1 comments about Watches International 2000: The Original Annual of the World's Finest Watches (Watches International).

1. There is a far superior resource than this publication available. The breadth of brands covered in Watches International 2000 and the depth of coverage are questionable at best. While most of the information is organized well and presented in a seemingly objective fashion, at times, the focus of this book seemed to be on marketing rather than on the watches themselves. For instance, the section on Bedat appeared to come straight out of a Bedat advertisement. Sections like this beg the question, "Did certain makers contribute generously to the financing of this publication?" Furthermore, some of the makers that have been included seem to have been selected based on their watches' high ticket prices rather than on the maker's ability to make a superior timepiece. If objective information on fine timepieces is what you are looking for, spend your money on Wristwatch Annual 2000 by Peter Braun instead.

2 comments about Watches International 2002 (Watches International).

1. This does seem like an overpriced advertisement-only magazine. Not a lot of information for those who are already collectors, and those new to the field will get little more than some nice pictures. But the pictures are very nice, so I'll give it 2 stars.



2. If you are a serious collector then put your money towards another watch. This book shows no/little pricing. In many cases it is a paid advertisement of the watch companies - products and technical descriptions are not shown/listed. You can get more info from a companies website/product catalog. Very disappointing book. It is a slick high glossy collection of photos - you get neither a good coffee table book nor a technical reference. I gave it to the dog to play with - at least someone is enjoying it.

1 comments about Warman's Arts & Crafts Furniture Price Guide: Identification & Price Guide.

1. This book has some fantastic examples of Craftsman and Arts & Crafts furnishings. Great to look at for reference material or styles that you may wish to emulate as a designer, furniture maker, or decorator. If you are a fan of the arts and crafts or Craftsman style, this book has plenty to drool over. The book has excellent photography and lots of examples of many different furnishings.
   
   Why this book doesn't get 5 stars: Like many "price guides", much of what is contained in this book are period pieces in excellent condition and will rarely, if ever, be seen by the average person at an auction or flea market. The prices generally have the feel of the highest estimate available. On the low end are simple, framed mirrors for $500 to the high end Harvey Ellis bookcase/desk for $115,000. Don't buy this for a price guide unless you like paying for your furniture what the most expensive antiques dealer would like to charge you.

3 comments about Classic Colt Peacemakers.

1. A big disappointment. I own nearly all of R.L. Wilson's books, and bought this out of love for such things. Nowhere NEAR the quality of other books in my collection, it was a big, big disappointment. Not only are the photos not up to par, but the text is horrid. Doc O'Meara apparently writes to make a quick buck -- not for the love of the subject like Wilson.



2. If you like to look at pictures of very pretty Colt SAA's that are way too expensive for the average person to acquire, then by all means read this book--or perhaps I should say "look" at this book. There's not much to read. The author only skims the surface of what I would consider a very in-depth subject regarding the history of Colt Firearms and the "Peacemaker". The rest of the book's pages are filled with full-color photographs that really don't make for a captivating experience. The experience of this book was like having a good friend show you pictures of his/her vacation; the first few photos are interesting, but after awhile it becomes more of the same and interest is rapidly lost.
   
   If you're looking for a very good in-depth history of Colt Firearms I would recommend "Colt: An American Legend" by R.L. Wilson. For a good historical reference on the Single Action Army specifically, I would check out C. Kenneth Moore's "Study of the Colt Single Action Army", although it is out of print and very expensive to buy. A well-stocked library should have it.



3. This pictures alone make this book worthwhile. Very nice color plates with excellent detail. O'Meara doesn't stop with the pictures though. He gives the reader a very well researched history of the Colt company and the development of the Single Action Army.
   Since the book deals with classic Peacemakers, O'meara educated himself on the art of gun engraving and discusses it in a way that will hold the reader's interest.

   Highly recommended.

No comments about Greenberg's Guide to M.T.H. Electric Trains.

2 comments about British and Commonwealth Military Knives.

1. Very good review of all military knives of the British empire 1800-today.
   Cover F-S Fighting knives in a good way.
   Plenty of pictures.
   It is something you must buy!



