Hi RCD,

To update you, the gentleman who paid $2,200 takes his set with him to toy shows and displays it. I'm guessing that makes him a dealer. His purchase goes well with the Marx Museum online resource, and gives us a more current value someone would be willing to pay on that day for the Marx Miniatures Alamo. His Alamo hasn't disappeared into his collection, in fact quite the opposite, he also took pictures and published them in Playset Magazine. He's more gregarious than I am!

My father in his day sold real estate. I asked him how does anyone know what a piece of R.E. is worth, and he simply said, "Willing seller; willing buyer." So then I bought and read Donald Trumps book, "The Art of the Deal." The only magic advice I found in it was, "If you find something you like, pay your money and be happy with it!" Thank heavens I only paid for the paperback edition, but he was right - there is no avoiding hard work - there is no "magic bullet; but I do believe sometimes we just get lucky. Not Las Vegas kind of lucky, but being at the right place at the right time kind of lucky. You know, such as an estate sale kind of lucky discovery! He couldn't take his collection of Alamo and toys with him. You'll never find a U-Haul at the end of a man's funeral.

BTW, I've been paying my own way since I was 14, have been compensated with hourly wages in school days, or daily rates as an adult, been an independent counsultant or worked over seas most of my career - and never was given a "bankers bonus." I have a tiny house and drive a 1987 car, but all paid for in full. No mortgage, no car payments. When I paid an outrageous amount for my incomplete Alamo, I was ready to do it and have never regretted each time I take it out, set it up, and say, "Someday I've got make the missing pieces and make a Diodrama out of it."


Lastly, the Marx Alamo Playset is far from a mass produced piece of plastic. It was a short-run master piece, like Strelets, but was made in Hong Kong by hand, in a far different time, super rare, and has never been topped. If someone finds the Moulds, then please rerun them and I'll buy 10. I've bought every edition of the Airfix Fort Sahara - the original soft plastic, the next rock hard plastic, and now the medium hard plastic. And also all of the Giant of Hong Kong HO Castles. If you buy enough of each model, the total investment is quite reasonable - except the house - Ouch!

OK, my friend. Count down is 35 minutes to end of auction. If no one else bids on this pristine, complete Marx Alamo set than the current $765.55, then everyone can call me a "Sucker!"

Cheers - GC

G.C.
I didn't see what it sold for in the end, the listing has already been replaced by something else. I would be interested to find out if you know.


This one is a bit cheaper but not as complete and no box, which is important to a collector.


https://www.ebay.com/itm/1970s-Vintage-Marx-Alamo-Play-Set-Near-Complete-set/173268835428?_trkparms=aid%3D888007%26algo%3DDISC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D50544%26meid%3Dd308984e7cba4b6bab629d34988792ce%26pid%3D100009%26rk%3D2%26rkt%3D2%26sd%3D113031430839%26itm%3D173268835428&_trksid=p2047675.c100009.m1982

I see someone is also selling just the gate and the walls without the rear building for $49.


Your man who bought the Alamo set for $2,200 might well be a dealer and if someone offered him $4,000 for it he might even sell it, but I suspect he didn't buy it as a dealer he bought it as a collector. When people pay these prices for this kind of thing they are buying the item because they want to own it not because they want to sell it for a profit. This one was on auction so it sold to the highest bidder. If a dealer bought it he has no-one to sell to, if anyone was prepared to pay a higher price they would have outbid him at the auction. Someone might buy it to sit on it for 20 years and then sell it but that's something collectors do not dealers.


I said Airfix was not interested in producing figures because there was practically nothing on their website last time I looked. But now it seems they have re-released some of their WWII sets:


https://www.airfix.com/uk-en/shop/new-for-2018.html

And have plans to release some "Vintage Classics" including the 5 WWI sets and a bunch of WWII guns, tanks and ships.


https://www.airfix.com/uk-en/shop/airfix-vintage-classics.html

Hi Graeme,

The HO Scale, or 1/72 size Alamo Playset sold for $2,400 USD yesterday. That's $200 more than the other one sold for in 2016.

The size of the HO building is only 6-3/4 inches wide, 3 inches to the top ledge or 4-1/4 inches including the front hump and 2-1/2 inches deep. Pretty small! And then you get the walls and gate to enclose an area like a fort. It actually is well detailed on the front and back.

It is also made of cast hard plastic.

The other auctions you are looking at are 1/32 scale, or for their 54mm and 60mm soldiers (not for HO Scale soldiers).

Those others are quite a bit bigger and called "tin litho". They're made of flat metal and all details are painted on. They are not rare. You can find them everywhere.

It's nice Airfix is re-issueing some of their HO or 1/76 sets. I still like their 50 cent soldiers in today's better colors.


P.S. Dear Strelets, Thank you for letting us post this here and follow this auction. When someone buys one of these, really, they are only renting the playsets. Anybody can turn around and resell them for the same prices and get their money back. And there is no upkeep costs. Actually one of the better investments. Truth be known, I've never bought a toy soldier for resale. Always to keep. Especially your fine figurines!

OK, have a nice weekend! - GC

Thanks for the info GC I did wonder if the other listings were the same thing.

looking at the final sale price one thing is certain, it's gone to someone who will love it.

Tanks GC for telling us about this and the final price and thank you Strelets for allowing these sort of posts