New Member Here!
Post new topic Reply to topic Page 1 of 1
Author


Collector

Posts: 3
Joined: Sep 18, 2021
Last Visit: Oct 18, 2021

Post Posted: Sat Sep 18, 2021 11:39 pm 
 

Hello,  

My name is Tom and I just joined the site this week.  I came across The Acaeum via google search when I decided to start looking at what my D&D collection was worth these days.    So long story short.....

I am into my early 50's now, and back in the 80's I was an avid role playing game kid with a group of boys in my neighborhood.  Every summer we'd spend weekend nights sleeping over at each others house playing role playing games, most of the time AD&D and pulling all-nighters.  Some of the greatest memories of my childhood.  Back then we all had a pretty decent collection of books and modules, and I started purchasing items when I found them on the cheap at Kaybee Toys and other spots around town that sold them.   Mostly AD&D modules and some Marvel Heroes stuff as well.  I had the feeling that eventually we as a crew would get around to playing these someday, but as time does, it passes quickly and I sort of grew out of the game(s) once I got into college.    Most of my collection was put in storage at my parents house.     Over the years I forgot about them honestly.  Got married right out of college, had a family, and that crew of boys I grew up with moved away and I don't know where most of them wound up.  

It wasn't until I visited my Dad a few weeks back that he mentioned he was cleaning out his storage (he's in his 80's now) and came across a few boxes of my toys that he never threw out.   One of which was my box of D&D materials.    When I opened it up, MAN did I get taken back in time!   I had so forgotten about most of this stuff, and found several modules still in their original shrink wrap.   At the time I purchased this stuff, I wasn't in the mind that I was collecting it so it wasn't ever treated as mint, but after going through most of it, some of it is well used, but much of it still seems to be in Mint to near Mint condition.    So I immediately got searching around online for a place that could give me an idea if it's worth anything, and here I am.  :)  

I've spent a considerable amount of time the last few weeks going through all of them and looking at the value pages on this site.   Now, before I get anyone's hopes up, nothing in my collection is in "super valuable" page (unfortunately)  :)     But I do have a handful of items that are in the 2 rarity range and several of the modules are still in their original wrap, ones that we never got around to playing (nor  were my characters ever high enough level to play them.  

I'm trying to get a grasp on how much value I have here, so I'm putting together a spreadsheet of each item, it's estimated value, and then searching around eBay for recently closed auctions of these items in the last 3 months and then coming up with an average and top price of what they have been sold for.     I have over  40+ modules, over a 1/3 of them in their original shrink wrap, and 8 Manuals.  Some of them I would consider Mint modules as I can't even see any wear and tear on the corners, while the others have some very mild abrasions.   Even a few that are opened I would also consider near mint.  

Based on what I'm come up with, I think there could be between $1500-$2000 worth of items here (assuming I waited long enough to see the good ones for what I can see they went for recently).  

I'd be happy to talk on the other forum threads (since this is a intro thread) about details,  but what I'd like to know is if I decide to start selling these now, how best to go about selling a collection of this size and getting the most value I can out of it?    Is it smarter to spend the time to post each individual item and sell them that way, or combine the full collection and ask for what I feel is a fair price for the full lot?    Is there better options out there other than eBay for serious collections who would want to purchase the full set?  Anyone with experience in selling collectables have any advice?

Thanks for any help you can provide, and I'm happy to be here on the board!

Tom

  


Prolific Collector

Posts: 501
Joined: Jan 11, 2005
Last Visit: Mar 28, 2024
Location: Derby, CT

Post Posted: Sun Sep 19, 2021 8:56 am 
 

There are a few individuals on these boards that would be interested in a collection like this, and for the most part you will get what they are worth, if you wanted to sell all your items in one shot.

Usually, you can get a little more listing individually, but it's more work for you.

There are several groups on Facebook that buy and sell D&D stuff (the Acaeum has their own group) where members of these boards hang out, and by selling there you avoid "Feebay" and their gouging of sellers and buyers, but you WILL get more exposure to the market on Ebay.

Most of us that want individual items are going to want a list, so I suggest you make it in Google's spreadsheet app and share when necessary. An be prepared to take a lot (a real lot) of pics. High-grade collectors are going to want front and back pics, staple condition, and any defects (scratches, shelf wear, nicks, dings and tears) for every item.

And be prepared for some price discussion. It happens in PMs/DMs usually - most auction sites don't allow discussion of price to avoid arguments/flamewars on their group sites.

Hope this helps!

And welcome to the group!


Dave, get the barbarian in the corner a drink, quick!

