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ordnance prices

Hello Tony,
I agree with you which is why I'm cataloging every thing in my collection with photo's and the most info I can find about the items. As I believe that as militaria items become more scarce, and more valuable, partly due to the remark you made about relatives throwing away your collection not realising it's value, I'm making a stipulation in my will that any items not wanted by my Son and Daughter will be sold by one of my shooting clubs or trusted collector friends. The money raised can be split between them and they can spend it on what they like. However I'm not intending to snuff it in the near future as I'm far too busy collecting, cataloging, and displaying, so I simply don't have the time to die!
Cheers,
Guy.
 
a really interesting thread this one and as a special exception i understood most of the more complicated sentences written there.
i can only agree with the majority of reasonable point's of view.
my personal nightmare is another one: if it would be up to some idiots in a government to ban special collectibles strictly, the material value of any such collection would turn immediately beyond zero and become a heavy and dangerous burden for the owner. regardless what for the single items was paid then.
a horrible idea, that hopefully never becomes reality (can't fall asleep again after having had this nightmare :eek: ).
 
Boogers

Thanks to all for your input, and I think this did make for a very interesting thread. I may have even changed my way of thinking in a few ways. We certainly saw some opinions thrown on the table and discussed. Respect what you collect and respect others and all else will "come out in the wash". I think one of the things that opened my eyes was the statment that this stuff is worthless to most people, which I guess it is. Aren't we a bunch! I suspect some people may think we are weird! whatever but one thing I do know, I love my favorite m1917 German egg grenade as much as I love my baby discus. this stuff is mine, I love it, please don't blow boogers at it and have a great day...Dano
 
collections

Couple of thoughts; if you like an item it is worth as much as you want it to be to you but probably less to anyone else. Some bits we've got at bargin prices and some we've probably paid over the odds for because at the time thats what we were prepared to pay. When it comes time to sell how much you get has an element of pot luck. Yes do catalogue them with all the info you can and approx values because when the time comes for them to go it will help sell them if described well. Not so important if you have a good memory and you are the one doing the selling but if your will leaves them to someone they should know what they're getting or worse still your wills executors are to dispose of it they should not let your pride and joy (and hard earned money) go cheaply. We are custodians of these artifacts from past times and in effect have private museums and as such have responsibilities. bit heavey maybe but have a think. 2pr
 
Just to throw my two cents in

Everyboby has their price.
I must agree though e-bay has been notorious for shill bidding to push the price up for a seller. Thats why I stopped selling on it and or buying other than the fact they dumped the inert ordnance market after the Va. tech shooting.
God help us all if someone gets run over and killed by a car bought off e-bay LOL
Anyway we all have our price and we all know how much we want something and how much we are willing to pay
I like swapping too
If I have something you want and you have something I want
Everybody makes out
NUFF said
Regards
 
I missed this thread the first time around. Always interesting to hear others opinions on such matters. I joined EBay when it first started and brought a lot off it. I also met some great collectors through it. I always saw EBay as providing a fantastic service, as it allowed me to buy items that I would otherwise not be able to find. The prices were a lot higher than the market value over here, but hell the items were available. I subsidized my buying by selling spare bits and pieces. I miss the days of EBay and the variety it offered:tinysmile_angry_t:.

A friend recently asked me if I thought 400 Euros was a fair price for a grenade he has on offer. I don't know how to answer that, as I doubt I could sell "any" grenade over here for 400 Euros. Having said that, I brought the same type of grenade off him a couple of years back for more (I think). But that was PayPal money I'd got from selling other grenades on EBay (not real money my wife new about:angel:).

My motto: Find reliable likeminded collectors and then trade as much as you can.

Cheers
 
If I like something, I'll check how much cash I could live without. If I can afford it, I get it, if not, I forget about it anyway. Like someone mentioned earlier, ordnance is worth what you would pay for it, just like any collection really. I wouldn't pay any more than the price of a first class stamp for a stamp but some go for thousands!
 
Hi Dano

I'm late to this thread but have found it very interesting and a worthwhile debate.

My first reaction was - You live in the land that invented modern capitalism, where everything has a price and speculation is a way of life - have you missed something along the way?

Andy was spot on. We don't need any of this stuff, it's interesting and fuels a desire for more and collectors tend to get a bit obsessive. We pay for that obsession.

If you just rely on on-line sales you will tend to pay higher prices. On line retailers can set a price that may be above the real market value but eventually someone who wants that item enough will pay for it. If you have a militaria website the hardest thing to do is replace stock. There is no point in putting in a lot of effort to find stock and then sell it cheaply. If you want to get stuff cheaply you have to try to track it back as near to the source as possible. Most people don't realise the vast amount of trading that goes on between traders in the militaria market. If something has gone through 4 retailers hands before it gets to you it will be costly. My way of finding cheap WW1 stuff is by visiting the French flea markets where stuff emerges onto the market. I have bought some great bargains in these. But I have also bought great bargains at French militaria fairs too. But it takes time and effort. If you don't have the time and can't (because of geography) make the effort, you are stuck with what you have. I have a friend in the US who has come to Europe every spring for the last 20+ years buying and finding stuff at the source. He has a great collection but the time, cost and effort has been huge.

