Adventure Team head

[ronnie]

Hi I am new and will be getting 2 heads flocked soon but also wanted to know if I can buy any ready made flocked heads?
If this post is in a wrong area to ask this kind of question than please remove it or move to proper area.

I am interested in Adventure Team heads original or Repro or anniversary heads are ok too.

-Ronnie

[Ray (Flock Man)]

Hey, Ron

I can put you on a want list I keep which I refer to on a first come first serve basis. I buy heads and flock them I give those on the list first crack at them before they go to ebay, etc.
I have a handful right now that should be spoken for, but sometimes people on the list pass to the next person in line and so on. If heads are offered I email you with pics then you can decide which hair colors you want for a given head and I'll send you a paypal invoice for you to pay. Or you can respond "Pass" and I go to the next person on the list. Many times people will pass on the first round for whatever reason, but email me as soon as I list the heads or other items on ebay. For them I will usually cancel the ebay listing and they buy the heads direct.
This is why I always suggest that ebay users buy the items (if they want it) ASAP because many times others outside of ebay want it and since many of the members here are constant buyers monthly and some weekly they get priority.
I have a Af/AM Muscle figure on the bay now that just may be going to a member of this forum once he gives me the go ahead.

I'll email you in the future.
Thanks
Ray

[ronnie]

Yes Ray
add me to that list for the heads
my email is: [e-mail]
incase you do not have it

My username on ebay is BMSMarketing.ws

Thanks Ray

[Ray (Flock Man)]

Will do!

Not sure if you wanted the email posted- if you don't mind you can edit it back in your post.

Thanks!
Ray

[traud]

Are your figures sold under the name you use to sell flocking?
I can't find a muscle body....I also may be to late

[Ray (Flock Man)]

I had them under ZWMC_SALES on ebay. I first listed them for $24 bucks a vintage muscle body adventurer (needed to be restrung)
A bullet-man (same price) also needed to be restrung with a bonus head and red jumper.

2 muscle body LA's- First, I had them as -needing to be restrung, but after so many emails from buyers that wanted to pay 10 bucks for them I took them off and restrung them. I put them back on for a higher price and the USA ebay buyers wanted them for 19 bucks a piece (that's also reflocked).
The buyers from Europe wanted them, but the shipping is a killer if you want any kind of tracking. I've had bad luck shipping to Europe without tracking and also with tracking because then I get a bad rating for high shipping, but I always pay whatever the USPS charges me and make up for it if there's a few bucks over charged.
So since ebay is all about losing money (well not for ebay itself) a rant for another time, the figures sat there a few days with like 4 people who even looked at the listings- Then forum member Tony said he wanted one, but then decided to take both so once again I pulled them from ebay. Thanks Tony I know they'll go to a good place.

On a another note, I went into a kind of "local shop" (figuring I would toss out some business cards etc.) and saw a few Joe's on the shelf and asked about them because one really caught my eye. The guy said that they came from ebay and they were from an estate sale find he was told.
I had to tell the guy that one of them was not vintage because it was a LA I sold on ebay about a year ago and that I reflocked.
I'm not sure if the body was still the same because I remember it being a Talker not an LA, but the head was for sure one of my reflocks when I used to use the poly acrylic adhesive (which later turned out to not to be as water proof as it was supposed to be)

It all got me thinking that maybe in the years to come people will forget that some heads are reflocks and the heads will get lint and crud on them, and they'll be sold as vintage.

Now I see what my teacher was talking about when he said, many of the heads that we thought of as vintage were really his work from back in the 80's and have changed hands a number of times- so, now the reflocking has been forgotten.

Needless to say, the guy thought I was full of shit and wouldn't budge on the price... lol! I've sent him an email with the original picture, but haven't heard anything back. (I'd love to have at least the head back, but I'm not going to pay $120 for a figure I sold for $40... just won't happen. I'd pay the $40 because of the circumstances and the story behind it.

I did think of posting the shop information, but I'm really against the idea of screwing with someones bread and butter. Sometimes one wrong word, no matter how innocent or right it is could screw somebody over forever.
We many times get burned by being greedy then they get pissed about it. I hear and see it all the time. We think we're getting over on someone and getting something for nothing.

I remember a while back some were selling Japanese Joe's with dyed bodies, but they didn't come right out and say the bodies were rare yellow bodies. Instead they said the bodies seem to be discolored which got everyone bidding like crazy and they were later pissed to find out that they were fakes. My opinion was and is, at no time did the seller say that they were rare Joe's he just hinted that they were discolored and the bidders jumped the gun.
Being on both sides of the market (buyer/ collector & seller) you end up seeing some creepy things.

Something to ponder a little.... say you want to sell off a bunch of your Joe's and you list them on ebay... As soon as you do the some dealers will flood ebay with Joe's until yours sell for dirt cheap. They will buy up yours and you'll see listings end and prices go back up. Not all, but there are a few bad apples in the bunch of us (as with anything).

Many of you will see as you get better and better at flocking certain people in this hobby will always put it down saying, "ahh it's still just a shitty reflock.... blah, blah, blah." This won't be other reflockers... for the most part they'll give you a thumbs up and say good job or great progress.

