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Post by adtharp on Apr 30, 2021 22:04:52 GMT
So... I have been a serious collector for about 20 years, and collecting antiques for about a decade. I have a dozen or so antiques of varying quality.
I frequently hear that dealers are over-priced, this is likely a fair statement, but where does one find correctly priced items?
I buy from dealers occasionally, if something strikes my fancy, but usually locally from Craigslist/etc. or just through the grapevine when a friend of a friend finds an antique. I would hardly call what I am doing an efficient market to determine market pricing. So, that begs the question, where are these magical places to buy swords at the “market price”?
Just curious from those who know a bit more than me....
BTW - I am in the US, which does seem to make antique sword collecting a much more expensive hobby.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 30, 2021 22:30:37 GMT
I start with category searches on ebay and I do watch other auctions but premiums are a killer. Years ago, I started accumulating dealer links. Here is a list from a decade or so ago. There will be dead links and I can only vouch for a few I have bought from but by and large, the market on hand. I am not about to name the best found on this list. The root urls can find some of them again. Most dealers will have a link section and one will start to see the good old boy network. Dealer hyperlinks.docx (16.63 KB) docs.google.com/document/d/10mTa7aEnE1Ch8hNkAPa7EQJq7R5tO1AakugPZDlmzB8/edit?usp=sharingAside from that, any price can be subjective. Depending on the genre and specifics, I may have a lead. Some dealers do ask twice (and more) than one might find elsewhere. Cheers GC The ebay dealer list is even longer and I haven't bothered to do a document.
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Post by bas on May 1, 2021 1:25:59 GMT
I buy almost exclusively from dealers. Considering where I live (New Zealand) the local availability of nice swords is severely limited. Yes, they are here, but not in the kind of numbers that we see overseas.
So for me, going through a dealer adds a certain level of additional security. Buying from an individual on Facebook or eBay carries significant risks of the money never being seen again. Annoying on a $200 sword but devastating on a $2,000 sword.
I also don't take a 'get the best deal' approach. This is my hobby, I have personal goals I want to achieve in this hobby and money is only a means to achieve them. I can either afford a sword or I can't. Too often in the past, I've had desirable items slip by because I was too focused on the dollars, that never came up again.
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Post by calien on May 3, 2021 4:41:41 GMT
Lately Ive been buying on auctions exclusively, simply because there are many things that go under the radar and you can get them at a much lower price than the dealers even with the fees. However, depending on what dealer there is always more security than say ebay or some random guy on facebook. This is a hobby for me as well but another way of looking at it is equity, antiques rarely go down in price and you can use it as a pseudo savings account or nest egg as long as you maintain and take good care of them. One big tip I have is to look up stuff in different languages, for example the French often translate their auctions so you can find the stuff in english... but the Germans usually dont . Look for stuff with a low lot number as often they will have less people logging on to compete with you, and use general terms when searching "saber", "sword", "epee" ect, it takes longer but sometimes the auctions mislabel what they have, one of the biggest bargains I found was a napoleonic saber with a nearly perfect blue and gold blade being sold off as a "ww1 artillery officer sword".
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