Some of My LEGO Train Collection (12V & PF)

[Konrad]

Hey guys n gals , I am posting up videos of some of my collection on youtube. I posted a few so far, and I figured y'all like to see!

The 12v have the pick up pins taped up, and are powered by, believe it or not, stock 4.5v battery cars with regular batteries!!! No cutting , no mods

Edited February 18, 2012 by Konrad

[LEGO Train 12 Volts]

The 12v are powered by, believe it or not, stock 4.5v battery cars with regular batteries!!! No cutting , no mods

This layout is great, and the 12v locomotive powered by a 4,5 battery pack is absolutely unbelievable!

[Konrad]

This layout is great, and the 12v locomotive powered by a 4,5 battery pack is absolutely unbelievable!

Works GREAT!!! I highly recommend using 4.5V battery boxes to power 12V motors on PF or non 12V rails. As you can see, it runs pretty fast and pulls quite a train!

I am picking up more 4.5V boxes to power all my 12V ers on PF track. The only "mod" needed is to scotch tape the 12v pins up into the motor, since they are super springy simple scotch tape works great, and the trains to not get stuck on points!

[StephanSz]

Works GREAT!!! I highly recommend using 4.5V battery boxes to power 12V motors on PF or non 12V rails. As you can see, it runs pretty fast and pulls quite a train!

I am picking up more 4.5V boxes to power all my 12V ers on PF track. The only "mod" needed is to scotch tape the 12v pins up into the motor, since they are super springy simple scotch tape works great, and the trains to not get stuck on points!

Interesting idea, battery powered 12v trains on PF rails...

Not very fast though, maybe a 12v battery pack speeds it up.

I would like to run my 7740 unmodified on PF rails and the batteries would fit into the mailcar.

Nice experiment for this weekend :)

[Konrad]

What do you guys think? Also I cannot post in the for sale section here?

I am not gonna give a list of things because thats the purpose of this thread, although it is quite large. I am sort of in a life metamorphosis and the money I get from the legos I could invest slightly into my car, and the rest into travelling and going to where I want to be...

I am so heavily torn, on one hand I love them, and all the other legos too which I would have to sell too, on the other hand half the stuff is factory sealed that I bought before they went discontinued and marked up in price. ( my collection ranges from 4.5v to 12v to 9v to rc to pf.) not to mention my town, technics, pirates etc.

I am 27 years old, and I don't know what to do, can someone with similar age and experience help me out here??? I am leaving for San Diego regardless ( I am in toronto at the moment) so the stuff would have to stay with my folks for a few years.)

[Fugazi]

Only more established members (100+ posts) can open topics in the Buy, Sale, Trade and Finds forum. This was done to avoid members signing up only to sell their LEGO.

[Duq]

I can't say I'm of similar age, I was your age when I came back to Lego. My childhood Lego was kept in my parents' attic for 14 years until I came back to it and I'm glad I/they kept it.

Yes, you can sell it all for some cash to get yourself some flash wheels. There are other ways to get the cash though, and believe it or not, there's more to life than your car. Building your current collection back up in a years to come will be very difficult...

My advice would be to leave your collection with your parents for now if they have the space and be patient with the car-upgrade.

[Vindicare]

I agree with Duq. I am always kicking myself for not keeping my childhood sets. I spent a good amount reclaiming some of them. That money could've gone to more new stuff. I'm a car guy as well and I love modding my car, but I wouldn't sell any of my collection to do so. I guess you need to think on which you enjoy more, your LEGO or your car.

[Bamos]

Cars are a bad investment from the beginning. No matter how much time and money you put into them you will never get your money back when you sell.

Also California is one of the most expensive states in the U.S. to live in. Your car may meet smog regulations no modifications to cars are allowed there and the us health care system will take most of your money you have left.

Bill

Edited February 19, 2013 by Bamos

[Konrad]

Cars are a bad investment from the beginning. No matter how much time and money you put into them you will never get your money back when you sell.

Also California is one of the most expensive states in the U.S. to live in. Your car may meet smog regulations no modifications to cars are allowed there and the us health care system will take most of your money you have left.

Bill

Would you believe it is actually cheaper then Toronto Canada? My family lives in California, and I can tell you they pay less for food, housing, gas, clothing, and most basic necessities...

[Hey Joe]

Would you believe it is actually cheaper then Toronto Canada? My family lives in California, and I can tell you they pay less for food, housing, gas, clothing, and most basic necessities...

Yes of course but what about health care?

Joe

[dr_spock]

It doesn't seem like you brought your Lego with you to Toronto. All those trains for sale sounds tempting.

[DaveBey]

My LEGO sat in my folks' attic for a while and I'm glad they kept everything. My wife on the other hand...

Growing up, I was into many different themes (or as many as I could since there weren't many to begin with) but since I've got back into LEGO, I've limited myself to the types/themes of sets I buy. If you need money now, perhaps you could sell some sets from themes in which you're no longer interested.

