posted on September 8, 2004 12:55:04 PM new
My neighbor across the street is cleaning out her closets and asked me if I could do something for her on eBay with an old globe of the world.
Does anyone know of a good source on the older, vintage globes?
She doesn't see a manufacturer's name on it, though I'm going to go over it with my big magnifying glass. She isn't completely sure how old it is. She just knows that she had it when her daughter was a kid, and the daughter is now 39. But she thinks it might be older than that.
I haven't seen this globe yet. She described it to me over the phone, and I said I would try to find a reference source on collectible globes for her, and maybe we could find others like it on eBay for comparison.
If nothing else, the countries on the globe might help us date it - old map of the Soviet Union, countries that don't exist anymore.
But since people collect the older globes, does anyone know of a Web site or newsgroup for globe collectors?
I'm going to take a look at it by the end of the week - maybe tonight.
posted on September 8, 2004 06:26:11 PM new
Sthoemke -
Good idea. My neighbor is going to come over tomorrow with the globe and a couple of other things she found in her closets that might be "do-able" on eBay so I can take photos.
But how do you include photos in one of these messages? Upload to Vendio ... and then what do I do?
posted on September 8, 2004 07:32:57 PM new
I had a friend that sold a DECO globe on ebay for $200.00. I remember very well what it looked like. I'll let you know if that's what you have when you post the photo.
posted on September 9, 2004 03:47:39 PM new
My neighbor brought her globe over today. She said she couldn't find a manufacturer's name on it, but I had no problem finding the legend:
Replogle World Horizon Series. No date on it, but it does have a patent number. So, on that basis, I was able to match it with this auction:
That seller is using a date of 1981, and that seems right, looking at the globe. On the first go, the only thing I see that would make it "vintage" is that it has the old USSR. Everything else looks current - Vietnam as one country; the map of Africa looks up to date.
So, my take on this is that it's not here and not there - not completely current, but not really a vintage item, either.
She's asked me whether I think it's worth a go on eBay, and has said that she'll do the scavenger hunting for a right-sized box if I'll do the ad.
I have just the one auction to go by, and it doesn't have any bids yet, but still early.
Any other opinions on whether this would be worth the time and effort?
I told my neighbor it would cost her 70 cents to list it with a minimum bid of $9.99 with a gallery photo and 10 cents for Vendio. She's willing to go for that.
I've also emphasized that most things on eBay close with zero bids. Then again, it might take off if it happens to be something that two people really want - no way of really knowing until you put it out there.
But if it's unlikely to sell, I don't want her to be disappointed, either.
Most of my auctions have sold so a lot of my friends and family think this is easy, and you know it's not
posted on September 9, 2004 03:52:46 PM new
One of the worst mistakes I made on eBay was to try to sell something for a friend. Turned into a disaster.
posted on September 10, 2004 09:57:28 AM new
Tex -
Disaster how?
A couple of people have asked me to sell things for them on eBay - just stuff they have around the house, nothing special.
But when I explain what's involved - all the schlepping around for the right-sized boxes and other packing materials - and the odds of selling aren't that good anymore, most lose interest.
We're lucky that this one globe popped up on eBay so I could date it easily. So we'll watch this auction and see how much interest there is. It's a pretty globe when it's lit up, but I don't think it's old enough to be considered a collectible.
posted on September 10, 2004 06:38:30 PM new
I actually sold one of these globes early in the summer. It sold for the opening bid $9.99. It cost the person as much for shipping, clear across the country, as it did for the bid.
