I hope Chumlee is working!
 

I am heading to Vegas next week with my wife and some friends. One of our stops this time will be at the "Pawn Stars" shop just to look around as we are all fans of the show. We are each going to take something to see what they will offer... just for kicks.

I'll be taking this pair with me... any thoughts on what I should set as my ask price? Or how much they'll offer?

http://www.sgccardregistry.com/cards/us186325.jpghttp://www.sgccardregistry.com/cards/us178925.jpg

BTW, these will go on BST on my return unless Chumlee makes me an offer I can't refuse ;)

Funny...I went there...while in Vegas a few months ago...none of the cast from the TV show were anywhere to be found...which from what I understand is pretty common these days. Nonetheless I'm glad I went...it was kinda fun! Good luck with those cards...I have a feeling you'll be returning home with them after their insulting offer!

I've watched about a dozen or so episodes and haven't seen Chumlee offer any price on anything.
It seems (from my limited expierence) that Rick, Big Hoss & The old man do all the pricing.
Chum just stands there and asks goofy questions.
Hopefully all 4 will be there when you show up, keep us posted.

You might have to bust them out of the slabs and make up some story about finding them in an attic.

My dad went there and he said it was small, dark and dirty. I would like to hear back from other sources if that is true. He also inquired about the prices on some items and they said they didn't know. Sounds like a place I don't really need to see.

Bring reprints, take the $$ and run ;)

After they tell you they could have offered you a whole lot more a few years ago before the sports card market crash, they'll say $200 is the most they will go and that they don't feel comfortable doing that. Hey, they're running a business.

The time I went to Vegas and visited their store (around 6-8 months ago), none of the stars were in there. They sold more TV show memorabilia than actual items in the store. When I was there, they had a really cool Willie Mays sign.

By bringing graded cards you take away half the story line ("I can't tell if they are real or fake") and it would be fun to have him call in an expert. I would ask for "Peaches" I get the feeling you might get anything past her !;)

I have actually been in the store. It is NOT dark and dirty. It is smaller, and with all the bodies in there, it gets rather tight. They have a bodyguard at the door.....All the stuff you see on TV is staged.

if it were me
 

If it were me I would bring some fake Fro Joys and some other real, raw, lower end T206s or caramels.....then I would give them the "My grandpa left these...blah blah blah..." :) ...and I would be very careful not to act too stupid or they might wise up .....could be a lot of fun

"So what do you wanna do Pat, pawn em or sell em?"

(pat)Sell em....

OK, how much do you want for em?

(pat) Hmmm....well I was thinking around $500 for the Cobb and $250.00 for the Young...

Well, they are authentic...but in this grade, they aren't worth that much. I'll give you $25.00 for both of em!

:D

A little fiction
 

I agree that raw cards would be better for the "drama". I've thought about cracking them out and giving them a grandma's attic or yard sale tall tale. I doubt, however, that the "stars" would be there to make an offer so that I can have my fifteen minutes of fame :D

peaches
 

I think they let Peaches go for being late too many times a year or so back.

You'll have to give Rick a few minutes so he can check Wikipedia and then educate you on who exactly the players are and how the cards were issued.

get the Chum Lee bobblehead...
 

My wife and I visited the pawn shop early last November. It was a Sunday and all the regulars were not there, but there was still a line outside the shop waiting to get in. We were eventually shuffled in 'cattle style' and basically experienced what we expected. There's actually an area of the shop towards the back that is not shown much on tv....it's where they sell the Pawn Shop t-shirts, mugs and bobble heads. They still had that 1951? NY Yankees team signed baseball from an earlier episode on a shelf behind the main showcases, where it seemed almost unadvertised and almost out of view. I asked an employee what the ball was, he handed it to me, I immediately recognized it from tv and then handed it back after seeing the roughly $2400 or so price tag. My only regret was not buying a Chum Lee bobble head. Some good advice if heading there from the strip......take the city bus and get the 24 hour pass for $7.

The Willie Mays sign I liked was on the floor beside the barber chair. They were asking $1,600 for it, which was kinda steep. You won't see any of the stars in there. It is across the street from the Stratoshphere hotel/casino.

Hi-
There is a much better antique shop right next door to the Pawn store. I spent roughly five minutes in the pawn store, and closer to 30 minutes in the antique store. You can't miss the antique store because there are some cool neon and other advertising pieces decorating the outside wall. It is hard to believe (especially if you have never been off the strip) but there are quite a few good antique shops in Las Vegas and the surrounding communities.
Alan

You might enjoy just walking into the store since its your first time going. I would rather wait for the Antique Roadshow to come to my state. I hear on that show they appraise your items & buy them after the show. I do watch the Pawn Star show. Its most likely you will not see the guys from the show there. By watching the show on a regular basis, I would only deal with Rick. At least he seems to work with the prices. If his father tried to buy everything, there would be nothing in the store to buy. My favorite episode is when Rick asked Chumley to go down the Vegas strip to get Bob Dylan's autograph on a record album. Bob Dylan personalized it To Chumley, Bob Dylan. When he the album back to the shop, Rick blew his top at Chumley & told him to keep the album.

