A reader writes:
i have 3 antique typewrites that i would like to know the value of them.
- webster shows no date in good condition
- royal deluxe no date in good condition
- olivetti underwood do date in good condition
they still all are in their cases
I’m afraid that appraising typewriters isn’t one of my specialities, but I’ll be of what help I can.
Since the monetary value of an item is based on the perceived utility it has in the eyes of its potential market, what you really need to do is determine what someone would pay for this, and there’s a quick way to do that: Put them on eBay and see what they sell for.
Of course, if they sell then you’ve got to give them to the person who bought them (or eBay will have your house burned down).
If you don’t want to sell them just yet but just want to get an idea then the thing to do is look at the prices of similar items that have recently been sold on eBay (not ones that people are still bidding on, since many people do what I do and wait until the last second to place a bid so as to minimize the chance of being outbid by someone else).
eBay really is the place to go for getting an idea of the market value of things like this. I heard an interview with an appraiser a while back talking about the fact that eBay has become the standard for accurate values these days, whereas before there were inefficient, market-constraining books that didn’t give you that good of an idea.
You could also try to find an antiques appraiser in your area (who will better be able to tell you if you’ve got a rare model on your hands–and thus whether you should set a special minimum price when you sell them on eBay) or go on the Antiques Roadshow if you can find where it’s being taped.
THERE’S ALSO AN ONLINE ANTIQUES APPRAISAL SERVICE HERE.
If you use it, be sure to include as much information about the typewriters as possible–including their model numbers.
Oh, and you could probably find some of those old appraiser’s books. Maybe you could get them on eBay!
