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 Replies: 36 / Views: 6,274 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3670 Posts |
You can put your money into millions of different things, and if it fills that void or what ever than it served its purpose I suppose....
Made me think of a show I was watching early on TrueTV, (which really should be called scripted TV, lol), a new show called Big Brian the fortune seller, estate sale specialist or as the show goes. I have in recent months also besides loving these coins, have thought often about attempting to find some local estate sales, and it seems like a place where a person could find some great coins perhaps for a great price, any luck by any here at estate sales?
Two examples I found interesting on the first two episodes....
1. A Washington coin that was made immediately after his death (something about death coins being common in the time), basically a rare limited edition minting, and they are very rare so the show said anyhow. Not currency obviously, more of a commemorative death coin would be more accurate description I imagine, curious if anyone here has a similar one, or ever seen one perhaps? The person found it, the seller knew what it was, and sold it for 2000 to the finder, and said a less knowledgeable person may have sold for five bucks....
2. A very rare pistol, in fact the exact model and year of the pistol which killed Lincoln, and the guy gave 8000 for it and some other related items, perhaps a brick from the theater as well. Wow 8 grand, but definitely a museum quality piece, too each his/her own I always say....
Anyhow, thought it was interesting, anybody else seen this show, or had any luck at estate sells, even beyond coin or bullion, after all we are all treasure hunters at heart I like to think.... Edited by Silverhawk74
03/30/2011 01:13 am
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Valued Member
United States
314 Posts |
Sounds like an interesting show. The estate auctions I have attended over the last year seem to be the other way around, people paying over retail for the items being auctioned. Leaves me baffled.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1659 Posts |
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or had any luck at estate sells, even beyond coin or bullion, after all we are all treasure hunters at heart I like to think.... I've had some of my best luck with ordinary garage/yard sales. I usually go out and hunt them every Friday/Saturday when the weather is nice. I rarely see coins at them, however I once scored a 1921 Morgan out of a "free" box. It was sort of disguised in a bezel as part of a desktop knick knack. I generally look for other goodies that I know I can resell for a profit and therefore fund my coin habit!  I don't actively seek the rare and exotic like what you described. Some of my biggest "home runs" have been on unexciting and generally mundane items. Some examples: 1) A pair of new-in-the-box Frye brand women's boots - bought for $10 (yeah, got some funny looks when I bought these ) - sold for $77. 2) A Midi-Still water distiller - bought for $5 - sold the next day for $179 3) A Honda EU1000i generator - bought for $150 - sold for $565 4) My all-time grand slam home run... about three years ago I bought a 1970's Marantz stereo system for $20. A couple of the components turned out to be rare collectors items. I sold the system on ebay for $1,018.00. I absolutely love yard sale season! I can't wait until it starts warming up here. The early spring sales are the best. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2335 Posts |
I run whats known as a "pocket" antique biz which means I don't have an actual store front. I get a lot of my merchandise from estate & yard sales. The rest of it is underpriced items I pick up at antique malls or by buying parts of, or entire, estates. I also help out with one of the companies that runs estate sales. They don't really pay enough for my time but I get first pick of anything in the sale so that makes up for it.
I watched that show last night. It was pretty funny to me how they kept talking about the one guy looking where other people wouldn't. Really? The first thing any estate sale company does is search the house/attic/garage/etc for the hidden treasures. I was also surprised they didn't pre-price anything. Around here everything is priced before the doors open. We also have "runners" in each room that take items people want to buy to a holding area. That way the customers can keep shopping. Obviously that guys business model works but it doesn't seem very organized to me.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2130 Posts |
About five years ago I purchased 15 ping pong paddles for $5 from a yard sale. I was only going to buy two of them but the guy told me to give him $5 for the box. They had never been used as he use to be a sporting goods salesman and these were left over and stored in his attic for years. Long story short I thought I would try putting a pair of these on ebay. Much to my surprise the auctioned ended for these two ping pong paddles at $325 plus shipping. I shipped these to Hong Kong. Nothing about these looked special to me and they had a picture of "some guy" on the handle. I had to ask what made these so valuable and the buyer explained to me that the picture was from a guy named "Klampar" and he was a great table tennis star years ago. After these two sold I sold the rest of these on ebay for $100-$150 a piece. That was the best $5 I ever spent! I even sold one of the paddles to a Table Tennis Museum in the United Kingdom. I spread those 15 paddles out all over the world. They were thrilled to receive them and I was even more thrilled to make so much money. Never assume anything is junk until you try to sell it on ebay! |
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
3670 Posts |
