Axis & Allies Bits & Pieces - Where Are My Glasses?

Okay, so hubby went to a flea market this weekend.  Selling, but he also scours the other tables to see what is for sale.  He was making his rounds at about five in the morning (yes, he is crazy) when he saw a guy putting out about fifteen games.  They were a mix - several partial sets of little war game miniatures, stuff from the '80s and '90s.  He asked the guy how much he was selling them for, and the guy told him $1 each. Well, hubby had expected to hear something like $5 each, so he was happy.  He bought all twelve of the games and brought them home.  He knows I like listing games; it's a bit of a pain in the butt but if you sort everything, take nice pictures, describe all what you have, people appreciate it and that is reflected in your bid price.

Yesterday I worked on the Hero Quest games.  Today I listed all the miscellaneous parts from the Axis & Allies board game, which is a WWII thing with tons of miniature figures.  The kids helped divide the armies into baggies.  Today I put them all nicely on the table, counted everything, took pictures, and listed them on all three sites, Ebay, BooCoo, and Bonanza.

Let's do the math.  The price of the games altogether is $12.  We are starting the auctions for the pieces at $14.99.  There are six auctions for the game pieces.  So after we sell the first one, all the rest are pure profit, minus the fees.  Fees run about 15% when you add up the eBay fee and the Paypal fee (BooCoo and Bonanza are cheaper and free to list).  So, this is a profit margin that Wall Street can be proud of.  And remember, that's only for the one type of game.  I have a complete A&A game, a Hero Quest game, and more Hero Quest parts listed as well.

Ebay is a funny beast.  They are trying like crazy to get rid of small and medium sellers like us, using restrictions, punishment, and disincentives to make us go away.  It's gotten harder and harder to make a living, but we've been muddling through okay.

Here's some links to my various listings:

http://www.bonanza.com/booths/BuyLoSelHi/items/Lot_149_Axis___Allies_Game_Pieces_German_Army_FREE_SHIP

https://www.boocoo.com/auction/detail.asp?id=159236

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=230605908248&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT#ht_4728wt_1139

Feel free to check everything out.  You can ask questions on the listing or drop me a line here to say hi.  If you'd like some tips on how to buy and sell, let me know :).

Hero Quest, Axis and Allies, Vintage Games Galore!

Whew, I've had a busy afternoon and I'm just getting started.  I shooed the kids out of the dining room and made them eat on the floor in the living room.  It's okay; that meant they got to watch cartoons while they ate, so they were pretty happy.

I've been sorting through the vintage board game "Hero Quest".  This game has tons of pieces, from furniture to orcs and goblins to little tiles for various game elements. I actually have TWO of the games, plus two expansion packs, so I cannibalized one game to make the other complete.  I just listed it on eBay for $50 to start and $80 to Buy It Now.  I hope someone will snap it up.  I listed the expansion packs separately.

Still more to do.  Time to get back at it.  Hubby has twelve more games for me to sort, take pictures of, and post.  Outside, it was unseasonably warm and so windy that I was about to tie the kids down to keep them from blowing out of the yard.  The trees are still swaying alarmingly back and forth; say a little prayer that nothing falls on a power line.  I must list!  List!  LIST!

Gee, I Love Vintage Board Games

Back when I was a wee lass, way back in the eighties, I used to play a Star Trek board game with my friends. This was no ordinary board game; this was advanced board gaming.  There was a huge map that we spread on the table.  We would choose our ships and figure out the hit points, strategize, and try to blow our opponents out of the galaxy.  Games often lasted into the wee hours or even more than one day.  This was before personal computers, WOW, and all that technology stuff.  My weapon was my grease pencil and I was quite the dreadnought pilot.  Until a friend blasted through my shields and sent me off into a wormhole.

I still love those games, so I was absolutely ecstatic when my husband brought home a dozen old games. War games, fantasy games, financial games.  Vintage games from the sixties to the eighties.  My job now is to check them all and see if they have all the pieces (doubtful), decide the condition, and research to see if they are worth the $$$ he parted with to buy them.  

We saw one game that is now on Amazon.com.  The seller is asking over $500 so I'm trying not to let my palms sweat.  It's a fact that you can ask whatever price you like.  What you get can be a lot less.  Well, I'm off to put on my reading glasses and poke through old boxes hoping for online auction gold.  I'll update my progress later on with pictures and all that.  Let's hope for profit!