are you a happy collector?

ive been reading some articles about the physcology of collecting.

and was wandering if you guys are happy collectors

ive read some collectors are OCD some have a need to hoard which is a big issue and cannot stop. some collectors have let it get out of hand and it has destroyed there personal and family lives debt....etc some seek ultimate perfection to the extreme....some collectors have social behaviour issues and collecting is a healthly calm

from my point view i like an out from real life and this is why i collect. i think all males have an out from real life be it sport,cars, food, toys

am i.happy collector? yes i think so.

sometimes its gets too much and i step back and i take a break i then come back feeling refreshed. i do need to cut back on the size of my collection i dont have room for it and dont inturn appriciate it as i cant see it. i have at times let it get in in the way of family time as i have spent time browsing forums ebay when i should be playing or being attentive to my kids. you could compare it to watching football on your tv when your kid is asking you too play outside and you tell them to go away im watching the game. not a big deal i know but you never know whats around the corner.....

I would say that I'm a happy collector, my collection is not over!y huge but I also have 3 collections not counting my models.

Larry

You're certainly thinking about it much more introspectively than I do.

I have no kids and no intention of having kids so there is one big chunk of time and responsibility that's not a factor in my life.

You're certainly right that it is a problem for some people, I've seen "antique shops" in this area that merely exist as a result of an elderly couple who just accumulated too much stuff over 40-50 years.

Although I've got to say that I haven't seen a vintage Star Wars collector that was wildly out of hand. I might know one where it takes up like 1/5 of his house lol but hes a wealthy dude.

I would say that I'm happy. With that said, when it comes to my collecting habits, there is definitely some OCD.
I didn't start collecting SW, until I got sick and was recovering from a few surgeries. It gave me something to do while recovering.

I don't collect much anymore, unless it's a bargain & falls into my focus. The current collection climate definitely has turned me off the hobby a bit. But it's the friends that I've made in the hobby, that keeps me involved.

That's a great example. One can be perfectly happy being involved in the collecting community without having to keep buying expencive pieces and taking up too much space at home.

The guys on the ChiveCast often talk about the podcast being their primary connection to the hobby.

funny you bring this up . yes im a happy collector . ive collected lots of things my whole life . star wars is one of those collections that really has been there for over 25 years for me . its easy they are small even though our house is relatively big and roomy they take up no space . besides star wars ive collected horror movies and horror movie posters, wrestling dvds (the Japanese stuff from the early 90's) and ecw . and records (you know vinyl) I literally have thousand of them and had been collecting them since I was 5 years old .

collecting makes me happy . its part of who I am like many of you . there comes a time when you sit back with a feeling of satisfaction though and things tend to slow down . my records were something that I literally have everything of what I wanted to collect . my star wars will always keep going as there is always something out there I don't have whether it be a coo stamp or a top toys complete yoda . one of the hardest decisions ive made is deciding to sell my vinyl which me and the wife are literally talking about as I write this . this will take me years to do as I can only sell a few at a time on ebay . I wish there was an easier way (and cheaper) its a very hard decision but I want to enjoy my years of collecting by making some well deserved money off it .

anyways yes i'll always be a happy collector as its never gotten in the way of my personal life . we don't want kids so like chris said that's no issue . there was I time a suffered to collect as I was paying off a 2 thousand dollar record or something like that and eating Cheetos and chef boy-r -dee for weeks on end working 2 jobs to pay for it but those were me younger days .

I wonder now with my decision to sell my records off which is something I never thought id do if my other collections will meet the same fate . I don't think so but only time will tell

I enjoy my collecting, I've only been back in the game collecting as an adult for 4.5 /  5 years and don't have a very large collection but I've loved Star Wars since 1977. For me if I had hundreds of figures most would be stored away never again to see the light of day, but for collectors that do want huge collections, that's great, each to there own
I had a small Stormtrooper and small Lando focus but I generally collect anything that catches my eye that I can afford  
(or justify in my head spending that amount of money on a small plastic toy )
I've met some really cool people in this hobby some of which have gone on to be close friends
So at the moment it's all good

I would not be a happy collector without the community. I would have sold my collection to get to Orlando if I couldn't afford to go. I love going to Farthest From in the UK two or three times a year (August 6th next one) and love Celebrations. I don't just enjoy toy collecting - I love Star Wars. So if I'm not receiving parcels of toys I am reading books and comics. I do overpay and sometimes feel a little bad but I compensate in other ways - changing purchasing habits for a month or perhaps not going somewhere to save money to cover a bit of what I bought.

I'm a happy collector, happy with where I'm at with my vintage collecting, I have a loose collection, with some vehicles,MOCs mini rigs etc, I don't have it all yet but i'm in no hurry to get there, my buying has really calmed down vintage wise over the last couple of years as I feel a bit priced out of the market.
The community keeps me entertained and I also collect modern which keeps me busy

I consider myself a happy collector as I still enjoy the chase and get a buzz when I acquire something new.
These days I only collect loose vintage. I stopped collecting the modern 3 3/4 inch line about 3 years ago as the collection got wildly out of hand (virtually every figure, vehicle & playset including variants released since 1995). Now that's OCD

so anyways scratch what I wrote about my records I sold a few . make almost a grand off of 8 of them . finally I decided I didn't want to do it so with me they stay !!!!

Seems to be the conscience of opinion that we are all happy collectors?
I would agree, I don't think I have ever met an unhappy one, have met one or two "grumpy" sellers though!
I suspect that we are all a little OCD, I know I am, and would also definitely class myself as a happy collector.
As most before have said, the community is just as, if not more important than the toys, but the toys do make it a fun thing to be into
It can take up too much time, and can be a bit insular, but it's all about balance, be it time ir money.
Interesting thread.

mini99 wrote:Seems to be the conscience of opinion that we are all happy collectors?
I would agree, I don't think I have ever met an unhappy one, have met one or two "grumpy" sellers though!
I suspect that we are all a little OCD, I know I am, and would also definitely class myself as a happy collector.
As most before have said, the community is just as, if not more important than the toys, but the toys do make it a fun thing to be into
It can take up too much time, and can be a bit insular, but it's all about balance, be it time ir money.
Interesting thread.

well said

I believe I’m a happy collector. The thrill of the hunt and the pure pleasure of a great bargain always make me smile. I’m lucky I don’t have too much of an addictive personality. I’ve been collecting on and off since 1997 and only just completed a loose mint run in 2017 (I did stop collecting between 2006 and 2012, sold all of my mini rigs and some vehicles but kept all my loose figures). I live within my means and realise there are many SW related items that are beyond my grasp.

I got into collecting in a “bigger” way in 2017 when I discovered the forums and the VR podcast, and while it hit my bank account a little more, it has been offset by the friendship and knowledge gained from an amazing and super-friendly community. I’d really like to go to Echo or Farthest From in the UK but I have a very weak back and it is hard for me to plan in the long-term, to travel very far (I’m based in Essex) and to stand for more than 5-10 minutes which make the meets a little taxing. I’m hoping a few things fall into place at the right time and I can get along to one soon and put faces to names and avatars.

I agree, event's and meetups are what really make you a part of this hobby. You get to know some great people and that leads to some of the best deals too.

I bowed out of the collecting game last year, but to be fair I haven't really collected in several years, I have sold the vast majourity of my collection now, it's a long story, but life events and the current state of collecting just happened and I lost the passion.
I still have and collect my Lukes and if anything, selling up literally got me back into collecting in terms of Luke Bespin. Now I am happy with my collection and completist goals and stresses are long gone so I guess I am a happy collector.

I have seen many new collectors who are not though