The Journal.
Plain guides to what things are worth and why. For collectors, and for anyone pricing a thrift find, a garage sale or an estate sale before they buy, sell or walk away.
Thrift kitchenware worth a second look
Pyrex, CorningWare, Fiesta, jadeite, and cast iron: which marks matter, which chips end the flip, and when a dish is just a dish.
Raw or graded: what a grade changes about a card
A graded card and a raw card can be the same piece of cardboard at very different prices. What graders look at, what a slab proves, and when grading is worth the fee.
Thrift-store books worth picking up
Most thrift books are reading copies. First editions, book club copies, and children’s books follow different rules. How to check the copyright page.
Thrift-store records: what to check
A famous cover is not a pressing. How to read a label, a runout, and the scratches before you buy a thrift-bin LP or a 45.
Video games at the thrift store
Loose carts, dead save batteries, and fakes of the expensive titles. How to read a label and what “untested” has to mean in the listing.
Box and papers: what a watch’s paperwork is worth
Why a full set sells for more than the watch alone, what counts as papers, and where to find the reference and serial numbers that tie a watch to them.
Thrift-store tools worth buying
Hand tools with a readable mark, a plane that still has its iron, and the power tools to leave. What rust means, and what a missing battery means.
Goodwill outlet bins, without the frenzy
How outlet bins are priced, what is worth digging for, and the condition problems a pound price does not fix.