OsiaBoyce
Well-Known Member
We had us here one of those down the highway yardsales yesterday, as usual the first Saturday in June. Last year I had my truck roll down the mountain I call a front yard and I did not make it. There's a story about it here someplace.
I figured I could have more luck aquiring bottles buy trying to sell some and putting out a sign that 'I buy bottles' than riding up and down the road looking for something I don't have.
I was doing good early selling a few porcelain and enamel early on. A license plate collector
http://www.scplates.com/
from a 100+ miles away happened to stumble upon me, and I sold him a few. I knew the guy, and he just happened to be in town working the peach crop this year. I found that to be quiet serendipitious.
Anyhow sometimes during the moring two little kids about 8 or 9 showed up and started looking at my bottles. He pulled out this really nice ss Coke from Columbia. It was marked on the bottom $35, he did not see it and ask "How much?". I ask him he liked it and he let me know he did. I said "Two dollars." He reached his hand in his pocket and pulled out a zip lock pag full of change and a few dollar bills. Now of course I took it. He and his brother ran off happy.
Well a few minuets later grandma showed up and I heard her tell the kids they paid two much for the bottle. I went on to explain to her that it was a $40.00 bottle and was at least 100 years old. She moved on and the kids stayed behind looking at bottles. I went on to show them how to date them w/ the Laurens Glass Works marks..........................something simple, no need to confuse them w/ OI dating.
By the time those kids left, they had, 2 ss Cokes, 2 1913 Pepsis from S.C.. 8 painted lables from the S.C. and Georgia. A dozen Nat. Geos. from 1918-1924. I got to tell ya I love kids, we have 13 grandkids, so it's required.
Besides I'd rather make them happy than to do business w/ someone who thinks they can make a profit off of me or some damn Shiek from Qatar.
Then Cracker Bubba shows up w/ his wife who has less teeth than I do.
First off he pisces me off by the way he greats me by telling me he has been waiting while I had been braging to my wife.................I had been talking to Paula who had brought me my meds and I was telling her how good I was doing.
Anyway I had three crates of bottles w/ some midgrade bottles in them..........Hornet, Heep Good, Jet, Beau Regards, Lee, McFuddy, Old Stand Buy................yall get the idea. He's says "How much for a full crate?" I tell him give me a second......................... "$300.00" I tell him...........ya would have thought I shot his dog or wife....................not much difference. Then he goes on to tell me he's a bottle collector. Funny,he lives 10 miles from me and I had never seen or heard of him. So then he pulls out the Hornet,Old Time Root Beer,3 Centa and an embossed Jacksons Root Beer [ the one that looks like a tree w/ chains on it ]. Again "How much?"................"$75.00" was my reply. He goes "NO WAY.", then his wife wants to know the book I get my prices from. WTF? I tell her I've been doing bottles for over 40 years. They stormed of in a huff................I should have told them "You can leave in a huff. Or you can leave in a minute and a huff." Love that Groucho.
Anyway, that's my story about Grandmas and Crackers, now let me go bother someone.
I figured I could have more luck aquiring bottles buy trying to sell some and putting out a sign that 'I buy bottles' than riding up and down the road looking for something I don't have.
I was doing good early selling a few porcelain and enamel early on. A license plate collector
http://www.scplates.com/
from a 100+ miles away happened to stumble upon me, and I sold him a few. I knew the guy, and he just happened to be in town working the peach crop this year. I found that to be quiet serendipitious.
Anyhow sometimes during the moring two little kids about 8 or 9 showed up and started looking at my bottles. He pulled out this really nice ss Coke from Columbia. It was marked on the bottom $35, he did not see it and ask "How much?". I ask him he liked it and he let me know he did. I said "Two dollars." He reached his hand in his pocket and pulled out a zip lock pag full of change and a few dollar bills. Now of course I took it. He and his brother ran off happy.
Well a few minuets later grandma showed up and I heard her tell the kids they paid two much for the bottle. I went on to explain to her that it was a $40.00 bottle and was at least 100 years old. She moved on and the kids stayed behind looking at bottles. I went on to show them how to date them w/ the Laurens Glass Works marks..........................something simple, no need to confuse them w/ OI dating.
By the time those kids left, they had, 2 ss Cokes, 2 1913 Pepsis from S.C.. 8 painted lables from the S.C. and Georgia. A dozen Nat. Geos. from 1918-1924. I got to tell ya I love kids, we have 13 grandkids, so it's required.
Besides I'd rather make them happy than to do business w/ someone who thinks they can make a profit off of me or some damn Shiek from Qatar.
Then Cracker Bubba shows up w/ his wife who has less teeth than I do.
First off he pisces me off by the way he greats me by telling me he has been waiting while I had been braging to my wife.................I had been talking to Paula who had brought me my meds and I was telling her how good I was doing.
Anyway I had three crates of bottles w/ some midgrade bottles in them..........Hornet, Heep Good, Jet, Beau Regards, Lee, McFuddy, Old Stand Buy................yall get the idea. He's says "How much for a full crate?" I tell him give me a second......................... "$300.00" I tell him...........ya would have thought I shot his dog or wife....................not much difference. Then he goes on to tell me he's a bottle collector. Funny,he lives 10 miles from me and I had never seen or heard of him. So then he pulls out the Hornet,Old Time Root Beer,3 Centa and an embossed Jacksons Root Beer [ the one that looks like a tree w/ chains on it ]. Again "How much?"................"$75.00" was my reply. He goes "NO WAY.", then his wife wants to know the book I get my prices from. WTF? I tell her I've been doing bottles for over 40 years. They stormed of in a huff................I should have told them "You can leave in a huff. Or you can leave in a minute and a huff." Love that Groucho.
Anyway, that's my story about Grandmas and Crackers, now let me go bother someone.