How much of your collection would you trade for your grail?

[BlackCurtains]

Hypothetically, of course. If someone offered you your current grail pony for some of your current collection, what ponies would you give up? Would you trade more common inexpensive ones, or trade a couple of rares instead? How many ponies in your collection do you think are worth your ultimate grail? Would you go by price or on some other value?

My collection is mainly made up of common ponies and even a few Nirvanas I have, like Italy Applejack, aren't HTF. So I think I'd have to give up a lot for my grails (Argie orange CP Confetti, Greek orange Sunlight, Yellow Moondancer). In fact, thinking about my G1 collection, I think I'd probably have to give up most of it for one of those three - maybe less for Moondancer - and I'm not sure I'd do it? It's taken 10 years to grow my collection and as much as I would love one of the three I think I'd feel bad afterward with so few ponies left. I have around, I dunno, 75 G1s. That's not a lot really. My most valuable money-wise is probably Argie orange Whizzer. She's not in the best shape though.

Some ponies have value beyond price, like childhood ponies, for one. I only have 5 but I wouldn't trade them for any other pony. Others have nice memories attached to them. I guess, in the end, I love my current collection more than any of my current grails, because there is nothing to associate with them yet. I'm very sentimental about my things and having no real connection to my grails, as much as I love them, I think I'd stick with my current ponies.

Now if someone wanted my bait bin in exchange, that's a different story

[goddessofpeep]

I’m in an interesting place in my collection.  I’ve actually cleared most of my biggest grails.  I had one really good year where I got three of them within a few months:p  I do have some big ticket ponies I would very much like, but most of the grails I was really crazy for I’ve already gotten. There’s still a lot to get, and the prices are nuts for a lot of them now, but I’ve made my peace with the situation.  There’s a few things I missed out on when they were cheap(er).

I do not trade from the collection, and a lot of my biggest ticket ponies were gifts from various people for various things. My husband got me my Rapunzel for Christmas one year(back before it was a mortgage payment). My parents got me both of the Greek sitting ponies on successive Christmases. That kind of thing. Those aren’t leaving. The items required to get what I’d like would probably be something sentimental like that.

I also have a truly massive amount of trade stuff.  I’m talking hundreds(possibly thousands) of ponies, all generations, thousands of accessories, stickers, petites, pamphlets, club items,  merch..everything.   I’ve been in the pony collecting community since 1997, and I very, very rarely open up for trades or sales.  So it piles up. I have a lot of common stuff, but I do have a few big ticket items in the trade bins.  Maybe not rare enough for some big ticket Nirvanas I’d like, but some nice stuff.  I have done massive $1000+ trades involving dozens of items before.  I could probably sell off a chunk of my trade bin and use that money to go after some of the other things if I every got myself together enough to do it.

[Taffeta]

None.

However much I want pony x, it's never worth the loss of pony y to me.

I have had people ask to buy stuff from my collection, but it's always a firm no.

Reason is that the bulk of my collection was built up with my sister, as kids carbooting or buying ponies new. Another large chunk came from a pony collector who is no longer with us, who trusted us when we were green kids with no references. And the most of the remainder come from trades with people who maybe are no longer in the community. Some come from specific places or specific friends. And so on.

There is a portion, maybe 20%, of ponies bought off ebay. But they were bought and became part of my collection, so of course now I consider them mine. Most of my ponies have been with me 20+ years.

There's literally nothing that anyone could offer me that would override those years :/

Although, because of being able to collect as long as I have, most of the ponies that I really wanted I already got, thanks to the people mentioned above.

And the one I don't - sugarcake - if I'm not willing to spend hard cash on her, no way would I trade a priceless collection pony for her. I love her but she's too expensive, and each time I ahd the chance to buy her, I prioritised something else - mostly my education.