If you want to see the "stars" you need to get in line around 9:00 or 10:00 in the am.... They arrive around 11:00 and leave around 4:00....
Be well Brian
PS I enjoy the show, but doubt you will get on with low grade T206's.... unless a "hot blonde" is with you.... Good luck

If it was anyone but Rick, I would just say that I didn't have anything for sale.

All the stuff that makes to TV must be staged. I can't believe the items that happen to "walk in." The merchandise of any pawn shop I've ever been in was 95% jewelry, musical instruments, tools, and firearms.

Does Chumlee work?

Got to be a script writer feeding Chumley his lines. No way is he that clever on his own! LOL!

T206
 

Erick!!

Thats great....have a great trip buddy.....have fun :D an employee of mine went there a few months ago and said there was a huge line to get in....

my guess.....$100 offer for both;)

win some cash!!!

Peace

V

The line to get in is killer. Have fun in Vegas.

I went a few weeks ago. Not worth a special trip. It is pandemonium in there, so bad that you cannot even get to deal on anything. I did not see anything worth purchasing in the sports field, but I also could not get close to some of the showcases, so I don't know for sure. The bouncer at the door was telling the people in front of me in line that they shoot every day but when they need the space to do it, they clear out the crowd and stage the walk-in. The bus is definitely the way to go but the area is really seedy--mostly board-ups--and you are a few blocks from the criminal courts building, so there are some 'characters' on the streets.

The antique store down the block has lots of stuff but it is all swap meet garbage and fakes being sold as the real deal. They had a Star Trek TOS communicator repro that they were selling as an original prop. Their proof was a photocopy of an Ebay listing for some other item. Though if you want Nazi, KKK and Confederate 'memorabilia' they do have some showcases of that for sale.

We went at 4 in the afternoon during a weekday. No line whatsoever. There was some of those red velvet ropes lined up in the middle of the store. You had to go up one side and down another. It reminded me of being in an art museum or something....unreal.

I still haven't been in this place although I drive by it all the time.....I was told by my neighbor about the long lines to get in, and just figured I'd rather wait until the hype calmed down (procrastinating at it's best :D).

Nice to hear a few people say the bus is the way to go...I happen to be a bus driver here :) Thanks.

If you happen to be in a vehicle, the M Resort & Casino has one of the best buffets in town, but there is no bus that will go there. Not only do they have an amazing buffet but they are also one of the only buffets that have all you can drink beer and wine, if you like to knock a few back.....far Southern end of Las Vegas Blvd. & St. Rose Pkwy.

Enjoy your stay & hope you have a great time :D

Sincerely, Clayton

My wife and I went to the store about 2 1/2 years ago when the show wasn't near as popular. We went around 11 am and we were the only ones in the store except for the body guard. Rick and Hoss were also there. We spoke briefly to them about some items and no one else ever came in. The store is not near as large as it appears on TV. We thought at the time that the shows with all the people in them must be staged since no one was there when we were there. It's hard to believe there are lines now.

dh

No dice
 

We did make it to the shop. As a fan of the show it was cool to be there. We had a 10 minute wait at noon on Friday. Really nothing of interest for me in the shop. A couple of handwritten signs on items stating 'as seen on'.

Nine of the cast members were in the shop; they have a separate area in the front for selling/pawning. The guywas intrigued by the cards but said they don't buy them. He gave me the business card for a sports shop nearby. Needless to say, Cobb and Young are back home with me.

Erick
 

GREAT STORY!!

good to have you back:D

who were the nine cast members?

Ugh... typo
 

Oops... that should have been NONE of the cast members.

They purchase fake autos left and right, but wouldn't touch legit cards. Great business model.

Which autos were fake? Just curious...

I saw them buy a whole box of Ali stuff once, that looked very suspect.

They also bought a fake Gehrig jersey with a Morales COA and whenever they need a signature authenticated, they call on AAU, which doesn't have a very good reputation in the authenticating community.

Pawn Stars today showed a Gehrig jersey they purchased which might have been the one you are talking about. There were huge red flags for me because the guy said he got if from "a couple of farmers in Arkansas in their 70's who were selling off their memorabilia collection." Huh? I believe I would have heard of this. When John Rogers from Little Rock bought the T206 Wagner it was splashed in every paper in the State, big or little, and yet a Gehrig autogrpahed jersey sells and nada??? Farmers in this State having memorabilia collections?......possible I guess but it's sure weird no one ever heard of this.
Pawn Stars crowed over the seller having 3 COAs but they weren't from "experts" I would rely on, maybe that's just me.
The seller was sure ready to grab his $3000 low ball offer and get out of the store.
The whole thing was smelly to me....:rolleyes: