10th February 2010 Patrick Pagnier sent me some corkscrew related videos, thanks. Go grab the popcorn & watch the following. By the way....The Cheap As Chips Corkscrew Club promotional video coming soon ;)

February 11th 2010 The big corkscrew sort out For a while my collection has been stored with reasonable care, as has the stuff for sale on my website. Well, to the point where I could find what I was after pretty quickly. The rest of the stuff however has been stored in all types of boxes & crates with a right old mix in any given box. To be honest - disorganised chaos comes to mind! Tonight I went for the big sort out. It took some time but I finally have my corkscrews categorised & accessible. About 600 pieces ended up in a massive box or a giant bag - these will be my first ebay focus. Eight years of the unwanted pieces from job lots. Question is - will anybody actually buy them? The bottom pictures show the stuff in the said massive box & giant bag. Any piece in there can be £1.00 + P+P costs. If you spot something you fancy let me know. Time for a tipple! peter@corkscrewsonline.com

February 17th 2010 Mixed lot at auction A massive mixed lot of corkscrews, whistles & keys went under the hammer today at a auctioneers in Essex. I asked for additional pictures & the auctioneers obliged with a few snaps which showed each corkscrew clearly. Only three reasonable pieces to report: a good bone handled King, a poor Thomason & a Holborn Signit but there were plenty of low end pieces. I left a commission bid of a couple of hundred but I was way off the mark. The lot sold for approximately £850 including the commission. Maybe there was a rare whistle in there or maybe some people have lost the plot, or maybe I've lost the plot. Talking of multi lots, the first sixty of my bulk corkscrews have been listed on ebay, in lots of ten, each with a 99p start.

A fake Fora, an empire, early bow & a tasty looking pocket. All recently sold or  listed on ebay. Thanks to the sellers & buyers for telling me about them.

February 28th 2010 Happy Days Are Here Again! My lean period of good finds is nearly at an end. I struck a deal today to buy a Burgess & Fenton single lever corkscrew. The chap lives a couple of miles from Ardingly, West Sussex & as luck would have it, the Ardingly fair is this coming tuesday, so I'm going to pick it up on the way to the fair. I've been really lucky over the last year or so buying Burgess & Fenton corkscrews. I'll more than likely list this on the ICCA auction site in May. Or does anyone fancy a trade? Always on the hunt for top notch English corkscrews. Please let me know. peter@corkscrewsonline.com

28th February 2010. SALESMAN OF THE YEAR GOES TO...... I had to laugh. I went to Portobello yesterday & went to see Fletcher Wallis as he'd been trying to sell a few pieces for me. "Any sales Wally?", "No" he said. "I'll take the pieces back then". He then went through a variety of brown boxes looking for three corkscrews. After about 5 minutes of looking he managed to find two, the third, one of those American red Devil corkscrews had gone missing. I wonder why he couldn't sell anything for me, lol. The moral of this story is.....If you go to see Fletcher Wallis at Portobello ask to see what is in every brown box & you might find a corkscrew to buy.

February 23rd 2010 Back on Ebay & the corkscrews are disappearing (as normal) Missed Kempton today, missed kempton two weeks ago, bought nothing at auction this year, not hit Portobello this year & I'm only just back looking at ebay. It's not surprising that I have little corkscrew news of note. I believe I have been truly detoxed!! I did however notice this very nice looking London rack on ebay yesterday listed with a low start. I set a snipe & kept looking. Later in the day, as if by magic it had disappeared. The seller had added a cheap buy it now option & it had been snapped up with military speed & precision by that cheeky leader of men. Yes, the Colonel grabbed it presumably with a well planned operation of cunning! Nice one Stephen! I did have a scroll through completed listings on ebay UK & I can't see anything mega that has been snapped up. Looks like the sellers are getting pretty streetwise to the buy it now offers but obviously not on this occasion. Gavin Maddock emailed to say he bought these two guns on ebay which the seller listed at a BIN price of £6.99 + £3.00 P+P. A nice profit will be heading his way soon. Any more BIN's to report guys? I'm sure Josef & Tommy have some news, after all they are the BIN refreshing specialists. 28th February 2010 BIN Update Josef did indeed manage a nice BIN over the last few weeks. Hours of refreshing & asking that all important question "How bout a buy it now?" paid off with a Barnes, one of those double helix American patent corkscrews. Not to be out-done, Graeme Nott hit the button within a couple of minutes of some flesh legs being listed with a legitimate BIN at £25.00 on ebay UK. He also bought a very nice early sheathed pocket for a paltry £40.00 BIN a few weeks back. Just in...another cheeky Brit Banker (boo hiss!)/ corkscrew collector has just bought a signed silver pocket on a BIN for £40.00!

