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Sealed or open?


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I bought some kits a few months back from a guy who bought a huge amount of them. His father asked me why would someone buy a kit. Open it. And never build it. I've thought about that and have an opinion. I've purchased sealed kits and over time. The plastic seal shrunk. Distorting the box. Now. Why would some shrink and others not. And is it a good idea to open the kits for storage?

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I'm not really sure why some boxes get distorted,while others don't.It could be because of the climate,or possibly stacking other kits on top of each other.I have sealed kits from a while ago,that look perfect,like the day they were made.While others look like they were left out in the rain.As far as opening kits while in storage,that all depends on the kit.Is it a rare expensive kit,or just some everyday kit you can buy anywhere.My advice is to keep the kits sealed.You should also store kits,wether they are open,or sealed,in a dry environment,and try to buy kits from homes that are non smoking.

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Sealed is usually best. I know sellers on eBay seem to think it’s a good idea to have it open box and take pictures of all the parts but I hate that. 

Thats only convenient if it’s an old kit with various versions and you need to confirm what type that model is. Or if it’s curbside etc...

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If it's an older, pricier kit, I almost always go for a nice opened one. I have heard on rare occasion that some old kits get resealed, and that the contents might not be what they are supposed to be. Also, in the case of old MPC kits in particular, tire marks could be there on glass, decals, critical parts of the body, etc. At least if the kit is open, you can see the condition of the parts.

Some of this goes back to my entry in the hobby: I could never afford to buy old unbuilt kits when I stared out in this, I almost always bought built kits to restore, or builders in the box. The rarer ones were almost always less than pristine. I try to get the best condition that I can, but in order to build it, if it's really old or rare, it can't be TOO nice.   

I also only go for opened Jo Han kits, the reason being: some of those were molded in colors that I do NOT like (like the Sox & Martin 'Cuda, Petty '64 Plymouth or '70 Superbird in dark green). Also, often times, they had short shots, poor chrome and/or incorrect parts. I have opened a few Jo Han kits that really disappointed me afterwards, so at least when I see the contents, I more or less know what I'm getting into.  

I only ever bought one vintage kit as a sealed kit. I won't say what it was, except to say that it was REALLY nice, approx. 35 years old at the time, and was had for a "Buy-It-Now" for about 1/3 of it's worth at the time. I hated to gamble on it, as it was against my nature, but I did anyway. I of course opened it the minute I got it. It was in really nice shape, really better than most of the old kits I have ever had. It was so nice in fact, that after a few years of not opening the inner bags and leaving everything as it was before I opened it, I really felt I would never build it, so I resold it.     

 

  

Edited by CapSat 6
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Also- I open ALL of the new kits I buy, and check them over. I could only imagine opening a kit years after purchase, just to find that something is missing or broken. I know that hurts the value, but then again, they're more valuable to me if I know they're right.   

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New kits: buy 'em, open them up to check everything.  Most stuff with a bar code isn't ever going to be worth big money (there might be a couple of exceptions, like the Revell Model A coupe if the reissue never appears).  Anything missing, contact the manufacturer and get replacement part(s) pronto.

Old kits: if you intend to build, buy opened ones so you can check condition and completeness (and make sure you aren't getting a rewrapped box with something else inside).  MPC kits are notorious for tire-marked clear parts and decal sheets.  Jo-Han plastic is brittle compared to other manufacturers', leading to broken parts.  The nightmare scenario with a Jo-Han kit is a part that is warped AND broken.

If you don't intend to build it, a sealed one might be preferable.  But you have to have a feel for knowing if the wrap is original.  Store price stickers from back in the day can be helpful.

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Personally, I open everything I get. I want to open it up and check out the pieces, make sure everything is there and in good condition. I've had a Revell Challenger that had no tires in it, and a Revell Ramcharger with an insanely warped body. Had I not checked, I'd never know until I tried to build them. And at the rate I'm going, they'd be vintage kits before I get to them. Then I'd have no hope for replacement parts.

As for future value...I honestly could not care less. I buy kits, whether new or old, with the intention of building them. They'll be opened eventually, might as well open them now and check it out. Future value means exactly zero to me.

Ktis are a hobby, not an investment.

