Iowa Auction
 

Lots of Flathead Items


Pack the bags and head on out to Yarmouth Iowa, population 78, and five days of no reserve auction of “stuff”, cars, parts, signs, pedal cars, etc .....




Get a load of this:
http://www.sullivanauctioneers.com/a...-collection-2/



http://www.sullivanauctioneers.com/a...-collection-2/

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Re: Iowa Auction
 

A lot of money is going to be in Iowa when this auction is done !

Re: Iowa Auction
 

Wow!!!!!

Re: Iowa Auction
 

OOH, close enough for me to head down, but I'll have to keep my hands in my pockets due to lack of funds and garage space!

Re: Iowa Auction
 

Holy flippin' COW! I wonder if the old guy gets to take just one with him when he goes. Those buildings saved the farm for future generations.

Re: Iowa Auction
 

Some interesting V/8s there. Always knew I wanted to be a farmer...Bill

Re: Iowa Auction
 

The sale poster alludes to this being an estate sale or at least that the bulk of the collection had belonged to someone who has passed. What a shame from a couple of angles. Clearly the owner had a real passion and knack for collecting. I don't know if he left this life on earth early or about on par with life and death statistics. In my way of thinking, there comes a time when we should all pare down our collections - just in case! We all know people who continue to hang on to their collection of "ninety-four flathead engines and two hundred transmissions" because someday they may need one.

Then along comes the unexpected and resultant selling which is hard on remaining family and often brings out vultures and opportunists. I would hope that much of this particular collection goes to true collectors not quick-buck artists. I fear for the potential lost history on some of these pieces. I can only imagine some of the stories that could have told about finding some of these gems and the knowledge of the various toys, cars and tractors that may be forever lost.

I urge all people to make an inventory of what they have and approximate values of same - for the just-in-case scenarios which can take place.

What a sale this will be!

Re: Iowa Auction
 

Growing corn was apparently quite profitable - must have got in on the Ethanol subsidies.
Amazing amount and variety of collectibles.

Re: Iowa Auction
 

You have to wonder what putting this much stuff on the market does to prices paid? I went to a big auction a few years ago. The owner, still alive, had a huge number of old tractors and the like, including steam engines plus a collection of cars and trucks. I can't vouch for the tractors, but the cars brought pretty good prices, as I recall.

Re: Iowa Auction
 

If you look up Robert L. Gabeline's obit, you will see that he is what most farmers refer to as a corporate type farm but the guy had a GMC truck dealership, more than a few grain elevator storage facilities, and a fertilizer plant just to name a few. He was definitely big time into farming. I came from a medium size family farm but his operation dwarfed ours for sure. It sounds like he was a hot rodder too.

He had so many cars & bikes that he couldn't keep all the tires aired up let a lone find the time to drive them all. Must have been nice....

Re: Iowa Auction
 

There is somewhere north of 50 million dollars there if they go for market value. Amazing collection.

Re: Iowa Auction
 

The part that got me was "100+ convertibles"!

Re: Iowa Auction
 

Amazing what a guy collects in his lifetime. Neat stuff.

Sullivan Auctioneers are a favorite among farmers in Eastern Iowa-Western Illinois. I have been to their sales, bought a number of items, and I can tell you they are first-rate, some of the best auctioneers around that is why they are so popular. No 'bidder's penalty' and that sort of stuff. They run an honest auction. Good folks very friendly.

Re: Iowa Auction
 

yup

Re: Iowa Auction
 

The guy with the most toys wins
The guy with the most toys,that everyone else wants wins
The guy who died with so many f-----g toys he could not enjoy them all LOST!

Re: Iowa Auction
 

I can agree with Jeff. They have a collector car auction once a year in Hamilton that is first class. I sold my '50 Ford there last year and was very satisfied. An all day deal that lasted well past 8:00 pm.

Re: Iowa Auction
 

Waldo is right. Great auction to sell AND buy. I was going to take a vehicle there this year, to make room for another project, but when it comes down to it, it's just too hard to part with the old cars.

Then you see what a wonder-"full" collection THIS guy had and you re-think about selling.

