Need help with decision

[Gorlag]

Hi

I've been collecting Star Wars toys since I was a child (mostly Kenner/Hasbro figures) but now I want to get something that grabs the attention of people and looks good too.
A Master Replica.

I'm writing this here because I can't decide which one I should buy.
My first thought was a Stormtrooper Blaster. Big, heavy (30 pounds, right?), black, just cool.
After more intense research I discovered the Luke ANH EE saber. Wonderful and very expensive.
Also I read about glue on the saber (a production error?)...

The thing is I live in Germany and here the prices are extraordinary.
Stormtrooper Blaster ~$475
Luke ANH EE ~$710
Luke ANH LE/SE ~$430/$600

What would you do?
Blaster? EE saber? Wait for the new Luke ANH LE/SE? Or something different?

Thanks for your help.

[Fwad]

You could also build your own lightsaber. Building Luke's ANH or ESB is easy and alot cheaper than master replicas stuff.

[decadentdave]

Not everyone has the skills to build their own replica. I know I certainly don't. Master Replicas are officially licensed 1:1 replicas and are very impressive display pieces to have.

Blaster or Saber... that's a tough call. The Han Solo ANH blaster is a definitive piece to have considering it has long sold out and the secondary market prices have escalated over 4 times the retail price, however, the Han Solo EE will be coming this year and will be even more accurate featuring an authentic cherry wood mauser broomhandle grip. Because it is an EE, you will have to be a current CS member and I'm sure it will be quite a bit more expensive than the LE was originally but probably still much less than paying the aftermarket price for one of those. It will be interesting to see if the EE will cause values of the LE to drop on the secondary market as we will see collectors selling off their LE's to upgrade to the EE model in the coming months. You may want to wait awhile.

As for a saber, there are many excellent pieces but if you can afford the aftermarket cost of an EE than you will not be disappointed and it will make an impressive display piece. I only have the Jedi Luke LE which is why I couldn't justify getting the EE at the time but, if you can afford it, I would get the Jedi Luke EE because I think it is a much more impressive looking hilt than the graflex-looking ANH but that is just my opinion.

But if you really want to go for an impressive eye-catching prop, you might also consider the helmets or studio scale props. The three pieces in my collection that draw immediate attention to themselves are:

1. Lifesize Han Solo in Carbonite (Illusive Originals)
2. Studio Scale AT-AT
3. Darth Vader Studio Scale Helmet

I swear, Han is the first thing they see and immediatly make a B-line past my wall of sabers and go right up to him and spend more time staring at the AT-AT and Helmets than they do the sabers and blasters. Heck, I should just start charging admission so I can finance more props for my ever-growing little museum.

[Gorlag]

Hello decantdave,

a lifesize Han Solo...well...that would be an amazing piece.
The AT-AT is very expensive here ($1800) and I don't want to spend such an amount of money. And the Vader helmet...just isn't the thing I'm looking for. Maybe later.

Therefore I'd like to begin with a saber.

The Luke ANH EE is wonderful. But have you heard something about this "glue error"?
Two other saber that caught my attention are the Anakin AOTC SE ($950) and the Anakin ROTS LE (rather inexpensive $350).

Damn...so many beautiful things.

[Jayspawn]

I would start with the Anakin ROTS LE. Its a beautiful lightsaber, less expensive than some of the others and a great one to start with.

[Jayspawn]

I think you'll find replicas more satisfying than figures. I do

[nash]

I sent you a PM regarding a brand new Obi TPM EE that I have for sale. Let me know if you are interested.

I agree with Jay, replicas have that WOW factor that figures just dont have and never will.

[Gorlag]

@Jay: Thanks for your recommendation. At the moment I'm thinking of getting one exclusive saber (like a SE oder EE). The exclusive-factor is important to me. Are the ROTS limited editions really limited? Like the Anakin/Obi-Wan/Vader saber.

@nash: Another saber to consider. Puh, that's a hard one...
I'll send you a PM tomorrow. First I'm gonna get some sleep.

[nash]

Gorlaq, no problem, let me know what you decide either way.

Well to answer your question, all of the ROTS LEs are "limited" but their edition sizes are very high comapred to the other items before the ROTS line. They were known as the "open ended" editions because MR did not actually announce the edition size until MUCH MUCH after they were released for sale. Basically they decided to set the edition size once sales slowed down. If you are looking for more "limited" items, the ROTS line surely is NOT the way to go as everyone has one and they are selling for WAY below their retail price. They are cheap but dont expect them to hold their value.

If you want rare and valuable, the Luke ROTJ EE or any of the lower edition runs such as BD Maul (750), Mace AOTC (1250), Obi ANH (2500), Obi AFBB (500) all hold their value pretty well. SEs are also pretty valuable which is self explanitory.

[Fwad]

When i was saying that he could build his own saber i was talking about something like Parks Sabers kits. I am going to pick up the ultimate saber kit and build an Obi-Wan and Darth Vader. The cost is about $250 for both sabers or about $185 if there are atleast 10 purchased at once. FAO Schwarz has Yoda's E3 lightsaber for $239 and might have the Sidioud E3 lightsaber for $200. This is a great time to pickup any of the E3 lightsabers.