Maegnus

Coming up on a year later, and I think an update is in order for anyone curious or on the fence about this hobby. No regrets yet. In fact, utterly relieved is still how I feel about going through with this. The idea to sell all my Lego came at a time when I was going through many changes, and it was definitely a necessary step in my personal development. I had a picture in my head of a new me that has slowly been materializing, and there was no room in that picture for plastic bricks. In retrospect, the amount of money I spent on the stuff was ludicrous. I was on a one-way track to having an entire room walled with Lego, which at one point was a dream that I was working toward, but I eventually realized that it was not how I wanted to spend my life. I'd rather spend my time with friends or experiencing new things than building models in my basement until 4:00am. Even when I managed to find a nice balance with the hobby and not let it consume me, the rewards of collecting and building simply weren't there like they were when I was younger. Even my close friends, who thought my Lego hobby was awesome, agree that it was holding me back and tell me I've changed for the better. With the money saved, I've spent over a year devoting myself to improving my image by building a professional wardrobe, working out for the first time in my life, and developing my social skills. I look and feel better than ever, and spend my time surrounded with the people I love. Do I still think Lego is cool? Absolutely. I still check blogs and check out future sets, but have no desire to own any of it. A year ago, if I knew Lego LOTR was coming out, I would have freaked out and dropped a grand on it with no hesitation. Today, I admire the sets online, and leave it at that. I might still regret selling it in five or ten years when my life is more established, but I see myself taking up other hobbies then, like musical instruments or physical activities. I hope someone gets some perspective from my experience. I still consider myself an AFOL.

Had another potential buyer go MIA and cease communication. This lot is back up as far as I'm concerned.

Hi Brett, Thanks for your interest. I currently have a couple buyers who both seem interested. One is pretty close to me. I will keep you posted.

Looks like the deal I had pending has fallen through. Trying to garner some more interest in this as one big lot.

FYI I'm getting a lot of responses about this. At the moment, I am only considering full sales for everything, and currently have one pending. Thanks for the interest!

Great post. I really appreciate your wisdom!

Gatineau (right next to Ottawa)

I'm definitely seriously considering this. I doubt I'd hate or love myself for selling; it feels like the logical thing to do right now, and I doubt I would lose sleep over it. I've milked it for many years, and it might be time to move on. It's been in the back of my mind for at least a year. I haven't had the time to touch the stuff, and I haven't really missed it. If anything, I feel like it is kind of holding me back/weighing me down. My mind isn't fully made up, but I'm leaning toward getting rid of it all. I'd keep my custom polar express train for my christmas tree, but that's about it. That's the type of deal I'd probably prefer. If someone was willing to champ it out and drive a truck here, I'd definitely give them a deal. If anyone is remotely interested, PM me and I can give you some photos and a better sense of what I've got.

Yeah and I think it makes sense to try and sell it as one chunk and leave the valuable stuff in there, instead of selling what I know would go fast (e.g. modular buildings or every batman fig ever made) and ending up with a bunch of bricks I can't get rid of.

I doubt this is going to happen, based solely on the fact that it would present a logistical nightmare. I am considering selling my entire collection of Lego, most of which is broken down into towers of drawers. Shipping it would be impossible. I could potentially open up a BL store, but part of my problem is I don't have anywhere near the time it would take to build any of these sets back. I have a lot of stuff that is rare and worth a decent amount of coin. Just going through Brickset and checking off the sets that I know I own since 2005, it gives me a $6700 US retail price, of which many sets were surely missed, some sets were multiples, and excluding my entire childhood collection from 1990-2005 (oh, and the other entire collection I bought off a man who grew up with classic space in the 70s and 80s). There's also my extensive minifigure part collection, and the probably $2000 I've spent on BL orders (~300 orders) and third party elements. If I had to give a rough estimate of what everything is worth, I'd say $15,000-$20,000. Hard to say. Some of it is very sorted, while some is loose in bins that could use a hose down (old sets in there are dusty). Obviously I'd like to sell it all in one shot, but I highly doubt anyone has the means or the money to do so. I know some of you have bought/sold entire collections in the past. Care to share some insight/experience? Something tells me the local classifieds won't get me any serious offers. I'd probably be looking for at least $5,000 for everything, which I can't see anyone in this community having disposable. My brickset inventory Am I insane? Just thinking out loud here. I haven't had the time for the stuff in the last few years, and I don't see myself regretting it if I got out of the hobby altogether. But I'm in my early 20s, and I know many of you will say to sit on it for 10 years, and then I will be glad to have kept them when my career is more settled. Such a dilemma. Can you guys direct me to threads of others who have wrestled with this (I couldn't find much with a search)? Thanks for your support.

WOW! I did not expect that when I opened this topic! I'm so honoured Thanks so much to everyone who was involved in this amazingly run contest. All of the entries are stunning, and I can't wait to see what other creations you all dream up. Congrats to Clark, Jalkow, and Cutlass IZ!

As much as I'm not crazy about the colour scheme, I do love all the Wipeout games, and this definitely looks faithful to the series. Very nice work. Makes me wanna play!

Is that a bowler hat the clown is wearing? God I hope they release one in green so I can finally make a proper suited up Riddler

Awesome job. Keep at it!

4 words: u da man buds Seriously though, the 1000 piece limit is difficult enough; you handicapped yourself even further by making a purple building!? Loves it.

This is incredibly promising. I can already imagine how those windows are going to fit in. 1000 pieces is gonna be tight, but she is gonna be a beauty!

Link to the flickr set

Heck yes it is! I knew you'd pull through with a fantastic entry; glad that I could inspire it in a way. I never would have thought to display the three brooms that way. Highly creative and highly effective. The triple windows also help to subtly tie together the theme. I love everything about the front entrance hallway. I also like that you didn't try to do too much with it and cram it full of stuff. It's nice and open for minfigs the way I picture the pub. Wonderful work!

Lovin the progress pics. It's really starting to come alive and show a lot of promise. Keep it up!

That arm technique is so simple yet looks so incredible. Amazing work.

Reference photos: Any other 80s kids around here who grew up with this awesome toy? MOC: Link to the flickr set I could have had custom decals made for this for added accuracy, but instead I used vintage glow in the dark stickers I got from ebay unopened from 1990. They were too cool not to use, and I think they fit nicely and help drive the context home a bit better than "foot stinks" for the layman. It also has a wind up motor applied to the back wheels for added play value.

Awesome idea with awesome execution! Juxtaposing both worlds in one scene was a great idea.

Epic! The mini fire brigade is spot on!

Customizing figs isn't my game. I just like to include a few figs with my models to add a little extra context. I try to keep them as purist as I can, but if an easy mod will help achieve a better look then I will do it. A few cut stickers here and there, but nothing more than that. As long as they are recognizable.

Link to the flickr set The overall curvy egg-like shape of this ship was pretty challenging to capture. It does have an interior, but you can only see it by looking through the eyes (I wasn't able to get a good picture). It would have been too compromising to the structure to allow it to open up, and my models are more for display than play. That said, this sucker is sturdy as a rock. I'm not totally happy with the figs, but they do the job for now.