All things considered this was a decent sales period. For a while it was looking like there was going to be a postal strike, so I put my stores on vacation to make sure there weren’t going to be any issues with delivery. Fortunately the parties involved seem to have worked things out, at least for now. I actually sold a few things while on vacation mode too, and because the lockout hadn’t actually begun I was able to ship them out normally.
Otherwise, I was also busy with the move, meaning I didn’t have much time to list new items. I’m starting to get back into the rhythm of things again though.
1. Antique Chinese silver ring: On eBay for 65$. Found this January in TMR.
2. Lot of 13 5.25″ floppies, some of which held old Apple software: On eBay for 40$. I was kind of surprised, but not really when I looked these up and found out they were worth selling. There’s a healthy market for vintage computer stuff. I can’t remember where I found them though.
3. “Message of Israel” 1950s radio transcripts: On eBay for 45$. I had a box full of these, and I’m glad they sold before I moved. Found in Westmount last summer.
4. Garmin Nuvi GPS: On eBay for 50$. Just the device was included – I had none of the chargers or accessories. Found in February in TMR.
5. Original iPad: On Kijiji for 80$. This is the second working iPad I’ve found in my trash picking career. Both have turned up in the last six months. Found on McGill move-out day.
6. Charles de Gaulle tobacco pipe: On eBay for 70$. Found November 2015 in TMR.
7. Lot of old broken cellphones, mostly Blackberries: On eBay for 25$. These phones were just barely worth selling on eBay. Anything older is best recycled at this point, though the really old stuff (especially the old brick phones) can have some serious collectors value.
8. Vintage Ray-Bans, 12k gold filled: On eBay for 130$. These took a while to sell but that was mostly my own doing. I wanted to feel out of the market, so I started with a very high price and eventually worked my way down until they finally sold. The market for anything Ray-Ban related, especially the vintage stuff is pretty good! Found last summer in Hampstead.
9. Martin Wells eyeglass frames: On eBay for 25$. These would have sold for more, but there was a small crack on one of the arms.
10. Vintage 1960s Silva compass (“Sun Watch”): On eBay for 30$. I listed this compass last week and it sold within a day. Found not far from my old place in the Plateau.
11. Programme Officiel de Parti Quebecois, 1980: On eBay for 20$. I found this on Thursday, listed it on Friday and sold it on Saturday. It included an introduction by René Lévesque, the founder of the Parti Quebecois and Premier of Quebec from 1976-1985. Found in Outremont.
12. Yard sale: 330$. It was my first one in over a month, and the first at my new place. It went pretty well all in all, though I’ll have to find some folding tables for future sales. Some better signage would also help.
13. Magazine lot: to a friend for 100$. These included some of the vintage Vogues I found a while back, as well as some old Playboys I found in the Plateau. She intends to use them for collages.
Total: 1010$, 13980$ since the new year. I’m on pace to make around 25k in 2016.
Just to clarify for any new readers, the stated prices factor in the cost of shipping but not eBay / PayPal fees, which come to around 10% of the total transaction.