Star Wars Kenner Vintage Collection Darth Vader
Star Wars Vintage action figure Darth Vader produced in 1977 on 12 back card. Part of the first 12 release from Kenner to support Star Wars, A New Hope. Some variations of Darth Vader have a DT(double telescoping) saber.-
Wave: 1
Year: 1978
Retail: $1.99 UPC: 38230
ASIN: B09PY6HT4Y (paid link) Series: Kenner Vintage Collection Group: Star Wars Action Figures
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Where to Buy:
| Retailer | Price | Diff | Lowest Found |
|---|---|---|---|
 Sold Auctions | Avg: $1,004.85 | +$1,002.86 (+50395%) | $410.00 |
| Buy It Now | Avg: $525.20 | +$523.21 (+26292%) | $149.95 |
Amazon  | $73.99 | +$72.00 (+3618%) | |
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The average price based upon the last 4 sold auctions is: $1,004.85
[High: $1,999.00/Low: $410.00]. The average Buy It Now price is $525.20 based upon 13 filtered active auctions out of 33 which includes AFA graded auctions. This figure is ranked #5 in value within the Star Wars - Kenner Vintage Collection category.
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This Darth Vader toy was added on January 2019 and originally released in 1978 with a retail price of $1.99. This action figure is part of the Star Wars genre within the Kenner Vintage Collection series and included in Wave 1. It can be found online by using the following codes: UPC: 38230, Amazon ASIN: B09PY6HT4Y (paid link) and on eBay (paid link). With an average selling price of $1,004.85, this toy is highly collectible as it's selling for 504x over its retail price. Not surpringly, this toy ranks in the Top20 within its stats category for the Kenner Vintage Collection category. Hundreds of collectors have this toy (343) in their user collections, so it does seem to be very popular. Some of these figures are specifying that they are unpunched, which may have higher value over punched cardbacks. AFA auctions are considered in determining the value of this item, potentially leading to a greater variance in the price range.
Only three action figures were released with a double telescoping lightsaber: Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader and Obi-Wan Kenobi. This was a two-stage lightsaber accessory where a thinner lightsaber blade slides out from the main thicker one, mimicking the lightsaber activation seen in the films.
Kenner later switched to a single-piece lightsaber due to the fragility and cost of the double telescoping design.
These double telescoping lightsabers are extremely rare and are highly sought after by collectors. Notably, the Luke Skywalker figure with the double telescoping lightsaber is one of the rarest and most valuable Star Wars figures due to its limited production run.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of fake and replica double telescoping lightsabers which are hard to spot, but not impossible:
Genuine lightsabers tend to have a specific color and level of transparency. Reproductions may not match the exact hue or the clearness of the original.
Authentic lightsabers often have specific molding marks or lack of them, as well as lettering inside the hilt. Replicas may not have these marks, or they might be in the wrong place.
The original double telescoping lightsabers had a certain length and the inner saber tapered to a point. Many fakes either don't taper correctly or have different lengths when compared to authentic ones.
Under a black light, authentic Kenner lightsabers will usually fluoresce due to the type of plastic used. Reproductions typically do not have this characteristic.