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Collecting => Customs => Customs Community and Group Projects => Topic started by: Ruprecht on October 5, 2005, 10:26 AM

Title: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Ruprecht on October 5, 2005, 10:26 AM
Well, at least tell me that one of our own isn't trying to hawk these "Republic Commandos" (http://cgi.ebay.com/ROTS-CUSTOM-CLONE-TROOPER-REPUBLIC-COMMANDOS-COOL_W0QQitemZ6003914539QQcategoryZ101609QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem) for 100 bucks!

Not that I have a problem with one selling their work - I'm just sick of seeing these half-arsed, nothing-special-about-them custom clones foisted on the ignorant or unsuspecting collector.  The paint job looks good, but if you're going to label it a "Republic Commando," at least give him a custom weapon or some hint of armor.  It's similar to the custom clones for sale that come with a genuine Elite Force M4 or GIJoe M16.  No imagination whatsoever.  Of course, many of these seem to be done for mere financial gain, with no regard to accuracy or precision.

Maybe it's just me, but it seems there are more and more "customizers" selling mislabelled or plain crappily done stuff lately.  I know my definition of "Crappily done" differs from others'.  Not everybody must fall in line with my own tastes, and I don't mind seeing crappily done stuff up for sale, just crappily done (ie inaccurate paint lines), fire-engine-red clones labelled as "Custom Commander Cody Bacara Appo ROTS VHTF RARE BUYITNOW 4 $100thankyouverymuch", are what chaps my hide.    Guess there is a sucker born every minute.

Mountain-out-of-a-molehill nerd rant complete.  I will now retreat to my Mom's basement and rebuild the kernel on my 7 linux servers while sewing and painting my very own Tron costume.
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Phrubruh on October 5, 2005, 10:52 AM
What gets me on this auction is the shipping of four loose figures for $10. That's an $8.50 profit on the shipping alone.  I offered him $5 for them.
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Ruprecht on October 5, 2005, 11:01 AM
 :o ;D ;D :o
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: CHEWIE on October 5, 2005, 11:11 AM
Might as well make this a thread titled "Customs on ebay that you don't want."

I think they are nicely painted, but the Buy It Now price is a little goofy.  So is the shipping price.  I can see about $6.00 for shipping.

 :P
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Glassman6 on October 5, 2005, 11:16 AM
I think they are nice for clones... but they arnet republic commandos. Thats what i have a problem with.
They are jsut repainted clones.

Even if just the helmet was changed, i could dig that.

But if there is someone willing to buy, so be it...

Hey phurby, i might offer $6 jsut to beat you out!!! :)





Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Phrubruh on October 5, 2005, 12:19 PM
If you do let me know and I'll offer $6.01.
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: CHEWIE on October 5, 2005, 03:01 PM
Geeze... how about this... buy it now for just $200.00!   ::)

http://cgi.ebay.com/Star-Wars-Custom-Dewback-and-Sandtroopers_W0QQitemZ6003379410QQcategoryZ49013QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

He says he paid $300.00 for it...   ::)

 :P
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Famine on October 5, 2005, 03:50 PM
Geeze... how about this... buy it now for just $200.00!   ::)

http://cgi.ebay.com/Star-Wars-Custom-Dewback-and-Sandtroopers_W0QQitemZ6003379410QQcategoryZ49013QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

He says he paid $300.00 for it...   ::)

 :P

PLEASE ::). I could make that Dewback with my eyes closed, and my airbrush. Oil paints for added realism.

