Only on Da Bay

Did anyone else see that Sterling Ringmaster S1-A go for $162.00 bucks yesterday? Unreal! I have 7 or 8 of those kits, anyone got $162.00 they want to spend???

Bill

Yep I saw it, I can't imagine spending $162 on ANY Sterling kit! The RSM kit is $70 but at least it's a quality product with laser cut light wood.

Better yet are the folks buying up the Flying Fools at $125 bucks a piece.

Got to agree with you on both points. Got several Flying Fool kits I'll sell for a $125.00 anytime..........

Bill

Bill,

If you have that many Sterling kits it time to sell! Just make sure you add extra shipping to adjust for the quality Sterling light wood

Collectors are so stupid. I believe they get caugth up in the chase of the prise.

They guys have more money than brains. Well at least one guy has less money than brains.

LAST EDITED ON Jul-13-04 AT 08:46 PM (CDT)
 
I think your answer is not in accordence with reality. There are alot of collectors, myself included, who are not stupid and don't appreciate your remark. What you fail to realize is that if it weren't for us collectors alot of the older designs would have simply faded away. There wasn't always full size plans to work from and by our preserving these kits we have templates to work from. The Ringmaster S1-A is not included in this preservation. I got a bunch of them cause I got em cheap. If I could sell mine for even $100 bucks I would come out way ahead and that my friend isn't being stupid.

Bill

I think that at leaste some of the guys in our hobby still fail to understand that Collecting is as much a part of controline as any other aspect.

I don't really collect but I do buy and sell used/vintage CL and RC equipment. One of my clients just bought a Berkeley P-38 for over $250.00, to add to his collection. Is he a fool? I don't think so. I don't think that I have ever sold a vintage kit for less than I paid for it and at times I have paid top dollar. The market just keeps getting hotter, whth new collectors joining in daily.

If market trends continue, my client will be able to make a handsome profit on his purchase within a very short time. Meanwhile, he gets to enjoy his very rare kit, while preserving an important piece of our hobby for the next generation.

I am certainly not saying that everyone who collects, is in the game to make money. Most collecters want the STUFF but I AM saying that collecting kits and equipment, is no dumber than flying toy airplanes round and round on a string.

Remember the 80's? If you wanted to fly a Green-box Nobler, you had the choice of copying a "collector kit" or not building it! Today you have your choice of several current Nobler kits but I gurantee, there will come a time when they will be unavailable once again.

When I was a kid, people, made fun of the guys who bought old decrepit 30's cars and parked them behind thier barns. Same thing.

Bigs

" What constitutes the dignity of a craft is that it creates a fellowship, that it binds men together and fashions for them a common language. For there is but one problem - the problem of human relations."

OK, I will stipulate to your reasoning.

MY comment may have been rude, crude and just plain nasty.

To you Sir,I will apologize. I have no right to call anyone stupid. However, being stupid myself, I sure can spot a brother when he raises his head up out of the ground!

Some model airplane collectors do make me laugh out loud. If I may, I'll paraphrase my favorite cartoon figure, Ole Bugs Bunny, "WHAT A MAROON"!

The old boys at Bolink in Atlanta, GA had it right,"He Who Dies With The Most Toys Wins". I Think!

Call me Stupid or
Mike Clark

I accept your apology! There are some collectors or Ï just gotta be the winner on this auction" that raise the bar on whats reasonable or just plain silly. $162 bucks for this kit is just that, plain silly. However my original offer still stands, got 7 or 8 that I will part with, any time, for this amount.

Bill

Bill,

You mentioned the opportunity to make templates from the die cut sheets of the Sterling plans.

The Sterling plans being "isometric"? drawings to assist building, (but eliminate scratch builders), means we need to have the old Sterling kit wood patterns saved.

At the E-BAY I almost spent...arrgghhh...too much for a Sterling PZL Polish Fighter...common sense stopped me at $160, but I sure made it rough for some one else!

Point to this...someone set up VINTAGE STERLING MODELS as a web site and is trying to establish a library of Sterling plans, die cut sheet outlines, old decals, etc. The Site is at, I hope!

http://home.mindspring.com/~jeff.coons/vintagesterlingmodels/index.html

There was another thread on this site months back.

Fun site to view, good photos, the old catalogues,...I have not ever received a reply from inquiries to the site, but suppose he is trying to get an archive in place.

If you have old Sterling models with the print/die cut wood, it could become a real asset...try to submit plans and xerox's of print wood and decals and we can scratch build some of the old Sterling scale models, and the sport jobs like the RingMaster.

Pete,I remember those 2 Polish Fighters and what they went for. That kit and the Howard Pete have eluded me for years for refusing to pay that high of price too. I have most of the other ones. I have looked at that web site as well and did offer some of my kits to them to copy the plans but never got a reply. I readily admit that I have more kits than I should have. Haven't counted but must be close to 150 or more. To quote Warren Walker, you are out of control. This was after he saw my engine collection and cabinet full of kits. Don't know how it got started or how to shut it down. My wife says she would rather have me doing this than going to the bar. Can't argue with that!