[Ponybookworm]

I don't trade, partly because I rarely get tradeable Ponies, partly because the few times I do I pass them on to a friend or something, partly because I don't buy extras for trading purposes, partly because I don't buy lots any more, mostly because of three things: 1/ Once a Pony is mine, they're mine. For life. Not parting with them again. 2/ Most of the ones I still want are pricey, & I don't find Ponies out in the wild worth trading for pricey ones. And 3/ coming here was a Godsend, being able to pay bit by bit of a Pony to get her, like I've done with Cobra (oops I need to feed them back again)!!! And that's the way I prefer to get my Ponies now: buying them.

So I'm also in the None camp

[BlackCurtains]

Interesting answers so far! I like how we're all too sentimental

[Carrehz]

I couldn't do it, either. Admittedly in part because my high-ticket grail is Felicidades, and I doubt anyone would trade her for any of the ponies I have - the only other "pricey" ponies I really have are Re Unicorno and G4 Sweetie Blue, and there's no way in hell I'd ever let them go, they're very precious to me. But yeah in general, once I add something to one of my collections, they're with me for life. I only really sell stuff if it's a double, or if it's something that came in a lot and really isn't my style (i.e. I once wound up with a BBE baby somehow - she went straight into the salebox since I just don't like BBEs)... or on the very rare occasion that I get a pony and I just don't bond with her... but I usually think long and hard before buying anything if I'm at all iffy on it, so that's only happened maybe once or twice.

Basically I'm just a sentimental fool. My favourite Ivy is worth more to me than a brand-new Felicidades could ever be (even though I really like Felicidades!).

[LadyAmalthea]

Eh...anything I'm willing to part with is not anything anyone would trade me my grails for, so probably not. The only real ponies of value I have are my 3 pony friends: Oakley, ChaCha and Cuteasaurus (not even sure if they are considered high-dollar or not?), and while they are not my favorites, my grandparents gave them to me and I balk a little at the idea of giving them up only to get another pony; maybe if it were something more substantive...not sure what. Something I needed, I guess! But no one is going to trade me my 5 extra Baby Fireflys, 3 baity Peachys, and 18, 475 or so BBE babies for Bright Eyes and Mimic. (But if somebody is...I'm game!)

Maybe if somebody offered me those 2 for my whole g3 collection or g4s...it would kill 2 birds with one stone because I'm looking to downsize and I'm not sentimental about those because they're not from my childhood.

[brightberry]

Interesting answers so far! I like how we're all too sentimental

I'm too sentimental.  I look at a pony face and can't bear to part with it.

Edited for spelling 

[SpacePinto]

I don't really have a "grail" per se, but I know I would trade my collection in a heartbeat for a high-quality, custom-made, show-accurate plushie of Wind Whistler or Fizzy.

[Starflashbaby]

None & hopfully they take payments...
I only trade my exact doubles. If they have a variation I'll keep it in my collection for it is physically different from the other.

[Taffeta]

It makes me happy that people are sentimental. Ponies shouldn't really be about money and value anyway, since it's not a stable financial investment.

I have a few duplicates even I won't part with.

For example, my primary school friend gave me her ponies when she was moving to a place up north. She didn't want them any more, so gave them to me. I have all of them still, even the ones that were duplicates to mine. Why would I part with them? They were part of my childhood too xD.

The one exception to that may be her Majesty, who I gave to my sister for her Dream Castle. Naynie doesn't count since we've always collected with each other.

[starscout]

Well I would definitely want to keep the ones that have sentimental value (ponies from my childhood, the first pony I got from each gen) and ones that were harder to find (my blonde Takara fakie lol). I think I would be willing to trade the others for my love, blonde Starshine.

[Snapdragon]

LOL, I'm way too sentimental too! My answer would have to be no! Plus, one pony instead of many ponies? IT DON'T MAKE SENSE!

I came across a new term in the Breyer side of collecting - Black Hole Collectors! That means when a pony comes, it STAYS. No backsies! I can definitely identify with that!

[lovesbabysquirmy]

I am pretty much down to my childhood ponies, most of the others I have already been selling....

My grail isn't attainable for me and I have kind of lost hope with ever being able to enjoy MLP the way I used to...

[Koudoawaia]

I think I do not currently  have a grail so none and also none even if I did have a grail^^;