And 200 dollars? :-X

Kevin
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Gregorbian on October 5, 2005, 03:52 PM
That Dewback is really nicely painted, although there is no way that I would pay more than $10 for it, $25 including the figures  :P

I agree with some of the previous posts - selling your customs on eBay is not a horrible thing, however I fail to see the need/want to buy a custom figure on eBay.  We are all capable of making comparative pieces to what is being sold on eBay; sure it might not be as detailed or the paint job might be a bit sloppier, but the fact that we made it for ourselves easily makes up for any shortcomings, in my opinion.
Free market economy, blah blah blah, I know: if somebody buys it, then that means that there is a demand for it.  Somehow that legitimizes the customizer selling his half-assed "custom clones" for exhorbitant amounts of $$$.  Maybe I'm being too much of a jackass about this (wouldn't be the first time in my life  ;)), but there doesn't seem to be any integrity in the seller trying to push out his half-assed custom creations. 
In my opinion, there is a huge difference between selling off some of your older customs or putting up a few customs in an "emergency" to get some quick cash, but the fact that most of the "custom clones" are done by people who are obviously pumping these out just to make a buck really irks me. 
They are not that much better than scalpers, in my opinion.  Sure, they are not selling "hard to find" retail pieces, however they are not really adding anything to the hobby.  These people do not post on our forums, they do not help out fellow customizers with advice, they are very full of themselves (just read those friggin' descriptions  ::)), and they are not creating new customs.  They just mimic each other by seeing what sells for big bucks, and then they bottom level the custom to a crappy repainted #6 clone and try to pass it off as a "Republic Commando" for $100. 
In my books it would be entirely different if they shared their techniques on forums or other means, instead of just leeching off of the collecting community.

I guess it's fairly obvious that I am cranky from lack of sleep  ;), maybe I came off as a bit harsh...
Thanks a lot bjardkerr  :P ;)
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: CHEWIE on October 5, 2005, 04:02 PM
Greg, you're totally right in what you said.  I agree 100%.

 :P
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Phrubruh on October 5, 2005, 04:10 PM
Well said Greg!  :D
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Ruprecht on October 5, 2005, 04:24 PM
Well met Greg!  I agree.  I think a lot of them may visit the assorted customizing forums for ideas, because some of them look like bad knockoffs of stuff I've seen before.
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Ruprecht on October 5, 2005, 09:03 PM
Speaking of crappy, mass-produced "customs"......

This guy (http://toys.search.ebay.com/_Action-Figures_W0QQcatrefZC12QQfsooZ1QQfsopZ1QQsacatZ246QQsassZcraigstoychest) needs to quit weathering his clones by inserting them in his colon.  Maybe some dull-cote would help.....no.  No it wouldn't.

Ugh I'm just bitchy today with my right frontal lobe migraine.
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: CHEWIE on October 5, 2005, 09:20 PM
Yeah, I don't care too much for how he weathers them either, but I've seen worse.

One thing I don't want this to turn into though is a bashing of other customizers...

 :P
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Phrubruh on October 5, 2005, 10:15 PM
He responded to my offer by saying, "Get Real." I responded on how any normal person would never pay $100 for them. He responded with "Then I must find alot of abnormal people. People buy my stuff all the time."

Sad isn't it.
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Famine on October 5, 2005, 10:31 PM
He responded to my offer by saying, "Get Real." I responded on how any normal person would never pay $100 for them. He responded with "Then I must find alot of abnormal people. People buy my stuff all the time."

Sad isn't it.

He won't be getting any buisness of mine, if thats the way he conducts his PR.

Kevin
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Ner_vod on October 5, 2005, 10:33 PM
Hey Bjadkerr, that guy about the weathering on eBay, well he posted this:


Quote
* Special Note: We are collectors and fans of Star Wars. We are NOT sponsored nor endorsed by Hasbro or Lucasfilm LTD.

We can tell he's not sponsered ::)
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Ner_vod on October 5, 2005, 10:35 PM
He responded to my offer by saying, "Get Real." I responded on how any normal person would never pay $100 for them. He responded with "Then I must find alot of abnormal people. People buy my stuff all the time."

