The Real Cost of LEGO

[Andy D]

Over the years there has been much discussion on the cost of LEGO.

Many look at a LEGO set and determine the real cost or worth by the number of pieces and the total cost of the set and then come up with a price per piece. If the price per piece is around 10 cents it is an OK buy. If the PPP (Price Per Piece) is less than 10 cents per piece then it is considered a good deal. If the PPP is greater than 10 cents per piece it is frowned upon as being too expensive.

A couple of years ago I did a study on LEGO as a cost per gram and came up wit a number, but when I looked further at it, it was not that far off from the PPP we had been using.

Lately I have been looking at LEGO pieces as cost per use. For example I recently assembled a Mobile Crane MK II which cost me about $213 or about 8 cents PPP. Pretty good. But then I disassembled it and assembled the B model. Using the same parts, the cost per use is now 4 cents per piece. Hmmm…. Pretty good! Then I disassembled it again and re-assembeled the A model, at brought the cost per use down to about 2.6 cents per piece. Now if I keep doing this pretty soon the cost per use is going to be less than 1 cents per piece. Now that’s pretty good, you can’t buy anything for 1 cent today, it is almost like free. What do most of us do with our pennies?

So I now submit that LEGO is FREE! Who could ask for a less expensive hobby.

I tired to sell my wife on this, but she looked at me like she thought I was nuts or something, after all she has seem me spend a couple of hundred at a crack at the LEGO store and online.

But I still say, in a certain sense… LEGO is FREE!

Good luck convincing your wives, spouses, family and friends with this new revelation, but, it does sound good in theory.

Just my thoughts for the day,

Andy D

[JGW3000]

Just tell your wife that the more time you are at home playing building MOCs with your LEGO, the less time you are spending at a bar, etc.., think of the savings both in direct dollars and in the intangible benefits as well. Works for me, haven't 'needed' to go to a bar for ages .

[Andy D]

Just tell your wife that the more time you are at home playing building MOCs with your LEGO, the less time you are spending at a bar, etc.., think of the savings both in direct dollars and in the intangible benefits as well. Works for me, haven't 'needed' to go to a bar for ages .

Gee! That's right! I don't remember the last time I was at a bar.

Andy D

Edited June 30, 2016 by Andy D

[anothergol]

Joke aside, I wonder how many adults break their MOCs apart.

When I've spent hours to days to design a MOC, and it costs less than 100eur, I know I'm not gonna disassemble it, other than temporarily if I need a special part that's easily accessable.

[PicnicBasketSam]

One could apply similar reasoning that the City Service Station costs $90 because the main model is $50, and they're charging you an extra $40 for the B-Model. Either for building it, or because some idiot in the marketing division thought that both models could be built at the same time.

Joking aside, your logic is unsound. I'm not getting my money back for rebuilding the model, now, am I?

[davee123]

This makes me wonder-- there are quite a few parts that I NEVER use again, after building the main model. I've never used that gigantic "wing" piece from a few of the airplanes:

So, that's gonna cost me a LOT more than something I use all the time, like, say, white 1x1's with side stud:

I'm wondering something else-- what parts are used by hobbyists the most frequently? And which are used the least? If I took a random sampling of (say) 1000 LDraw/LDD files of various MOCs, which elements and colors would get the most use? Which would be the "most valuable" to an AFOL?

You could probably make a similar statistic using, say, the number sold on BrickLink compared to the number available on BrickLink (though you'd need historical data from BL to figure that out well, I think).

As I think about this, I like the idea of rating a set on its "usefulness" factor. Which sets give you the most bang-for-your-buck, and which ones will give you a lot of fluff you'll never use?

DaveE

[Andy D]

Joke aside, I wonder how many adults break their MOCs apart.

When I've spent hours to days to design a MOC, and it costs less than 100eur, I know I'm not gonna disassemble it, other than temporarily if I need a special part that's easily accessable.

If you want free LEGO you cannot leave them assembled. You must reuse the parts in order to get the cost per use down.

Andy D

This makes me wonder-- there are quite a few parts that I NEVER use again, after building the main model. I've never used that gigantic "wing" piece from a few of the airplanes:

http://www.bricklink.com/PL/54093.gif[/]

As I think about this, I like the idea of rating a set on its "usefulness" factor. Which sets give you the most bang-for-your-buck, and which ones will give you a lot of fluff you'll never use?

DaveE

If you have parts you do not reuse, they are just dragging the cost of your LEGO up.

I like the usfulness factor for parts.

Andy D

[HawkLord]

I'll just add that legonused to be a bit cheaper when there were more promos and whatnot. I consider getting free sets with purchase or exclusive minifigures to occasionally offset the cost of Lego, because I can sell the ones I don't want on the secondary to reduce overall costs.

The same with buying sets in general. For example, I bought multiple copies of the Star Wars Cantina and sold the extra minifigures which helped reduce the cost of the set itself by at least half. Considering I bought the extra copies to expand on the Cantina, this made the overall build considerably cheaper. Given lines like Star Wars and Marvel where the minifigures are highly collectible but appear often throughout the years, I can sell extras or ones that are almost dupes and not feel like I'm missing out.

[SevenStuds]

If you think of "pay per use over time" then it certainly brings down the impression of its initial high cost.

I personally think that having a Bricklink store has made this hobby much more affordable. I was surprised as to how quickly a small box of unwanted parts can accumulate to hundreds of euros. With careful buying and selling it can be a cost neutral hobby.

[Andrzej777]

PPP ratio is theoretically interesting, however, it can be misleading. Lego sets consist of lots of small parts.

