mikemich

After years of procrastination I've finished a photo-inventory" of a collection my dad started in the 1930s, and i added to with my diecasts in the late 60’s through about 1980. https://www.dropbox.com/sh/30619g9trujmu3b/AAC-tuDF43rWRVXp00yHHwxka?dl=0 The photography and organization is far from perfect... conditions vary and not all photos are titled yet. I'm considering sale of the collection at least the vintage models and Promos.

Those look excellent! Thanks for the suggestions. Still pondering what sort of naming protocol for titles to index them by. For my purposes am thinking i don't even need an Excel spreadsheet if I simply use a standardized way of renaming the photos, and let the titles/photos themselves 'be' the searchable inventory list. I have a LOT of different model brands (collection spans 1930s through about 1980) so am thinking of using a letter prefix to identify model maker, followed by a codified description in the title of what the make/model year is, + the model makers own number if there is one. Simplicity is the goal: ) Thanks again! Mike

Great, I'll give it a look. Do you per chance have any particular rule of thumb with regard to what pixel measurements should be, for, say, an online photo 'gallery' ? I know sometimes in these conversion apps I've been asked to enter that info but...these photos current default sizing, seems to translate pretty well for online posting. Thanks !

Ok, didnt think about PS but i have an older working version of it and will check it out. Thanks!

Hi, I've just finished a pretty exhaustive process of photographing every model in a combination diecast and promo model collection. I took generally 4 or 5 shots of each, using an iPhone 13 camera and lightbox staging. Most came out pretty well. So now to organize these into a searchable inventory database, which I'll likely just use Excel for... I need to rename each photo title with some kind of coding protocol. Probably a prefix defining the model type, then an arbitrary number for each "set" of photos. Of course the cam just assigned them generic sequential numbers. Main question is, is there some software/app that lets you easily select like, 4 pics in a 'preview' mode, and retitle each of the pics - without having to click and open each one? Thing is, in Mac, its kinda cumbersome to use the Command>Rename routine for each individual pic. I'm looking at thousands of pieces that I want to go through and assign new titles to. The other thing is downsizing the photo file size. I want to batch-downsize the majority of them and can only find online jpg converters where i can only upload like, 20 at a time. (i.e., TinyJpg.com). I'm guessing i should do this before i would start re-naming them. Wondering if anybody knows of an app that'll do this easily? I've probably already done this in a way that's more time consuming that it had to be but i had to get the project underway, and now, need to organize them 'after the fact' as it were. Major thanks for any advice, and sorry if i've duplicated anything about this in an earlier post. Mike

Thanks Paul,I haven't decided- if/when i feel ready to sell this collection, whether to go an auction route or piecemealing them on eBay... that's a whole 'other subject i guess... but yeah that totally makes sense about parting them out or at least specifying them as a 'parts' car if the warp is so major that it sort of 'totals it' : ). The kicker is that with most of them outside of the warp the cosmetic condition is excellent. Most of the promos went right into a display case when they were originally acquired.

Yeah I figured that mostly accounted for the lower pricing on the Ebay listings of similar condition models. Unfortunate that many of these weren't better maintained over the decades but it is what it is. It's good to see that there is still some appreciation for them even in the warp condition. Thanks!

Hi and good to return to this forum after a few years... I'm on a mission to catalogue/photo index a big dealer 1/25, 1/24 promo collection ranging late 40s into early 80s. My diecast collection will be next. Due to several factors, likely going to sell a number of them after I get it all organized. I'm a bit out of touch with whatever market there is for them lately. Just a general question about how 'in demand' those with the famous butterfly 'warp' problem is? I have quite a few that suffered that fate and curious how much that 'devalues' them. Is it just kinda taken into account that this is a pretty common problem with them? I'm sure humidity over the years did play a factor. Some of these are pretty rough; frame separation, general warping; A few worse-case examples in the attached pics. How about scratches on window plastic? I am detailing these as best i can before photography and pretty much leaving the window plastic area alone. Fair number of them have scratches as per a couple of the pics. While I'm at it, for those into the 1/25 universe...I have a pretty decent condition Cruver '49 Olds. I know it's considered somewhat rare. Pic of one I have included here. It that still a sought after piece? THANKS! Mike

I do like the simplicity of that! Maybe could use a letter code as a prefix that categorizes them by the model brand and what scale. So like, everything that's a CORGI would start with a C, or a JoHAN model, with a J... and at least then would be able to have some kind of sorting order. This works for most diecasts -where the maker identifies each with some imprint and even model # on the bottom - but then there are some very vintage ones where i can't identify the maker name or don't know how to correctly title them - like cast iron and tin, and some 1/25 Scale resin "promotional" models that have no identification marks -even what year they were issued. So there's that. But I guess I have to deal with that regardless of what method i choose to catalogue everything.

Thanks Matt! Very cool idea! I did think of Excel - having some modest basic knowledge of how to work with it - this is an interesting approach to consider...especially since I have it for Mac. Will give this some thought!