All set for corkscrew hunting. Here I am sporting the all new 2010 Deputy Dog hat.

March 6th 2010 Robert Scores at DC Big Flea News just in from Robert Leopardi who struck it lucky today at a big flea market in Washington DC. He looks pretty pleased with himself & why not. Robert is renowned for bargain finds, so you can assume he paid at the low, low end for what looks like a nice Syroco Monk, fancy golden roundlet, Old Snifter & Leg shaped penknife. To think I spent 4 hours checking out 1500 stalls at Ardingly on tuesday & didn't buy one lousy corkscrew. I suppose I had all my luck buying the Burgess & Fenton. Cheers to you too Robert!

March 8th 2010 I've only gone and got myself a buy it now! I just hit the various corkscrew searches on ebay US & there it was, buy it now $50.00. I looked, then looked again & thought that seems like a decent deal. I signed in & hit the button only to find that the seller wouldn't accept bidders from outside the US. Damn! I then remembered my ace in the pack, a user name that Chris Bristow helped me set up with a US address for just this scenario. I dug out the details & tried again. It worked! This Clam Shell pocket folder will be heading my way soon via a diversion at chez L'Africain in Vinalhaven. Once bought & paid for I went back to see if it was listed as a buy it now or if the seller added a BIN by request. It was the latter, here are the questions asked on the listing. Q:  Hi, How about a 50.00 Buy It Now? Thx! Mar-08-10 A:   its on buy it now,rite now Q:  Hi, I sent you a request for a 50.00 Buy It Now a little while ago. I am about to board a plan and won't be back to my computer till 5 hours from now. Please consider my offer and do the appropriate thing if you want to accept it. I would love these corkscrews. Thx! Mar-08-10 A:   im getting all kinds of buy it now offers

March 10th 2010 My bad run at Antique fairs continues I hit Kempton yesterday with the usual optimism but alas by the time I was through not one corkscrew was purchased :( The only piece I contemplated buying was a bulky brass frame with two cherubs (Same as one I have for sale on my site in the mechanical section) Trouble is, the one I picked up was poorly cast & didn't have a base, plus it wasn't particularly cheap, so I decided to pass. The best piece I saw was a set of legs for £250.00. That's three fairs I've visited in 2010 without a single buy. Quite amazing! I'll be heading to Shepton Mallet on Friday 19th March, so I hope my luck changes then. I'll let you know. I did manage a corkscrew fix elsewhere, buying a small early two pillar with a horseshoe type handle. I've never seen such a small variant, a nice addition to the collection.

March 10th 2010 The highs & lows of corkscrew collecting On March 6th I blogged about Robert Leopardi scoring some great buys at the DC big flea. Robert continued his good run the next day at the Baltimore bottle show buying a cheap Pabst Hollweg & an early Goliath. As you can imagine he was pretty pleased with himself. His good run continued later that evening when he snapped up an eight tool bow with a cheap buy it now on ebay. By this point he'd changed his name to Roberto with a big O, was smoking Havana cigars while sipping Dom Perignon. Alas, Robert's invincibility has ended. He set up the Clam shell buy it now with confidence that after 5 hours on a plan or plane (see blog, 8th March) it would still be there. Bit too optimistic, yours truly was in the right place at the right time to grab that one. This morning he reported with a frustrated tone that a Straight sold for $10.00 on ebay US & he just missed it. Someone is jumping around a room somewhere - one hell a buy! That's the way it goes Robert, maybe you've used up all your luck.

Great catch Josef The ebay Buy It Nows seem to be shared around at the moment. Please sign my petition to keep Josef L'Africain on permanent holiday to keep it that way.

