Beginner collector - Strategies from seasoned collectors!

[reddsetgogirl]

First and foremost, what is your goal? This will probably change but for now, what is it you are hoping to achieve. Is it a complete collection. Is it ponies in pristine condition. Is it any pony, regardless of its condition. Is it purely ponies or do you want playsets, merchandise, accessories, etc?

If you already know that you want a large collection, do you currently have the space to accommodate that? In the future are you likely to have that sort of space? Is your current home permanent or at least long term (I've lived in 4 houses with my large collection and it's no easy feat to move and set up multiple displays in different size rooms). How are you going to display them - bookcases, shelves? I now operate on the notion that if I know I don't have a place for it, I can't buy it until I do.

If I could give myself advice when I was starting out, it would be these two points.

1. There will always be ponies. Only in extreme cases are ponies super rare. Collectors sell their collections all the time. The pony you want to buy right now will be for sale again at some point. Maybe even at a better price or in better condition. If you can't easy afford it now, it is not worth going broke over.

2. On the flip side, a pony at a good price does not mean you have to buy it. Do you really want this pony or are there more you would rather have? A lot of people, myself included, tend to buy everything in sight when they first get pony fever. I have a fair amount of ponies in my 900 odd collection who I don't really like, am neutral to or would have rather spent that money on one I love. Just because you can buy it, doesn't mean you should.

It's going to be time consuming but I'd suggest researching what ponies you like the most. Maybe write a list of the top 30 or 50. Research how much they are worth through price checks and eBay sales. Know how much a pony is worth before you buy it or bid on it. Every long term collector I know has put in the hard yards to know ponies as well as they do. You don't just magically know this stuff. The more you know ponies, the less likely you are to get ripped off, overspend and overbid.

[MoonStars]

. “Don't store your ponies in ponywear - at least, not ponywear with red or pink shoes, it can stain the feet”

This made me think of soemthing else. If you decide you want to collect pony wear—and even if you don’t now, you might in the future (ask me how I know... <.< )— and would like to display it, hang onto or find some ponies that are in n poor condition (go to the Pony Fair and cruise the bait boxes...) that you won't be heartbroken about if they wind up with stains (which you won’t  see anyway, because they’re covered up by clothes lol)

ETA: I stole this idea from Kitkatvintage, btw 😄

[Khoufu]

About Ponywear, is there a list of what ponywear might stain or which are safe? I've become super cautious after a modern pony plush stained my poor Firefly.

Also, if it hasn't been said yet, if you have a budget, just buy a bunch of ponies with your weekly/whatever budget from one person to save on shipping.

[Ponygeek]

Thank you all for your amazing advice!  I think I will try to focus on completing certain sets that I like first.  Thank you, this advice has been very helpful and I look forward to putting it all to use

[tailrustedtealeaf]

This made me think of soemthing else. If you decide you want to collect pony wear—and even if you don’t now, you might in the future (ask me how I know... <.< )— and would like to display it, hang onto or find some ponies that are in n poor condition (go to the Pony Fair and cruise the bait boxes...) that you won't be heartbroken about if they wind up with stains (which you won’t  see anyway, because they’re covered up by clothes lol)

ETA: I stole this idea from Kitkatvintage, btw 😄

I'm gonna steal this idea from the both of you, what a cute way to display!
To add, this is a more personal preference thing, try to keep up with shelving your ponies. I've got over half my collection in a box because I'm so lazy and overwhelmed by figuring out how to display them.

[FantasticFirefly]

. “Don't store your ponies in ponywear - at least, not ponywear with red or pink shoes, it can stain the feet”

This made me think of soemthing else. If you decide you want to collect pony wear—and even if you don’t now, you might in the future (ask me how I know... <.< )— and would like to display it, hang onto or find some ponies that are in n poor condition (go to the Pony Fair and cruise the bait boxes...) that you won't be heartbroken about if they wind up with stains (which you won’t  see anyway, because they’re covered up by clothes lol)

ETA: I stole this idea from Kitkatvintage, btw 😄

I do the same! Some of the fabrics stain, some of the shoes do as well. No point in putting nice ponies on those outfits.

Just do not choose ponies that get or were slimy (plasticizer leak), or treated with acne cream or remove-zit as that will damage the outfits making contact.

[CrystalSnowflake]

If you want diversity in a smaller collection you could just buy your favorite pony of each set.
It would give you a good way to see a pony from the set in person before you buy the whole set.
You could also buy a nice lot and get to know what flaws you are willing to live with and what you can't accept.

I don't think there is a wrong way to collect. Just keep the spending in check.

Don't forget to enjoy the ones you have too!

[goddessofpeep]

I'd recommend not displaying ponywear on ponies.  I am a very serious ponywear collector, but I never have any outfits on display.  I personally think it's a bad idea for the following reasons:

1)  Some parts of some outfits can stain the pony they're on, and sometimes it's not obvious what will stain until it's too late.
2)  Keeping outfits on a pony for an extended time can stretch out elastic or deform some parts of some outfits.
3)  Many of the rarest and most expensive parts of some outfits are tiny things that don't stay on the pony well, making them very likely to get lost if an accident happens(the pony falls on the floor, a pet gets on the display shelf, etc), or if someone just isn't paying attention.  Nothing is worse than tearing a house apart to look for a Pretty as a Picture paint brush or the Hearts and Candy necklace.  These items are rare partially because they're so easy to lose, and vacuum cleaners and hungry pets just LOVE them.
4)  Dust can be really hard to get out of fabrics, and ponywear is not designed with washing in mind.  Brightly colored fabrics also don't like sunlight, and while it's rare that an outfit fades, it does happen.

