A guide to new collectors (V.1) Do's and Don'ts

[Lynx]

This is a heavy WIP, please give feedback for this, I will frequently be updating it.

A complete guide to starting off your collection.

Alas, the time has come where I can finally declare myself no longer a beginner collector. I've gotten new shelves, filled them up, been on here for more than a year, and got a set scale for my collection (more about this later). Overall, I'm proud of myself for making it past this first rough stage. There, however, is quite an increase in people collecting dinosaur figures from my experience. And with more people getting into toy collecting thanks to the current world situation, what better to do than write a guide to starting off a collection?
It may seem silly, but back when I started, there was no guide. Until I found this forum, and even after, I struggled. I didn't know figure scales... how to fix warped feet... or even simple repairing! This is why I made this guide. Everything you need to know about starting off your collection, and a couple tips.
Before I begin, I have to thank this community for helping teach me so much. If it were not for them, my campaign of collecting would have ended not far after it began. Again, thank you all so much. Without you, this would not be possible.

Do's and Don'ts: Common mistakes
One thing you must know about getting your first few figures is that nobody gets it just right. Mistakes are very common, whether it be improper care for the figures or getting drastically different scaled toys, it's important you know what accidents to avoid, as without this knowledge your collection can very easily be damaged. Some of these, however, are just suggestions. They are your dinosaur figures and you can decide what you want to do with them. These are simple tips that worked (or did not work) for me!

DO'S
- Set a scale or scale range while collecting; Common scale ranges are generally 1:30-1:40 for large to medium-sized animals (such as Allosaurus), and 1:6-1:18 for small animals (such as Microraptor). More explanation on this later.
- Buy from multiple toy brands; For your first few figures, buy from multiple different companies. If you dislike one of the figures, you will know not to buy from that company. If you have the money, buy another figure before making a final judgment on a company.
- Buy a variety of dinosaur species; Please don't buy just T-rex, I promise you. The consequence? I now have one entire shelf devoted to T-rex figures, and now have to get new shelves so I have more room.
- Get large shelves; Head to your local thrift store or IKEA and buy some large shelves! You'll see why later in this guide.
- Consider prices; If a favorite company is PNSO, maybe it's time to find another favorite on the cheaper side. While PNSO may be a good treat, it is best to hold off buying from expensive companies like this until you are educated on figure care. If you are, make sure you 100% want to buy the figure. The last thing you want is 40 dollars of your wallet gone to a figure you dislike!
- Keep dust and other forms of debris off your figures, or let the dust settle so you can see what arrangements you have to make to keep it from not.

DON'TS
- Blind buy: Imagine this scenario. Your scrolling on google, and suddenly see a figure online. The color scheme looks amazing, as does detail... and before a second thought, you click Check Out. Once it finally arrives at your house, you are met with a sudden shock, it was a mini figure, way out of your set scale and with a terribly messy paint job! To avoid this, or a similar situation happening, before buying a figure, always read a review on http://dinotoyblog.com/ or a video review on YouTube, as they often help you see what the figure looks like in real life, along with a size comparison and other helpful details!
- Rough play: I know some of you reading this may be a young kids, and would love to play with your brand new figures, and that's ok! But there's a huge difference between casual play and rough play. Throwing the toys on the ground, clashing them together, or bonking it on rough surfaces is exactly how you lose a limb on that brand new Safari LTD T-rex. When it comes to companies like Safari, PNSO, and Eofauna, you have to be very careful. Paint can scuff off much easier than you may think! There are, however, companies like Mattel where rough play with your figurines is more appropriate and won't do half as much damage.
- Keep any figure in the sun: You may notice that your figures become soft when outside, which is due to the heat. Heat warps plastic, and soon you may notice warping on your figure's fingers, feet, tail, or even arms! This causes stability issues, but fortunately, there is a quick fix. Heat up a pot of water until around boiling point, and dip the figure in. Once the figure gets hot, take it out. You may now shape the figure's limbs back into place, and after it cools, will remain yet again in the correct spot.


And that's the list so far! More chapters to this guide will come very soon, but for now, what do y'all think? What should I add, remove, or change to this Do's and Don'ts chapter?

