Polybags - general discussion

[kenchu2000]

I don't know, personally I flip it right away while the item is still hot.   Maybe it's just me.

btw, I think the next monthly polybag promotion from Lego (the christmas mini-set) is going to be an easy flip.

[Snarkie]

There are also some of the Star Wars polybags that are worth some money. And I completely agree with what is stated above. Plus it is really hard for polybags to get damaged in storage.

 

I actually had a polybag torn when I was moving them to another drawer. It was a lego piece that was bulky ****** had a sharp edge that caused the hole :/

[Bsusanka]

It seems like they have made about 10 polybag star wars characters.

[MartinP]

I actually had a polybag torn when I was moving them to another drawer. It was a lego piece that was bulky ****** had a sharp edge that caused the hole :/

That has never happened to me before. Usually I store them with other polybags to make sure nothing gets damaged.

[comicblast]

 If you invest in polybags at all, I would try to stay clear of polybags that are available nation-wide, and are NOT exclusives. Exclusive ones are usually purchaseable via a minimum purchase price, and almost always have a lower production quantity than non-exclusives. I'd look at monthly LEGO Shop at Home free polybags and the occassional TRU polybag. Just keep your eyes open for them, and try to go to the physical LEGO store fairly often, since they sometimes sell old extra polybags for $5 a piece or so, even if the polybag is worth $25+. Hope this helped!

[Bsusanka]

That is helpful. Thanks for the advice.

[DoNotInsertIntoMouth]

 If you invest in polybags at all, I would try to stay clear of polybags that are available nation-wide, and are NOT exclusives. Exclusive ones are usually purchaseable via a minimum purchase price, and almost always have a lower production quantity than non-exclusives. I'd look at monthly LEGO Shop at Home free polybags and the occassional TRU polybag. Just keep your eyes open for them, and try to go to the physical LEGO store fairly often, since they sometimes sell old extra polybags for $5 a piece or so, even if the polybag is worth $25+. Hope this helped!

 

A good example of this is the TMNT Kraang Polybag. You cannot find it anywhere! If you do, easy flippin's for double your money.

[krayzie]

To build on DNIIM's post, most of the HP PBs are good, but some not so much.  I'm holding on to a couple of HP The Labs, and this thing just will not appreciate.  It's a neat HP PB with a minfig and a bunch of neatly colored bottles, but it has Harry (not exclusive) and must have been widely distributed, i.e. a high supply.  Unless you get this for $1-2, I would stay away.

Yeah, that lab set and the train are at every Five Below store in my area.

[Bsusanka]

There do seem to be a plethora off certain polybags hanging around.

[jeff_14]

Got the Pre Vizla Mandalorin ship together with the Fall scene polybag (40056) and the new Thanksgiving polybag (40057) in order to get a free VW polybag and the clone trooper polybag. This was at a Toronto lego store. I'm now at 4 of the VWs and 3 of the clones (opened one). I will probably hit the store again tomorrow to see what they're doing about leftover VW polybags as the store had lots and the promo ends today.

[jeff_14]

Got the Pre Vizla Mandalorin ship together with the Fall scene polybag (40056) and the new thanksgiving polybag (40057) in order to get a free VW polybag and the clone trooper polybag. This was at a Toronto lego store. I'm now at 4 of the VWs and 3 of the clones (opened one). I will probably hit the store again tomorrow to see what they're doing about leftover VW polybags as the store had lots and the promo ends today.

 

I intend to hold most polybags for a while just as I do with my usual purchases until after they go EOL. My one recent exception was the Robin motorcycle polybag. You had to spend $35 at TRU to get it back in May, which I did twice to get 1 for my son and 1 to hold. However I did not realize until after the promo was over that it was only available in Canada. Once I found that out I listed it on ebay and got $60 for it! from someone in Germany!!! It cost me nothing, and even if you give it a nominal value of $5, that is still better than a 1,000% return. Basically I got the qualifying lego sets for free and was paid $25 for my trouble. If only I'd bought more. 

[@rtisan]

I`ve purchased quite a few to be honest. Not as investments, but just because they`re cheap and pretty cool (especially Gandolf). I think the 15 that I bought will make great give away items 4-5 years down the road when no one remembers them. Same goes for all the others that I`ve added to the "long term" bin. Not about the money as much as about saving unique items for the future. 

[BrickPick3r]

Some are nice to have. I display them rather than keeping it sealed.

[amnesiac]

Curious can anyone tell me what the ceiling is for polybags?? I've read 60 for a few of the rarer ones but what about something like the Iron Man Drone poly or VW poly or even the Coast Guard Sea Plane that TRU was giving away last month??? I'm really new to the game and my thinking was that 20-30 was where most of these more common polys top out. Please correct me if I'm wrong...

[Noodlenut]

Curious can anyone tell me what the ceiling is for polybags?? I've read 60 for a few of the rarer ones but what about something like the Iron Man Drone poly or VW poly or even the Coast Guard Sea Plane that TRU was giving away last month??? I'm really new to the game and my thinking was that 20-30 was where most of these more common polys top out. Please correct me if I'm wrong...

