Portland Head question (Oh God!. Another new guy!)

I'm pretty new to all this, so please take pitty on me for asking this question. I know that the original Portland Head (HL125) that came out in '92 was 7" tall and now goes for $500/$600. Then in '95 they put out HL404 that was 6" tall. And finally in '99 out comes HL404R at 5". (Bob M is kindly fixing me up with a 404.) Anyway, I was wondering what is the difference in appearance between the 3 pieces? Is size the only difference - and why does Harbour Lights keep reducing the size with each new offering?

Like I said, I'm new. Thanks for the help & the patience. :rolleyes:

Here's a place to start. Pictures of all three versions.

http://www.harbourlights.com/catalog/1992/hl_portland_head.htm

GLOWs (the 400# series) are meant to be smaller than LEs (OK, gang, let's not turn this into another anti-GLOW thread.)

Smaller (shorter) the tower, the more detail they can put on the base.

Comparing a 1992 issue vs. a 1995 is like comparing a 65-1/2 Mustang to a 2002 one.

Well, I have to say I like GLOWs - I even have several of them in my collection. When I buy a Harbour Light I buy it for the looks (most of the time I only buy the Lighthouses I've actually been to or that I really want to visit). I don't buy a HL with the thought of - "If I buy this my husband will be able to sell it for lots of money when I die." I don't plan on selling my HL's, so resale value is not an issue. Plus I don't want to spend $500 on a HL - when I could use that $500 to visit three actual Lighthouses. At that price I would rather buy the cheaper, but just as nicely made, GLOW.

Plus, if you actually think about what GLOW means it makes the Lighthouse even better - Great Lighthouses Of the World!

But that's just my opionion.

uh oh . . .

We may have to move this thread to the FSB . . .

The FSB? I don't know what that it, but it doesn't sound good.

Anyway, to continue with my education, what is the difference between a GLOW and a 'regular' HL? We currently have a little over 25 lighthouses, most of which are HL's but some GLOWs.

Hey, I'm sorry, but you guys are the ones who let in the neophyte.

The best thing about the HL404R was that they included a really nice postcard in the box with the lighthouse!!!


TPFIC

Sarge,

FSB stands for Fog Signal Building which is further down in the forums. This is usually where some very heated discussions/opinions at shared by some or all!

GLOW stands for Great Lighthouses of the World, which are open editions. Regular HL's are limited edition pieces.

I hope this answers your questions!

GLOW's have been discussed over and over in the FSB many times!!!!

Thanks for the info. I will go there and take a look.

GLOWs aka Open Editions, are sometimes considered more detailed than the Limited Edition version of certain lights. Yes, they are less expensive than paying a premium price for a LE, but the GLOWs will probably never increase in value because Harbour Lights will keep making them as long as they keep selling them. On the other hand, some GLOWs have been retired and a revised version made. Portland Head, HL #404, is a retired GLOW, replaced by HL 404R. This also occurred with Southeast Light, Block Island.

Most collectors feel that GLOWs are an intrusion that actually lessens the value of the LE's because people will purchase the GLOW version rather than spend the big bucks for the LE.

I use to purchase every LE and every GLOW offered. Like other people with large collections, I was running out of space to display and store these pieces. I bit the bullet, and bought all the rare/high price LE's completing my collection (still no Coquille LE) thus eliminating my need to have the GLOW versions.

New collectors will continue to buy GLOWs so they will have an affordable replica of their favorite lights. There is nothing wrong with that. The GLOWs look good, they're affordable, they display well, and most of your friends and neighbors will never know the difference between an Open Edition and a Limited Editon anyways.

Bob

Okay - now it makes sense. Thanks Bob. We are doing exactly what you described - we buy the ones that we run across and that strike our fancy, based soley on the lighthouse itself without regard to the investment potential. But we did figure out after tossing a few that we need to save the boxes.

I collect militaria, and I have pieces I paid a whole bunch for that look about like some stuff that was far less. Unless you understand what it is you are looking at, you'd never realize the difference there either.

And to put the comparison between a Portland Head GLOW and a Portland Head Limited Edition in simple terms is to compare a Burger King Hamburger to a filet mignon steak. They may look the same but they don't taste the same. You get what you pay for. That's my outlook and my opinion. If your in it for the long haul then buy a truck that will last you the entire time.

Rich

...posted by Rich.

A GLOWing analogy, Rich. Both are food, both can satisfy your hunger, but one costs a heck of a lot more than the other.

Bob

And $50 later, one leaves you feeling still hungry. The other? A lifetime of satisfaction. :->

Hmmm. Well, the truck analogy has got me thinking, 'cause I drive a Tundra for exactly that reason. It cost more, but I won't have to trade it off before the last payment is made either.

Some of the later GLOWs are really nice - far superior to their more early 'collectible' siblings. I like some of them, 38 at last count, and display them with the LE's, 152 inc 500/600/700 nos, and my six A-B's. I would do the same if I had some big-buck collectibles - perhaps even reselling said big buck LE to fund more LE's and GLOW's! I know, heresy... but I like the lighthouses these things represent - I guess I am not a true collector.

I have bid on more than a dozen items on E-Bay over the years - and lost them all in the last few minutes. I have never bought or sold from E-Bay, although I have been a student of sorts of the market. The prices do fluctuate with the economy... folks with money often prefer to buy from a store, for example. I have noticed quite a bit of reselling in my various hobbies - some even current stock pieces offered there for well over current list. Gluttony exists everywhere - I was told by a local dealer that the Middle Bay AL light would run me $300, if she still had it... I bought mine via the 'Retired at Retail' program from H-L for retail from Collector's World in Cape Code that day by phone. It pays to shop - and treat E-Bay prices with a grain of salt.

John

Oops - I have to comment on the burger/filet mignon comparison. At the end of the day, their effect on you is the same...

Gotcha! I meant they both will clog your arteries!

Okay, I must be completely weird than, because I don't like Burger King Burgers nor do I like Filet Mignon. I would much rather a big, juicey, Medium-well Porterhouse with a big baked potato drowned in butter, and a cold Dr. Pepper. To me Filet Mignon is overpriced for the itty, bitty steak they bring out when there are steaks just as good or even better for a cheaper price! Plus the filet mignon never fills me up, I may be a small person, but I can put a hurting on a steak. Plus the last time I did order and eat a Filet Mignon it didn't leave me with a lifetime of satisfaction, it left me hungry and upset that I paid so much for such a little,over-credited steak. :p

And Harbour Lights, like steaks, I purchase what catches my eye.