We believe Josef L'Africain should have a permanent holiday to give the rest of us a chance of an ebay Buy It Now. Please add your name to the petition. Peter Borrett, Robert Leopardi, Tommy Campnell, Corkscrew Hunter (real name omitted, I'm thinking Ian Hunter) your name here 12/3/10 Looks like everyone wants Josef back grabbing all the BINs. I might make some names up & add them to the petition.

March 12th 2010 Excuse me for going on about ebay With three blank antique fair trips & nothing bought at auction since the Stone Age it seems ebay is about the only place I'm buying stuff lately. Given my recent ebay sabbatical, I've now gone the other way & can't seem to keep away from the addictive auction site. I bet you are all jealous now that you know I won the celluloid pear corkscrew a few days back on ebay US - woop woop! lol. I shouldn't think you care less & doubt you even gave it a second look. I do like these early plastic corkscrews & have a good collection now. If you have any celluloid corkscrews drop me a line, I'd be happy to buy or maybe trade with you. Peter@corkscrewsonline.com It was quite funny a couple of weeks back when I saw a celluloid golfer listed on ebay UK with a link to the composition & celluloid corkscrew guide page from my website. The seller obviously decided to overlook my two separate pleas on the page to buy such corkscrews & it's kind of ironic that I ended up the under bidder on his listing. That's life! Okay, back to ebay. Today checking ebay US, I found a Clough Powercone & a Brown listed, both bid-less. I didn't ask questions or request a BIN but within a couple of hours the Brown had been snapped up on a $50 BIN & then the Powercone suddenly developed its very own BIN & lucky for me I got there first. I'm off to look for a celluloid banana corkscrew ;)

A bag full of corkscrews - what a great trip!

June 24th 2010 A cork that I nearly threw away I bought this Vaughan registered design Codd bottle opener & corkscrew last week at the ABCDE meeting at Jim Edgar's house. When I first picked it up I thought it was a bit weird that there was a cork at one end. All a bit strange - I assumed someone had just found some cork to place over the codd opener to protect it. Anyway, I was pleased to buy it. A couple of days back I was flicking through Frank & Barbara Ellis's book on registered designs & read that at least two examples are known with a cork protector that covers the codd opener. At this point I was somewhat concerned whether I'd chucked the cork away. Fortunately, I hadn't & on inspection the cork is clearly original & made to measure, a snug fit. I need to read my books!

June 24th 2010 THE FOTODEAL FACTOR There's a chap from Romania who seems to be buying most of the best corkscrews ebay has to offer - code name FOTODEAL. Now that ebay protects identities the only way to find out who bought a piece is by feedback numbers. For Fotodeal he's a red star & currently with around a 4700 score. With amazing regularity the winning bidder of the top end corkscrews has his profile. He sometimes wins pieces for 5 x the market value which has made some people think he puts a potential reckless bid in his sniper for anything he wants such as $10,000, on the basis that he wins everything he bids for & the market will dictate his price - sometimes high, sometimes low but mostly where the market should be. An interesting theory which I think is possible. I've personally never noted him being the under bidder (have you?) on a corkscrew which backs the argument. I did have a look to see what he bought, via completed listings & noted about $25,000 of purchases in one calender month. Not all corkscrews but quite a few very nice ones. The trouble with these big rollers is out bidding them! I was checking ebay US a week or so ago a saw what appeared to be a good plated AMOR folding couple corkscrew. I put a strong bid in my sniper as I considered it would be a good collection piece. I ended up as the under bidder, doh & gggrrrrrr!!! & yes the high bidder was Fotodeal. Today I got a nice surprise when I received a legitimate second chance offer for the piece. The seller saying that the buyer had not paid within her specified timescale so I speedily hit the buy button & then the Paypal button. So, a very nice piece heading to Calleva! I think that is the only way I'll ever beat Fotodeal to a corkscrew.

July 4th 2010 Back from holiday Had a great week away in sunny Cornwall with my girls. I managed to avoid the antique shops & even stayed away from a very large antique fair just a few miles from where we were staying, near Padstow. Wasn't I a good boy? Sometimes a corkscrew detox is just what the doctor ordered. Due to my holiday there's little corkscrew news to report. I did however win a super Heeley Thomason at auction yesterday. I've had a few average examples which I've moved on, this one is a definite collection piece.

