Another Fake Antique Tricycle
Q: Hello, I just paid for access to your online price guide and have a old trike that I was hoping to get some info on. It looks to be wrought iron/steel with wooden wheels shod in steel straps like a old wagon wheel, except the spokes are steel rods. Overall condition appears to be good with wheels/steering/pedals all moving freely.It looks as if the seat was (re?) covered with a padded plastic/vinyl cover at some time.
The previous owner used it as interior decoration and looks as if he had it painted/varnished (wheels, handgrips, seat are obviously brown paint and frame may be same or a varnish). Any info and it and a ballpark idea of value would be appreciated.
A: Sadly, your tricycle is a fake. It is a decorative item, probably made in China in the past few years, but being sold in the US as “antique” to unsuspecting buyers. For the current selling prices on eBay, you can simply type “Antique Tricycle” into the completed items search and you’ll more than likely get a range of prices from 99 cents to hundreds of dollars. These are worth roughly $15-30 for their decorative value, tops. They aren’t rare, so paying shipping on one the whole way across the country isn’t necessary. I’ve seen these for $5 at flea markets and wasn’t even tempted to buy one at that price.
If you paid a bunch of money for it, I would request your money back and you could always buy a more reasonably priced one. For more info on antique fakes, visit our Fake Antique Tricycles page.