2. This is a highly impressive work. Every individual item discussed is keyed to an individual text and is often accompanied by multi-views and enlargements. In many cases, there is documentation, many of which are letters from manufacturers and government procurement agencies. There is very little referencing to previous works. This is not an omnium-gatherum nor a synthesis of existing works. It is a new beginning.
   The only thing remotely as detailed or as useful is Robert Baeurlein's thorough work "Allied Fighting Knives" which is mainly about fighting knives and gives short schrift to working blades, plus most of it is about U.S. patterns and includes much more textual descriptions plus many first hand accounts.
   This work divides many types of blades and edged tools up by the major Commonwealth nations wherein they were produced, beginning in the 1880s and continuing up till the present decade.
   The major countries and nations covered are Great Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and India. The amount of items covered lessens the further one gets from Britain, but that is understandable. Everything including commercial knives sold to officers and explorers is covered.
   There is no coverage of items produced in other Far Eastern areas for Empire and Commonwealth Forces nor anything produced in Africa, thus omitting those formerly white-ruled countries of the former Rhodesia (now Zimbablwe) and South Africa, though both are known to have local cutlery industries.
   This may have been due to the lack of contacts consequent to the former political situation of sanctions, whixh precluded both commercial and social contact between Britain and those lands. Or perhapa they just did not make anything there for their forces.
   As in any work of this monumentality, it is not perfect. No matter how long one works, there will always be something omitted. It is the nature of the endeavour. The author has added a chapter of last minute discoveries in his attempt to be as encyclopedic as possible. I learned much from this book and I will refer to it again in my own writings.
   But, a few minor quibbles. The author fails to distinguish between the use of the two synonyms--matchet and machete. The latter being the original Spanish term and used in North America also, and the former, the official British term. Both are pronounced identically except for the e on the end--the t being silent. Because of his use of the American spelling throughout, he missed the significance of the derivation of the term for a famoous short bladed fighting instrument of WW II, the smatchet, usually pronounced to rhyme with hatchet, but again the t is silent. Smatchet is a contraction of small + matchet just as Bren is a contraction.
   He also fails to recognize the tool-weapon issued to native troops of northern Burma by its true name of dah and lumps it in with machetes. He has found a few more patterns of dahs than I have. Of course, these crudely finished implements are so badly marked that moat are unreadable. And he may have included some similar tools made in southern China for local use. These are much better finished than British or Indian issued patterns.
   And finally he missed a rather unusual and strange machete made in Australia in WW II. But, with those few exceptions, one with any interest in this material should buy this book. I will just give it an A not an A+. You can throw away that old copy of Stephens now.

No comments about Scott 2008 Specialized Catalogue of United States Stamps & Covers (Scott Specialized Catalogue of United States Stamps).

5 comments about Dali : Catalogue Raisonne of Prints II Lithographs.

1. A MUST for any seriuos collector and honest dealer. Dali's lithos are among the most forged works of art in the world: you can find forgeries at auctions, for often auctioneers have no idea and/or sell just for cash (the same all over the world, also in China, where I live, and where I have seen both fakes tout court and original with forged signatures in Beijing and Shanghai). The best money you can invest for your Dali collection!



2. The Catalogue is better organized and easier to read than Albert Fields' Graphic Works of Salvador Dali. Unfortunately, most pictures are in black and white.



3. This book was a rather daring undertaking. As you probably know many years and many lines of print were spent decrying the plethora of Dali forgeries and photomechanical reproductions of his works printed on pre-signed paper. It was a scandal, it was scandalous, to be sure. So, for instance, when I was involved with the sale of prints by Dali, an editorical choice was made to never ever sell a Dali Lithograph for the simple reason that there was just too much stink surrounding them. In fact, I was under the impression that virtually all of his alleged work product of lithographs was phony partially because of his self-professed disdain for the medium. This book disabused me of this notion because it is full of very early and often, I hate to say it, visually exciting and beautiful works by the man that really causes one to wish to own some. This book does discuss the scandal surrounding Dali briefly, very briefly, and notes that the editors got far less cooperation from various galleries in the course of their research than they did for the first volume of the catalogue which dealt with the etcthings, etc. No mention was made of the multi-million dollar judgment against Center Art Galleries in Hawaii, for instance, that was apparently responsible for a whole boat load of the inauthentic stuff. Anyway, the book is broken up into three parts. The introductory discussion, roughly 75 pages of well-done full color reproductions and roughly 100 pps. of cataloguing data recording edition size, printer, medium, etc. I don't believe that any of the photomechanical reproductions produced by Center are included but I do notice a Center Art Gallery commissioned series or two. In that vein, the page dedicated to known forgeries and unauthorized edtions is only about, well one half page. This seems far too short, and the editors admit to the herculean task it would be to get more extensive and accurate information in print. Suffice it to say that a lot of swamp land ground was not covered. I'd recommend sticking strictly to the, ahem, book in your search for Dali Lithographs and let the sands of time sort out the sordid bits in another, different book. This comes with my highest recommendation especially for print collectors.



4. The two books I have are great but in Vol II I'm missing pages 130 through 150. I only discovered this when i was looking for a work referenced on 148. Is anybody elses copy missing pages?



5. I own 11 different books on Dali, and the two books published by Prestell are the best in my collection, much better and fewer mistakes than the "Fields" book!!

No comments about The Flea Market Shopper's Companion: A Complete Guide for Buyers and Sellers Coast to Coast.

No comments about Beer Collector's Value Guide (Checkerbee Fan Guide).