It's a neat set, but I don't own one for personal or investment. I don't believe it will do well long term compared to the others as it has limited appeal and too many stickers. Too many stickers on Technic sets is one of the flags for me - MOCers don't use stickers and neither should the builds. At a good discount, it'll be OK though... It's a set that is unlikely to be remade unlike things like the cranes and other construction equipment.

41999 is an exception .. the stickers are great.

I guess 42008 will have similiar growth as 8109 (or soon 9397), which is acutally selling more than a little bit of 2x RRP

Buy 42008 at a discount between 33%-40% and sell for 2x RRP, but it takes about 2 years after retirement and they are not moving that fast....

I have serious doubts about that they way the market is now. It´s USP was the pneumatics that were rumoured to be on the way out but with V2 out we can expect a number of pneumatic sets in the future.

I disagree about it being remade - service trucks are common choices so expect another within a few years - maybe on a different scale or with a flatbed like 8109.

This set is not highly regarded due the poor design and integration of its pneumatic and linear actuator parts and the choice of colour. It has also had a 2.5 year shelf life which is bad news. I have one got for 75 euros (rrp 115) and no more.

I don't think they'll make another Highway Tow Truck like it for a long time (if they ever do). If they do a flatbed it'll probably be with a cab like the logging truck that is more common in North America rather than a flat cab that is more common in Europe (they've done lots of flat front cabs lately and we're due for a NA style Cab). With the sets they've chosen this year, they've branched out quite a bit and into areas (mining) where there is some serious potential to avoid remakes.

It's funny ... everyone complains about the colours (yellows and blacks) and then on this one they do something pretty different but far from ugly and it's criticized. I like the green, but they should have done black accents instead of red.

The 2016 2H Claas tractor should be green too but perhaps the Le Mans racer shade. Tractors do really well too and it´s been a while since we had a big one so that is a model to look out for

Honestly, I'm not sure why you guys even bother with investing in Technic. 90% of the sets are just rehased versions of older models. Mobile cranes, planes, any european style truck with an arm and bed... it's the same style every time. Except for sets like the old ferraris and the 24 hours race car. 

The other issue is technic's core appealing factor is functionality. Literally every flagship model in the past years have included new pieces that allow a more complex and realistic functionality. Mainly things like steering, suspension and gear boxes. Why would an AFOL buy the old mobile crane for $700 when he can buy a new improved bigger version for $170 at Target or Amazon?

23 minutes ago, RTRC said:

Honestly, I'm not sure why you guys even bother with investing in Technic. 90% of the sets are just rehased versions of older models. Mobile cranes, planes, any european style truck with an arm and bed... it's the same style every time. Except for sets like the old ferraris and the 24 hours race car. 

The other issue is technic's core appealing factor is functionality. Literally every flagship model in the past years have included new pieces that allow a more complex and realistic functionality. Mainly things like steering, suspension and gear boxes. Why would an AFOL buy the old mobile crane for $700 when he can buy a new improved bigger version for $170 at Target or Amazon?

There is hidden treasure in this theme.  

Why do people buy modulars when with a couple of creative towers they can build just about anything - same for Architecture and the Studio? And for rehashes nothing beats SW or City!

I guess people just like having the unboxing an building experience and even some of the older models are more challenging to build and have more functions than recent ones.

I have all the flagships since the Unimog and plan to continue acquiring more but I certainly won´t get the ones that are now EOL. I guess some people are just completists and even if they have the parts to make older sets several times over, they want to expand their collection.

Hidden treasire there is but apparent investment disasters are also prevalent so it is important to tread the minefield carefully.

Edited November 2, 201510 yr by valenciaeric

I am thinking the 24 hour race car has some serious potential?  I am thinking about this one for sure, the rest are cool but I am staying away after the unimog?

 

I am thinking the 24 hour race car has some serious potential?  I am thinking about this one for sure, the rest are cool but I am staying away after the unimog?

 

Was the Unimog a bad investment? I see NIB examples sell for around $300. I assume if purchased during TRUTH they could have been has for around $160-$170.

i think people had 41999 level expectations.

What are the sets expected to retire this year? When abouts do they actually retire, end of year or early next year? I'm thinking the arctic technic set will be a good investment unlikely to be redone, need to check on when that one was first introduced.

Snowmobile and Bulldozer are done - the latter ahead of time. All sets up to 42029 should be done by December too.