July 7th 2010 The John Burton Collection at Woolley & Wallis Yesterday was a good day for anyone who wanted a corkscrew fix. It was the sale of John Burton's collection of corkscrews & champagne taps at Woolley & Wallis auctioneers in Salisbury. I had planned to view the lots mid morning but due to a squash court calf pull the night before I decided I'd get there first thing to claim one of the limited car parking spaces outside the auction house & avoid a long limp from the public car park 1/2 a mile down the road. I arrived to a shut shop but in no time the doors opened & I was amongst the corkscrews & taps. I slowly inspected every one of the 200 lots & lined bids up on everything, hoping that my Masterplan would pick up a couple of unwanted lots cheap,cheap, cheap. There was some very nice taps, many I've not seen before, there where some good corkscrews too, all in all, pretty much something for everyone. Soon familiar voices were heard as other collectors & dealers arrived. The porters were kept busy grabbing the various lots for inspection. After about two hours of viewing I was done. The note book was full with my bids.   With around four hours to kill before the corkscrew lots came up I headed off with Ilya, Webby & Gavin for a coffee fix where we bumped into Patricia Harbottle & John Ericson. After a while we all headed our separate ways & agreed to meet up for lunch at the Red Lion, a historic pub in the town centre. Webby apparently went off to fondle a giant giraffe, all a bit weird! I looked around town, wandered into a music shop & drooled at a couple of guitars before I stumbled across a very large multi dealer antique shop where I found nothing :( I headed to the Red Lion early, Richard Stevenson soon turned up as did the others. We had a good laugh, shared a few corkscrew yarns, drunk a few beers & enjoyed a very good lunch all in glorious sunshine. Wahoooo! It's time to go - 3 O'clock! We headed off to the auction. On arrival we still had to wait for about 50 more lots to come & go but it was finally time to find our spots in the auction room. Comfy seat, back of the room? I settled for a comfy seat, the others settled for a comfy seat too. We were all quite spread out looking for a little discretion. Next time I'm going to take a mirror so I can see what everyone is up to! The Peter Coldicott corkscrew auction last year at W+W achieved incredibly high prices so it was going to be really interesting to see how this auction went. The first few lots went pretty high - the pattern was set. There were a couple of chaps (If either of you ever read this, email me, I really want to be your new best friend badly, I have other Ferd Peters books you might like) one on the left side of the room & one on the right that were bidding on most lots. There were some mystery phone bidders & there was us lot. Us lot were enjoying the auction but winning very little. I won 6 lots, 3 for me & 3 for a friend. Gavin won a few, Webby & Ilya won a couple of good pieces each, Richard won a very interesting tap. Ironically, the local Salisbury boys, the Colonel & John went home empty handed. Apparently every lot sold & the sale grossed 35k. Some sale highlights, prices include commission: Ferd Peters - Mechanical Corkscrew book - £180 te he Gothic Thomason £1104 Wulfruna & a Perpetual £336 oooh er Whistle roundlet £312 A pile of tat £320 ha ha Full results can be found at http://www.woolleyandwallis.co.uk My Masterplan didn't work. Still, a good day out & a great corkscrew fix! Wow, look Gav a corkscrew! Cheers to you too Richard. I'll see your bow & raise you a Farrow & Jackson. Gav & Ilya - the cool guys The magic number The auctioneer at work Richard, can you ask Webby for a pen when the Gothic comes up to give me a clear run? Thanks mate! Ilya in confidential mode The Colonel in confidential mode but taking it a bit too far & being rather silly, lol.