[Lynx]

Update
Gonna be working on a chapter about figure care (being gentle with expensive figures, how to fix a figure with a broken limb, how to hide seam lines, etc).
Do you all have any ideas on what to do for it?

[Duck]

The part about keeping them in scale with each other is interesting @Lynx  I never cared to do that, since I like to imagine them in different stages of growth.

[MesozoicJohn]

Lynx, this thread is EPIC, kudos to you for doing it. 

I very much agree with Duck about scale though (with in reason). I am certainly going to display my Velociraptors on a different shelf to my 1/35(ish) scale models.

John

[MesozoicJohn]

Update
Gonna be working on a chapter about figure care (being gentle with expensive figures, how to fix a figure with a broken limb, how to hide seam lines, etc).
Do you all have any ideas on what to do for it?

A picture paints a thousand words, plenty of photo's along side the text to help show how to.

John

[gursar]

in my humble opinion; which brands or scale or species etc. to collect; how to display or not to display them,... is the collectors own business. what to do or to do not is up to the collector and concerns nobody else.

[Libraraptor]

No reason to react this harsh to what was meant as a good advice. Some will enjoy it, some will find it unnecessary. I did not understand Lynx ' effort as dogmatic.  Eberybody is allowed to decide on their own. This goes for what one collects and what thread one finds useful.

[Crackington]

Agree with @Libraraptor , there is some really good advice here (e.g. keeping figures out of direct sunlight). Well done @Lynx  for pulling this together.

I see G @gursar's point that it is ultimately up to the collector how they wish to collect and what criteria they choose to use (if any), but this is a dinosaur toy collectors' forum after all, so threads such as this are relevant and ok in my book!

I'm not too worried about scale though, probably as I'm more focussed on vintage models and those old manufacturers were not bothered either!

[Duna]

Very cool idea 

I suggest some more:
- Build additional horizontal shelves. Sometimes the height between them is too large for smaller figures. You can double up the space using this method. Glass shelves are thinner and take less room than wooden ones, but dust and finger prints are more noticeable on glass and are usually more expensive. If you want to use light on the top shelf, glass shelves will allow the pass of light and you can light two or three shelves with the same fixture.
- Lighting: Led spots consume low energy and give out low heat. You can connect several fixtures to a single transformer and to a time controller, too. You can have a look at some examples in Amazon.
- Decide firstly if you want to protect them from dust, or you will dust them every several weeks, so you can buy the display structure it fits better. Ikea has nice and cheap items (Detolf cabinet and BESTA with transparent glass doors).
- Set up your own special additional rules, for example and for a start, if you dislike figures with fixed bases, if you only collect mammals, if you only would purchase Cretaceous ... and so.
- Use very hot (near boiling) water to unwarp and position unstable figures properly. Sometimes the fixing has to be repeated (in hot climate, normally) but it can work forever.
- Position unstable and large figures against the laterals or back of the walls. You won't want one of them damaged or falling on your foot!


I'm not bothered by scale at all. But protoceratops should be small (sorry, Collecta) and tyrannosaurus, large.

[Lynx]

in my humble opinion; which brands or scale or species etc. to collect; how to display or not to display them,... is the collectors own business. what to do or to do not is up to the collector and concerns nobody else.

Thank you for your input! I'll put in a message that tips about how to display figures are just my own opinion and to give them ideas.
A lot of the stuff I put in both the Do's and Don'ts is what worked or failed for me, but that's just me. Thanks, I'll make some edits accordingly 

[Lynx]

The part about keeping them in scale with each other is interesting @Lynx  I never cared to do that, since I like to imagine them in different stages of growth.

That's interesting! It's the same for me here, but the scales jumbled up look pretty bad with the figures in my collection, so I now have them on a different shelf than the ones that match and it'll stay that way, which is a bit unfortunate. I do have a Spinosaurus figure, though, that is meant to be an adult, but is so small I just imagine it as a Juvenile 

[Lynx]

Thank you @MesozoicJohn ! If you would like, I can make some edits accordingly.

Thanks @Duna ! I'll add this in later today, these are great ideas!


(Sorry for the flood of messages from me, I was not expecting so many replies)

[MesozoicJohn]

Thanks Lynx, the photo's will certainly help when you are explaining procedures to the good folk of this forum.

