Correlation of Size and Price

But that money they make from selling those dolls allows them to put money into developing new sculpts. Plus they still have to deal with putting those little suckers together and doing any finishing work that's going to be more difficult on a smaller doll.

 

I guess the price thing confuses me a lot. It seems to me that the reason ABJD's are more expensive than, say Pullips, is because they're made out of resin? (I don't know if that's why, it just is the main difference I notices, so I assume that's why? Feel free to correct me!) So why wouldn't a larger one cost more? It takes up more expensive material, the clothing would require more material, more glass for eyes, bigger wig, etc. etc.

I can see why a doll that is larger would cost the same as a smaller one if the smaller doll had a great faceup and an expensive costume, but if they were both blank dolls, I would expect the larger one to cost more.

 

Often times the larger dolls actually do cost more--at least within the same company. It's harder to compare across companies, because prices can vary. However, if the smaller doll has some kind of special jointing system or a skin tone that's more difficult to make, then you can expect to pay more for it. Size is definitely a factor when it comes to pricing, but there are other variables to take into account. There's a lot of engineering that goes into some of these bodies, and working on a smaller scale isn't easier to do.

 

I never said working on a smaller scale was easier I was just thinking that material wise, it would be more expensive.

Thanks for filling me in on the reasons wy they might cost more, though! I wonder why some skin tones are so expensive. Are they more difficult to produce?

 

Yes, tan skin tones are definitely harder with a much higher rate of failure. It's why a lot of companies charge more for tan or restrict it to their LEs.

 

Do you think prices and sizes of BJDs are correlated? No.
Do you think smaller dolls should be less expensive? Why or why not? No, I don't. I have more money put into my Yo-Tenshi Yuki that one of my friends has in her SDs. Also, my Yuki = more than my Iplehouse Tania Trapeze (l.e. 50). It's really more of a company/rarity thing I guess.
Would you pay more for a smaller doll than a bigger doll? Too late to say no now!


You should compare your dolls to jewelry, all women understand jewelry.
It's like... just because a ring is bigger and flashier and made of cubic zirconia, it will still be worth less than a real diamond ring of smaller size.

 

Good metaphor - it correlates with dolls on so many levels of consideration.

 

But all BJD's are made of Resin. There really isn't that much of a different between French Resin and other resins, they're both still plastics and both are easily obtainable. I think your completely wrong when compairing BJD's to Jewellery.

To be honest, it's not really the size your paying for. It's the brand name in some cases.

 

Not all BJD's are made of resin - just the vast majority of the ones open for discussion here (60cm Obitsu are vinyl, remember). By the same token, most jewelry is some kind of metal, and the intrinsic value of the material used is not the only factor in the appraised and market value of the piece: gold can be dirt cheap on the trading market and the value of a quality piece of jewelry will not budge or will even rise. You can expect to pay a lot more for a simple ring from a 'name' jeweler like Tiffany's or Van Clef than virtually identical (or even higher-quality) piece from a 'no-name' company, and for the exact same reasons as the 'name' differences in BJD.

Like dolls, you can raise or lower the value of a piece by 'swapping' components (i.e. changing the stone in a ring). Like dolls, 'fashionability' of a style dictates market price. Like dolls, jewelry is viewed as an 'investment collectible'. 'Limited' pieces are likely to be more valuable than 'production' but not always - and because of the same factors. People who love their bling often assemble pieces from 'parts' just as BJD lovers do, either to save money or create a distinctive impression.

 

...!!

Oh wait, you were being SERIOUS with that bizarre generalization? *snrk* Whoa. Well, that's news to a lot of women.
But carry on.

Because the amount of materials used is NOT the only factor in the final cost. It's only a fraction of it. Besides materials, you also have overhead like: parts, labor, tools, shipping contracts, your employees' salaries, the mortgage on your studio building, the cost of renting time at the casting plant, business taxes, insurance, renewing your municipal permits that let you have toxic materials on the premises.... or what-have-you. (Running a doll company isn't like setting up a lemonade stand, where you can charge 10 cents for a big glass & 5 cents for a small glass and have done with it.)

French resin is more translucent, harder, fades more easily, etc. There's plenty of differences between French style resin vs. other urethane resins. There's also plenty of difference between that extra-heavy Japanese style resin that Volks uses, vs. most of the Korean resins. If you've seen and/or felt a wide range of these different resins in real life, then you know right away.

