I have been watching this one with a little bit of interest over the past month. It was listed by this seller called "The Toy Vault", which in my mind is a slightly snobbish US based toy shop seller (I won't go into the details, but then its just my view).
The seller has on auction a 1988 Transformers Masterforce C-303: Minelba/ Minerva loose and complete for sale. These are immediately apparent from the photos:
- it has no paperworks (ie: no instructions, no sticker sheet, no catalogue);
- none of its stickers are applied save for the 1 factory applied sticker on the car's bonnet (red cross sticker);
- the front half in car mode appears to be slightly yellowed. It's a little hard to tell from the photos because the seller used a blue background, but the colour difference can be seen from the shot of the robot mode where the arms are different in colour from the body (see mirrored picture below).
I was very interested in how this auction will turn out because Minelba is one of those few rare Transformers that hardly ever sees a listing on eBay and if it does, the listing always mysteriously ends early. This listing was no exception. The seller has listed it at least 3 times before he/she let the auction run its entire course. The first time was with a BIN of US$900; then a BIN of US$880; and the third time it was listed with a starting price of $9.99, but the listing was cancelled a few days in.
The listing that just ended is the forth listing (by my count) of this same auction. This is a link to the listing (note: might not work if accessed more than a month from the date of this post or when eBay deletes it).
It ended at the price of US$762.00. A very impressive price for a loose piece of toy that does not come with paperworks, no sticker sheet and is slightly yellowing.
It ended at the price of US$762.00. A very impressive price for a loose piece of toy that does not come with paperworks, no sticker sheet and is slightly yellowing.
This is the final auction page:
This is the seller's photo of Minelba in car mode. I can sort of see yellow along the entire top of the car (not sure if my eyes are playing tricks on me).
This is the seller's photo of Minelba in robot mode. The arms look yellow compared to the rest of the body (not sure if my eyes are playing tricks on me).
Now, if that can go for US$762, I wonder how much this one will go for? Heehee...
LOL US$762... It´s crazy, right?
ReplyDeleteHow much will go for your "MIB/MISB?" Minerva???XD
Over $1,000 that's for sure!
ReplyDeleteH_D, we need to talk...lolz.
@ Predaking: I think the price is about right for Minelba, just that it's expensive in absolute terms. Minelba is a really rare piece to firstly find complete and secondly find unyellowed...
ReplyDelete@ Adam: no idea what mine might cost, but it is complete not yellowed and comes with unapplied sticker sheet... So it's certainly better than the one on auction.
I think that price is too high for a toy XD
ReplyDeleteA question about prices... I have this three European Exc. Action Masters:
http://i582.photobucket.com/albums/ss263/mikur24/Transformers%20Collection/Europeos5.jpg
http://i582.photobucket.com/albums/ss263/mikur24/Transformers%20Collection/Europeos4.jpg
http://i582.photobucket.com/albums/ss263/mikur24/Transformers%20Collection/Europeos6.jpg
Three are MOSC and in good shape. I want to sell them, but I don´t know the prices... Any idea?
@ Predaking: One of the three in particular is worth quite a bit, probably "more than you imagine", quoting Megatron from TFTM. Email me and I'll give you my estimates (not that I want to buy them cos I don't collect ActionMasters).
ReplyDeleteOn the issue of pricing for a toy. I guess its just what the market wants to pay and in Minelba's case, the market is just nuts. Perhaps because its the first female Transformer toy, maybe cos it has a nice colour scheme, could be because its so hard to find a piece that has not yellowed, and I think it was released in very limited quantities back in 1988.
You're forgetting something very important that happens around this time of the year. Everybody gets their tax returns here in the states. So you will notice a surge in prices. Best time to sell. Worst time to buy.
ReplyDelete@ Hotspot17: Ah, that is a good point and explains the crazy prices.
ReplyDelete@ Hotspot17: here in my country (Spain) is the same right now. You´re right ^^
ReplyDelete@ HD: I guess you mean Windmill, right? Appreciate your opinion on this issue, so yes, I´m going to write an email to you, THANK YOU!!! ^^