John

[Bread]

Wonderful list and recommendations @Lynx

Only thing I would say I disagree with is the buying numerous and diverse species recommendation. Sometimes a collector may be only interested in Tyrannosaurs, Triceratops, etc. Or just certain groups like hadrosaurs or sauropods. Some do this due to space issues or just preference.

I think a better recommendation is to limit yourself on purchasing multiples of one figure. Unless it is a rare item or repainting the figure is in the air, multiples just crowd a collection in my opinion. I have two Nanmu Tyrannosaurus (both future variants) and they crowd my shelf space. Considering selling one off now or repainting it.

[Lynx]

Wonderful list and recommendations @Lynx

Only thing I would say I disagree with is the buying numerous and diverse species recommendation. Sometimes a collector may be only interested in Tyrannosaurs, Triceratops, etc. Or just certain groups like hadrosaurs or sauropods. Some do this due to space issues or just preference.

I think a better recommendation is to limit yourself on purchasing multiples of one figure. Unless it is a rare item or repainting the figure is in the air, multiples just crowd a collection in my opinion. I have two Nanmu Tyrannosaurus (both future variants) and they crowd my shelf space. Considering selling one off now or repainting it.

Alright, got it! I thought that was a bit off, too. Thanks @Bread .

[gursar]

No reason to react this harsh to what was meant as a good advice. Some will enjoy IT, some will find it unnecessary. I did not understand Lynx ' effort as dogmatic.  Eberybody is allowed to decide on their own. This goes for what one collects and what thread one finds useful.

it looks harsh, I humbly apologize for that  I'll try to tone down it.

if one day a complete guide will be written for our hobby, I think, there should be a kind of consensus. (which is impossible I believe. because all of us have different ideas and none of them is wrong or rigth)

I have absolutely zero objection to people sharing their own experiences an giving advices. absolutely no objection there. but it might be better not to call it as "a complete guide". it sounds very dictating.

[gursar]

in my humble opinion; which brands or scale or species etc. to collect; how to display or not to display them,... is the collectors own business. what to do or to do not is up to the collector and concerns nobody else.

Thank you for your input! I'll put in a message that tips about how to display figures are just my own opinion and to give them ideas.
A lot of the stuff I put in both the Do's and Don'ts is what worked or failed for me, but that's just me. Thanks, I'll make some edits accordingly 

nowadays I feel very grumpy and you do not deserve a harsh response like that. thank you for your kind reply

[Lynx]

No reason to react this harsh to what was meant as a good advice. Some will enjoy IT, some will find it unnecessary. I did not understand Lynx ' effort as dogmatic.  Eberybody is allowed to decide on their own. This goes for what one collects and what thread one finds useful.

it looks harsh, I humbly apologize for that  I'll try to tone down it.

if one day a complete guide will be written for our hobby, I think, there should be a kind of consensus. (which is impossible I believe. because all of us have different ideas and none of them is wrong or rigth)

I have absolutely zero objection to people sharing their own experiences an giving advices. absolutely no objection there. but it might be better not to call it as "a complete guide". it sounds very dictating.

All 'A complete guide' means in my sight is a finished guide (which it is not) or an entire guide on a certain subject, but if it sounds dictating to you I can change it!

[gursar]

everybody is loving it as it is. it would be unfair to change any part of it.
if I don't like it, I should write my own ultimate guide with blackjack and....etc.

[stoneage]

Wonderful list and recommendations @Lynx

Only thing I would say I disagree with is the buying numerous and diverse species recommendation. Sometimes a collector may be only interested in Tyrannosaurs, Triceratops, etc. Or just certain groups like hadrosaurs or sauropods. Some do this due to space issues or just preference.

I think a better recommendation is to limit yourself on purchasing multiples of one figure. Unless it is a rare item or repainting the figure is in the air, multiples just crowd a collection in my opinion. I have two Nanmu Tyrannosaurus (both future variants) and they crowd my shelf space. Considering selling one off now or repainting it.

Some people may want to collect more then one of a specific figure.  Some people collect color: Silver, emerald green, gray, tan, blue, red, yellow etc., or maybe they just want a herd.