Here's a link to this year's sale first Monday in April coming up in a couple weeks. Cheap entertainment I go every year, even just to watch! Usually end up buying something like a gas globe or sign or two, or parts.

http://www.sullivanauctioneers.com/auction/car-auction/

Re: Iowa Auction
 

I just happen to be headed in that direction on one of my road trips to the states . Will make it a point to plan on spending some time there .
Vic

Re: Iowa Auction-My Experience wasn't so good
 

Just a quick note about 2 experiences with this firm. I attended-in person-one of their Spring sales. I'm on the East Coast-had a great time-First class outfit for an on site sale. Being on site I knew what I was buying. The following year I participated in the same Spring Sale-but thru their On Line affiliate Proxibid. I called the Auction company and asked questions specifically about the undercarriage-floors and substructures of a particular car-A Nash Metropolitan which is a Unibody car prone to rust. They had a company Rep call me and assured me the car was in excellent condition and would be featured in the "ride and drive" section of the sale. I ended up buying the car-paid strong $$$ for it and paid for enclosed transport back East. I practically died when it arrived in Va. "No Brakes-Don't Drive" was painted on the windshield. So obviously the brakes went out before the ride and drive session-but the on line catalog was never updated. Minutes latter as the car was being lowered from the truck I could see the floors were a mishmash of riveted patch panels and bondo and heavy undercoating smeared all over everything. The doors dropped almost 1.5 inches when opened as the door posts were rotted badly. I had physically had to lift the doors up and slam them to latch. If the car had been a convertible the car probably would of sagged so badly the doors wouldn't open. The roof was holding the car together. I had sent the company a Cashiers Check for payment. I called them every day for 10 days after the car arrived and forwarded them photographs of the undercarriage. Finally when the original Co. official who inspected the car for me returned my call I asked him how he could of told me the car was sound underneath when the undercarriage was a hodge podge of patchwork and he told me "You never asked me to get on my knees and look underneath the car" I specifically asked him to open and close each door as the car was of unibody construction. They would never make an allowance or consider a refund even with me offering to bring the car back to Iowa at my expense and absorbing the freight I paid bringing it East. Frustrated I called the On Line Hosting Co. The Proxibid Resolution Department assured me that they would work on my behalf and asked me to to forward copies of all emails between both parties. Problem was my report was based on a 10 minute conversation with the Auction Co. Rep as he "walked' the car for me. Proxibid told me they could not help me without a "paper trail' of sorts. I was out of luck with just the phone description by the auctioneer. I contacted the Iowa Auctioneers Association to no avail. The Auction Co told me "You bought it as is where is". Basically "tough luck" I was so upset I put the car in a local auction-without internet bidding where someone would see what they were getting and the car fetched half of what I paid for it. I learned a hard lesson. Never buy a car on line without paying for a certified appraiser to inspect on your behalf and never pay with a Cashiers Check. Don't ever assume the guy on the other end of the phone is a "car guy" like yourself. Would I attend another one of their "live auctions" You bet-but I'll never bid on line for another car without an appraiser looking at the car first. Since this incident I've had 7 cases where I've engaged an appraiser to look at cars on my behalf and passed on 6 of them. Money well spent from a hard learned lesson in Iowa years ago.

Re: Iowa Auction
 

Btt

Re: Iowa Auction
 

I don't mean any disrespect but I don't really even trust an appraiser. If I can't look at it myself, I won't buy it. Trust, when it comes to high dollar items, I have little of. I wouldn't even put a good friend in that position anymore. I've traveled to California, Indiana, and other states by light plane or airlines to look at aircraft or helicopter parts after experiencing customers getting ripped off by folks selling junk parts. I was glad to learn by other folks mistakes but it is a pain to have to do that. It's well worth it in the end though.

Re: Iowa Auction
 

rotorwrench I too had a bad experience with an auto 'appraiser'.

Years ago I bought an old Ford and needed to move on it fast so I contacted one of the auto finance companies in Hemmings. They said 'no problem' but wanted me to hire an appraiser to examine the vehicle. It was about 800 miles from home. I said OK, and they sent one out.

The appraiser was a lady who didn't know squat about cars. The owner was telling me how incompetent she was. Finally when she was about to leave he said 'Do you want to hear it run? See if it drives?' She said 'oh yeah, that might be good.' She never looked under the vehicle just stood from about ten feet away and gawked at it.

That cost me $200. Basically for nothing. She asked the owner what HE thought it was worth, he said 'Well I'd guess between $xxxxx and $xxxxx I'm asking on the low end as I need to sell the vehicle. Fast."

Luckily I had been in contact with the owner, he was a car guy and turned out to be very honest with me about the vehicle .

I'd use an appraiser again, if they would send somebody who could find their butt with BOTH hands and had some idea what they were doing:D