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Those money grubbing price gougers over at target have jacked the price up further, now up to 296.99. The nerve of some people, profiting at others expense.

I think the history of this thread (among others) is a very interesting case study in the current Lego reselling climate, potential for a "bubble", and nature of basic economics. Toward the end of last year we were seeing virtually no new production of this set, and most critiques were fairly harsh, with uninspiring design and overpricing among the most popular complaints. Everyone seemed to agree it was a very poor seller, with speculation about early retirement. People had their different opinions but we all wondered: 1. Would it stick around much longer or join the then-blossoming list of "surprise" EOL exclusives? 2. Would the almost non-existent demand continue post-EOL, or would R5 become a real sleeper investment? Oh my, how times have changed! The answer to #1 is still unclear, but partially answered over half a year later. Question #2 is now growing moot, however, as the overall number of this set out there has seemingly increased quite dramatically in the same amount of time. After R2, AA, and HE blinked out, we have had months to stew over the next exclusive to be sold out, and the CONSTANT speculation / hype has really had an effect, in my mind. Sure, some of you still don't like this set, but people are buying it like crazy anyway. No one seems to think it will be a 10227 anymore (only worth investing at a major discount, so far). WHY? Well, I can come up with several theories, as usual. Some people have money to spend, and there is no doubt this set takes its share these days. It would seem both Slave I and TIE Fighter UCS sets are better loved, with high variance on appreciation for Ewok Village and less, but some disagreement on Sandcrawler. So why aren't any of those threads blowing up at all? Is the Episode VII hype highly responsible for the renewed interest in this set? Meaning end-consumers are a very high percentage of buyers? Or are resellers over-hoarding it now simply because it is generally "expected" to retire next (along with Pet Shop and ToO) and none of us know when it will sell out? If so, isn't this bubble-blowing behavior? Is the constant status uncertainty from SAH indicative only of the current high demand, or also of "low" supply (clever tactics) by Lego? Better yet, were they actually planning to retire R5 prior to this summer at any point in the past, or was the plan always to make room for it to shine alongside the UCS TIE once Episode VII hype started building? Does 7965 (MF) recent performance factor into this situation much at all, in terms of there being an "iconic trump card"? In other words, does being in the investment spotlight for a while make that much of a performance difference in today's marketplace? Food for thought, especially for newer investors. I personally have enough answers to make a judgement call, and believe there are much better options out there for my money.

wake me when we're talking about 5 again.

Yeah, sorry trying to compare EV to KJ doesn't cut it in my book. Star Wars is immensely popular, and while some of the grumpy old afols might not like ewoks, others do. While everyone and their mother is stockpiling red 5, very few here even think about EV. I personally think Ewok Village is a great set, and worthy of an investment. I plan on having a few when the sun has set on it, and i'll hold it for a while.. Also, some sets with Ewoks do have a pretty good return on their value. Just do the research here - Ewok Attack is at 285%, the other ewok attack is pretty much a double your money investment. The battle of endor is ok, but you still can make money on it. Ewok Village is a premiere set, and as more of these premiere sets get made, completists might want it.

Lego Shuttle Expedition. A very strange build experience. I took this one on a business trip and quickly realized that the bags were not numbered. I scoured my room for ANYTHING to sort the colors in to, the ice cup (did you know there is the cup and then also a liner cup? Bonus!), the tray for the ice cup, the coffee pot tray, the ice cup liner... the build itself is very different and jumps around a bit to keep the techniques fresh. The landing gear was tedious but works nicely. The bay of mine for some reason does not open and close smoothly, you kind of have to manipulate the edges a bit, but it's mostly for display anyways. I don't get how both astronauts are supposed to fit in the cockpit with the roof closed so if any of you can explain that one to me... Stickers were scary, mainly because they are transparent and fingerprints came in to play. I think they came out alright though and this set is not going away any time soon. End result is great. New conversation piece for the work desk and can fiddle with it while on long meeting calls! Trying to convince my son that this was an actual space ship. He is trying to figure out where the lasers are!

you're looking at current sales at the lowest sell through period of the summer when prices are the lowest to begin with and saying its not good. This set hits 120+ every xmas, even while it was not retired. You could say the same thing about other sets that just "retired" by looking at current prices. FW sells at 130 shipped , so is that a terrible investment??? Farnsworth house is $80 at the moment on ebay. Bad investment?? Minecraft 21102 , same thing recently part of the last retired batch, $40 on ebay right now Using what a set is selling at in June is not a good example. As migration stated and Exciter it will be 120-130 at Xmas. Buying at $70 for a few month hold is not bad. Just coming out and saying its a terrible investment at retail to someone asking if that is a bad price doesn't make sense and using current ebay price makes even less sense.