As an auto enthusiast, I've spent untold amounts of my money on my pickup truck but would never consider selling any of my LEGO. Fortunately, I got my truck where I wanted just before I got back into LEGO so my money isn't torn between go-fast parts and LEGO. Planning the work you want to do to your car is a good place to start. Also plan out your travelling and when you want to do so. Consider the costs associated with both, when you want to everything accomplished, and you should have a good place to start. Does your current and expected income allow you to accomplish what you want in the time you allowed?

If you're this torn about it, keep the LEGO as it sounds like you'd regret selling even part of your collection. Since part of your collection sounds like an investment, save it for when you really need the money. On the other hand, if you do decide to sell, please keep me in mind as a buyer!

Hope this helps and best of luck!

Cheers from Claremore, Oklahoma USA!

Dave

[Phoxtane]

The sealed stuff will only continue to go up in value the longer you hold on to it!

[Vicviper789]

I am 23 and just started playing with my collection again after about 10 years. I am really glad I didn't sell them when I was younger. In my opinion, I would keep them if I were you. Since you took the time to post, you clearly like them a lot. At the very least you could save them for your children (or an older you!). Eventually you are going to settle down after your metamorphosis, chances are you will want to have your old hobby back. Another point is that the value only goes up, so if you hold off you are definitely not using money. As mentioned before, there are other ways to get money. Even a part time job for a few months would put just as much money in your pocket I would imagine.

[Konrad]

I am working full time and have been for the last 7 months. Its not enough. I paid off all my debt but other then that I don't have a penny to my name.

[Dan-147]

I am working full time and have been for the last 7 months. Its not enough. I paid off all my debt but other then that I don't have a penny to my name.

I feel for you. I went through the same thing in the late 80s early 90s. Back then, I didn't know there was a market for my LEGO sets, othewise I might have sold them. In the end, I pulled through without selling my LEGO. If I had sold them, I might not have gone back to the hobby. That being said, it's your call. I know how hard it can be to work all the time and not be able to afford anything. Weather or not you sell them, better times will come and I wish you the best in everything.

Dan-147

[Ayato Zechs]

Hey, I'm 27, and I feel your pain. Keep the Lego sets, that you want. I now that's easier said than done, but really think about it. I can understand getting a car, getting financially stable and set for life. But, I will say this, don't sell all of them (I sold a bunch of other non-Lego stuff as well). There will be a time when Lego comes back into your life, and you will be glad you kept the ones you enjoyed. I know I did. I didn't mind selling some of my sets, but I could not get rid of my trains. With proper planning, there will come a time when you can enjoy Lego again. I hope this helps.

[andythenorth]

If it doesn't give you pleasure, sell it, let other people enjoy it.

Funny thing Lego, there's a lot of fun in the experience of playing with it. But pleasure in owning it? There are hundreds of millions of these ABS parts in the world, are the ones you've got especially significant for you?

Edited February 20, 2013 by andythenorth

[Konrad]

Alright, for the time being , the lego stays, I can't even begin to sort it all out and I can't part with it. Thanks you guys.

[Locomotive Annie]

Good decision, whenever I've sold off things like that I've always regretted it afterwards.

And besides if you had managed to sort it all and package it up for sale you can depend that people will moan because there was a brick short, or that some plates were yellowed, or there's playwear, or the postage is too much........

I went through all that when I sold my tinplate train collection. For all the trouble it caused me I would've been better off just leaving it packed away in the cupboard..

[zephyr1934]

You might want to rebalance your collection (much as you will likely do some day with your retirement fund). First off, spend a few months getting a feel for what things are worth. Watch ebay and bricklink sales for some of the sets you have. With sets that old NIB you will likely find that some are worth A LOT more on the market than they are to you. Meanwhile, that dream set from your youth might be surprisingly cheap (some of the sets from my youth that are most valuable to me on a personal level are dirt cheap on the open market). Or if you don't care about NIB, sell the NIB set and buy a good used version of the same set. Or if you are kicking yourself because you didn't pick up set X when it was MSRP, sell set Y at equally inflated prices and use that money to jump over to set X. Just don't start buying more until you've sold some, keep it revenue neutral.

[Konrad]

All these sets are for sale now, pm please!

[Konrad]

Guys, everything is up for grabs, I am not posting here as per forum rules.

PM please for a list, pics , etc , I have A LOT in all genres, a ton in trains.

Edited March 19, 2013 by Konrad

[spzero]

You will regret selling it, one day you may have your own children and what a great hobby, I regret getting rid of my LEGO and infact I have a couple of hobbies LEGO and Radio controlled cars I cant stay away and have invested thousands and often have to sell on at a loss and buy it all back again, when the prices go up. I have done that a few times with Radio controleld cars but Ive always been able to make money out of them too, I have an eye for a bargain. With lego it can be an investment but with RC's unless its sealed in a box for years its money down the drain but its tremendous fun>

So the moral is dont sell but its an investment if your terribly skint one day maybe sell some things to get you thru, but just work hard when you can and invest in Gold. lol