Thread: Antique Shop Bargains?

I went to my local Antique Shop yesterday thinking I'd find a few razors to buy on the

cheap to fix up. I found lots of W&B's a Boker and other Sheffields. Most were in very sad

shape with lots of hone wear and serious chips and cracks. I was surprised however,

when I found a nice Greaves which looked to be larger than 6/8 at the toe. It had very

little hone wear and some mild discoloration, but the scales were cracked and broken

on one side. I couldn't believe the price the seller was asking though, $155.00 US!

I asked the shop to contact the seller but he would only come down by 20%!

Most of the other razors were also priced way too high. Could it be this is catching on

and sellers are seeing profit potential on ebay and jacking up the prices accordingly?

I have had a few shops where they make a lucky sale of something like a wonderedge for some $ and assume that they are all worth $. If you explain to them what they are really worth from a position of knowledge which they lack they usually come down to slightly high but not retarded prices. Sorry you got a moron.

I've seen some shops around here where I'm at do the exact same thing. Some of them ask way too much for a razor. In fact I've had such bad experiences at some of them, I never try to negotiate prices anymore. I just ask to see the razor, look at the price and if it is too much hand it right back to them with a smirk and a shake of the head. It could very well be Ebay and such running up some of the prices. I've often felt that a lot of antique vendors come to their prices by watching what similar items go for on Ebay.

On the other hand, I've also seen some places around here where I almost feel like I'm stealing, the prices are so low. I guess you never can tell.

-Pary

Over Christmas I found an antiques dealer who had a mint Puma in it's original box and was asking 45AUD for it.... So you never can tell. This could just be an Australian thing though.

James.

Yeah, I've seen this happen over the course of a few months. last September I picked up a W&B at an antique shop for $9, the scales were garbage but the blade was fine, I went back last week and found a half dozen random brands all with badly chipped blades (unsalvageable) starting a $20 a pop.

Kinda sad, especially because I think most razors that get sold on ebay are way over priced, not that I'm really cheap or anything, just because I know how much the sellers probably got them for and how little the buyers generally know about what they are buying. So to see antique shops going the same way is a little unsettling.

I saw a blade today at an antique shop that seemed on par with Simco.. it did not seem to me very old but they were asking $30 ..with rust on the blade and split scales.

if you are at an antique mall, you will get the fluctuation in prices. i have seen one vender sell a decent red imp for $65 that needed work other than a hone, and at the same place, a DD #1 special that i put an edge on with a barber hone in 20 for $25. 2 weeks ago i found a great looking Joseph Rogers 7/8 wedge that the dealer was asking $60. i got him down to $25 by talking to him a little.

most venders think these are true collectables no matter the maker or the shape of the scales or blades. i would love to take back a good clean resto and show them what a great looking blade looks like, but not worth my time. they would still probably not come down on the price.

vgod