Here is where things go wrong. The times for quick flipping recently retired sets is as good as over. This set is not for quick flipping. Certainly not if bought at RRP. I admit. I was lucky selling it at 130 euro. But around here it is far more scarce as in the US. And that is the secret. Scarcety. Stop about calling Ninjago and Chima failures. Cause they are absolutely not. Ninjago is a winner and some Chima sets are as well. MISB they are scarce. Cause people buy these sets for their kids. Boxes get teared open, get build, pieces get lost, etc. 7783 was far less produced. And yes, I am sure it was. Burn me if you disagree. These sets are scarce. Especially MISB. And it was a very nice set as well. That sure helped too. I am in this game for 1,5 years now. I am still a rookie compared to others here. But I already noticed how this game has changed in such a short period of time. Yes, one has to adapt to the new situation. That is correct. But how can you adapt? I mean... the last week I made several road trips to hunt for lego. What did I find? Nada! Either shops I bought nice things before have failed or they have nothing left. All was robbed away. Only new stuff to find and too expensive compared to SaH. The last weeks... even in this normally slow time I have sold sets like it was Xmas. People buy anything! This is what worries me. How can you adapt if there is nothing to buy? Let me keep my "failed" 6860 batcave. Cause I am sure it will become at least 200 euro in a couple of years. I am not sure if the new unretired sets will give the same return. "Positive results in the past are no guarantee for the future".

Sorry...the answer was hotcakes. Hotcakes.

no they do not stock these at walmart stores. They do sometimes ship large sets like that with a label slapped on. Most try to buy in case packs when buying the larger sets to try and get them shipped in a box. Some members refuse to buy large sets from walmart for this reason.

Sold mine for $35 fourty minutes after listing it on eBay.

I had no interest in this set or plans to get one until the UCS Tie Fighter came out. Once I built the Tie and was surprised by how much I loved it I suddenly felt like 10240 was an essential addition to my collection - so I ordered one which arrived this afternoon. Weird how that worked out.

Sorry, but no. Lego does not operate on common sense (from a consumer perspective at least): Common sense would have had TH retire after PS. Common sense would have seen HH last through Halloween instead of petering out weeks prior. Common sense would have seen R2-D2 still going strong through Episode VII release instead of bleeping out after 2.5 years. Common sense would have released Elsa and Minecraft sets earlier during the peak holiday shopping season so Lego could reap the initial profits instead of astute QFLL's at the last minute. Common sense would have avoided all the shenanigans with Tumbler and Research Institute last year. All this is CHAOS, not common sense... and it is the way of things now until PROVEN otherwise. By the way, common sense says large sets DO have to retire to make room for new ones.

I absolutely agree with considering an early exit strategy, but to let that perspective dominate investment decisions without the intention to flip is just silly. The truth is, we don't know what time frame micbelt had in mind when the question was asked (perhaps he didn't either), yet we are throwing our opinions around like they are a bit heavier than they really are (myself included). As others have already pointed out, there are lots of sets that incubate for months or years post EOL before catching on, as well as the ones that never do. I often wonder how much of an impact TRU has on this phenomenon. This Batcave isn't quite in the same quality league as, say Black Pearl or Queen Anne's Revenge, yet it could follow a similar pattern of increasing value. Personally I think that is wishful thinking - but not impossible. It could also act like Whitecap Bay, to be fair. I agree with Ed's prediction that it will fall somewhere in the middle, with moderate returns. I'm happy to drop my half dozen Batcaves at the end of the year above $150 but also content to hang onto them 1-2 more years until they get there. I admit my statement was a bit harsh, but I stand by it in a general sense. I have nothing but respect for those such as yourself who have done well with the last 2 years' sets in these themes, but it just isn't reality for the VAST majority of investors, especially in the States. I too made some $$$ off the right Chima/Ninjago sets and am still sitting on even more others obtained at deep discounts which still won't cover fees if I dump them now. These themes as a whole have become very poor performers. I'm finished with speculating on them to the point where I will grab most Star Wars or Super Hero sets at 30% off long before I even think about 95% of Ninjago or Chima at less than 75% off. I completely agree with your point about things changing quickly especially in retail stores. The difference between last year and this year will probably be the greatest we see in this Lego investing "era". It's a brand new world... now I am going to read about the good ol' days, lol.

