Collectors/Discontinued Decks Yay or Nay?

[Aliki]

What's your opinion on expensive discontinued collectors decks would you purchase them if yes which ones would you like to add to your collection? Also if you already have any which ones do you have?

I don't have any for now but i found one i was searching for so much time since i mostly seen reprints instead of the original so I'll post it here if i get it maybe for Christmas 🥰🙏

[Raggydoll]

Nah, I don’t bother unless I can find them at a bargain price and it’s a deck I genuinely want. I don’t want to be on the FOMO train and I prefer a smallish collection. Sometimes, tarot shops will have the odd copy of out of print decks at retail price. It happens when they don’t know that it’s gone out of print. I managed to get Stella’s tarot in a store long after it was OOP, which was really great. I had been wanting it for some time but didn’t want to pay those ridiculous prices. In the store it was still at retail price 🥳

[KiMo]

I'm similar to Raggydoll in that I will only spend money on decks that I feel I will really connect with, and tend to have done a lot of research on them first, like watching flip through and review videos. That includes decks that are OOP and very desirable. I do have two 'unicorn' decks, the Spolia Tarot and Stella's Tarot, but I wouldn't pay silly money for them... Like Raggydoll I'd rather wait and hope that one day I come across them for a reasonable price!

 

I bought a copy of the Lonely Dreamer Tarot without realising that there were only a few decks left, it's since gone OOP I believe so that's the only one I have in my collection.

[gregory]

The only one I EVER paid over the odds for was the Priapo - which I had not bought for £15 when it came out, and regretted later. I have - so far - bought decks at retail price as they were published, so it hasn't been a huge issue. It helps that I am so VERY old !

[Scarlet Woodland]

I paid a good chunk of change for an All Hallows Tarot a few years back, as it was a bit of a grail deck for me, ever since I started reading. My Lunatic Tarot and the portfolio edition were on the pricey side compared to their original cost but still around the cost of indie decks these days. There's nothing else I'd pay multiples of the original price for though.

 

Like others I have accumulated some oop decks over the years, that I either picked up in stores that didn't realise they were considered valuable, or were discontinued soon after I bought them.

Edited November 20, 2022 by Scarlet Woodland

[Jasmine]

It doesn't interest me.  Not a collector though.  I choose decks I feel a connection to and as time goes by let go of the decks I feel I've outgrown. Prefer to work with a smaller collection of decks. 

[Esclarmonde]

No, I can't see the point in paying exorbitant prices. I have noticed, however, that some decks I own have become OOP or otherwise rare and are expensive now - like e.g. the Renaissance Tarot by Brian Williams (published by US Games) that I was actually given years ago, or the Winged Spirit.

[Niobium]

I have a personal limit on what I will pay for anything I find after the fact, and thus far nothing I've wanted has come close to that number. Lately the only deck which might set me back some isn't even an OOP/collector deck, it's just from Indonesia so hard to get hold of and with exhorbitant shipping to boot.

 

Otherwise I tend to, like gregory, only pay retail/first run prices. (I am still baffled that people pay 4 figures+ for tarot decks. !!!!!) As Raggy said, if you look around on line or in person, a lot of shops will have a copy of an OOP deck they didn't realize was OOP. That's how I got my Solara Occulto, Efflorescent, and a handful of others. (For Stella's I contacted the artist in Japan and she graciously sold me a signed copy. So I never count out that option either--I obtained my Tarot of Lucid Slumber that way as well.)

 

Somewhat related to this, there's been a trend of tarot creators who, having their decks go out of print and fetching huge prices, are finding and selling remaining copies for similarly large prices. I'm disinclined to purchase in cases like this; I don't fault them for asking what the deck is worth in a general sense, but I expect the deck to be of a quality that commands that price, and sometimes they're simply not. Faulty gilding, tuck boxes instead of 2-part, no LWB or guide...at $350USD or more, I expect a top tier piece of work like you get from Taroteca's LE decks. I can't justify it otherwise, but I know not everyone feels the same.

