Pete writes:
What’s going on folks? Literally, what’s going on? The market has been on fire
since Celebration Orlando. Since we didn’t get
to cover much from the event itself, in this installment we bring you a double dose
of high end vintage goodness from both the event and the ensuing month on
eBay.
It was a month of highs and lows on eBay, but mainly highs
when it comes to Celebration. With some
record breaking prices and transactions on some mainstays in the hobby, the
event was anything but cheap. Even room
sales seemed to be slow moving, at least for the limited time we had them up
and running this year. Some last minute
additions made it more interesting towards the end, but a lot of people were
set up and torn down in a blink of an eye.
Celebration
Notables:
12” Star Wars Box Flats – A pair of items only seen at room
sales worth mentioning is the set of 12” AFA 80 box flats for Han Solo and
Princess Leia. 12” box flats are a
finite group of items, with only a handful out there for each of the few
released and unreleased figures in the line.
ROTJ Transparencies – One of the coolest and most unique items
available at the event came to us from our friends at Cantina
Collectibles. A framed set of transparencies
for Klaatu was one of very few one-of-a-kind vintage items available at the
show. The presentation with transparencies
over their respective cyan, magenta, and yellow colors comes across perfectly,
making this one of the best items at the show... if you had a cool $15K for the
piece.
Leia Poncho Pink Cape Mock-Up – Another piece we were able to
see at the Cantina Collectibles booth was this little gem. Surprised it was still available at the end
of the show, as it’s one of the few more desirable mock-ups in the hobby today,
featuring a pre-production variant that is truly distinguishable from its
production figure counterpart.
Revenge Proofs – Though not the rarest of the pre-production items, Revenge proofs are a mainstay and still a very popular and desirable
segment of the hobby. When it comes to
Celebration, this was the hottest group of items. Prices on common proofs exceeded $2,000 – something I’ve never
seen before. There was actually more
available when it comes to Revenge proofs than there were at the previous event in Anaheim, with two large collections and a lot of smaller individual proofs available at
the event.
AUCTIONS:
Going back to our typical coverage of the eBay market, we
have a nice array of rare and highly sought after items. A lot has come available and some – more so
in the month of April – were steals, while the market eventually picked up in
May.
The first item of the month has a tie to Celebration as
that’s where it entered the collectors market. Being picked up by one of the more well-known collectors and dealers in
the hobby, this particular auction was heightened by its tie to a non-profit
organization giving it an extra jump in price.
Luke Skywalker Double
Telescoping Lightsaber MOC - $15,501- eBay Auction
When it comes to grading, the grade is always something
that’s secondary to the item to me. But
when you see an item of this size pull a grade of 90, it’s hard not to pay
attention to the number. The total
number of graded AFA90 boxed items is finite in the overall scope of AFA
grading in the hobby, however this particular piece is one of the very few to
make the fringe grade of 90 and almost be considered mint. It’s a great sight to see; so little edge
wear and damage, great tape. Overall
it’s an incredible presentation.
AT-AT ESB AFA 90 -
$20,000 - eBay Auction
Star Wars 3-packs are always a favorite to keep an eye
on. With their colors, character combinations, and overall short run they will
always be a fan favorite. This month we
have three unique pieces to showcase.
Heroes 3-Pack
Special Action Figure Set - $12,500-BIN - eBay Auction
Creatures 3-Pack
Special Action Figure Set - $5,060 - eBay Auction
Hoth Rebel 3-Pack
Special Action Figure Set - $4,650 - eBay Auction
Although the transaction didn’t
technically occur on eBay, I couldn't pass up mentioning one of the few true "miscards" to come onto the market in the last few years. This is a great combination, making it even
more desirable then a lot of other miscards out there. Unlike a lot of ROTJ miscards, this is one
of the few that is not pre-production in nature, making it a true factory error.
Stormtrooper on ROTJ
Han Bespin Cardback – Miscard AFA75 - $5,500 - eBay Auction
Continuing on with the rare and unique, we have a pair of
Luke Skywalker first shot figures. First shots continue to be one of the hottest segments of the hobby,
with prices continuing to climb even as the market is roughly flat compared to last
year.
The first coming from the Power of the Force line – that being Luke
Skywalker (Battle Poncho). Receiving a 90, it’s quite the sight from a condition
perspective, but AFA also did a really nice job casing the poncho
separately.
Luke Poncho First Shot
– AFA90 - $5,000 - eBay Auction
The second piece is an unpainted Luke Skywalker (Hoth Battle Gear) – a very cool piece with white limbs and a tan torso.
Luke Hoth First Shot - CIB Auction - $8,000 - eBay Auction
For some contrast to Celebration, we have some of the more recent
auctions on eBay for Revenge proofs. Both nice examples of some of the more desirable background characters,
the gap between these and the prices on the floor are pretty staggering, with a
25% or more premium at the event vs. these auctions.
IG-88 Revenge of the Jedi Proof - AFA 85+ - $1,400 - eBay Auction
Hoth Stormtrooper Revenge of the Jedi Proof - $1,585 - eBay Auction
Our last piece follows the ongoing growing
popularity in catalog mailers. In this example, we have a fairly rare ROTJ mailer featuring 4 main characters. Not only is it a difficult pack to find,
it’s one of the more desirable from the series. It just happens to be
sealed, making it unique as well. The
price actually seems right in line with where you would expect a sealed example
to come in; a great piece and one that we rarely see.
ROTJ Mailer - Boba Fett, Luke X-Wing,
Darth Vader, Yoda - AFA80 - $2,036 - eBay Auction
That’s all for this month...check back soon for our next
update and coverage of the rest of the summer.
Wampa Wampa,
Fratastic Pete
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