Antique Fishing Lures Collectables
Michalis 'BIG Mike' Kotzakolios
The e-commerce boom in the past few years has catapulted the prices of antique fishing lures. Sensationalized auction prices on websites like eBay have tended to create the impression that all vintage lures are precious. True, while certain fishing lures are indeed valuable, the vast majority of old lures are quite reasonable and obtainable in ample quantities to allow vintage collectors to comfortably enjoy the hobby.
Although most old lures are inexpensive, there are some that exceed the limits of affordability. These fishing lures cannot be accurately valued since they are not available in adequate quantities to create a history of transactions, which establishes a value scale. Their market value can only be determined when the buyer is willing to pay the seller's price, or when the seller accepts the buyer's bid. The directives collectors employ while accumulating antique fishing lures is awe-inspiring. While some collect by company, other collectors amass by vintage, design, material and color. The desirability of antique fishing lures is orchestrated by three key factors:
Vintage - 19th century and early 20th century versions are usually the most desirable. A mid-19th century Haskell minnow lure, when sold at an auction in 1988 for $22,000, established the world record price for any lot of fishing tackle.
Rarity - This characteristic is transitory; a single fisherman might have owned dozens of lures considered rare by today's standards. Furthermore, highly publicized auction prices cause sellers to bring out similar lures in hopes of matching the prices. But when rare lures are sufficiently available, their value decreases dramatically.
State - The existing condition of the lure plays a major part in its desirability. However, because of their age and rarity, some lures are given special consideration when graded. The majority of antique fishing lures range from $50 to $1100.
The phrase "antique fishing lures" returns about half-a-million results on Google. These websites feature a large collection of high-quality vintage wood fishing lure collectibles by Heddon, Shakespeare, and early miscellaneous lure names like Haskell, Clark Expert, Woods Expert, Pardee, Charmer, Chippewa, Winchester, Donaly, K & K minnow, Harkauf, Pepper, Lane's, Miller's, North Channel, Vann-Clay, Worden, Rhodes, Jersey Expert, Abby & Imbrie, Case, Manistee, Kalamazoo, etc.
BIG Mike is a well known author, developer and Adsense expert as well as the owner of Niche Maniacs - a unique Adsense Marketing System designed to build long-term passive income streams from Adsense, YPN, Chitika and other PPC services.
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