I went to an auction today with my father-in-law. Two things we went for....a log splitter for my brother-in-law Mike and a tanning bed for my sister-in-law Tina. The log splitter went way too high....$525.....for an older model with limited power and throat size. The tanning bed came in at a very nice $180 and is now sitting in MY garage until it gets carried (by my father-in-law and I) into Tina's basement.
I saw an excellent example...a few actually...of people getting caught up in the auction madness and paying way too much for items. There was a nice gun collection being auctioned, and most of the guns went to prices that I would have expected.....$175 for a Hi Point full frame 9mm, $125 for a Hi Point .380 ACP...both pistols in prime condition with minimal usage. But the guns that really blew me away in terms of price were BB guns. A CO2 powered BB pistol, that has a Walmart retail price of around $50, auctioned off for $110. Two .177 caliber air rifles...one Daisy and one Coleman....went for $115 and $130. Those things can be bought new for $40 to $60 at Walmart every day of the week. It was a case of folks being caught up in the bidding action that they did not stop to think that the item they were bidding on was really not worth the opening bid. I know the tomorrow morning some guy is going to wake up with the startling realization that he just paid $130 for a used air rifle that he could buy new for $45. That is if his wife doesn't kill him first!
One item that really caught my eye was a 1938 Oliver Row Crop 70 tractor. Nearly intact, very clean and straight sheet metal. The only thing missing from the tractor was the seat. Even the art deco styled grill was in great shape. The engine was not frozen, turned over freely. The tractor can easily (easily being a relative term here) be restored and shown at the county fairs. That tractor went for $850.....which I thought was a steal!
OBIO
I saw an excellent example...a few actually...of people getting caught up in the auction madness and paying way too much for items. There was a nice gun collection being auctioned, and most of the guns went to prices that I would have expected.....$175 for a Hi Point full frame 9mm, $125 for a Hi Point .380 ACP...both pistols in prime condition with minimal usage. But the guns that really blew me away in terms of price were BB guns. A CO2 powered BB pistol, that has a Walmart retail price of around $50, auctioned off for $110. Two .177 caliber air rifles...one Daisy and one Coleman....went for $115 and $130. Those things can be bought new for $40 to $60 at Walmart every day of the week. It was a case of folks being caught up in the bidding action that they did not stop to think that the item they were bidding on was really not worth the opening bid. I know the tomorrow morning some guy is going to wake up with the startling realization that he just paid $130 for a used air rifle that he could buy new for $45. That is if his wife doesn't kill him first!
One item that really caught my eye was a 1938 Oliver Row Crop 70 tractor. Nearly intact, very clean and straight sheet metal. The only thing missing from the tractor was the seat. Even the art deco styled grill was in great shape. The engine was not frozen, turned over freely. The tractor can easily (easily being a relative term here) be restored and shown at the county fairs. That tractor went for $850.....which I thought was a steal!
OBIO