Sad isn't it.
I HATE IT when people are like that! They're so conceded and stubborn and unreasonable. Grrr! >:(
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: darth_ripley on October 6, 2005, 12:15 AM
first off well said Greg, i agree completely. the only thing i would like to add is i get irked by some folks who seem to only want to use the forums to advertise items that are about to be or are on Ebay up for auction now. of course they don't post a link but they only use the forum for their own greedy purposes. yeah it may be a business, put food in their mouths blah blah blah....but come on. i mean when my husband and i got married he got laid off his job right after our honeymoon - we were married only week and he was laid off and we had to sell quite a few things on ebay to help make ends meet but i NEVER advertised/promoted my own auctions ANYWHERE on any forum, no matter what the items were. i may actually have to sell a couple of my customs within the month since my husband had to have a root canal/crown and we have a $1400 dentist bill this month...i don't want to, but we will see how pinched things get. i'm not trying to bash any one person...people are free to do what they wish, it just gets under my skin to see it happen all the time.

just like everyone else here i sure hate seeing these mass produced "customs" being cranked out by some of the same folks. of course the junky "customs" make the ones with an ounce of thought stand out like diamonds.
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Jesse James on October 6, 2005, 12:47 AM
Personally I'm a huge detractor of selling customs  on Ebay unless you're in dire straights.  To me, you're not helping the hobby when you're in it to profit like that...  I noticed multiple people who "mass produce" customs to sell posting their wares here and there, and like you mentioned above Ripley, they don't advertise the auction but they ultimately are advertising themselves and they give about Jack and **** back to the community as a whole (and I believe Jack just got on the short bus out of town).

These are the people who, when you critique their work or have a comment about it, they basically don't reply...  They'll have 90+ threads at any given place and really the only time you hear from them is when they're showing something new off or when they think they can "profit" from you wanting to buy something of theirs.  It's really total BS if you ask me.

Like I said, I think custom selling should be something you do if you're in dire straights for cash, are clearing out stuff (IE: not a planned sale basically), or if you do things that aren't 100% necessarilly a "Star Wars item", kind of like the little diorama bits Owen Driscoll's made...

A Jedi with a random generic head on it and a paintjob though...  Or resin kits for figures?  You're crossing a line IMO.

And ultimately selling Customs IS illegal despite anyone's personal opinion of right or wrong.  The law dictates it's infringement on LFL's rights and it is.

The negatives mass custom sellers have go beyond that though...  It spawns a problem of bootlegging.  This is something I've noticed more and more common in the vintage market, and even into the modern market (saw a custom "Target" Clone being touted as the real deal and there's a problem).  And like was said above, these people don't want to give anything back into the hobby.  You comment on their stuff they ignore you.  You ask a question and they won't answer because they want you to buy, not make your own. 

Selling stuff isn't something I do, even if I needed cash I think.  I'd part with pieces in my collection first which I've not really had to do save for some vintage some years back I had to sell...  To me though customizing's something I only want people to learn about and get into themselves rather than feeling they need to buy from people.  I've yet to meet anyone incapable of picking up this hobby and really getting the hang of it.  It's a shame there are these people doing "sly" advertising at forums rather than being a better part of the hobby as a whole.  I suppose it's not a far cry from the scalper lurking in the forums to find out what's hitting where and when though. 
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Darth Delicious on October 6, 2005, 01:10 AM
I take commissions here and there, but mostly from people who feel they can't customize and really want a custom piece. Even then I try to be reasonable; I think the most I ever got on a custom was $30-$40, and if you counted materials and work time involved, I maybe profited $10-$15 which ended up in Lucas' pocket anyway.

I don't have a problem with anyone who sells stuff on E-Bay, but I have a real problem with people who set a ridiculous "Buy it Now" price. If you must sell, let the market dictate what it will pay, don't make the assumption yourself. Of course, last time I voiced that criticism, Phruby and I ended up amongst a firestorm.  :-X

And I agree with everyone here who pointed out...those ain't commandos.

-DD
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Phrubruh on October 6, 2005, 09:53 AM
Oh yah, I remember that. Of course that was at that 'other' web site with the initials RS. That place is the prime example of people posting crap and then it showing up on ebay. If you critize the piece all hell breaks loose because that might reduce their bids.