The Iron Man vs. Fighting Drone is worth about $8, the VW poly is worth around $12, and the Coast Guard Sea Plane is worth $9.  If the polybag is a Shop @ Home give-away and is either well designed or a minifigure, than it will be worth somewhere between $10 to $15 dollars at the time of release.  That is just the average polybag though, and sometimes, they can be worth less than that or much more than that.  Hope this helps you.

[Slogghead]

What I love about polybgs is that they fill that niche of buyers bliss. I can send $4 and not feel bad, plus I get a cool little set. I do keep mine sealed unless it has a neat minifig, then I will buy 2 and open 1.

 

I have about 150 different polybags. The thrill of the hunt is super fun too!

[Guest TabbyBoy]

I'm not a polybag collector as such but, I have a friend who works at a newsagent and I'm often given a carrier bag full of free assorted polybags that are left over when promotions finish - how could I possibly refuse them?.  I have literally hundreds and not had time to go through them all so, I may have a few gems for all I know or they may be utter crap like the Galaxy Mech (I didn't order from LEGO Shop at Home while that junk was on offer). The ones I "know" I have are just the ones from LEGO Shop at Home.

[hollingsworthless]

I can send $4 and not feel bad, plus I get a cool little set.

This is how I feel about the Star Wars planets series. They are $10 and you get a minifig, a planet, and a really cool vehicle. The builds have actually been really inventive considering the limitations the designers had on size of pieces. And if I can get them for less than retail, so much the better. Although not being able to get Series 4 in the US is going to kill my wallet.

[ibobpeb]

I don't collect nor do I invest in polybags but I love selling them. So easy to ship!

[ibobpeb]

 If you invest in polybags at all, I would try to stay clear of polybags that are available nation-wide, and are NOT exclusives. Exclusive ones are usually purchaseable via a minimum purchase price, and almost always have a lower production quantity than non-exclusives. I'd look at monthly LEGO Shop at Home free polybags and the occassional TRU polybag. Just keep your eyes open for them, and try to go to the physical LEGO store fairly often, since they sometimes sell old extra polybags for $5 a piece or so, even if the polybag is worth $25+. Hope this helped!

 

I didn't know that! Thanks for the tip. 

[Inventrious]

Are polybags good to hold on to for extended periods of time or are they more quick flippers?

Polybags don't make that much money, however, if you collect a full set, (e.***. all 6 chima polybag sets) they are worth more then selling one by one

[comicblast]

Polybags don't make that much money, however, if you collect a full set, (e.***. all 6 chima polybag sets) they are worth more then selling one by one

I wouldn't be too quick to say that polybags don't make very much money. Sure, they don't sell for as much as a $200 LEGO set, but can you ever imagine anyone buying an ounce or two of plastic for $200? It VERY rarely happens, on cases like the Mr. Gold minifigure or Azog Comic Con giveaway.

 

Polybags offer great PERCENTAGE returns. A $2 increase in a $4 polybag already gets you a 50% return of investment. It doesn't take as much to turn a polybag in to a larger return than you might have otherwise gotten from a larger set. If you choose the right polyabgs, you could end up with triple your money after a year (net sales). 

 

Remember: LEGO investing is pretty close to the stock market. You have $10,000 to spend on a stock. What do you buy - 20 $500 stocks that increased $75 per stock over the last 6 months or 1,000 $10 stocks that increased $3 over the 6 months? To lots of people, the $75 gain is more appealing. They are narrow-minded, and not money-smart. Do the math people! $13 stock * 1000 stocks = $13,000. $575 stock * 20 = $11,500. $13,000 > $11,500. I wonder what's a better investment now? Of course this is a pretty extreme situation, but I hope you get my drift... If not, well, more for me!   

[Inventrious]

I wouldn't be too quick to say that polybags don't make very much money. Sure, they don't sell for as much as a $200 LEGO set, but can you ever imagine anyone buying an ounce or two of plastic for $200? It VERY rarely happens, on cases like the Mr. Gold minifigure or Azog Comic Con giveaway.

 

Polybags offer great PERCENTAGE returns. A $2 increase in a $4 polybag already gets you a 50% return of investment. It doesn't take as much to turn a polybag in to a larger return than you might have otherwise gotten from a larger set. If you choose the right polyabgs, you could end up with triple your money after a year (net sales). 

Yea, I agree with you, but I meant why make $2 when you can make like $20. Your kinda wasting time making $2. It depends which polybags you mean though.

[comicblast]

Yea, I agree with you, but I meant why make $2 when you can make like $20. Your kinda wasting time making $2. It depends which polybags you mean though.

I just added something to my original post, to give you an example. 

 

To be honest, "wasting time making $2" is all relative. I buy/sell LEGO's because I enjoy it. I'd rather "waste" my time buying, building, and selling LEGO's than at some boring desk job under a stupid boss who doesn't realize I should have gotten a raise 5 years ago.

[Inventrious]

I just added something to my original post, to give you an example. 

 

To be honest, "wasting time making $2" is all relative. I buy/sell LEGO's because I enjoy it. I'd rather "waste" my time buying, building, and selling LEGO's than at some boring desk job under a stupid boss who doesn't realize I should have gotten a raise 5 years ago.

I do the same thing. I do it because it's fun. I'm talking about people who have jobs, and are busy and stuff.