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Are you a "only at my price" or a "name your price" collector?


RDUNE
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I know someone who recently walked away from an item they had been hunting for years, over about about a 10% gap in his price and the sellers price. He said "I'll find another one someday at the price I want to pay". I love his optimism but I guess what confuses me is that he had been looking for this specific item for a while and there it was, but instead of paying a little over his ideal price he let it go, only to continue looking for another one for slightly less money.

 

On the flipside, I know another collector whose approach is just the opposite. If he finds a piece he's been looking for he'll pretty much pay whatever it takes, especially at auctions. Not that he's wealthy by any means, he would just prefer to spend the extra money, get the piece he wants and stop worrying about trying to find one.

 

So I guess my question is: If it's something special that you have been trying to find but the price makes you cringe, would you walk away and wait, or grit your teeth and pay the price? And to what extent? If it should be a $500 item would you go $600, $700?

 

I've bought a couple of things for way, WAY more than I should have paid but I don't regret it. I have the pieces I wanted and I didn't know if or when I'd ever have another opportunity to add them to my collection.

 

Anybody ever pay a painful price for something you were determined to get? Was it worth it? Or did you walk away from something over price and then regret it?

 

Just curious :)

 

 

 

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If you add the price of travel, motels and time to wait till one comes up possibly cheaper; you'll not save money.

I'm a believer in buying what I collect when I find it, yes I have overpaid for items I collect...I now can move to the next thing. In reality, I don't collect my Purple Heats and groups to make a profit; it's not my impetus , the collecting of North Carolina medals is my passion.

Do I get beat up once in a while...yes, I paid double for a medal this past week. I'm happy to own it.

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I go with Brig. It's usually a matter of how much I want an item. I'll overpay for something I really want. Luckily those items I really want seem to be few and far between.

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I agree with everyone above. Put it this way, I don't regret overpaying for any item in my collection(s), but I sure regret cheaping-out and running back to find a collectible I wanted long gone!

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Kurt Barickman

I have such a narrow focus on what I collect and buy anymore, I guess I overpay all the time and don´t regret it because it only comes up once or twice a year if I am lucky.

 

Kurt

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I'm never afraid to overpay for something I really want and have never regretted it. I HAVE regretted not buying something when I should have. The way I see it, militaria has no intrinsic value. The value is in the eye of the beholder.

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Wharfmaster

A roll of large bills will most often get me a discount, including rare stuff.

 

Crisp C-Notes are just like fine cigars, they smell good.

 

 

 

 

Wharf

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I would definitely be willing to overpay for something I've been looking to find for a while for my collection. It would be something that I wouldn't even consider reselling and plan to hold on to for as long as I still collect. However, it has it's limits. I wouldn't pay a ridiculously high premium, but a lot sellers are willing to work with buyers on a price if the buyer is polite and can reasonably show why the item is so overpriced. If it's a somewhat common item that I want to fill a gap in my collection for, I'll wait. Like everyone else said, the feeling of regret of passing on something and waiting years to find another (if ever) is so much worse than the feeling of knowing you overpaid for something you love.

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Being on a super budget . . .mainly whatever I happen to make by selling an item from our website . . . I would have to walk away often at an item that is over my price. That being said . . . we are talking way under C-notes! -grin- However, if it were something that belonged to my GGGUncle or GGUncle . . . money at that point would be less of an issue as Mom and Dad would totally help! -grin- Since that is about 99.99% not going to happen . . . then I guess at or below my price is it. But I'm also not talking about high-end items or named items. That's why I tend to go with unnamed more generic items. Still enjoy every piece I manage to save up for! I've trade for several cool things by making embroidered patches, and those pieces tend to be special because of the fun trading. :) Actually, trading is really fun and I always enjoy it when the rare time comes!

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The time to buy something is when you see it. If your looking at an item that is difficult to find an would be important to fill a hole in your collection It would be difficult to walk away from hoping another one turns up eventually, what If it doesn’t or who’s to say values don’t keep increasing so paying a little over now might not be so bad compared to what the item could be worth 10 years from now, it’s a gamble but that’s the way I tend to look at it.