July 8th 2010 Memories from Brimfield Was it really five years ago? Yes, it was. September 2005 I headed to the US to team up with fellow corkscrew collector Chris Bristow, who at that time lived in New York. Our plan - to make our fortune selling corkscrews & wine collectibles at the largest US antique market/fair at Brimfiled in Massachusettes. Not only were we going to make our fortune selling we were going to find jewells a plenty. Probably a couple of golden knights each, pretty much every decent American patent, etc, etc. You know how the mind works! Had an awesome trip. Chris was terrific company & we had a right good laugh all week long. Chris bought a canopy tent, various display units & racks, he went to a lot of effort & the pitch looked great! In truth though the corkscrew collectors were few & far between. We only met Barry Taylor & Mike Gordon at our pitch & the only other corkscrew dealer at Brimfield was Andre Burgos. Things seem a little different now, what with Josef, Tommy & others making regular trips. From a selling point of view, I made enough to cover my half of the hotel bill & pitch cost, it certainly wasn't a profitable experience. I don't think Chris faired any better. From a buying perspective, you can imagine we thought we'd fill our boots full of wonder buys but we didn't find one good piece between us :( just a few minor pieces that had a profit in them. The stuff we sold looked like it went to regular dealers who sniffed a potential profit, a couple of pieces were sold as gifts. Hey boys - look at all that cool stock :-p I reckon Tommy & Josef would fall over there tongues if they found a stall like ours at the next Brimfield show. Where were you in 2005 boys?? Our evenings were spent sharing hard luck stories over a beer in a very nice nearby pub - The Admiral O'Brien. We ate well there too, I remember having a starter of shrimp arriving on a plate big enough to hold a 16oz steak :o Barry ate with us one night & I recall working a trade with him, not entirely sure what the trade was. Seem to remember a multi bow & one of those Volstead spoons as part of the deal. I'm sure that shrewd Barry got the better of me. Back at the Hotel & Chris spent his evening chatting away or watching TV while polishing various corkscrews. Chris definitely has a polishing fetish. I prefer my corkscrews a bit more rough & ready. That's probably why Chris sells his stuff for more. Maybe I should buy some polish. In no time the week was up & we headed back to New York. It was a fabulous trip, one that I hope I'll do again one day. I'd highly recommend anyone take a trip to Brimfield - It'll be more for a social than finding corkscrews though.

July 8th 2010 The Cats are away so the mice can play This is just in from Graeme Nott... "So the 6th of July arrived and I had decided not to go down to Salisbury to the sale as it is quite a trek from East Sussex and I thought it had been so well advertised that I would probably get blown out of the water with my modest budget, so I was off to work as usual.  I was about to leave for work and I thought, I will check ebay while all those other corkscrew mad guys are going to be on their way to the sale or already examining the lots.  Unbelievably staring back at me at the top of the page was a slightly blurred picture of a narrow barrel Thomason type with a BIN at £175.00 I grabbed it, it arrived today and is a really good piece (see pics).  I don't think anything I might have achieved at the auction could have bettered this." I wish I'd stayed at home - Great buy Graeme! You do realise that the Colonel will be deeply disturbed by this purchase. He prides himself on sitting on his computer from 7:00 a.m until midnight asking for BINS on ebay UK. The one day he takes a day trip he misses a big one. He will not be pleased!

July 10th 2010 Back from the World Cup Jim Edgar was lucky enough to visit South Africa for the World Cup with tickets for the second & third England group games. Shame about the second game, 0-0 with Algeria, rubbish England!! At least the third was a better which gave us English fans some hope going into the last 16. We all know what happened next though! Jim looks pretty cheery in this photo & why not, he's outside Jeremy Astfalck's shop "The Old Corkscrew" which is full of, yes, old corkscrews. If you ever get to the Winelands of Western Cape be sure to pop in & say hi to Jeremy from me.

July 29th 2010 Two Great Recent Buys Has been relatively quiet on the corkscrew hunting front lately. However, a few good corkscrews have been purchased, including this very cool 1881 Codd & corkscrew manufactured by Hipkins. Better still, bought this great Roland digital drum kit to hopefully improve my drumming skills. Just what Ruthie wanted - more noise!!

July 29th 2010 Corkscrews Online Website Update Over 100 corkscrews currently being added to the for sale pages. Be sure to check it out! Corkscrews for sale

August 3rd 2010 WAHOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!! I GOT A BUY IT NOW A fire damaged & handle free Autumnal Fruits Thomason marked "Patent" for 50 smackers. It arrived today & it is definitely fire damaged & definitely handle free + it has the added bonus of a whopping great big dent in the barrel. I know how to do Buy it nows in style.