Hi, this has been a project that's been delayed for quite a few years. I collected and inherited a large number of 70s and earlier era diecasts, and many larger 1/25 scale resin promotional cars (dealer giveaways in 1950s-60s). as well as all kinds of earlier era cast metal and tin models in various scales. I'm trying to figure out the easiest way to 'inventory' and catalogue every piece in the collection; so i can have a sort of database with at least one photo of each piece, and a brief description or identification if possible. There are hundreds. I'm trying to figure out the simplest way to approach this. Is there a good software app that would be well suited for this task? When I started on this I did shoot and save a lot of my smaller scale ones...so already have quite a photos but they're not at all organized in any particular order. I would love some simple 'drag and drop' type app where i could move the photos around, group them in some logical way and assign a description for each. Then have them accessible online for viewing, mainly because i may be looking at selling some at a certain point and would like to have everything kind of catalogued for easy reference and viewing by others. Is there any sort of 'rule of thumb' as to how many shots and what 'essential' angles to take of each model? For the sake of time, I'd prefer to not do more than one or two pics for each piece. I know about lighting and staging tosome extent -and would probably just use an iPhone on a mount with a staging platform... it's more about being able to easily organize and label all these in a sort of database... Hope this makes sense. Thanks for any suggestions!Mike Motor City, USA

Cool, thanks! I'd love to get opinions on what else I have. Have not been on the forums in awhile so I need to look around but I assume it's ok to post my entire collection in the photo gallery section even if they're just about all promos- and not kit cars. Thinking about just staging and shooting each one individually in "as-is" condition for now.

Thanks Tom. That is an interesting point to consider, i.e., just leaving 'as-is.' Part of me can't resist wanting to lift off some of the more extreme 'crud' - but i know when i've tested this there's likely going to be a faded area left on the painted surface area where it was removed. I did know a little about the "Johan curve" that people have called that warping effect so i know there's little I can do about that and i would think serious collectors should factor that in when considering price.

Great! Thanks. Yeah I think some of my die-casts are a little too far gone as far as the oxidation - had moderately good success in eliminating the surface crud similar to that in the photo on the resin models - but in most cases some residual 'age spots' remained on the painted surfaces... as you say, it is what it is; ) Mike

Thanks! Great advice. I found some of my notes from when I started on this a few years ago and a couple of bottles of Novus plastic polish that I didn't know I had. Not sure if you're familiar with this product but I think your method makes the most sense to start with. Will keep in touch and post some photos as I get further into this- hopefully will have some good 'before and after' results to share : ) Thanks again, Mike

Hi, back after a few years! I have a few hundred diecasts - original issue Corgi, Dinky, Matchbox - and a promo car collection which was my dad's - and although they were stored in enclosed glass display cases, many suffered from oxidation. My mom passed away recently and I'll be needing to move the collection to my own house. I'm looking to ultimately keep and continue displaying some of these, photo-catalogue each piece and probably sell a number of them. I'm trying to decide A) how to clean them, to the extent they can be restored, and then how to best research for accurate pricing. This project sadly has been neglected as I didn't have the necessary time to devote to this due to life in general... but now I am basically semi-retired and looking to focus on working on this. Because of imperfect humidity environment, many of the Jo-Han cars in the 1/25, 1/24 collection have oxidation residue. I've got a sampling of some of the worst in the attached photos; tho they aren't extreme close-up. If there's any sort of best practices or protocol for dealing with this embedded dust, I'd really appreciate any advice...as well as suggestions on how to move forward on appraisal of this collection. I started macro-photographing most of the smaller scale diecasts and now am looking to finish those and shoot the larger scales, as I figure that's probably the first step to getting the entire lot of the collection properly evaluated. I know there's many different ways to go as far as appraisal and selling. My brother has a friend who is an online auctioneer who has regular vintage toys/cars among all the other categories of collectibles...but I'm more interested in connecting with people who specialize specifically in diecasts and promo cars. Would be glad to get any recommendations as far as that goes, as well. Thanks for your time reading through all of this! : ) Mike in Detroit

Wow, I'm sorry this fell off my radar and is important again... Thanks very much for these replies. I will check out your suggestions.

Hi - got a big collection of diecasts - mine , and 1:25 models that were my dads - promo cars - all scales but mostly 1/25 - - and i gotta get these out of some deep-shelved basement display cases of my parents house, and into my place to display or store. I've got a case for the smaller stuff but think i need to put the 1/25 scale cars in boxes at least til i figure out what i wanna do with em. Maybe got 100 or more of em -- (late 40s thru early 80s promos mostly). Want to find an inexpensive way to box each til i figure out how i wanna display em in my house. Any ideas for protective boxes i could put each in - or otherwise some idea of how to display a hundred of em in a relatively small space? Thanks for any ideas, Mike in Detroit

Thanks Tom. I'm sure they are great boxes. I was considering also, something like sports card boxes or otherwise trying to 'repurpose' boxes of a similar size if that route could be more economical. I've seen some comments about 500-count sports card storage boxes. Just considering options. And as far as the smaller-scale diecasts, that may be the more difficult box size IF i am going to store them. Sorry for elementary questions already long-answered but seeing as how these will likely just be going from one house to another - to be placed in a different display case, I may just carefully move them in bulk. Then comes the question of display case ideas...both for the large scale and diecasts. May just wind up custom building something though. THANKS!

Hi from Detroit! Years ago I inherited my dad's 1:25 car collection which, along with my own diecast model collection - have been safely stored and displayed in custom built-in cases in my Mom's house for 30-50 years now. I will need to begin boxing all of these models individually...first the 1:25 (Johann etc) Promo cars. I'm just venturing into the online universe to try and find out how/where to find storage boxes in order to move the collection to another location. Ideally I'd like some inexpensive cardboard boxes that are close to the original-size boxes most of them were sold in. Unfortunately only a relatively small # of the original boxes were saved. Similarly I'll have the same task for the diecasts and miscellaneous toys/accessories in that smaller size range. Sorry if this isn't the right category to post this question in but it seemed to be the one that best matched it. I'd welcome any of your advice on how to source boxes...and whether there is any other popular exchange to discuss this particular issue. THANKS! MIKE

I've been here in the past and happy to be back. Have a fairly large collection of my dad's and my own - Diecasts - Corgi, Dinky etc. and 1:25 Promo (Johann etc) Looking forward to getting some of your helpful advice here on a few things! Thanks!