To me its the minifigs that are included, no matter the ppp ratio. If I can get some nice historic minifigs I can overlook useless parts or a bad ppp ratio.

Pay per use doesnt convince me. In the end its about the money I invest and what I can do with the parts that I got.

Edited July 1, 2016 by Andrzej777

[antp]

I find that "pay per use" concept interesting to take in account.

Indeed there are probably some sets bought for parts that were more interesting than others in that way, because their parts came handy.

In the same way, the pick-a-brick cups give a nice ppp for large amount of identical parts, but until you find a way to use them they are just a waste of space and money

[Captain Green Hair]

I never demolish my MOCs, so it is far from free haha!

[Andy D]

Please put your coffee down, reading this post may cause spewing on your computer from laughter!

Really, if you want free LEGO there is something you must do, that is to assemble each set multiple times, the more times you assemble, disassemble, assmble the lower the cost.

If you buy a set and leave it in the box or assemble it one time... You pay full price.

If you assemble then disassemble and reassemble 2 times, you pay half price.

If you assemble, disassemble 4 times you are starting to get the price down real good.

But, if you want free LEGO you must assemble and disassemble 8 times before putting the pieces into your MOC inventory.

I know it is a lot of work, but free stuff requires a lot of work!

I have very little free LEGO (none) in fact some still in the box for years, no time, to assemble the first time, I have lots of sets that were just bought for parts, maybe assembled once, then quickly disassembled and put into my inventory. So my much of my LEGO likely costs more than full price.

Tongue back in cheek...

Andy D

[JGW3000]

Another consideration is to compare the cost of other activities. If I take two kids to the movies, plus popcorn, etc... we are entertained for about two hours, at a cost of maybe $7 per hour per person. On the other hand, if I buy a flagship Technic set for $240, then take 8 hours to build it split amongst the three of us (me and two kids), then 2 hours to tear apart, then 8 hours to build the B-model - so far its $15/hr for the build experience. Then factor in all of the time spent swooshing and playing with the model and later MOC'ing with the same parts, the final cost can easily drop to $5/hr or less - so from an entertainment perspective, a large upfront investment of $240 yields very cost effective entertainment, and unlike a movie or other activity, is not fleeting but persistent.

[VintageLegoEra]

I am already doing this since long time and indeed a great money make

[Littleworlds]

I'm not a fan of buying sets away from the market and resell the minifigs on the 2nd market. Instead I simply buy it used - at carbooth sales/flea markets or at the occasional ebay auction, if you don't mind the grab bag/lucky bag spirit I actually like this a lot, since its a good randomizer that can point you into directions you haven't thought of before - and its cheap! For specialized parts, one can still add up pieces from bricklink.

[Andy D]

I can't believe he amount of serious conversation this little thread has caused. I posted this originally just for fun, as I am always trying to find something humerous to kid my wife with. My concept of free LEGE just made her roll her eyes.

I think JWG3000 was the only one to "get" the joke.

Just trying to lighten the day,

Andy D

[Littleworlds]

(...)Just trying to lighten the day,

Andy D

Never joke with addicts

Yes, that includes me too

[Andy D]

Never joke with addicts

Yes, that includes me too

Ha, ha, ha! Guess my humor is just too dry. Maybe I need to add water or bourbon or something...

Andy D

[Mesabi]

And once again, math sends the economy into chaos

[davidroberts01341]

A friend who is an antique dealer used to tease me about buying and building Lego. Then he discovered that unsorted, second hand Lego is worth more per kilo than scrap brass. Now he's buying Lego whenever he comes across it and stockpiling it for his daughter is old enough to play with it!

My Mum & Dad always reckoned that, in terms of pounds spent per hours of play, Lego was by far the best value for money that they spent on toys for me. This is still very much the case, as some of the pieces that I still use now date back to my early childhood in the 1970s.

[splatman]

Another way to look at it: The first time you use a set, it costs ~10 ¢/piece. The second time, and every time thereafter, it is Free.

[Andy D]

Another way to look at it: The first time you use a set, it costs ~10 ¢/piece. The second time, and every time thereafter, it is Free.

Good luck selling that to your wife or husband or friends or family! I couldn't even sell my idea.

Andy D

[Aanchir]

This was a funny thread to read, but also strangely on-point. Not to say that I truly believe "LEGO is free", but I do believe I get a lot more value for my money than I would for other toys or even other creative products like art supplies. A few years ago I was studying Industrial Design in college, and some of my classes had extensive material lists, and I'd have to buy new materials on a frequent basis. Not only was it a chore, but too often it felt like pouring money down the drain (especially when I was told I bought the wrong material after buying exactly what the material list described, an experience which is mostly in line with what a nightmare that school was for me in general). But LEGO is different. Generally, outside of the occasional defective parts which Customer Service is typically happy to replace, it has lasting value, unlike things like paints or clay that run out when you've finished using all of what you bought.

[Andy D]

This was a funny thread to read, but also strangely on-point. Not to say that I truly believe "LEGO is free", but I do believe I get a lot more value for my money than I would for other toys or even other creative products like art supplies. A few years ago I was studying Industrial Design in college, and some of my classes had extensive material lists, and I'd have to buy new materials on a frequent basis. Not only was it a chore, but too often it felt like pouring money down the drain (especially when I was told I bought the wrong material after buying exactly what the material list described, an experience which is mostly in line with what a nightmare that school was for me in general). But LEGO is different. Generally, outside of the occasional defective parts which Customer Service is typically happy to replace, it has lasting value, unlike things like paints or clay that run out when you've finished using all of what you bought.

Strange that you mention art supplies. I look at LEGO pieces as the ultimate reuseable art supply.

Andy D