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Unless it is way way over my budget i pay up. Have i overpaid for stuff- that is a matter of perspective. I do not collect militaria with ROI in mind. I collect for enjoyment and of course the history. Now if you ask my wife you might get an of course he has overpaid for stuff answer. If I have searched high and low for a rare or obscure item and one shows up more than I wanted to pay then yes i pay up if its not way over my budget

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I'll overpay (within reason) if it is something I really want. I too have regretted not buying things or waiting too long to buy them and having them disappear. I would certainly overpay (maybe outside of reason) for items with a family connection.

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The OP stated that the guy walked away over a 10% difference. Would I do the same thing? It depends. If I wanted to spend $500 on an item and the seller wouldn't drop another 10%, I would likely pay his asking price of $550 in order to get something I was looking for. So, yes, I would pay more.

 

Now, if the item was $10,000 and you asked me the same question, then likely my answer would be: no, I probably won't pay the extra $1,000 in order to get it. I guess it all comes down to 10% more of what amount?

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I think the key to buying collectables is education. Know what you want and its relative rarity and price. Also have an objective in mind and avoid spur of the moment buying. I also think the adage "buy it when you see it" is not always the case; sometimes it helps to wait if you have the time. Finally, when it comes to getting something you have spent years looking for and know that it's really rare, when you do have the chance to buy you sometimes have to step up. And I have stepped up, more than once, and don't regret it.

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There’s no right answer

We are just squirrels chasing the nut on the rotating wheel of collecting life

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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everforward

Lots of good answers in this thread. Whatever I’m looking for (and sometimes you’re not really looking, it just appears) I try to buy condition (you can’t go wrong with condition), and the best price I can find (sometimes what you ‘find’ is top-dollar....) BUT- if it’s a grail-status item then I just get it, and I’ll prolly overpay to make it happen. As buyers, we tend to feel better about what we did if it’s a good deal, who doesn’t like a deal...?

The passion usually overrules the wallet. ;)

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manayunkman

What I love is when I offer an item for far less than it’s worth and people pass it over, come back and it’s gone.

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My attitude on this topic has evolved over the years - As a new Father in my 20's money was tight so I would pass on an item if it did not fit my budget - When I was in my 40's I would challenge the seller if his price was too high and most times I could wear him down. Now that I am in my 60's and there are few items I "Really" want I will pay a premium with the thought that I have more years behind me than in front of me and I am retired and have the time to enjoy the hobby on a full time basis.

 

Many of our attitudes change as we age and evolve

 

Bill

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huntssurplus

I think it depends. There are many rare items that were listed at a fair price which I had to leave as I just didn't have the cash to afford it. If i have the money and it is something I've been looking for for years, perhaps I would spend the money. Luckily with what I mainly collect now, every individual item is different. Not really much to "find". Rare items and such don't really matter to me as when it comes to this hobby, the most "period correct 100% original" items are usually some of the most common.

 

Hunt

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Before the last SOS, I was looking at my collection and was very happy with where it was. I thought to myself: "You know what would be amazing? To have a posthumous Purple Heart from the crew of the Lady Be Good". I had been fascinated by the Lady Be Good story since I was a kid and built a model B-24 and the kit came with the story of the crash and demise of the crew.

 

Sure enough, at the SOS, the pilot's posthumous Purple Heart was there, and at that point, the price didn't matter (okay, so maybe plus or minus a couple thousand...I'm not made of money...LOL)...it was the crown jewel of crown jewels in my book (both figuratively and literally...it's on pages 156-157 in my book on posthumous Purple Hearts).

 

I thoroughly understand Bill's (USMCR79) feelings about how things change over time. Things that were an amazing find that I "had to have" 25 years ago are not the same things that I'm interested in now. Partially because I've owned most everything I "had to have" back in the day and partially because I feel I've become more discriminating over time and would rather have a handful of amazing things than an accumulation of tons of "stuff". (Of course, if I won the lotto, I'd work to have an accumulation of amazing things...LOL) My collection now is based more on the story than on the value of the item...some of my favorite groups don't carry a heavy price tag, but for the value of the story, are priceless to me.

 

Dave

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