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 Posted - January 21 2010 : 1:36:17 PM
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I - like many of you - collect Matchbox and other makes of die-cast vehicles - was wondering how many of you take them out of original packaging to put in display cabinets or leave them in original packaging? I am contemplating on removing a lot of mine and putting in display cases. I have noticed and been emailed when i sell on ebay to remove from packaging as a lot of buyers or collectors want to see both sides of vehicles and even read about this a while back. There are certain models that i won't remove from packaging due to the value being higher in the package un-opened - certain Matchbox and Hotwheels vehicles fetch more money un-opened than opened should they be sold.
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Posted - January 21 2010 : 2:07:53 PM
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| hi brian,the models that are in the hard,sealed plastic cases i would never remove,but ones in the matchbox style boxes,i take out a few to display for say a week,but return and rotate with a few more,ken
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 Posted - January 21 2010 : 3:37:22 PM
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Hi Brianstyco,
It's funny you asked about this. One of my Matchbox forums is always alive with debate about opening your Matchbox or other die cast Mfr. packaging. Myself, If I find an older Matchbox still in the package, I will leave it in the package. Though I have to say that I like finding them out of the package at flea markets and such so that I can play with them on my layout. My goal is to someday have that huge layout with nothing but Matchbox cars and trucks on it. I really like all of the Matchbox emergency vehicles, old and new.
I should get back on topic here. I have found that people are split about 50/50 on opening the package. Again for me, if it is older and in the package, it stays in the package. If they are current in store Matchbox, I buy 4 of what I like ( I don't buy every style of Matchbox car on the pegs). 2 for the layout, 1 in reserve for the layout as it gets larger and 1 to stay in the package. Of course, this was before I lost my job.
A couple of words of caution if you do open them. Do not let them sit in direct sunlight as they will fade. If you use glass shelving, you must take the glass out and rinse with water after cleaning with ANY kind of cleaner. This is because some cleaners leave a film that will melt your wheels.
It really boils down to what you are comfortable with. Don't be pressured into openning something for e-bay.
Mike
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Posted - January 21 2010 : 4:19:44 PM
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I used to collect diecasts extensively before I decided that trains were ultimately better, although I still do of course buy the random ones I spot that have some sort of appeal.
In my case, I always open the package. I don't buy a diecast to sit on a shelf or hang on a wall or sit in a box so I can someday retire. I buy it because I admire the castings, the details, the paint jobs, and because it will look good on display or yes, even be fun to roll around on the desk a bit.
There's a bonus to opening the packages: oftentimes there are little details and "easter eggs" you'll never see if you leave them in there. Details on a specific (hidden) side of a vehicle, interior delights, paint variations, and the like are often specifically changed, and add a new layer of enjoyment to a model.
Now here's the thing, and I'll probably ruffle feathers but I've spent enough and I'm entitled to my opinion: People, including diecast collectors (like me), are idiots. The term "collectible" DOES NOT MEAN THIS IS AN INVESTMENT!!! The word "Collect" basically means "to amass items sharing a common theme, in quantity". "Collectible" means that something can be... COLLECTED. NOT that it will ever increase in value. Blame marketers for corrupting another word.
The reason old packages are "worth something" is because nobody made a habit of saving them back in the day - after all, who would? Interestingly, this has made the packages that DO survive, rare curiosities that in all fairness probably are worth the premium over a loose example. That whole "rarity"" thing you see. If you had the opportunity and could afford it, why not get the package for that extra special "kick"?
But now, since everyone has been stashing new things away with dreams of dollar signs in the future, guess what? The packages aren't in the least bit rare anymore, and neither are the contents! Ebay is littered with the wreckage of collections in mint packages, that are just as worthless as the loose, played-with examples in the same searches. A generation of packrats has discovered that when everyone has the same idea, there's going to be more than ample supply available for the few people who actually have a shred of interest left in the future.
