PlaymoFriends
General => News => Topic started by: Timotheos on August 12, 2008, 11:51:36
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Do you have a method for determining whether a set is a good value?
Sometimes I buy duplicates of a set for the parts. When doing this, I want to roughly figure out whether the whole set is a good value, or whether I should take the DS option.
My rule of thumb for the American market is:
1 adult figure = $3
1 horse = $4
1 child figure = $2
If after applying that formula to a set, my estimated value is equal to or less than the cost of the set, I consider the set a good value.
Example:
The Target sets that come with two knights and one horse (regardless of other pieces) are good values because they retail for $9.99 and my estimate places them at 2 * $3 + 1 * $4 = $10.
All Target specials are good values because $2 < $3. Ethnic family sets are not good values because 2 * $3 (adults) + 2 * $2 (children) = $10 versus cost of $11. So I'm not going to buy a ton of ethnic family sets purely for the parts.
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Does anybody have a similar system? If my estimates are a little high, they partially account for the presence of other parts in the set (the figure comes with accessories; the horse comes with harness).
Obviously, you could keep a spreadsheet with DS part costs or a breakdown of actual sets and use a complicated normalization algorithm to be more precise. But then it wouldn't be a "rule of thumb".
-Tim
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In the UK I use the following rule of thumb:
1 adult figure = £2
1 horse = £3
1 motorbike = £4
Haven't really considered children, but £1.50 is about right.
Specials are £2.00, three packs £6 on Playmobil UK, single DS figures £2, family groups £8 which makes them less good value.
I take the value of the figures out of a set, and see if I think the reamining items are good value.
e.g. the 4271 pack with 5 Romans is currently £10, which means I get the scorpion for free.
The 4271 blue chariot with 4 horses & 1 figures is £13, so I get the chariot and 1/2 a figure for free, though the horses do not have regular bridles/saddles so I'd have to get them separately if using the horses individually.
4273 General's Tent for a whopping £20, four figures & 1 horse, leaving £9 for the tent, scorpion, and a bit of fence. Thus I've only bought one.
4277 Roman in toga for £5, only 1 figure and some props. Only ever got the one.
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I guess my system isn't as developped as yours; but working fine for me.
I just consider what I would pay for a set like that and if it's less then it's good value to me and otherwise ... erm ... not.
For instance, the football stade wouldn't be worth 15 euro's IMHO (just my taste here) so that's definitly not worth my money. On the other hand, the Special of little red riding hood (sorry, I don't have the number by hand) was definitly worth every single cent of 12 euro!!!
But that's me :-[ ;D
It's just about how much I like a set.
Bogro
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My rule of thumb is very similar to Tim's:
1 adult figure = $3
1 horse = $3 or $4, depends on accessories
1 child = $0, does not factor in at all
The balance has to be carried by accessories (DS may not have them in stock, i.e. spears) and scenery or special items like carts or good set pieces. As a whole I find the sets a good value if you can use 85% of the items.
But like Martin I will spend a bit more if there is something special I want in the set , I don't have the Roman General's tent and also only bought 1 of the emperor. The 4271 set Martin mentioned is the perfect example and is how I acquire most of my Romans. The set sells for $15 and I wait for a 15% off sale and get the figures for about $2.55 each. When I wanted the 4625 - Crusader I approached the owner of a local store and got a 20% discount on 20 of them. I think it is always a good idea to get to know your local dealer (especially the smaller ones) if possible, the people looking for you the better!
Gepetto
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My system is very similar to Bogro's. I base it purely on desire and appeal....especially when Ebaying for retired sets.
I shall not admit how much I have paid for a single klicky. :-[ :-[ :-[ Suffice to say, it was more than 3 bucks.
New sets are the same, if I need it (want it), price can be over-looked. In general I am happy with and accustomed to Playmobil pricing.
The best values currently are the new blister packs, your getting two figs for the price of one there. The other SUPER value is the 4444 Pirate Dinghy at 16.00 USD.....if the figures are 3 dollars apiece, then the boat and the canon and all the accessories are only 10 dollars. That vessel is worth way more than 10 bucks. :yup: It's wonderful!
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I know when I am on eBay and am going after a (usually discontinued) klicky then it is just 'Damn the torpedoes'. I have paid double digits for single figures and don't care, but I don't do it too often. I can rationalize with the best of them!
Gepetto
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I tend to follow Bogro's system but if there is something I really want, then price to some degree is no object (within reason, of course). And then on occasions, I just feel that it really is time that I helped the local toyshop and Playmobil crest the present recession and just see something that isn't essential but it would be nice to have, and buy it! (Although, again, nothing too over the top on price.)