I've only sold two non charity customs on ebay. In both cases the figures were far better than the crap that is out there but they never brought in much money. On the other hand, the people they went to were very excited about adding it to their collection. For profit it wasn't worth it. For making someone happy it was.
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: CHEWIE on October 6, 2005, 10:31 AM
I've only sold a few customs too, and it has only been because of major money problems.  With having $600.00 in car repairs this last couple weeks, a bachelor party in Memphis, having to get a tux, etc. - I had $1000.00 of extra expenses this month that I wasn't expecting.

So, I sold a couple figures on ebay.  This one went for $11.50 - whoo hoo!  I lost money on this figure. 

(http://i3.ebayimg.com/01/i/05/0d/47/b2_3.JPG?set_id=100D)

I thought it might go for $20-$25 or so, but no big deal.  I just hope it's going to someone who will enjoy it.

As for someone like Owen D, I love what he does.  He rarely puts items on ebay.  If you want a custom made, you simply contact him, and he will quote you a price.  He's very good to deal with and has made so many beautiful custom playsets for me.

 :P
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: MasterYogurt on October 6, 2005, 12:48 PM
"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder". As far as we know this person might even be the product of one of the many custom forums out there. We all have seen the threads where someone posts pictures of a custom figure they made and even though it might look terrible to the majority of us, some people will post something that goes like this 'Awesome :o. I wish Hasbro would make a figure like that!' or 'Dude, I would buy that in a heart beat!' or 'You should work for Hasbro' :-\.If this person thinks his customs are worth 'x' amount of dollars, who are we to argue. Will most of us think it is worth that much? No. Will he get that amount? Odds are not in his favor. But that doesn't take away his right to ask what he thinks it is worth.
 
While I don't buy or sell customs on ebay or any place else, I don't condemn it either. The way I see it, to each his own. I would like to think that most of us are in this pastime just for fun, I guess that's why I don't see the need to get all bent out of shape over it.
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Ryan on October 6, 2005, 01:49 PM
I been holding back on commenting for a while, mainly because I'm lazy and I don't like typing. :P

I agree with most everything that has been said. I'm really not a fan of people who sell their customs purely for profit. They're is nothing wrong with selling one because some kind of emergency comes up and you need cash. I personally, like Jesse, would part with other parts of my collection first though. And if I did ever end up selling a custom, I wouldn't put any ridiculous "buy it now" price on it. $100 for those clones was ridiculous, they were simple repaints. I'm not bashing anyone who reapints clones like that, but they aren't commandos, so don't try and pass them off like they are hot **** and you are the best customizer ever because you can paint on plastic.

I personally have sold 1 custom on commission. I sold it for $20 shipped, which I though was too high but that was what the guy wanted to pay, I offered it to him for $11 shipped but he declined for some reason. ???

Of course, last time I voiced that criticism, Phruby and I ended up amongst a firestorm. :-X


Was that the time some said Phruby was jealous of someone's tallent? I though that was completely ridiculous, someone made a really sweet O-ring style Fett, but they left off some of the logos and little details and when Phruby said he should add 'em, the people at RS went ape **** on him. I think that was right around the time I got banned there.

As much as I loved FFURG, I can't bring myself to post there as much anymore. :-\ There are as many members on FFURG as there are here, and recently there has been a huge swelling in the number of kids, which isn't neccassarily a bad thing, but when they post one word replies have triple posts in every other thread, and no one can understand them because they have the worst grammar ever, it it gets to be annoying. There is still lots of excellent work and critiques there, but there has been way to many one word replies lately and it is annoying to sort through all the crap to get to the good stuff. When I post something over there I get a few good replies but they are from people who post over here anyways, and the rest are all useless replies. When I used to post at RS all I got were one word replies, with the exception of a few from Paul, Jesse, or Justin.

I would like to think that most of us are in this pastime just for fun, I guess that's why I don't see the need to get all bent out of shape over it.

