Where to start after acquiring a large collection?

[JamesRobot | 5,808]

[Kguillemette | 1,545]

This is an incredible purchase. Congratulations and I hope the resale goes smoothly for you. Thanks for sharing!

One recommendation I have is to prioritize getting some quality totes to replace the cardboard boxes while you store it. In addition to providing better protection, they are a lot less unsightly while you organize and consolidate. Might make wifey more patient with you!

[RetroPackets | 28]

Thanks everyone for the replies and ideas of how to tackle getting this organized. I think I have settled on first going through an pulling/swapping with what I want in the collection and then getting everything I don't want alphabetized and ready for selling/trading. I guess now the work begins haha.

I'm also going to get some nicer Rubbermaid style bins and look at designing & 3d-printing some sort rack system to make the loose carts easier/safer to store in the bins and organize.

Edited September 6, 2023 by RetroPackets

[a3quit4s | 4,105]

1 hour ago, RetroPackets said:

Thanks everyone for the replies and ideas of how to tackle getting this organized. I think I have settled on first going through an pulling/swapping with what I want in the collection and then getting everything I don't want alphabetized and ready for selling/trading. I guess now the work begins haha.

I'm also going to get some nicer Rubbermaid style bins and look at designing & 3d-printing some sort rack system to make the loose carts easier/safer to store in the bins and organize.

I can’t recommend these totes enough for storage and moving:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/HDX-27-Gal-Tough-Storage-Tote-in-Black-with-Yellow-Lid-HDX27GONLINE-5/205978361?source=shoppingads&locale=en-US&pla&mtc=SHOPPING-BF-CDP-GGL-D59S-023_016_GARAGE_ORG-NA-NA-NA-PLALIA-D59S-NA-NA-NA-NBR-NA-NA-NEW-FY23_MERCH_PRIORITY&cm_mmc=SHOPPING-BF-CDP-GGL-D59S-023_016_GARAGE_ORG-NA-NA-NA-PLALIA-D59S-NA-NA-NA-NBR-NA-NA-NEW-FY23_MERCH_PRIORITY-71700000109907687-58700008378071751-92700076765325053&gbraid=0AAAAADq61UeurTQhbgJ5BGDSLUAM9Go93&gclid=Cj0KCQjwxuCnBhDLARIsAB-cq1oTAQI0x_UFysE8ODR3DZcUZUI8K8LxXY6rpvUNR_TYELqEN0mhldoaAuiiEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

[fcgamer | 4,730]

5 hours ago, Kguillemette said:

This is an incredible purchase. Congratulations and I hope the resale goes smoothly for you. Thanks for sharing!

One recommendation I have is to prioritize getting some quality totes to replace the cardboard boxes while you store it. In addition to providing better protection, they are a lot less unsightly while you organize and consolidate. Might make wifey more patient with you!

I was just thinking about totes the other day. Maybe it's just the ones here, but unlike corrugated (not cardboard) boxes, the totes I see never have square corners, they're always slightly rounded, thus screwing up the fit, something I hate. Is this just a totes thing in general?

[GPX | 1,370]

I think it’s firstly important to define 2 things:

- who am I as a collector? (What am I really aiming to collect)

- how much time do I want to spend on the selling part? 
 

Once you can figure out the above, then knowing what to keep and what to sell becomes easier. I don’t think anyone really has a generic formula on how to go about with selling a huge collection,  because I don’t think there’s an absolute right way to go about it other than “don’t do anything outlandishly foolish”.

[Tanooki | 4,939]

Keeping my ideas clear, didn't read responses.

If I had that kind of money to throw around and got that amount of stuff at once knowing how I am about things, and I would make the time, somehow, even if it took weeks/months I'd do the following.

- Break out by system
- A-Z the whole mess of it
- Clean the games minimally for now on the exterior, if looks sketch inside too due to bulk only(otherwise always inside.)
- Verify any doubles, triples, etc there or of what I have, then keep the best copy.
- Did I end up with a system/games I do not want to own/go down that rabbit hole?  First to go.

From there I'd actually just see if I could trade/swap or sell the other stuff to make a dent at least in the big cost of the mass buy to take some of the sting out.  Given how much work is involved (I've done far smaller lots historically) I tend to under value the games/trade of games just to get it out because it's a burden.  A burden of finance, space/storage, and liability lying around in case the worst happens.

That's really all I'd do.  That and I'd get some of those large yellow/black snap totes that Lowe's has and stick a silica packet or so in each to protect stuff as it rests until it's sold/traded or properly put on shelves for use.

