How do you know if you really want a set?

[Iysk]

Frankly, before VIP, I never really worried about money since I never paid for it myself but I know a lot of money was invested into the Bionicles that are now dismantled. (6 toas nuvas, rahkshi, Takanuva, Makuta, Bohrak Va, etc).

Now that it's been 7 years, I use my own money, but I've finally managed to get the +$100 mark and I can't help but feel guilty for spending so much on Legos. I got the free 5 dollars today thanks to the PAB cup and minifigures (but missing out on the Gateway of the Squid). I mean, I want more, but this plastic crack addition is costly. I know there's worse things to spend money on, but there are also better things too. I also fear that waiting it out (for hopes of a sale) will inevitably lead to never getting it when it's sold out.

I'm sure someone will say "get the sets you want most" but I'm not too sure what to build, I would want to build go-karts and a house boat (Think Merry-Go from One Piece, for use on the 7075 boat hull). I know I want to build but the more I get, the more I like the structures/figures too much to customize/deconstruct for the parts it uses, which intention was to use on MOCs. But the problem wit that is not using it at all or buying a second one.

Edited January 14, 2011 by Iysk

[Brickdoctor]

You mean there's something (other than necessities like food) to buy that's better than LEGO?

Kidding aside, since you obviously want these for the pieces, not minifigs or to complete a theme, I'd make some prototypes using the bricks you already have, and then use Bricklink to find out which of the sets in question has the most useful selection of pieces.

And shouldn't this go in 'What LEGO Set should I Buy?'

[Iysk]

You mean there's something (other than necessities like food) to buy that's better than LEGO?

Kidding aside, since you obviously want these for the pieces, not minifigs or to complete a theme, I'd make some prototypes using the bricks you already have, and then use Bricklink to find out which of the sets in question has the most useful selection of pieces.

And shouldn't this go in 'What LEGO Set should I Buy?'

Hm, I guess. I'll just remove my set listings since I seem to be kinda of a newbie here and forget about all-encompassing topics to make this more a discussion.

Edited January 14, 2011 by Iysk

[Henchmen4Hire]

Well, I collect action figures, so in order to pay for that addiction I got into customizing action figures. A solid custom can sell for $30 and up, so splash a little paint on a toy and suddenly you have enough money to buy 5 more.

With LEGOs it's not so easy, I still haven't found a way to have it be a self-sustaining hobby like the action figures (I find that people generally don't want to buy a custom set built by you, or they'd rather buy the pieces themselves). Currently I do trade my customs for LEGO though, so it helps ease the costs.

[lifeinplastic]

One way to look at it is if you are no longer a child and are still collecting Lego, it's not something you will now likely grow out of so any Lego you buy you can keep forever! It's not like paying for something which will need replacing or something which you will grow out of or will become unfashionable by next season. Also, the more Lego you have the more possibilities you have to build.

As I collect sets for parts, I tend to calculate the Price to 'Parts I Want' ratio in each set and if I feel paying that much per piece is reasonable then I will consider buying it. If the ratio falls below my evaluation then I will feel it isn't money well spent. You should also bear in mind whether you can obtain the parts elsewhere in other sets or sites like Bricklink.

I like to budget for how much I should spend and then if I ever receive any 'bonus' additional income above what I usually get then I won't feel guilty about buying Lego with it, e.g. I sometimes offer to work additional hours. As long as you work within your budget then don't worry. As I said before - Lego is for life - how many other things can you spend money on that will be with you forever?

[ziljin]

I do my best to think each purchase through thoroughly. The main problem would be lots of thinking might cause you to miss out on sales. And of course the fact that plans can always change.

At first I bought sets with the intention of creating sci fi vehicle mocs and bought some power miners and city vehicle sets. That way I could use the power miners pieces to scifi up the city vehicles. But I changed my mind after buying the sets and wanted to do castle mocs. So then I bought the Kingdoms sets and Prince of Persia (they are castley).

I was thinking of getting something like the Fire Brigade because of the price/piece but I thought about it and it certainly does have lots of pieces, but a lot of them are not as castle friendly as say the Kingdoms King's Castle. The King's Castle certainly has is more expensive in terms of price per piece but it has more castle friendly pieces like the gate piece, 2 medieval doors, 2 medieval windows, arches, wall panels and turrets (which not everyone loves but its a nice way to pad out the castle walls) and its mostly gray which is the vital color for castle building.

