Antique is a relative term.  The 1918 Cadillac is an antique car.  The 18th c. Duncan Phyfe table is an antique table.

For me:
Antique is anything 100+ years old.

Classic is anything that was a stand-out or unique style, regardless of age. (I take it as a play on the word "classy"). Like Corvettes - they are classics no matter what era or color!

Vintage is anything that is no longer manufactured but considered desirable for whatever reason. (I take it as a word play on "vintner"). Like fine wines. A vintage wine can be from the 80's - not that old, but no longer made and very sought after.

YMMV

Vintage!   Look it up in your Funk N Wagnall!  "represents the best of a given time or period. "

You guys have summed up what an elderly friend of mine once told me.   There are some old cars worth a pile of money, and sometimes they don't even have to run.  There are some old houses worth a fortune.  Old guns, the same thing.  But us old guys, well, cleaned up his statement was something like: our worth is somewhat debatable!

I always use vintage when searching for old tools. You see a lot more tools that way   . I saw a bunch of vintage craftsman tools advertised with several pictures but only showing one side of the wrenches the side that said drop forged . I wonder what the other side said? bob w

> I wonder what the other side said?

"See other side"

"vintage" should be used with an era, as in "50's vintage, 60's vintage" etc...I don't know where I got this from but I've always heard 45 years for antique. There is an ad in a local CL listed as "vintage hwy caution markers" or somesuch. The pic show pretty new plastic reflectors that you set behind your disabled vehicle. I have emergency roadside marker kits that have flares, others that have smudge-pots, and a few with the cat-eye irredescent reflectors. I really don't know the age of any of them. I let the picture tell the story

Quote from: rusty on July 04, 2013, 09:59:46 AM
> I wonder what the other side said?

"See other side"

Man, that was funny! lol

Quote from: junkfisher on July 04, 2013, 11:41:29 AM
"vintage" should be used with an era, as in "50's vintage, 60's vintage" etc..

You know, this cuts to the chase.  Wines would be "vintage 1925" or maybe "pre-1940 vintage."  In this usage vintage does refer to the year of manufacture.  By extension, a tool can be associated with a year, as in Plomb tools are all "pre-1948 vintage tools."

Nowadays vintage is just a nice way, a more elegant way to say "old."

Quote from: Branson on July 12, 2013, 11:23:45 AM
...................Nowadays vintage is just a nice way, a more elegant way to say "old."

In that case, 9 hours framing a dormer has me feeling vintage today :)

I'm starting to feel pretty vintage also.

Tempes fugit for all of us, Bus.