I totally agree. The problem is the hobby has been taken over by hype and scalpers. The same things happened in the sports card industry a few years ago... and then the bottom fell out. Now no one care about sports cards anymore and the value of cards has plummeted. The same thing is gonna happen in diecast. If you only care about value, then sell everything now and get out before the bottom falls out. Fortunately I don't care about value. I collect what I want... and if I can't find it, then I don't add it to my collection. Personally, I can't wait for the bottom to fall out and scalpers leave the hobby... then we'll be able to find everything again.
Im selling up my whole collection as im sick of having to pay insane prices to complete my sets I live in a small town with a few stores The scalpers who show up at opening time while i work for a living are making good money every week scalping Ive been collecting for years these guys treat it as a business So im out, so sick of where its going
That is true however it still remains it isn't as popular as had been from 70's to 90's about the time market begin showing signs of challenges, the market remains at a slow pace. Older materials some still command a bit of a price , but later items have considerably 😢💧 drop.@@stephintheatre6335
@whenever-199iq Free enterprise is also choosing to not support scalpers (perceived $$) and buy at retail (actual value). I have been collecting for a while, and I've seen it all. Everything this man said is true. What he is talking about is the greed of some people (scalpers/resellers) who have no consideration for the actual collectors that want the cars for their personal collection. This greed is what causes these people who have access to the stock (store employees, managers, unemployed losers, etc.) to take all the desirable cars for the purpose of making a profit (corruption). So yeah, I would say it's corrupted.
Free greed , hobby is from the heart ,grown ass people prowling T-hunts. Not parents buying them for their kids and playing with them building memories. Adults are just killing it sadly. If I have to explain more ,best of luck !😂
It is two to three years I cannot find a chase, super, green machine or any other sought after car. Do not buy at these exaggerated prices. Leave the scalpers high and dry,.. they will eventually disappear. It is the only remedy. The more you buy from them, the more of them will grow exponentially!
I'm new to collecting Hot Wheels, I started in 2019. I didn't even know there were "Treasure" type cars or what to look for? I see a cool car I like and I buy it and keep one in the box and open one. It's my collection to enjoy I don't care if I'm missing rare models it's supposed to be fun!
I remember back in 2023, I was looking for the Bugatti Bolide, and a dude just grabbed all of em in front of me. I asked if he at least would sell one to me, but he refused and gave me the "stare." In 2024, we managed to meet again for the A case, and I catched the STH. The dude was hella mad and was following me everywhere I went. I completely agree with your statement over people fighting Super Treasure Hunts
At a show today and nearly every table had all the the same stuff....and the prices were bloody INSANE! Everyone thinks they're going to make a mint and retire. To me, it's a hobby. To others, it's a second job and they're trying to make rent! I saw a main line Toyota Land Cruiser for $15! And, the factory sealed version? $35!!! It's flippin' insane! I hear you Phil. I hear you.
yep, and the only way we stop it is by not spending their outrageous stupid prices, I go to my local meet and never spend more than eight dollars on a premium
I was going to visit a local seasonal toy collector event yesterday but I realised it's like visiting scalpers on eBay in real life. They know what they have. They price them ridiculously high and you can't even discuss your love of the hobby with these people. I think a car boot sale where it's mums and pops selling some old toys they had in the attic for years is so much more fun to hunt 🙌
@@TheWheelCollector if your price point is eight bucks, go in with that mindset, trust me, you’ll win, and if you don’t win, they’re gonna take that shit home with them anyways lol so no worries at my local flea market, they’ve had the same shit for a year at these booths in terms of diecast, it’s their loss
@AutismusPrime69 that sir is the ball game. As soon as something changes and they dint just fall into their lap a d actually put effect into something. The cry babies ome outta of the wood work with evry excuses on how and why the hobby is dead or has a problem or they call it corrupt.. lmao. Either grow and change with the hobby or don't. Buy crying all the time is just sad.
@@mtldiecastcafe Same here TH-cam Recommended your channel to me... I Can't agree with you more as myself I have been collecting hot wheels for twenty years now and can't believe what it's become... I Subbed up and hope to see more... keep up the awesome work Brother 😃👍
Digging the rant, I only pick up what I like. I no longer care about completing a set. I like a bit of everything, mostly American muscle, and vintage trucks.
I disagree. Some cars from past years are no longer avaliable in stores. Right now I'm collecting all the treasure hunts from 2011 to 2019 and I am happy to say I have found a lot of those with online sellers.
@@marcoantoniomarquezperez2652 it's not the same as finding one in the wild. If you bought online from anyone except Mattel, imo you haven't really collected it
Cant agree more. Got into this hobby about a year ago because of my 4yr son. Happened to stopped by at one walmart the other day for grocery and saw couple of guys standing there waiting for hot wheel restock. I asked them how often they come here hunting, dude said everyday...
I get any hotwheel thats a real vehicle or has a certain special marking on the box (such as earth day, birthday, etc), and I wanted to resell them until I saw this and another person's video explaining how detrimental scalping was, and how hobbyists eventually become scalpers. I realized I was taking the same exact path, and now I wish to keep all my hotwheels. Sure ill sell some if times get tough, but I'll always keep some around.
Hello everyone, my name is Igor, I am from Ukraine, and mainly you are discussing how things are in the USA. In Europe, everything that seems unrealistically expensive to you, robbery and profiteering from collectors, here we are not considered people at all. Here, if you want a model from the RLC line, then you have to pay at least 110-120 dollars for the simplest one. If you find at least one super treasure in your life, it’s like a glitch in the matrix. If a person has at least one super treasure in his collection, then you will be applauded. There are no shops like yours, no towns, no markets... nothing. Regular models start at $3. And any model with the words “Fast and Furious” is considered a national treasure and is worth as much as a share of a US federal bank. Thank you very much for such an honest video! ❤.
I'm from poland and I agree with you it's impossible to find any premium etc bc there is no shops that do that and also mainlanes are here around 2.5$.
I’m from Montreal and it’s ridiculous here, i’m 28, I met an older gentleman at a dollarama in pointe Claire. Very nice Guy, he told me earlier in the week a guy around my age was near but not in front of the pegs on his phone and when he went in to check the younger guy started saying “have you ever heard of personal space” then elbowed him in the face to move him out of the way … Also told me some older guy once snatched a hot wheels out of his 6 year old son’s hands at a Walmart while they were hunting together I’ve been collecting a while now and have met some really cool people along the way but also some truly sad losers
I, too, am a collector & share your frustration in these scalpers who are ruining our hobby! Here In England, people have caught on to this hobby & and buying up the popular modles only to sell on e bay for 4 times as much & with p&p costing more than the die cast it self.
I thought I would add that all real collectors have something to rant about. In my area even the mainline cool casting are swiped super quick. Your super lucky to find any premium sets. And I refuse to pay ridiculous prices on ebay. We have a hotwheels show every two months in my area, its my only chance at anything. Most cars are a dollar or two , sometimes even cheaper than they were in the store.
I am a genuine Hotwheels JDM enjoyer, so I get a lot of those just because I like them. Never hogged duped Hotwheels so that other can't get them. Hopefully this hobby will start to get better
New listener...refreshing hearing what you had to say. I have met a couple of other collectors as I'm new to this myself, returning after 20 yrs. They were very pleasant and helpful. Had a chance to help out a kid there too. Let's take back the hobby and make it fun!
*Honestly I just gave up on the hobby and switched to collecting DBZ figures, it was fun initially when any vehicle was fun to own and the community was vibrant and diverse however it’s ridiculous to not be able to find a single vehicle because some doofus will buy the whole shelf and back stock to sell at an overpriced range on marketplace*
For me, ive shifted towards new premium brands such as MiniGT that you can get online without the hassle of scalpers and chases. A little more expensive but completely worth it. Especially with all the cool series theyre doing. Theyre releasing a james bond collection and an ayrton senna collection which is nuts.
