I'm just curious why I see so many Lassen coin sets for sale on the Café recently. Most listings talk about how hard these are to get and how awesome or rare they are, but they are still for sale. Is it the economy, or is it just free enterprise? I know I recently paid quite a bit more for a dollar size CSB than Todd Lassen asked. I did it because I couldn't get one of his last run, and he says it will be a while before he makes them again. I wanted one, so I paid a premium. When I look at my collection of coin gaffs, I have to think I would have to be in dire straits to part with any of them. So what is happening here? You have unexpected financial dificulties? Did you get carried away, and later regretted the purchase? Or are you trying to profit on the scarcity of these sets? Like I said, I'm just curious.

Cheers,
Sammy

Why do we ever sell anything that we like? We get something better or need to money I suppose, It does seem to me that there are certain folks who, like a realtor I know who bought two Ford T-birds when they were rare, buy things in order to sell them.

Magicians sell things for one reason, to get their hands on the resultant cash.

So regardless of the prop for sale, your question actually winds up being "why do so many people these days want cash?"

There are two common answers, to recycle the dough and use it to purchase more magic props (usually the one that's most relevant).......or because times are extremely tight and they just plain need the cash.

I think lots of magicians purchase high end props to try out knowing that if they're not their style they can recover their cost (and even a bit more) in a re-sale. You'll have a hard time demoing a set of Lassen Hopping Halfs at the local bricks'n'mortar magic shop.....if you want to try them, you'll pretty much have to buy them in order to do so.
Lassen products rarely looses any of their value in the short term, and some of the more scarce products may actually appreciate in both the short and long term.

Certainly with the very best, finest and rarest of magic props, buying low and selling high is a time honored tradition

There's another option. If you're friends with another coin magician he might let you handle the coins. One of my buddies let me handle his U3F, Cylinder and Coins and Triple Threat, and guess what? I liked them so much I bought U3F and Triple Threat!

Another reason why people can command such high resale prices is the darn wait. Lassen makes you wait foreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeever.

Worth the wait though.

Maybe people are afraid to use them in the real world!(and therefore sell them)
As they are so great quality.
Lost or dropped could be painful!!

Hey Sammy - I wondered that same thing recently. It's been a bonanza lately hasn't it? For a looong time you couldn't find anything of his anywhere and now every day a new set of his is coming up for sale. The funny thing is I see a few users on his blog that are the first to buy from him then turn around and sell them directly at twice the price here and ebay. What can ya do I suppose, free market economics innit.

For me - I use my lassen and schoolcraft coins. I do collect em, but I figure they do nobody any good locked away while I'm playing with a johnson shell. :-/

Michael

Where do you see them being sold? ebay?

thanks

Welcome to the Café! Sometimes they are on ebay, but usually at extremely high prices. Once you have 50 "legitimate" posts you will have access to the Sale thread here on the Café.
Sammy

Good post Sammy.

I don't wonder all that much as to why people sell these expensive gaffs as simply they have no further use for them beyond the one trick many time that is all they can do. Don't get me wrong, they are nice trinkets but like most trinkets they are kept hidden away, hoarded even for whatever perceived value. Funny thing is that when "The End" comes for us they will be free again to be given away or sold in bulk at an estate sale somewhere where perhaps greater value can become a better reality.

Further, I believe people just become bored with them in seeing more worth in getting the $value back than keeping them in a drawer somewhere, which is where most gaffs are kept anyway moreso than not. Most people treat them like gold but they are not like gold really as they only have a specific niche value, if that. Most times you don't get back what you put out unless you somewhat quickly turn it around to make it for sale while it's still hot. Perhaps some people look at it as a way to try the effect by putting up the money and then reselling to recoup the cost, paying at best a small "user's fee" for the opportunity to play with the latest thing or perhaps do a classic a bit more convincingly than they can do via Sleight-of-Hand.

Again these gaffs are nice shiny things and we like stuff like that, heck I got a few myself. I guess if you can afford to get them, then have them. They will be recycled in one or another with someone eventually receiving a real bargain on them somewhere down the line. Lassen and all the other super coin gaff makers reap accordingly to their work, creativity and effort. With that all is good I suppose.