I'm at the tru Jurassic park build and they have this set in store.

Back from the market after 5 hours of smooshing... Got 16 hot dogs, 13 unicorns, 3 fencers only, 3 kings. Fencers are the hardest to find, the round sword dodge easily the thumb when i try to feel it. Gotta get better next time, especially if the kids doesn't find the peg were i stacked all the kings

Batman sets are quality LEGO investments. They might not always explode, but they will produce given time. The 6860 Batcave will be a mid range set on the "Appreciation Scale," but it will not be a loser. If LEGO never develops another Batcave, this set can do extremely well. If it does (and probably will) produce another Batcave, this set's growth will be stunted. Once again, it is about what price you bought this set at. Many people bought this set around the $50 mark, so $90 right now looks pretty good to me. It has shown slow and steady growth and I look for that to continue.

From my conversations with several lego store employees, this set has been an abysmal seller until recently. One of my local stores had their stock of red 5s rotting on the shelves for over a year until the recent run. Now they can't keep it in stock anymore. I think lego is finally making some profits on this set and will keep producing as we keep buying. Yes, I do believe that we are blowing our own bubble with this set, as well as the others that you mentioned.

Considering how heavily the Red 5 was discounted and included in free set promos, I would have to say opinions on the set have changed greatly. I guess it's one of the few major sets possibly near EOL, so it's getting all of the attention and added life. The Ewok Village was another set discounted when other exclusives were not, so will the added interest extend its shelf life? Maybe. It appears LEGO has a lot of these older exclusives on the OOS or 30-40 day list, so maybe they are trying to throw resellers off a bit. I find it highly unlikely that LEGO is constantly out of stock on these sorts of sets unless it's on purpose. Years ago, stock shortages were far less IMO. Sets do retire, this we found out recently with the HH, GE, SSD, R2, AA and others, so its possible one of these major sets will disappear quickly like the Town Hall did. The Tower Bridge is showing the signs and has gotten little attention lately. Maybe the SOH will jump the shark. Maybe the Palace Cinema. Maybe the Tumbler. Maybe none of them...

Obviously this is not a set for a new investor to try and flip at MSRP. No point in illustrating that fact is there? Christmas will no doubt bring the price up. I have no idea how much. 10%-100% is a possible range in my mind right now. There is also not much point in comparing this set to 7783 (or any others from the Batman I line) from an investment standpoint. The similarities are the name of the set and the fact that it has Batman in it. After that, I'd consider almost all aspects to be differences. As for market saturation, I agree that superheroes may be ramping up a bit fast, and the counterfeit game seems to hit this theme the hardest for now. But, um, it's not the pile of turds that Chima and Ninjago are. THAT is saturation, in my mind. To the person who asked if it is worth picking up at $70, I'd say for long term (3+ years), absolutely. However, many sets will perform much better. If you need to turn a profit by the end of the year, it's probably a high risk place to put limited funds, so not recommended. In the intermediate time frame, you will find opportunities to turn a nice profit if you work at it, or maybe even if you don't.

Look at the sales (both volume and price) over the last year, starting last June when it first started being clearance at wal mart, then extrapolate the line for another 5 months. If I hadn't sold all my fire bikes I would wager one. http://www.brickpicker.com/bpms/set.cfm?set=6860-1

prob doesn't matter even at msrp. a batcave is a batcave and will have decent demand until a newer version is available.

Out of curiosity is there any set you like? I mean this will easily clear $110-$125 this Christmas, not a bad return at all for a $70 buy in and a 5 month hold.

"Gotta love those...." My mind was filled with all kinds of things to put into the following blank before clicking on the topic.

Just did a quick search on 'vader' & 'display' to pull up some results

I remember when, way back when, some people laughed when others suggested this set had the chance to reach $500 in a relatively short period of time. Really close now, with substantial growth potential given its uniqueness

I actually agree with this. Ewok Village is, I believe, the only other UCS worthy play set in the SW theme (With the DS being the 1st one, obviously). What makes EV so appealing is that more than likely it won't stay on the shelves as long as the DS has. I would take EV over most sets currently available, including 10240. It has that collector AND play appeal that other sets do not.

last four sold have averaged $1518 shipped going back to April. Could Terapeak back further if you have it for last 12 months but should be enough current info with those 4. 5th one sold best offer , asking was 2k so probably in the 1500 or higher range accepted.

