond TFA. So at no time am I thinking should I get R.I.D OP even though I really like it. Too expensive of a toy...

GetterDragun wrote:

kookaburra wrote:

GetterDragun wrote:

Counterpunch wrote:You are buying a mold, pick your favorite color and stick with it. If you start buying characters and not toys, you will be spending a lot more money.

Huh? But what's the point of getting the toys if you don't like the character?

Because the toy itself is cool?

I agree. If the toy itself isnt cool I wouldnt look twice. For example I love Otimus but many of the toys have been horrible and I know nothing about Drift but his Generations toy is AWESOME.

I have to echo the common sentiment of mindset; my Classics/Neo-G1/G2 mindset is the only thing which kept me from buying into the movie lines, save less than ten figures. It actually allowed me to knock my debt down considerably... until recently :\

There is one more resource I use pretty frequently though. Big Bad Toy Store (http://www.bigbadtoystore.com) has three features that have helped me out immensely:

1. Cart system, standard for all online retailers. For anything that's out, you can put EVERYTHING you want into the cart before purchasing. Seriously, go nuts. Open up all the TF sections and just get whatever, hit View Cart and bask in the awesomeness of everything you will have.

Then look at how much it costs. Look real hard, and think. I guarantee regardless of what you have on there, your first instinct will be to empty the cart and walk away. That's kind of overload though, so onto number 2...


2. Preorder system. BBTS has a wonderful preorder feature that allows you to preorder whatever you want, however much of it you want, and they don't charge you a cent until it comes in. So, go to the preorder section and preorder EVERYTHING you could possibly want. Again, go nuts. Do it. All the cool kids are. Check out, and then every day or two (or however often you like) go and check your preorder list. You'll see everything you have up with pictures and price, and you can spend 5 minutes considering what you NEED vs. what you WANT.

Example: After months of waiting, I finally cancelled my MP Ghost Screamer (literally the day before they arrived, phew) because as nice as it is, I couldn't afford it. I am, however, making sacrifices for the Arcee/Paradron Medic two-pack coming out, since it's the best G1-accurate Arcee we'll get and the price I can expect to pay AFTER is going to be insane. The same could be said for SS, but that's the one I chose to go without.

3. Pile of Loot. If you do preorder things (BBTS may charge $3 - 4 more, but the customer service is beyond worth it) take advantage of the PoL feature. I know we all want our things straight away, but instead of spending $10 to ship eight things over a three month period, spend $10 to ship all that stuff together three months later. The waiting sucks, but you've just saved yourself $70 - the equivalent of an MP Grimlock, five or six deluxes or a fancy dinner for you and your wife/gf/bf/husband to make up for spending all your money on toys. And let's be honest, opening a huge boxes and swimming in new toys is always more exciting than just one.

Some other tips, while I'm at it...

4. Avoid eBay like the plague. You can get amazing deals on there, and that's exactly WHY you can't do it. I was looking for one figure, found it for $15 + shipping (amazing) and ended up finding $120 worth of more stuff I wanted equally as badly. If you DO use eBay, instead of bidding on anything hit the "Watch in My eBay" button instead. You'll be able to see the trend of bids better, nixes impulsive bidding and increasing max bids, and chances are you'll forget about the auction, come back a week after it's ended and you won't have to worry about spending your money anyway.

5. I know we all hate this option, but go through your collection and pick out what you want to keep and what you're willing to part with. The great thing about this hobby is that anything you're willing to part with, chances are there's at least 1,000 copies out there should you change your mind down the road. Sell junk if you have to - even $20 for something is $20 more than you had.

6. ONLY pay for your toys in cash. Hardly anyone carries it anymore, so you're likely to not have enough or have forgotten to stop at an ATM entirely. You can be nice to yourself and have a Toy Jar at home, adding one or two or dollars a day or however often you like.

7. Organization. Start up an Excel spreadsheet and every time you buy something, put the date, what you bought, how much it cost and whether it was cash, debit or CC. You'll be able to track exactly how much you spend and on what, and it'll give you an idea of trends in spending as well as help you plan out what you want/need in the present and future.

8. Acceptance. It sounds gay, I know, but you have to realize that you're in one of the most addictive hobbies out there. The average line costs between $1000 and $1500 to buy into completely, sometimes more, and that's how much you have to be prepared to spend in about a year (keep in mind, there's usually two, sometimes three lines being released at a time). You ARE going to go crazy once in a while, you ARE going to have to choose between that oil change or the new deluxe Blurr that there's only one left of once in a while, and you ARE going to be surprised at how much you've just spend on a mess of plastic and screws. Just keep things in perspective. You're not going crazy, but you WILL have to make some sacrifices - both in the hobby and for it - to make this work.

While what all these boil down to is self control, that doesn't necessarily mean you need to have an iron will and walk away. It means you need to practice moderation and boundaries: Set up boundaries for yourself (like the cash, toy jar, no eBay or no bidding, giving your CC to someone else) and practice moderation (forming a plan, cancelling preorders) and just keep track of everything. Even if you get out of control, then you KNOW you're getting out of control. I guess that brings me to my last point...

9. Honesty. Be proud of what you're doing. It's cool, it's fun, and no one can really tell you differently. Be honest to yourself and your friends about what's going on, and if someone says "dude, you spend HOW much on that?" simply smile and know you got a great deal. Assuming you did, anyway. Especially if you have a spouse, keep them in the loop about your hobby. Even if they don't care or have no interest, if they see how happy it makes you they'll be more likely to be supportive of you, even if they're not supportive of it, and can help you keep things in check. But trying to hide both your love of the hobby and your spending will just lead to more impulsive behavior and more guilt, and overall rob you of the joy you should be getting out of it. Be honest with both yourself and everyone else, and it'll help keep things in perspective.

Phew, kinda got long-winded there. Anywho, hope I've given you a few ideas if I haven't bored you to death already XD

Already in over my head, but working on it.

I'll let you know if I come up with anything profound.