Thread: antique store let-downs....

I had some time on my hands today so I went downtown to shop around in the antique stores.

1) First stop had an NOS razor priced at $90...pass

2) Second stop had a really pristine razor at $120...pass

3) Found a Wosty box in great shape and priced at $10...oops...no razor inside

4) Found a no-name for $6...open the blade and find out that it's some sort of early shavette device.

Sometimes it's just like that I suppose...what stories you wanna share about antique store let-downs?

I live in a really small town full of antique stores. Of the 5 or 6 I've been in, the only straight was a rusted up pakistan razor. She wanted $20 for it...



I did buy a Gillette superspeed for $2 that cleaned up fairly nice, and a travel tech for $4 that is still shiny with a blade shaped piece of cardboard saying "replace with blade" or something.

I went to a store on the Portobello road (supposedly Londons largest antiques market), and I only managed to find one. It was a Sheffield made razor, but so badly patina'd that you couldnt read the make. The scales were bashed to pieces and it was in really bad condition and they wanted £275 for it...!

I did point out that I could get a brand new, top of the line TI for that price, and that the razor in that condition probably would go for about £20 on eBay, but they were having none of it.

They didnt really know much about it either, so I suspect what happened is that someone came in with this thing to sell, uttered the magic words "antique classic cut throat straight razor" (works on eBay anyways! ) and, with visions of Sweeney Todd in their minds, they paid a small fortune for it, hence their reluctance to budge on the price in any way.

It had sold the last time I went into the store, so I dare say some hapless tourist or over-remunerated Yah snagged it..!

Originally Posted by red96ta

I had some time on my hands today so I went downtown to shop around in the antique stores.

1) First stop had an NOS razor priced at $90...pass

2) Second stop had a really pristine razor at $120...pass

3) Found a Wosty box in great shape and priced at $10...oops...no razor inside

4) Found a no-name for $6...open the blade and find out that it's some sort of early shavette device.

Sometimes it's just like that I suppose...what stories you wanna share about antique store let-downs?

Were they priced firm and did you try making offers on the first two? Antique stores aren't really booming in this economy so they're even more likely to take whatever they can get now. Some stand firm on their price, some say it's firm but will negotiate if you appear knowledgeable, but most stores can be talked down. The antique malls can be a little more stingy but they'll still sell for less than sticker price.

If you can show the seller why a razor should be cheaper, do it. Point out any chipping, rust, hone wear, or major pitting. I've seen bone and celluloid handles listed as ivory, and mottled (spotted) horn marked as tortoise shell. Try to make it sound as bad -- but believable -- as possible.

Days like that make the finds that much sweeter.

I second the question about whether you asked if they would come down on the price of the first two.

Where I live there are antique shops owned and stocked by one person (these are rare and/or generally very small shops) and those that are stocked by many dealers who rent booth space to sell their wares.

The singularly owned shops are the ones that I've had the best success with making deals.

On the larger shops, the person helping me is almost never the actual owner of the items. Most often then, they have no authority to deal and many make it clear that they could care less. The price is the price. Still, I always ask.

I'm way past the starry eyed mouth drooling "Gasp, a razor!!!" mindset I was in when I first started. Back then, when I didn't know what to look for (chips, cracks, warped scales, pitting at the edge, etc) I paid more for and bought razors that I shouldn't have. So.......now most visits I make to shops are a bust since I pass on most things and find very little of value.

But, then there are the wins, so that keeps me going.

Chris L

It's not like it used to be years ago when you went into an antique store and found a treasure trove and the owner didn't know the true value. These days most people have books to value the stuff. I think the best way to find a true bargin is to go to garage sales or estate sales where your more likely to get something for a song. I 've found you have to be really lucky going into stores.