Reading the above, I wonder if I do have an actual system.
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If you like it, buy it, and enjoy it, while you have it .
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If you like it, buy it, and enjoy it, while you have it .
That's it, that's my system! :lol:
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If you like it, buy it, and enjoy it, while you have it .
Hey Ras
Cough cough -- I'm talking about deciding when to buy bulk. Example: I bought 12 of the blue gladiator special because I needed him for my Numidian cavalry and wound up buying spares on top of it. He was bargain priced. Had he come in a $10 accessory pack as with the medieval ABBA guy, I wouldn't have bought twelve. I would have gone through DS and probably wound up with 6 due to their perpetual shortages (maybe then buying two $10 accessory packs to complete the unit).
RE: Little Red Riding Hood, I'd pay $20 for her! I'm not meaning sets you only want one.
-Tim
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Hey Ras
Cough cough -- I'm talking about deciding when to buy bulk. Example: I bought 12 of the blue gladiator special because I needed him for my Numidian cavalry and wound up buying spares on top of it. He was bargain priced. Had he come in a $10 accessory pack as with the medieval ABBA guy, I wouldn't have bought twelve. I would have gone through DS and probably wound up with 6 due to their perpetual shortages (maybe then buying two $10 accessory packs to complete the unit).
RE: Little Red Riding Hood, I'd pay $20 for her! I'm not meaning sets you only want one.
-Tim
Exactly right. When I wanted to acquire one of every Clown I could get my hands on, there was one in the 4404 Hospital set who hasn't appeared anywhere else (30 00 3192).
Ras's Rule: Buy the set (cost £100 on the Playmobil UK website) to get the Clown which I like. Forget the expense, it's not important.
Tim's Thumb: better value to order the figure + accessories through DS - Cost £2-3. OK, I'll have to wait a bit, but I'll be able to eat that month, and won't be lumbered with a Hospital Set minus clown that I have no use for.
Now supposing I needed 12 of him for my Medieval Clown attack Squad?
Or 2,000 because I'm planning a film project that'll make me the next Steven Spielberg and win me an Oscar?
We're not saying we won't ever buy a set we like if it exceeds our rule of thumb value, we're saying it's a method of determining if it's good value for money.
I'm fairly sure everyone must have some limit they put on that they'll spend on Playmobil, unless they have unlimited disposable income, and unlimited storage space.
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martin
i bought the hospital set, because i am building a medical center, and i have absolutely no need for the clown, do you still want it?
kaethe
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martin
i bought the hospital set, because i am building a medical center, and i have absolutely no need for the clown, do you still want it?
kaethe
Thanks for the offer, Kaethe, but I got one through DS, thanks to Heather's Playmodb for the part number. I don't know how I'd manage without all her hard work.
cheers, Martin
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Yes use DS for one part that is what it is there for. But Martin and Tim do you wait till the Roman blister packs are on clearance at Target to get them just because you will save 13.69% . You might not get any at all with all the waiting and after all you are doing playmobil any favors in only bargain shopping. Then Playmobil can not afford to make new molds you are so eager to ask for . Their profit margins are a lot tighter .
Also if you do not help out the higher priced brick and mortar all we will be left with is Target .
I understand your idea about saving $$$ but if i like a company and their goals i am willing to spend a little more to keep them going . If i am buying petrol for my fleet i buy where it is cheapest because i am not interested in helping the fuel corporations any more than i have to .
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Yes use DS for one part that is what it is there for. But Martin and Tim do you wait till the Roman blister packs are on clearance at Target to get them just because you will save 13.69% . You might not get any at all with all the waiting and after all you are doing playmobil any favors in only bargain shopping. Then Playmobil can not afford to make new molds you are so eager to ask for . Their profit margins are a lot tighter .
Also if you do not help out the higher priced brick and mortar all we will be left with is Target .
I understand your idea about saving $$$ but if i like a company and their goals i am willing to spend a little more to keep them going . If i am buying petrol for my fleet i buy where it is cheapest because i am not interested in helping the fuel corporations any more than i have to .
Ras, you've completely missed the point again.
We're not talking about bargain shopping, we're talking about deciding if a set is good value for money, and having a personal rule of thumb to measure value against. There is a distinction.
I don't have the option of waiting for Roman blister packs to be on sale at Target, I don't live in the US. I have to hope they're available when I do get there. At less than $3 a pack, that's already a bargain for me - I'm used to paying $4 per figure in the UK. Target sets, indeed any sets in the US are a bargain for me - if I want the sets in the first place.