Right. Or you can go the less expensive route like JL/AW, M2 etc. RLC is now WAY too expensive for what you get and for the production numbers. Production count is a huge factor in price. Mattel now ignores that. Minigt are just as detailed or more. They make less than an RLC and charge 17-$20. Even for their REALLY limited stuff. Mattel is hosing collectors so bad.. 😂
@@Anth230and they wont sell the Elite64 in Europe, you only can order them from Hot Wheels itself and the shipping double the price of it, around 40€, i get a MiniGT for 12€. Greetings from Germany 😂
Stopped collecting Matchbox, Majorette an Hot Wheels too, there's only one Shop, where i can buy them in my little town, sadly they mostly get old cases and only a small amount, the next bigger City is 20 Miles away and If you go there, the best ones allways gone. Switched to Premium 1/64 scale (MiniGT, Para64, Inno64, Schuco Edition64, Tarmac Works, Auto World, Greenlight, BM Creation etc) and buy them online.
There were 5 of us strangers going through a fresh dump bin, it was the large metal cage style so there was room. Everyone was polite and didn’t get nasty when someone pulled a super. Just congratulated them and kept digging. Another perspective is the state of the economy. I hit a fresh dump bin the other day, I had my cart full of cool stuff but then had to keep putting cars back and in the end it still came to $40, other people there were in the same boat, talking about trying not to spend too much. It adds up
I'm 18 and have been collecting hot wheels for almost 5 years its just sad to see so many people my age just in it for the money like I just barley found my first two supers, I gave one to my car friend for a really cheap price cuz he really wanted it and offered to pay so I gave him it, next day he sold it for 55$ I regret giving it to him. I get hot wheels because I like them put them on my wall and open some and take photos of them its a hobby and I enjoy it not use them as stocks
Yes my brother, I'm just like you. I'm a collector and i open just about everything. I probably have about 10 to 15 thousand open car's. I live in Huntington Beach California. There's about 5 scalpers in my area. I've had one scalper snacth a premium car right out of my hand and said that he had been waiting to get to the case that the target employee brought out. Those scalpers go right to "Frank n Son's" and sell them. Especially the bald dude named Scott that works at Albertsons. I don't buy anything online or from Frank n Son's. I only buy what I hunt for on foot not the computer. Therefore, I have lots of gaps in my collection. I don't watch many peg hunting videos because I would rather see them open. I really enjoy your channel and collection. I never sell anything. Thank you very much. Have a great week.
I have to agree with you as well. I buy for myself , don't buy any on the computer I open everyone and don't sell any at all. But I get most if not all my information from this channel. Cause I trust him. I study human behavior for a living and found out this channel to be positive and true and I respect that. Love Phil and his channel and highly respect the personal time he puts into his channel. Keep up the good work my friend.
Always love hearing your thoughts, Phil. Thanks for sharing this. The true collectors will always stick around and hopefully the "chasers", scalpers, and resellers will move onto the next thing within a couple years.
Totally agree Sir. I unsubscribed to Shawn Niclaus for the same reason cause he's a serial scalper and he's influencing young collectors to hunt Hot Wheels the wrong way. The satisfaction of finding your fav casting on the pegs is way better than begging for fresh boxes every week.I also blame the store employees.They should stop allowing these scalpers open up fresh boxes.
It's a big reason I stopped watching Hot wheels hunting videos. They all are about getting a STH. I don't know their names, but there's a couple guys who seem to be opening tons of boxes in every video.
I was at Target today with my girlfriend and decided to walk over to the hot wheels area to take a look. I get there and there’s this older guy rummaging through the pegs grabbing stuff, he looks over at me with this weird territorial look on his face as if he was about to panic that someone else might get something. I saw that sad sight and just turned around and walked away.
Wow, that's crazy!! Totally agree!! I think the best we can do against that is not buying those THs or STHs until they realize how stupid that hoarding is. It's a sacrifice we have to do, but I don't see another solution. Greetings from Venezuela!
Sad to see new generations are no longer a genuine Hotwheels collector but a scalper/reseller. Back in those days, we can make friends and helping fellow collectors exchange supers or even normal carded cars to complete the collections. Now we see, all are scalpers to fetch a profits. No longer a genuine collector to share this hobby with.
I'm a reseller, and I could easily make a ton of money with the stuff that they left in that dump bin. I collected Hot wheels for years myself, but now it just doesnt make sense financially anymore....its a waste of time, gas, and money. I buy people's collections now, when they quit.
As a longtime hot wheels collector,there's Nothing like finding a STH in the "wild ". I was fortunate enough to have found 6 over the past 4 years just hanging on a peg hook in my local ShopRite! Scalpers ruin everything they touch. Although I CAN tell when a collector has been through a store,they LEAVE the other hard to find cars right out in the open FOR THE NEXT COLLECTOR!😊
@@ernietrott3529Any true collector would still collect... The thing is people would still go after the more desirable cars regardless so... Nothing will change. In a sense they'll choose the most desirable car and call it the "chase". Kind of like that green Porsche 914 in that Walmart set.
@@ernietrott3529 yes I would. I have kids. I also like particular makes and models. Also, you need to learn proper punctuation when texting. You should have typed: If they stop making treasure hunts, supers and chase cars, would you still buy?
Good thoughts on the state of the hobby. I’m usually at the store when they open only because I’m out that way for something else and if I see the local scalpers car in the lot I won’t even bother going in. Man you showed some killer cars, especially those Shelby Collectibles.
Let's not get crazy here, this has been happening since 2019....we've all have had to deal with it. I've been "collecting" since '93 with my dad. I've never seen it as bad as it is now. (Started in 2019) I go to my friends and trade between them. The Hot Wheel culture is dead, the spirit of it being lost on how many cases you can open, and how cool you are with Mattel. Happy hunting everyone. See you guys at the convention in a few weeks for my LA peeps.
Dude - All those Chase & Supers were gobbled up by the Wal-Fart employees before they were even displayed. It's cool that your Wal-Fart has such an awesome assemblage of stuff, mine stinks.
Agree, when people realized how much they can make on ebay it went to shite. In a way, I’m glad that Hot Wheels RLC doesn’t number the cars anymore and makes as many as they do. At least now, a real collector has a chance to get a car they want. Instead of scalpers who DO NOT collect buy them up with their bots and sell them. I am an attendee at the Hot Wheels conventions and witness it first hand. At the finale, they get the cars and you see them on ebay while you’re still there. Hey, give it a few years and the hype will go away like disco did. 😜
Hi, yes it has to some degree but it's open doors to finding things that you could never find in a life time. Thanks to ebay I have been able to find a decent pink 442 redline, 2 roadkings boneshaker rumbler and countless other gems. Thank you Ebay.😊
My 2 closest stores rarely stock, and if I don't grab the good cars (usually 1/3rd to 1/2th the case) they are gone very shortly after... but I've seen in a lot of peg hunting videos the mainlines that are left on the pegs baffle me. Honestly many normal treasure hunts are really bad and not even rare, and they'll take those but not the way nicer castings like even skylines or that beautiful BMW wagon or the teal audis and such. This year's cases are absurdly good, especially the later letters, M & P might be my favorites, they're beyond stacked to the point where I'm considering buying my first full case. With all these incredible cars I'm not sure why people buy like they can only buy a couple hot wheels a month so the only thing they can justify is chases... meanwhile with myself, as long as it's a car I don't have that looks pretty cool, across a wide variety of types, I'd gobble those up for a buck a piece basically with no limit.
