MAX Show Finds!

[Hohenstaufen]

Everyone,

Well, If you didn't get the chance to go to the MAX this year, then you IMO didn't miss much! I thought that the show was D-E-A-D , dead! Of course I will go next year, because it is close to me, but I hope that Johnson and Wittman tries to regenerate or revive the MAX. Anyway, I did manage to do some trading for a tough set of "Deutschland" straps. They are a bit longer, IMO, for the overcoat, but it excellent cond. Other than that, that was it. I did hear that an old collection was brought to the show and the following items were bought at reasonable prices: a type II plane tree helmet cover, a M42 SS smock, and a mint, unissued, SS Panzer jacket with factory sewn sleeve eagle. One guy showed me his purchase of a flatwire rune tab that he bought for $100.00 and it was near mint cond. So, let's see what others bought or traded for at this years MAX! Enjoy, Grant

[DougO]

Very nice boards Grant. Thanks for posting them and for posting an update on the ss items for all of us ss collectors that did not get to attend this year. I hope other attendees will do the same.
Doug

[Stahlhelm]

I'm also happy to hear the update, but not so happy to hear that the show was "dead." Hmmmmm. I really wonder what accounts for the deadness. At a time when the popularity of this stuff seems to be at its peak, a show which is all about it is dead? Oh course, I believe your evaluation Grant, but I am honestly confused about why that's the case. It just doesn't add up correctly. It's really like 1 + 1 = 3 , or something like that.

If this should be some illogical sign of a sag in the collecting craze, then maybe that could actually be a good thing for non-moneyrich collectors like myself. Maybe the prices will even drop enough that I can afford a nice SS-Panzer Wrapper!!! Just kidding, of course, but it was a nice thought anyway.

Definitely dreaming,

Chris

P.S. I would really like to know what other members think is causing extremely low attendance at a major militaria show, when collecting seems to be at an all-time high. For me, this is like solving the Riddle of the Sphinx or something...

[Lloyd I.]

Prices are a big factor and so are fakes and the fact that shows like MAX and SOS are overpriced. Gun shows yield more affordable finds these days than military shows.

[Stahlhelm]

Lloyd, you are ABSOLUTELY right about that! I was unable to attend The MAX show this year, as I had planned. Instead I went to the very large and local National Gun Day and JAG Show in Louisville, Kentucky. I've actually found some better stuff there than I have previously found at the bigger shows, as you say. For example, last time I found a couple of very reasonably-priced SS-Ausweiss' definitely worth more than I paid. This time, I found what has turned out to be a 100% original photograph of Hitler, with Keitel and Raeder. I've been a photographer for nearly 25 years now, and it sure looks good to me. I also showed it to another photographer with even more experience than me, and he also said it is undoubtedly an original photograph. It is also nothing I or anybody I know has ever seen published in any of the reference books. It may be a never-before-anywhere published photo for all I know. What's better is that I got it for a very reasonable price, less than I believe it is really worth. I sure doubt I could have found a deal like that at the MAX or the SOS where everybody is looking for that kind of thing! Anyway, I've always wanted a real photo like that, and that's what I got at a good price, someplace where I would have least expected to find it. So again, I do agree with you 100%, from my own personal experience. Sometimes the best stuff isn't at the biggest places or at the biggest prices.

Thanks for the input,

Chris

[tgn]

Everyone, Well, If you didn't get the chance to go to the MAX this year, then you IMO didn't miss much! I thought that the show was D-E-A-D , dead! Enjoy, Grant

Hate to disagree, but I had a great time at the show. Had some nice sales, mingled with pleasant company both during and after the show each day, saw some wonderful items, made a few purchases, and especially enjoyed talking with you!

Tom

P.S. I promise to bring those straps to show you at the SOS!

[BrianK]

Stahlhelm - I agree with you that original Hitler photos are underpriced & hard to find. I just bought an original photo (I'm no expert but I think so) of Hitler & Himler reviewing a parade. Himmler is wearing the old "33 style SS kepi, & Hitler is saluting. Bought it for $150 which I think is a bargain.

[Lloyd I.]

Example, this crusher I also picked up at yesterdays gun show. It's a Flight Ace. Uncleaned original and affordable. Shows honest wear from use and you can literally feel where the headset sat.

[Lloyd I.]

front view then the tag.

[Lloyd I.]

The tag. At a military show I would have paid on the low end $135 and most likely upwards of that.

[Lloyd I.]

The Deutschland boards are nice and to be fair, harder to find at a regular mill gun show. All my early SS stuff sold in my divorce were from gun shows.

I have two unpublished Hitler, Kietel, and Karl Wolf photos that you guessed it, popped up at a gun show. I paid $15. They are of an Italian conference but I dont know which one.

[SgtB]

[quote=Lloyd I.;2216962] . . .All my early SS stuff sold in my divorce . . quote]

Ouch! I see you've been there too! I feel your pain. And that certainly explains your location. But don't worry buddy, things'll pick up. I'm on the slow road to recovery, but hope is on the horizon. Just give it time.

[Stahlhelm]

Stahlhelm - I agree with you that original Hitler photos are underpriced & hard to find. I just bought an original photo (I'm no expert but I think so) of Hitler & Himler reviewing a parade. Himmler is wearing the old "33 style SS kepi, & Hitler is saluting. Bought it for $150 which I think is a bargain.

Yes, my photo is also a larger sized photo, and I got it for $200.00. So, I'm very satisfied with that too.

The great thing is that since it was mainly a gun show, most people weren't looking for militaria, and even fewer people were looking for photographs. So, the picture got little attention, the dealer wanted to sell it and, with my photography experience, I could independently be my own expert and reasonably verify it as an original photo. I guess it was the perfect set of circumstances that actually worked out for me, for a change--especially since I had been looking for an original photo like that for some time. The added bonus is that I've never seen this photo published anywhere before. I'm now really curious about just how much it's really worth--surely more than $200.00. If nothing else, I can at least say that it's worth more than that to me, and that's really all that ultimately matters.

Since this is a thread about MAX Show finds, I'll finally connect original photos to the original topic of this thread, by asking a related question I really do want to know about. Did any of you MAX Show attendees see any such original photos this year at the show? If so, what was the price range or average price for photos like that? I attended the MAX Show last year myself, and although I looked hard, I found not one such photo in the whole show. So, I suspect that they are not so common.

Just curious,

Chris

[Felix]

It would be nice to get some info from this quite important trend setting show. In what direction is the field of ss collection going?

Would be nice for all of us who didnt attend to show to get some info. What items where and what was cold? I have seen that SS cufftitles are rather cold for the moment but most SS head gear is really hot. This is of course based on my online browsing through dealers lists and whats sold here.

What items did the russians buy except for daggers? I have read in several threads that russians bought a lot of items, especially daggers.

Was the show littered with fakes and was the general prices for items like camo covers and SS officer sleeve eagles going through the roof?

"Felix" - N. Hansson

[Dirlewanger]

After bracing myself for disappointment before getting to the MAX, I was very pleased with the show. Dealer turnout seemed to be a bit better than the last Monroeville show and most prices were not astromonically high. I do not think that the MAX will ever pass the SOS in any catagory but it still is a good show.