[chaos4001]

I just cleaned out a knockout in my house and found several hundred Fortune magazines and several hundred National Geographics.

The Fortunes range in date from 1948 to 1965 (and it's about all of the issues from that period, Dad says that Grandpa saved them all.)

The National Geographics are more recent.

I also found a Lionel Train Set from '77.

Do you think I could make some money selling this stuff on Ebay? Dad thinks the ads from the magazines will have some sort of value.

[Soundy]

Depends what condition everything is in. Magazines are probably not worth much unless you have complete "collections" (what would be considered a "collection" is pretty vague in itself, but with the NGs I'd think maybe complete year sets) in pristine condition. I can't imagine old Fortune magazines being worth anything more than firestarter.

The really old Lionel trains (50s/60s models that are all metal) are worth some good coin, but I don't think anything as new as '77 would be worth much either, except maybe to a collector who's looking for specific items to complete a set... and again, they'd have to be in absolutely mint condition to be worth more than a couple bucks. I could be wrong about the value of the newer trains, though - you could try asking at http://www.lionelcollectors.org/

But hey, it doesn't cost anything to post an auction on eBay... doesn't hurt to put them up there and see what people are willing to bid for them. The important thing to remember is not to short yourself on the shipping costs - shipping a stack of magazines could get expensive, so find out first what it would cost to actually send them to a prospective buyer, and be sure to include that shipping price in your ad.

[chaos4001]

Well, again, the way I've heard it is that you sell individual ads from the magazines, specifically car ads. Having looked at some of those auctions, some ads go for about 5 bucks, so I'll have to keep looking around.

[Soundy]

Like I said, it doesn't cost anything to post an auction... just make sure of what you need to actually send. If it's just one page with an ad, great, you can throw it in an envelope.... if you're supposed to send the whole magazine, be sure to factor in what it will cost to ship it.

I don't understand why anyone would want to collect old car ads specifically, but if you've found auctions of people selling and buying them, those would be the people to ask.

[badders]

I had to read this thread - from the title I thought you were asking if there were any funeral services on ebay!

[inetbogey]

just my 2 cents worth, 2 years ago on my birthday i received one of those "this is what happened on this day" kind of things and what really made it special was with it came a national geographic for my year and month and a life mag for that year and month. (original mags) with a baby photo of me in a small frame. i thought it had to be one of the best gifts i ever received, and it is still out on my coffee table. so maybe there are more uses for them than just for collectors.

[muffintop]

If you do end up selling the magazines, but sure to send them via "media mail". That's the cheapest way to send printed material such as books. It will save you a bundle. I'm not 100 percent sure if magazines are included in that rate, but NG magazines might be. Ask at the post office or check on their website. www.usps.com
Also there is a charge for listing an auction. I think it's something like 35 cents or so, and there is an additional charge at the end of your auction that is based on a percentage of the final winning bid. Do a search on ebay under completed auctions to see what similar items have sold for or do a search on current auctions to see if they are getting bids.

[iltos]

Originally Posted by chaos4001

Well, again, the way I've heard it is that you sell individual ads from the magazines, specifically car ads. Having looked at some of those auctions, some ads go for about 5 bucks, so I'll have to keep looking around.

if you'd posted this two years ago, i would have laughed....but you're right, there is more money in the pieces of the magazines, that the magazines themselves.....

gotta story about something similar....

behind our local library, there is a free book drop....i started going there with my daughter when she was little, just to let her look through the books before we went inside the library....and then i kept going, 'cause i'd find something of interest every once in while....

about two years ago, somebody had left a 5th edition u.s. atlas from 1877....it was in pretty good shape, so i brought it home....online i was surprised to find a ton of info on it, and shocked to learn that it was worth about 2k in "pretty good" shape....

i also noticed that many of the sites had individual pages of the atlas for sale....in particular a map of chicago showing the extent of the fire.....depending on their condition (and the popularity of the map), most maps where selling anywhere from 200 to 1500, with the page of the chicago map topping the list at 2500

so i finally took a close look at the atlas i had found....no chicago map....and a few other states were missing too....whoever had it before me probably made more than the value of the complete atlas by selling off parts of it.

i kept it tho....i like maps, and it's still a slice-o-history.

[laos]

Originally Posted by chaos4001

Well, again, the way I've heard it is that you sell individual ads from the magazines, specifically car ads. Having looked at some of those auctions, some ads go for about 5 bucks, so I'll have to keep looking around.

Once you cut ads out its over, the magazine will become close to worthless

Also, the shipping on ebay is where you make profit, asking for like 3-4$ first class and 6-7$ Priority mail USPS will give you profit. Add in the auctions profit can give you 2-10$ total profit

[Tstright]

Originally Posted by laos

Also, the shipping on ebay is where you make profit, asking for like 3-4$ first class and 6-7$ Priority mail USPS will give you profit. Add in the auctions profit can give you 2-10$ total profit

That's the reason I only buy from sellers who ship UPS. Why pay high cost for USPS when UPS is cheaper and faster.

[Soundy]

Originally Posted by Tstright

That's the reason I only buy from sellers who ship UPS. Why pay high cost for USPS when UPS is cheaper and faster.

Because UPS are useless gits with lazy, pinheaded delivery drivers. You get what you pay for.

[Tstright]

Originally Posted by Soundy

Because UPS are useless gits with lazy, pinheaded delivery drivers. You get what you pay for.

I've never had a problem with UPS in over 15 years....

[Soundy]

Good, next time, get your UPS folks to handle my deliveries, because every one that's ever been here has been useless. The last time I had to drive 30 miles out of my way to go to their depot because the driver didn't know how to ring a doorbell.

[Tstright]

Originally Posted by Soundy

Good, next time, get your UPS folks to handle my deliveries, because every one that's ever been here has been useless. The last time I had to drive 30 miles out of my way to go to their depot because the driver didn't know how to ring a doorbell.

Maybe it's the local help they hire...

[laos]

My father works in the USPS, We havnt had a problem ever. ALways used USPS Priority Mail