My two cents. :)

 

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Judging from the pricing trends on some of the internet auction sites, and other sites that sell kits, 

it sometimes doesn't matter if the wrap is still on a kit.  I've seen a few opened kits bring more money

than the same kit that is still sealed. Sometimes, even a gluebomb of a rare model kit goes for more

than I want to pay!

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I will "N O T " buy a wraped kit unless I know the person ( unless it's a hobby store)

I was at a swap meet a few year's back. I found a "Haulin Hearse" kit ..... I   WANTED IT !    The seller was asking $45.   It was sealed.  When I picked it up..... it rattled...... like BROKEN GLASS !   I told the seller I wanted to purchase the kit , but I wanted to see the kit first. He said " no,if you open it it's no longer a collectable"

But I'm going to by it, so what does it matter.

Nope. buy it first.

I walked away.

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Anything I plan to build, I open ASAP to confirm that everything is intact & undamaged.

Perfect example is the AMT 1970 Baldwin-Motion Camaro I got the other day.  Looked everything over, and noticed one of the front bumperettes was missing from the chrome tree.  If I waited to open it till I was ready to build it (what: 5, 10 years from now?), I'd be out of luck.

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I always open the box. 

Had way too many kits with missing parts and tire burn. 

I only buy a used kit, if it's open, and it's everything ok. 

Some time ago I broke this rule, as it was a kit I really like (Revell '48 Ford convertible, the one in the donuts box). Kit was sealed, the original wrap was intact, and once I got it, and opened the box, found the body to have a windshield frame broken in 3 parts. 

Last year I decided to build one of my Monogram '57 Bel Air kit, in 1/12 scale (had five of those, all sealed, plus the built ups) and the one I opened had a nasty tire burn on the chassis pan. 

Opened all the other four kits, and found one more with a tire burn, this time on the trunk. Easy fix, but in my mind all 5 kits were mint, as they were all sealed. 

I don't buy kits to collect, as what I really enjoy is building the little buggers. 

Make a huge pile of kits, you won't build them all, and one nice day you are dead, and your prized kits are all over e-bay... No sir, I build what i get. 

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Like others, since I'm planning on building my kits I open the boxes as soon as I get the kit home.  For the above-mentioned reasons.

Wouldn't it be nice is the manufacturers would not seal boxes (like it is still done in Japan)?  I know, there are reasons for sealing them. So does this mean that Japanese modelers are more honest, careful, and trustworthy than U.S. modelers?

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Early kits didn't have plastic wrap. Just two little strips of tape, holding the top to the bottom. At times, I would be shopping for just the right annual kit to build, only to find the tape had been broken, and tires, and decals missing from the kits. On the other hand, I bought an AMT '93 Ford F-150 kit from a hobby shop, still wrapped in the plastic, only to find out the entire chrome 'tree' was absent from the box! When I called customer service to see about a replacement, I was told the kit was no longer in production, so I WOULD NOT be  getting a chrome 'tree' for the F-150! That kit is still on the shelf in the hobby room.

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54 minutes ago, Bucky said:

Early kits didn't have plastic wrap. Just two little strips of tape, holding the top to the bottom. At times, I would be shopping for just the right annual kit to build, only to find the tape had been broken, and tires, and decals missing from the kits.

That's what I mean. Plastic model kits sold in Japanese hobby shops were never sealed (even with tape). If theft of parts was problematic enough, they would have start sealing them.

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The shrink wrap issue boils down to the type of cellophane used and the temperature the kit is stored in. The hotter it is, the more the shirk wrap will constrict.

on the open /sealed issue, hard to say. I like to leave kits sealed as it protects them and it’s better if I ever have to sell it. I do like to open kits though to put the tires in their own bag as well as the glass. The decals are inserted in the center of the instruction sheet.

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11 hours ago, iamsuperdan said:

Personally, I open everything I get. I want to open it up and check out the pieces, make sure everything is there and in good condition. I've had a Revell Challenger that had no tires in it, and a Revell Ramcharger with an insanely warped body. Had I not checked, I'd never know until I tried to build them. And at the rate I'm going, they'd be vintage kits before I get to them. Then I'd have no hope for replacement parts.

As for future value...I honestly could not care less. I buy kits, whether new or old, with the intention of building them. They'll be opened eventually, might as well open them now and check it out. Future value means exactly zero to me.

Ktis are a hobby, not an investment.

My two cents. :)

 

I agree !!!

Edited by PARTSMARTY
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