New guy here - excited to collect bottles, just need some steering

[inssane99ss]

Hi there, new here.

I have only been seriously looking for a couple of days, but have always been interested in antique bottles (medical primarily), tin/porcelein signs, and motor oil cans. I decided to start collecting bottles! Each one is so unique, and compact to store and display.

Here are some of my general concerns getting into the hobby...
- It seems difficult to look at an item for sale and match up what the value may be. I can use completed sales, but if no such comparison is found, IDK if I am way overpaying. There is a point where I don't want to pay X amount just because I like the bottle, it has to be at least worth the cost, if not a great deal.
- Don't want to get ripped off (fake)
- I want things that both I enjoy and hold value/rarity - I am being drawn towards labeled bottles, pre 1900, 'snake oil' products, linaments, bitters, poison, narcotic, and druggery bottles. I find all of these intriguing, the labels are diverse and clearly period pieces, and of course the dangerous ingredients that were combined.

Are there certain scams/product types to avoid or are a dime a dozen and not worth it?

Some that I have chosen to consider buying are the following (after hours of browsing ):

Wheaton Green glass skull/cross coffin shaped with RIP on the back poison bottle
Salvation oil paper label
Hostetters bitters good paper label
Swamp root bottle
cannabis/heroin/opium/morphine type bottles with good labels
Anything interesting in a cobalt/green glass and lattice type and skull/crossbone poison bottles

I have about 15 bottles picked out, going to research a bit and keep an eye on bidding, but I'm ready to get a couple of them when listings come closer to ending.

I will probably have more questions, and I have lots of learning.
I'd love to find some too, no idea where to start (in IL) but I can learn here.
Thanks for reading - feedback is appreciated!
Nick

 

[inssane99ss]

...now that I am looking at the Wheaton with skull, the listing says 1800/1900s but I am seeing it's usually worth $30 or so and were produced in the 70's? Even with the stamp W71H which is what the listing states.
Hmm, I'm calling it a night, but I have more to learn

 

[frozenmonkeyface]

Hi Nick! I am still new at bottle collecting, and I have been at it for about 10 months now. I think the main thing i could tell you from experience is do NOT expect to know it all any time soon! It still takes me quite some time to pin point stuff I find and even then I usually have to enlist the help of these guys, and let me tell you, they are AMAZING!

It is VERY beneficial to read anything they post even if it doesn't relate to the piece of glass you found or are considering. I do not have an extensive collection due to stupid cats and wonderful kiddos, but I love to go hunting at flea markets and thrift stores.

As far as the value of the bottles you listed are concerned, I will let the experts help you with that. I was just putting my two cents in on what I knew about being a new collector. I was hooked after I bought two gigantic tubs of glass at a yard sale. It was originally just a profit thing for me but the more I dug in the more it hooked me and its all about the glass now.

I may consider buying and selling just to get something else I want but if your going for pure profit, I personally wouldn't. There may be some people on here that disagree, and its probably because they know more about the glass than I do, but personally, I collect for the fun of it. I read about and comment on more glass than I take in!

I am glad you are getting into the hobby, welcome to the forum and best of luck to you!!!

~Wendy

 

[epackage]

The Wheatons skull coffins are newer but they bring good money at times(I have no good explanation for that), collecting labeled poisons and the like takes alot of study, many labels aren't original, especially when it comes to cannabis, heroin, morphine and cocaine. Sometimes the labels are complete fakes and other times the are "NOS"(new old stock), after some searching you'll find thousands of labels being sold on eBay making originals hard to spot. SUCKER after sucker has paid hundreds of dollars for labels that scumbags make on their computers at home and then age and pass off as real, WE HATE THOSE SCUMBAGS!!

Best thing to do is ask the members here if we think a bottle is real or not, or if it's worth the money the seller is asking by posting links or actual pics. We will give the skinny on any bottle you post, we're a good group of people for the most part.... Welcome aboard... Jim

 

[reach44]

Stay away from those Wheatons! lol

 

[inssane99ss]

Thank you for the good words.

I already noticed several that looked like fake labels on old bottles, and you had to read carefully but it said they were new labels, repo labels.
I'm sure others it is the same, but not disclosed.

Does this board have a list of reputable ebay listers or sellers? I have been gravitating towards those sellers that have lots of positive ratings on similar authentic items, not a guy that sells tires and has one bottle for auction.

What subforum is appropriate for posting up to ask if it's real?
There are a few I may hone in on this week and I wouldn't mind getting an opinion on a few at once. I'm sure it's not uncommon, but much of what I have been looking at appears to be authentic for different reasons.

 

[epackage]

'Current auctions and sales' or 'General chat about bottles' are both good places to post questions regarding whether a bottle is real or worth the starting bid, we don't have a list of good sellers but you'll get to know who's who after some time here. Check out the Scams and Frauds section for some scumbags to steer clear of...

 

[frozenmonkeyface]

Just try to get it in the closest category as possible and take a lot of good pictures. They want to see the lip, seam, and the bottom. Also any and all embossing. I think that is it, right Jim? haha

Oh, and also, try to get it in natural lighting. You may know all of this and I may be telling you something wrong but I am trying to help!

 

[inssane99ss]

Unless I'm looking in the wrong spot, I didn't see a scams and fraud section...?

Unfortunately, at this point I am working off of online listings, so whatever pictures they have, I would share those. Most have the picture types you listed.

Great, 1am, and I am looking up how to dig for bottles, and bottle dumps near Chicago, lol.

 

[RICKJJ59W]

If you are going to make any thing fake,make money! Why waste your skills on labels [8D]