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Question
i have a farrels herrings pt safe. patented 8/24/1869 is engraved on the lock dial on the front of the safe. the numbers 48448 are engraved on the handle and the number 14473 appears on the inside back of the lock. the safe is 25 inch deep, 25 inch wide and 35 inches high. it works just fine and i still use it. i have no idea what its worth or what its all about. please help.
Dan,
Farrel-Herrings Safe Co., had some interesting safes. Nothing that I would consider "special", but interesting, some of the safes did have fairly ornate art work. Farrel Safe Co., merged with the Herring Safe Co. in the late 1870's, prior to the merger with Hall's Safe Co., and Marvin Safe Co. in 1892. The merger only made safes for about 10-15 years. The Pat'd date was for the lock and gives you a reference point to start with. There were a number of safes that were manufactured by Farrel or Herring prior to the merger, so the safe may be one or the other with the merger name on it.
Unfortunately there are no antique books available that would give you an evaluation or pricing.
We are happy to give you a written evuation of your safe with a suggested price, but we charge for this service. If you are interested, send us pictures of the interior, exterior all dials, handles, adornments, wheels, art work etc. We will provide you with a written evaluation of the safe.
Basically though, I would suggest that you decide what it is worth to you. If you are interested in selling it you should have three prices in mind: Asking price, price you would like, and price you will take.
Bear in mind that many times in order to receive the asking price you will need to be patient and willing to sit on the sale for a period of time. We sold a Diebold Bankers safe that we had restored, for $10,000 but we had to sit on it and the restoration investment for almost 10 years. I had another safe that we had for 6-8 years that we sold for $1000, the purchaser found an 1880 $10 gold piece that he was able to sell for $3000 behind the wood work.
Without seeing pictures that's about the best I can offer here.
Andy
andy@securitysafeusa.com
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Answers by Expert:
Terry V Andreasen (Andy)
Expertise
Safe and Vault related Questions; Antique Safe Repair and Restoration; With over 40 years in the Safe & Vault industry, if I can't answer your question I know where to get the answer. Current Project: Restoration of two Tilton & McFarland Safes from the 1860's. Will answer Safe & Vault related questions concerning age, value, restoration, moving, opening & repairing, parts, operation and history. Note: It is not my intention to teach you to open safes or to provide information which may aid in the unlawful opening of a safe. I will not give out drill points or information which I deem inappropriate.
Experience
40 years in the Safe & Vault Industry. Service Manager for one of the largest Safe & Vault companies on the West Coast. Graduate of Lockmasters Safe Lock Servicing, Safe lock Manipulation and Safe Deposit Lock Courses. Graduate of Locksmith Institute.
Certified Instructor for the California Locksmith Association teaching Basic and Advanced Lock Servicing, Basic Safe opening and Repairing.
Factory Trained by AMSEC, LORD Safes, LeFebure, Mosler, KabaMas, LaGard and Sargent & Greenleaf
Organizations
Safecrackers International and the
National Antique Safe Association
Education/Credentials
Graduate of Locksmith Institute 1972
Graduate Lockmasters Safe Lock Servicing 1974
Graduate Lockmasters Safe Lock Manipulation 1975
Graduate Lockmasters Safe Deposit Lock Servicing 1985
Instructor Certified - California Locksmith Association - 1985
Factory trained by AMSEC, MAJOR, STAR, Johnson-Pacific, Kaba-MAS, Allied-Gary, ISM, Lord, Brown Safe, EXL, Mosler, Diebold.
Awards and Honors
2009, 2010 & 2011 Listed in AllExperts top 50 Experts. All Experts Categories - Safes & Security Containers, Locksmithing, Antique Safes.
Retired US Army Reserve Chief Warrant Officer (CW3), with 32 years of total service. With numerous awards from Vietnam, Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom.
US Navy - 1971-1981
US Army Reserve 1984-2006
US Army Retired Reserve 2006-present
Past/Present Clients
US Secret Service, FBI, BATF, Local Law enforcment agencies, Diebold, Hamilton Pacific, Red Hawk Int., Chubb International, Bank of America, Wells Fargo Bank, Mechanics Bank, El Dorado Savings Bank, many Credit unions and smaller banks. McDonalds, Togos, BurgerKing, TacoBell, Carls Jr. FoodMaxx, SaveMart, Lucky's, Albertson's, Raley's, Safeway, NobHill, Bell Markets, PW Markets. Great America, Century Theatres, Cinemark Theatres, UA Cinemas, and many homeowners and small businesses.
Provide warranty service for lock and safe manufactures.
Service area is Northern California - Fresno to Oregon, including western Nevada
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