So what's left to do? Take a look at sports cards for a moment, if you want to see an industry that shot itself in the foot. For the last few decades people thought "wow, if I save these cards in protective sleeves, they'll be "worth something" in the future. So be it!" But they're NOT, because everyone else did the same thing. So what they've done is add artificial value through "professional grading", whereby a ridiculous 100-point decimal system is devised so that everyone can send their "mint, straight-from-the-pack-to-the-sleeve" cards in to be microscopically analyzed to provide those last few microns of differentiation. All for a handsome fee that in most cases will never be recovered through future resale.
S T U P I D !!!!
How many middle-aged guys troll the hotwheels aisle at 7am? Far too many, yeah go ahead and ask me how I know. But what I realized long ago is that when they all have to sell their collections (and some already have had to) they'll find themselves competing with all the other middle-aged guys, selling the same cars in mint blister cards, in plastic protecto-paks. Nothing special, nothing rare. Everyone saved the same stuff from day one. So instead of a small handful of rare mint survivors like your original redlines and "Topper" JLs and button-wheel Lesneys, there will be THOUSANDS of pristine 1990+ hotwheels for the taking, for decades to come. Ooops!
Look to the crash of the Lionel market - that's where all today's "never played with, MIB from day one" preservationists will find themselves.
Yes, the packaged one will always be worth "more" than the loose - which would you rather find if you were in the market - But "worth more" will be little consolation when you're multiplying from a base value of "essentially zero" because there's so much of it.
Your Mint On Card Hot Wheel will be worthless, unless you have the Card graded, and the car inside probed with a 3D-stereoscopic wireless probe to inspect for the presence of factory flaws and plating and tampo alignment and purity of pigment, etc.
Think it won't happen? Used to be having an original redline was good enough. Now that ebay flooded that market, people are having paint finishes analyzed and graded, right down to the tiniest indiscernible and ultimately inconsequential pinprick that was probably there the day it was made. Spending more money on a pointless service to maybe someday make some of it back. What a crock.
BTW, that pink "Beach Bomb" 1969 Hotwheels VW bus, that sold for $50,000 a few years ago? It was loose. Packages do not always ensure rarity.
Play with 'em. They're toys for chrissakes. Let your children be children, not packrats.
Oh and I've been seeing more and more packages designed to be opened and closed, too. Oops. Was that car taken out or not? How can you tell....?
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Posted - January 21 2010 : 4:55:28 PM
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I have purchased some vintage Matchbox vehicles from my youth (my favorite is still the BP yellow/green wrecker). Yeah, I get them in their original boxes - but they were purchased more out of sentimental value than actual collecting. I'm careful with the packaging - but they look good and are out on my layout where I can enjoy them - much to the agony of a Matchbox collector friend of mine who always complains "you'll get dust on it!" I'm not much of a collector case person. 
I like caffeine and a chainsaw ...
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Posted - January 21 2010 : 6:29:01 PM
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| Enjoying the feedback - the reason i posted this is the blister packed vehicles TAKE UP A lot of space - The newer Matchbox i buy i don't leave in pkg as the packaging to me is ugly compared to the 70;s-80's era which was more colorful. I don't buy a lot of newer matchbox unless it appeals to me - a lot of their die-cast now is kid focused with oversized tires and wild paint - growing up in the 70's 80's the Matchbox vehicles looked more real than some of new ones now- my opinion. The younger crowd here may like the wild vehicles and nothing wrong with that -no me - I do buy multiples of ones i like as mentioned above by some of you. My first layouts all had Matchbox - Pocket Cars and a few HotWheels vehicles on them along with Yatming Ho Scale trucks. The ones i display are not in direct sunlight and some of the packaged ones i have on wall - the package color has faded from room light on some. i currently have 3 large rubbermaid tubs full of Johhny Lightning and 1 bankers file box of Matchbox classic vehicles from 70's thru 80's. The Johhny Lightning i buy as they are very realistic detailed like the old Matchbox Lesney and superfast models use to be.
