Does deflocking Lower re sale value?

[lindsayrose1985]

Hello and happy new year to all

I like to de flock ss ponies in a sorry state. Does this actually lower the re sale value of the ponies in question or will people pay more for a de flock that's been finished to a high standard eg no flock or glue left.
I don't de flock any pony that doesn't need a make over though as I love the fuzzy little darlings

[MikeysGrrrl]

I have no idea what the answer to this is, but I would love to know. Personally I think SS ponies look better deflocked unless the flocking is minty, but that's just me

I will sit and wait for responses

[iluvponiez]

Myself, I'd actually pay more for a competent deflock as if the flocking is worn I deflock and I'd rather have the work done for me!

[cricket]

Hmmmm well since you only deflock ponies in bad condition that weren't worth much to begin with I think you could raise the value of that particular pony since there are several collectors that like deflocks.  I don't think it would raise the value above that of an original SS though.  Either way it's a fun restoration project.  I usually consider myself a collector of originals only but I have a SS Scrumptious and Ribbon in my bait box and have been thinking of giving it a go myself.     

[mlp4me]

A lot of collectors want one of each, a SS and deflock. This is understandable.
If the flocking is so far gone many do deflock, but we will get to a point when there will be an even more limited number of SS's due to so many being deflocked. That would cause their prices to increase. You could ask yourself if it's already available as a NSS is it worth deflocking?
I personally would not pay more for a deflock, you're drastically modifying the original therefore de valuing the pony in my eyes.

[lindsayrose1985]

Thank you everyone
I am one of those collectors who like one of each...I have de flocked myself and purchased de flocked ponies.
I don't really see the point in deflocking a ss with a nss version either unless the flocking is really nasty...I had a North star that was terrible and smelly and she cleaned up a treat. 

[Dulci]

It depends.  if it's a rare pony I wuld NOT recommend deflocking - Angel, Bangles, Twilightm Taffy, Crumpet.... those I'd leave to their (probably) permanent owners

There is a market for deflocked SS's but you have to get rid of all the glue with little to no damage to the pony itself.  I've bought deflocked before myself.

[Noepse]

I personally would not pay more for a deflock, you're drastically modifying the original therefore de valuing the pony in my eyes.

Ditto. uvu

[lindsayrose1985]

Thank you... well now I know I shouldn't pay more for a deflocked version that's good to know!  I'm still so new at all this stuff   

[iluvponiez]

Yeah, I only would if it was in horrid shape to begin with- not if it was good. I'd never modify a mint pony.

[ponycake]

I would pay more for a deflocked, because I actually like deflocked and don't like SS ponies pretty much at all. And since I'm too lazy to do it myself I'd rather just buy it that way.

It always seemed to me like nicely done deflocked sell for more than SS on Ebay. Idk?

[lindsayrose1985]

I would never de flock a minty pony ...that's why I have so many doubles lol...I have purchased ponies described as bait to find they are just dirty and once clean pretty mint looking ...no de flocking for them lol

[hathorcat]

Its one of the weirdest contradictions in pony selling unfortunately and perhaps in collecting in general.

In standard collecting rules, changing/damaging [and unfortunately this is damaging] a pony in any way from its original form [even a tatty old so soft] should automatically devalue it. With anything else in G1 - re hairs, eye touch ups, symbol touch ups, tail washers removed etc - all willingly done by an owner do devalue the pony even if they make it look a little better because it is no longer in original form. Thats almost the standard rule of any kind of collection - never mind MLP.

But deflocking is the glaring exception to this. Outside the ponies which already have regular released deflocked versions [Surprise, Posey, Wind Whistler, Buttons, etc] almost every pony which is deflocked to a high standard seems to sell higher than its so soft version. I cant tell you why or how; but watch an auction for a deflocked Ribbon or a deflocked Lofty and they will end higher than a nice version of both ponies in flocking. Initially you could put it down to the fact that So Softs are not super expensive ponies anyway, those from the first set [pre Twilight, Taffy, etc set] are mostly inexpensive enough to pick up. But even deflocked versions of the expensive ponies, just get more expensive when they are deflocked.

Would I personally pay more for a deflocked Skippity Doo than a nice flocked version of her? Probably not but I do understand why some people will. And I have sold enough of them over the years to know that a deflocked SS will typically sell higher than her flocked version.

[lindsayrose1985]

Ooh that was really interesting reading...thank you cat.  Just wondering as I've got a couple of deflocked ponies I've done if I sell them in the future as I've got a lot of partially deflocked ponies hopefully coming here to finish

[prancingstag]

Deflocked ponies are really exciting to me personally. As much as I love SS's, you get used to seeing them looking kind of grungy, yellowed, brownish, stained, or even when minty the flocking is just kind of soft and pale and not drawing to the eye. When you take that flocking off... WOW! Just look at that pony. It never gets old to see the colours underneath really pop, to see a sharper, defined outline to their pose, to see tiny details like their eyelashes and the little molded smile that you don't know you missed seeing until they come back. A deflocked pony who doesn't have a NSS counterpart is like discovering a brand new pony to look at, almost like when you stumble upon a Nirvana version you've never seen before and it shocks you into looking at an old pony in a whole new way.

I'm not actively buying for my G1 collection but I have a feeling that when it comes down to it, I would be tempted to spend a bit more than the expected price to ensure myself a quality deflocked version. Even a lot more for a rare pony like Twilight. We all want to keep as many rare ponies as mint as humanly possible, and that's admirable and correct, you would only deflock a rare pony if it was in absolute dire straits. But the fact that they practically never are created/come up for sale unintentionally makes deflocks like Twilight even rarer than their original flocked counterparts.

So even though it is damaging to customise them and should devalue the pony significantly, there's no guarantee that you won't find a buyer who likes the look enough to splash out on it. It's a funny little exception to the standard rule - you would never find a rehaired Rapunzel going for more than her mint price, but deflocks sometimes manage it.