Antiques Collectibles Books

This book will help you cut the stress of downsizing your life or settling an estate in half or more with its no-nonsense, clearly defined step-by-step suggestions for organizing, evaluating and dispensing property. Legal, tax and other tips highlighted throughout, as well as useful anecdotes of mistakes made and how to avoid them. Learn how, when and where to sell everything, and explore options for what's left. (Who knew you could sell natural fiber to scrapyards?)

I love that he provides questions to qualify the many professionals you may need to hire to ensure that they're working for you. Also his advice on how to navigate the sea of outstretched hands that suddenly appear is most helpful, especially for those who tend to cave to guilt. Estate sales, auctions, swap meets, consignment shops, garage sales and much more are discussed by an obviously discerning insider.

I never saw Inspector Collector on HGTV, so am not familiar with Rinker beyond this book, but I am from the PA Dutch country near where he's located and do appreciate getting what I pay for. I would recommend Sell, Keep or Toss to anyone who whether by choice or circumstance is facing a transition that requires unloading personal property.

This book was very helpful when deciding how to downsize for my parents. The book is organized well and gives tips to consider when the task is overwhelming. The book includes checklists, time frames for disposing items, facts that executers need to know, pricing guidelines, estate sale information, laws, etc.
This book was easy to follow and made my executer role much easier.

This is an awesome book for those with interest in early sewing machines. The photographs are first rate and the history is comprehensive and fascinating. The rating system puts all of the machines in perspective. I find myself referring to this book frequently.

I was looking forward to buying and reading this book because I purchased the first two editions and thoroughly enjoyed them. Even my wife, who does not totally share my interest in sewing machines, enjoyed this book. I really liked the more detailed photographs of these early sewing machines and the abundance of color photographs were right on. Everything about this carefully researched book is first class and a great deal for the money. I would have enjoyed seeing more photographs of early trade literature, but I am not complaining. So, to Mr. Bays I say, "CONGRADULATIONS for writing another informative, collectable book about antique sewing machines." James W. Slaten

great for anyone with an odd collection of antique porcelain trying to deciper the makers mark. Easy to use.

Exactly what I was expecting. A bit difficult to understand at first, but once you understand the layout it really makes it easy to use for reference.

Overall it is helpful. I am really just getting into this, so it is great to have something I can refer to to get an idea of where the item I have comes from.

Rather coplete book but-alas-full of mistakes in entries concerning German and Austrian porcelain.Take for example the Meissen porcelain:the authors put together in one large pile Meissen proper,Thieme factory,Fr.Hirsch,Helena Wolfsohn and other factories,though these are absolutely different things.The authors should make a bit of research before starting the project:What amazes me is that this is the 46th edition of the book and nobody ever corrected those mistakes.

As with the Kovels other books, this reference is very exhaustive and complete. There are, perhaps, some mistakes, but given the volume of information here that is to be expected. I find I reach for this book first when I'm trying to identify a piece of this age group, and usually find what I'm looking for here. Easy to travel with, from antique shop to auction. A good buy.

This is the best compendium of pictures and details about the Modern Furniture movement!

did not someone write that they are coming out with a new edition in fall 2004? this is the only problem with this edition. it is not updated. soon to be resolved it seems.

I was disappointed with the book and returned it. Nothing by Robsjohn Gibbings. Nothing by Harvey Probber. Only a single piece by Wormley. Only two by Finn Juhl. Instead, the selection seems weighted heavily toward austere Italian designs of metal and glass, esp. those produced in the 1960s and later. I did not expect the editors to show such a lack of interest in wood. And given the book's definitive-sounding title, I did not expect them to adopt such an rigid and uninteresting definition of "modern."

The third edition of Jerryll Habegger and Joseph H. Osman's SOURCEBOOK OF MODERN FURNITURE should be on the reference shelves of ANY serious interior design collection. Appearing in its third revised edition, SOURCEBOOK provides one of the most authoritative guides to furniture and lighting designs of the 20th and 21st centuries in print, pairing color photos with features of works by hundreds of notable designers. Photos arranged by type of furniture or fixture make it simple for quick look-ups, while lists of suppliers and indexes of designers and manufacturers provide invaluable cross-referencing.

As predicted, the 3rd edition is OFF THE HOOK!!! The 3rd edition, published in 2005, has close to 700 new entries. Nearly half of the photos are in color and the authors have included web site information for manufacturers. This latest edition is in the collection of prominent museums and academic institutions across the globe, especially universities which have significant design and architecture programs. This is certainly a must have edition for the intellectually astute connoisseur of furniture and design.

BTW, many of the listed reviews are referring to the 2nd edition which is now 10 years old!!! Check to be sure which edition other reviewers are referring to before making a purchase decision...you wouldn't want to miss out!!

this reveiw of history's firearms has one glaring ommision. the glock was not the first polymer framed handgun, however it was a major leap forward in the world of guns. hecklern and koch did it first, but glock made the concept of polymer frame usable and affordable.
in addition to the lack of glocks, i also disliked the tone of some of his articles.

note: his book, the gun: a visual history, does include mention of the G17.