The reason that we are getting "bent out of shape" is because they give us real customizers a bad name. And when I say real, I mean anyone here who makes figures for themselves, no matter how bad you think they are. And it clogs the forums with crap. That is why I think this is easily the best custom forum around. You can give/recieve feedback without being ignored or get into a fight about who is the better customizer. Ask any artist what they think about people that make "art" just for the money and commissions and you are going to hear the same kind of things we've been saying. A lot of the "art" that is popular now is utter crap, that looks like a 3 year old took a crap and finger painted it yellow. And a lot of that is made by people who don't care about the art at all and just want the money. As people begin to profit off the colored turds, other people decide to get in on it while they still can and all of a sudden there is a flash flood of rainbow colored diareha in parks and museums. This is exactly what happens on E-bay with custom clones.
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: CHEWIE on October 6, 2005, 02:01 PM
Great post SLC.  Very true. 

And I agree that ffurg has been a letdown lately.  There are some great people there, but I do prefer this customizing section.  Hands down, it's the best.

 :P

 
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Mister Skeezler on October 6, 2005, 02:10 PM
I've never sold, bought, traded of otherwise any of my customs on ebay...or anywhere for that matter. But I can see both sides.

If the BIN price was $100, and you get 4 figures, that's only $25 per figure. Even CHEWIE said he was expecting to get $20-$25 for his figure. It all depends upon what you charge by the hour. As an artist, if I only charged $25/hr, I'd be ******. So for this guy to charge $25 per figure (essentially), its not that bad at all. I guarantee it took him more than an hour for each, if you include:

*getting the figure (travel time included)
*painting
*dull-coting
*auction photography
*placing the auction

Those are all the little things that people don't think about. When I charge hourly (sometimes its by the job), I'm charging for travel time, phone time, design time, revision time, etc.

Does this give the guy bad collectors' karma? Probably. Does this make him an evil, greedy person? Not really.
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: CHEWIE on October 6, 2005, 02:17 PM
That's a good point too Lando... I guess it's just the "Buy It Now" that kinda aggravates me... on the figure I made, I used a lot of different parts from several figures to make it. 

- Bacara ($6.00)
- Commtech Stormtrooper ($5.00)
- AT-TE Gunner ($6.00)

So, right there I already spent about $17.00 just for parts and spent a few hours working on it.  Not that I'm really complaining, but I did lose out on it.  Oh well, I still have some parts leftover for future customs too.  And that figure wasn't really intended for ebay, so looking back I probably shouldn't have listed it.

 :P

Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Phrubruh on October 6, 2005, 04:08 PM
JD reminds me of the old RS list serve from 1997-2000. No one knew it was active or how to sign up for it. But when you figured it out, your email box was never empty. The difficulty of signing up was what kept the teenagers (greenday) out.  We have some great discussions about customizing back then. It was fun to send pictures back and forth and have private chats.

Now the meeting ground has moved from RS to here. Here you can talk in a much less censored atmosphere but the mods will deal with the greendayers faster and permanently.

It would have been a lot better if the FFURG message boards were more active. That's the place that should be the hotbed of customizing activity. Unfortunately here is where you get real feedback on your customs. Over at RS you get completely ignored unless its a poorly painted clone that your going to post of eBay for $100.   

Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Jeff on October 6, 2005, 04:28 PM
I just don't get all these high-priced auctions for clone repaints.

Why do people pay big $$$ for a single repainted clone?   ???

I understand the ones we did for charity, but I don't understand the average guy who will drop $100 for 4 clones.  Sure, it's only $25 each, but I've got a better way to spend the cash.  Go to Target/TRU/Wal-Mart and buy a bunch of #41 Clones.  At about $5-6 each, you should be able to get around 15 Clones with some change.  Then, go grab a few brushes and a few bottles of cheap Folk Art/Apple Barrel paint ($1 each at most places).   

There, now you just spent $100 and you can have 15 repainted clones!  Painting really isn't that tricky, and after trying it a few times (say 15 times with all those clones you bought), you'll get pretty good pretty quick!

Maybe people are just afraid to try?  I know I was afraid at first, but most of those acrylic paints are so water soluable that if you mess up on the first shot, it's easy to strip the paint and try again!

