Finally had the opportunity to look closely at the new GLOW's and I have developed a concern upon close inspection. I have always bought the LE's because the quality was better than other releases (ie. GLOWS) and the size was always larger than similar items in the HL line. I remember from somewhere that the GLOW's were suppose to be smaller than the Le's (about 75% of the size)in addition to being an open edition. Also we could usually depend on the quality to be somewhat less than the LE's in order to retain the value of the LE items.

Well the Cape Henry GLOW appears to be slightly larger than the original LE and the quality is very good. Although it does not have the first tower next to it, the paint seems of slightly lesser quality, and the weight is significantly less, the height of the piece is the same, it has a clear latern room that has a light, and it has metal railings on the walkway (versus the cast & painted of the original). Thus there are as many positives to the chosing this piece over the LE, as there are the other way. When I looked at the Castel Hill I found similar results. The size is the same, the quality is probably better in some respects than the LE, and it includes a light.

I have always thought that HL would take care of the LE collectors, but I am starting to wonder again if they looking at moving away from LE's at a slightly higher price, and focusing on the GLOW business. Although the first LE of the year (Roundout II) was very well done, the price was higher than the GLOW's introduced, and with that in mind, what is to prevent collectors from just sitting back and waiting for GLOW version of the "unique" LE that collectors have always waited for. I have always collected the LE's because I thought they were unique in some way, and that HL would not abandon the LE collector, by offering them a unique product, with something that made it stand apart, and kept the value by being classified as a collectable. But again, I am now not so sure. Can someone help me out in giving me some idea of what HL is doing and how the LE's will retain their status of top of the HL line, and be considered as "highly collectables" into the future? Just last week I felt that HL woudl not abandon the LE collector by offering them a unique product that stands out from other products in their line, but now I'm not so sure that is the case as of today.

Confused, and looking for answers.

Dick
I expect to see the lighted glow to be the Harbour light main seller remaking all the big sellers and the L.E.'s just filling a void for the avid collectors.
Our collecting world is changing. After seven years of collecting I quit collecting the L.E.’s except for those that are south of the mason Dixon line and some event pieces. I enjoy rarity and value in my collectables, that why I have switch most of my collecting to hard to find variations. Love those Green waters.

A lighthouse is a lighthouse, and is a lighthouse. It's my firm belief that Harbour Lights will continue to offer the best limited editions of any manufacturer. They have no intentions of cutting their faithful LE collectors out of the picture.

GLOW's serve a purpose for those who purchase them and for their manufacturer. They are a renewable revenue resource for both Younger & Associates, and those collectible shops that need large amounts of their popular area lighthouse. Can you imagine how frustrating it must be to a shop owner to get a dozen or so LE's of a local light knowing once they're gone there will be no additional profit to be had. On the other hand, GLOW's can produce an endless supply of replicas of the local light affording the shop keeper to keep his shelves filled with the best sellers.

Do I think GLOW's should be made in an inferior fashion as compared to LE's? I would have to say, "No". Harbour Lights strives for excellence in what they produce. I can't see them making an inferior product.

We are all concerned about the demise of many collectible stores throughout the country. It is a fact of life in the business world. They need to have stock they can move to make a profit. Nothing must be more frustrating to a store owner than to have people come in looking for something to buy and not find it available in the store. GLOW's can provide that store keeper with an endless supply of a popular item for years to come. Limited editions cannot do that. Limited editions of an area light means limited profit.

:rolleyes: Bob :rolleyes:

The LE's will retain status over the GLOWS in large part, I think, due to the total quality offering of LE,s in the catalog.The new GLOW offerings are well done and serve a purpose not only for HL as a business but for collector and non collector alike.

In the end however it is very simple no mater LE or GLOW.........................................

Buy em' cause you like em'

I feel that there will always be a LE line with Harbour Lights. There may not be as many each each year and the number of each produced may be less but there will always be limited editions.

While I compare GLOWS to Doritos(Go ahead and eat them all because we will make more)there is still a place for them or LLOM in the marketplace. I personally would prefer that Harbour Lights discontinue the GLOW line in favor of LLOMs so the sake of the LE value will stop decreasing, but that will never happen. The value of LEs started their slow decline the minute the first Hatteras GLOW hit the shelf and has spiraled downhill ever since. Any established collector or new collector that buys a glow in place of a LE is affecting the future value of a LE. The tourist cannot be blamed for this because they don't know the difference between a LE, GLOW or LLOM and probably don't care either. They will buy whatever the store owner has to sell and can't be blamed for the LE declining values. The LLOM is the perfect gift store item for the tourist or occasional buyer of a momento. At the price of LLOM a tourist can afford to buy 3-4 versus the cost of a GLOW. At the cost of a GLOW that same person will only be able to buy one piece versus the price of a LE.

Will Harbour Lights replace the highly detailed more expensive LE with the equally highly detail less expensive GLOW? I think not. Will Harbour Lights replace the highly detailed more expensive GLOW with the equally highly detailed less expensive LLOM? I surely hope so.

Possibly one reason these GLOWS are larger is to accomodate the light?

The HL's have gone through size changes too. A few years ago some of them we complained were more "glow sized". The following year was the year of very large pieces. Some complained they were too large, especially those who were running out of display space.

HL can do what it wants with the GLOWS as I don't buy them. With the detail that's possible these days, even on smaller items, I really don't see why the LE's have to be any larger than the former GLOWS to be attractive.

Just my opinion....

For those who collect both and think the disparity in size is a problem, perhaps they can just be displayed separately from the LE's?

I personally feel that it is a good idea for Harbour Lights to remake all the GLOWS as lighted Lighthouses. This makes them more of a giftware and a novelty than a collectable. This will also bring in profits so that Harbour Lights stays in business and is still around to keep producing L.E.’s
This will in turn take away the competition from the L.E. and allow the L.E. flourish as a separate entity .

Harbour Lights. Please don’t light up the L.E.’s anymore.

I'm with you on that point, Dan. Although I do like the idea of the glass in the lantern room not being painted, I would prefer my future LE's not to be "battery operated" or lighted.

Bob

When I recieved the AP's to shoot pictures for the HL website, I predicted that someone would mention the size/detail of the Cape Henry & Castle Hill GLOW's.. While both are probably closer in size to their LE counterparts, they both are actually smaller lighthouses with bigger bases..





Those who have expressed concerned will be happy to know that the Grand Travers GLOW is much smaller than it's LE counterpart and the Port Isabel probably is around 75% of the size of the Port Isabel LE..





The first thing that really stood out about the Castle Hill GLOW was the different shape of the tower compared to the tower on the LE..

If you take away the feet and the extra base (room for the Batteries), then the OE's look much smaller than the LE's... The battery room and the legs give them a lot of height!

I also like the idea of the glass lantern room but please HL no more battery powered light-up LE,s

Many thanks for those comparison pics, Paul! What a great way to show them.

Bob

For years now, HL has been making GLOWs the way they used to make their LEs: compact, detailed, and easy to display. Rabidly anti-GLOW here but recently purchased the stunning little Yaquina Head, OR piece for my mom (who lives on the OR coast) and almost kept it for myself because I liked it so much...it is a perfect example of the way HL used to (and still should) make their original LEs. As a purist LE collector, I've passed on dozens of HLs over the past couple of years because they've become so oversized and overdone, while at the same time, it's annoying and frustrating to see these little GLOW and LLOM jewels fill dealer shelves and devalue our LE collections. As nice as they are, I will NOT be filling my curios with open edition giftware.