Went to a small gunshow in Watkins Glen(you racing fans know it well) today, mostly just looking, but also trying to see if I could get a deal on a knife or two. I rambled around with my son, Connor, for a while looking to see who had what before trying to strike a deal. I found a guy in the farthest corner of the place who was selling mostly chinese stuff, but also happened to have some older, US made Schrade 175 florist knives and some melon knives. All were new and unused with advertising slogans on the scales. Your choice-15 bucks. I looked them over and it appeared that these knives may have been seconds, as the slogan lettering on most of them wasn't very crisp, some were kind of blurred. The guy claimed they came from some old guys collection, but I'd say they were Smokey closeouts bought in a batch. If he had bought a collection, where was the other stuff? Anyways, I went through them and picked the 175 with the best combo of good lettering and fit and paid the man. I figure thats what I would pay on ebay with shipping, maybe a little less. A pretty good deal for a "new/old" Schade. This knife will also go into my display when I finally find a display case that fits my needs, which is proving harder than I thought it would be.
I also tried to work a deal with a guy for a new Marbles Ideal with a couple of knives that I had brought for trade purposes, but his starting price was to high to begin with and I couldn't get enough equity on my trades to make a deal. Had to walk on that one, but that Marbles is a very nice knife and I may have to put that on my list. I really enjoy a good horsetrading session, but it seems that most guys won't do much of that anymore, they stick a price on and sit there talking to their buddies as customers drift on by. To me, a good sales man would be working the crowd, trying to get something going at his table, making it seem like thats where the action is and that he's willing to deal a little. Then again, I broke my first rule of gunshow dealing, never go until Sunday after lunch if you want to deal.Still, it was a relaxing way to spend a few hours on a dreary Sat.
I also tried to work a deal with a guy for a new Marbles Ideal with a couple of knives that I had brought for trade purposes, but his starting price was to high to begin with and I couldn't get enough equity on my trades to make a deal. Had to walk on that one, but that Marbles is a very nice knife and I may have to put that on my list. I really enjoy a good horsetrading session, but it seems that most guys won't do much of that anymore, they stick a price on and sit there talking to their buddies as customers drift on by. To me, a good sales man would be working the crowd, trying to get something going at his table, making it seem like thats where the action is and that he's willing to deal a little. Then again, I broke my first rule of gunshow dealing, never go until Sunday after lunch if you want to deal.Still, it was a relaxing way to spend a few hours on a dreary Sat.
