A question for needle tin collectors out there...

[Tinkerbell]

I am not really a collector of tchotchkes, per se... as they are just more things on horizontal surfaces that I have to dust.

That said, I saw this needle tin on Ebay, and being a fan of both most things Disney and phonographs, I found it most appealing. However, I know NOTHING about needle tins; they could be cheap reproductions made in other countries and distressed to look old and collectible, for all I know.

As this needle tin is getting ready to close on Ebay, the price is now over $114.00. The seller (located in Hungary) describes it as rare. (Although we all know how easily that word is bantered about on Ebay.)

Do any tin collectors out there know if this is truly a rare tin? Any way of spotting fakes/repros in this area?

Thank you!

eBay Item #180569981686

[gramophoneshane]

That is one cool tin! I've never seen one before, and it looks authentic to me, so I would say it is a rare tin. Probably an unauthorized use of MM that Disney put a quick stop to.
Im not aware of a sure fire way to tell repros from originals, other than experience in seeing and handling them. My gut feeling from the sole photo though, is this is an original late 20s/early 30s neeedle tin, and I wouldn't be at all surprized if in 6hrs, the price has doubled.

[Tinkerbell]

Thank you, Gramophoneshane, for your insights.

I, too, find it a very cool tin. I guess I have a few hours to watch the bids and decide if its truly something I want to spend that kind of coin on... (anyone who saw my recent thread about the Ebay price of a Brunswick bank probably knows I have a difficult time reconciling big bucks for basically frivilous purchases).

However, if it truly IS rare... hmmmm...

[gramophoneshane]

Two things in the area of phono collecting I personally try to resist spending big sums of money on, are needle tins, and acetate records.
Needle tins WILL deteriorate over time, simply because of what they are made of. You can take steps to slow the deterioration, but unless you store them in a vacuum, it's going to happen eventually, and there's really no way of knowing whether it will take 100 yrs, or 1 year.
I've got tins I've had for 30 yrs, and some are now unreadible while others have remained the same, yet all have been stored in the same way.
The spots in the paintwork of the Mickey tin are stains caused by the early stages of corrosion underneath the paint, and once that starts, there's no way to stop it, short of stripping the paint and treating the corrosion. The thing is, you dont know how long it'll take to get worse, so in my books it's a bit of a gamble when you're laying down what could pay for another machine or a favorite record that you can be entertained by for years. Tins are great to have and collect, but really all they do is sit there looking pretty.

Here's a link to a wonderful collection of tins, including some Noris tins. The one with the dog in place of Mickey I've seen a few of over the years, but I dont recall seeing any of the others.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/nja1/34924 ... 180540017/

[Retrograde]

Hopefully it's not against the rules to post links to a rival forum. I saw this wonderful collection online recently and I thought it would be OK to add it here. The post is from about a year ago, but it's worth looking through.

Needle Tin Collection

[Tampa Don]

I saw a similar needle tin a few years ago at the Orlando show. The dealer was asking $400 for it. I was shocked, as the price seemed outrageously high. I asked, "Why the price?" He explained that it was a rare tin made in Germany and, because of the similarity to Mickey Mouse, the maufacturer had to put a halt to production due to a threat of a lawsuit from Walt Disney.

I noticed another Noris Mickey Mouse tin on Ebay this past week in which the back was painted yellow. Compared to the one indicated by Tinkerbell, that one looked as if it may be a repro.


I've also often wondered how one can tell the authenticity of a needle tin. On any given day there are Japanese tins offered on ebay with interesting graphics, but I've wondered if they are just reproductions distressed to look old.

To anyone interested in needle tins, I would highly recommend the German-published book, "Grammophon-Nadeldosen." It is beautifully illustrated with thousands of tins.

[Tinkerbell]

Wow, thank you everyone for your responses... and for making some good points.

As enticing as it may be, I think it best to forego the temptation since I am not well versed in this area. Not to mention the fact that there is the issue of further corrosion if it is authentic, and if it is NOT authentic, I would be downright ticked off for wasting the money.

My money might be better spent on a new phono, an area where I at least have just a tad more education.

[Starkton]

This is a very sought after tin, although not particularly rare and besides, I would never pay that much for a tin in below average condition. I have seen at least three dozen Mickey tins offered in the last ten years. Here is the second variety in much better shape: ebay 220678055311

Mickey tins were manufactured in 1932 for Musik-Haus Noris in Nürnberg, Germany. Few collectors know that a blue variety exists (the blue Mauritius of tins). I have always half an eye out for one to surface.

[Tinkerbell]

This is a very sought after tin, although not particularly rare and besides, I would never pay that much for a tin in below average condition. I have seen at least three dozen Mickey tins offered in the last ten years. Here is the second variety in much better shape: ebay 220678055311

Mickey tins were manufactured in 1932 for Musik-Haus Noris in Nürnberg, Germany. Few collectors know that a blue variety exists (the blue Mauritius of tins). I have always half an eye out for one to surface.

That one is in much finer shape... and probably accounts for the substantially higher closing price. I have dreams of one day being "that" lucky person who stumbles upon the priceless (well, to me, anyway) discovery. Perhaps in a parallel universe!

[Starkton]

I have dreams of one day being "that" lucky person who stumbles upon the priceless (well, to me, anyway) discovery. Perhaps in a parallel universe!

Then keep your powders dry (put some money aside) if "that" bargain surfaces. You should know that priceless items are not necessarily cheap.