What era is best to collect?

Conflict has presided over China for over half a century. China offers several options to collect militaria due to different eras that has occurred in just a little over a century. Personally, I collect just about any era as I have a big interest in the modern history of China. Here are some brief summaries on each era.

Late Qing militaria European style military of the New Army items are hard to find. Militaria items from the First Sino-Japanese War and before are very rare and I do not recall seeing anything available on the market. However, civilian government official's items are much more common. Some items survive only due to European military advisors bringing back some items. What I have seen that are more common to survive are swords and medals. Medals were awarded to Europeans for military advising and assistance.

The newly established post-Qing republic period led to many feuding warlord factions. It is also known as warlord, republican, or Beiyang period. Warlords built up their former Qing armies and bought plenty of European arms to be carried into battle. Many warlords carried the same uniforms and insignias and often competed to become the President of the Republic of China (ROC). As with the Qing, militaria items of this period, it is just as difficult to find. Just like Qing medals, many republican era medals were awarded to Westerners that were military advisors. Swords, although still rare, can be found and were brought back because, well they were cool items.

With the Second Sino-Japanese War igniting and later conflicts in other world regions bringing up WWII, much aid and advisors was sent to China as the US entered the war. Many American service men and women brought back Chinese militaria items when the Allies won the war. There is a better chance of finding militaria. More cloth items, such as hats, are found. Insignias such as patches and ranks can be seen often. Dress daggers/dirks and swords are more common. The ROC was very appreciative of US assistance and gave away many medals to commemorate the alliance. According to a Facebook Chinese militaria group poll, this era is the most collected.

Chinese Civil War items of post-WWII are not common and can be found at the same level as WWII items. 

After the split in 1949 between mainland China as the People's Republic of China (PRC) and Taiwan as ROC, militaria becomes more common. 

ROC militaria items post-1949 can still be found around Taiwan. Just like the stability of the PRC, ROC items can be found with ease. Early 1950s items are much more obtainable than pre-1949 items, still uncommon, but after the 1960s militaria items are common. Uniforms are harder to find for the early Taiwan period since old worn down uniforms were repurposed into scrap cleaning cloth. The US military had a few bases on Taiwan in the 1950s to the 1970s. Many US service personnel brought back items, such as patches, hats, insignias, and medals awarded. 

PRC militaria items of the 1930s to 1949 are very rare to find. The Chinese Communist Party was a smaller group early on and grew larger by 1949. Early 1950s, or Korean War era, is still a bit hard to find at times. Uniform items were rarely brought back by US service members and most time were burned due to lice and other non-hygienic situations during the Korean War. Medals and insignias is also rare. After 1950s, PRC items become easier to find. Stability can be credited to finding more items. 

PRC militaria items used in the last few years are becoming popular on sites like eBay. If able, collectors can access the Chinese market to find better items if they can find online seller agents to help. From what I have seen, current issue military items such as patches are readily available. There are copies of these items so one has to be careful when buying from certain dealers. 

Prices

Prices can be difficult to base on extremely rare items. In general, prices of militaria tend to go higher as time goes back further. As discussed, Qing and warlord eras are rare. Pre-1949 items are not as common, but can be found with invested time to searching and money to buy. Post-1950 items can be easier to find and it gets easier after the 1960s. I would recommend not going before the 1800s or pre-Qing in general because items are very rare and fakes are common.

Thank you for the time to read this. I hope you enjoyed this post as it gives a general idea on what to expect when collecting Chinese militaria items of the modern era.