Sunday, Oct. 30, 2011 — Every once in a while, something rare pops up on eBay, and that recently happened; unfortunately I wasn’t in the position to pursue this very rare CW bug.
The bug at right is a Postal Telegraph Bug. I don’t know much about it, but the key collectors “in the know” say its exceeding rare because the keys most of them were destroyed by the company. I always look over unmarked bugs that show up on ebay, and the paddles on this one caught my eye — I had seen them somewhere before, and I remembered that this was a rare key.
My memory was correct, it was indeed a rarity. The seller did not know what he had, and I expect he was shocked when the item sold for well over $300! Had he known just how rare the item was, he probably could have attracted more bids.
I watched it, but I knew this one was an auction I probably would not win; in fact, I’m a little surprised the bidding was this low.
There may in fact be a glut of keys on the market right now, and this has depressed the prices. I watched a Mac Key standard and a Mac Key DeLuxe both sell for well under $90 each, which a year or so ago would have probably not been the case.
That observation may not be hard and fast, but its a gut feeling. When you have McElroy Mac Keys selling for $75 — deluxe ones at that — then I consider it proof prices are down.
Another piece of proof? A Vibroplex Zephyr sold for less than $60. While it is basically a Champion with a base that’s 1/2-inch narrower, the key is still one of the rarer keys the company made after 1925. Had I known how low it was going to go, I would have sniped it myself!
PONDERINGS … I have always wondered if there will ever be a point when the “gotta have it” level collectors all pass on to their final rewards … will there be a time when no one really gets into key collecting??
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