At the Cologne collectors' meeting in March 2004 the prices for more recent writing instruments were at the usual market level and corresponded roughly to the Ebay prices of the time. Outright bargains were hardly to be found; anyone buying there thus paid no less for current models than in the online trade. A well-filled purse is therefore part of the equipment.
The decisive difference lies in the choice and the condition. The range on offer at a large collectors' meeting is considerably broader than that of the online auctions, and the older writing instruments were in exceptionally good condition, which was not to be compared with the average Ebay offering. For collectors of old writing instruments a visit is therefore worthwhile even when there is nothing to be gained on price: they get to see and to handle pieces that can otherwise hardly ever be examined at close quarters.