And remember-- Tan resin & Normalskin resin are both plastics, too. Yet a tan doll can cost up to twice as much as a normalskin one. It's that much harder to cast, work with, and maintain. All resins are not created equal. So, in the end, not all resin dolls cost equally.

 

That's like how people (mostly antique store owners where I browse for tiny butter pat plates and salt spoons) think that my CH Raphael only should have cost $60 since he's made from 'just plastic' and I tell them, 'No, he's a very well made doll and completely worth the price. And collectible.'

I don't have problems with the prices charged for tinies, and actually think many are pretty inexpensive, compared to nice 60cm dolls. Having sewn and knit and tried cobbling for tinies, I realize that it can't just be accessory making that's so incredibly difficult. Sculpting the larger dolls is hard enough with their tiny noses and lips, etc, and my mind boggles when I think about sculpting and casting even smaller.

 

Do you think prices and sizes of BJDs are correlated?
In most companies, especially ones that offer many different sizes, though I think this is more due to the company itself, whether it is well known, how long it's been around etc. Comparing from company to company I think is different, because I would pay more for a smaller doll that had a more creative headmold, or really good quality than a larger doll.
Do you think smaller dolls should be less expensive? Why or why not?
Ehhhhh.... I do think so, especially if it's a 70cm doll being the same price of a pipos even though if it takes the same amount of time to create one. (Resinsoul, Bobobie, and AoD are exceptions). Again, within a company I think so, though I really can't compare different companies together.
Would you pay more for a smaller doll than a bigger doll?
Honestly, if it was a Volks, then yes, since I love their resin and sculpts. If I loved a doll, and it fit a character that I wanted to fill, then yes. I also think that paying 1200+ dollars for a doll (of any size) direct from the company is a bit excessive, even though it might be a limited. But really, I wouldn't pay more than 500$ as an absolute maxium for a tiny. (a more realistic limit is 350$)

 

Hey, I've seen what those tiny butter-pat plates cost! They have some nerve telling you that! Next time you're in an antique shop, ask them why that vintage Barbie playset is going for $200... after all, that's 'just plastic' too. Or how about that $100 tin beer-sign? It's just TIN. Then, after the long lecture (it will invariably ensue) about the market-value of intangibles & antiques & collectibles & what-have-you, just point to your doll again. QED: Things that are small and/or plastic are not always cheap.

(For that matter: Ask any of those Clinique-lab-coat-gynobots in Macy's exactly where they get off charging $30 for a wee vial of lotion. It's just freaking lotion. And then go into BCBG's and ask why they're charging $150 for a polycotton t-shirt. It's just polycotton. Aaah, I could go on & on....)

 

Do you think prices and sizes of BJDs are correlated?
They always seem to be, within each company. Pukis are less expensive than Minifees, etc.

Do you think smaller dolls should be less expensive? Why or why not?
Less expensive than the larger ones from the same company, yes. Though I wouldn't expect a doll half the size of the large ones to cost half as much, since everything's harder on a tiny scale. When comparing between companies you get into apples vs. oranges type comparisons sometimes. Pukis and Bobobie tinies are both super-cute, but the Pukis are a bit more expensive. Looking at the body engineering, extra options and poseability, though, it makes sense for it to be that way!

Would you pay more for a smaller doll than a bigger doll?
Yes. If it's the face I need for a character in the size I need, on the right body, absolutely. I could have bought 3 or more of the least expensive SD size dolls for what I've paid for my two minis. Within reason, of course. I don't focus much on name brands for much of anything else in my life, so if I think the only reason the price is super-high is because of the brand name, I won't buy.

 

Personally, this is how I see it:
The best value dolls are the MSD sized ones. They are a fair sight cheaper than the larger SD sized, and they are not that much shorter. The tiny ones are still cheaper, but they are a lot smaller for that cheaper-ness. Basically if you consider COST OF MATERIALS and the DIFFICULTY TO SCULPT they sort of cross at MSD, where the doll is large enough that it's not hard to sculpt, but small enough that it's not as much material. That's the impression I get from flicking through the price lists. Personally I would not buy a tiny, because I don't see them as good value, but that doesn't mean I think they should be cheaper, as I see why they aren't.