Jeff
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: aeseven7 on October 6, 2005, 05:19 PM
I think sometimes us customizers take for granted the things that other people that aren't so artistically-inclined can't do so well (paint/sculpt/etc).  From our standpoint, of course making something ourselves makes more sense than spending $100+ dollars on some sort of custom on eBay. . .but for the majority of collectors out there that have ZERO artistic ability and have no desire to attempt it. . .it makes perfect sense.

I can definitely see both sides of the argument.  Yes, there are some customs (clones in particular) that sell for around $60-$70 that probably don't warrant that much based purely on the level of detail that went into the custom.  But at the same time, I personally would easily pay $60-80 bucks for a clone that was done by sithfire_30 because its a QUALITY clone. 

Customizers that sell their work for higher amounts of money seem to get slightly "crucified" for it because of two reasons (that I can see):

1.  The customizer criticizing is CHEAP.  It may not be his/her fault but I get the impression that they would not be able to justify spending high amounts of money on ANY custom irregardless of the skill or detail involved.  I myself have commissioned quite a few custom items ranging from paintings to figures and have paid a "hefty" amount for them and so maybe its because of that, that i can understand when some collector pays what they pay for something that is either OOAK, or hand-made etc etc.

2.  The customizer, while not agreeing with people selling customs on eBay, has for whatever personal reasons decided to put a couple up and they have gone for less than what they thought they should (of course comparing them to the customs that went for a lot but they felt did not warrant it).  The truth of the matter is that sometimes a good quality custom won't sell for much because the timing is bad. . .OR there's times where a custom won't sell for much because its. . well. . .a loudy custom.

I'm not trying to ruffle any feathers but I actually started with eBay before knowing about (and joining) any of these forums so I like to think I have a decent understanding of both worlds.

Again, just thinking outloud.
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: CHEWIE on October 6, 2005, 05:56 PM
I think you should post here more aeseven7.   ;)

And I hope that comment about a figure going for less that one thought wasn't directed towards me.  I have no problem with someone selling customs on ebay.  I do question some of the prices that some people pay on some items, and the "Buy it now" price that some sellers throw up there.

 :P
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: aeseven7 on October 6, 2005, 06:11 PM
Chewie

No no, it wasnt directed at you.  Its just theres times when i read threads like these that a few people have this underlying tone to their posts that resemble the mentality that i mentioned in my post.

And i can understand having a problem with some peoples BIN prices. . .but  i mean would u have a problem with a good quailty custom (thats been heavily modded with sculpting and has a knock-out paintjob) having a BIN price of $100?
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Darth Delicious on October 6, 2005, 06:30 PM
I was going to argue the point, aeseven, but you kind of already touched on what I was going to say with buying quality. However, I do think it's kind of elitist to define customizers as cheap. You're painting with a mighty broad brush there, and considering the sheer amount most people on this forum spend on fodder alone, I'm not sure it's accurate.

And depending on the work involved, I'd be willing to drop $100 on a heavily modded custom, especially if it was beyond what I was willing or able to do myself. For example... would I spend more than $20 on your airborne clone? No, I'd rather do my own. Would I spend a wad of cash on Commissar Strassha? You bet, because it's a heavily modded piece that I'd have to put more than $100 of work and time to attempt myself with no guarantee of success.  ;D

So, my gripe is relative to the quality of the piece being offered.

-DD

Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: aeseven7 on October 6, 2005, 06:49 PM
DD

Please dont misunderstand my meaning of being cheap.  I dont mean ALL customizers are cheap.  What i was applying it to is the customizer that feels that NO custom is worth more than 20-30 bucks top and feels that ANYone who pays more is "crazy."

Customizers in general put a lot into the artform, i myself dump quite a bit into multiples of figures, paints, sculpting mediums, etc etc etc.