Edited November 20, 2022 by Niobium

[Akhilleus]

If it's an OOP dream deck, of course I'd still try to buy it. If it's too expensive, I'm not averse to flexing dem negotiating muscles. If it fails, at least I tried. I just sob my frustrations away in the arms of my deck collection heh. 

 

1 hour ago, Esclarmonde said:

I have noticed, however, that some decks I own have become OOP or otherwise rare and are expensive now - like e.g. the Renaissance Tarot by Brian Williams (published by US Games)

 

I was stoked to read this as I also have the Renaissance. When I checked it out though, the deck's doesn't seem to be OOP at all. It's still actually available in the USG site. I have the companion book though, and that one is OOP. 

[FindYourSovereignty]

17 hours ago, KiMo said:

 

I bought a copy of the Lonely Dreamer Tarot without realising that there were only a few decks left, it's since gone OOP I believe so that's the only one I have in my collection.

This was a bit crazy to me as I read your post earlier today and I just went over to Kickstarter and the 3rd and final edition of The Lonely Dreamer is on campaign right now.

 

Edit: I don’t spend a lot of money on discontinued or oop decks. I will hunt them down occasionally looking for a price I wm willing to pay. I have found though, that the new Indie decks are priced high, IMO, but I keep buying those. 🤷🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️😊

Edited November 21, 2022 by FindYourSovereignty

[PathWalker]

My collection is much smaller than Gregory's but consists only of I decks I really like. So there are one or two decks still on my wish list that I would dearly love to own and have been long OOP.

For decks like that I do pay the price  - which is sometimes high. But I don't buy many decks each year any more - it will be 4 this year, including one from a charity shop and one backed on kickstarter. So I can save up towards the very hard to find last handful.

 

It all depends what you like  . . . . . .

 

FYI this is my wishlist

* Yellow De Laurence

*Pasasalamat Tarot _ Lynyrd Narcisco

*Nature Speaks Tarot - Linda Cortelessi

*Any version of Midnight Masquerade by Chronata

Edited November 21, 2022 by PathWalker

[DanielJUK]

When I first came to tarot, there were many decks I wanted that were now OOP (out of print) and published before my interest started in a big way! 😩

 

My big tip on this is to be patient! Maybe put an intention out there of any decks you want but they seem to have found me at cheaper prices than the collector's crazy prices! Back on our old tarot forum AT, people were very kind selling me their OOP decks they no longer wanted that I was looking for. They were good prices and they wanted them to go to someone who would use them. I collect but use my decks for reading. I don't really want a museum collection. So I am thankful for just sometimes luck or just waiting and the decks seemed to find me! Many people were kind to me then, new to the world and tarot decks.

 

I did make a buying mistake though. I saw a lot of discussions talking about a deck that was now out of print by a big name artist. They reproduced it as a special edition, it was signed and numbered x out of x. It had a special card in each deck, a lovely set for a fan of their artwork. The problem was that I bought it because of discussions about it and I had FOMO (fear of missing out). I don't hate it but it wasn't a dream deck for me. I bought it because of the discussions and this was about 10 years ago, I was more naive then 🙂 . That was the most I ever paid for a deck.

 

Some decks I have been interested in, have reached insane prices. But then the artist decides to publish a new edition. I saw this with the Moon Oracle and it's sister Oracle of the Radiant Sun. I watched them on ebay going for way too high prices for about a year. Then they had a new edition and I watched the entire price market for them collapse. Another reason to wait it out on fave decks.

 

There is a deck I really want that is OOP. It goes for 4 figures now second hand. I personally don't think any deck is worth over about $200, unless it's a really historic deck that belongs in a museum. I won't pay those kind of prices for it. So I will just wait, the right moment and right time will come for me to get it 🙂 . It's the Greenwood, I can print out the images from a site (the artist has rarely allowed this for personal use) but I would like to find a copy sometime in my lifetime but in no hurry over it.

 

But my advice is not to pay really high prices or feel pressured into getting it. There will be other chances and sometimes you get lucky breaks in finding it

Again buying rare or OOP decks can be about how much you are willing to pay if you don't keep searching for it. Make sure you can justify that it's worth it

[KiMo]

10 hours ago, FindYourSovereignty said:

This was a bit crazy to me as I read your post earlier today and I just went over to Kickstarter and the 3rd and final edition of The Lonely Dreamer is on campaign right now.