Edit: I did some math, calculating a sort of "Price per centimeter" for all sizes of doll of a specific doll producer. Turns out I was wrong, the price per centimeter did get successively larger as the dolls get smaller. I tried to make a graph, but graphing the dolls height against price with different companies on different lines and so on was harder than I thought. *sigh*.
Then I realized how unscientific it was to condemn my thesis based on one doll company. So I tried two more and it actually sometimes holds up. So in terms of price per centimeter you are usually better off with either the biggest doll, or a 40-50 cm one.

 

Do you think prices and sizes of BJDs are correlated?
It matched up well. Shouldnt small have little price and bigger have big price? It goes hand in hand, it make sense.

Do you think smaller dolls should be less expensive? Why or why not?
YES! I am adament in saying so. Because if doll small, why should he have big price? Unless lined with gold or silver, I can say so strongly. But we must think outside of box, as well as in. Yes, it takes less materials,space and works but must think of time. The time put into little face and little detail and little body and eyes!
Sometimes, and though now I feel Im retorting with self, the price should be higher.

Would you pay more for a smaller doll than a bigger doll?
Big. End of story. You can just, well on my opinion if I may say, do more with SD's and bigger bjd's. Yes, it cost more but I yet to understand how one buy bjd that is 45Cm for 450$ or some price close instead of a 60cm for 450$!
Put a little in, get alota out.

 

Do you think prices and sizes of BJDs are correlated?
To a point. I believe that there is a base price for each size range, and that depending on the intricacy of the sculpt and the posing extent of the joints that adds or subtracts from the total. Then, of course you have exceptions to that rule with the limiteds where they might just be worth more for the fact that they're limited. I don't have much experience in the SD sizes, nor the tinies for that matter, but it would seem logical to me that if the doll holds poses better or that the doll has a more natural look overall, that doll will be worth more to most buyers. With tinies, they have a basic price of about $100 (I believe, don't hit me if I'm wrong), but the pukis are $200+. That is understandable because of their interchangeable faceplates and the incredible posing ability, but many think this is not right to spend that much on a doll that can fit in your palm. So, all in all, I think that they have a base price that can fluctuate depending on overall sculpt, joints, and quality.

Do you think smaller dolls should be less expensive? Why or why not?
I think they should have a smaller base value, but not necessarily less expensive. It should be based on the overall quality of the doll, not just size (although size does play a somewhat large factor).

Would you pay more for a smaller doll than a bigger doll?
Yes, I would. The puki I'm getting is definately more than one of my msds and the next msd I'm getting. Posability and cuteness play the biggest part in that one. Though it is probably a hecka lot easier to make clothes for the bigger dolls, I'm planning on taking my puki just about everywhere, which is not something I can do at the moment with my msds. It all depends, I guess.

 

I just want to point out that a basic puki without faceup is still well under $200 (which is a number I seem to recall seeing a few times in this thread). They may be more expensive than other dolls their size, but I think to compare, it's best to compare as parallel as you can--so don't look at a purchase of [puki (incl. default face) + sleeping faceplate + makeup for the two faces] and compare that to [orientdoll so ji]. If you compare [puki, no faceup] to [orientdoll so, no faceup] you're getting a more accurate look at the price of the doll. Yes, $138 is more than $109...but I'm a little annoyed when people make like pukis are two or three times as expensive as other dolls in their range, when really that money is just buying extras. If I have a MNF Shiwoo, then buy someone's spare dreaming head and get them both faced up, my doll might cost me up to $500+. Does that mean that MNFs are way the hell and gone more expensive than any other mini on the market? No...it just means I bought a bunch of extras for my doll.

 

Do you think prices and sizes of BJDs are correlated?
Yes I do think they're correlated. The smaller the doll, the prices seem to drop, unless they are a limited edition or something like that.
Do you think smaller dolls should be less expensive? Why or why not?
Yes, because they are a smaller size. They do not require as much resin, and therefore should not cost as much. This is just my opinoin, seeing as I'm into larger dolls anyway.
Would you pay more for a smaller doll than a bigger doll?
No, deffinately not. I think that if I'm spending this much money on a doll, it should at least be a decent size