Selling guide Peter Pilling, BuyMyBricks · 26 September 2026 · 4 minute read
Short answer
We buy sealed, unopened sets only. We do not buy opened sets, built models, loose bricks by weight or boxes with pieces missing. It is not snobbery. Those are genuinely different markets with different buyers and different values, and we would be guessing at what yours are worth, which is no use to you.
Key takeaways
- Sealed and unopened is the whole of what we buy.
- Opened is a different market, not a lesser one. It has real buyers.
- Loose bricks by weight is a completely separate trade with its own specialists.
- A mixed collection is still worth sending. We will say which part we can price.
- We would rather tell you no than give you a made-up number.
This page exists so nobody wastes an afternoon photographing a collection we were never going to be able to price. It is also the honest answer to why, which is more useful than a policy line.
What we buy
- Sealed, unopened sets, with the factory seals intact.
- Any size of collection, from a single high-value box to a houseful.
- Older boxes as well as recent ones, including tired ones.
- Sealed promotional sets and polybags.
What we do not buy, and the reason in each case
| What |
Why not |
| Opened sets, even complete ones |
Value depends on completeness, and completeness cannot be confirmed without counting. A different market prices that risk properly. We cannot |
| Built models |
Same problem, plus transport. A built model cannot be moved safely and is usually worth more dismantled, which nobody wants to do |
| Loose bricks by weight |
A genuinely separate trade with its own specialists, sorted by part rather than by set. We have no route to sell it |
| Boxes with pieces missing |
Not a sealed set. Whatever it is, it is not what our customers are buying |
| Instruction manuals and boxes on their own |
Real demand exists, but not with us |
| Clone brands and unlicensed sets |
Not our trade |
| Anything we suspect is counterfeit |
We will tell you if we think so, and we will not buy it |
The honest version of why
Our customers buy sealed sets because the seal is the guarantee that everything is in there. That is the entire proposition. The moment a box is open, what you are selling changes, and so does who wants it and what they will pay.
We could put a low number on an opened collection to cover ourselves. Some buyers do. It would not be a valuation, it would be a guess with a safety margin, and you would be worse off than going to somebody who actually knows that market.
A mixed collection is still worth sending
Most collections are mixed. Send the whole list anyway. We will tell you plainly which part we can price and which part is not ours, and we will say so without pretending the rest is worthless. Knowing that half of it belongs elsewhere is useful information, not a rejection.
If a seal has been broken
Say so. A set that was opened and taped back up is not a sealed set, and it will be spotted. Telling us up front costs you nothing. Not telling us means a conversation on collection day that neither of us wants.
And do not reseal anything to make it look better. It does not work, it is obvious to anybody who handles these boxes daily, and it turns an honest conversation about one set into a question about the whole list.
What to do with the rest of it
Opened sets, built models and loose bricks all have genuine buyers, and there are specialists who price them properly. It is worth finding one rather than accepting a low blanket figure from somebody who does not really want them. We are not going to pretend that market does not exist just because it is not ours.
Sealed but damaged: where the line actually is
Sealed and saleable are not quite the same thing, and this is the grey area we get asked about most.
| Condition |
Can we price it? |
| Sealed, light shelf wear or soft corners |
Yes. This is normal for age |
| Sealed, crushed corner or deep crease |
Yes, priced for the damage. Tell us in advance |
| Sealed, heavy sun fading |
Yes, priced for it. Faded panels are worth flagging |
| Sealed but water damaged or swollen from damp |
Usually not. The damage raises a question about the contents |
| Seal broken or reapplied |
No. Whatever it is now, it is not a sealed set |
| Shrink wrap replaced by somebody other than LEGO |
No, and it is more obvious than people think |
Send the list anyway
Even if some of it is opened or loose. We will price the sealed part and tell you straight about the rest. One price for what we can take, and no obligation.
Get a price for your collection
Written by Peter Pilling, BuyMyBricks, 26 September 2026. LEGO® is a trademark of the LEGO Group, which does not sponsor, authorise or endorse this site. What we buy can change. This page reflects our position at the time of writing.
BuyMyBricks