Your opinions wanted! (God help me)

I

Istanbul

Guest
I've been considering selling my collection.

Now, BEFORE you all cry out 'No, don't! You may want to play again sometime!', allow me to clear up a few things.

I have three 'collections', one might say. One collection contains 4 of every common and 4 of every uncommon. That, I intend to keep, as it's true; I MAY want to make more decks, and I haven't stopped playing.

One collection contains my trade binder. Rares, foils, good uncommons, stuff like that there. I have no intention of selling that, either, though I HAVE been trimming it down lately.

One collection consists of my sets. I get one of each card in any given set, and hang on to them, putting them in binders. THAT is the collection I'm considering selling.

The collection consists of:
About a dozen Alpha cards (including miscut Crusade, Ice Storm, Lightning Bolt, Dark Ritual)
About 1/2 of a Beta set (including Berserk, Dark Ritual, Lightning Bolt, Llanowar Elves, Sinkhole, Time Vault, and my pride and joy, a Black Lotus in EX condition)
A nearly-complete Unlimited set (missing the P9 and a few duals, as well as stuff like Word of Command, Forcefield, and Gauntlet of Might)
A full Revised set
A full 4th Edition set
A full 5th Edition set
A full 6th Edition set
A nearly-complete Arabian Nights set (Juzam no, Library no, Ali from Cairo yes)
A full Antiquities set
A full Legends set
A full The Dark set
A full Fallen Empires set
A full Ice Age set
A full Alliances set
A full Chronicles set
A full Mirage set
A full Visions set
A full Weatherlight set
A full Tempest set
A full Stronghold set
A full Exodus set
A full Unglued set
A full Mercadian Masques set
A full Nemesis set
A full Prophecy set

I guess my question is...how much would you think that all of these would be worth? I don't want to sell my collection if I'm not gonna get a healthy sum for it, but it's currently sitting in my closet collecting dust.

Price check on Aisle 1?
 

Killer Joe

New member
Although I'm sure you've considered this, you might want to start by checking out Inquest's price guide for sets. That's a start, good God knows that Inquest doesn't have the best of judgement.
Also, wouldn't "E-Bay" be a another good start? I mean, try auctioning off one or two of your sets and how THAT works.
Lastly, IMHO, I'm not sure if there ARE many "Collectors", per se, out there in magic land. I know only one guy who collects sets and that's it.
Good Luck to ya!
 
I

Istanbul

Guest
I've never seen anything like what I'm offering for sale on eBay. I don't want to sell one set at a time. I want to sell the whole thing, or not at all.
 
H

Hetemti

Guest
Go to the cardshop and see what they sell their sets for. That's what it's approxamatly worth plus markup.

Now find some people who are looking for sets, and see what they offer.

Make an average, and you have a good evaluation.

Then add a bit more and sell.

Ebay is rough to sell on, because while a high demand will net you major bucks, if demand is low, you get reamed.
 
M

Mr_Pestilence

Guest
As much as I hate to say this, you'd be better off breaking up the sets and selling off the "chase" cards.

I say I hate it, because I am a collector too, and I have complete sets going back to The Dark, and about half the cards necessary to complete Legends, Antiquities, Arabian Nights and Unlimited. I am pursuing these sets, but being both very critical in terms of card condition and lacking infinite cash, this will take me a while. But, that's what hobbies are for.

There are apparently not a lot of collectors who appreciate the effort necessary to complete sets, who are also willing to pay a decent price to get them.

I would suggest putting them on ebay, with a reasonable reserve price, and see what it fetches.

Good Luck, and report back your findings.
 
M

Mundungu

Guest
First you have of course to estimate what it is worth, whereas the beta black lotus alone shoud net you a nice sum. and you could maybe think of selling it separatly, or say something like you'll throw it in if the auction goes over a certain sum.

Dont forget that if you go to E-Bay, you can always set a reserve price to protect your investment.

From my gut feelings I'd say it could fetch at least 3000 USD.

I'll buy the whole from you (without the BLack lotus, if necessary,) for a whooping 500 USD.

:)
 
I

Istanbul

Guest
Aheh. Sorry. I wouldn't sell the Legends set *alone* for $500.
 

Spiderman

Administrator
Staff member
Honestly, I think you're going to find very few people who are willing to buy the entire thing from you, even depending on the price, since it's all or nothing. That kind of condition will knock out a lot of people.

But I guess the thing to do is to estimate each set, add it up, and knock off a little discount <shrug>
 
I

Istanbul

Guest
Hmmm. Do you think I'd get buyers if I split it up like this?

Partial Alpha set
Partial Beta set
Partial Unlimited set
Partial Arabian Night set
Full Antiquities set
Full Legends set
Full Dark set
Full Revised set
Full 4th Edition set
Full 5th Edition set
Full 6th Edition set
Ice Age block (Full Fallen Empires set, full Ice Age set, full Alliances set, full Homelands set)
Mirage block (Full Mirage set, full Visions set, full Weatherlight set)
Tempest block (Full Tempest set, full Stronghold set, full Exodus set)
Urza's block (Full Urza's Saga set, full Urza's Legacy set, full Urza's Destiny set)
Masques block (Full Masques set, full Nemesis set, full Prophecy set)

....wherein each was its own sale?
 

Spiderman

Administrator
Staff member
That'd probably be better. If the demand for the blocks aren't all that great, you can think about breaking them into selling them by sets.
 
M

Mr_Pestilence

Guest
I've seen complete sets of ARABIAN NIGHTS sell for less than $500.

Again, good luck.
 
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