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Posted - January 21 2010 : 6:54:08 PM
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| I'm with GIC...play with 'em. My shelves are covered with collectible trucks and cars that someone paid serious coin for, kept carefully packed in it's original package, only to have a shlub like me come along 5-10-15 years later and buy it off their yardsale table for pennies on the dollar, only to cast the carefully preserved packaging to the wind when I got it home....
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Posted - January 21 2010 : 8:28:36 PM
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quote:I have purchased some vintage Matchbox vehicles... they look good and are out on my layout where I can enjoy them - much to the agony of a Matchbox collector friend of mine who always complains "you'll get dust on it!"
Originally posted by HOScale Model Railroader-January 21 2010: 4:55:28 PM
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Yeah, I like to make several identical purchases myself, and have one to open, display, and play with, and one to "store". And several to trade if necessary. Dust, schmust! LOL. I will never be that uptight about my so-called collectibles. I never buy old mint, can't afford it. Most of my old stuff is both old AND used.
My current preference is new Johnny Lightning, and some old. I also like Motormax, who made the AMC Gremlin, Hornet, Pacer, Matador diecasts.
while i have collected "some" for future resale/retirement, just on the off-chance that some will be worth something, I also only collect those I truly like myself, other than the occasional nod to things like the VW Bus and other hot items. Not often, but sometimes.
I'd say I probably have several thousand diecast, I have never documented them, but someday hope to. Most are in boxes, but the old ones and current collections I have displayed for my own enjoyment. HOpe to have more wall-hangings in the future to show off my collectionables.
Jerry
" When life throws you bananas...it's easy to slip up"
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Posted - January 21 2010 : 9:02:18 PM
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I open them, they look better on the shelves to me...
Mike
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Posted - January 21 2010 : 10:27:12 PM
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I have a collection of 1960s Matchbox regular wheels and I buy the mint in box pieces. 11 of mine are ones I keep boxed that I had as a kid. I like them the way I bought them as a kid. I do display the car/trucks out of their boxes because the boxes open easily & were never sealed. the late 60's Hot Wheels I collect, I leave them in their blister packs like they were sold. The newer hotwheels I can open without losing any sleep. But I only buy a very few, of the ones that are just hard to pass up.
HO Scale Railroader likes the old Matchbox yellow/green WRECKER #13. I agree! That's one of my favorite oldies too!!
Walt
Luck, usually comes dressed in work clothes...
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Posted - January 21 2010 : 10:44:21 PM
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Hi All,
Great post GIC! Well said LOL! Straight to the point as usual. I have to agree with your thoughts on the getting rich thing. My mode of operation for buying antiques is the same for my trains and Matchbox cars as well. I buy what I like because i'm going to use/play with it. Not because it's going to make me rich. Besides, I just can't refuse those dirt cheap prices at flea markets and garage sales. Especialy those minty fresh ones still in the package LOL!
I like the yellow and green Matchbox wrecker as well. I finally got my first one last year.
Mike
Edited by - mytyco on January 21 2010 10:57:23 PM
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Posted - January 22 2010 : 12:05:35 AM
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| Man - enjoying reading everyones input - The green and yelllow Matchbox tow truck is called Mighty Joe Wrecker - One of my favorites too - the Yellow one is rare and hard to find but the green ones are plenty!!
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Posted - January 22 2010 : 12:19:19 AM
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Hey Brain! If my memory is correct, the #13 tow truck has a rare version of the reversed colors of the yellow & green. I remember my Dad brought home the Matchbox wrecker truck on night after work. Great old late 1960s memories!!
Walt
Luck, usually comes dressed in work clothes...
