When a conversation turns to fishing, that conversation normally involves around what the fish are biting or someone telling a tall story about their latest big catch. There is a great interest in the actual activity of fishing as an outdoor activity. But there is one activity involving the subject of fishing that does not require that you to own a boat or even go to a body of water and engage in fishing.

However the activity I am referring to does require you to have an interest in fishing and maybe even have some knowledge of fishing and the equipment used in that activity. The activity I am referring to is collecting vintage fishing things. I have just about everything I ever purchased or was given in the pursuit of my interest in fishing. My wife calls some of my fishing stuff junk but I treasure all of it and I am constantly adding to my collection.

There could be different reasons for someone collecting vintage fishing stuff. You might be a person who just likes collecting and displaying vintage fishing items or you might enjoy the history associated with fishing things or you might be a person who looks at that vintage fishing stuff and sees a profit being made from the selling of those items.

When it comes to collecting vintage fishing items, I enjoy every aspect of collecting. I have several fishing items displayed in my office. Lures I have collected over the years are displayed in a shadow box and they make a great conversation piece.

In many cases, those vintage fishing items that you may have collected over the years do have some value and in some cases a large monetary value? Now I have some sentimental fishing items that were given to me that I would never attempt to sell for profit.

Items like a vintage cork given to me by my grandfather, my uncle’s first fishing license from the 1930s when he was a young man, a collection of lures given to me by local fishing legend Junior Collis and a rod and reel given to me by my daddy when I was about 10 years old are things I would never sell for profit. However for the fishing collector, if items do not have sentimental value, they can potentially bring a nice profit.

There are many people collecting vintage angling items today and will pay good money to relieve you of your old fishing items. I have a hard time passing up any old fishing item when I see it for sell. I have found many vintage items at estate sells, yard sells, flea markets and antique stores. I have purchased reels, rods, lures, depth finders, fishing magazines, motors and old depth finders at those venues.

Value sometimes depends on rarity and it certainly depends on condition. It also depends on the interest of the fishing item to the buying market. There is a great deal of interest in anything related to fishing that is old and especially items that are in great condition.

There are two good easy ways to gauge an items value. First there are a whole slew of books available that give the history of fishing lures and fishing tackle and many give you estimated values. Most of those books are available on www.amazon.com and many are available at local bookstores.

Also if you have an internet connection, you can go to www.ebay.com and see what fishing items are being sold and how much money they are bringing. This will give you an idea what people are collecting and what people are willing to pay for fishing items. My wife does not like me to go to the Ebay internet site looking at old fishing items because I can always find something to buy.

You do have to be careful when buying sight unseen on eBay or any online store but as long as you do a little homework and buy from good sellers, you should be ok. In most cases, good photos are provided so you can get a good idea of the item’s condition. I personally have never been disappointed in the items I have purchased on eBay.

I mentioned earlier that I have purchased items at estate sells, yard sells, flea markets and antique stores. I collect many different fishing items but if you want to begin collecting fishing items, you might want to start with one area like fishing lures until you get your feet wet in the art of collecting.

I collect vintage magazines, books, lures, rods and reels, electric trolling motors and gas motors. Just about anything I can find at a good price that deals with vintage fishing I buy. Many folks are out there collecting so don’t expect to get rich, if that might be your motivation. But you can collect and also sell vintage fishing items and turn a profit if you desire.

One of my best buys was a $5.00 purchase I made at a flea market while visiting my boyhood hometown over fifteen years ago. I bought a box set of books published by Outdoor Life in 1923. The set of nine small books cover ever aspect of the outdoors including four books on hunting and four on fishing.

I just put this little library of books, which were in mint condition, away with many of my other vintage books and magazines that I had purchased and collected over the years and did not pull them out again until a few years later.

Sometime back I decided to see if I could find out the value of that little set of books. I first went to www.amazon.com and the individual books were valued from $100 to $300 each. I then took my set of books to the Antique Road Show in Atlanta where they were appraised at about $500 for the set. That meant my little $5 investment was worth between $500 and $1000. Will I ever sell that collection of books? Not likely but I guess if I don’t sell them, they may end up in a yard sale once I am dead and gone.

Collecting vintage angling items can be real fun. It’s a good thing to do on those days when weather keeps you from fishing. If the weather is right and the fish are biting I plan to be on the water. But otherwise, I love searching for old fishing items. Good fishing and good collecting and see you next week.

Outdoor columnist Bobby Peoples can be reached via e-mail at brpeoples@windstream.net.