top of page

Lou's Vintage Pick List

Themes, aesthetics, genres & items that I'm interested in acquiring...

Small Mechanical Gadgets, Miniature Mechanisms, Machine Movements & Musical Works

I love collecting vintage gadgetry, gears, miniature or small apparatus and antique mechanical devices!  The smaller the better!  From simple machines to intricate movements and ornate embellished artistry... I just can't get enough!  

The mechanical components that I collect can be in perfect working order or roached / broken / patinated... if it's mechanical, I'm likely going to be into it.  Anything that I can't repair will be repurposed and built into an upcycled artistic creation. 

  • Metal guts/gears/parts from vintage mechanisms, gadgets, machines, tools, toys, scientific equipment, etc.

  • Musical Movements (US or Swiss made; Reuge, Thorens)  
  • Mechanical animatronic, robotic or automaton parts â€‹
Gadgets & Miniature Mechanisms 

God created humans and gave us dominion over the earth and everything in it; ever since, humans have been using our God-given intelligence, ingenuity, creativity and problem-solving capabilities to figure out how to do more, better with less effort.

That's where machines come in!

  • ​Simple Machines (Pulleys, Screw Motors, Levers, etc.)

  • Elaborate mechanical devices

  • Gadgets

Rube Goldberg Devices

Rube Goldberg was a cartoon artist; most of his work was imagined and illustrated in print media. Some of his mechanical device creations (or similar) have been built into small-scale devices by mechanical engineers & artisans.

  • Inspired mechanical creations

  • Experiments / Experimental devices (successes or failures)   

WW I / WW II Trench Art, Artillery & Military-grade Ammo Brass, Militaria

Soldier-Made Art

Trench Art created by soldiers during war (or captivity) to endure the monotony while they "hurry up and wait" to get back to the World 

  • Brass Bullet Art

  • Tobaccoania-related (ashtrays, lighters, etc.)

  • Artillery shell hammered / welded / milled art

  • Mechanical devices & apparatus 

  • Neo-modern metallic scrimshaw

  • Objects that incorporate themes of combat, horrors of war, military life, campaigns, locations, weapons, Jody, etc.     

Civilian-Made Art

Trench Art created by non-combatives during war (or occupation) to endure and cope

  • Found / stolen military objects

  • Signage

  • Propaganda

  • Graffiti

  • Resistance themes

  • Camouflaged / subterfuged items 

Armory & Artillery Tools

Military-issued tools for maintaining weapons systems

  • Calibration tools & kits

  • Maintenance (PMCS) tools & kits

  • Artillery ballistics calculating devices (manual, mechanical, technical, computer-based)  

Tiki, Hawaiian, Surf Decor

50s Tiki

  • Small Tiki God Statues in Composite or Carved Wood

    • Love

    • Happiness

    • Big Kahuna

    • Big Chief

    • Lucky

    • Money

    • War

  • Tiki Barware​

  • Tiki Wall Decor  ​

Hawaiian Souvenirs 

Just about any kind of touristy Hawaiian souvenir that you'd pick up when traveling to the islands during the 50s... 

Surf-related Art

Small, novelty surf collectibles from the California scene in the 30s-50s...   

Shadow Boxes, Knick-Knack/Brick-a-Brack Shelves, Curios, etc.

Shadow Boxes

Every collector needs a place to protect, organize and display their treasures!  I love collecting vintage and interesting glass-covered shadow boxes  

  • Wood

  • Metal

  • Bakelite

  • Contemporary / MSM

  • Military / Industrial / Utilitarian / Storage

  • ​Sometimes synthetic or plastic if they're cool

Knick-Knack / Brick-a-Brack Shelves

  • Standard shelves with or without glass or plastic covers

  • Wood

  • Metal

  • Bakelite

  • Contemporary / MSM

  • Military / Industrial / Utilitarian / Storage

  • ​Sometimes synthetic or plastic if they're cool

Curios / Display Cases / Storage Containers

  • Wood

  • Metal

  • Bakelite

  • Contemporary / MSM

  • Military / Industrial / Utilitarian / Storage

  • ​Sometimes synthetic or plastic if they're cool

Small Precision Technical Measurement Tools

For as long as I can remember, I've always been attracted to small hand tools used for precision measurement.   

  • Mechanical Engineering / Machinist Tools

  • Cartography / Orienteering / Charting Tools

  • Gages / Calipers

  • Miniature technical tools    â€‹

Uranium / Depression Glass

Uranium Glass

  • Small Art Deco Figurines

  • Small Plates

  • Small Lamps

  • ​Small Artistic Pieces

Quack Medicine & Apothecary 

Hoax / Fraud / Quack Medical Devices

Bogus medical devices, tools, apparatus, equipment, advertising, etc.

  • Plasma / Violet Ray Tubes & Generators

  • Fake Gages / Meters / Measuring Devices

  • Electropathy / Electro Therapy / Shock Devices

  • Galvanometers / Relaxacisors / Microdynameters 

  • Magnetos / Magnetic Field Generators

  • Phlebotomy / Syringes / Injectors (Large, dangerous materials) 

  • Phrenology / Psycography

  • Rejuvenators   

Elixirs / Potions / Cure-Alls / Concoctions (Bottles, Packaging, etc.)

