posted on May 30, 2005 01:04:50 PM new
Hi, everybody. I'm finally able to look hard at the contents of an attache case crammed full of matchbook covers, all from the collection of an elderly man who died years ago and whose heir was discarding nearly everything.
I've got the picture, already, that pinups on matchbook covers do well. My question is, do collectors of covers care if the matches are inside or have been removed? And if the striker has been used or appears unused? Any other info you can share would be greatly appreciated. ~Adele
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" Matchcovers are classified in two categories – used and new. Most collectors collect only new. A single scratch on the striker reduces the value of the matchcover significantly. Old and new highly collectible matchcovers are rare.
Collectors of matchcovers usually remove the staple and the matches. Special matchbooks or those that are old or fragile are left intact. These are known in the collecting field as “full books."
" As in all hobbies, buyer beware. Stained or torn covers have no value. Be certain to remove the staple to prevent rust stain. Also remove matches to prevent colored heads from “bleeding” into the paper cover."
posted on May 30, 2005 02:04:33 PM new
Ralphie reminds: "Close cover before striking."
"I'm going to spend a lot of time on Social Security. I enjoy it. I enjoy taking on the issue. I guess, it's the Mother in me."—Guess Who? Washington D.C., April 14, 2005
posted on May 30, 2005 02:56:14 PM new
Thanks Ralphie
I have a box of old matchbooks too. Interesting sites. Mine are from an elderly German couple who travelled the world. I have had them about 4 or 5 years.
posted on May 30, 2005 03:10:32 PM new
Ewora: Thanks for the link to that site!
Niel: I've been putting off looking at this pile of matchbooks for two years now. I sold on consignment 200 collectible pipes for a guy, and these matchbooks all belong to him, too. It's daunting, but I'm going to take 20 at random and tell the owner that probably 1? in 20 is even sellable on Ebay. Then I might make him an offer for the whole group so I don't have to do all that consignment bookkeeping.
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posted on May 30, 2005 03:12:27 PM new
Roadsmith - I have a lot of people who want me to list their items on EBay. I won't do it.
either I buy it outright (and I want to be sure its saleable and I can make something on it) or I don't do it. It never works out
posted on May 30, 2005 03:15:43 PM new
Imagine a large rectangular briefcase and tell me, sight unseen, what you'd offer the owner for the whole amount. I'm thinking $50??? Or is that too much?
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posted on May 30, 2005 05:21:48 PM new
"do collectors of covers care if the matches are inside or have been removed? And if the striker has been used or appears unused? "
Many people collect without the matches, but if the matches are all still there and/or the striker is unused the matchbook will command a healthy premium due to condition and scarcity.
posted on May 30, 2005 06:20:55 PM new
Roadsmith...Don't lose sight of the fact that some of those matchbooks may be cross-collectables, depending on the artwork, advertising, or the wording that appears on them. Your buyer may not even be a matchbook collector, but an enthusiast of whatever is featured on it. Neglus is much more qualified to explain the bidder mentality because of her experience with postcards and nostalgia, but plan on listing some of those in two categories.
A $75.00 solid state device will always blow first to protect a 25 cent fuse ~ Murphy's Law
posted on May 30, 2005 06:48:09 PM new
We collect advertising for a particular company and related to a type of widget. We have several match books in our collection with this kind of advertising on the cover. If any of them are older and advertise well know companies or products I would put them in a category that would appeal to those collectors.
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“The illiterate of the future will be the person ignorant of the use of the camera as well as of the pen.”
Maholy-Nagy, Vision in Motion, 1947
posted on May 30, 2005 06:57:06 PM new
Thanks, Sparkz and Photo: I ALWAYS look for the cross-collectible appeal, and in these cases I'll be looking at Collectibles/Advertising first for many of the items. I know that somewhere in that jumble there's a WWII cover with something scurrilous about Hitler, so I'd list that in Collectibles/Militaria. Etc. In fact, I'd probably just list in the one category, with matchbook in the title.
I've made an offer via e-mail to the guy who consigned these to me, and I'll let you know if he accepts.
I also see that many sellers of this item group perhaps 12 or 15 in one category--like tobacciana or farm equipment. It's always a dilemma, whether to try things singly if they appear to have good value, or just lump them together. I've begun making a pile of the postcards that don't sell, so that I can sell them in a lot later on, too.
The upside of selling collectibles is that one learns new things all the time. The downside, seems to me, is that a person is always studying up rather than listing things!
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posted on May 30, 2005 09:03:13 PM new
The collectors of match books require that the matches are inside without any missing. Occasionally you may come by a newby that doesn't know, but any serious collector is only going to want full, unused matchbooks.
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Alive in 2005