  


Collector

Posts: 3
Joined: Sep 18, 2021
Last Visit: Oct 18, 2021

Post Posted: Sun Sep 19, 2021 8:02 pm 
 

jkason wrote in New Member Here!:There are a few individuals on these boards that would be interested in a collection like this, and for the most part you will get what they are worth, if you wanted to sell all your items in one shot.

Usually, you can get a little more listing individually, but it's more work for you.

There are several groups on Facebook that buy and sell D&D stuff (the Acaeum has their own group) where members of these boards hang out, and by selling there you avoid "Feebay" and their gouging of sellers and buyers, but you WILL get more exposure to the market on Ebay.

Most of us that want individual items are going to want a list, so I suggest you make it in Google's spreadsheet app and share when necessary. An be prepared to take a lot (a real lot) of pics. High-grade collectors are going to want front and back pics, staple condition, and any defects (scratches, shelf wear, nicks, dings and tears) for every item.

And be prepared for some price discussion. It happens in PMs/DMs usually - most auction sites don't allow discussion of price to avoid arguments/flamewars on their group sites.

Hope this helps!

And welcome to the group!


Excellent, thank you for the great information.  I'm not on Facebook, (not a fan) so I'll start with seeing if I can get a google spreadsheet put together.   I'm still only about half way through researching the titles and recent values, so I'll get to work on finishing those.     Thanks for the guidance!

  

User avatar

Grandstanding Collector

Posts: 6158
Joined: May 03, 2003
Last Visit: Mar 04, 2024
Location: Waterloo, Ontario, Canada

Post Posted: Mon Sep 20, 2021 12:54 am 
 

Don't underestimate the value of your modules in shrink.  If they are 1st edition modules and in excellent shape (no tears in shrink, bright colours, minimal spine creases, etc) they can be worth a fair bit.

 WWW  

User avatar

Long-Winded Collector
Valuation Board

Posts: 3499
Joined: Nov 23, 2005
Last Visit: Mar 29, 2024
Location: Italy

Post Posted: Mon Sep 20, 2021 2:03 am 
 

Hello Tom, happy to meet another fellow FBless!

Re to your collection, my advice is to sell first your SW stuff individually on eBay. This allows you to max your return: each item sells at 3-digit value nowadays, say in the range of 120 bucks... For the remaining stuff, it is up to you: if you have time, then you can list the stuff individually, otherwise in lots of 3/5 items.

Do not forget to post your listings here in the classified forum!

All the best, ciaooo


Image

 WWW  

User avatar

Long-Winded Collector
Acaeum Donor

Posts: 3643
Joined: May 30, 2007
Last Visit: Mar 27, 2024
Location: USA Georgia

Post Posted: Mon Sep 20, 2021 9:52 am 
 

Welcome TheJollyCleric!  You've come to the right place.  I second what has been said already about listing individually to maximize profits.  I also applaud you using sold listings on eBay to accurately determine value.  If you've sold items on eBay before, then you will have established a positive track record which will help your sales.  If you've rarely or never sold before, then your Feedback score can hurt your auction results.  New sellers also have more unscrupulous buyers sending you private messages wanting you to yank auctions and sell privately to them at a discounted price.  If you are a new seller and in no hurry to sell, then listing an item at ambitious fixed price might be a good idea.  You can always lower the price over time.

Make sure you are comparing apples to apples as a shrink item is often double or triple what a barely used item is worth.  These forums always love looking at photos of what you have and can significantly increase the possibility of a sale here.  In my opinion, you will almost always get the highest return on eBay even after they take their cut.  They just have way more buyers clamoring for whatever you are selling.  And prices are as good as I've ever seen them, so it's a great time to sell.  

Again, welcome!  8)


Truth is worth finding and life is too short to work for money.

  


Collector

Posts: 4
Joined: Sep 11, 2021
Last Visit: Sep 08, 2023

Post Posted: Tue Sep 21, 2021 9:19 pm 
 

I’m interested.

  


Collector

Posts: 3
Joined: Sep 18, 2021
Last Visit: Oct 18, 2021

Post Posted: Wed Sep 22, 2021 5:53 pm 
 

Thank you everyone!  This is great advice.    I have a few people here who are interested in the collection so I'm going to start there.    I appreciate all the suggestions.  I will certainly heed the advice.

  

User avatar

Verbose Collector
Acaeum Donor

Posts: 1195
Joined: Nov 07, 2003
Last Visit: Aug 13, 2023
Location: Wisconsin

Post Posted: Thu Sep 23, 2021 2:07 pm 
 

Welcome aboard!!!



 WWW  
Post new topic Reply to topic Page 1 of 1