I'll still buy a set if I want it enough, even if I consider isn't good value for money. I'd still buy those Roman blisters at $5 a pack, because I have a use for the figures. The blisters, even in the UK at £3.50 ($7 a pack) are still good value because normally any two figures would cost me $8.
I admire your ideals about supporting a company you like, but I'm sure there's still a top price you're not willing to pay. I don't think Geobra are about to go under just because I think paying more than $4 a figure isn't good value - and if I like the figures enough I'll still pay more then $4. I just got a Black Maltese knight for $10, because I wanted one.
As for bricks and mortar stores, there aren't any in my town which carry Playmobil, except for TK Maxx which occasionally have cast-off sets, so I'm mostly buing online anyway.
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Just out of curiosity if the Egyptians were not a good value for your money would you buy them ? Yes you would buy them, right ?
I just do not understand what you are applying this theory to then ? If you are not willing to purchase the set due to it not being a "good value" then you do not want it enough. If you do want it a lot, you will buy the set anyways, right ? So are you bargain shopping for sets you really do not want or need ? 8}
What point did it miss ? The way i see it is we are talking about one of the most expensive plastic toys . If a person drives a Porsche or Ferrari i would find it odd if they started telling me about how they are bargain shopping for accessories or if the oil filter was a "good value" ??? I expect this from a honda driver who reads Consumer Reports magazine.
Just the way i see it , on to other things ;)
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I just do not understand what you are applying this theory to then ? If you are not willing to purchase the set due to it not being a "good value" then you do not want it enough. If you do want it a lot, you will buy the set anyways, right ? So are you bargain shopping for sets you really do not want or need ? 8}
Hey Ras,
We army builders buy like 10 or 20 or even 50 of the same set for its parts.
Example:
I can either buy 5 ABBA knight packs at $10 each ( 5 * $10 = $50) for the figure and the horse
Or I can buy 4 original red knight (3319) sets at $12 (4 * $12 = $48) each because the $12 buys me 3 figures and a horse plus good accessories.
So for the same cost I can buy 12 knights and 4 horses vs. 5 ABBA knights and 5 horses.
(EDIT: my original math was wrong)
That is what we are talking about. :wave:
I bought one of every Roman set. But, I'm definitely not going to buy 15 full-sized arenas just so I can get 15 archers and some extra helmets.
There are options and we try to calculate what will get us the most bang for the buck when building large displays.
-Tim
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What Tim said.
I'll be getting at least one of each Egyptian set, but probably waiting until they're available in the UK shops, unless I get jittery and buy from a UK seller I know who gets them early at about 10% about RRP. If they're not good value for money, I'll probably only be buying one though, not several of each.
When they are officially released in the UK, I'll be checking the 4-5 Brick and Mortar shops I can reach (TRU, John Lewis, Hamleys, Bentalls, and a small independent) for the best price, which will probably be John Lewis, plus the Playmobil UK site. At present the Roman Arena is £50 in John Lewis, £60 on Playmobil's website, and £75 in the small independent toystore, so it's well worth my shopping around.
In the case of the Egyptians, I'm not worried that they'll never appear in the UK and I'll miss them. In the case of some other sets like the 4444 Pinnace, it was labelled as a limited edition, I wasn't sure how limited, so I got mine from a friend in Germany just to make sure I didn't miss out, or get ripped off on eBay.
The 5827 Roman Blister pack of all the recent releases is the one I'm most interested in right now, and I'm going to want about 24 of them because they'll form army units, so it makes sense that if I can shave $1 off the price I'm going to, but not at the risk of not getting them at all. I'm reasonably sure they'll appear on the Playmobil UK site some time in the next six months, so I'm happy to wait, or get them in the US when I visit, which would be much cheaper.
The point I felt you missed is that it's possible to consider a set poor value-for-money, but still buy it.
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I'm with Tim. If I want just one klicky or one part I'm not going to buy a $100 set just to get it, especially if the rest of the set is useless to me. That is what direct service is for. I might, and have, buy one $25 or less set for a few items, but that's where I draw the line. For example, I bought one of the new $10 Target sets for two shields, a klicky, and a few small parts. I can use the horse and a few of the other accessories that came with it, but half of the set is basically useless to me. That said, if I were to buy the klicky, the shields, the few small parts, and the horse from direct service, and not even figure in shipping, I'd probably be up to the price of the set, so that makes it a "pretty good buy" in my book.
When the Egyptians come, I'll be buying one of each and a bunch of one or two sets. I'll then go to direct service for a few extra parts.