Edited by - walt on September 03 2010 10:21:22 AM
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Posted - January 22 2010 : 12:31:29 PM
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the other die-cast vehicles I get are TootsieToys & Midgetoys Both were made in Chicago & I find those uber cheap at garage/yard sales or 2nd hand stores No most aren't in good shape Usually paint coming off  oh well They do fit in HO scale  The really old ones have Tootsietoys stamped into the tires! I also agree with GIC I play with mine too Still looking for those Hot Wheels Dragster VW Buses loose
Edited by - microbusss on January 22 2010 12:35:23 PM
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Posted - September 03 2010 : 1:33:34 PM
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I have my complete 1976 Matchbox 1-75 collection out on a display shelf. Some are chipped, the jeep has a broken windshield, but they are all the ones I had as a kid and I would rather have them than mint blisterpacked ones. Which is more rare, a mint blisterpacked one or the EXACT one you played with as a kid? Talk about one-of-kind! Which is more valuable? Well to me, the one I had as a kid and remember getting for Christmas or buying at Kiddie City is the priceless one. But they are only probably worth a few bucks each on eBay.
I think the "yellow and green" tow truck someone referred to was the BP Dodge Wrecker, which did have a rare color reversed version. That one would look very good on a train platform. The "Tow Joe" Superfast tow truck was toward the end of the lineup, I think around #73 or so. That one also came in yellow, if I remember correctly, but it was part of a "Two Pack."
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Posted - September 03 2010 : 1:42:34 PM
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| don't forget I do have a diecast truck forum in here too
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Posted - September 03 2010 : 5:45:14 PM
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59Chevy. Here the truck that delivered your Matchbox cars to the store when you were a Kid.. Carl
Numquam Immoderatio Satis Est
(Too Much Is Never Enough )
Edited by - VintageHO on September 03 2010 5:46:13 PM
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Posted - September 03 2010 : 6:00:34 PM
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| I want to "kill" you for that Majorette, VintageHO
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Posted - September 03 2010 : 8:11:50 PM
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Take 'em out and play...
Racing Champions 1:144 scale set...General Lee, Daisey's Roadrunner and Cooter's towtruck on my N scale layout...
Edited by - shaygetz on September 03 2010 8:12:44 PM
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Posted - September 04 2010 : 12:41:43 AM
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niiiice shaygetz wish those came in HO  Oh well the Ertal ones will look ok in the background
Yes take them out & play is good but buy 2 of the same
1 to play with the other ones to keep hehe
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Posted - September 04 2010 : 6:28:13 PM
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I've never been a "Hot Wheels" guy....in other words, I've never hung around the toy section of Wal-Mart at 7 AM in a racing t-shirt and worn out blue jeans reaching over the heads of kids to get what I want.
Kidding aside, I always liked toy cars. Even if you didn't get anything else on your trip to the store, you could nearly always get a car. They're still pretty cheap. Here's a few I got recently:
The red/black Bugatti came from the flea market today. I've wanted another one since 1983 when I ground the wheels off mine on the playground. The others all came from a garage sale train set lot.
Lately I've been getting the retro movie/TV character cars. I got the classic and new Batmobiles, Ecto-1, and silver Delorean...not the Back to the Future one but close. I've been through 2 General Lee's in my life due to the abrasive effect of the playground. Somewhere I've also got the Fall Guy's truck, the A-Team van, and who knows what else. I'm going to go dig them out...
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Posted - September 04 2010 : 8:57:39 PM
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quote:I've never been a "Hot Wheels" guy....in other words, I've never hung around the toy section of Wal-Mart at 7 AM in a racing t-shirt and worn out blue jeans reaching over the heads of kids to get what I want.
Kidding aside, I always liked toy cars. ...
Originally posted by burlington77Â -Â September 04 2010Â :Â 6:28:13 PM
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In today's parlance, they're called "door warmers", usually retired guys. And I doubt many Moms would let themselves get dragged out of bed by their kids so they could be first in the store in the early AM after restocking the night before...