I store my ponywear carefully in baggies, and I have a devoted bin for it.  If you are going to store ponywear, always make sure to close all velcro properly on any outfit that has it.  Velcro has a nasty habit of sticking to fabric it's not supposed to, and damaging it when pulled. 


As for general collecting, one other thing to consider when deciding how your collection will take shape is if you want to be a completionist collector or not.  Many collectors like to go for full sets of ponies.  This is fine if you've got the space for it, but it usually ends up with a large collection.  The upside is most collectors do want to have the complete set of something.  Not having a complete set often feels...wrong.  Unfinished.  There's a satisfaction that comes when you complete a set.  And of course displaying ponies in their full sets always looks nice. However, you will often end up with ponies you're not that into just to complete certain sets.  It also generally means that you have to be careful which sets you want to go after if you've got space issues. It also means that you'll be on the lookout for any particularly expensive members of any given set you're after.  There are a few sets that contain ponies that have an abnormally high market value compared to the rest of the ponies in their set(Mimic, Diamond Dreams, Red Roses, etc.).  That's something to take into consideration too.

Some collectors are more pick and choose collectors.  They only go after what they like, and ignore anything that doesn't specifically appeal to them.  These collections can also get large, but most of the focused, smaller collections are like this.  This is probably the way to go if you've got space issues, at least at first.  A lot of pick and choose collectors start to get the completionist bug once they've started to run out of things they actively wanted.  Once their "have" list starts to fill up, most collectors start adding to their "want" lists.

[Stormness_1]

A wish list is essential if you buy online. Also a budget, heck sometimes I set a budget before I go looking for a particular pony, because I know once I find one I'll start justifying the price and blow my whole pony budget on one pony I really want. I always do my research first when making a big pony purchase. Make sure I'm not spending too much, and know what flaws to look for for each particular pony. Like the second set of rainbow ponies are prone to symbol rust, because they get plasticizer leak fairly commonly, and which ponies have fading pink hair. That way you don't buy a Tickle with a gold symbol only to find it's just rusty, or a 'white-haired variant' Posey, only to find she's just a faded regular one.

[Shaiyeh]

I absolutely agree with making a wishlist and budget! And research what sets you want, so as to not get ripped off like stormness said with a "rare white haird posey" (a lot of eBay listings or even etsy will say that the pony is rare even when it isn't. something to keep in mind!)

I started out with no real idea of what I wanted to collect, so I just collected EVERYTHING. I can't say I regret any of the purchases I did the two first years whiel still collecting without a clue, but it does make for a cluttered situation for someone like me who definitely likes to collect sets xD I felt like my collection was very much all over the place, and I don't enjoy that feeling.
Nowadays, I collect by sets. I try to have a couple sets at a time that I work on (plus the odd ponies I stil miss from my days of just ~collecting~ ), and try not to start any more sets before I've completed them. When I completed my TEs, I felt fine buying my first TAF pony and starting that set. Working on sea ponies, flutters and like 2 more sets now (if we're talking g1. g3 is a bit all over the place for me, still, but I do have a wishlist I stick to for them as well).
I find that really helps ^___^

Welcome to the pony collecting world!
_{(also excuse any typos or if anythin's unclear, please ask in that case, still loopy on medication from getting surgery done yesterday lol)}

[Elfpony]

So much excellent advice here!

Budget, space, and keeping your collection safe are the most important things.

Remember that your tastes will change as you go on, and that's ok. spending time scrolling through eBay (but not to buy, just window shopping) can help you to figure out what you like and don't like. Collector books and sites will help too.

Don't be afraid to ask questions and look for info from other collectors. Let their knowledge help you to avoid mistakes that others have already made.

You will overbid on something or feel buyer's remorse at some point. It happens to nearly everyone. Learn from your experience and go from there.

Have fun!!! That's what collecting is all about.

Elf

[Noasar]

I second most of what everyone has said.

I only like mint ponies. I’m also picky about colour/pose, so I only collect the individual ponies and sets I like the best. I’m not really bothered about rarity, although I do own a few rare ponies, but only because I like the way they look.

Pony collecting is fun. I am down to my lost HTF ponies now so it’s a bit more expensive, but there’s no rush - part of what makes collecting fun is tracking down the ponies you want for the right price/condition.

Happy collecting!

[TwinkleEyedWitch]

All of the advice here is fantastic! I've been at it for about twelve years, give or take. As far as aquiring G1's and G3's, I'd learn all you can about them online, and then look for lots of them on a site like ebay. If you get some that just have surface dirt or minor marks, a magic eraser can work some REAL magic. I started learning how to restore them when I got into G1's, just because in the end, it's cheaper to buy a slightly damaged pony and fix it up. :3
It's also incredibly satisfying to fix an old toy up!
Also, one thing that's worked for us is making a local listing looking for them on social media. Just always make sure to bring someone with you, and meet in a busy, well lit place for safety!
Happy hunting!

[ashlyne]

Also, if you live with others (a spouse, roommate, parents, etc), just be mindful and respectful of their space as well. Ponies  have a way of exploding all over the place without you realizing it *lol*   Just because you're excited about your hobby doesn't mean everyone sees it that way

[achab1984]

Ok don't go crazy and buy buy! I have done that many times and spent way to much!

I would look around and see what stands out to you! There is a site called Strawberry Reef that I like to go to and check out. You can look at all the Generations and each pony along with the name and sets they came with!

And set yourself a budget right away for what you want to spend each week or month total! Don't go over it!

The other thing that I learned is that lots are awesome if you don't have very many ponies. But you need to break it down to the price of each pony in the lot with the shipping also included. I don't like to spend any more then $4 per pony. I have seen many lots go for over $8 per pony and that it to high for some of the more common ones. Or the ones that are marked up with ink and hair cuts!

There is a lot of good info in here! I hope you have fun shopping for some new ponies!