Kit price and collectability..
 

When ARFs came out, kits sitting on peoples shelves dropped in value for resale..

Then there was a huge collector surge and those same kits went up in price.

Now with the greying of the builders, including me, and the very low build rate ...are we going to see a fall in collector kit prices? I don't know how values can stay high with very few builders and I don't think the younger rc group will horde them for the future either..

What do you think?

I tend to agree with you....not too many 'young' collectors, BUT there will always be collectors. I'm dipping into my 'stash' of kits....debating between Midwest Cap (80") or an Ohio R/C Extra 300....decisions, decisions :)

Actually, prices are pretty good right now. It all depends upon the rarity and desirability of the kit. For example, you can sell some of the FLAIR 1/4-scale airplanes for $600 and up, and they were originally about $400 when new. Some of the rare and highly-demanded Top Flite kits, like the Bonanza, command premium prices. Other kits that are nice, but not so rare, like an Andrews Aeromaster, command much more modest prices.

All in all, it depends upon how much you will take, and how much the buyers will offer you. If you're selling, list it with your price. If you get no nibbles after a reasonable amount of time, then lower it a bit. You may get counter-offers and then you can negotiate the final price. People will (naturally) try to lowball you. If it's too low for you, tell them "no" and either counter-offer or just turn it down.

I have been wondering about the exact same thing myself.

Based on anecdotal observations, I get the feeling that the collector market has slowed down, but I also agree that prices have not really dropped (not yet anyway). I suspect that I am somewhat typical of a lot of collectors who have built up a collection that they are not yet ready to part with, which is helping to keep the prices high. But I also suspect that there are not a lot of new folks coming into the market, so prices are likely to start coming down at some point. Whether that is going to happen in 6 months or 60 months is anyone's guess though ...

Very few collectible items hold their value indefinitely, but I didn't buy my kits as an investment and I do plan to build them all ... someday :D

Once a few old timers start falling off the perch, their wives and kids will sell off the kits, when enough true builders keel over, the prices will drop away.
By then we'll all be too bloody old to have fun building and flying them, so all those beautiful kits will be hoarded in sheds/spare rooms till they are of no use to anyone.
All the young ones want foam and balsa arf crap now.
One day you'll see kits in antique shops.

That's happening now at stupidly ridiculous prices set by dealers who think they know this facet of the hobby market.

Some of the dealers I've seen have kit boxes full of useless wood, but no real airplane in the box. Just the plans sheet and a lot of scrap wood. I mentioned this to one dealer, and they weren't too pleased to hear that.

I have seen good kits now and then at flea markets, in dealers' shops, and antique malls, and you can always negotiate the price. Sometimes, though, the dealer really likes their items, so you just have to walk away from the item if you don't like the price. RCU's marketplace and eBay are the best places to buy kits, other than RC swap shop events.

With some exceptions, I think the price of kits will go down. Some kits are now being manufactured again by cottage industries like Bluejay models. Plans are available all over the place in PDF format too so if you can build from plans, you don't need a kit anyway. I laughed at an ancient, beat up Aeromaster kit for sale at Perry a couple of years ago. The guy told me it was a rare collectable and wanted a mint for it. Ok, fine but I can have the plans printed out and be cutting up parts pretty easy for that one and many others.


carl

In the past building was a matter of "had to", now it's a matter of "want to". In some regards we are in a second golden age of building. If you can come up with a set of plans there are small shop laser cutters who will cut you a kit at a very reasonable price. You can have a copy of a classic out of production kit with better quality cutting than the original ever had. You can also get a cutting of that rare oddball airplane that would have never been a mass production success. You can even do a limited production run of your own design. With that in mind why drop big bucks on a crusty old kit with brittle parts and crumbling plans unless the kit itself really means something to you. That said I have several old kits in the building que. The price was right and they were airplanes that i wanted.

Hi Matt, I have seen your posts here and there a few times and often wondered what your avatar picture was, is that a pet Owl?

Lazer Works has a short kit and canopy available for a lot cheaper than that "collectable".

The bird pictured in my avatar is a Mississippi Kite. I hand reared it from a ball of fluff that had fallen from it's nest. It was just getting in its juvenile feathers when that photo was taken. The adults are a blueish grey color. Although they are shaped like a small falcon they are insectivorous and catch their food on the wing. I have considered an owl as a pet but from what I have read owls owls are the high maintenance, jealous, psychopathic girlfriends of the bird world.

Hi Matt, that's interesting, thanks for that. I'd love to have a kestral, but it requires way more time than I could dedicate.