The bad input will come from some guys that sell high end Joe's because if you're happy with a reflocked Joe that doesn't look like a reflock- why would you pay big dollars for their stuff, so they have to slam your efforts.

I'm on this rant because we have a member here who wants to stay out of the lime light, but is doing very well in his flocking efforts and has tried to offer it as a service to his group of collectors. Some have welcomed it and the concepts and are even willing to learn it all, but others are outright trashing the whole idea and will not budge and since they seem to have sway over the thinking of many of the members in this collector group the others are following suit. I've told him to keep going with it and in the end the proof will be on your shelf when you have a great looking collection of A.T. Joe's and it didn't break your bank account to do so. Then the others will want the same. If they don't then let them empty their pockets and basically have the same as you.

Trust me over the years especially back in the day when Joe were hard to come by (pre-ebay) I've spent as much as $270 on a loose A.T. perfect looking Joe and $600+ on a black talker because I just had to have them and it looked so damn good. Do you know what that figure would be worth on ebay right now... lol... $40 and maybe $300 for the blk talker Com. Now I can have they same figure(s) for $25 to $100 and flock them how I want it

A tip for you all. I've done roughly 200 (to date of this post) or so Adventures with beards to become commanders and I know that's only a drop in the bucket, but down the line Adventurer heads will be rare to find.

lol... a big answer to a simple question.

[Ray (Flock Man)]

I had to end this practice because no one past the first 3 people on the list (mostly members in Europe) ever got a chance to buy any heads. So please just scan ebay and from time to time (mainly as I need to buy more flock or glue) I'll list some heads.


They usually run $24.99 to 29.99 for 3 with free shipping. This usually comes out to $6.95 a head after ebay fees/ paypal fees/ shipping. It's not a bad deal considering I paid more than that and the head was dirty and bald. In truth I used to pay $25 to $35 for a reflocked head and $50+ for a solid vintage flocked head if the hairline was what I wanted.

[shazones]

i think a nice mucle body redone with cots kits nice hair even a ray reflock has got to be worth $70 bucks all day a black a a even more even

[Ray (Flock Man)]

If you’re buying for reselling.. I understand being very price conscience. It’s only good business, but if you are buying for collecting… it’s fair to pay what ever you feel your budget is. I say this because I know a few of you reading this get ragged on when buying vintage sealed stuff, but like I’ve told you, hey man, you do what you need to do… it’s your hobby and your cash. If your collecting calls for a MIB talker and you have the means or a plan to get one… go for it. I know collectors that say they can’t afford various pieces, but I later hear they’ve dropped a bundle on take-out or at a casino. That’s all fine and good, but on the flip side they could skipped the take-out for a month or two and grabbed that Black Talking Commander they’ve been wishing for.

The loose Joe’s I post pictures of belong to my son and I and I’ve put them together to be used. I by no means discourage people from collecting pure vintage Joe’s. Hell, they are the holy grail of the hobby. I say this because I’ve been ragged on for talking bad against purists and it’s not really how I feel. My main point of being pro-reflock or repaired is 1. to continue dong this for you and myself. 2. To let those (that see pure vintage as unattainable) know that they can have a collection of cool figures just the same. 3. To bring more new collectors into the hobby.

Hey, maybe once people get a taste of some reflocked/repaired Joe’s or even reproduction/ Cotswold types… they’ll move on to pure figures and if they don’t they still can feel they are part of the hobby.

Face it, the hobby has changed over the years. Customs are now the new normal and reflect each collector’s personality. I think of it like this, instead of wishing and hoping for something new (like we did as kids) you can now let your imagination come up with the ideas you wish the Toy companies would offer. If you want a MOA with a fan mustache- you can have it.

Heck, it used to bug me to put anything other than a Land Adventurer camo on a LA. Now, mixing and matching gear is all we do here.
It took my son to show me the way back to thinking like a kid. I still remember him saying, “Dad, what good are they if you can’t touch ‘em?” Then how fun it was watching him toss Joe in the air and watch him quickly parachute down. I started to feel as I did on Saturday mornings watching a GIjOE commercial. It was a feeling I never seem to find, but expected to get every time bought better and better pieces years earlier.

I would be more excited about the hunt and though happy to find and buy various pieces, it was on to the next thing. Now, with the reflocks we stick them in the snow or the sand and they still look cool. Funny the hair rubs didn’t stop us as kids- we just grabbed a marker and filled it in…cringe…

I look at the Joe heads sitting in the rack right now waiting to be reflocked and they look so hopeless, beat on, and old, but tomorrow they’ll have a new life. Long after I’m gone, they’ll be still kicking around and that’s a cool thought.

I would think this would get old over time, but everyday a new batch comes in and the fun of it returns on this end and your end.

I know this because of the emails I get from many of you. I thrive on all of your enthusiasm.

It’s amusing, that my family gives me gift certificates for flock or glue, and bottles of alcohol and various solvents, and I’m happy about it. A friend will ask, “Hey Ray, what did you get for Christmas?”
I’ll say, “Oh I got a few negative Ion Generators and a can of MEK in my stocking, and 4 pounds of flock and some epoxy under the tree… and some other things.”
Then comes the puzzled looks.