Faux-therapeutic medicinal elixirs or compounds marketed to cure aliments by unscrupulous practitioners (the more bizarre / dangerous / contradictory the better)

  • Psychological pharmacology 

  • Radioactive

  • Mercury injection

  • Toxic/caustic/carcinogenic compounds 

Medical Augmentations & Implants

Dodgy forms of anthropological augmentations, implants, enhancements, etc. that are medically deployed

  • Cosmetic embellishments (male or female)

  • Bionics

  • Mechanical Apparatus

  • Organ implants or replacements  

Apothecary / Medical Cabinets

Hospital-grade clinical apothecary storage cabinets, cases, bedside vending, displays, etc. used to store medicine and medical supplies in healthcare environments 

  • Military Field Hospital / Portable

  • Mid-century Modern

  • 1920s

  • 1930s

  • 1800s

Mad Scientist Laboratory Equipment

Electromechanical Lab Equipment

Nothing screams "Mad Scientist" like a laboratory full electronic thingies connected to gages and meters!

  • Jacob's Ladder (High-Voltage Climbing Arc)

  • Plasma Tubes

  • Voltage Generators / Regulators / Amplifiers (Step-Up)

Electronic Meters / Gages / Output Displays / Scopes

All mad scientists monitor, measure and experiment with electrical impulses from and to animate (& inanimate) objects...

  • Large electrical meters & measuring devices

  • Junction / Break-out boards, distribution & control equipment

  • Large tube oscilloscopes  

Chemistry Lab Equipment, Containers & Apparatus 

Every mad science laboratory is incomplete unless there are dozens of yards of glass containers, Bunsen burners, pipes, and other chemical gear bubbling and churning in the background while they toil away madly into the abyss of their insanity

  • Glass beakers / bottles / solution blenders / distillers / collectors / test tubes / twisted glass solution coolers

  • Bunsen burners

  • Metal mounting apparatus / holders / mounting hardware

  • Cork/rubber connectors for glass straws & tubing   

Lighters & Tobaccoania 

Vintage Pocket & Table Lighters

​Time Periods:

  • 1800s

  • 1920s

  • 1930s

  • 1940s

  • 1950s

Manufacturers (predominately collected):

  • American Light Co.

  • Bently

  • Beattie

  • Carl Müller

  • Dunhill

  • KEM Co / KEM Inc

  • Josef Kluss

  • Nimrod

  • Ronson

  • Thorens

  • Zippo

  • Unbranded oddities :-)

Styles:​

  • Art Deco

  • Aluminum Block

  • Bottle shaped / Barware

  • Advertising

  • Trench

  • Lift Arm

  • Military Units (Army/Artillery) / Militaria

  • Gun / Grenade shaped 

Countries:

  • US

  • Switzerland

  • Germany

  • Austria

  • Great Britain 

  • France

  • Rarely Japan (Occupied / WWII)

Cigarette Cases

  • Art Deco

  • Chrome

  • Onyx

  • Bakelite 

Advertising / Displays

  • Traveling Salesman Sample Cases (Depression Era)

  • Small Retail Displays

  • Kits / Tools / Storage Cases

  • Rare Print Ads (see Styles & Manufactures above)

Natural Wood Found Art 

Freeform / Natural

Freeform sculpted wood, roots, tree knots, driftwood, etc. formed by God/Nature

  • Burl

  • Teak

  • Mahogany 

  • Redwood

  • Cypress

  • Dark hardwood

Interesting Shapes

Interesting, naturally occurring shapes & forms manifested in wood that resemble other natural or manmade things

  • Mechanical Shapes

  • Anthropological Shapes

  • Inspired artistic embellishments / carving / shaping / colorization to amplify imagery or aesthetic 

Mixed Media

Unlikely combinations of natural wood and other substances (natural or man made)

  • Metals (Copper, Bronze, Patinated Steel, Anodized Alloys, etc.

  • Blown Glass

  • Enveloped Items (e.g. items that trees grew around or through) 

Retrofuturism, Mid-Century Modern Astro Retro & Sci-Fi Paraphernalia 

Kitsch Movie Robots & Space Aliens 

  • 50s Robotic Toys / Robots / Sci-Fi

  • Astro Zombies!

  • Small collectables 

  • Movie Posters / Panels / Ads (Small / Autographed) ​

Mechanical Building Sets & Toys

  • Mechanical Engineering / Science sets with electric engines/pullies/belts/gears

  • Erector Sets with electric engines/pullies/belts/gears

  • Steam Engine sets (small/hobbyist) with linkages/belts/pullies

Astro Retro-Futuristic 

Retrofuturism is a movement in the creative arts showing the influence of depictions of the future produced in an earlier era (e.g. the future, as seen from the past). 

  • Early space-themed futuristic art or imagery (think Georges Méliès' 1902 silent movie "A Trip to the Moon", DieselPunk, etc.)

  • Astro-Retro / Astro-Punk

  • Minimal Steam-Punk (as long as it's early 1900s-1950s industrial / aeronautical / mechanical)

  • Metallic Art

  • Mounted Movie Ads (Art Deco-ish)

bottom of page