Toys are fun to play with buy disposing of a collection and even just a few toys can be daunting. It doesn’t have to be a burden – you don’t have to figure it all out on your own. Picture the store aisles at Target or Walmart and one can understand the wide variety of categories and age groups, as well as the physical material and technology used to make toys.
Vintage and Antique toys are commonly collected by theme, category, material and decade of manufacturer. There are tin and cast iron toys, plastic and pressed steel toys, transportation or space toys. Some focus on TV & Movie Character Toys including Horror or just Disney. Holiday-related collectibles such as Halloween and Christmas toys are some of the most valuable, but is everything valuable?
The value of a toy or collectible can rise and even fall during several years which is common for mass produced toys such as Cabbage Patch and Beanie Babies for example. This do not mean they are not enjoyed by collectors anymore, it just may mean those collectors are not frenzy buying or the category is so small they already have and enjoy a beautiful collection.
Condition and Rarity is always a major factor in the value of a toy. For example, a Tonka truck that has been played with may only be worth 25% of the value of one which was not played with at all. When ascertaining condition, careful attention must be paid to the finish with a focus on the common methods of assembly and disassembly to determine if it has been fixed, repainted or put together with miscellaneous parts. If you ever had your car repaired after an accident by a reputable paint shop you may better understand it is almost impossible to determine what is original paint or a “repaint.” One has to be familiar with many examples before they could be expected to “spot a repaint.”
Rarity is another major factor but just because something is rare it doesn’t mean it is valuable. I say this because many toys are being remade and sold as originals. This is very common with Cast Iron and relatively recently with tin space and transportation toys. Even if you buy toys from an older individual or the toy came from a very old collection, beware! Even the best collectors make the mistake of buying reproductions or repainted toys, either individually or when buying several toys from a collection.
The best way to dispose of a collection or even a few toys is to find someone that has been collecting and/or dealing in toys purchases and sales for a least a couple of decades. This is important not because they will know everything about your toys, but because they likely have the relationships with other dealers that collectively could answer just about any question.
Don’t rely upon any of the electronic marketplaces because it isn’t what it appears to be. I’ve seen items posted and sold only to give the misconception that a toy is rare or valuable, only to find it relisted someplace else. I learned this lesson early in life when I relied on a Want-Ad Press listing to decide if I was getting a good price for a set of speakers sold out of the back of someone’s car! They posted listings only to fool buyers and they are still doing it today.
Electronic marketplaces is the reason why you’ll find toys a flea markets tagged with unimaginable prices. Its because they “looked it up online” but didn’t pay attention to “condition issues” or that the specific color or year of the listing was one of an ultra-rare variation. There are so many condition and item variations with GI-Joe that the same item (looking at the pictures from past sales) could be sold for $10, $40 and $125! The difference with GI-Joe is usually the year and location of manufacturer, as well as the condition. Imagine trying to learn about the 1000 or so pieces manufactured by Hasbro to determine if a rifle or shirt is worth $10 or $100?
Its best to reach out to friends or those who are involved in mainstream collecting to find the right person or persons to get a reasonable price for your toys. Don’t think the day you come across something you had that is listed for 10 times you got for your toys that you didn’t get a good price. I sometimes turn down collections because the risk of offending someone is too great and I’d rather just tell them what I know and what I think and tell them they can call me anytime if they have more questions.
What's a toy worth? 