Hi, my name is James, and I live in South Carolina. I am new to all this stuff– well sort of– I mean, my parents and grandparents have always been somewhat savvy in antiques and collectibles, and I do have some knowledge in certain fields, but I am new to trying to make any money in antiques and collectibles. I’ve been trying to take a “crash course” of the process.

Some of the topics I am interested in are:

1. toys, especially metal vehicles, with a honed interest in farm toys

2. Advertising, particularly vehicular and mechanical subjects

3. Aviation, particularly military aviation from WWII on back

4. Military stuff in general

5. Children’s books

6. Something I know way too little about, wooden furniture. I am wanting to learn more about the different styles, how to recognize them, how to recognize the different wood types, etc.

I operate a sawmill and mill a lot of hardwood lumber, as well as cedar and pine. So I’m starting to recognize different types of wood, but sometimes they look a lot different with a finish on them, aged with time, and sometimes the same species of wood look different based on where they were grown geographically, how they were milled, and other variations.