which to use for customs: cheap baits or expensive retro ponies?

[LadyMoondancer]

If you don't have any income, you aren't going to be able to customize anyway.  Like, wouldn't you want your custom to have a tail?  So you'd need to buy synthetic hair.  You would also need paint for the symbols. And paintbrushes.  If you wanted to reroot the mane, you'd need tools to do that.  Also, acetone.  And ideally some kind of protective mask because it's bad to breathe in acetone.

It just seems like a net win to buy synthetic hair that matches Bubbles' mane, craft a matching tail, sell Bubbles, and use the money to buy customizing supplies and a bait pony.   

JMO.

[SaraMari]

Maybe I'm late to chime in because the conversation seems to have gone in some specific directions. But for me I see no problem of customizing vintage ponies that are truly bait, in fact I have two shopping bags full of bait ponies I've amassed from finding them in the wild

I have found the retro ponies at the thrift store already a couple times so you can find them there too, it's worth looking at garage sales and thrift stores for them

I do have a question that is related to the topic. I picked up some ponies yesterday, 6 of them are baits and one of them, butterscotch, is sticky and smells of bad cheese/dirty feet. I've never encountered anything like that smell on a pony before. I don't think it could even be customized, but I feel bad putting a pony in the garbage. What do you think?

[banditpony]

I don't think it could even be customized, but I feel bad putting a pony in the garbage. What do you think?

My suggestion to anyone who wants to trash a pony is offer it to the community for free + shipping. TBH, there's people who might want to attempt to get the scent out.

[BubbleTea]

Well considering I have zero amount of money....I offered to trade this for a bait. Because I can't afford anything on Ebay. But no one seems interested.

Well if you can't afford a sadder bait then I don't know how you'll be able to afford customization materials (paint, hair, etc.)

[tailrustedtealeaf]

I'm very apprehensive about painting on a G1 because of the supply always going down...I totally would opt for the retro ponies, and I think of it as a way to tell Basic Fun I want more than the set I already have. Plus, more opportunities to do fun alt rehairs without damaging original pony? Nice!
I'm not a big customizer though, the most I could ever do as of right now is alt rehairs, which I see as reversible because I don't use glue.

[gemini_pony]

If you don't have any income, you aren't going to be able to customize anyway.  Like, wouldn't you want your custom to have a tail?  So you'd need to buy synthetic hair.  You would also need paint for the symbols. And paintbrushes.  If you wanted to reroot the mane, you'd need tools to do that.  Also, acetone.  And ideally some kind of protective mask because it's bad to breathe in acetone.

It just seems like a net win to buy synthetic hair that matches Bubbles' mane, craft a matching tail, sell Bubbles, and use the money to buy customizing supplies and a bait pony.   

JMO.

I already have custom supplies.  Lol who uses a face mask for acetone.  But I have been customizing for years before I lost my job.

[Shileah]

gemini_pony: Here is another idea to get the funds to obtain a bait, retro or HCG1 pony: You said you have the supplies to customise; I've seen people saying they don't dare to do rehairs or small restorations such as eye & symbol repainting. You could offer to do that for them. Your customer needs to pay for shipping + materials + fee for your work, and you will earn money that way you can re-invest into your collection, including obtaining "real" baits and retros to customise.

[Carrehz]

In general - my thoughts are, if it's easily restorable, restoring is preferable to customizing. If it's beyond help and customizing is the only really viable option, go for it!

Of course, at the end of the day, what people do with their ponies is their business. But I do think that if there's an alternative available (repros, HQG1C), and the G1 in question is restorable, then it's a better option all around to just acquire a repro/HQG1C/etc (or look for a baitier G1) than to take a perfectly good G1 out of circulation.