 

Oh that's interesting that the creator is going to be producing a third edition! I took a look at the KS page, thankfully I'm not too concerned about the cards that will be changing 😅 

[PathWalker]

@DanielJUK makes a really important point, about getting induced into the excitement about a certain deck, and then finding it doesn't do anything for you.

Because I once bought a collection whole, and through my work making patchwork decks, I have handled lots more decks than I actually have in my collection now.  And some of them were really sought after at the time, changed hands for big money. And whilst they were well executed and so on, they did not appeal to me, nor make me want to read with them!

It is easier if you can actually see the whole deck - Gregory kindly once bought a deck to a meet-up that I thought I wanted. And I held it, and I looked through it, and I went "Oh, thank you, not for me" 

 

With time I think we learn more about what we like, and what will be useful to us. And some folks collect a certain artist, or a certain category of decks for their collective interest. So it's hard to make hard and fast rules. But if you can, see the deck and handle it, or watch a card by card video (perhaps without the sound) so you can see what they are like, and if the speak to you.

 

And enjoy the journey

[FindYourSovereignty]

I have been caught up in the FOMO, still am, so much so that I even backed the KS for the Lonely Dreamer because of @KiMo’s post. However, I agree completely with @DanielJUK and @PathWalker. I’ve had an embarrassingly large number of decks in my short 4 years of learning tarot pass through my hands and my collection is not only large, it continues to grow. I’ve been blessed with opportunities to obtain decks in bundles or swaps and it grew my collection rather quickly. I am amazed at how many I have released, some I truly wish I hadn’t. Others I’ve obtained at a great price simply because others spoke so highly about it and I ‘had to have it’ - not so at all. Everyone’s tastes are different. Even many of the KS decks I support arrive and they aren’t really all I had been hoping for. FOMO or searching for the next best deck have sucked me in for awhile. Now I am truly attempting to be more discerning by watching full flip thru’s, seeing and touching the cards in person whenever I can, and, even if I do pledge, I am willing to cancel after sitting with it for a few days. Like I did with the Lonely Dreamer. 😊
 

This must be what it feels like to be at a meeting… good to share and say it out loud. 

[Misterei]

Some OOP decks I wanted ... selling for $300 on e-bay ... have gone into re-release as 2nd or 3rd edition or whatnot.

So I think sometimes OOP decks for $300 is a pure hype.

Examples: Benebel Wen SKT. The version I really liked didn't reprint ... but a she's running a reprint of a different version which I can buy for $70 instead of $300. So, yeah. I'll just take the reprint, thank you.

Il Meneghello Piedmontese. Going for $300 on e-bay. But I contacted them and they e-mailed me when the reprint dropped ... it's coming in the mail from Italy. Again ... $70 not $300.

Other decks that are OOP and going for crazy prices ... no. I haven't yet seen one I HAD to have for $300+

There's one on e-bay I kinda want that's around $150 .... but I haven't pulled the trigger.

My upper limit on a tarot deck seems to be around $85. And there are SO MANY decks now ... why obsess over an OOP deck, anyway?

Chances are either a better deck will come along, or someone somewhere will do a reprint.

cheers and thanks for an interesting question.

[Misterei]

Well, TT&M won't let me edit the above post. Hmmm. Anyway, Il Meneghello Piedmontese turned out to be a bust. It's the 22 majors only. *sigh*.

My fault for not reading more closely. I'm disappointed, though. I read with a full deck, not just majors.

OTOH this same deck (Solesio) is available on Make Playing Cards.com for $39. Obvi it doesn't have that Il Meneghello artistry and matte cardstock ... but I'll prolly get it so I can read the full deck.

 

Which goes to the point that I can buy for $39 ... nearly the same deck as the OOP on e-bay for $300.

 

Why, Il Meneghello, why? Why did you fake me out with your fake reprint???

Anyway, I wrote them again asking when they plan to reprint the whole effin deck fer f*ck's sake. Except I was more polite };>

Edited November 22, 2022 by Misterei

[Raggydoll]

4 hours ago, Misterei said:

Well, TT&M won't let me edit the above post. Hmmm. Anyway, Il Meneghello Piedmontese turned out to be a bust. It's the 22 majors only. *sigh*.

