Pre Internet

[operaman]

There are a lot of guys on this site that were collecting way before there was an Internet.When you shopped you had to go to a gun show or a stamp dealer or rely on some pictures that were in magazines.The good thing about that was it was a HANDS on collecting process,you could hold it play with it ask questions about the item and if one was worth his salt you could tell if the item was fake.If you purchased a fake you can take it back and punch the guy in the nose.Now we have the Internet we can shop on a million sites compare prices check out references do all sorts of things but sometime the thing you purchase is not what was presented (bummer).And trying to get a refund is hopeless at best.Trust is a hard thing to come by now-a-days but when you find it hold on to it like grim death,Thoughts

[Walkwolf]

The percentage of crap has gone up. Back in the 'old days' (30 years ago)
only about 15% was bogus, now more like 40% is fake/repro.

I got out of collecting TR back then for there being so many fakes on the
market - not worth the risk in some cases, and the amount of repro stuff
has ruined the hobby for some people. I now stick to rather common
and more affordable pieces - They're easier to tell from fake.

If you know your stuff, these days the internet
can be a boon to the collector.

[Wagriff]

Not to mention,the bogus stuff in the bad old days back then was,for the most part,ridiculously easy to spot. For example,if you saw an SS armband on thin printed cloth that still felt and smelled brand new,you could pretty much figure-Yep! Garbage! But,on the other side of the coin,you could go to flea markets and garage sales and find guys with Piles of German and Italian helmets for 2-10 dollars(Italian's used to go for a buck apiece-all you wanted)-as well as going to JC Penney and Sears and buying a nice G-43 Mauser for 65 bucks or Lugers for 50 bucks(that was after digging through the piles and barrels full of Mark 4 Enfields, Japanese Arisaka's , Italian Carcano's and greasy old 98K's that you didn't want,for 20 bucks apiece. Blood Orders and Ritter K's could still be found for less than the price of an Italian sports car. Now,the fakes are getting so spot on perfect,you have to be a forensic scientist to catch some of them! And a G-43? Well...they "Aint no 65 bucks no mo'..." William

[Gary J]

Pre-Internet !!!!

1970's .. British surplus stores like Wakefields ..

Denison smocks £5
BD 37 pattern £2.50
Trousers 37 pattern £1.00
British dated helmets .. £0.50 - £1.00
Gas Mask Bags £0.50

.... Oh for a time machine !!!

[jws54]

too true,...I used to be able to meet actual "been there" soldiers and look through their souvenirs....many small out of the way places had WW 2 stuff hanging on the wall still, in Pennsylvania at least. Helmets and other such stuff were prolific.
It was way more fun collecting and way more interesting. My main interest was the soldier's story. I came into collecting once I was given items. That piqued my interest and started me down that path.

[qotd]

I remember in the early 80' s there was a stamp and coin store, and I was about 10 but had a huge interest in German stuff. This bloke had two SS lids for sale at the astronomical price of 50 bucks each, my dad was going to buy me one, but mum said no because she thought it belonged to a dead soldier. Flash forward to 2009, and dad bought me a SD M 40 Luftwaffe for a little over a grand as an "apology" for the money I could have made on those SS lids now!!! N

[M18922]

imo i think prices are just going to go up, so if you see that one specail item go get it! i keep saying that to my parents and they dont agree :/ lol

[Wagriff]

It's actually a tough one to call,Patrick. As time goes by,the generations that remember things tend to collect them,but when their day is gone,many times the value of what they collected drops proportionately. Take,for example,cars. When I was a kid(many,many,many,and still more disgustingly many years ago...) a Model T Ford was a collectors Holy Grail. But,now that the guys who actually owned and Drove them are pretty much gone,the interest in them has plummeted. Nowadays,the "hot collectors cars" are such things as 1970 Hemicuda's, 1969 SS Camaro's,etc. Will WWII interest wane as well over time? Do people still go nuts over WWI stuff like they once did? There's still collectors for everything,of course,but the sheer Numbers for such stuff as WWI simply isn't what it used to be now. If one looks at,say,50 years from now,I suspect that the collecting interests will,once again,be quite different than they are today. People your age will someday see this and just might have the last laugh on us old-timers! Who knows? In the Meantime...I'm still hangin' onto my numbered and ID'ed SS dagger..and a "few more favorite tidbits"...lol Good luck collecting! And,Remember...Rudel's RitterKreuz is Still "out there somewhere"! At the rate you're going,You just might be the guy who ends up Finding the darned thing! William

[qotd]

I find certain WW1 items fairly well priced, helmets seem to go for high prices, but I can get a cut out WW1 wound badge in black for 40 bucks! I also tend to go for Items that are a little out of the ordinary. I am currently bidding on a WW2 luftshcutz 1 peice, that was reissued and painted red, with logo after the war in east germany to a car factory as a fire wardens helmet. I like having originals from the war, and also items reused.....

[qotd]

I like buying items others would reject....Just spent 90 bucks on a gold wound badge with not much gold on it, but it tells a story, and a de nazified wound badge in silver for 40 bucks.....these things appealt tomemore than pristine examples that cost triple....I will have a set of pristine wound badges, but until then I will pick up weird and wonderful wound badges to have a nice broad collection!