Great stuff from all, esp the stories of finds and what not. I met a lady the other day who buys puzzles via garage sales, mostly older an more rare I would imagine, gets them for change up to a dollar or two. She then sells them on ebay for fifteen to twenty bucks. Hey she is not getting rich, but she has a plan that she likes and it works for her.... Sounds like you all have the same idea, buy the estate items for what should be well below retail, then sell them, an finally convert to gold or silver coins, very smart plan, I like that, well done..... 007 I agree about the show being a bit unorganized, and the guy himself kills me, what a showmen/salesman. I laughed when he stomped on that old worthless busted guitar, and threatened to do that to the old rare banjo. Now that is over the top scripted Hollywood, but if they even get some what close to what it is really like at estate sells, then they have provided the info I wish to learn, and those crazy folk fighting like children over petty items, makes it entertaining to me at least.... See, I figure you can't go to a estate sell looking for a particular item, (unless you are perhaps repeat buyer who gets tips on items they collect, amazing what repeat bus can do), instead just gotta go with gut. Like those paddles, and unless you follow that sport closely, who could have known, just know way to research everything on Earth, lol. In the end it is all just material which is a means to acquiring something else, and you just never know what one could find, and like they say...."You gotta be in it to win it!" And that means time an gas.... Edited by Silverhawk74
03/30/2011 10:48 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1659 Posts |
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just know way to research everything on Earth Yes, that is true, you'll never know everything about everything. But, you'll find that once you get a little experience, you start seeing the same stuff over and over. Just like anything else in life, the more you do it, the better you get. When I first started, I ended up with quite a bit of worthless junk, but the more I did it, I learned fast what to avoid, what to jump on, and how much to pay. When I go to yard sales, if I see something that I haven't seen before, it really grabs my attention. It's a lot of work, but it's worth it to me. It's a lot of fun. I really enjoy going to yard sales with my wife. She's pretty good at spotting deals. It's helpful to have another set of eyes. Plus, her knowledge adds to mine. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2335 Posts |
It's an absolute fact that nobody can know everything. I buy items in my small areas of knowledge from retail outlets on a regular basis, & you can bet I only buy if I can profit. I also have a display case at the local antique mall. I'm positive there are dealers there that cherrypick my merchandise, capitalizing on their area of knowledge. I'm always learning.
We don't see too much fighting over items at estate sales here. The big competition is to get in the house first. That's generally handled reasonably well by whoever is running the sale. Most companies either have a sign up sheet or pass out numbers an hour before the sale.......people that show up more than an hour before start time line up in the order they arrive & get on the list/numbers accordingly.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
618 Posts |
I used to go to estate and garage sales and pick really good antique duck decoys. Yes there can be a ton of money in them.
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Valued Member
Canada
442 Posts |
Lately I've been finding that the estate sales auction by my place has been getting alot more attention. Maybe due to those reality shows.
Either way, lots of stuff going for way more than it should. Deals can still be had, but lately the coins have been going for just about spot or over, so unfortunately haven't been able to pick any up.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3294 Posts |
I have only gone to one estate sale. At the time, I was not impressed. I got a 1921 Morgan for $16 (back then they were going for around $15), and a holed 1835 bust quarter for $6. Reality, I probably didn't do too bad, but it wasn't worth the hassle in my book.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4897 Posts |
I like the hunt. Used to do okay with American pottery, McCoy, Roseville, Redwing etc... Problem was it seems like the market died off (literally). Started to be a tough sell not enough youngsters cared about what I was selling.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1450 Posts |
I hunt for cookbooks at yard sales. Last year I got a set of small ones for $0.50 and found out 2 of the 10 go for about $3.00 each on Amazon. I am starting to see a lot more from the late 30's and early 40's and those are going up in value because they include recipes for pigeon,squirrel,rabbit and phesant,recipes we may all need if food prices keep going up! |
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Rest in Peace
United States
1729 Posts |
I attend mostly estate sales and the occasional garage sale I spot nearby. I agree that coins tend to go for amounts above their value, although I rarely see them at any sales I stop at.
I do have two personal rules: 1) Never buy anything that has "Collector Edition" marked on it, and 2) Stay away from anything that is out of my areas of expertise (including ping-pong paddles, lol - but who knew?).
Last Friday I did pick up one item that is in one of my expertise areas - a GE Superadio III for three bucks in perfect condition. They originally sold for up to $50 or so new. I'm using it as my "listen-while-painting" radio while I'm renovating my rental house next door, and eventually I'll pass it along to another collector or radio DX'er.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3184 Posts |
great thread reading about the interesting finds that people have found and sold for. Keep it coming!
Me I've been to flea markets and though I never found anything that was a grand slam, I was able to get quite a bit of 90% silver for way below melt.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2130 Posts |
pls...ping pong paddles were not my area of expertise either. I was going to buy two to play with and then the guy practically gave me the rest. I only needed two so I figured what the heck...let me see if I can at least get my money back for these so I put two on ebay. My mouth dropped when I saw that over 20 people were watching the ping pong paddle on ebay and the ending price was $325. Needless to say and $2000 later...anytime I see a ping pong paddle now I look for a picture of that guy on the handle!! Anything you are ever unsure about the value of you should always give it a try on ebay! |
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Replies: 36 / Views: 6,274 |
Posted 03/30/2011 07:34 am