Around here where I live it is just not treasure hunts or JDM cars that get gobbled up around here when my local Target's and local Walmarts put out any new hot wheels all the new hot wheels get gobbled up real fast they don't last at all on the pegs at my Target's and at my Walmarts around here. I have had better luck of finding new hot wheels and treasure hunts lately at my local grocery stores, dollar stores, drug stores, and discount stores.👍
I’m 19 now and haven’t bought Hotwheels from the store in a long time due to this. But As a little kid years ago this was a hobby I shared with my dad and we always tried to find just 1 treasure hunt if possible, and then we’d each get a car or two that we both really liked. Anyhow it didn’t last very long before we’d make it to the Hotwheels aisle and there were grown men rushing out the aisle with CARTS FULL of Hotwheels and this one guy had like 10 of the same supers. My dad had even offered to pay him just to get one and he refused. The hobby quickly felt very closed off and overly competitive when I felt it was supposed to just be a fun collecting deal. Anymore when I’m at the store I’ll stop by the Hotwheels but I never see any good cars. The pegs are always ransacked. My collecting still thrives on though with collecting the classic Redlines, as I thoroughly enjoy adding onto my dad’s childhood collection and restoring more of them as I collect at least. 👍 But yeah, it’s unfortunate what the hobby has come to.
Found the Lambo boulevard also. Just the one I wanted, don't care about not getting the skylines. The Lambo also came out in white (black chase) in the spectacular series. GORGEOUS (don't have the black one).
you are correct in poland eleclerec supermarket i found only one th and there were left behind such a cool cars also i found other hotwheels collector. Also collectors now gonna get every super treasure hunt even though its the same as other they don't care about cars or design they care about money.
As soon as toys started to be made for adults all the toy hobbies went downhill. Toys were meant for kids, and adults only collected for nostalgia, now it's a business of reselling. We live in sad times.
It’s crazy when I worked at a grocery store, we put out our brand new Hotwheels and as soon as we open our store there’s like 3 guys grabbing half the stack!
With all due respect, your Walmart dump bins are far better than the ones I see here in Pennsylvania. I never see cars like yours. Yes, that includes the mainlines. My local Walmart has mostly fantasy cars and it absolutely sucks! I never see any premiums on the pegs either.
This is happening in New Zealand too. It's already at the point of grown ass adults fighting in the toy aisles. Tbh when I watch the case unboxing vids and sneak peak vids its more to see what I won't be able to find than getting excited for what is about to be released. The Optimus Prime fleet transport barely made the shelves here. But I can find plenty of them on local online auction sites. I would be surprised if that chevy dually team transport stays on the shelves. It is what it is lol It's our hobby, it's a lottle broken but its ours. Keep up the cool vids bud 😎👍
Another kiwi here agree. Had an interesting chat with a owner of 4 toy world stores he fired an employee of his who was buying rare hws and mb via his employee discount and found out he was selling these cars on a trademe account .apparently it must have been in his employee contract.. more retailers need to step up here and with the scalpers limit numbers of same model they can buy ..take photo so they cannot keep coming back ..or banned from the store because it's no good for business😂
You hit the nail on the head brother. Thanks for pushing out the message. We need to bring more awareness to this and keep pushing against these scalpers and pallet raiders.
Mixes feelings. One one hand you say all people are taking are the Super Treasure Hunts etc etc. Thus is good news. This means all the other cars are left for us. On the other hand, I'm sick of seeing Florida guy getting 6 cases in one freaking store and all he takes are the TH. So I do see your point. Thanks for sharing:)
The problem comes from Hot Wheels. They keep hiring people with a college degree that don’t have a clue how to create a product that creates a balance within all the different levels of the hobby.
The very first people Mattel hired on had degrees. Hell one of them was a rocket scientist in engineering. That was in 1967 before they started making hot wheels. Know your history
@@randywise8817they not only had degrees but they had a passion to improve the company. Something that this new wave of people lack. Can’t even remember when was the last Hot Wheels commercial
Crazy thing is those pegs at the beginning are all the ones missing at my stores. But this hobby has changed even for the short amount of time I’ve been in it, that’s only about 3 years. Can only imagine how the OG collectors feel about it now..
@@Zer0Fall3n I really hate the hobby now, to be honest. I'm 25 years in, and its lost its luster. I try and give things away, send people hot wheels they've been looking for at no cost. Things that may influence the next generation of collectors.
@@navygoat88 that’s big of you to do, it’s sad that it has become a money grab for some, the scalpers and resellers have zapped the passion and community aspect out of it. I think things will turn around eventually though, they can only price gouge so much until it’s not worth much.
At my Walmart, an entire set of Boulevard had JUST been stocked a few minutes prior. But you can bet that every last Civic was already gone. I guess too bad for the people collecting who just want one of them.
We have a big scalping problem in Australia, a good example is the Holden A9X Torana from the Bolavard series..they couldn't be found in stores but Ebay was full of them. They are trying to sell them between $30-$60...I'd rather not have one than help these scumbags.
Speak the truth Phil! They know what they doing. Some people just don't want to be held accountable for doing their dirt. And you make an excellent point about the cards themselves taking up too much space, that's exactly why my entire collection is loose too. Aside from admiring the details of course lol.
Mattel turned Hotwheels into an ugly thing with mail-ins. Forcing people to mail in $20 worth of product packages with receipt from specific stores like Dollar General , plus shipping cost to get one free car which is not free because you are paying shipping. Realize that one car will then be available to public in 3 to 6 months anyway. This is a scam. Reminds me of what Welches did in the 1970’s with label mail-ins. We had to drink 50 cans of welches grape juice to get a free toy motorcycle.
You are absolutely right. Me personally, I collect what I like. I may trade or sell locally but the most I charge is $1.25. Not trying to make a living doing this, only memories
There are more HW cars in that one store than in a dozen stores combined around where I live in the UK. I buy what i like....doesnt have to be a STH or TH. A nice casting in a decent livery works for me.
I just started collecting a couple of months ago. It started with trying to find a truck like mine in a Hotwheel. I saw a Dodge Little Red Wagon pickup and told a friend about it because his grandfather has a real one. I went back for it the next day, and it was gone. I went to about ten different stores looking for over the next couple weeks before I found him one! What I noticed was, there were plenty of Hotwheels leaving these stores daily. No Walmarts here have dump bins like on this video, they just don't last long enough. I also ran into scalpers, and collectors going through the cars often. Had no idea about "Treasure Hunt" cars, etc., when I started. I just want to get a few cars I like, not fight for the $$$ cars, but you won't see those cars on the racks. I'm already finding employees buying them and even saving them for people! On the other hand, I found people going to junkyards buying car parts and doing the same thing...marking them up in $ and selling them online. Greedy! Anyway, happy hunting!
Thank you so much for this TH-cam video for pointing out the major issues going on with hot wheels anymore. It’s horrible. It’s not fun anymore. It’s like anything that people learn that can make extra money. They ruined it like it happened with sneakers and now it’s happening with hot wheels who knows what’s next but you hit it right on the money. I appreciate you pointing out all these people that I want to point out too you you are a real collector you are the goat of hot wheels collecting hopefully someday or die out and it goes back to normal. I doubt it but still good to have hope.
MDC, you're fortunate to even have the mainlines left behind. In the Greater Toronto Area, you can't find a single non-fantasy mainline, the reselling is absolutely insane. They even clean out the Matchbox non-fantasy this past year. Hot Wheels has been brutal since late 2022 - you would go absolutely postal if you lived here. I've scaled back and have switched to other brands - Hot Wheels are total fad items right now and the absolute worst types have gravitated to it. You have these lame 'collectards' who don't genuinely like automobiles or die cast but just 'collecting' anything because it's trendy. You also have a crap ton of content creators, resellers/scalpers and hoarders.
As a Walmart worker it’s my right to go through and pick out the Treasure Hunt, Chase, Super etc. before I put them on the shelf. I figure it’s the benefit for working for Walmart. I have another friend of another Walmart that does the same thing. We just looked at it as a fun way to make extra money.
