Show us your Thrift and/or yard sale finds

[Dinerman]

A great modernist aesthetic to it. Very clean, like you say.

 

[tonyb]

I dig the travel alarm clock, too, Shangas.

Those things might not be quite obsolete in this age of smart phones and all, but I certainly wouldn't expect to see much growth in their sales numbers. But, you know, they don't need a battery, and there's a lot to be said for that.

Old windup alarm clocks are an area of mild interest to me. I got a couple of 'em, including a Westclox Spur model, with the square black face, which is cool looking but not at all valuable, seeing how they made about a gazillion of 'em.

I'm old enough to remember when just about everyone kept a windup clock on his or her bedside table. I recall it being common to put such a clock in the makeshift dog bed for the new puppy, as the ticking mimicked the momma dog's heartbeat, and thereby soothed the poor little barely weaned thing. (That was the theory, anyway.) But that has been so long ago that I had forgotten just how LOUD that ticking is. We just got used to it back then and tuned it out, I suppose, just as the person who lives under the flightpath pays no nevermind to the aircraft noise.

So my old windup clocks, which work just fine, very rarely get wound; they just sit there looking good, and drawing the occasional favorable comment from guests and reminiscences of how they or their parents or grandparents or whoever had one just like it. Yup, I say, they made about a gazillion of 'em.

 

[Shangas]

I had a red, wind-up clock during my childhood, and a blue one, which my father gave me. I forget what happened to the blue one...But the red one, I recall, broke from metal-fatigue or something. HOW, I have no idea.

All I recall was that one day, I was winding up the bell-spring, and then...CRACK! BANG!!

and the clock wouldn't run no more...I was so upset.

My interest in vintage stuff piqued my interest in these old clocks again, and I decided it'd be neat to have one on my desk or bedside table again. I picked that one because it had a nice outer case (It's a sort of tan brown colour) and the dial is clear and simple and easy to read, but without being boring.

Tony, would you recommend any kind of maintenance for these clocks? Do they need dusting or oiling or anything? Or "so long as they keep the right time" is all I need to know and do?

 

[davidraphael]

That White Tower sign is an incredible find

 

[tonyb]

I had a red, wind-up clock during my childhood, and a blue one, which my father gave me. I forget what happened to the blue one...But the red one, I recall, broke from metal-fatigue or something. HOW, I have no idea.

All I recall was that one day, I was winding up the bell-spring, and then...CRACK! BANG!!

and the clock wouldn't run no more...I was so upset.

My interest in vintage stuff piqued my interest in these old clocks again, and I decided it'd be neat to have one on my desk or bedside table again. I picked that one because it had a nice outer case (It's a sort of tan brown colour) and the dial is clear and simple and easy to read, but without being boring.

Tony, would you recommend any kind of maintenance for these clocks? Do they need dusting or oiling or anything? Or "so long as they keep the right time" is all I need to know and do?

I have no expertise in this matter, Shangas, so I can't speak with any authority. But I recall hearing warnings (back when everyone had a windup alarm clock) against over-winding them.

As a rule of thumb with just about anything old, it's best to avoid doing anything that runs any real risk of damaging the item or diminishing its value. You know, like how an antique dresser would be worth 10 times as much if it hadn't been refinished.

 

[jamespowers]

I'd also wanted one of those old, wind-up, folding alarm clocks (I think they're properly called "Travel clocks"). I had one as a child, but cheap Chinese construction being what it is, the frame holding the movement broke from metal-fatigue, the mainspring exploded and the whole thing was worthless.

I've been on the hunt for a nice replacement ever since. And today, I found this:

I've no idea how old it is (probably 1930s, 1940s? It says 'Germany' so it's most likely pre-war).

It was in good condition, it ran smoothly, the bell works, and most importantly...

...It keeps perfect time![/QUOTE]

Not bad. I must have two dozen or so diferent alarm clocks. I accumulated them when buying clock lots when I wanted one or two in the lot. I suppose I could have gotten just what I wanted but it was cheaper the other way.
A lot of those clocks were made post war---most of them in the 50s and 60s when Germany had recovered enough to industrialize again. They were and are decent clocks that keep good time. The sound they make when you wind them is sometimes disconcerting. lol lol

 

[Miss Tuppence]

A lovely bevelled glass photo frame ; )

 

[V.C. Brunswick]

A lovely bevelled glass photo frame ; )

That's a beauty. Did the photo come with it? It would be a find and a half if it did.

 

[Miss Tuppence]

Yes it did- it's what attracted me to it, but the seller did say that he put the picture in it.
It's still an original old photo of a lovely Hurricane though, and they do look rather nice together!

 

[Sled Dog]

Scored a nice small pocket knife at the thrift store today

And its a Case...for a dollar

Case model 06263 Eisenhower

Cleaned up really nice

 

[Shangas]

It's my birthday next week. And my friends at the local charity thrift-shop where I work threw a small party for me (since I won't be available for the day itself).

Since I'm a closer at the shop (I stay until closing time to help pack stuff up), I always go home carrying a torch. The boss always jokes about this kinda stuff. This year, as a birthday present, he gave me this neat little brass candleholder:

This is a modern reproduction of an old "dunny-light", which people used to keep next to their beds so that they could light their ways to the dunny (toilet) after dark. Since I'm always heading off home after dark, I reckon they thought it'd be cute.

It is rather handy It takes a standard box of matches (which I already had) and a candle (which I also had around the house).

I think it's pretty cute!

 

[lolly_loisides]

^^^^^^^
That's brilliant Shangas, a dunny candle I love it.

 

[Shangas]

It is pretty nifty, huh?

It came with a cardboard box with a drawing of a man holding a dunny-light, fumbling his way to the outhouse in the middle of the night.

Underneath, it says:

"When you cannot see at night,
Use your Soho Dunny Light!"

 

[lolly_loisides]

^^^^^^
Can you post a picture of the box? I'd love to see that.

 

[Shangas]

^^^^^^
Can you post a picture of the box? I'd love to see that.

Absolutely!

The box is a simple white cardboard box. But here's the picture that was stuck on the top:

The dunny-light brightening up a 21st century dunny:

Using the old trick of popping the candle in front of the mirror to maximise the light output of just one candle.

 

[MD_SPencer]

Borsalino Fedora Find

For a quarter (25 cents) My first.

 

[DNO]

For a quarter (25 cents) My first.

Nice find! My size, too!

 

[MD_SPencer]

Mine too and not an easy size to find I have been told.

 

[Sled Dog]

Wow...good fedoras rarely show up in thrift stores and if they do they go fast, you were in the right place at the right time!
25 cents is unreal, excellent find!!!
Well done

 

[gdc]

I'm addicted to thrift stores, making my rounds to several stores weekly. That Borso is a beautiful hat at an amazing price. If you wish to see a fifty fold return, it's my size as well.