Primarily Petroliana Shop Talk Forums Shop Talk Petroliana Forums General Petroliana Discussion Price guide recommendations?

Seeking any advice as to any price guides out there for signs and or cans(mainly round quarts). All of my books are 15-20 years old and wanting to update. Any referrals would be appreciated. Thanks.

It has been my experience that you need to simply adjust for inflation. These references were pricey to have printed and with a limited buying force, difficult to move. Thereby fewer are being produced today. Going to shows/auctions and watching what these typically fetch, will give you a good feel when buying or selling. Not everything is in the books. Paul www.severngaspumps.com

There are so many factors involved in the sales price of a sign, that publishing a guide in todays market would be impossible.
If someone is trying to sell a sign, they probably have it priced where they would feel comfortable if it sells. The same should apply to the buyer. He should only buy items that he feels comfortable on the price and won't regret at a later date.
These rules go out the window on ebay pricing for "buy it now", because these sellers will inflate the price to allow for low ball offers, their costs, and general lack of knowledge on a realistic value. The old "you can't get it if you don't ask it" theory!
Do your homework. Monitor ebay final sales on a daily basis. Follow the sales prices on Old Gas. Attend any gas & oil shows that might be near you. Spend a day watching an online auction over proxibid, or one of the other online companies. Costs nothing to watch, but the education is invaluable!
If you're looking to buy something privately, you can ask for a value on Old Gas, but members have become reluctant to price anything because of the influx of pickers that are too lazy to do their own homework and are looking for a quick answer in order for a quick turn around on something that they just bought and don't have a clue about.
Its a very slippery slope when trying to value one of these artifacts in todays market, because it seems to change so rapidly. Its a lot of fun, but requires some diligence and some study to be accurate.
Good luck and at least you came to a reputable place to try and figure the game out!--By the way, be prepared to spend a lot of time at it! Its a lifelong journey that comes with a lot of twists and turns in the road, and few ever really figure it out, they just become pretty good players!

The one thing Kevin didn't mention is the local auctions, no internet. With so many people watching picking, etc. shows, they think a gas pump or a sign is worth $1000s. Even way back in 1990 I saw common 515s going for over $2500, a couple of months ago a pump most of you wouldn't give $3000 for, selling for over $6000. This might be a great market to sell pumps and signs, but be on guard and don't get caught in a bidding war.

Jack Sim