TOPIC:

Hi all. Greetings and Happy New Year. This will be a year of change for me as I am selling up and retiring abroad and as part of the de-cluttering and down-sizing process I have come to the sad decision to part with my small and eclectic Tamiya collection.

I was keen on building kits in the 70's / 80's but the models have been packed away or on display for - I can hardly believe it - about 30years in most cases! I have been trying to identify the exact model numbers and having done a little on-line research I have a feeling I may have a gem or two.

I don't know whether this introduction is the place to ask this, but would any of you knowledgeable enthusiasts care to advise me on the potential value of my models and perhaps even be interested in taking them off my hands? Ask me any simple questions you think I may be able to answer or request photos.

I have the following, mostly early 1/10th models looking for a caring new home:

Lamborghini Cheetah (In need of a clean-up and new torsion bars due to fatigue)
Ligier Matra (Barely run - 100% complete)
Toyota Hilux (Barely run - 100% complete)
Rough Rider (In need of a little TLC)
Martini Alfa Romeo 155 (Later model - built, test run and then simply displayed and admired)
Leopard A4 Tank (1/16th) (Barely run)

All the above are mechanically complete with servos and control gear, speed controllers etc. I recall retro-fitting transistorized speed controllers to some but have the original parts as well. Plus various Acoms remote control units, chargers, batteries, spare parts, decals, Tamiya tools and all the original instruction booklets.

Any advice would be appreciated!

Many thanks.

Hi,
I just moved this topic to the "For Sale" section.
You have some nice models for sale, but you will have more success selling if you add photos of them, as many and as detailed as possible.

Good luck with the sale

-Lars

Hi Lars,

Thanks for your comments and for moving my message to the Sales area of the site. It won't do any harm but as I am just starting out with the idea of selling I would like to know a little more about what I have got and what the market value might be before setting any prices, agreeing any sales or opening any auctions. I was hoping for some unbiased guidance in that respect from someone more knowledgeable with this sort of thing. I will gladly part with the whole lot for a couple of million pounds - no questions asked - but am not sure how to tackle any lower offers yet! Am I expecting too much of today's society to get some friendly hints? I will try and take some snaps tomorrow and upload them - but again there may be specific aspects which are more meaningful to those in the know and which will identify exactly which model I have and its vintage. Any suggestions? Apart from the Alfa, which was the latest acquisition, I am fairly confident that all the others date from the 70's or early 80's.

Best regards,

Without seeing them, valuations are difficult - these are what I'd consider to be "average" values for each (& slightly tweaked them to take your limited description into account), still you could deduct 50% if they turn out to be total sheds, or add 50% for really great ones (shiny paint in the "correct" colours, good decals & uncracked tyres, the original boxes etc etc) sold on a really good day:

Lamborghini Cheetah - 85 GBP (replacement torsion bars? little to no chance finding any)
Ligier Matra - 110 GBP (quite rare & I think interesting, but it doesn't translate into value)
Toyota Hilux - 450 GBP
Rough Rider - 65 GBP (the re-released version really hammered the value of poor original ones)
Martini Alfa Romeo 155 - 65 GBP
Leopard A4 Tank - no idea

On balance, eBay is going to be the best place to sell them.

Thanks for your help and guidance. I will try and put together more comprehensive descriptions and photos and see how things develop from there.

For the leopard A4 if it is a first release with the 2 motors and a pretty nice airbrush paint, you. can sell it easy for 300 euros if it is really nice and full.

Hi Sad,

I can't imagine selling all my models...at least for the moment ! But sometimes you have no other choice and i'm really sorry for you.

As many of us already told you in the previous posts, i really think you should upload some pictures of the models you have for sale and i'm pretty sure that you'll find more precise help and guidance. And who knows, maybe some TB member will make you a serious offer.

P.S. I love HiLux's.... so hurry up sending the pictures. Santa may have some delay this year !

Manotas

I have just uploaded some pictures of the Hilux to my gallery. I suppose I should make an official 'For Sale' ad but I have lots of other photos to take of the other models so I'll wait until they are ready. I have a feeling I may be swamped with enquiries anyway!

May I be so nosy to inquire were you are moving to, as you are already living abroad from my point of view.

btw that hilux look nice is it with box and extra body?

It's not being nosy... it's a sensible question. I am currently in the UK but funnily enough I am going to be relocating to somewhere quite close to you not far from Heidelberg. It's a small world, isn't it! I don't think I have the box for the HiLux unless I come across it in the loft somewhere but I think it's unlikely. There is no extra body either. I was just a keen hobby builder and never joined any clubs or raced any of my kits. In fact I rarely used them at all apart from indoors or on the patio or lawn. It was the building which was the main attraction. After that, they were just for display. They were invariably terrifyingly fast and I was scared of smashing them up as I never did get the hand of steering in different directions dependent on the direction the model was travelling! It was the safer low speed option which attracted me to the Hilux and the Tank!