Bill

Yes, the Ringmaster price surprised me, because ebay market rates are determined by perceived supply, and demand. Demand may be high, but there remains an adequate supply both of S-1 and S-1A Rings. to satisfy everyone. At least I think this to be the case.

I recently sold two '50s scale Sterling kits (Ryan, Polish Fighter) on ebay for over $200. Here, the supply is much smaller, and the demand maybe not as great as for Ringmasters, but pretty decent. Hence the price.

Agree that bidding fever helps sellers, and this is especially true for on line auctions. You are bidding against an anonymous guy out there, and you can conjure up all sorts of negative images of that person. You've got to outbid him!

Prices on many Berkeley CL kits, which sometimes approach $300 for interesting scale subjects, certainly is not based on kit buildability. But some guys have to have the complete set.

LAST EDITED ON Jul-15-04 AT 11:20 AM (CDT)
 
I wonder if the high bidder really intends to pay???

My experience selling on ebay I sometimes have someone bid several times what the item is worth just because they refuse to be outbid. After the auction has ended the high bidder comes to his sences and refuses to answer email or send payment. Last time this happened to me the high bidder emailed me and said, "naturally I don't intend to pay the bid amount so lets work out a deal."

Gary: I have sold nearly 1100 items on ebay, and this is very rare.

I do appreciate the fact that you are one that pays quickly, so thanks again. Currell

Guys,

Interesting insites as to the bay and old kits.

I realize as bad as I think I am, I am about 140 short of someone elses collection, but, it would be fun to have all of 'em.

Currel, for krikey's sake, xerox the wood on any Sterling scale you get...sell the patterns and plans...discretly if necessary to protect prices on resale of other Sterling kits you find...

ARRGGHH...to have missed the PZL die wood outlines....especially with the V-12...Cleveland models has the radial, common as dirt.

Does ANYONE know who was trying to do the Sterling vintage site? It seems to be dead.

You're right, but I'm too lazy. Too many kits, so little time.

For example, I just scored about 40 vintage '40s Free Flight kits from Baltimore. Gotta sell 'em.

>You're right, but I'm too lazy. Too many kits, so little
>time.
>
>For example, I just scored about 40 vintage '40s Free Flight
>kits from Baltimore. Gotta sell 'em.
>
>Currell

How about a list? Maybe in the classified section? Sounds interesting.

Andy (Hard Core FF Guy) T

LAST EDITED ON Jul-15-04 AT 11:23 AM (CDT)
 
I have bought a lot of kits on ebay and made xerox copies of the wood. The razor cut marks usually show up fine on the copies.

Andy: I am going to try my luck on ebay. However, I may sell some kits independently. Thanks for asking, and we may be able to get together. Currell

When I was young I had two diesel engines which later got away from me. I've been irritated about that for some 40 years now. One of them has come up a single time on Ebay and I got it for $150. There were some parts with it which brought $35 on Ebay. Every so often I take that engine out and fondle it. I run it on the test stand but it will never go in an airplane. It will probably go back on Ebay once I am satiated with it. Several examples of the other one have shown up on Ebay; I bid $150 and they go for $4-500. One of these days I'll find one for $30 at a swapmeet:9

When I see something I want on Ebay, I bid what it is worth to me. If someone else thinks it is worth 50 cents more that is fine with me. I get about one item out of 15 bids. I must be cheap.

LAST EDITED ON Jul-15-04 AT 11:25 AM (CDT)
 
Thats not being cheap. When you want something expecially something that brings back memories when you were a boy, what it is worth to you may be a lot more than what its really worth. My very first airplane that I built from a kit was a 1/2a Swordsman 18 with a .049 engine. I have never seen one sell on ebay but I don't remember to look for one every day for one. Someday I will buy a kit and use it to scratch build an airplane then sell the kit again on ebay. I will paint it Red just like the one I had when I was 12 years old. It will be FUN. How much is that memory worth?

LAST EDITED ON Jul-14-04 AT 03:57 PM (CDT)
 
Swordsman kits sell on Ebay with some frequency.

Why don't you reclaim that dream of yours now while you have time and health to enjoy it?

To me it would be worth almost any price!

Bigs

" What constitutes the dignity of a craft is that it creates a fellowship, that it binds men together and fashions for them a common language. For there is but one problem - the problem of human relations."

And did you notice the Webra Mach 1 which went for $250+ ??

I bid the same way. Whatever it is worth to me. I too wanted the first control line kit I ever built and EBAY provided it to me. A Veco Little Tomahawk. It has become another shelf item. Some of the kits are very old and some are current. I don't think I have anywhere near enough years to build all the ones I would like to. Someday there is going to be one hell of a estate sale out my garage!

Bill