My fault for not reading more closely. I'm disappointed, though. I read with a full deck, not just majors.

OTOH this same deck (Solesio) is available on Make Playing Cards.com for $39. Obvi it doesn't have that Il Meneghello artistry and matte cardstock ... but I'll prolly get it so I can read the full deck.

 

Which goes to the point that I can buy for $39 ... nearly the same deck as the OOP on e-bay for $300.

 

Why, Il Meneghello, why? Why did you fake me out with your fake reprint???

Anyway, I wrote them again asking when they plan to reprint the whole effin deck fer f*ck's sake. Except I was more polite };>

Subscribers can edit, and I also believe that members with a certain amount of posts can edit as well. Let’s ask a staff member,  @DanielJUK will know for certain !

 

Aside from that, bummer that it was only the majors 😕 I hope Il Meneghello take the input onboard and start on a full reprint. I prefer whole decks, even if I do sometimes read with majors only. I like to have options! 

[stephanelli]

3 hours ago, Raggydoll said:

Subscribers can edit, and I also believe that members with a certain amount of posts can edit as well. Let’s ask a staff member,  @DanielJUK will know for certain !

I'm not Daniel, but I can answer this.

Subscribers and members with over 1000 posts can as well.

(Also moderators, admin and circle hosts.)

[Raggydoll]

5 minutes ago, stephanelli said:

I'm not Daniel, but I can answer this.

Subscribers and members with over 1000 posts can as well.

(Also moderators, admin and circle hosts.)

[DanielJUK]

Exactly what they both said

We had to bring it in to prevent trolls about a year ago, as it was misused 😩

@Misterei if you ever got locked out and can't edit your own post, just quote yourself and write more. Or just reference it like here, it's what others do

[FindYourSovereignty]

14 hours ago, Misterei said:

there are SO MANY decks now ... why obsess over an OOP deck, anyway?

Chances are either a better deck will come along, or someone somewhere will do a reprint.

cheers and thanks for an interesting question.

Yes! This is what I keep reminding myself. And many of the decks coming out today have better printing and card stock.

 

[Aliki]

On 11/20/2022 at 6:17 PM, Raggydoll said:

Nah, I don’t bother unless I can find them at a bargain price and it’s a deck I genuinely want. I don’t want to be on the FOMO train and I prefer a smallish collection. Sometimes, tarot shops will have the odd copy of out of print decks at retail price. It happens when they don’t know that it’s gone out of print. I managed to get Stella’s tarot in a store long after it was OOP, which was really great. I had been wanting it for some time but didn’t want to pay those ridiculous prices. In the store it was still at retail price 🥳

That's awesome ikr the prices of those decks are crazy even when used

[Aliki]

On 11/20/2022 at 6:52 PM, KiMo said:

I'm similar to Raggydoll in that I will only spend money on decks that I feel I will really connect with, and tend to have done a lot of research on them first, like watching flip through and review videos. That includes decks that are OOP and very desirable. I do have two 'unicorn' decks, the Spolia Tarot and Stella's Tarot, but I wouldn't pay silly money for them... Like Raggydoll I'd rather wait and hope that one day I come across them for a reasonable price!

 

I bought a copy of the Lonely Dreamer Tarot without realising that there were only a few decks left, it's since gone OOP I believe so that's the only one I have in my collection.

I love flip throughs as well as watching other readers that's how i connect to my decks before buying and always watch these when i spot one i may like on my local ms shop 🥰 for that and i just wanna see the full packaging guide book as well as the cards so that and reprints on oop are so helpful 

[Aliki]

On 11/20/2022 at 7:22 PM, gregory said:

The only one I EVER paid over the odds for was the Priapo - which I had not bought for £15 when it came out, and regretted later. I have - so far - bought decks at retail price as they were published, so it hasn't been a huge issue. It helps that I am so VERY old !

You're so lucky i lost the one i wanna get now kinda like that cause it got discontinued about the time i first started tarot 😅