sneak peek wed. at the national
 

Is it worth going.wed. I have 2 days should I just go thur. And Fri. Thanks

Kevin,

FWIW, I've always felt that the early bird gets the worm when it comes to rare, vintage collectibles. At the National, I've always picked up some of my best finds early, not later.

That being said, I have never paid to attend on Wed. because I've had a dealer badge. How much does it cost you to come to the Wed. night sneak peak?

Unfortunately I will not get to this year's National 'till Thursday, so I'm not super hopeful that I will find anything great for my own collection. But you never know!

Can you even find gems/steals at the national

I have before but you have to look hard. Generally a steal can be had when your knowledge is better than the other guys. If someone has a low price on a scarce item, and you know your stuff well, it can happen. It is more likely you will find an item at a fair price that you can't find somewhere else more than a steal of a deal.

Brock,
It happens, but it's getting harder and harder to pull off. It seems like everyone at The National is asking moon money so as to pay for their table and expenses, but this is nothing new...

To be honest, I'm more interested in finding items to fit holes in my collection, than expecting to find real bargains at this point. My want list has become so ecclectic, I'm thrilled to even find anything that I'm looking for, if you know what I mean?

I'm going on Friday for the first time ever, so guess most great deals will be gone by then.

Leon nailed it...deals at the national are rare these days but knowledge is priceless...The last National I attended was in Anaheim many years ago and even then, deals were rare...but I did find some stuff because my knowledge base was broader than the other guys...just have to do your homework and be patient.

Joshua

There are many dealers who bring stuff out for the first time (in a long time, if at all) that has never been offered for sale on eBay nor at any local show. If you're there on Wed, you have a chance for it (even if it's not a bargain price).

Ditto this sentiment
 

I reviewed the recent listing of dealers attending and noted numerous that do not appear on the dealers attending listings for each of the past six Nationals. So I think the possibility of some fresh vintage material becoming available is better than average. And I do agree that the early bird gets the worm, even if it's an expensive worm. What I don't know is how much dealer-to-dealer shop & buy occurs before the Wednesday sneak peek. That might nix the early bird opportunities.

Going early definately increases your chances of finding that one of a kind unique piece and potential terrific deals, but there are not a ton of "bargains" period. I have made several purchases over a three day period at several Nationals, so don't feel like you can't find anything unless you go early. There is plenty of material, and many of the purchases on setup day reappear in other booths as the show moves on.

Go, enjoy yourself, and make a couple additions to your collection.:)

thanks for chiming in guys.