It’s so sad today. I’m 57 and loved cars since I’ve been a little girl, not much of a collector, here and there until My Grandson was born. He’s 13 now and we thoroughly enjoy the hobby! eBay has ruined the hobby but it’s okay, we still collect what we like.
Not sure how this got in my feed as I'm not a hotwheels guy. However I'll say that it's not just your hobby, it's almost all of them. Toys, cards, comics.
Me watching In California us… you’re lucky if you find something other than fantasy here last time I was at Walmart late hour before close 5 guys waiting for pallets to come so they can snatch even whole cases….
Most of the scalpers are the employees😢 and why invest in hotwheels for employees they should be investing in other stuff employees are just sad like that and I agree with your topic nice video ❤
Couldn't agree more, I been collecting since I was a Kid, now I have a son and want him to enjoy it the same way I did growing up. We definitely don't care about the TH, we get what we like, like it used to be as we are collectors. Enjoy the hunt everyone
About 10 years ago someone told me they had a deal with some employees, whenever the employee restocked the hotwheels they would lift up the bottom shelves and put the regular and super treasure hunts underneath it. He would go in lift it up and take them out. At least twice a year i find a stash by looking under the shelves. 🙂
When I was in my 20s in the mid-90s, I got back into hot wheels, and in doing so, I met an older guy who was into it. We used to see each other where we met at Walmart hot wheel section. He was the one who introduced me to the made for collection editions. The treasure hunt and real wheel were big then. One day, he and I were at Walmart, and we decided on the section, and he started looking in his and me in mine. As we were looking one of his kids came by asking for a unrelated toy and was standing in my section and spotted a treasure hunt lower than I had gotten to and grabbed it and handed it to his dad. Kinda pissed me off, but I didn't say anything. I just later befriended a Walmart toy department worker, and they started calling me when a new shipment was going out. I saw Ralph one more time after that when my son was born, and he brought me a hot wheels as a gift for being a new father. I continued to collect not just the valuable ones but any that I thought was cool. Later, those ended up in my youngest sons toy box. I held on the Ralph's car for many years, but my son finally got ahold of that one rest is history. I'm now in my early 50s and collecting again, but I'm more into the more detailed 1/64 than hot wheels or matchbox. I do have some hot wheels and matchbox but not near as many as Johnny lightning and green light. As a kid, it was hot wheels bc they roll better than another car, but when getting them to look at and display, give me the better detail over how good it rolls all day.
As a diecast collector, why would you be upset that a lot of good castings are hanging on the pegs?. Would you prefer them empty? And would you leave the Super there for when someone like you comes in? Then you could leave the excitement for them..right? Relax. calm down. I dont have the hirahata merc yet, but your just throwing it around roughing up the card. It goes both ways right?
Actually I have left many regular treasure hunts behind. I have given a super to someone in the store because I found 2. And I also charge cost price for extra cars I find for my friends that need them. Mainlines I don't even charge my friends. Also if my friends don't need a car I won't buy more then one.
I’m with you Phil. I only buy the cars I like. I don’t care about completing series. If I should be lucky enough to find a super I may buy it ( depending if I like it or not), also like to display my cars,so I open them all. They are fun to look at. I also don’t mind giving them away either.😊
It’s amazing how in the USA you have various bins full of cars while in my country only a few stores sell them and the ones that do have limited amounts and all the good cars get buy by resellers who sell them on chat groups for double price. Here in my country a STH goes to $50 to a $100. I’m new at this and the people I have met all tell me they know how to spot the resellers and they get anxious and also start buying various of the same HW just to screw resellers but then they become resellers themselves because they need to sell all the extras they bought. I only have one STH in 3 months of collecting and I would love to get another but one that I like I’m not buying something just because is a STH because I don’t plan on selling them I prefer trade. I’m not into completing series or buying variations also because I can’t spent to much on this hobby, I only buy what I like. This video came to me in the right moment as a beginner. Thanks a lot for this
I'm glad I got in when it was still fun and stuff wasn't crazy. These days you can barely find a Porsche mainline because all the scalpers scoop them. Brutal. This man speaks the truth.
Interesting video. My 10 year old has taken a huge liking to collecting. He opens most of his cars and races it on a custom track he built. Thanks to him I got back into collecting. I enjoy buying the cars that no one seems to want. As those he. He found his first treasure hunt this year in a dump bin and was jumping up and down. He then found another one and actually left it for another “kid”. He’s never found a super treasure hunt but if he ever does it’ll be the greatest day in his short collecting life :) … I keep telling him though the chances are slim as the scalpers have long scoured the bins. Cheers
I totally agree. The problem is the hobby has been taken over by hype and scalpers. The same things happened in the sports card industry a few years ago... and then the bottom fell out. Now no one care about sports cards anymore and the value of cards has plummeted. The same thing is gonna happen in diecast. If you only care about value, then sell everything now and get out before the bottom falls out. Fortunately I don't care about value. I collect what I want... and if I can't find it, then I don't add it to my collection. Personally, I can't wait for the bottom to fall out and scalpers leave the hobby... then we'll be able to find everything again.
@@anthonys4159 facts ,same with Pokemon cards and the such I see these guys running just to get the good boxes cuz they're limited
Im selling up my whole collection as im sick of having to pay insane prices to complete my sets
I live in a small town with a few stores
The scalpers who show up at opening time while i work for a living are making good money every week scalping
Ive been collecting for years these guys treat it as a business
So im out, so sick of where its going
@@sounddecision3350 never give up
Lol Sports cards still sell bud I'm seeing hockey and baseball cards selling places like Walmart.
That is true however it still remains it isn't as popular as had been from 70's to 90's about the time market begin showing signs of challenges, the market remains at a slow pace. Older materials some still command a bit of a price , but later items have considerably 😢💧 drop.@@stephintheatre6335
I don’t think the stores should let people open the cases, sorry, that’s how I feel.
Agreed
They don't but most is the employees themselves
Well you’re lucky to see what you did . Every licensed car gets taken
I disagree. There is something to be said for going out there early and doing the hunt. I would limit every one to one case.
I’m a believer that it’s okay as long as you ask first. Don’t assume that they’re okay with you doing it
You are 100% correct, this hobby is corrupted and there's nothing we can do about it.
If I can't find it in stores, I don't need it.
The hobbies corrupted? Its called free enterprise.
@@satoruo2753 buy it online or marketplace
@whenever-199iq Free enterprise is also choosing to not support scalpers (perceived $$) and buy at retail (actual value). I have been collecting for a while, and I've seen it all. Everything this man said is true. What he is talking about is the greed of some people (scalpers/resellers) who have no consideration for the actual collectors that want the cars for their personal collection. This greed is what causes these people who have access to the stock (store employees, managers, unemployed losers, etc.) to take all the desirable cars for the purpose of making a profit (corruption). So yeah, I would say it's corrupted.
Free greed , hobby is from the heart ,grown ass people prowling T-hunts. Not parents buying them for their kids and playing with them building memories. Adults are just killing it sadly. If I have to explain more ,best of luck !😂
Except I do get what I want. Prices always drop
More Cool mainlines for us authentic collectors 👍🏼
Exactly!!
Absolutely, best way of looking at it! 😎
Well no doubt about this for my collecting style, just the mainlines for me and open it is just joy for me even when I’m 19 years old.
yep but been collecting for 3 years and only have 2 ths
It is two to three years I cannot find a chase, super, green machine or any other sought after car. Do not buy at these exaggerated prices. Leave the scalpers high and dry,.. they will eventually disappear. It is the only remedy. The more you buy from them, the more of them will grow exponentially!
