05-06-2005, 02:26 PM
I just re-read what I wrote last night in Post #8 at http://www.soviet-awards.com/forum/showt...#post38659 . I want to add something and I thought I'd start a new thread about it.
I didn't mean to discourage anyone from trying to find collectibles in Georgia or anywhere else. I don't have the means or inclination to try to "keep things for myself" in Georgia, even if that was possible. Which, of course, it isn't.
What I meant to say, besides "no", was that you definitely can find good collectibles there. It's just that the old days of picking through boxes of good orders and badges to find one in the condition you wanted are over. If you want to find and buy the good stuff, you have to come up with other ways of locating sellers. You also have to assume that they are at least somewhat familiar with going prices and you're not going to be paying $6 for $300 items.
My way works for me. I shared some of it, but not all of it, in my other post. It should result in me acquiring some nice pieces over the next few years and keeping alive some enjoyable friendships.
There are bound to be other ways as well. For instance, there are areas in the Caucasus and the FSU, in Georgia and elsewhere, that have little regular contact with the modern west. If you are able to get out into them and let it be known what you are looking for, you could probably turn up some rarities.
However, you would have to braver and/or dumber -- braver is easy, but I'll give you a run for your money for dumber -- than I am to do that. Being known in some of those places as the foreigner who has a lot of money to spend could easily get you robbed ... or much, much worse. There is no law in many of those areas, and in other areas it is the police or militia themselves who might do you in.
When I tell people in the west that there is no law, they often think I am exaggerating or that what I really mean is that there aren't many policemen. No, what I really mean is that there is no effective law enforcement of any kind outside of the main cities, and darn little inside them, and the cavalry really isn't coming if you get into any kind of trouble at all.
If you are thinking about buying Soviet and Imperial items at the source, think of it like a gold rush. The days of picking up nuggets out of a clear stream are over. Now the guys who find the gold are guys with good ideas about how to find the hidden deposits and who are willing to work hard to make their ideas pay off. Sure, I suppose there will still be the easy nugget now and then (God knows, I keep looking) but likely not often enough to pay for your efforts. And now you have to deal with claim-jumpers and bandits.
Finding collectibles at the source is fun and exciting, and reasonably safe if you don't do dumb things. You might very well get to be the very first collector who has ever owned, or even seen, a rare or previously unknown piece. That has happened to me.
I wish you success and the enjoyment of the hunt if you go in this direction, and don't forget to share your finds with the rest of us.
Chuck
I didn't mean to discourage anyone from trying to find collectibles in Georgia or anywhere else. I don't have the means or inclination to try to "keep things for myself" in Georgia, even if that was possible. Which, of course, it isn't.
What I meant to say, besides "no", was that you definitely can find good collectibles there. It's just that the old days of picking through boxes of good orders and badges to find one in the condition you wanted are over. If you want to find and buy the good stuff, you have to come up with other ways of locating sellers. You also have to assume that they are at least somewhat familiar with going prices and you're not going to be paying $6 for $300 items.
My way works for me. I shared some of it, but not all of it, in my other post. It should result in me acquiring some nice pieces over the next few years and keeping alive some enjoyable friendships.
There are bound to be other ways as well. For instance, there are areas in the Caucasus and the FSU, in Georgia and elsewhere, that have little regular contact with the modern west. If you are able to get out into them and let it be known what you are looking for, you could probably turn up some rarities.
However, you would have to braver and/or dumber -- braver is easy, but I'll give you a run for your money for dumber -- than I am to do that. Being known in some of those places as the foreigner who has a lot of money to spend could easily get you robbed ... or much, much worse. There is no law in many of those areas, and in other areas it is the police or militia themselves who might do you in.
When I tell people in the west that there is no law, they often think I am exaggerating or that what I really mean is that there aren't many policemen. No, what I really mean is that there is no effective law enforcement of any kind outside of the main cities, and darn little inside them, and the cavalry really isn't coming if you get into any kind of trouble at all.
If you are thinking about buying Soviet and Imperial items at the source, think of it like a gold rush. The days of picking up nuggets out of a clear stream are over. Now the guys who find the gold are guys with good ideas about how to find the hidden deposits and who are willing to work hard to make their ideas pay off. Sure, I suppose there will still be the easy nugget now and then (God knows, I keep looking) but likely not often enough to pay for your efforts. And now you have to deal with claim-jumpers and bandits.
Finding collectibles at the source is fun and exciting, and reasonably safe if you don't do dumb things. You might very well get to be the very first collector who has ever owned, or even seen, a rare or previously unknown piece. That has happened to me.
I wish you success and the enjoyment of the hunt if you go in this direction, and don't forget to share your finds with the rest of us.
Chuck
