Many people have asked me if the Collector Club is worth joining. This year was the first year I joined and I would say that yes, it is worth the $25. You get access to "insider information" which I love, like what the grab bags contain before you buy them and when limited editions are going to be released. You also get access to two Collector Club special runs a year. Unlike the Premier Club, it is your choice whether or not you want to buy them but they're not free with the membership and they typically cost around $60-$70 per model plus shipping. Collector Club releases grab bags that are much better than the ones that are released for holidays, as well as an annual Just About Horses magazine, plus numerous lottery drawings on quite pricey horses usually around $150-$175 plus shipping. The holidays are my favorite time to be a Collector Club member. Often around Black Friday or Cyber Monday they will have horses available that typically are only available to either Vintage or Premier Club members. The price is a bit higher than what they were offered through those clubs but the benefit is that you can buy it now instead of waiting until you see if your name was one of the lucky ones drawn like with the lottery specials. There is also a special released on Christmas day. Another benefit is that on new releases on web specials you also get a chance to purchase some models before the general public. The time when these models are released during the year varies so that is one of the surprises of being a Collector Club member. The other is that you have no idea what the next model is going to look like! Collector Club members also get access to exclusive test run pieces. Here are a few recent examples of things available only to Collector Club members: Here is the most recent test run model. She is a beautiful bay blanket appaloosa Clydesdale mare. In order to get her, you had to enter the drawing. Your chances of actually winning her are very slim since Breyer had only produced ONE of her, and even if you were the lucky one chosen you would have to be willing to shovel out $850 to buy her. Still... to those who are looking for a OOAK horse directly from Breyer that nobody else has it would be a good deal, especially if you planned to sell her on the second hand market. Imagine what serious collectors would be willing to pay for her! Personally I would keep her though. She would be a priceless piece I would cherish. If I could afford her. The winter special run for Collector Club members only is Avalanche. If you're a member of the Collector Club and one of the 350 people selected to win this model, for $165 you could own this silver filigree mare on the popular Bobby Jo mold! I'm not fond of silver filigree coloring so I didn't enter but one of the perks about being a Collector Club member is that you can enter these lottery drawings. This handsome fellow named Coeur de Lion was available only to Collector Club members from the beginning of November until the middle of November when he was released to the public. He is a classic sized model of the traditional "Lionheart" who was produced as a flagship model in 2012. If you were not able to get Lionheart, this is the perfect chance to get his smaller twin. This horse is True North and he is part of the Premier Club, one of three clubs available to join. The other two are the Vintage Club and Stablemates Club. Now in order to get True North you have to sign up for both the Collector Club AND the Premier Club. There is a deposit required at signup of $30 for the Stablemates Club and $100 for the traditional clubs but this is deducted from the pricing of the models as they are shipped. For example, each Stablemates Club model costs $20 but $5 is deducted from the price of each model from the deposit, making the total cost only $15 each. Unfortunately shipping is not included in the final cost and you are obligated to purchase each model released in the club that year, whether you like that particular model or not. Since you don't know what the models will look like, it is taking a bit of a gamble, although many collectors love the surprise. Charlie was offered by Breyer as a Black Friday special. I have to say that this was a wonderful thing for Breyer to do. I decided to buy her for $145 because I don't have an appaloosa in my herd and I've always wanted to have a rather expensive horse that was NOT a lottery model or a filigree. Charlie was originally only offered to Vintage Club members and was limited to 500 pieces. I'm very excited to get her! This was sent to my email last year when I joined the Collector Club. Every year Breyer offers a special run on Christmas morning to Collector Club members only. It is quite limited and only is offered until it is sold out, which is usually within the day. If you've decided you want to join the Collector Club next year, this is the 2017 Collector Club special run. Her name is Moondance and she is on the Forever Siege mold, which is one of my favorites produced through the Premier Club! The final reason to join? You get exclusive access to the Collector Club tent at Breyerfest! This year inside the tent were four Classics sized horses on the Swaps mold that you could vote on which one you liked. Does anyone see a new special run in future?
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