JustinL Posted 17 February , 2005 Share Posted 17 February , 2005 I finally tracked down the book that would answer all my questions relating to my great-uncle's service in the South African Heavy Artillery: A History of the Seventy-First Siege Battery South African Heavy Artillery, from July 1915 the Date of Its Formation in Cape Town to the 11th November 1918, When "Cease Fire!" Sounded at Lesdain, on the Escault Canal, Near Tournai, Belgium The only catch is that the bookseller in Johannesburg is asking £230!!! My jaw dropped. What determines the value of a unit history, surely demand amongst other things? I'm sure it's worth haggling over, but what is a reasonable price? Rgds, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
armourersergeant Posted 17 February , 2005 Share Posted 17 February , 2005 So close yet so far away! Similar things happen to me though not at so great a cost! regards Arm. PS no you are not being tight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John_Hartley Posted 17 February , 2005 Share Posted 17 February , 2005 I'm sure it's worth haggling over, but what is a reasonable price? As ever, a reasonable price is what someone is prepared to pay. You must make two judgements. The first is how desperately do you want the book. The second is, if you don't buy this one, how quickly might another come on the market. A third, I suppose, is how much can you affford to pay. For example, I would to own a copy of the history of my home town territorial battalion. I've read it in the library and I actually have a photcopy of it from another source. But it'd be nice to own a copy. It's scarce and I've only ever seen one copy for sale (on Speedbid). I bid the maximum that I could afford at the time (£75) and was instantly outbid. I thought £75 was a reasonable price. The final buyer thought something higher was reasonable. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DirtyDick Posted 17 February , 2005 Share Posted 17 February , 2005 Sod's Law is that if you buy it you will see one for sale in the UK for far less a short time later. (And for that kind of money you would need FedEx to insure it so it does not go missing, a considerable airmail fee from SA.) Maybe a search on Ebay or Abebooks would reveal a less expensive edition. It might be worth contacting a researcher or military history society in SA (where, no doubt, most copies still reside) and ask if they have a copy. You could either ask them to check the relevant issue for details, or, perhaps, you or they might ask whether a photocopied edition would be acceptable. (Especially if you offer to pay the copier £30 or so to do it in addition to photocopying charges, since the cost of living in SA is generally cheaper than UK and with the strength of the £ would be quite a tempting proposition; same as paying a UK researcher £100 or so to do same; laborious but a very good hourly rate.) As a part-time author I should not promote such ideas, but who would be losing out on royalties after all this time? Ricardo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gem22 Posted 17 February , 2005 Share Posted 17 February , 2005 Justin A search on Addall and bookfinder revealed only 1 copy at £224. I suspect it's the one you've already found. Sadly that is the price you pay for rare books. Ordinary histories such as the Suffolks and cambridgeshires can set you back £80 for an early copy. Just as an aside can you recommend any good second-hand bookshops in Dublin or the Republic? Ones that deal in Great War material. My wife and I are holidaying in Tipperary next month and if possible I would like to build up my collection of Irish Great war books. Cheers Garth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marc leroux Posted 17 February , 2005 Share Posted 17 February , 2005 An Abebooks search found a copy from a South African dealer and it was going for $425 US, so yo might actully be looking at a bargin! marc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Hederer Posted 17 February , 2005 Share Posted 17 February , 2005 Hmm, No matter how you stack it £230 is a lot of "jingle." Unit histories are a strange thing. I recently wanted to get a copy of the Panzer Lehr unit history, published just recently, and was surprised to see it came in at a whopping 165 euros!!! As with any book, sometimes it's just a matter of luck. I got all the volumes of Schlachten des Weltkrieges for the price of what I've seen just 2 or three volumes recently. Just depends on how much it's worth to YOU. By the way how is 230 quid a bargain vs $425?? $425=225 pounds Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustinL Posted 17 February , 2005 Author Share Posted 17 February , 2005 Thank you all for your comments. I have approached the South African Museum of Military History in the hope that they have a copy of the book and simply tell me the battery's movements. Fingers crossed! Garth - I'm not the person to ask; I'm English. And as is it virtually impossible to get anything relating to specific details of British history I have never visited the antiquarian bookshops of Dublin. There are definitely more informed members of the forum. Try contacting the Royal Dublin Fusiliers Association (www.greatwar.ie). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gem22 Posted 18 February , 2005 Share Posted 18 February , 2005 Justin Thankyou. I will try the website you suggested. Garth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarryBettsMCDCM Posted 18 February , 2005 Share Posted 18 February , 2005 What determines the value of a unit history, surely demand amongst other things? Demand would be one consideration,as would numbers Printed {& that now Survive},I suspect with such a Specialist Tome this falls into that type of Catergory "Rocking Horse............." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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