I'm new to collecting Hot Wheels, I started in 2019. I didn't even know there were "Treasure" type cars or what to look for? I see a cool car I like and I buy it and keep one in the box and open one. It's my collection to enjoy I don't care if I'm missing rare models it's supposed to be fun!
I remember back in 2023, I was looking for the Bugatti Bolide, and a dude just grabbed all of em in front of me. I asked if he at least would sell one to me, but he refused and gave me the "stare." In 2024, we managed to meet again for the A case, and I catched the STH. The dude was hella mad and was following me everywhere I went. I completely agree with your statement over people fighting Super Treasure Hunts
They want the premiums big time.
@danielhansen9412 i got all that i ever wanted in this hw scene. Now i just wait for mattel to cook something decent for 2025 and it isnt going well
At a show today and nearly every table had all the the same stuff....and the prices were bloody INSANE! Everyone thinks they're going to make a mint and retire. To me, it's a hobby. To others, it's a second job and they're trying to make rent! I saw a main line Toyota Land Cruiser for $15! And, the factory sealed version? $35!!! It's flippin' insane! I hear you Phil. I hear you.
yep, and the only way we stop it is by not spending their outrageous stupid prices, I go to my local meet and never spend more than eight dollars on a premium
I was going to visit a local seasonal toy collector event yesterday but I realised it's like visiting scalpers on eBay in real life. They know what they have. They price them ridiculously high and you can't even discuss your love of the hobby with these people. I think a car boot sale where it's mums and pops selling some old toys they had in the attic for years is so much more fun to hunt 🙌
So true.
@@TheWheelCollector if your price point is eight bucks, go in with that mindset, trust me, you’ll win, and if you don’t win, they’re gonna take that shit home with them anyways lol so no worries
at my local flea market, they’ve had the same shit for a year at these booths in terms of diecast, it’s their loss
Not good for the car collectors ya it sucks
It’s like trading cards. Good stuff gone before it hits the shelves then immediately resold at scalper prices.
One word, Greed my friend. Looking all the time with my 11 year old son and these guys have ruined the hobby.
😅😢
Ruined the hobby? Enjoy the time with your son and the cars you can find. Sounds like you're bitter because you can't do what others are doing.
@AutismusPrime69 that sir is the ball game. As soon as something changes and they dint just fall into their lap a d actually put effect into something. The cry babies ome outta of the wood work with evry excuses on how and why the hobby is dead or has a problem or they call it corrupt.. lmao. Either grow and change with the hobby or don't. Buy crying all the time is just sad.
Holy Shit TH-cam actually recommended a worthwhile channel! First time I heard fuck I subscribed 😂
Thank you
@@mtldiecastcafe Same here TH-cam Recommended your channel to me... I Can't agree with you more as myself I have been collecting hot wheels for twenty years now and can't believe what it's become... I Subbed up and hope to see more... keep up the awesome work Brother 😃👍
Digging the rant, I only pick up what I like.
I no longer care about completing a set.
I like a bit of everything, mostly American muscle, and vintage trucks.
If everybody would stop buying on the web, this would end .stop buying from the scalpers
I disagree. Some cars from past years are no longer avaliable in stores. Right now I'm collecting all the treasure hunts from 2011 to 2019 and I am happy to say I have found a lot of those with online sellers.
@@marcoantoniomarquezperez2652 it's not the same as finding one in the wild. If you bought online from anyone except Mattel, imo you haven't really collected it
Cant agree more. Got into this hobby about a year ago because of my 4yr son.
Happened to stopped by at one walmart the other day for grocery and saw couple of guys standing there waiting for hot wheel restock.
I asked them how often they come here hunting, dude said everyday...
I get any hotwheel thats a real vehicle or has a certain special marking on the box (such as earth day, birthday, etc), and I wanted to resell them until I saw this and another person's video explaining how detrimental scalping was, and how hobbyists eventually become scalpers. I realized I was taking the same exact path, and now I wish to keep all my hotwheels. Sure ill sell some if times get tough, but I'll always keep some around.
Hello everyone, my name is Igor, I am from Ukraine, and mainly you are discussing how things are in the USA. In Europe, everything that seems unrealistically expensive to you, robbery and profiteering from collectors, here we are not considered people at all. Here, if you want a model from the RLC line, then you have to pay at least 110-120 dollars for the simplest one. If you find at least one super treasure in your life, it’s like a glitch in the matrix. If a person has at least one super treasure in his collection, then you will be applauded. There are no shops like yours, no towns, no markets... nothing. Regular models start at $3. And any model with the words “Fast and Furious” is considered a national treasure and is worth as much as a share of a US federal bank. Thank you very much for such an honest video! ❤.
I'm from poland and I agree with you it's impossible to find any premium etc bc there is no shops that do that and also mainlanes are here around 2.5$.
I’m from Montreal and it’s ridiculous here, i’m 28, I met an older gentleman at a dollarama in pointe Claire. Very nice Guy, he told me earlier in the week a guy around my age was near but not in front of the pegs on his phone and when he went in to check the younger guy started saying “have you ever heard of personal space” then elbowed him in the face to move him out of the way …
Also told me some older guy once snatched a hot wheels out of his 6 year old son’s hands at a Walmart while they were hunting together
I’ve been collecting a while now and have met some really cool people along the way but also some truly sad losers
I, too, am a collector & share your frustration in these scalpers who are ruining our hobby!
Here In England, people have caught on to this hobby & and buying up the popular modles only to sell on e bay for 4 times as much & with p&p costing more than the die cast it self.
Hot wheels really should do something about the super scalpers. Most of them work at the store.
I thought I would add that all real collectors have something to rant about. In my area even the mainline cool casting are swiped super quick. Your super lucky to find any premium sets. And I refuse to pay ridiculous prices on ebay. We have a hotwheels show every two months in my area, its my only chance at anything. Most cars are a dollar or two , sometimes even cheaper than they were in the store.
I am a genuine Hotwheels JDM enjoyer, so I get a lot of those just because I like them. Never hogged duped Hotwheels so that other can't get them. Hopefully this hobby will start to get better
New listener...refreshing hearing what you had to say. I have met a couple of other collectors as I'm new to this myself, returning after 20 yrs. They were very pleasant and helpful. Had a chance to help out a kid there too. Let's take back the hobby and make it fun!
Send me the cyclone lol I can’t find one here cali
@joeygamez8225 if I run across one, I'll let you know
Got a chance this morning to pay it forward. Gave another collector the Nissan Godzilla car (white, not grey) that he didn't have while hunting
@@BigGuyLC I do the same thing. I get two of each car I want and if another collector shows up I ask them if they need anything.
*Honestly I just gave up on the hobby and switched to collecting DBZ figures, it was fun initially when any vehicle was fun to own and the community was vibrant and diverse however it’s ridiculous to not be able to find a single vehicle because some doofus will buy the whole shelf and back stock to sell at an overpriced range on marketplace*
For me, ive shifted towards new premium brands such as MiniGT that you can get online without the hassle of scalpers and chases. A little more expensive but completely worth it. Especially with all the cool series theyre doing. Theyre releasing a james bond collection and an ayrton senna collection which is nuts.
Right. Or you can go the less expensive route like JL/AW, M2 etc.
RLC is now WAY too expensive for what you get and for the production numbers. Production count is a huge factor in price. Mattel now ignores that. Minigt are just as detailed or more. They make less than an RLC and charge 17-$20. Even for their REALLY limited stuff.
Mattel is hosing collectors so bad.. 😂
@@Anth230and they wont sell the Elite64 in Europe, you only can order them from Hot Wheels itself and the shipping double the price of it, around 40€, i get a MiniGT for 12€. Greetings from Germany 😂
Stopped collecting Matchbox, Majorette an Hot Wheels too, there's only one Shop, where i can buy them in my little town, sadly they mostly get old cases and only a small amount, the next bigger City is 20 Miles away and If you go there, the best ones allways gone. Switched to Premium 1/64 scale (MiniGT, Para64, Inno64, Schuco Edition64, Tarmac Works, Auto World, Greenlight, BM Creation etc) and buy them online.
