Find the Value of New Standard Encyclopedias?

cybergrannie
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March 29, 20120 found this helpful

Hi - it is sad but it is very difficult to even "give" sets away. Many library book sales will not take them The Internet is so easy and always up to date.

Try checking your set out on eBay or Craigs list and you may be lucky
and have a set that will sell.

cybergrannie
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August 28, 20200 found this helpful

1929 New Standard Encyclopedia is probably as valuable today as it will be 10 years from now. If holding books for a few years until they reach the 'antique' status made them jump in value it would seem that collectors (or whoever) would buy them up and just hold on to them for a few years themselves (and save a lot of money?).

I seriously doubt the value will change very much unless for some, unknown reason, these books become more rare during those years.

Sets do still sell but maybe not quickly as some sellers leave their books up for sale for months/years and some never sell.

I have not found a sold set like yours except on LiveAuctions and that was sold in 2017 but never picked up.

here is a link to what is currently listed for sale on eBay so you can get a general idea of what sellers are asking for different sets.
I do not think you will find very much difference in prices for different years. Asking prices are not value as only a sold item can show what someone was willing to pay for that item.

www.ebay.com/.../i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2334524...

You can check the sold items on eBay but I did not see any comparable sets listed:

www.ebay.com/.../i.html?_from=R40&_nkw=1929+New+Standard...

Books can be a nightmare to ship so you might want to think about listing your set as pick up only.
You could post your set on sites like Craigslist, Facebook marketplace, offerup, letgo or other sites and start your price high with best offer and pick up only.
If not sold then you can lower the price.
You'll need several pictures of set and pages.
You did not mention the size of your books and some of these sets are the smaller books so be sure to mention the size.
You can post on several sites at the same time.

Pghgirl40
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August 28, 20200 found this helpful

It is a misnomer that age has anything to do with value in books in probably 95% of the cases. The thing with value is rarity, condition, and content and then the supply and demand of the pieces. I have hundred year old books that have no value and I can't even give them away and 25 year old books that are worth hundreds and the values increase and decrease as more are on the market (or fewer).

This set is rarer, but there is a large supply and low demand. People ask 8-19 a piece and they sit unsold in most cases.

You can always list them at $20 each and take best offer--which may be as low as 5 each.

Be aware there are many variables that can be in play here--like even a whiff of smell can make them valueless even if they are valuable when pristine. Also any water damage or condition issues.

Thanks for posting! Post back how your sale goes!

cybergrannie
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February 5, 20200 found this helpful

Some encyclopedia sets still sell for good money: it all depends on the brand, age/edition, condition, full set, type of binding and sometimes location (if sold as pick up only).

www.ebay.com/.../113807259551?hash=item1a7f70f79f...

I did find one seller that has the 1955 books for sale and I see that they have theirs listed by individual book ($6 plus shipping) and one has sold but this is a hard way to make money as they may not sell another book anytime soon.

You might want to try listing the set on Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace or another site and list them as 'pick up only' so no shipping required.
This way you can start your price higher and lower it if necessary.

cybergrannie
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October 1, 20170 found this helpful

First - are you sure you have a complete set? There were not very many encyclopedia sets published with only 10 volumes is why I am asking. This year and publisher may have been the exception.

• In general, most encyclopedias are not very valuable and many times even difficult to give away.
• New Standard Encyclopedias are also known as Funk & Wagner so you can check prices on either name. eBay sells sets so you could check out their site for 2 or 3 months to get a better idea of what is selling and for what price.
• It seems the current value would be from $10 - $45 but may be difficult to sell even at that low price.
• You may see some sets with asking prices much higher but those are just that - asking prices and rarely sell for high prices.
• All most encyclopedias are very slow sellers and auction site sellers may keep relisting sets for months and even years and still may never sell them.
• The Internet has almost all of this information and up to date material and it is free so not many people actually have any need for these books or want to use up space keeping them.
• It is true however, some sets are exceptions but this brand was a lower end set and is rarely a collectors item.
• Here is what one appraiser stated:
• An asking price is probably not a selling price, but what a seller hopes to get.
• What they actually sell for is another story. A story of what they're actually worth to someone, and I'm afraid to inform you, that value is for less then ten dollars.
• Ask yourself these questions. Were they mass produced? Do they represent current knowledge? Are there places where you can get the same knowledge today for free? See what I mean?
• Most likely a buyer of these will use them as fuel for their wood stove.

If you are interested in selling your set, I would suggest you list it on Craigslist or any other local auction site so someone can take a look at the set and if sold, no shipping involved. You can ask whatever price you want and change it if no seems interested.