Selling used sets

[iahawks550]

I've acquired a Super Star Destroyer 10221 and prepping it for resale. A couple of questions

1. I don't have the box, would spending $40 on a box help it to sell quicker, and would I recoup the $40?

2. How should I package the disassembled pieces (I've accounted for them all). By color. size, in order they appear in the book?

[hendrikdejager]

1) Yes, in my experience people pay more when the box is there.

2) Usually i pack them by Color but since this ship is mostly Gray i would pack them by size.

[Huskers1236]

How I see it, having the box would obviously make the listing more attractive to a buyer.  Will you get your $40 back?  I would say doubtful.  Prices I looked at were all over the board for sets that seemed about exactly the same.  I would say you definitely want to do BIN on this set as there was a greater than $100 range in sold prices.  As for packaging, if you sorted by original box 1-4,you'd be an angel to the person who bought it as you'd have saved them hours of looking for pieces.  I generally package mine by color or by instruction book if it's obvious like with a modular.  Smaller sets the pieces all go together and I separate the figures/accessories and bag them separately to avoid them getting messed up during shipment.

[iahawks550]

I'm seriously contemplating opening a sealed 10221, using that box, and then keeping the contents of the opened one unopened to sell as "new, unopened, without box"

[Thumper]

I'm seriously contemplating opening a sealed 10221, using that box, and then keeping the contents of the opened one unopened to sell as "new, unopened, without box"

​a little odd, no?... breaking a misb box to complete a used set. wouldn't that add negligibly to the used set but significantly reduce the misb set forever.

[iahawks550]

Probably. I suppose I'll just bite the bullet and either order a box or expect a lower price.

[fundylego]

Considering you practically stole the set, I sale it without box.

 

[MartinP]

1.) I would not buy the box for $40 at the moment, because I'm doubtful that you would get it back if you sold the set with the box.

2.) I would package the pieces by size and color, since most of the pieces are gray. It would be a lot easier for the buyer when they assemble the set seeing that they can locate the pieces faster than they could if all the pieces were in one big pile.

[Ed Mack]

As a long time buyer of high end used LEGO sets, the box will not make it sell any quicker.  What will sell your item are pictures of a completed SSD with all the pieces and instructions in very good condition.  Personally, I buy these large and expensive used sets all the time to build and I rarely crack open a MISB set (unless it's for my son).  These sets are bought to build and many buyers don't care about the box.  Just my 2 cents...

[gregpj]

I wouldn't bother with the box.. you won't get your money back. Parts clean & well organized and an instruction booklet in excellent condition are more important to receiving positive feedback and a better selling price.

I think Ed's right too - people like to see pictures of the completed set, rather than just bags of parts already sorted and a stock photo.

[Grynn]

1. I'm not a long-time buyer, but I have grabbed a few high-end sets and look at listings seriously all the time. The box is important to me, and I will pay more for it, and pay well if it is close to pristine. I think I am the exception more than the rule, however.

2. That said, I wouldn't go out of your way to buy a box. The potential for extra profit from a random buyer is too small and said profit too negligible to make it worthwhile. Not to mention, shipping cost will go up substantially (package dimensions being all the rage these days). For those who crack open sets with intent to sell later, I would definitely make efforts to keep the box well preserved if practical, however... or, sell it right away to someone like this

3. As already stated, good pics of what you've got are going to help the most. Two or three well-lit shots of it built, one of the instructions, and of the SORTED bags can go a long way. When I've offloaded larger used sets (not this large, but still) I've separated the pieces into groups by major "modules" in the instructions, and labeled them with the corresponding steps/pages in the instructions. People absolutely love this.

 

[Pseudoty]

  As for packaging, if you sorted by original box 1-4,you'd be an angel to the person who bought it as you'd have saved them hours of looking for pieces. 

^^^ This. I know not all buyers are the same but for me this would be well worth it to spend an extra $100 then a set that is sorted by color or size when dealing with a set this big.