E-bay has also moved and changed the market, but high prices are paid at normal auctions too. The same rules apply. If you want it enough, you have to out-bid the other guy. If you get two collectors after the same thing prices can fly.

John
 
My only gripe in this whole debate,is the person or collector that takes an item and puts it up for sale at 10 times more than Ive ever seen a similar or exact item sell for.Online and antique malls mostly. Its funny because Ive watched certain items sit for years without selling.Its almost as if a person figured out a way to display an item and or clear some of the clutter at home.So,yeah,a person has the right to do that,IE take a normally $100 dollar item and post it for sale at $500.But is it to display it publicly with the hope it wont sell? Or is it bait on the end of a hook,waiting for some poor uninformed sucker to come along.
 
Lou

That is no different to many antique or militaria shops. I know one militaria shop keeper who collects Stahlhelms and other WW1 or earlier headgear. Sometimes he puts things in his shop at silly prices. They sit there for a long time and if they don't sell they go back into the collection. I think it's because they are unsure whether to keep an item, so it is priced in a way that if it is sold they can buy something else to keep themselves happy. Last year I saw a French stallholder displaying a clip of 5 rifle drill rounds for 35 euros. He obviously didn't want to sell them!

John
 
Ordnance Prices.

Hi Guys, It does seem that prices of ordnance has gone up considerably where the dealers are concerned. The fairs i have been to such as Malvern and Stoneleigh have been pretty good as you can allways have a haggle and if youre not happy just walk away and hope you find what your looking for another time at the price your happy with. I dont bother buying from dealers as most are too expensive for my meagre budget. For example at Malvern i bought a 30x210B Russian NN20 shell complete and in super condition for 40.00 which i thought was fair enough. Yet a dealer on the net has same and hes priced it a 65.00 not including postage, now thats too much in my opinion, but someone will probably pay that if they are desperate to aquire one. Ive had loads of good ordnance buys from our local carboot and antiques shops too. It seems our hobby which was once a bit of a backwater has become even more popular nowadays. It would be nice to be able to fill the gaps in our collections at reasonable cost like the old days when i first started collecting but in most cases as with most businesses money talks-wheres theres muck theres brass one dealer said to me with a cackle once and that made me wary. Now i just look and if its too much i walk away. Interesting debate though guys. Regards, Tim.
 
[
I HAVE A SPARE LEAD BALL FROM A 247 FUZE GOING FOR 50 IF ANYONE IS INTERESTED?:tinysmile_hmm_t:
PAUL THE MONEY GRABBER
/QUOTE]

Now this is an example of 'swinging the lead' if ever I have heard one!! Lol !!!

Seriously though, if you attatch a note saying picked up on the Normandy beaches where the Commandos landed on the 6th June, during an air raid, while under attack from several of the most elite German units around and stick it on e-bay - I think your in with a shout!! I think I've seen it all on there!!
(By the way, I am in no way suggesting you do this Paul!!)

regards
Kev
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Everything i've collect(ed) i ran in the same statement. Prices worth and dealers asking to much.

For myself i found out that:

- I pay for a item what i want to pay, but it should be a fair price. (to me)

- Dealers? Where would we be, if there weren't dealers arround? They have to buy lots, travel arround, looking for "the marked"and often got stucked with "frozen" goods, since we as collectors dont want it, or all have it. Therefore to me it's acceptable that dealers ask (a bit) more than the marked price.
- I'm collecting now for a long time, and found out when you want something, and you doubt about the price (10-20 percent) it is gone when you've decided to buy.

- Value? Look in the collection, and make an average calculation, what you paid, and what its worth. You will find it's a better investment than stocks or what ever, without looking every day to the Financial news. Sometime you win, sometime you'll loose.

And there is a learning curve, I found out that i only become a smarter buyer when i found out i paid too much after the deal was made, but how to define "too much".
 
smle2009 said:
Another thing to remember, a collection never belongs to you- you are just a guardian of it,you can't take it with you!
Cheers to all
Tony
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Have you ever seen a Hurst with a Luggage rack??

Let me know, I am still looking for a nice used one, with low mileage. :wink:

Yes, all just curators for a while.
 
In life there are two categories for "stuff", wants and needs. Let's face it, our collections are nothing but wants. For me, a price is "too much" when I can, in good conscience, turn my back and say "I won't do that." Worth is determined by whatever anyone will pay for an item at the right time. That is, it's only worth is what you can get for it. I'm sure I have some pieces some of you wouldn't think are worth what I paid or that I shouldn't have gone that high but at the time I wanted it and I could afford it. The reverse is true also. You all have stuff I wouldn't have paid that much for too. Also, over here in the U.S. we don't have as much available to us at fairs and such.

Don't blame dealers for prices. They're not in the charity business. Unfortunately the more popular our passion gets the higher prices will go.

(this all made sense while writing it, I hope it came out right. It's late and I'm going back to bed.)
 
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