I hope you understand what i meant and that i didnt intend for it to come off like you read it, thats my fault for not being more clear:)
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Darth Delicious on October 6, 2005, 06:54 PM
Don't sweat it, aeseven, I don't take offense that easily. But I am glad you clarified a bit for those who might have thinner skin.  :D

As we speak I'm trying to talk myself out of getting one of these custom Republic Commando helmets that guy makes.  ;)

-DD

Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: MasterYogurt on October 6, 2005, 06:56 PM
You make some very valid points on this subject,  Aeseven7. And by the way, I think your customs are among the best out there.
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Ruprecht on October 6, 2005, 07:12 PM
Hey, if someone wants to sell their stuff, by all means, do it.  I'm just tired of seeing customs labelled as something they're not, going for more than they're worth.  An Utapau clone isn't Commander Cody, nor is a maroon clone a Galactic Marine.  Some of these guys are just pumping out this stuff for the sole purpose of capitalizing on an unknowing, probably very casual, SW fan.  Within 6 months, they'll be selling repainted LOTR figures as Narnia customs. 

That being said, this is entirely subjective.  I've mentioned that my definition of good vs. crappy is different from others'.

Now, DD, you mentioned in another thread that you have a huge heed.....I don't know if it'd be wise to invest in one of those RCom helmets.   ;)



Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Darth Delicious on October 6, 2005, 08:23 PM
Now, DD, you mentioned in another thread that you have a huge heed.....I don't know if it'd be wise to invest in one of those RCom helmets.   ;)

 ;D

Funny. Maybe you're right.

-DD
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: aeseven7 on October 6, 2005, 09:12 PM
Thanks DD, im honestly not one who likes to argue, lol.

If you're referring to the RC helmets that are on eBay on and off and are 1:1 scale. . .i want one too!  I'm eager to see his "full armor set" when he finishes them!

I may get a helmet eventually tho. . .just not sure which RC i would want it painted as. . .Sev or fixer would be cool!

Masteryogurt-

Thanks, i try my best to NOT sound like a know-it-all but still make my line of thinking as clear as possible.  Any THANK YOU for the compliments!
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Ruprecht on October 6, 2005, 09:13 PM
The only reason I thought of it is I myself look like the personification of a lollipop.  :D
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Tijuanajedi on October 7, 2005, 12:49 AM
Those Auction guys are nothing but slimy rat bastards.

And their customs suck.
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Phrubruh on October 7, 2005, 09:55 AM
Be careful what you say TJ. The custom police sargent is in the house.  ;)
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Darth Delicious on October 7, 2005, 02:23 PM
Do not awaken the wrath of a"He Who Must Not Be Named."   :P


-DD
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: aeseven7 on October 7, 2005, 03:16 PM
I think Phurby might be referring to me, lol.

He bestowed the honor of Custom Police Sergeant to me over at RS:)
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Phrubruh on October 7, 2005, 03:31 PM
Let's promise not to fight here. Ok aeseven7? :)
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: CHEWIE on October 7, 2005, 03:35 PM
We've never had any arguing here, so let's not start now. 

 :P
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Famine on October 7, 2005, 03:52 PM
We only hug here. We never hit.

Once JediMAC hit Morgbug, but has since worked through his violence issues and toned back his drinking.

Kevin
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Jeff on October 7, 2005, 03:53 PM
We've never had any arguing here, so let's not start now. 

Ditto.  

And, I stand by what I said earlier and also agree with some of what you guys said.  

I just don't get some of these simple repaint Clone customs.  For example, the auction that kicked this thread off - $100 for 4 clones of that quality too much IMHO.   I'd rather spend the money on a dozen #41s and do it myself.  

I do agree though that some of the customs (even some of the clones) out there are worth the money if you are willing to spend it.  I guess in the end it's a judgement call like a few of you said here.  Would I spend $25 on a repainted clone I could do myself?  No way.  Would I spend $25 on a well-crafted, ultra cool custom?  Quite possibly...

