Need ideas from you collectors

[thorin6]

How to sell one's collection is ultimately the question we all have to ask. My thoughts would be to separate the collection into three catagories.
1. Things I want to keep (personal attachment, family heirloom, etc.)
2. Uncommon, high value items that sell well (Krag sling, for example)
3. Run-of-the-mill items (common WWII canteens, belts, shovels, etc.)
Put the first group away; you can always sell them later or you can give them away to family and friends.
Sell the second group yourself on the boards, at shows if you can get there, local venues, on ebay/gunbroker, etc. this will maximize the value of your collection.
Sell the third group in bulk priced to sell; contact folks that buy in bulk to sell on their sites or tables at shows, put them up on the boards as bulk sales, or take them to a show and find a buyer for everything; this will minimize your time and effort.
Note that this is for a militaria collection that doesn't contain any really high value items; if you have any of those, going through one of the auction houses may give the best exposure and mazimize the sell; Rock Island Auctions and Julia Auctions come to mind.

[alibi]

Collectibiles or junk?

In the 1960-70s I was into collecting militaria and still have a lot of it that is mostly in storage. I have much the same dilemma as you describe as I to want to move this material along. The rub is that I am unwilling to devote the time to pack the stuff up and haul it to gun and militaria shows. I did that several years ago and things sold well enough but every buyer was looking for a bargain and tried to negotiate sale prices. For example I had an M1941 Johnson Rifle bayonet and scabbard in unissued condition priced at $75 and the guy that bought it tried to negotiate the price. I ended up taking home the remains, the unwanted and etc. that was the stuff I really wanted to get rid of.

From my experience I have been advocating on the forums I contribute to that people not collect anything except reference books, but that has fallen on deaf ears. I just wonder how many if any of these people will reflect back in 20 years and think "Hey, that guy I thought was off his rocker was right, why didn't I listen?" I was advised to obtain reference books and material and now enjoy my personal library a great deal more than the material culture items in storage.

As was previously mentioned the economy is somewhat depressed which means that people have a little less discretionary funds to spend on collectibles, but that doesn't seem to have slowed them down much...where there is a will (desire for something) there is a way.

My thought is to inventory the stuff and organize it (group it) in a way that will appeal to collectors so that some of the hard to move stuff will go along with the more desirable stuff. Taking the dealers approach of marketing everything separately may bring the best price on each piece but then neither you or I are in business and do not have or want to devote the time (and don't have a clientele base) to move everything by the piece.

As the result of some of my previous posts in this same subject area I have been contacted through email by people that say they are willing to acquire the entire collection. They of course want to buy at wholesale prices, select out what they want and sell the rest for profit. I don't object to the idea and you may have already had communication from someone proposing to "take it off your hands." This may be the ideal solution, but personally I don't like the idea of the character of these people.

I have quite a few firearms and have found a local gun shop that takes firearms on consignment. I am confident that this long established store will do the best they can to sell at the best price to both our benefit. I went into anther gun store I was unfamiliar with and met the manager who reminded me of "Pawn Stars" and I bet he took pointers in "negotiation" from the show, he was even dressed in all black. He said they don't take consignments and wanted to buy my all my guns outright and was even willing to come to my residence to pick them up. The greed and pure profit motive in this guy's "business" was a total turn off for me.

So we're stuck with allot of stuff that we wish we had not acquired in the first place. How to get shed of it with out the devotion of allot of time, dealing with people whining about the prices, getting rid of all of it at a reasonable prices, and perhaps most important at this stage of life not leaving for heirs to have to sort out and possibly trash. This later happens way too often and is a tragedy if you hold your collection in any sentimental value.

If you figure this out please let me know what worked for you.

[JBinIll]

I was advised to obtain reference books and material and now enjoy my personal library a great deal more than the material culture items in storage.

So very true.I'm always digging out a book to look something up.Can't say the same about all the stuff in boxes I bought,looked at,and then put away.

[Dan Shapiro]

Don't ya just hate it when a question comes up on a forum, you know the EXACT answer, even to being able to quote it, BUT CAN'T FIND the book the quote came from?

[cplnorton]

I would figure out how much you want if you want to sell it all together, post it on the WTS board here, and on the site www.sturmgewehr.com under the collector's firearms.

If you price it right, you will have it sold in a couple hours.

Hell I might be interested if the price was right. I love collecting that old stuff.

[JohnMOhio]

Thanks again to all for your help. Much appreciated.

[AOK]

PM and Email sent.

[Brad]

I have had good luck buying and selling on this forum.
So far everyone has been very honest and honorable.
Great bunch of guys.
You would get a fair deal and deserving collectors would get a fair chance at your plunder!