[RetroPackets | 28]

25 minutes ago, GPX said:

I think it’s firstly important to define 2 things:

- who am I as a collector? (What am I really aiming to collect)

- how much time do I want to spend on the selling part? 
 

Once you can figure out the above, then knowing what to keep and what to sell becomes easier. I don’t think anyone really has a generic formula on how to go about with selling a huge collection,  because I don’t think there’s an absolute right way to go about it other than “don’t do anything outlandishly foolish”.

Thanks for the advice! I am historically a big box PC game collector but have pretty much everything I want except for few titles. I have a decent collection of NES (350ish titles) and will be keeping a lot of those to get close to a full run. The SNES games are where I think the dividing line might be for me on what I keep versus sell. There is almost a full run of games and quite a few doubles so I think I can keep the games I have nostalgia for or I like the box art and probably sell the rest.

[Code Monkey | 2,011]

1 hour ago, fcgamer said:

I was just thinking about totes the other day. Maybe it's just the ones here, but unlike corrugated (not cardboard) boxes, the totes I see never have square corners, they're always slightly rounded, thus screwing up the fit, something I hate. Is this just a totes thing in general?

They're easier to pop out of injection moulds.

[RetroPackets | 28]

9 minutes ago, Tanooki said:

Keeping my ideas clear, didn't read responses.

If I had that kind of money to throw around and got that amount of stuff at once knowing how I am about things, and I would make the time, somehow, even if it took weeks/months I'd do the following.

- Break out by system
- A-Z the whole mess of it
- Clean the games minimally for now on the exterior, if looks sketch inside too due to bulk only(otherwise always inside.)
- Verify any doubles, triples, etc there or of what I have, then keep the best copy.
- Did I end up with a system/games I do not want to own/go down that rabbit hole?  First to go.

From there I'd actually just see if I could trade/swap or sell the other stuff to make a dent at least in the big cost of the mass buy to take some of the sting out.  Given how much work is involved (I've done far smaller lots historically) I tend to under value the games/trade of games just to get it out because it's a burden.  A burden of finance, space/storage, and liability lying around in case the worst happens.

That's really all I'd do.  That and I'd get some of those large yellow/black snap totes that Lowe's has and stick a silica packet or so in each to protect stuff as it rests until it's sold/traded or properly put on shelves for use.

Thanks for the advice! I think my plan pretty much resembles what you stated. Inventory (done), alphabetize, organize in totes, clean up anything I am going to keep, then start planning sales of individual titles and get those cleaned, and finally start unloading things.

I am going to sell some of the big hitters I know I don't want/need now to start to recoup some of the investment and then pick things here and there as time allows for sales. I'm still thinking of buying a table at one of the larger game swaps/cons and trying to unload a lot of the bulk stuff in lots of 5 or so just to get rid of them.

The totality of the lot also included roughly 1700 NES game manuals and posters and well as a 50-100 NES,SNES, Atari controllers,  3 NIB NES Action Packs, 15 SNES consoles (loose), and like 25 game genies for NES and SNES, but a lot of random Nintendo stuff. I'm figuring it will take at least 6 months to completely go through everything but man its going to be a great time!

 

[Tanooki | 4,939]

3 minutes ago, RetroPackets said:

Thanks for the advice! I think my plan pretty much resembles what you stated. Inventory (done), alphabetize, organize in totes, clean up anything I am going to keep, then start planning sales of individual titles and get those cleaned, and finally start unloading things.

I am going to sell some of the big hitters I know I don't want/need now to start to recoup some of the investment and then pick things here and there as time allows for sales. I'm still thinking of buying a table at one of the larger game swaps/cons and trying to unload a lot of the bulk stuff in lots of 5 or so just to get rid of them.

The totality of the lot also included roughly 1700 NES game manuals and posters and well as a 50-100 NES,SNES, Atari controllers,  3 NIB NES Action Packs, 15 SNES consoles (loose), and like 25 game genies for NES and SNES, but a lot of random Nintendo stuff. I'm figuring it will take at least 6 months to completely go through everything but man its going to be a great time!

 

I agree with your approach there between the cons for swaps, and the bulk drops.  I would think with that many SNES consoles alone you could bundle many of your double/triple titles with them, a couple 10-30 dollar titles to catch eyes, then filler games the $1-10 sports, licensed, whatever spread over a few genres so you're not stuck with crap for years and a buyer has a base to start with.  Over 15 systems and that many games you have it, and the Game Genies same I guess, pair it with a game or two, do a mini bundle, but sell a few alone since some have the games already.  Throw some variety into the mix.  I'll be curious to see what ends up on mercari, ebay, here, there who knows.

