Bill Lehecka
Super Freak
Figured I've posted enough to finally introduce myself. My name is Bill, and I live in upstate New York in a little town named Scotia. I have been collecting statues, maquettes, and assorted collectibles for 12 years.
It started when I realized I outgrew action figures and needed one thing more adult. My first statues were from the old Warner Brothers Studio Store. I picked up a Batman and a Batman Beyond. They were awesome pieces, but sadly have since perished in an ill-advised move to another home.
As the years passed, my itch became bigger, and the price tags went up. I loved the WBSS Maquettes. I pined for the original Batman Maquette, even though it had a $600 price tag at the time. I did eventually get one 8 years later... For a 1/3 of the price because it was without a COA and a box. But it was never about reselling... it was always about the chase.
I'd consider my collection to fall between two eras: The WBSS Era and the Sideshow era. In the WBSS era, I picked up a bunch of cool pieces like:
Batgirl on the batsignal
Harley Quinn on a deck of cards
Simon Bisley's Batman on the clock tower
William Paquet's Joker
The Joker Maquette (signed by Mark Hamill)
Harley Quinn Maquette (signed by Arleen
Robin Maquette
The 2nd Batman Maquette (signed by Kevin Conroy)
Mini versions of Randy Bowen's Batman and the Dark Knight Returns
But reality set in when I was laid off in 2005. With no income in sight, I needed to part with most of my collection, save for the Paquet & Maquette Jokers and The Harley Maquette.
But I got back on my feet in 2006, and I vowed to reclaim the pieces I sold. Plus my collection grew not only in number, but in price tag. Examples are:
The original Batman Maquette (my personal grail piece)
Robin Maquette (reclaimed)
The Bat Family group of statues (1 -3)
Randy Bowen Spidey triple pack of busts
Randy Bowen Black Symbiote Spider-Man
DC Direct Dark Knight Joker
Batman B&W Arkham Asylum
Batman Maquette from Public Enemies
And then there's Sideshow...
My first Sideshow piece was the Spider-Man 3 Diorama. Its price was steep; I almost didn't get it because I screwed up the order... But even though it was a cruddy movie, the piece was amazing. I didn't remember them until I went to Comic Con in 2011, and I saw their Joker Premium Format Figure...
I knew I was in trouble.
Joker became my second pre-order... It took a year until my third and fourth (Batman and Poison Ivy PFFs). In between I won from Sideshow a TMNT Mouser International Comiquette. I just preordered DC Collectibles Batman vs Bane Icon statue, but believe me when I say when it comes to collection items, it's only Sideshow from now on.
I'd show pics of my collection, but it's late, and my camera is so far away. Maybe this weekend.
That's my story. Pleasure to meet you all.
PS: I know... tl;dr.
It started when I realized I outgrew action figures and needed one thing more adult. My first statues were from the old Warner Brothers Studio Store. I picked up a Batman and a Batman Beyond. They were awesome pieces, but sadly have since perished in an ill-advised move to another home.
As the years passed, my itch became bigger, and the price tags went up. I loved the WBSS Maquettes. I pined for the original Batman Maquette, even though it had a $600 price tag at the time. I did eventually get one 8 years later... For a 1/3 of the price because it was without a COA and a box. But it was never about reselling... it was always about the chase.
I'd consider my collection to fall between two eras: The WBSS Era and the Sideshow era. In the WBSS era, I picked up a bunch of cool pieces like:
Batgirl on the batsignal
Harley Quinn on a deck of cards
Simon Bisley's Batman on the clock tower
William Paquet's Joker
The Joker Maquette (signed by Mark Hamill)
Harley Quinn Maquette (signed by Arleen
Robin Maquette
The 2nd Batman Maquette (signed by Kevin Conroy)
Mini versions of Randy Bowen's Batman and the Dark Knight Returns
But reality set in when I was laid off in 2005. With no income in sight, I needed to part with most of my collection, save for the Paquet & Maquette Jokers and The Harley Maquette.
But I got back on my feet in 2006, and I vowed to reclaim the pieces I sold. Plus my collection grew not only in number, but in price tag. Examples are:
The original Batman Maquette (my personal grail piece)
Robin Maquette (reclaimed)
The Bat Family group of statues (1 -3)
Randy Bowen Spidey triple pack of busts
Randy Bowen Black Symbiote Spider-Man
DC Direct Dark Knight Joker
Batman B&W Arkham Asylum
Batman Maquette from Public Enemies
And then there's Sideshow...
My first Sideshow piece was the Spider-Man 3 Diorama. Its price was steep; I almost didn't get it because I screwed up the order... But even though it was a cruddy movie, the piece was amazing. I didn't remember them until I went to Comic Con in 2011, and I saw their Joker Premium Format Figure...
I knew I was in trouble.
Joker became my second pre-order... It took a year until my third and fourth (Batman and Poison Ivy PFFs). In between I won from Sideshow a TMNT Mouser International Comiquette. I just preordered DC Collectibles Batman vs Bane Icon statue, but believe me when I say when it comes to collection items, it's only Sideshow from now on.
I'd show pics of my collection, but it's late, and my camera is so far away. Maybe this weekend.
That's my story. Pleasure to meet you all.
PS: I know... tl;dr.
