Anyone ever buy 10 pounds of Lego pieces on ebay?

[BuzzMonkey]

Is it worth it to buy those if I want to get a bunch of random pieces? Is the pricing reasonable?

Some examples on this eBay Search

[Legobrandon]

The problem is, you never know if the bulk bricks are purely LEGO. There may be some clone brands such as Mega Blocks incorporated into the assortment.

[Zeya]

Read carefully. If it says something like "photo is representative of what you might get" or something similar, you should be wary. Most of the time that will be stuff that has been cherry-picked and all the "good stuff" is gone. You can check the seller's other lots, and if he/she has more than one of those listings, then you can bet they have those listed 24/7/365. Also expect that the stuff will be dusty and scratched. Just set your expectations accordingly.

I personally do not bid on lots like that, especially where the photo isn't of the actual thing being bid on. I like to throw out lowball bids on things though. Usually on things like a lot of 10 minifigures that are out of production, or a pile of minifig accessories that look interesting. Every once in a while I get lucky. :)

Other tips: check out the seller's ratings and other listings. You'll get an idea if they're a lego power-seller (have lots up all the time), or if it's just someone's mom somewhere that just happens to be selling off some old toys. Never buy from (or sell to) someone whose account is brand new; it's not worth the risk.

[L3GOCOLL3CTOR]

I have bought hundreds of pounds of Legos from EBAY listings. Most of the time, I am pleased with the results. I have bought anything from specific colors to random bricks. What is your main purpose, may I ask(just to aid in your quest)? I find that anything Star Wars related always costs more than other random Lego bulk listings. Also, the grey/gray brick(shades therof) is the most expensive basic color. Actual closeup pictures of the bricks in the listing helps. This shows that people are not afraid to show their stuff. Also, check feedback and their other listings. Some people sell a lot of quality Lego sets/pieces off of EBAY and can be trusted more than other knuckleheads, who might have found dirty and contaminated Legos at a garage sale and sell them for a quick buck.

[wintersun]

When I restarted my collection for my new born son (I'm trying to build a huge collection in the next 4 years), I bought (impulsively) 20lbs of random Lego + 5 lbs of "castle" part. I'm not sure I will do it again except if it's a really good deal.

-Shipping cost me a lot
-I had 3-4 lbs of Bionicle/Hero part that wasn't not on the photos (but the guys offer to swap with with another 3-4lbs without Bionicle)
-I needed to wash them (vinegar + dishwasher), it's really long
-I needed to sort them and remove Megablocks/Tyco etc. (less than 1% of the lots), I still haven't finish that part.

I haven't touch a Lego in like 15 years I'm not sure which part are useful/popular now, but in general I'm happy with the lots.

[legitimatealex]

Just be sure that if you're not happy with your product you can return or get your money back. My brother has gotten burned on a few of these deals from eBay, including clone brands and broken pieces.

Make sure the picture that is there is exactly the lot you are getting.

[BuzzMonkey]

Thanks all. Your feedback is helpful.

To answer your question L3GOCOLL3CTOR

...What is your main purpose, may I ask(just to aid in your quest)?

I am looking to obtain random pieces that make the imaginative building style of my son more interesting. He has a ton of squares, rectangles and other "standard" pieces and he usually cannibalizes his Star Wars and other sets to use the more interestingly shaped pieces to build his creations.

[cbaker1974]

I would try to look for a lot that's been owned by a single family or collector rather than one of the "by weight" sellers. I've had mixed results from the "by weight" purchasing that is similar to folks above...lots of non-lego, batteries, gum and other unmentionables.

Usually you will get better quality and can have fun "restoring" the sets if you choose to do that (if you buy a more "complete" lot of mixed sets from a seller). If you choose that route, look for lots that include minifigs, that can be a good sign that the lot is full of mixed sets rather than scooped from a giant pile. This usually costs more per pound, but I often find that I can piece out 1 nice set and sell it to make up the cost difference.

[Zeya]

Another thing is that once you get your lot, you can cherry pick out what you want and sell the rest. Nothing wrong with that, just make sure to take a good photo and point out that you get exactly what's in the photo. This way you recoup some costs from the stuff you don't really want.