Mini gt gets my business too
Mini GT also makes chases but luckily only a couple of chase cars appeal to me and aren't too expensive.
There were 5 of us strangers going through a fresh dump bin, it was the large metal cage style so there was room. Everyone was polite and didn’t get nasty when someone pulled a super. Just congratulated them and kept digging. Another perspective is the state of the economy. I hit a fresh dump bin the other day, I had my cart full of cool stuff but then had to keep putting cars back and in the end it still came to $40, other people there were in the same boat, talking about trying not to spend too much. It adds up
I'm 18 and have been collecting hot wheels for almost 5 years its just sad to see so many people my age just in it for the money like I just barley found my first two supers, I gave one to my car friend for a really cheap price cuz he really wanted it and offered to pay so I gave him it, next day he sold it for 55$ I regret giving it to him. I get hot wheels because I like them put them on my wall and open some and take photos of them its a hobby and I enjoy it not use them as stocks
Your friend is a thug
Yes my brother, I'm just like you. I'm a collector and i open just about everything. I probably have about 10 to 15 thousand open car's. I live in Huntington Beach California. There's about 5 scalpers in my area. I've had one scalper snacth a premium car right out of my hand and said that he had been waiting to get to the case that the target employee brought out. Those scalpers go right to "Frank n Son's" and sell them. Especially the bald dude named Scott that works at Albertsons. I don't buy anything online or from Frank n Son's. I only buy what I hunt for on foot not the computer. Therefore, I have lots of gaps in my collection. I don't watch many peg hunting videos because I would rather see them open. I really enjoy your channel and collection. I never sell anything. Thank you very much. Have a great week.
Thank you for your support
I have to agree with you as well. I buy for myself , don't buy any on the computer I open everyone and don't sell any at all. But I get most if not all my information from this channel. Cause I trust him. I study human behavior for a living and found out this channel to be positive and true and I respect that.
Love Phil and his channel and highly respect the personal time he puts into his channel.
Keep up the good work my friend.
Always love hearing your thoughts, Phil. Thanks for sharing this. The true collectors will always stick around and hopefully the "chasers", scalpers, and resellers will move onto the next thing within a couple years.
Totally agree Sir. I unsubscribed to Shawn Niclaus for the same reason cause he's a serial scalper and he's influencing young collectors to hunt Hot Wheels the wrong way.
The satisfaction of finding your fav casting on the pegs is way better than begging for fresh boxes every week.I also blame the store employees.They should stop allowing these scalpers open up fresh boxes.
Is that the guy whole basically fucked over the older gentleman on his massive collection??
It's a big reason I stopped watching Hot wheels hunting videos. They all are about getting a STH. I don't know their names, but there's a couple guys who seem to be opening tons of boxes in every video.
I was at Target today with my girlfriend and decided to walk over to the hot wheels area to take a look. I get there and there’s this older guy rummaging through the pegs grabbing stuff, he looks over at me with this weird territorial look on his face as if he was about to panic that someone else might get something. I saw that sad sight and just turned around and walked away.
Meanwhile I’m over here with three targets that haven’t restocked in 2 months.
Wow, that's crazy!! Totally agree!! I think the best we can do against that is not buying those THs or STHs until they realize how stupid that hoarding is. It's a sacrifice we have to do, but I don't see another solution. Greetings from Venezuela!
Sad to see new generations are no longer a genuine Hotwheels collector but a scalper/reseller.
Back in those days, we can make friends and helping fellow collectors exchange supers or even normal carded cars to complete the collections.
Now we see, all are scalpers to fetch a profits. No longer a genuine collector to share this hobby with.
Exactly
Yeah Kmart used to have organized Hot Wheels meet ups on Saturday mornings so people can hang out and talk shop about hot wheels.
I'm a reseller, and I could easily make a ton of money with the stuff that they left in that dump bin. I collected Hot wheels for years myself, but now it just doesnt make sense financially anymore....its a waste of time, gas, and money. I buy people's collections now, when they quit.
That's fine buying collections then selling. Older cars that are hard to find is the way to make a profit. Not off new cars just coming out.
I'm at that point. I have too much. My 10'x20' storage unit is up to $332.a month. I need to liquidate soon.
@@BruceHarris-r7ryeah the rates for storage is the same as renting out a studio apartment!
@@RustyX2010 exactly, the price was $167. A month Three years ago.
That tooned skyline is what I'm looking for!
They're out there. Found a couple in the wild...keep trying my friend. Still no luck? I will look to see if there is more around...hit me up.
As a longtime hot wheels collector,there's Nothing like finding a STH in the "wild ". I was fortunate enough to have found 6 over the past 4 years just hanging on a peg hook in my local ShopRite! Scalpers ruin everything they touch. Although I CAN tell when a collector has been through a store,they LEAVE the other hard to find cars right out in the open FOR THE NEXT COLLECTOR!😊
I can’t believe they left the cyclones, Silverados and the Ford trucks such a great castings 😱😱😱 what a shame
@@RAZAPOKE those are crap, only ones worth getting are the premiums
You have to blame Mattel for creating this problem.
How true ,..Other diecast companies have no problems with these issues.
Why blame Mattel? If they stop making treasure hunts, supers and chase cars. Would you still buy?
@@ernietrott3529Any true collector would still collect... The thing is people would still go after the more desirable cars regardless so... Nothing will change. In a sense they'll choose the most desirable car and call it the "chase". Kind of like that green Porsche 914 in that Walmart set.
@@ernietrott3529 yes I would. I have kids. I also like particular makes and models.
Also, you need to learn proper punctuation when texting.
You should have typed: If they stop making treasure hunts, supers and chase cars, would you still buy?
@@pork-Expressfacts!
I bet there's going to be fist fights for the upcoming pink Porsche from car culture when it gets released to the stores.
I've actually seen fist fights at toy shows ( sad )...
Good thoughts on the state of the hobby. I’m usually at the store when they open only because I’m out that way for something else and if I see the local scalpers car in the lot I won’t even bother going in. Man you showed some killer cars, especially those Shelby Collectibles.
Let's not get crazy here, this has been happening since 2019....we've all have had to deal with it. I've been "collecting" since '93 with my dad. I've never seen it as bad as it is now. (Started in 2019) I go to my friends and trade between them. The Hot Wheel culture is dead, the spirit of it being lost on how many cases you can open, and how cool you are with Mattel. Happy hunting everyone. See you guys at the convention in a few weeks for my LA peeps.
Yes exactly
Dude - All those Chase & Supers were gobbled up by the Wal-Fart employees before they were even displayed.
It's cool that your Wal-Fart has such an awesome assemblage of stuff, mine stinks.
Agree, when people realized how much they can make on ebay it went to shite.
In a way, I’m glad that Hot Wheels RLC doesn’t number the cars anymore and makes as many as they do. At least now, a real collector has a chance to get a car they want. Instead of scalpers who DO NOT collect buy them up with their bots and sell them. I am an attendee at the Hot Wheels conventions and witness it first hand.