I have seen them priced between $1000-$5000, depending on condition. Being they are very rare and no more will ever be made, these are truly the best LEGO displays for investment I have encountered. The new movies will only help their value.

Which makes next year an even more fruitful harvest.

Mwhahahahahaha

I'm worried that as Halloween approaches, resellers with cash flow issues will dump their HH's to free up funds for pumpkins and giant inflatable lawn ghosts.

Well first you ask the kids in the store if you can buy theirs, then when that doesn't pan out you go find the 14-16 year old kids smoking in the parking lot and give them $5 each to go in for the build. You can only do that if you've successfully ran & sold a multimillion dollar company though... otherwise it's sketchy ethically speaking.

Lego is the most powerful toy brand in the world... They employ people specifically to design sets. The Cuusoo/Ideas was a way for them to engage the community and it's been pretty successful regardless of the sizing of the models produced. Lego is also out to make money. We might think some of those big sets are cool but Lego knows that just because 10k people voted for the firehouse for example, it's highly unlikely that more that a certain percentage would fork over that much cash... Way less risk and way more people will buy the small sets.

Once you get past the lines and the kiss as they enter the arena, it gets pretty good. I hate the dialogue in Kamino and Naboo. Well, the dialogue on Tatooine is pretty terrible too.

Hi, nice to meet you.

My wife complains about the boxes showing up on my porch.... just imagine her face (and divorce papers) if three containers showed up on the lawn and drive way. LOL I would easily buy this lot but the whole 'where do I store them" is the main problem.

I don't believe that Lego would be producing Bluish-Gray and Gray and the same time. I did a quick search on Bricklink for some of the newest sets and all of them had pieces that were bluish gray. I haven't found, and I really doubt that there are recent sets that use the old gray.

original grays (light and dark) production stopped about 2003/ 2004. Some sets that were originally produced with the old grays even had later runs with the new grays (the UCS Star Destroyer for example). Many Bricklink sellers do offer both types of old grays. However, they do seem to discolor pretty easily. My 6080 King's Castle was stored untouched from 1987 to 2012 (I played with it as a kid maybe only 15 times from 1984-1987). When I finally showed it to my son, I was surprised about 20% of the grays started get that slight brown tint. Same with my old Black Falcon's Fortress and Armor sets from that same era. Anyway, the old grays are abundant because they were produced for decades. Plenty of them out there whereas the new grays (or bleys as we call them) have only been around for 13 years or so. The only reason why it appears bleys are more widely available than old grays is because Lego is producing more sets and they are more AFOLs are breaking up sets to sell as parts, minifigs, etc... plus doing MOCs.

Story behind the change.. http://news.lugnet.com/lego/?n=1791 in the pic below,the newer gray (bley) bricks are on our right.

Where? It's $20 on Amazon and can be found less than $20 on eBay (in the US).

Like most people I'm sure, our space to display sets is limited... I really wanted the Slave I to be in one of our IKEA Detolf cabinets but it's just a touch too tall for a single space within it. So this was my solution .. I used some plates, tiles and support pieces in dark bluish gray to "drop" the glass shelf about 4" which is more than enough room to fit the Slave 1. I may have to replace the plates with bricks if they sag too much but all the weight is on the supports anyways. The plates and tiles just keep the supports from being knocked out of place. Sorry about the glare.. stupid phone. The pictures were dark and out of focus without the flash forced on. The Mini and T1 fit with just two supports, but it looked cramped. Three struck a good balance.

​Then go find some teenagers smoking in the parking lot and pay them $5 to get you a mini build.

​Just grab one of those my size elsa dolls and put her in a stroller. You'll get some looks, but honestly who's gonna say no to a guy with a doll in a stroller with a gun? Oh right, bring a gun too.

One of the Space sets, 6927 All-Terrain Vehicle from 1981.

I was just curious to see what segment of the market was actually keen on buying overpriced sets on eBay. I'm sure sellers were buying Tumblers in bulk and selling for small profit margins a few months ago. It would be an interesting article to read to see who actually buys overpriced sets and how long does that trend last for. It probably wouldn't be very easy to collect that type of data though.