not sure if this belongs in this catagory but here goes nothing

[sally234598]

how do you guys decide what ponies you want? a lot are in bad shape or just really pricy. its hard to choose.  Thanks

[Loa]

It kinda depends. I have purchased big lots before for the purpose of cleaning/restoring and selling.
I've bought big lots just for the ONE pony I can't find elsewhere.

[SpaceButtPonies]

For me when choosing ponies I went with my favorite theme which is space/stars and moons. With that being said I'm willing to pay a bit extra for nicer looking ponies, if possible.

Definitely try to stay away from Ebay at first, a lot of people tend to over charge for ponies. MLPA and Facebook MLP groups are definitely a good start for collecting. I feel most people here and FB respect other collectors, rather than seeing the value of ponies like Ebay they want to share the love of them. Hope this helps!

[BlackCurtains]

I go by color My favorite color is orange, so I collect and buy mostly orange ponies. That said, I do have several yellow ponies and my all time favorite is Raincurl, who is white. So it varies for me too.

I agree with the above about eBay. Single pony prices have become so ridiculous there but looking for job or TLC lots can pay off. Maybe I'm in the wrong collector groups, but I find people overcharge on Facebook too unless, like eBay, it's a TLC lot.

[milkywaymochi]

I go by specific sets of ponies. I usually have two or three different sets I'm trying to complete at any one time, so if I'm struggling to find any of one I can switch focus to another for a while.
For example, I've been trying to complete the first set of TaF ponies, and I only need sweet tooth now, but I'm getting a bit fed up of not being able to find her for a reasonable price, so I've switched focus to the candy cane ponies (only have two out of six) and the first baby ponies. (Still looking for baby glory and baby firefly)

[SpacePinto]

I only have six ponies but I remember that before buying each of them I would always make sure they don't have any significant visible flaws, like missing hair or damaged cutie mark etc. If I wanted Gusty for example, I would keep looking for one that was really worth my money (especially since I usually also need to pay for international shipping to my country), carefully checking each one I found and moving on to the next one if I noticed something wrong with it. The one I had the most trouble with was Wind Whistler, because I specifically wanted one that wasn't a so soft and still had pink hair, which was very difficult to find, but eventually I got one.

[Leave a Whisper]

I've gone through ID sites, made a list, tossed out and swapped in ponies that are too expensive, or that I don't like as much as I first thought, or that are too difficult to get hold of. Some of them are ponies I had as a child that I want back. I still need 3 childhood ponies back. Some of them are ponies that I always wanted as a child. Some of them are impulse buys. Some of them, made me say that's ugly/plain/tacky, and I ended up getting them later and liking them way more than I thought. Like every other hobby, it's all about personal and evolving tastes.

[honor_h]

I just pick the ones I like the most Then it comes down to price if a pony is above my budget that's the end of that. I do have colours that I tend to be attracted to and I like a colourful mane, not keen on long hair, due to it taking up display space. Also what I dislike helps as well e.g there are poses I don't like.

Ebay does have a problem of common ponies in yuk condition for about £30 because non-collectors think any old pony is worth money. I think it pays to wait (if you can!) for a pony you like to come up for auction on ebay as they start lower and common ponies in good condition don't go for much. If the pony doesn't look in good condition I judge if it's something that can be sorted with a clean or I can live with. Lots are the cheapest way to get ponies although they tend to be common ones. Non-G1 ponies tend to be cheaper.

[tailrustedtealeaf]

I look through ID sites and pick out ones that I like. I am a bit of a completionist, though. For example, I try to keep up with G5 releases as they come out instead of being selective.
I prefer greatly to find lots that contain ponies I want, and then sell or trade the extras.

[KarentheUnicorn]

how do you guys decide what ponies you want?

With my heart...

and money. Yea, usually money decides.

[Ponybookworm]

I have five Ponies I allow myself variants of so far, because any more & it gets crazy.

Aside from that I mostly collect unique Ponies, or Ponies different enough from their counterparts to be worth a get. Argentine versions of Ponies I already have, but with different body colours & rainbow hair??? Yep (have two now cheers Cobra). Versions of Ponies I already have with pretty much the same colours who are just from different countries & not one of my chosen few??? Nope

Also, my budget is a big factor, as is space. Both of these set a maximum limit on my collection

[sally234598]

nice  i found one i do like but idk yet very picky

[glitterball]

I always had a herd from my childhood, but in adult life, I started looking on ebay (back in the ancient past when prices were not so stupid as today!) and looked to get "doubles" of my favourite childhood ponies (mainly to put something cute on my desk at work, without risking my childhood ponies going missing).

Oh, back when Gypsy, Honeycomb, Galaxy, Fizzy et-al were reasonably priced *dreams*

So that's how I decided what ponies to get. Of course, I discovered other ponies that I had never seen before - beautiful Nightglider was a grail for me & I managed to get her - again, before things like shipping costs went crazy. I feel sad that international shipping price-hikes have made collecting far too expensive.

[sally234598]

It kinda depends. I have purchased big lots before for the purpose of cleaning/restoring and selling.
I've bought big lots just for the ONE pony I can't find elsewhere.

. yeah I think I found one I can tolerate where it's not in a bad state some of them are pretty rough shape though i was like yikes no Thanks. 

[starscout]

I have a wishlist of ponies I'm keeping an eye out for the most, though, more often than not, when I buy ponies, they're ones not on said list. Whenever I see sales posts, I determine which ponies to get (or whether or not to get any in the first place) with a few factors: pricing, condition, color, symbol, and where they're shipping from. Pricing is an obvious one. I'm a full-time student, and the only income I get is from my art commissions. Also the reason I rarely buy ponies shipping from outside North America. For condition, I can overlook some marks and dried hair and whatnot but nothing too major. For color, I love ponies with bold and vibrant colors that look particular lovely on my shelf. Symbols are what makes a pony unique, so they also play a pretty big role. I won't turn my nose up at a pony just because she has an underwhelming symbol, but if she does have one I particularly like, it is a major plus for me.