Price Guide Finally Gets It Right!

Want to see me turn red with rage? Whip out any one of the many price guides for toys, flip to the section on vintage space toys, and start reading me some prices. Then stand back as I turn an unhealthy shade of green, grow 300 percent larger, and start smashing everything in sight.

For reasons I've yet to fathom, tin robots and other mid-century science fiction toys are given short shrift in most price guides. They usually occupy only a page or two, with most important pieces missing entirely. And the prices -- don't even get me started! They're never even remotely accurate, either wildly high or laughably low.

But all that changes with the recent publication of Toys & Prices 2010 (Krause Publications, edited by Justin Moen), which finds collector and dealer Justin Pinchot taking over the sections on robots and science fiction toys.

Pinchot, who currently runs the online ray gun resource Toyraygun.com, has updated the prices to reflect today's market, consulting recent auctions, eBay sales, and his own experiences at toy shows and with private sales. He's also filled all the holes with new entries, photos, and descriptions for previously absent toys. New introductions to the sections round out the extensive overhaul.

The books is available at all your usual online locations. (Amazon, Barnes & Noble, etc.)

Of course, all price guides need to be consumed with a grain or two of salt; even Pinchot admits that his prices are a few months out of date, and the current economy has played havoc with the collectibles market. I always recommend following eBay and live auctions for the most accurate picture of the hobby. That said, Toys & Prices 2010 is still a great new resource -- it's a fun read, and a perfect place to start for those ballpark figures. Hats off to Krause Publications for finally giving these toys the respect they deserve!