[L3GOCOLL3CTOR]

Thanks all. Your feedback is helpful.

To answer your question L3GOCOLL3CTOR

...What is your main purpose, may I ask(just to aid in your quest)?

I am looking to obtain random pieces that make the imaginative building style of my son more interesting. He has a ton of squares, rectangles and other "standard" pieces and he usually cannibalizes his Star Wars and other sets to use the more interestingly shaped pieces to build his creations.

There are plenty of listings that have pieces from Star Wars sets and various other themes. Most listings will have that in the desription. Here is a good example of a decent Lego parts lot...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/300-LEGO-Parts- ... 588wt_1040" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It's priced a bit high, but it looks like a good selection of bricks.

[Sinfanti]

I've had great experiences buying bulk Lego on eBay. Over the past couple years I've picked up about 30 pounds in 4 and 5 pound lots from a seller called ebuyazonline. Their supply seems to come and go. When they have it they are selling several hundred pounds a day. Other times they have none, like now. I sorted through every piece and it was all genuine article (even with piece numbers visible inside bricks) and a really good variety of pieces. Sure, several hundred multiples of some pieces, but they mixed up the lots enough that it wasn't a problem. The odd thing was that the pieces all seemed brand new. No wear and barely any scratches. Occasionally, a piece would have some color distortion, mostly white and yellow pieces, but otherwise perfect. Very few minifig elements, although I did get a few droid heads. On average I paid about $5/pound. Plus, prices included shipping. Definitely a seller to keep an eye on.

[Relhak]

Over the past couple years I've picked up about 30 pounds in 4 and 5 pound lots from a seller called ebuyazonline.

I used to buy from him when his lots went for $5-6/lb, but last I checked, they were going for $8-9. I think I picked up about 100-150 pounds total. I don't think I ever got a single non-Lego part. Like many others, he claimed the lots weren't picked over, but they were generally so devoid of minifig parts, that I don't believe it. They also tended to have patterns of certain pieces that seemed to be thrown in to every lot to slowly get rid of them, like the 100 or so 10x10 round corner bricks that showed up 4-6 at a time. I have dozens of identical pieces that only appeared in one set, but never got even a single piece of another type needed to even complete one copy of that set. Very strange lots, I was getting batman cowls regularly, and then darth vader and storm trooper helmets regularly for a while. I got 18 Patrick (spongebob) spaceman heads, but no bodies to go with them. Most everything looked unused, except for the occasional large piece (like airplane fuselages) that was worn to bits. The strangest thing was a stretch of batches that had pieces that were multicolored, as if they had been cleaning out one color plastic by molding a bunch of pieces in the new color. Like corner plates in blue with red near the injection spot. Also a fair number of pieces that didn't get fully molded (missing plastic).

I pretty much picked through what I never thought I would use and listed it on BL and put the rest in my collection. It's been great for filler brick, and having cheap off-colored pieces as placeholders in models while I wait for a BL order to arrive.

I think the ebay lots that have pics of the actual items being auctioned tend to go for more, but then you're bidding against people that see certain sets in the lot and have bid accordingly. Unless you want that particular set, I don't think it's worth it.

[Bobsterino]

I also bought many lots from EBuyAZOnline in the past. Some really good stuff in there - almost always in pristine condition. It was just about always about $5/pound including the shipping, and I still use that as a reference point for buying bulk lots. Other than EBuyAZ, I avoid sellers with "representative" photos for the reasons outlined in the other messages here. In general I try to only buy from private sellers who appear to be selling off their kids' Lego collections - and when possible, I always ask ahead of time to confirm that it's 99% actual lego. I've schooled many sellers on how to tell the difference! :) If I've received a lot of good Legos this way, and when they've fallen short of the description, I've been successful at getting full or partial refunds.

[CarterFreeman]

I've been buying a few of these old legos for my kid. They make great toys since the pieces are huge and clean up is easy. The only issue that I am having now is that she uses them to build mini chairs and now she is able to reach areas that I had originally blocked off...

I would love to find some more of these from eBay because other sites charge way too much for these blocks. :/