This Explorer model electric guitar by Gibson is a fine musical instrument with an unusual design. It has a Korina (an African wood) body, mahogany neck, pearl inlay and a rosewood fingerboard. Last year it sold for 11,000.

If you’re not interested in vintage guitars, fishing lures or iron doorstops, you must be surprised at the high prices serious collectors are paying for these items. Each is a special collecting niche and has its own group of collectors. They sometimes make great buys at house sales, because the average person can’t even imagine a doorstop worth more than $70,000, a fishing lure for more than $100,000 or a guitar that sells for more than $900,000. Vintage guitars that belonged to popular musicians sell very well, but even one used by an unknown musician will bring a high price if it’s unusual or of exceptional quality. Recently a Gibson Explorer electric guitar made around 1958-1963 sold at a Skinner auction in Boston for $611,000. Its unusual shape, special features and, of course, Gibson’s reputation as a guitar manufacturer led to the high price. Don’t assume your old musical instrument has little value. Check with a local music store or online.

Q: I own an old screw cabinet that once sat in the George V. Ayres hardware store in Deadwood, S.D. Ayres, who was my uncle, was one of the original Deadwood pioneers from Gold Rush days. The octagonal cabinet has nine triangular drawers in each of its eight sides. All the drawers have original hardware, and screw sizes are etched or burned on the front of each drawer. A local appraiser couldn’t come up with a value for me because he had never seen one before. Can you give me some idea of the cabinet’s value?

A: Antique hardware cabinets are eagerly sought by collectors. Many are octagonal, like yours, and sit on a revolving base. We have seen this type of cabinet, in excellent condition and with original hardware, sell for prices ranging from $500 to $2,000. Your cabinet would attract extra interest because of its history, too. But it would help if you had paperwork or photographs to prove the cabinet was used in your uncle’s hardware store. We’re big fans of the HBO series “Deadwood,” so we did a little extra research on George V. Ayres (1852-1939). He arrived in the Black Hills in 1876 at the beginning of the Gold Rush there, and within a year was working at the R.C. Lake Hardware Store in Deadwood. By the mid-1880s, he owned the store, eventually moving it to the main floor of the Bullock Hotel (built in the mid-1890s by none other than Seth Bullock and Sol Star, hardware and hotel entrepreneurs in both the real and TV Deadwoods). The hotel still stands.

Q: My question is about whether or not it’s worthwhile trying to sell a 1940s toilet, sink and claw-foot bathtub?

A: Old toilets sell for premium prices today because they use the old forceful flush that’s much stronger than the water-saving flush of new ones. The claw-foot tub would be of interest to collectors. The tubs are so popular they are being reproduced. Most 1940s claw-foot tubs we’ve seen sell for $50 to $100. The sink may attract interest from someone redoing a bathroom in a vintage style. Try selling the fixtures locally.

Q: I have a box of old railroad timetables that were stored in my garage for years. I would like to sell them, but they smell very musty. Can I get rid of the odor?

A: You can try a couple of things. Put a few timetables in your microwave oven and “cook” the paper on low power for 30 seconds at a time. This is a good method for killing mold and might get rid of the odor. But be sure there are no metal staples in the timetables. They can spark a fire. Another option is to bury the whole collection in a mound of kitty litter for several days. Then just dust them off.

Q: I have a round, electric wall clock that was used in the hair salon where my mother worked. It looks like a giant pocket watch. The face is white with a red center picturing a cartoon drawing of a girl with curly hair. The name “Caryl Richards” is printed in a handwriting style just below the Roman numeral XII. The maker’s name, United Clock Corp., is in tiny print at the bottom of the face. What can you tell me?

A: United Clock Corp. of Brooklyn, N.Y., manufactured clocks from the 1930s to the ’60s. Your clock was made to promote hair-care products made by Caryl Richards, a company founded in the 1930s by George Barrie. Barrie named the company after two of his children, Caryl and Richard, and later merged Caryl Richards with Rayette. Your clock probably dates from the 1940s or ’50s. It could sell for $100 or more if it works. Barrie went on to buy Faberge in 1964. He then introduced Brut, a successful men’s cologne, and launched Brut Productions, a movie and TV production company.

Tip

Iron a monogrammed tablecloth or sheet with the design facedown on a towel. It will keep the monogram from flattening.

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