Along these lines, I hear Kenner just came out with SuperFly...Go get'em boys!

I believe that all of these rsponse are very legitimate speculation. The one additional part to the puzzle might be to look at the items being sold and the timing as to when Lassen had them up for sale on his blog. It seems that most of the item being offered, some at fairly high prices, had been sold on Todd’s blog just a few weeks prior to being offered on the Café. The timing would indicate pure profiteering. Just another posibility.

When Lassen puts up something for sale on his blog, it is always tempting to just buy it. It is immediately available, may be interesting or unique, and the price is reasonable (compared to some aftersales). But in time, it may not fit your performance needs, an "improved" version may be released by Todd (eg. the infinity edge on his CSB), or, just simply, immediate emergency cash is needed for whatever reason.

Let me pose this...Does anyone think that one buys them thinking the coin makes the magician? That the effect will be brilliant with these such coins? The reason I ask is that there is a very nice video posted throughout the Café and elsewhere that shows a magician using STC by Johnny Wong. Im convinced many people ran and bought that set (some for sale here too after that video posted)thinking wow...I gotta get those STC look what I can do with them! But... its never the coins, its the magician. Agree? Disagree? Oh 1 more thing, Im not looking for a debate here just posting an observation. Like Dennis Miller use to say, its just my opinion, I could be wrong.

I think that is definitely one of the bigger reasons Rizzo! It's easy to get caught up in the hype and you just KNOW that with this set up or that and you'll be frying minds right and left only to find out that you can't buy talent!

MMc

The booking agents at William-Morris might argue with you!!

-=tab

I think guys are laundering their money spent from their spouses. Sell some coins, buy some cups, tada!

Hey Rizzo - Sure I think that's a very common thing. Maybe not necessarily why so much Lassen metal is on sale lately but I see a lot of people with amazing sets of silver that can't do a sleight of hand vanish to save their lives. But that's common in every hobby / art / craft whatever. For example I'm a musician and often reply to posts on forums to jam with other guys locally - its' not rare to walk into someone's place and find 5 grand worth of equipment and find out quickly they can't play a single song through. Every hobby has that...

I started getting Lassen stuff before he was a household (or Café)name.

Though most of my stuff is sans gimmick, I find his work adds to my worker routines.

I stay off ebay and the for sale section here....
Reading more Ramsey,Dave...than that other guy.

As a business, I am more careful about my prop expense...and more likely to get things musical than magical these days...(side note..have you seen the price of harmonici these days)

Harris
"palms of aluminum foil...for a lighter touch in coin magic"
still too old to know everything....
deutsch

I think coins are like cups and posters were a few years ago. They're enjoying a "run" right now. Three years ago a set of Paul Fox cups could command $800-$900! Now, you might get $350 for a set on a good day.

I think people are tiring of the high aftermarket prices and are becoming willing to wait. It is no longer an attractive proposition to pay $200-300 over retail for a coin just so you don't have to wait a few months to get one.

In some cases, even the new items are no longer appealing at such high retail prices. A Schoolcraft/Kenner Superfly recently did not sell on eBay and it was offered at $50 less than retail as an opening bid. That's for a new coin trick that was hardly a week old when offered, but nobody took a nibble. A Porper/Wilson The Fly never reached even close to retail on the same venue a few weeks before.

As with most stuff of this nature, it will level off and I think we are beginning to see that take place.

I am very happy with everything I have that is made by Todd Lassen. I purchased my first '64 silver e[ from him at Desert Magic Seminar (i think in 1999)out of what I believe was a cigar box in which he was carrying around his products. It is about time that the after market prices come down.......But don't forget that it remains important to continue to patronize the creator (in this and many other areas). Craftsmen like Todd are hard to come by in the USA these days.

I got to meet Todd at Magic in the Rockies last week. He had a few sun moon coin sets in Morgan dollar size he was selling through David Neighbor's booth. I wanted to see if he had anything else with him, but he went to the late night show, and I didn't get to see him again. By the way, Magic in the Rockies is a great convention. Reasonably priced, great headliners, and a lot of fun! I highly recommend it.

P.S. I just bought a Lassen shell set here on the Café! Too tempting!

Sammy