This book was a gift for Christmas for my grandson. He said he likes it very much. He called me in Arizona to thank me for it, I figure it is what he wanted. I guess it's fine. As long as he's happy, that's all I care.

I have been learning a lot about modern handguns, and I wanted a book that would give me some history of guns, how their operation has evolved, and an overview of the types of handguns in existance. This book is definitely interesting and fun to flip through, and has some great photos. I liked the photos of the older flint-lock pistols, pepperbox revolvers, and guns of the old-west. Some of the oddities were especially interesting, including the Japanese sword-gun (not a bayonet, but a full-size sword with a handle that was a gun). Also, I liked the WWII Liberator, made by GM to be cheap, easy to build, and to dropped in mass on Germany for partisans to get. However, I felt the book was lacking in a few key areas. I understand that the author can't possibly include every gun ever. But why are there so many examples of home-made guns throughout the years, and no entry for the Glock? The Glock was a revolutionary gun, with an interesting history of unknown Gaston Glock with no gunmaking experience making a gun for the Austrian army that bucked much conventional thinking regarding guns. Who would think a plastic frame would make a reliable gun? Now, every gun store you go into is packed with Glocks, and it is the favorite sidearm of many LEOs including police and FBI. Most CCW books I read recommend the Glock. Half the new guns I see today are essentially Glock copies (Springfield XD, Steyr, S&W SW, etc). The only mention of the Glock in this book is in a side-panel about SWAT teams, where it mentions that SWAT teams use Glocks among other weapons.

This book was an interesting read, but I wonder what criteria the author picked for each gun he included. I would have also liked more diagrams, showing how each gun works and the progression of various styles of gun. I give the book 4 stars since it was fun to flip through, and makes a good coffee table book, but for serious study of firearm history, you might need to go elsewhere.

This book looks sweet on our coffee table. The pictures are beautiful- especially the ones of antique rifles. My knowledge of firearms has greatly increased just by reading it in my spare time. There is fascinating history about guns that I had never heard of previously. I like the way the book is organized by firearm type and country of origin. I'm truly glad I purchased this book.

The photos are great! There was little information to really tell about each gun pictured.

Being a collector of Indian artifacts and coming from a family of the same, I think this book is awesome. It is informative and, with the pictures and values given, makes a great resource for the information I was looking for. I had great fun looking up and matching the pictures to the artifacts that I had found in our area of Wyoming. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in artifacts.

I was completely dissapointed in this book. On the pro side: it has a lot of pretty pictures and is hardbound. That is about it. It has no technical merit, nor is there any organization to it. It is simply a mosaic of photographs many of which are subjective as to whether they are truley paleo or not, and they do not represent all paleo tools equally. You will have to work to find examples of redstones here. It may be suitable as a coffee table nicknack, but as a reference or good read....Zzzzzz.

Once the reader is able to get by the occasional editorial oversight, any serious student, artifact collector or just someone interested in Paleo-Indian/Native American artifacts will find this book an excellent and most enjoyable resource. It is both easy to read as well as full of pictures of these hard to find artifacts. Beautifully photographed...that in itself makes it worth sitting down and enjoying.

As previous critiquer noted there is an error in the book RIGHT OFF THE BAT! Could ANYONE have proofread this and missed it? It made me not trust the rest of the book, valid as it might be.

This is a BEAUTIFUL book, and well-worth the relatively low Amazon price. However, there are some flaws in it, which might make its usefulness a tad questionable to serious students of Paleo-Indian artifact values and identities. Several pictures are incorrectly ID'ed (see page 6 and 7...the same picture is used for a fluted point and a clovis point. The same thing happens on page 97. This is probably the result of carelessness on the part of the type/image setter, not the author, but it does make one wonder. The images are spectacular (and I'd give my eye-teeth to find any ONE of them), so ignore my carping and purchase this book. It is huge and loaded with full-color photos of points and tools that will make your mouth water. I want to go to Ohio and hunt for artifacts!

Many of the drawings are very difficult to study. Some are faint, some are drawn with very thick ink lines, and some are so small as to be virtually useless. Don't buy this book unless you can see it in a B&M store and determine if the drawings you are interested in can even be seen

Overall I am definitely happy I bought the book, it is worth the money and everyone who has or plans to have a substantial collection of firearms or an interest in firearms should purchase this book.

There are inconsistencies in terminology that make it a bit hard to read, for example on the Japaneese Nambu diagram they call it a "frame" while on the Glock diagram they call it a "receiver." This is misleading since both parts serve the excact same purpose.

That being said, the only MAJOR gripe I have with this book - the issue that caused it to lose a star- is its lack of coverage of more modern firearms.

Here is a short list of firearms the book has no coverage of that it should:
CZ rifles
Saiga shotguns and rifles
Imbel and DSA FALs
AK-74 rifles
Century Arms Bullpup AK
Fn2000
Beretta CX4 storm carbine, RX4 rifle
Benelli M3 Super 90
Robinson XCR

The list goes on

Also it is very hard to find many military firearms even if they have listings, one has to look under "mitchel arms" to find the only ak-47 and one of the few Ar-15s even though many manufacturers make such weapons and they are far more popular then other series of guns which have far more coverage.