[Jfreakofkorn | 282]

Will be looking forward to the list of title(s) you ll be parting ways with 

That sure is a lot to take on alone . . . 

[Code Monkey | 2,011]

20 hours ago, RetroPackets said:

The totality of the lot also included roughly 1700 NES game manuals and posters and well as a 50-100 NES,SNES, Atari controllers,  3 NIB NES Action Packs, 15 SNES consoles (loose), and like 25 game genies for NES and SNES, but a lot of random Nintendo stuff. I'm figuring it will take at least 6 months to completely go through everything but man its going to be a great time!

Can you lay out all of the NES manuals / posters / inserts and take a few photos? I can help you out with those pretty quickly and will buy a few hundred pieces from you as well. I need quite a few manuals and posters.

[a3quit4s | 4,105]

30 minutes ago, Code Monkey said:

Can you lay out all of the NES manuals / posters / inserts and take a few photos? I can help you out with those pretty quickly and will buy a few hundred pieces from you as well. I need quite a few manuals and posters.

Give a man a chance to breath lmao

[Khromak | 769]

FWIW I would also love to pick up a large # of loose NES manuals. Once you're ready to start selling stuff, I highly recommend posting it on this site, it will get gobbled up by people very quickly, they will pay reasonable prices, and you shouldn't have to worry about the hassle of returns/complaints etc. from ebay, or having to offer steep discounts to sell in bulk at cons/swap meets/flea markets.

At the end of the day, really depends how much work you want to put in (responding to PMs, putting packages together, mailing stuff, etc.) vs how much $$$ you want to extract from the items. If you're fine with selling at discount, you can put in a lot less work. If you want to get close-to-market rate, you have a little more work to do.

Either way, this collection is completely amazing, I'm insanely jealous, I hate you, but I still hope it works out well for you. This community is amazing and will take good care of you, but will probably be a lot of work because it will turn into ravenous wolves over all them sweet, sweet vidya game tapes.

Edited September 7, 2023 by Khromak

[RetroPackets | 28]

1 hour ago, Code Monkey said:

Can you lay out all of the NES manuals / posters / inserts and take a few photos? I can help you out with those pretty quickly and will buy a few hundred pieces from you as well. I need quite a few manuals and posters.

I need to go through all of them and match games up with manuals first and then see whats left over with just manuals/posters/strat guides, once those are matched up then they are going to go on the back burner for a while so I can get the games off the floor in my basement and organized and secured in totes. I'm figuring by end of the year I'll get around to those. I'm not in a huge hurry with this and still have a full time job and a family not to completely abandon haha.

[RetroPackets | 28]

51 minutes ago, Khromak said:

FWIW I would also love to pick up a large # of loose NES manuals. Once you're ready to start selling stuff, I highly recommend posting it on this site, it will get gobbled up by people very quickly, they will pay reasonable prices, and you shouldn't have to worry about the hassle of returns/complaints etc. from ebay, or having to offer steep discounts to sell in bulk at cons/swap meets/flea markets.

At the end of the day, really depends how much work you want to put in (responding to PMs, putting packages together, mailing stuff, etc.) vs how much $$$ you want to extract from the items. If you're fine with selling at discount, you can put in a lot less work. If you want to get close-to-market rate, you have a little more work to do.

Either way, this collection is completely amazing, I'm insanely jealous, I hate you, but I still hope it works out well for you. This community is amazing and will take good care of you, but will probably be a lot of work because it will turn into ravenous wolves over all them sweet, sweet vidya game tapes.

I'm planning on going pretty slow and methodically through everything and document and research the stuff I have never heard of before, the research and history of all this is the most fun to me getting to play a lot of games I haven't before is just an awesome plus!

This has actually been a fun family experience, my wife and I get to go through the lot and re-discover games or franchises we completely lost track of and my 7 year old get to learn about & play games and franchises I used to as a kid and teen and shes excited about it so this is a huge win for me.

[phart010 | 1,708]

Post stuff on Mercari and give us a link.

[Jfreakofkorn | 282]

Would make a list for us here before anywhere else 

Than put it elsewhere , for the rest of the world can have a go at what is left

As i ll be interested in what will be available once he has everything is sorted out to his likeing at what he ll keep and selling / trading off , imo 

Edited September 29, 2023 by Jfreakofkorn