Buying secondhand: Boxes and certificates...are they must haves for you?

Yes, I'm really concerned about recasts, so I always ask about certificates and original boxes- basically because they back up what someone's telling me ^^

 

I collect the boxes as well, sometimes I was not able to get the box and/or papers with the doll in which I'm really sad about. I have almost 40 dolls (most of them have their boxes) and storaging their boxes starts to become harder... But I'd rather do it this way than throwing them away.

 

CoA is more important for me~~ It's a proof that my dolls are all authentic~~
Boxes aren't really important, as long as I can have CoA or at least a photo of the CoA~~

 

I worry how easy it might be to forge a certificate? For me, good pictures of the actual doll/product are important.

Ive never bought a doll second hand, but I am about to sell one, and I don't see how you could safely package a doll (especially a large one) without the original box+foam. If it was without a box I would probly ask for a picture of how it is packaged since I know how careless mail sorters can be.

 

I didn't used to care one way or the other, but with the amount of dolls now that have been recast, CoAs and original packaging are becoming more and more important.

 

I haven't thought about the certificates and boxes much as long as the doll is legit and transported well. Usually if the doll has the plate or company indicator papers don't matter as much. (Although they are nice.) I've not gone for limited and I usually don't intend to sell, but I agree with others on the limited. With rare dolls I think the paper work is more important. Original not... notsomuch. As long as my doll is secure and safe, I don't need the original box.

 

Just a strong box with plenty of bubble wrap and packaging peanuts-i generally pack better than how the dolls were originally sent to me

Not all dolls come with CoA though so you really need the boxes to be sure its not a re-cast if that's something to be concerned about (as i know some sculpts like fairyland have been recast and they only come with a manual a lot of people don't keep)

 

I've noticed people posting about buying papers to match with a doll they bought off the marketplace. Does this concern anyone? Meaning, dolls plus papers could still be recasts and sold as originals?

Personally I'm not resolved on the issue of box and papers. I have dolls with them and without them. I trust that mine are all originals because my dolls come from the same company and the quality is identical across the board.

 

Wow, this really does concern me! How is this allowed on the market place?

 

Um...pretty easily? Papers have been considered accessories for a long time. I frequently see people posting WTBs about papers/boxes for certain dolls (usually Volks fullsets) because they're out to recreate that full set. It's not uncommon, and it's not new. It doesn't concern me, per se, but it's just another reason (right up there with the fact that a lot of dolls don't/didn't even come with any papers) to not put all your trust in CoAs.

In general, the best defense against recasts is common sense. Does the buyer have solid feedback? Do they have the item in hand and proof that they do? Is the price reasonable given the item's condition and desirability? Is it possible to trace a given doll? (Easier than you'd think.) Just use good old fashioned common sense, and you'll probably be just fine.

 

It purely depends on the doll.

Some companies don't sell dolls with paperwork. (Looking at companies like Mirodoll, ResinSoul/Bobobie, Doll Family, etc.)

But these same companies don't have people copying their dolls, so I generally have no trouble buying these secondhand without any form of authenticity.

On the other hand, there are big name company dolls that are very popular, and have many copies widely available for purchase.

In that case, I'd require a proof of purchase (a screenshot or multiple of the purchase made from the company with an order number) and certificate of authenticity.

I don't really concern myself with the boxes unless they're rare, limited, fancy collector's boxes, and even then, I may not concern myself at all.

Boxes are boxes, and I'm not in this hobby for the boxes.

 

My first ABJD is secondhand and did not come with a certificate. It did not deter me from getting her. I still love her to pieces but it would have been nice to get the certificate. The other ABJDs that I have bought secondhand did come with there papers.

 

I agree with you Tez. I don't get too hung up on papers if I want a sculp because I trust my judgment and the sellers I buy from. I see papers as a plus. I do understand why people buy them as it's a completionist thing. However, this thread had me wondering if the idea of buying papers was unsettling to collectors who really want that extra validation?

 

I wouldn't put too much trust in papers and boxes, unfortunately. If recast companies are going to copy entire dolls, it's a small step to also copy a box and a certificate Personally, my dolls are fairly old-I think it was my fifth doll who was the first directly from the company to come with a certificate, and I'm not a very fast collector so that took a few years! When you buy a doll secondhand, especially if it's a popular mold that you know has been recasted, make sure to do your research and don't rely on papers and boxes too much.

 

I've got a few with boxes, and a few with CoAs - Other than my first doll, all of mine have been sechondhand, whether through DoA, or physical shops. The ones from Closet Child both came with their boxes and certificates, but the ones through the DoA marketplace have been a bit of both. I've even got the certificate of one doll which I sold long ago - A Customhouse tiny, whose certificate I ended up storing with a different doll.

With all the current recast drama, I prefer to buy dolls with some kind of guarantee that they're legit - Whether because I know that the major recasters don't have hold of them, or because I know the person who is selling them, and can trace them back to the company.

 

My only girl (at the moment) I purchased from the MP here second hand, and I got neither a box, nor a certificate with her. I was fine with it, since she's only standard.

I think if it was the limited I would hope to have the certificate, but if it was missing I would ask for pictures of the interior of the head cap. A lot of companies are now marking their dolls with plates or stamps, and even when they're done in the resin (not as a disk, like Volks does) it'd be hard to fake that properly in a recast. You'd have something far more illegible than with a doll that was legit. Even as just a standard girl, my old Elfdoll June has her sculpt name carved into her head cap by hand. It's something to consider.

 

I personally would always ask for the box, if possible otherwise I don't mind it being without the original box, but the certificate is a must for me or even better a proof of ordering it like a screen cap from the website. But companies are getting better, I mean take SOOM for example with the CoA checker that they put into place.

 

It probably does -- and frankly, to me that just underscores how futile the "extra validation" a piece of paper really is. That piece of paper could be sourced from anywhere. I totally get the completionist thing; that's a collector's mindset at work. If you want that...oh, say that SD17 Williams fullset but you can't afford it all at once/can't find an intact one for sale, then it makes sense to assemble it bit by bit, papers included. To some people, having all the bits and bobbles is part of the allure of the item. But to me, papers validate nothing. You can get them from other owners, they can be copied...any number of things, all of which are incredibly simple to do. Between that and dolls that never had them to begin with, I think it really shoots a hole in the idea that a CoA proves absolutely everything.

I don't understand the "need proof of purchase/screenshot" thing either. I mean...if you buy a doll that's gone through more than one owner, or a doll that's been around a loooooooong time, that's not even remotely feasible.

 

One doll site I was on, suggested that before you buy one of their dolls from.anywhere else, to double check the numbers/info with them for verification before you dish out money. I like second hand antiques, and even dolls, though I got nervous, after reading threads for stolen dolls, I felt bad for those owners, and decided against looking for second hand lest I inadvertently get one..

 

I don't mind not having the box - I never had room for them living in a tiny apartment and I don't have room in the shared house I live in now, so they would just get tossed anyway.

The papers/certs/etc. I like to have, but only if it's a limited. If it's a basic, then I don't really care one way or the other.