I liked Pawn Stars when it first came on. I still like it a little - I visited the shop a few weeks ago when I was in Vegas.
But the newer shows have them bringing in "experts" for practically everything. The shows moves much more slowly.
And if you go to the shop, it is *small* and the stuff is mostly overpriced, I suppose because tourists want to come in and buy "something". I saw a 1921 silver dollar with a price tag of $400. I used to collect coins and have a few of these and they aren't worth nearly that much.
Let me call in a buddy to come take a look.....
Seriously, all those shows are fake to one level or another. They filmed one of the Storage Wars Texas episodes in town a few months ago and everyone who went to watch all said it was completely staged, down to moving in junk in empty lockers and setting up fake bidding. The Duck Dynasty folks aren’t too far from here and I’ve heard the same thing. All the beards, cammo, and drawl are all production driven. I know if you go to look up people like the contestants on Hells Kitchen, they are all models or actors, not actually chefs.
I have to admit, when I see one of the experts value an item at, say $5000, and then the seller is offered $400 for it, I almost throw something at the TV. Not because the Pawn Star guys are lowballing them (I’d *expect* them to do that), but because nine times out of ten, the idiot takes the offer after only a minimal amount of haggling.
I don’t care how much I needed money right now, I’d invest an afternoon in searching the internet to find a dealer or collector to deal with directly - you know that’s what the Pawn Star guys are going to.
” But the newer shows have them bringing in “experts” for practically everything. The shows moves much more slowly.”
I have a buddy who’s an expert in antique toilet seats. Let me give him a call and we’ll see what this thing is worth.