-Had to look under "brno" to find the CZ 75 pistol, the book should take more effort to put things under the names which they are known.


So in conclusion the book is a great resource for any gun owner and especially those with mainly older firearms in their collections, the price is right and with a few additions and better organization it could of gotten five stars.

I was a bit disappointed with this volume. Probably should have paid more attention to the description. I assumed that there would be an exploded view of each gun I own-and wanted to buy. This would then serve as "do all" reference for componentry. Not quite--lot's of drawings but not some of the more common Taurus revolvers among others. Some of the drawings are also a bit difficult to see/read numbers part shapes etc..Not a bad investment-just not a great investment. Excellent paperweight!!

This is a pretty great book, it's layout and design is very simple and straightforward, and if you're strictly into traditional handguns, and traditional rifles I.E: hunting and target shooting, then this book is probably fine for you, however there are some serious issues with what it lacks, particularly in terms of military weapons, and some newer guns. I will be right to the point and just list all of the guns which this book does not contain, but really should have, they are (in no particular order): AK74, Dragunov SVD, RPK, M60, Hi-point guns, Kel-Tec guns, Kahr guns, AR-18, Barrett guns, Saiga shotguns, Saiga rifles, Tikka rifles, Blaser rifles, HK G-36, HK MP5-K, IMI Tavor, FN Five-seveN, FN Police rifle, Makarov pistol, Springfield XD, Beretta CX4 storm, Beretta PX4 storm, Taurus 24/7, Taurus Tracker, HK UMP, and Suomi M-31. This is just some of the guns which I could not find in the book, and granted, while some of the guns are fairly new (coming out in 2004), many of these I was shocked were not in the book, like no Saiga rifles or shotguns, no AK74, no Dragunov, no HI-points, no Kel-Tecs, no Makarov. And other little things like how things are listed is sometimes frustrating, like the AK47 is listed under "Mitchell arms"??? And there aren't many diagrams for the moderns typical AR-15, just the original Colt style M16. I guess the major problem is that while it lacks many military and otherwise typical guns, at the sametime this book devotes many pages to totally useless, obscure, and obsolete guns which many people have never heard of. SO it isn't that there is not enough space for all these guns which aren't in the book, there are just several guns in the book which don't need to be there, and should be replaced with those which aren't in it. Like they have a diagram for the Wilkinson "Linda" which is a Tec-9 look-alike, I mean come on, how many people have a freakin Wilkinson "Linda", definitely far fewer than those who have Saigas, Kel Tecs, Hi Points, or even Barrett .50 cal rifles.

I can only say, if you are in the business, it's like having a larger "Gun Parts" book. I have only found one other reference better. This is a MUST HAVE. I use it all the time. If you can work from exploded views, this is for YOU!

I love art and am always on the look out for great art books. Erte is a favorite artist of mine and when I found this inexpensive book, I jumped at it! Plenty of pictures, mostly black and white, and less fluff! Too many art books fill entire pages with well known images. This book is the opposite and has tons of great illustrations from Erte. For the price, who can complain? I would recommend this book to anyone who loves the 20's, studies fashion, and/or enjoys art.

This is a lovely little book that includes many georgeous fashion illustrations in the art deco style. An excellent book for the art deco enthusiast, or those those looking for new design ideas.

One of the best! Truly unusual designs for creative figurative art dolls. Highly recommended.

With this book you get a glimpse into the master's mind at the birth of Art Deco and beyond. Erte's designs flourished in the mid-20's, when the Deco age was new, but you can still sense a taste for the noveau and baroque ages in his art and gorgeous designs. Erte was a pioneer artist untill his death and anyone seeking to learn true fashion design will benefit from the vision of Erte.

These designs may not always be emblematic of actual clothing in the 1920's, but they represent some of the most innovative, dramatic, and stylish stuff from the era, and remain inspirational to this day. The book features a few of his more ordinary designs, but also includes "Harper's Bazar" covers, theatrical designs, and some amazing haute couture. While there are no pictures of extant costumes, this book of illustrations, quite a few in color, is beautiful, stylish, and motivating.

This book was very helpful. I was able to identify 10 pieces that had been sitting on my shelf! I was like a kid in a candy store with all the pictures.

I found the text to be very informative. The pictures were clear and the descriptions were accurate.
The histtory of the LE Glass company was helpful in identifying the value of items I have purchased and am presently selling.
I would highly reccomend it to persons that are collecting or have an interest in the history of american depression glass ware.

Loved the book!!! Has pictures of glass pieces that I am collecting with a value along with the photo.

We are fairly new glass collectors and have found this book to be very helpful. The estimated values seem a bit on the high side and have quite a large range, but do give you an idea of what things are worth. We collect Moon & Star and have never found such a complete listing as in this book.

Tom Felt's L.E. SMITH GLASS COMPANY: THE FIRST ONE HUNDRED YEARS blends a historical overview with an identification and value guide perfect for L.E. Smith glass collectors. Measurements, maker's marks, years of production and color photos of pieces throughout make this a 'must' for any serious collector of the glassware.