I bought this Lord of the Rings Risk game last July at my favorite gross, dingy thrift store out east.
I paid $3 for it, but wasn't able to check to see if it was complete before I bought it. The first thing I noticed was the ring was missing. I apologize to anyone who might be offended by this next sentence, but I know absolutely NOTHING about Lord of the Rings. I've never read the books, I've never seen the movies. Obviously, based on the title, the ring must be of some importance, but I thought maybe I could sell it without the ring anyway.
I listed it high with best offer, and my cousin (who DOES know all about these things) immediately messaged me to inform me in no uncertain terms that NO ONE would ever pay that price for this game, especially since it was missing the ring. Sigh. But what could I do? I looked into buying a replacement one, but they are apparently pretty highly sought after, and I wasn't willing to pay $20 for a replacement piece.
So I listed it for quite some time without the ring. Then an EBUG member posted that she had a different LOTR game that was incomplete and that she had a bunch of plastic LOTR rings. So she sent me one. I added it to the listing STRESSING that it was NOT the original ring.
But at this point, I was still missing the black plastic tray that holds the army pieces. I really didn't think anyone would care about that either.
I had a buyer from Mexico offer me $25 for it this past January. I declined, knowing that I should be able to get more for it. I had another buyer buy it at some point (I don't remember when), but then immediately cancelled when he realized the black tray wasn't included.
Then another EBUG member sent me her spare black tray (teamwork!). So finally! I had a complete game, even though the ring was not originally from this game. I revised my listing to show that I had a ring and the black tray. I also listed the game on Amazon.
Yet again, there it sat with zero interest. I don't think I even had any eBay watchers on it.
FINALLY! It sold on Amazon last night. For $25.98. Which I could have gotten last January. Grr.
But the curse continues. You've gotta be careful what you list on Amazon, because you don't get to set your own shipping price. (You can already see where this is going, can't you?) Amazon gave me a $6.49 shipping credit. This game was going clear across the country to Nevada (I'm in Pennsylvania). It weighed over 3 pounds. Sigh. Priority shipping was $15+. I opted for Parcel Post, which was a few dollars less, but it was still over $12.
But. I'm just glad to be rid of it. Finally. And hopefully the buyer won't find a reason to return it. Fingers crossed!
**********
Did you ever have an item that you just couldn't get rid of? And when you finally did, it didn't go as planned anyway?
Hi Jessica,
ReplyDeleteIndeed there have been albatrosses around my neck in the past. Should you find yourself with an incomplete game like this in the future, consider cannibalizing it and piecing it out on eBay. I think you could definitely have gotten more for it that way:
http://www.ebay.com/csc/Game-Pieces-Parts-/7317/i.html?_nkw=lord+of+the+rings+risk&LH_Complete=1&rt=nc
I have done that very successfully with several other games. I contemplated doing that with this one, but I honestly don't remember why I decided not to. But yes, I definitely would have done better :-\
ReplyDeleteI didn't know you were in PA; me too! I wish I would have been at the sale with the AG dolls!! I am searching for one for my daughter, but won't pay the ebay price. I'm too cheap! :) If you ever come to Harrisburg, I would love to buy you a cup of Joe!
ReplyDeleteI had a dear friend who lived in Hummelstown. Her kids were close in age to my kids, so every couple of months, I took my kids there and she watched them while I spent the entire day shopping by myself! I wish I had known. I'd have loved to meet up with a reader. But she moved to Iowa in April, so I don't expect I'll be out that way anytime in the near future :-\
ReplyDeleteI used to live in Hummelstown! We visit family there at least a couple times a year.
DeleteI have this stupid Talking Bear (little bear) I sold it on Bonanza for $15 and the buyer never paid. Sold it again on ebay this past weekend and the buyer never paid. If the case closes without a payment, Im going to take it to the consignment store. (although I could get a lot more on ebay)
ReplyDeleteI also have this warming dish from the 40's I thought for sure it would sell. It is in great shape for its age. I have had it for a year now. I just can't seam to donate it and I know it wont sell at consignment
I had a LOTR Trivial Pursuit game and all the pieces were still in their wrapping but the ring was missing. Fortunately for me, I could list the pieces individually and still did ok. It seems those LOTR games are hit or miss.
ReplyDeleteI haven't had much luck with board games either. I bought a LOTR checkers game which sat in my store FOREVA. I think I ended up giving it away to my grandkids. I also bought three SCENE IT games (Harry Potter, 007, and Friends) because I thought I read somewhere they were good sellers. Well, not for me. These sat in my store for a long time (at least a year) before they sold almost at my cost. The one that sold for the highest $ was the Friends, but the buyer contacted me to tell me the DVD was not the right one. Bummer! I never checked so I had to take her word for it. I ended up giving her a partial refund. The most successful board game sale I had was a vintage brand-new sealed SIMPSONS checkers game. DS had it for a few years and never played it. I think I sold it for $45.
ReplyDelete