At the finale, they get the cars and you see them on ebay while you’re still there. Hey, give it a few years and the hype will go away like disco did. 😜
Hot Wheels hype will never go away. I agree with you about making a lot for everyone. Just wish the quality was a little better.
some people dont collect, they just buy to flip them, i see alot of crazy prices online. its crazy...i dont even hunt for treasure hunts..
eBay has ruined every hobby
Hi, yes it has to some degree but it's open doors to finding things that you could never find in a life time. Thanks to ebay I have been able to find a decent pink 442 redline, 2 roadkings boneshaker rumbler and countless other gems. Thank you Ebay.😊
@mikejanczyk monthly meets are the best for that. No shipping fees
My 2 closest stores rarely stock, and if I don't grab the good cars (usually 1/3rd to 1/2th the case) they are gone very shortly after... but I've seen in a lot of peg hunting videos the mainlines that are left on the pegs baffle me. Honestly many normal treasure hunts are really bad and not even rare, and they'll take those but not the way nicer castings like even skylines or that beautiful BMW wagon or the teal audis and such. This year's cases are absurdly good, especially the later letters, M & P might be my favorites, they're beyond stacked to the point where I'm considering buying my first full case. With all these incredible cars I'm not sure why people buy like they can only buy a couple hot wheels a month so the only thing they can justify is chases... meanwhile with myself, as long as it's a car I don't have that looks pretty cool, across a wide variety of types, I'd gobble those up for a buck a piece basically with no limit.
Here in Florida I can't even find the syclone it's the hardest mainline to find around here for me
Can’t find in South Carolina either
Found one in Jax traveling lol.
Around here where I live it is just not treasure hunts or JDM cars that get gobbled up around here when my local Target's and local Walmarts put out any new hot wheels all the new hot wheels get gobbled up real fast they don't last at all on the pegs at my Target's and at my Walmarts around here. I have had better luck of finding new hot wheels and treasure hunts lately at my local grocery stores, dollar stores, drug stores, and discount stores.👍
God Bless you buddy I really feel everything you are saying (R.I.P HOT WHEELS) That's why I left hot wheels and jumped into Mini GT
I’m 19 now and haven’t bought Hotwheels from the store in a long time due to this. But As a little kid years ago this was a hobby I shared with my dad and we always tried to find just 1 treasure hunt if possible, and then we’d each get a car or two that we both really liked. Anyhow it didn’t last very long before we’d make it to the Hotwheels aisle and there were grown men rushing out the aisle with CARTS FULL of Hotwheels and this one guy had like 10 of the same supers. My dad had even offered to pay him just to get one and he refused. The hobby quickly felt very closed off and overly competitive when I felt it was supposed to just be a fun collecting deal. Anymore when I’m at the store I’ll stop by the Hotwheels but I never see any good cars. The pegs are always ransacked. My collecting still thrives on though with collecting the classic Redlines, as I thoroughly enjoy adding onto my dad’s childhood collection and restoring more of them as I collect at least. 👍 But yeah, it’s unfortunate what the hobby has come to.
Found the Lambo boulevard also. Just the one I wanted, don't care about not getting the skylines.
The Lambo also came out in white (black chase) in the spectacular series. GORGEOUS (don't have the black one).
Agree. In the UK, the absolute rip off merchants, tend to be on eBay. I now use a small independent and wont ever look back.
you are correct in poland eleclerec supermarket i found only one th and there were left behind such a cool cars also i found other hotwheels collector. Also collectors now gonna get every super treasure hunt even though its the same as other they don't care about cars or design they care about money.
As soon as toys started to be made for adults all the toy hobbies went downhill. Toys were meant for kids, and adults only collected for nostalgia, now it's a business of reselling. We live in sad times.
It’s crazy when I worked at a grocery store, we put out our brand new Hotwheels and as soon as we open our store there’s like 3 guys grabbing half the stack!
With all due respect, your Walmart dump bins are far better than the ones I see here in Pennsylvania. I never see cars like yours. Yes, that includes the mainlines. My local Walmart has mostly fantasy cars and it absolutely sucks! I never see any premiums on the pegs either.
I never said otherwise, I just think it is sad people don't appreciate the other cool castings mattel does unless it is a chase.
This is my mantra. 'Diecast, not Diamonds'
I feel your pain my friend. I just take what I can get.
This is happening in New Zealand too. It's already at the point of grown ass adults fighting in the toy aisles. Tbh when I watch the case unboxing vids and sneak peak vids its more to see what I won't be able to find than getting excited for what is about to be released. The Optimus Prime fleet transport barely made the shelves here. But I can find plenty of them on local online auction sites. I would be surprised if that chevy dually team transport stays on the shelves. It is what it is lol It's our hobby, it's a lottle broken but its ours. Keep up the cool vids bud
😎👍
Another kiwi here agree. Had an interesting chat with a owner of 4 toy world stores he fired an employee of his who was buying rare hws and mb via his employee discount and found out he was selling these cars on a trademe account .apparently it must have been in his employee contract.. more retailers need to step up here and with the scalpers limit numbers of same model they can buy ..take photo so they cannot keep coming back ..or banned from the store because it's no good for business😂
Yeah cause they get tipped off by friends and family that work at these retail stores.
You hit the nail on the head brother. Thanks for pushing out the message. We need to bring more awareness to this and keep pushing against these scalpers and pallet raiders.
Mixes feelings. One one hand you say all people are taking are the Super Treasure Hunts etc etc. Thus is good news. This means all the other cars are left for us. On the other hand, I'm sick of seeing Florida guy getting 6 cases in one freaking store and all he takes are the TH. So I do see your point. Thanks for sharing:)
The problem comes from Hot Wheels. They keep hiring people with a college degree that don’t have a clue how to create a product that creates a balance within all the different levels of the hobby.
No scarcity. Over saturated over produced.
The very first people Mattel hired on had degrees. Hell one of them was a rocket scientist in engineering. That was in 1967 before they started making hot wheels. Know your history
@@randywise8817they not only had degrees but they had a passion to improve the company. Something that this new wave of people lack. Can’t even remember when was the last Hot Wheels commercial
Crazy thing is those pegs at the beginning are all the ones missing at my stores. But this hobby has changed even for the short amount of time I’ve been in it, that’s only about 3 years. Can only imagine how the OG collectors feel about it now..
@@Zer0Fall3n I really hate the hobby now, to be honest. I'm 25 years in, and its lost its luster. I try and give things away, send people hot wheels they've been looking for at no cost. Things that may influence the next generation of collectors.
@@navygoat88 that’s big of you to do, it’s sad that it has become a money grab for some, the scalpers and resellers have zapped the passion and community aspect out of it. I think things will turn around eventually though, they can only price gouge so much until it’s not worth much.
I like matchbox now.the cars they release are so much fun and random.the details are great.
This is why I Never buy th or sth from a reseller. If nobody buys from then they will stop scalping
At my Walmart, an entire set of Boulevard had JUST been stocked a few minutes prior. But you can bet that every last Civic was already gone.
I guess too bad for the people collecting who just want one of them.
Preach on brother. Absolute truth.
just started watching- im living vicariously through your collection. So nice!
We have a big scalping problem in Australia, a good example is the Holden A9X Torana from the Bolavard series..they couldn't be found in stores but Ebay was full of them. They are trying to sell them between $30-$60...I'd rather not have one than help these scumbags.
In Nz the dual series of Holdens never saw them on the pegs bit current auction price I's 89 bucks everyone wants the Brock Malboro Torana😂
Speak the truth Phil! They know what they doing. Some people just don't want to be held accountable for doing their dirt.
And you make an excellent point about the cards themselves taking up too much space, that's exactly why my entire collection is loose too. Aside from admiring the details of course lol.
Mattel turned Hotwheels into an ugly thing with mail-ins. Forcing people to mail in $20 worth of product packages with receipt from specific stores like Dollar General , plus shipping cost to get one free car which is not free because you are paying shipping. Realize that one car will then be available to public in 3 to 6 months anyway. This is a scam. Reminds me of what Welches did in the 1970’s with label mail-ins. We had to drink 50 cans of welches grape juice to get a free toy motorcycle.
I don’t hunt anymore because there is nothing to hunt for.
You are absolutely right. Me personally, I collect what I like. I may trade or sell locally but the most I charge is $1.25. Not trying to make a living doing this, only memories
There are more HW cars in that one store than in a dozen stores combined around where I live in the UK.