I think I might have to pick up a second King's Castle. third even if toys r us has a buy one get 1 half free (I should have bought 3 when they had the buy 2 get 3rd free sale months ago but I was too busy thinking it through and missed out on the sale).

EDIT: Long story short, you to do a cost benefit analysis. Look up what pieces you get from the set on bricklink, compare to other sets you want. See which ones has the more appealing pieces at a cheaper price. Etc.

Edited January 15, 2011 by lego40k

[benhead]

I buy the sets that have some new special piece that I dont have then I try to find one that has the greatest number.Like the technic pneumatic t-joint piece(so many uses!)and the 1x2 slope(great for breaking up the blockyness of a creation).

For the cost of legos?I saved for 3 months to buy the ultimate collector star destroyer(3500 pieces!)Then felt guilty for spending $250 untill I got to build it.It was worth the dough!

[Follows Closely]

I do my best to think each purchase through thoroughly. The main problem would be lots of thinking might cause you to miss out on sales. And of course the fact that plans can always change.

At first I bought sets with the intention of creating sci fi vehicle mocs and bought some power miners and city vehicle sets. That way I could use the power miners pieces to scifi up the city vehicles. But I changed my mind after buying the sets and wanted to do castle mocs. So then I bought the Kingdoms sets and Prince of Persia (they are castley).

I was thinking of getting something like the Fire Brigade because of the price/piece but I thought about it and it certainly does have lots of pieces, but a lot of them are not as castle friendly as say the Kingdoms King's Castle. The King's Castle certainly has is more expensive in terms of price per piece but it has more castle friendly pieces like the gate piece, 2 medieval doors, 2 medieval windows, arches, wall panels and turrets (which not everyone loves but its a nice way to pad out the castle walls) and its mostly gray which is the vital color for castle building.

I think I might have to pick up a second King's Castle. third even if toys r us has a buy one get 1 half free (I should have bought 3 when they had the buy 2 get 3rd free sale months ago but I was too busy thinking it through and missed out on the sale).

EDIT: Long story short, you to do a cost benefit analysis. Look up what pieces you get from the set on bricklink, compare to other sets you want. See which ones has the more appealing pieces at a cheaper price. Etc.

I purchased 4 of the King's Castle for the same reason as you. I also picked up 4 of the Fire Brigade as well. There is a lot of bley in that set. I also like the dark red for castle building.

[ziljin]

Well I ordered my first Prison Tower Rescue and second Battle of Alamut (for tan, white and medium dark flesh pieces). I haven't even touched my first King's Castle yet. But I was looking at the bags and wow so many awesome pieces. I think I will have to get a second one even if at full price. I hope to get a second Prison Tower Rescue to get more black castle pieces.

[Iysk]

So I'm guessing it's parts for price ratios to get your money's worth?

[Brickdoctor]

So I'm guessing it's parts for price ratios to get your money's worth?

That's just a general guideline, because there's also colors, size, and rarity of pieces to take into account.

[ziljin]

So I'm guessing it's parts for price ratios to get your money's worth?

I would suggest going to bricklink and checking out the inventory. Another long post.

If this is just for "Display on shelf" Get the higher piece count to price ratio sets of the ones that you really want.

If this is for MOC's, then ask yourself what do you really want to build now and in the future. And what kind of pieces do you want for said creations.

A high piece count is not necessarily good. Like some sets have lots of cheese slopes, studs, horns, and other tiny pieces that you may not find useful but the set has like 50 of them. For example, for Castles. Compare Fire Brigade to Kingdoms King's Castle. The Fire Brigade has the higher piece count to price ratio. But when you look at the bricklink to both, King's Castle has a similar amount of gray bricks, but costs significantly less. And it also has Castle suitable pieces, like the Kingdoms minifigs, the wall panels (which can be used as replacement for bricks in your castle), medieval windows and doors, a horse.

So if you just want a gray castle you would choose the King's Castle. But maybe you want a gray castle, but also want some red pieces for some other creation or to bring some color to your castle. Fire Brigade has like 100 red bricks, while King's Castle has zero. So then the Fire Brigade would be a better choice.