That said, I had a brief stint in the '90's when for two years I chased stuff...but that wore me out so I gave up. Now I just take my pleasures where I can. I shop "smart" now - learn the restocking patterns, and hit the stores after they restock. Sometimes it's the middle of a Wednesday, you have to learn your stores. And I only buy what I like, I don't try to get all the Chase or Treasure Hunt cars, I find a few, but I'm not a fanatic about it. Tonight I found a '59 Hotwheels Ecto-1 caddy at Wal-mart. That's a hot HW car nowadays. I think I have 5 of them. I prefer the older stuff (vintage), although Hotwheels has FINALLY seen the light, and started making stock muscle cars again, and different stuff ( remember the Holden Mad Max car? HW has it in yellow right now, I think that's the one that was in the 1st Mad Max movie). Different, yet stock. They are still producing wild cars, but they're also doing more normal muscle cars, and I think that's bringing people back to them, as it's what the adults want. Good job, Mattel / RC2 ! Even Matchbox has some I like, the Volvo P1800S coupe is a neat '60's car, I liked the wagon version, but I'll take the coupe as well. My preference is for older stuff. Anyone find any of those AMC Gremlins or Hornets at Wal-mart where you are? Made by Motor-max, in a light aqua blue angled box, Gremlin is red and black, Hornet Hatchback is red/white/blue. If ANY of you find any, I want several of each, and will pay you a commission. Haven't seen them yet on the east coast, and it's been almost 8 months? since they've been out. I"m getting anxious. I don't wanna miss these cars!
Anyway, my current diecast collection runs from MicroMachines and RC 1/144th, up to some 1/18th scale stuff. Majority is 1/64th, but I have several hundred HO Pacers and Gremlins now, in addition to Malibu Int'l 1/87 stuff.
Probably several thousand cars, most packed away. I could diecast-paper my entire house walls with what I have! LOL. I will do the basement walls with them someday.
I love my diecast, but I don't loiter around stores to get them at opening time, either. I'll leave that to the retirees and scalpers. I'll just buy what I want when I find it.
" When life throws you bananas...it's easy to slip up"
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Posted - September 04 2010 : 9:02:35 PM
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Hi Guys,
Check out loose ends and have a look at the cars I have for sale.There's 500 of them and I NEED to get rid of them. I have no room to display them and I'm sure someone out there would love to have them. All I need is an offer.
Thanks.
Ken
FIDDLEHEAD RAILWAY CO.
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Posted - September 04 2010 : 9:38:04 PM
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quote:They are still producing wild cars, but they're also doing more normal muscle cars, and I think that's bringing people back to them, as it's what the adults want. Good job, Mattel / RC2 ! Even Matchbox has some I like, the Volvo P1800S coupe is a neat '60's car, I liked the wagon version, but I'll take the coupe as well. My preference is for older stuff.
Originally posted by AMC_Gremlin_GTÂ -Â September 04 2010Â :Â 8:57:39 PM
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I agree with this. I don't mind some of the wild fantasy cars, but they got carried away. From what I've seen lately, I like the Matchbox stuff better. I've seen lots of neat realistic utility vehicles...trash trucks, street sweepers, etc...that were tempting.
And for the record, I have a six-year old excuse to hang around toy departments.
Ken: You've got quite a set of cars there, but there just not my thing. I'm sure somebody will be interested.
Edited by - burlington77 on September 04 2010 10:59:31 PM
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Posted - September 04 2010 : 11:12:49 PM
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quote:Hi Guys,
...have a look at the cars I have for sale.There's 500 of them and I NEED to get rid of them..
Thanks.
Ken
Originally posted by Ken - September 04 2010 : 9:02:35 PM
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Only problem with your car selection for me is that they're too NEW, Ken. Not much in the picture I either don't already have (older style models), or don't want ( Camaros, Mustangs, wild cars, etc. don't do a thing for me.) You said you had 500 cars, but if that's the representation of what you have, looks like from the late 90's on up, it's all too new, and not what I'd want. Thanks for posting that, hopefully someone will want it.
Jerry
" When life throws you bananas...it's easy to slip up"
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Posted - September 05 2010 : 12:13:02 AM
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That just happened to be the box I opened. There are cars from 1979 and up and please don't ask me to post them it would take a week to post them all. I lost the list as what is in each box so I would have to search them all to find what anyone wanted that's why I will sell them cheap.
My starting price would be $400.00 thats less than a buck each the boxes are worth that.
Ken
FIDDLEHEAD RAILWAY CO.
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