In this guide, I hope to give help to non-pony collectors and sellers aid in selling and buying My Little Pony toys. If you are on eBay in order to buy (or sell) ponies for your children, friends of children, or for yourself for the first time, you might want to check this guide out. If you are already a collector, this guide will not be terribly useful to you, as it will cover only the most basic of pony information, in addition to whatever pony vocabulary seems most common and useful to a non-collector. Keep in mind that I do NOT profess to be an expert on My Little Ponies to ANY degree, but I hope to share what I know with those are interested in buying ponies on eBay. All links on this guide are only for eBay listings, so a word that is highlighted in blue is going to take you to a page with that description. Let's begin!

NOTE!!: All pictures here are NOT of ponies for sale, so all of them have been marked with text so that they cannot be put up on any sites that sell ponies. :)

                                                           G1 PONIES

     In basic, My Little Pony began in the 80s, and the ponies produced during this time are known as "Generation 1" or G1 by collectors. These ponies had the longest run of the three generations of ponies (so far), and there are literally hundreds of different styles, colors, and molds of these ponies to collect. This production line ran for more than ten years, finally ending in about 1992 in the United States. (Some ponies were sold after this in Europe.) Many of these ponies are sold on eBay, and it is important to get an accurate description on your item if you wish to sell it for a reasonable amount of money. It is also beneficial to add "My Little Pony" to the title, along with the pony's name if you know it, or even the body-type (i.e.pegasus, unicorn, etc), as it will help collectors in finding your listing!   

DESCRIBING G1 PONIES

     First, some terms. The basic mythic shapes of horses are the same for ponies: a pegasus (or peg) is a winged pony,

a unicorn is a pony with a horn,

and an earth pony is a pony with no added wings or horn (the first picture is all earth ponies).

Occasionally, customs pop up called "unipegs", which simply means that the pony has wings AND a horn! Other styles of ponies that Hasbro created were known as flutter ponies and wingers.

Flutter ponies are NOT the same as wingers because of the different style of their wings: flutter ponies had delicate, breakable wings in a uniform rainbow-ish sheen of clear plastic. The pony below is Hollywood, a Mail order Flutter Pony with wings intact! Note how they are transparant and uncolored.

Wingers (technically called Windy Wings or Summer Wings, and were smaller ponies physically) had large butterfly-style wings in multiple colors.

Other common styles are Big Brothers (ponies with clydesdale feathering [extra hair] on their hooves), little brothers (baby versions of Big Brothers, note the slight feathering on his hooves), baby ponies (came in all three basic shapes-- unicorn, pegasus, and earth),

Sweetheart Sisters (teenager-looking ponies),

Seaponies (think sea horse and see below),

Baby seaponies, Merponies (different than the seaponies, as they had a mermaid tail), along with the Pony Friends (several different animals produced by Hasbro as friends to the ponies).

(Pictured is Creamsicle the giraffe)

In addition, there were extremely tiny (about 1 inch high) ponies called Petite Ponies, and taller ponies called Dream Beauties (see below), who were more horse-like than pony, and called "My Little Pony grown up".

     As far as ponies go, some horse terms remain the same: the rump (or hip) is the side of a pony, where the "symbol" is printed. The symbol is a painted on design from the factory, and usually has relevance to a pony's name.

     MIB means Mint In Box, and these ponies will go for a LOT more than the pony would if it were "loose" (out of package). Similar terms are MOC (Mint on Card) and MIP (Mint in Package). Unless you are a collector who hunts for MOC ponies specifically, I would recommend staying with loose ponies, as they are exponentially cheaper.

     Some members of the online pony community use different terms to refer to different types of ponies. For example, TAF means Twice As Fancy, which is a style in which the pony's symbol is repeated over most of the pony's body. SS means So Soft (several ponies who were produced with a soft fuzz all over their bodies), OR Sweetheart Sister (the "teenager" sisters to the average ponies), but the Sisters are more commonly known by SHS. NSS means Non So Soft, which means that a pony that was created as a So Soft in the US, but was produced in the UK without the fuzziness. Be careful! So Soft ponies can be defuzzed, and an original NSS goes for more than a defuzzed SS does! Another pony type is BBE, which means Beddy Bye Eye, which simply means that the baby pony has eyes that can open and close. Be careful that their eyes aren't totally rusted shut!   

PRICING G1 PONIES

     Ponies from this era (the 80s) are going to vary in price determined by the quality of their hair, symbols, and overall dirtiness. Ponies that usually go for a lot of money are mail-order ponies (ponies that were ordered with "pony points" that were clipped off of the packages of ponies) and flutter ponies (see above for a description) WITH wings (without wings, they are reasonably priced). A rare exception to this is Mimic, a lime gree unicorn G1 pony who has become wildly rare and expensive in today's market. If you are selling, you should get the pony fully identified before proclaiming it "rare" on your title. Most of the ponies of this era can vary from $1-20, depending on the bidding and quality of the pony. If a pony is going unreasonably high and it is not rare, chances are that it is simply a "bidding war" between two collectors.

                                                               G2 PONIES 

     (The G2 pony above is Berry Bright, and is pictured MOC) G2 ponies (or Generation 2 ponies) were smaller, thinner ponies that were introduced in the US in about 1998, as Hasbro's first attempt to bring back the My Little Pony line to collectors. The line was a bit of a bomb, as collectors believed the ponies to be TOO different from the round, chubby ponies from the 80s. Therefore, these ponies only ran for a couple of years production before being yanked from US shelves, only to continue in Europe with new styles the US never saw. This line only had a fraction of the diversity of the original MLP line, with a few unicorns and babies (only in Europe). These ponies are priced about the same as G1s, but usually a little cheaper, as they are generally not sought by collectors online, and there are far fewer "rare" ponies.

