Any idea when the Death Star will be discontinued? It's been around about 4 years...way past normal set lifespans in stores. Thoughts?

Wow...that business about an empty jiffy bag is scary. People are getting way too good at pulling off scams. A good rule of thumb here... never buy anything from Hong Kong. NEVER. They've got to be leading the league in internet fraud hands down. If you buy something from Hong Kong, it is likely to never come at all, or if it does show up, it is an extremely low quality knock off.

arock68, I would qualify your statement to say "never buy Legos from Hong Kong". I have happily purchased hundreds of items from Hong Kong; mostly camping and bicycling gear. But the one time I purchased Legos from Hong Kong it turned out to be fraudulent and the seller was really from Thailand. The explanation that I bought into was an extremely damaged boxes the seller had purchased at a damaged goods auction (surprise - 10188!). Luckily I used Paypal and was able to get my money back. I now know that some foreign sellers will boost up their ratings over 1,000 by selling many low-cost goods like belts and shirts. This usually takes them about 2-3 months although I have seen a year. Then suddenly you find they are selling much more expensive items with high quantities. This is a sign they are about to rip everyone off. They have about one month to do this because of shipping times before it all crashes down, but they can make a lot of money quickly and then disappear until they do it again under a new name. The seller I purchased from was selling one lego set and designer watches, phones and shoes. Only had about 20 items but large quantities on most of the items. My own greed to get something for a great price tripped me up, but hopefully not again!

I would venture to say that if a person was to never buy something from Hong Kong, the sun would still come up and the earth would still rotate. It all boils down to personal preference I guess, Im with Aaron though, I will NEVER EVER EVER buy something on the internet from Hong Kong or any other asian country for that matter, everyone knows that knock offs are born there!

I'm with you guys there. I will see a good price on ebay, check out the auction, seller, etc. As soon as I see Hong Kong, see ya!! Usually any auction that I see that is using stock photos, I don't even click on it anymore, if they don't have the time to take a picture of the actual auction, I don't have the time to look at their crappy page.

I would venture to say that if a person was to never buy something from Hong Kong, the sun would still come up and the earth would still rotate. It all boils down to personal preference I guess, Im with Aaron though, I will NEVER EVER EVER buy something on the internet from Hong Kong or any other asian country for that matter, everyone knows that knock offs are born there!

I've purchased many items from Hong Kong from reputable ebay sellers. I've never had one problem.

I've purchased many items from Hong Kong from reputable ebay sellers. I've never had one problem.

some knock offs are better than others I guess lol ;)

some knock offs are better than others I guess lol

Not sure what you're referring to. All the items I've ever purchased from Hong Kong sellers on ebay were original items and not copies.

I've had luck with a lot of Godzilla and Star Blazers figures from Hong Kong and Japan. I've also bought several CUUSOO sets from Japan with good results. Like anything else, if the seller has good feedback, you can feel confident about getting a quality product.

Ed, I have to disagree, it is no longer safe just to look at a seller's feedback. Go back and read my post on this thread, post #13.

Ed, I have to disagree, it is no longer safe just to look at a seller's feedback. Go back and read my post on this thread, post #13.

I'm sure there are exceptions to any rule. There are thieves in every country. That being said, people buying LEGO sets on EBAY should look for sellers that have actual pictures of the item they are selling. 99% of the time, if the EBAY seller posts legit pictures, not EBAY generic photos, the deal will go down with limited issues.

I see too many members trying to get great deals, when most of the super deals are scams. If a Hong Kong seller has legit photos and excellent feedback, I'll take a chance. With me, if there is no photo, I don't bother with the auction.

For those looking for a good reason to get a great set at a good price, you can grab the Death Star at 15% off (Save $60) at Walmart

I see they raised the Ultra Sonic Raider price, however. $10 more today.....

I wonder if those DSs ever came???

I wonder if those DSs ever came???

Hahaha I forgot all about this thread. Yeah I'm curious to know what ever happened with the $99 DS???

I think that the Death Star, once it reaches eol status, will steadily increase on the secondary market. Even though it has been around for so long, and there has probably been alot produced, it will remain a very sought after set.....if u don't have one now, go get one soon...I don't believe it will be around much longer....

I think that the Death Star, once it reaches eol status, will steadily increase on the secondary market. Even though it has been around for so long, and there has probably been alot produced, it will remain a very sought after set.....if u don't have one now, go get one soon...I don't believe it will be around much longer....

unlike a lot of people, I also think this set will do well. I think that all this talk of the market being oversaturated with DSs is rubbish. I guess we just have to wait and see.

Also I guess no one wants to speculate as to what prices will do when Lucas is no longer with us.

While doing a lot of clean up throughout the forum categories, I stumbled upon this one and found that the link in the main post still works and Wal-Mart carries the "Death Star" in stock online for $358. The current list price is $21.13 more than what was stated in the title of this thread, but it is $41 dollars less than retail. Not that great, I know. I'm just stating what I found.

So Death Star on Amazon has been reduced to ~$360. I had some money earmarked in particular for this Death Star, and once I was on Amazon and loaded it into my cart, I just couldn't pull the trigger. There have been several Death Star releases, I'm sure there will be more in the future. And for that matter, 10188 has been around for a long time and the release numbers are staggering. Then we've got 10228. It's the centerpiece of a fairly new theme that's also ending within a year. It's starting to feel like the Haunted House could attain a value like the modulars. I could see the Haunted House ending up like Green Grocer, Cafe Corner, etc., with significantly less production numbers than Pet Shop, Grand Emporium, Fire Brigade, etc. And with each Halloween that passes more and more sets will be opened. Obviously once HH doubles in price, that tradition may end altogether, but it is an appealing build either way. I'd be curious on everyone else's take. When Amazon delivers my two HHs on Thursday, I wonder if I'll have any regrets...

I'm confused when you say the death star has had several releases..... I only know of two the 10188 and the 10143, anyhow the funny thing about

I'll count 9676 as a Death Star release, just so my use of the word several is validated. This would be HHs #5 and 6 for me. I'm really just referring to the investment aspect of this set versus how fun, creative or "good" of a set it is.

Haunted House with modulars

Well if you have a bunch of haunted houses already then I would get a DS......yes it will probably take some time for you to make some money from it but I wouldn't want to be caught without one personally.

I was going to say that in your opening post, it sounded like you had your mind made up already, and that I agreed with your assessment. If it was one over the other, I would go with the two Haunted Houses. At this point they seem safer than one Death Star, for all the reasons you cited. But if you already have four HH's, it would probably be time to grab a Death Star.

I'd go with the Haunted house's. I think the DS will do well, but given so many people have them stashed away due to the unusually long production run they might not appreciate as fast as the HH's.