how does the third tone change??!!!

[Alveranter]

Thanks everyone.. it's a little bit less confusing now =)

[kevinjamessmith]

I have asked this question umpteen times of various people, both Chinese and foreign, and no one could give me a clear answer. Eventually I kind of figured it out on my own. Anyway, it's nice to see that others have wondered about this too.

[Altair]

How is 老古董 pronounced, as láogúdǒng or lǎogúdǒng?

[LiYuanXi]

老古董 should be lǎogúdǒng.

I guess native speakers just do it instinctively. I was quite confident with handling it but after reading all the posts, i got myself confused! haha... i guess i'd rather do it instinctively than to know the logic behind it.