I would not bet on the arctic thing retiring ahead of schedule - maybe summer 2016 as it is not a good seller.

Edited November 3, 201510 yr by valenciaeric

16 minutes ago, Jersey Crewmax said:

 

Was the Unimog a bad investment? I see NIB examples sell for around $300. I assume if purchased during TRUTH they could have been has for around $160-$170.

Yes, so far a poor return.  I judge the quality of an investment based on its post EOL return above RRP.  An actual appreciation in value.  If I paid less than that, then good for me, lower basis.  So based on that across the board measurement and the amount of supply, I'm not chasing these kind of sets.  It was the biggest technical at the time.  The one counterparty to this investment game ( Lego themselves), proved a veritable force.  So I'm out.  Race car could be s winner, we'll see.

Most of the Technic sets can be purchased at 30% discount, so they make a fairly safe investment.

1 hour ago, Jersey Crewmax said:

What are the sets expected to retire this year? When abouts do they actually retire, end of year or early next year? I'm thinking the arctic technic set will be a good investment unlikely to be redone, need to check on when that one was first introduced.

Technic sets are usually only out for two years... Except for stock that might linger sets released in August usually disappear by now. So I'll throw this out there - 42009 seems to be going nowhere and it should have started the dance by now.

The arctic Technic set will be one of those very slow growers. It won't be snapped up by too many collectors now or in the future.

Although I love Technic, investment wise, in North America I think there are much better choices out there.  You will almost make money buying them at discounts and selling them later but I consider them a niche theme compared to other much more popular and general themes.

Just because something is a niche market, doesn't mean you can't make a lot of money, just that your target audience is much smaller.

I typically have a 10:1 ratio of modular / SW sets compared to Technic for resale.

2 hours ago, valenciaeric said:

Snowmobile and Bulldozer are done - the latter ahead of time. All sets up to 42029 should be done by December too.

I would not bet on the arctic thing retiring ahead of schedule - maybe summer 2016 as it is not a good seller.

42029? I thought two of the sets from 42020-42030 would stick around like 42009 and 42008 did from last run. So are you saying ONLY 42030 will stick around from this run?

Depends how you define up to! I think 42029 and 42030 have another year in them but 42029 could well be pulled like 42028 was as it is not a great seller either.

42009 will retire soon, practically certain of that.

16 hours ago, waddamon said:

I am thinking the 24 hour race car has some serious potential?  I am thinking about this one for sure, the rest are cool but I am staying away after the unimog?

 

Good one.  So is the Crawler Crane IMO.  

19 minutes ago, Ed Mack said:

Good one.  So is the Crawler Crane IMO.  

That one is lovely, and an unusual colour for Technic.

I had to dig up my response to an older thread regarding the 42039... I think I still stand by it being more of a niche set that may do better in Europe/Asia than the USA. Will be interesting to see what happens.

"Now, I am a n00b when it comes to this investing and thingie so take it with a grain of salt but I would imagine many petrolheads and racing fans will love having this huge thing; I see it becoming somewhat sought after, possibly more in Europe and Asia than the United States as endurance racing/WEC has higher profile over there. The endurance racing scene in the USA with the TUSC rigmarole and the hideous DP cars may make a difference IMHO in how broad its appeal would be. Perhaps it will be a niche set compared to the 2015 crawler crane and big M.B. lorry (which I will find hard to resist)."

On 3/11/2015 15:26:52, gregpj said:

Technic sets are usually only out for two years... Except for stock that might linger sets released in August usually disappear by now. So I'll throw this out there - 42009 seems to be going nowhere and it should have started the dance by now.

The arctic Technic set will be one of those very slow growers. It won't be snapped up by too many collectors now or in the future.

42009 is now SOLD OUT in the US.

Technic (and Mindstorm) are the only sets that I buy for myself. But I stopped buying them for investment after seeing the performance of the LE Crawler 41999, Unimog 8110, Race Car 42000, Logging truck 9397, Crawler 9398... Basically all the big sets that retired in the last 2 years.

yup, the only sets since 2012 to have shown decent returns on full rrp have been 42006 and 42007.

Edited November 8, 201510 yr by valenciaeric

That may be so in Spain, but here (US) 42006 has been selling between $100 - $125 shipped, almost no profit if bought at MSRP ($80 + tax).

The bike is only slightly better.