                                                              G3 PONIES

     These ponies are the ponies who are being produced currently, and started in about 2003 in the US. They are more similar to the G1 line, and even borrow some names from them! (Be careful not to mix up names in listings.) So far, they have run for three years, with three mail order ponies and many store and seasonal exclusives. These ponies are not as diverse as the G1 line yet, as they only recently introduced the pegasus shape, and will be soon unveiling the unicorn shape for their ponies. One difference is the Breezies, which are extremely tiny ponies who have fabric wings, and so far have only been sold in gift sets.

PRICING G3 PONIES

     Because G3 ponies are still being produced, buying a MIB pony will not usually cost a lot more than the pony would out of package. Therefore, buying a MIB G3 pony on eBay can be as cost-effective as buying it in the store! The average price for a pony from a store would be about $5-6 for a single pony, with more money being charged for sets (such as the "scooter" sets, or the "dress up" sets) that came with extra accessories for the pony. Exceptions to this are mail-order (which are usually only a little more) and seasonal ponies. These ponies are usually adults called the "Winter Series" or the Valentines Day ponies, or babies that are dressed up in winter or other seasonal clothing. These seasonal ponies are only available for a specific amount of time in stores, and will therefore command slightly higher prices than an average pony.

WHEN A PONY ISN'T A PONY!

     Often, a seller (or buyer) will happen upon a pony that defies all description and classification. Chances are, you are looking at one of two things. One, a fakie (most likely) or two, a customized pony (less likely, unless you're cruising the My Little Pony eBay listings).

Option one: a fakie!

    This is most likely, especially if you found the pony in a flea market for resale, or something similar. These ponies will almost never have the official Hasbro name stamped under their feet. Popular companies for fakies include Remco and Buddy L. Their ponies are often the same size, but will have destinctive hooves, whether molded or painted on, which My Little Pony lacks. Also, some molds were plagerized by other companies, so there are ponies that may look like an official My Little Pony, but are not. Another possibility is that the pony is made by Hasbro, but doesn't belong to the My Little Pony line. A popular mistaken identity is that of a Cabbage Patch Kid pony, which was made by Hasbro at the same time, but wasn't an actual MLP. These are told apart because they have yarn-like hair unlike the MLP, which have plastic hair, similar to doll or Barbie hair, and are much larger in person, in order for a Cabbage Patch kid to be able to ride on one comfortably.

Option two: a custom!

     Customs are varied and numerous on eBay, and customizers are only adding to that impressive list of pony designs! A custom is defined as a pony (whether a fakie or an official My Little Pony) that has undergone one or more of the following preceedings: dying, rehairing, repainting, or sculpting. The pony will usually be listed as a custom very clearly, as the artist wants to take credit for their work. Each step of the process is rather difficult, and the prices for customized ponies are higher as a result. However, as always, only spend what you feel comfortable on a pony, as it is unclear how customized ponies fare in the resale market after many years. 

     What does this mean to resalers? A pony that is customizable condition is often called a customizable or "baity" pony. This means that the pony has extensive paint rubs, unremovable stains, missing body parts, chewed or damaged parts of the body, or missing or EXTRMELY badly trimmed hair. Often, if you have ponies in a very sad shape, you can sell them in a "lot" (a group of ponies) for a better price than if you had tried to sell them individually.

CLEANING G1-G3 PONIES

     If you are not a collector, I would advise against trying to clean a pony with anything harder than soap and water, as you might damage the pony and lower its price!! Harder solutions, while effective-- OxyClean, nail polish remover, acetone, and the like-- are very effective at getting off stains, but unless you are a pony collector or very knowledgable about ponies, you should leave the cleaning to the collectors! If you are worried about losing money in your sales, simply remember that a dirty pony will go for more money than the same pony if it were DAMAGED!!! If you have a stained, frizzy pony, make sure to list its condition as accurately as you are able: chances are that collectors will be able to tell if the pony is salvagable, and will bid accordingly.

LISTING PONIES

     Always make sure to take pictures!! Accurate pictures are worth a thousand words, and even if you don't know a lot about the pony, chances are collectors will recognize her from the picture you give, so make sure to make the pictures large, detailed, and not fuzzy!! If the pony has a specific defect (i.e. smeared symbol, an ink mark, etc) try to get a picture of it too! Make sure to always put "My Little Pony" in the title, and spell it correctly! If you can, list the name of the pony, and if you can't get that, just put the physical type (pegasus, unicorn, Summer Wing, etc) in the title to help us collectors out! Make sure to give as detailed descriptions as possible, and don't skip over defects-- it might result in an angry buyer!

IN CLOSING

     If you are buying a pony, make sure to buy the pony in the condition and style that you want-- if your three year old is going to be playing with it, you don't need a MIB or high-quality pony! A played-with pony will do just fine. As you learn more about ponies, you will find out more about normal prices for normal ponies, so don't feel too bad if you miss out on great deals or pay too much for a pony now. Make sure to always be friendly and courteous to whatever seller or buyer you are working with, because they're people too!! Make sure to leave appropriate comments on your purchases, and if you don't get the item that you paid for (or the money for your item), don't feel pressured to be quiet about it! You can lodge complaints, and hopefully get your money or item back! Best of luck to you on eBay!!  

     If you have additional questions regarding identifying ponies by generation, or how to sell ponies properly on eBay, please check out my second guide. Thanks for stopping by, and if you have any additional questions or concerns, feel free to message me!