August 10th 2010 I'm on a Buy It Now roll A couple of days back I bagged this nice, could it be? I think it probably is ;) but lets call it a Henshall type, for £20 on ebay. Thanks Mr Seller! I love it when that BIN button suddenly appears :P LONG LIVE THE BUY IT NOW!

August 10th 2010 A Fly Past This very nice looking Hootch Owl corkscrew briefly perched nearby. I was close, but not close enough to reaching up & catching this wise old bird & locking it up in my corkscrew Avery. Unfortunately for me & for a buddy in the US who was also aware, we could only watch as it flew away to ebayland. It will be listed on ebay US tonight with a very hefty price tag.

August 10th 2010 The Corkscrew Buy It Now Pie With a couple of recent ebay Buy It Nows behind me I'm definitely currently in the BIN zone. Seeing as there are quite a number of us who are well up for an ebay "BUY IT NOW", lets have a challenge. From 16th August 2010 until midnight (GMT) 30th September 2010, lets go head to head in a BIN challenge. Simple rules as follows: 1. Items (corkscrews only) true value has to be more than £100/$150, tight calls my decision. 2. Item has to of had an added BIN (revised listing) & not originally listed as a BIN. Grabbing someone elses BIN is all good work! 3. Item must be purchased for one half or less of the true value, tight calls my decision. 4. Report your BINs with your name & the ebay listing link or ebay item number to: peter@corkscrewsonline.com 5. Each item will be recorded & then the Binner's good work will be reported on this page & he/she will be rewarded with one slice of the corkscrew pie. 6. One slice of pie per BIN. The winner will be whoever ends up with most pieces of the Corkscrew Pie!

August 19th 2010 Pieless atm I have asked for a couple of BINs but there isn't really that much to ask about. Unfortunately, the sellers aren't biting, gggggrrrrrrr. Don't forget to report any Buy It Nows to the Corkscrews Online Buy It Now reporting department to claim your piece of pie. I did just get an EIN for this Bone direct pull with a very cool auger type worm. But rules are rules, so no pie for this one.

August 20th 2010 Newark I was up before the larks yesterday, 3:50 early, ooooh er. Two flasks made & the extra large sandwich box filled & I soon was on my way to the Newark antique fair - my first visit for a year & a half. The weather was good, new CD of Amy's Ghost on - great band by the way, Maltesers strategically placed on passenger seat all helped the journey which was good, it didn't seem to drag on. I arrived just after 7:00 & parked up. Got my gear together & then headed off to find a get in early ticket. I found a get in early ticket from a man in a white van who had a sidekick, a pug type dog called "Dougie". As dogs go Dougie was nice enough but he did have a licking fetish, I couldn't stop him licking my face, if I wasn't fully awake before I was after a couple of minutes with Dougie the dog's slobber flying around. I was pleased when a few minutes later I was in the fair & off looking for the corkscrew jewels. I went off to find a chap that had a few bits put to one side as well as a number of possibles. Agreed on about 8 pieces & then started the general hunt. In all honesty, I found just one piece on the early ticket, so hardly worth it, most sellers just weren't getting there stuff out quick enough. 9:00 & the stampede of the doors opening. By now, the tables were pretty much full of collectibles & I started to pick up various pieces. As the day developed, the corkscrew radar seemed more in tune & the bag was starting to feel quite weighty. A few nice pieces came my way from fellow collectors & dealers that I met up with including a Henshall from the Colonel (see Blog below). It was nice to bump into Wally & share a coffee & an update. Wally has been very poorly, so great to see up & about. By the end of the day/hunt, I was chuffed with my corkscrew haul, a really cracking day out. Will look forward to February 2012, my next scheduled visit. I've got a sneaky feeling I might just get up there before! All spent out - a cracking day at Newark

August 20th 2010 Trading with the Colonel As mentioned in the Newark Blog I aquired an original Henshall yesterday from the Colonel (Stephen Paul). In a tense coffee negotiation I agreed to part with a very nice, fully marked Compound Thomason & the Colonel parted with his Henshall & £130.00. The Compound is a great piece, some minor handle issue but probably 8/10. However, the Henshall, although being the real deal has bad pitting on the button & only about half of the letters are legible, mouse over the Henshall picture to see, about 4/10. Question is, who got the better deal? Cast your vote now & let us know.