Jeff
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Darth Delicious on October 7, 2005, 04:12 PM
Now let's all join hands and sing "We Are The World"...  ;D


-DD
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Ruprecht on October 7, 2005, 04:24 PM
Quote
Now let's all join hands and sing "We Are The World"

Only if I can do Springsteen's part, with the gratuitous tear streaming down my cheek.
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Phrubruh on October 7, 2005, 04:30 PM
I get to be Stevie Wonder!  8)


(http://www.clicksmilies.com/s0105/musik/music-smiley-011.gif)
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: CHEWIE on October 7, 2005, 06:35 PM
I spend $30.00 or so for customs from Owen D. all the time.  Great workmanship and a great guy to deal with.  I do think that good customs are worth the $20-$40.00 range.  Sometimes more.

 :P
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: speedermike on October 8, 2005, 12:50 PM
Back to the original auction...I don't think that $100 is too much.  If someone can paint on a "professional" level, they should be payed for it.  As a pro, you should never work for less that $15-20 an hour.  I'm sure that more than 5 hours work went into these things.

I am uaually shocked at how cheap most customs are. 11.00?  The figure cost you five, plus paint, plus time.  You're losing money that way.
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: CHEWIE on October 8, 2005, 05:33 PM
Yep, I'm probably done selling customs on ebay.   I've only sold a few, and just about each time I lost my ass on them.  Either my work isn't that good, the interest in the type of customs I've put on there is low, or other people figured they could just make it themself.  At least I know that a few of them went to very good homes.  Besides, I hate parting with customs.

 :P
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: CHEWIE on October 8, 2005, 05:38 PM
I decided to look at this auction again... right now it's up to $70.00... I can't figure out how the seller justifies $17.00 for shipping on it.

(http://i21.ebayimg.com/03/i/05/11/18/5a_12.JPG?set_id=100D)

 :P
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: CHEWIE on October 8, 2005, 05:39 PM
Now look at this auction... are you kidding me?

http://cgi.ebay.com/Star-Wars-Custom-Clone-Commander-Gree-w-magnetic-head_W0QQitemZ6003430878QQcategoryZ101609QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 :P
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Ryan on October 8, 2005, 05:42 PM
Now look at this auction... are you kidding me?

http://cgi.ebay.com/Star-Wars-Custom-Clone-Commander-Gree-w-magnetic-head_W0QQitemZ6003430878QQcategoryZ101609QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 :P

It's better than Hasbro's but that isn't by any means a $50 figure, everthing is to silvery.
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Ruprecht on October 8, 2005, 06:02 PM
Best Gree EVAR! (http://www.jedidefender.com/yabbse/index.php?topic=6911.225)  You'll have to scroll down some.

The one by DD is the only 50-dollar Gree I've ever seen.  The leg and forearm camo is the best I've seen for any Gree or Jungle-camo clone.  I agree about the silvery-ness of that one on Ebay.  Gree shouldn't be that shiny.

B
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Phrubruh on October 9, 2005, 11:30 PM
Now look at this auction... are you kidding me?

http://cgi.ebay.com/Star-Wars-Custom-Clone-Commander-Gree-w-magnetic-head_W0QQitemZ6003430878QQcategoryZ101609QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 :P

It's better than Hasbro's but that isn't by any means a $50 figure, everthing is to silvery.

That was from a guy on RS. He got pissed off when people started to say it looked messy. He said, fine I'll sell it on ebay for profit. The jerk. >:(
Title: Re: Say it ain't so!
Post by: Darth Delicious on October 10, 2005, 12:26 AM
Best Gree EVAR! (http://www.jedidefender.com/yabbse/index.php?topic=6911.225)  You'll have to scroll down some.

The one by DD is the only 50-dollar Gree I've ever seen.  The leg and forearm camo is the best I've seen for any Gree or Jungle-camo clone.  I agree about the silvery-ness of that one on Ebay.  Gree shouldn't be that shiny.

B

Aw, that's so sweet. I'm seriously wiping away a tear right now.  ;)

Seriously though, I appreciate it. I'll have to post some new pics of that Gree considering he's been updated a bit to reflect the changes between the movie Gree and the concept Gree.

-DD