I buy what i like....doesnt have to be a STH or TH. A nice casting in a decent livery works for me.
I just started collecting a couple of months ago. It started with trying to find a truck like mine in a Hotwheel. I saw a Dodge Little Red Wagon pickup and told a friend about it because his grandfather has a real one. I went back for it the next day, and it was gone. I went to about ten different stores looking for over the next couple weeks before I found him one! What I noticed was, there were plenty of Hotwheels leaving these stores daily. No Walmarts here have dump bins like on this video, they just don't last long enough. I also ran into scalpers, and collectors going through the cars often. Had no idea about "Treasure Hunt" cars, etc., when I started. I just want to get a few cars I like, not fight for the $$$ cars, but you won't see those cars on the racks. I'm already finding employees buying them and even saving them for people! On the other hand, I found people going to junkyards buying car parts and doing the same thing...marking them up in $ and selling them online. Greedy! Anyway, happy hunting!
Thank you so much for this TH-cam video for pointing out the major issues going on with hot wheels anymore. It’s horrible. It’s not fun anymore. It’s like anything that people learn that can make extra money. They ruined it like it happened with sneakers and now it’s happening with hot wheels who knows what’s next but you hit it right on the money. I appreciate you pointing out all these people that I want to point out too you you are a real collector you are the goat of hot wheels collecting hopefully someday or die out and it goes back to normal. I doubt it but still good to have hope.
I'm so glad I stepped out of the HW hype and hobby stuffs. Currently focusing on Chinese made models like Focal Horizon, Tarmac Works, MiniGT and etc.
MDC, you're fortunate to even have the mainlines left behind. In the Greater Toronto Area, you can't find a single non-fantasy mainline, the reselling is absolutely insane. They even clean out the Matchbox non-fantasy this past year. Hot Wheels has been brutal since late 2022 - you would go absolutely postal if you lived here.
I've scaled back and have switched to other brands - Hot Wheels are total fad items right now and the absolute worst types have gravitated to it. You have these lame 'collectards' who don't genuinely like automobiles or die cast but just 'collecting' anything because it's trendy. You also have a crap ton of content creators, resellers/scalpers and hoarders.
As a Walmart worker it’s my right to go through and pick out the Treasure Hunt, Chase, Super etc. before I put them on the shelf. I figure it’s the benefit for working for Walmart. I have another friend of another Walmart that does the same thing. We just looked at it as a fun way to make extra money.
I think your wrong, walmart policy is customers first.
Amen sir! 👍😎 Couldn’t have said it better myself!!
It’s so sad today. I’m 57 and loved cars since I’ve been a little girl, not much of a collector, here and there until My Grandson was born. He’s 13 now and we thoroughly enjoy the hobby! eBay has ruined the hobby but it’s okay, we still collect what we like.
I'm an old guy, so I really like the Greased lightening ride😊
Not sure how this got in my feed as I'm not a hotwheels guy. However I'll say that it's not just your hobby, it's almost all of them. Toys, cards, comics.
Great video, thanks for talking about these issues we have to deal with.
i LOVE the tooned series, i’ve been trying to get literally every single one from the years
Me watching In California us… you’re lucky if you find something other than fantasy here last time I was at Walmart late hour before close 5 guys waiting for pallets to come so they can snatch even whole cases….
Most of the scalpers are the employees😢 and why invest in hotwheels for employees they should be investing in other stuff employees are just sad like that and I agree with your topic nice video ❤
I literally have every car showed in those dumpbins
Couldn't agree more, I been collecting since I was a Kid, now I have a son and want him to enjoy it the same way I did growing up. We definitely don't care about the TH, we get what we like, like it used to be as we are collectors. Enjoy the hunt everyone
That Aston Martin is so sweet 😱
Used to say the same thing about baseball cards. That’s why you collect what you like and do it for the love of collecting.
About 10 years ago someone told me they had a deal with some employees, whenever the employee restocked the hotwheels they would lift up the bottom shelves and put the regular and super treasure hunts underneath it. He would go in lift it up and take them out. At least twice a year i find a stash by looking under the shelves. 🙂
i just hit a sick bottom shelf stash at target the other day!!! i alwasy check the entire toy section
When I was in my 20s in the mid-90s, I got back into hot wheels, and in doing so, I met an older guy who was into it. We used to see each other where we met at Walmart hot wheel section. He was the one who introduced me to the made for collection editions. The treasure hunt and real wheel were big then. One day, he and I were at Walmart, and we decided on the section, and he started looking in his and me in mine. As we were looking one of his kids came by asking for a unrelated toy and was standing in my section and spotted a treasure hunt lower than I had gotten to and grabbed it and handed it to his dad. Kinda pissed me off, but I didn't say anything. I just later befriended a Walmart toy department worker, and they started calling me when a new shipment was going out. I saw Ralph one more time after that when my son was born, and he brought me a hot wheels as a gift for being a new father. I continued to collect not just the valuable ones but any that I thought was cool. Later, those ended up in my youngest sons toy box. I held on the Ralph's car for many years, but my son finally got ahold of that one rest is history. I'm now in my early 50s and collecting again, but I'm more into the more detailed 1/64 than hot wheels or matchbox. I do have some hot wheels and matchbox but not near as many as Johnny lightning and green light. As a kid, it was hot wheels bc they roll better than another car, but when getting them to look at and display, give me the better detail over how good it rolls all day.
Another Deadly Sin being demonstrated ‘Greed’
The world is now like school on a Sunday…….. NO CLASS. Just found your channel. Thank you for sharing your collection. You stay classy sir!
As a diecast collector, why would you be upset that a lot of good castings are hanging on the pegs?. Would you prefer them empty? And would you leave the Super there for when someone like you comes in? Then you could leave the excitement for them..right? Relax. calm down. I dont have the hirahata merc yet, but your just throwing it around roughing up the card. It goes both ways right?
Actually I have left many regular treasure hunts behind. I have given a super to someone in the store because I found 2. And I also charge cost price for extra cars I find for my friends that need them. Mainlines I don't even charge my friends. Also if my friends don't need a car I won't buy more then one.
I don't have that Merc too. And would buy it if it was on the pegs.
I’m with you Phil. I only buy the cars I like. I don’t care about completing series. If I should be lucky enough to find a super I may buy it ( depending if I like it or not), also like to display my cars,so I open them all. They are fun to look at. I also don’t mind giving them away either.😊
It’s amazing how in the USA you have various bins full of cars while in my country only a few stores sell them and the ones that do have limited amounts and all the good cars get buy by resellers who sell them on chat groups for double price. Here in my country a STH goes to $50 to a $100. I’m new at this and the people I have met all tell me they know how to spot the resellers and they get anxious and also start buying various of the same HW just to screw resellers but then they become resellers themselves because they need to sell all the extras they bought. I only have one STH in 3 months of collecting and I would love to get another but one that I like I’m not buying something just because is a STH because I don’t plan on selling them I prefer trade. I’m not into completing series or buying variations also because I can’t spent to much on this hobby, I only buy what I like. This video came to me in the right moment as a beginner. Thanks a lot for this
I'm glad I got in when it was still fun and stuff wasn't crazy. These days you can barely find a Porsche mainline because all the scalpers scoop them. Brutal. This man speaks the truth.
Interesting video. My 10 year old has taken a huge liking to collecting. He opens most of his cars and races it on a custom track he built. Thanks to him I got back into collecting. I enjoy buying the cars that no one seems to want. As those he. He found his first treasure hunt this year in a dump bin and was jumping up and down. He then found another one and actually left it for another “kid”. He’s never found a super treasure hunt but if he ever does it’ll be the greatest day in his short collecting life :) … I keep telling him though the chances are slim as the scalpers have long scoured the bins. Cheers