The Color of Money: Selling PRISMACOLOR Pencils on eBay.

Color me slightly wealthier.

Here's an easy one that has been raking in side-cash for me for years now... big lots of colored pencils. But not just any old brand of colored pencils. I specifically seek out, pick, and flip Prismacolor pencils.

I find these things all the time and can usually get them for 10 cents each or even less. They are normally sold in sets 12, 24, 36, 64 or 132 originally (and also individually) and can be quite costly to get new at an art supply store. But, alas, once a few of the pencils from the set are used up or lost, the rest sit around a desk drawer for years. Once the long, slow path towards perceived uselessness is complete, they are donated to a thrift store or left in a box at a garage sale or just thrown away.

After all, who would want to spend a couple quarters on eight or nine random colored pencils? You, that's who! These suckers cost about $1.50 each new, and folks will usually pay nearly a buck each for them on eBay, particularly if offered as a large lot.

And they don't even have to be unused to fetch the dollars. As long as they are long enough (say, over 6 inches), they are a solid pick.

After flipping (and occasionally coloring pictures) these things for years, I finally got a bit curious about why Prismacolor pencils are made by different brands. So here is a little history: Prismacolor started in 1938 by the Eagle company, then changed name to Berol in 1969. It was bought by Empire in 1986 and finally by Sanford in 1995. Sanford is currently owned by Newell Rubbermaid, but the current Prismacolors have the Sanford name on them. In the UK and Canada they kept the Berol name until recently, and they were also called Karismacolor (and they have oak colored barrels rather than solid colors).
Update: The day this post published, I came across Scholar Prismacolors! So look for those as well.

I have had no problems mixing Prismacolors of all brands into a single lot. In my experience, a vintage Prismacolor with the Eagle name does not sell any better or worse than the others, so there is no need to separate them into a different lot. I also will include doubles (and triples or more) of colors in my lot. They do not all need to be different colors to be sold together.

There are currently 150 colors offered in the Prismacolor line. This isn't really relevant to them being flipped, but I just thought that was an interesting tidbit to share.

You will also find other types of art supplies with the Prismacolor name, such as watercolor pencils and markers. While I have had more picks of the straight-up color pencils, I don't see why these others things won't do well in a large lot if you can snag them on the cheap. Just make sure to test those markers, because they will dry up on you.

What I haven't done well with, however, is flipping lots of other brands of colored pencils. So leave those Prang and Crayolas alone.

So don't be afraid to get dirty digging in the pencil drawer. If there are other art supplies or inexpensive items that are pretty easy to collect in lots that you have had success picking and flipping, let me know in the comments. Have fun out there.

What To Sell: Rapidograph Technical Pens

Draw me some money.

I enjoy drawing. I keep a sketchbook and illustrate most greeting cards I send with a little doodle or two. I even go so far as to keep a miniature set of watercolors with me when I travel. This doesn't make me special or anything, in fact, many of my friends draw regularly in sketchbooks or journals. And, like most of my drawing pals, at one point or another I wasted money on an expensive technical drawing set.

A set like the Koh-I-Noor Rapidograph seen above is purchased or received as a gift with visions of all the amazing illustrations that will magically flow from it. One or two pens actually get filled with ink. Within a few days they get clogged. The pens are inevitably put in a drawer or closet and forgotten. Eventually this virtually unused art supply set is donated to a thrift store or sold at a garage sale or given to a friend and the cycle continues.

So, basically, what we have here is an art supply (a genre of consumer items notorious for being over-priced and bought on impulse) that is frequently seen on the second hand market in excellent condition. Most folks reselling these items locally just aren't aware of the ridiculous costs of these things. The suggested retail (list) price of this set of 7 pens new is over $150!!!

These pens are very high maintenance, and clog easily, so they just aren't practical for most casual creative types. Because they are often sold (and resold) in sets, usually 4 or 5 of the 7 pens are 100% unused. And those clogged ones can be cleaned. Check the recent completed eBay listings: As of the time of this posting, we're looking at $20-$50 dollars for a decent used set, easy!

I find these things all the time, usually for well under $10. If you live near an art college, I even recommend doing a little dumpster trolling when the school year ends. Twice I've seen a Rapidograph set in great shape, complete with packaging, in the garbage.

Technical pens are a great example of an item that has great value differences in regards to context. They are pretty common and inexpensive to pick used locally, and then sell very well for decent dollars on the online reuse marketplace. The demand for these high-end art supplies is much higher when offered to the global world of potential buyers online, whereas your local thrift store might be hard up to find someone who casually will drop big bucks on some old drawing pens.

Here are a few more pictures of technical drawing pen sets that I've resold for decent cash from other brands like Mars Staedtler and Reform:

UPDATE: I've recently had an auction of a complete set of Rapidographs go horribly awry when the ink exploded during shipment. I was lucky that the buyer was understanding and only wanted a partial refund. So, either wrap that ink up really airtight in a separate baggie or maybe don't even include it in your action at all.