Who's going to one of the nicest gun auctions ever?

[I Love Bourbon]

Lot 112 was the IBM carbine I think you are thinking of lot 38 H and R 4689994 but sorry both were in the last 50 to go and I was in the back doing my transfers.

Lot 38 H&R Garand, I have it at $1000.00.

 

[DoggyDaddy]

I left around 8:30 with what looked like approximately 50 guns left to move. Very glad I got to witness a collection of that size and condition but bidding was insane for this area. I have been attending central Indiana gun auctions for a long time and have never seen bidding that off track. I try to stay up on current gun values but also stay in my World War nitch and I have to say $300 to $400 dollars for what use to be throw away Mausers was odd. Then when the six digit Springfield Danish return with Danish replacement barrel pulled $2700 I thought maybe it is time to have my own auction. Did find it strange that the K31s which are becoming harder to find and prices are steadily rising going for so cheap. Needless to say a couple of fine K31 examples came home with me. All in all absolutely glad I went because not many people can say they were in the same room with 18 Johnson Automatics.

Lot 289 FN 57 closed at $900.

Which Mausers? The only two I saw besides the 2 Swedes were the 2 Spanish M1916s... I didn't see them go before I left. Couldn't tell if they'd been converted to 7.62 or whether they were still 7mm. I'm assuming the one that wasn't scrubbed was still 7 mm?

And yeah, there were more Johnsons in that room than a bad 70's porno movie!

 

[indyjohn]

Did anyone record the sell price for Lot 112 - H&R M1 Garand low s/n??? Besides the NM rifle, lot 112 was IMO the best looking of all the Garands.

Sorry. Lot 129. May not be an H&R. I just remember it was the only stock with correct WWII cartouche marks.

 

[I Love Bourbon]

Sorry. Lot 129. May not be an H&R. I just remember it was the only stock with correct WWII cartouche marks.

I have lot 129 Springfield Garand @ $1400.00

 

[SMOKEDIVER36]

Lot 129 a six digit mixmaster Springfield with original barrel if my memory serves me went for $1400

 

[indy1919a4]

There were a LOT of guns sold for well over retail though. Not sure what some people think during auctions but you could go to Dons and get better deals on some of the guns I saw sold. I dunno....

Auction fever, You can get it lots of ways,

-- You go for one thing, you loose it because it went to high, you loose another, then another, then by God you are going home with something..
-- The High prices start to make you think wait a darn second, these people must know something I do not...
-- The auctioneer started this gun at a thousand, so 700 must be a steal...
-- That guy is a dealer, he has to know this is a good price, after all he is going to resell it...
-- The SOB over there has beat me on 6 other items I will be damned if he will do it to me again..
-- You bring a friend/relative/enemy and you want to show off in front of them, or at least show them you know how to get something at auction..
-- YOU ARE IN A HURRY
-- You are going to a specialty auction, that is attracting an interested motivated group from all over the country, You will always pay more at that type of auction.. People who drive 500 miles do not go home empty handed..
-- Sometimes you do not care what the price, you loose track, your tired (did he say 400 or 500) no time to ask
-- You nod to quickly when it is your turn to bid because you feel under the gun.. (Now that is an auctioneers trick to speed up the auction so you do not stop and think)
-- You tell your significant other you are going to an auction, you are out all day and night, you had better come home with something.. (you can not face that, did you stop off at a bar question)
-- You are the gun guy at work, you tell co-workers you are going to the greatest gun auction for years, they ask you about it, they see it in the news, They have talked to you about it, You had better have something to show Monday morning, and I just had my ass handed to me, can not be one of them.
-- You do not remember the extra costs (transfer, tax & premium) in the heat of battle
-- You have wanted that item all my life.. today is the day you get it no matter the cost in life or treasure
-- You know there were 9 million made during the war, but that is the coolest one I have ever seen.. and there will never be another one like that (and there is some merit in condition)
-- Man I did not check the price of that before.. but surely these people know what they are doing????
-- Man I did not check the price of that before, but the darn auctioneer just said come on this is a better item then that.. (Like he knows or cares and will say anything to get you to raise your hand)
-- The Auctioneer and staff are friendly and a nice people I will trust him, he will not steer me wrong... (You forget sometimes that the Auction staff has one purpose, they work for the Owner of the property, they are responsible to the owner by law, and must by law, get the highest price that the audience will pay legally and ethically)
-- You are hungry, you get a some nachos and chips, and your mind is half divided on getting just the right amount of cheese and chip together
-- You better get one today, the prices of these things just keep going up...
-- You ask your friend with you, "what is the price of those", he says "500 dollars", but forgets to tell you he saw that price at Dons

There are 8 million & 1 reasons for things to happen at an auction, An auction is a living, breathing Dynamic organism that takes a life of its own.. ride it or it will ride you..

Oh yeah and do not forget that some people are just plan stpid. stipid.. styp.. Just plan dumb ..

 

[DoggyDaddy]

Auction fever, You can get it lots of ways,


-- YOU ARE IN A HURRY

There are 8 million & 1 reasons for things to happen at an auction, An auction is a living, breathing Dynamic organism that takes a life of its own.. ride it or it will ride you..

Oh yeah and do not forget that some people are just plan stpid. stipid.. styp.. Just plan dumb ..

^^^This^^^ was definitely true for me... If I had not followed your advice to hang tough for the entire auction (or nearly so), then I probably would have left after seeing a plain jane Enfield go for $475, and surplus 30-06 going for $1+ a round early on. Had I not had that advice I probably would have thought, "Well, I see how THIS is going to go. Pffft... I'm outta here!"

 

[Colt556]

Lol 1919. Like I said it was my 1st auction of any kind so it was interesting to say the least. By the way, I bought some CZs that we're missing mags or had 10 rounders. If any of you were the guys buying 30-50 pistol mags in a lot I'd be willing to pay a fair price for mags for a CZ 97 .45, CZ75 9mm and CZ75B 40 S&W.

 

[3Todd]

Did anyone see what the 5.7 went for? I'm guessing way more that it was worth.

My notes say "$900". I think I was pretty lucid at that point. I must admit, though, that by the end, my notes got worse and worse.

In all, I think it was a great experience. It was neat to see the Johnsons. It was fun to marvel at the sheer amount of ammunition. I wasn't looking for there to be any real steals...those don't happen at collector auctions, methinks. The pedant in me wanted to throw something every time Earl said "clip" when he meant "magazine". But, I got over it.

I probably paid a little too much for an Enfield (though not as much too much as some), and I wanted the Garands (esp the IHC that was in the catalog as FN) to go for less so I could start a collection...and I wish some of the reloading tools and ammunition hadn't been batched in such large lots, or that the lots had been a little more about cohesiveness and a little less about what would fit on a gurney, but I understand that we would maybe still be there if they hadn't been just batched for expediency.

 

[indy1919a4]

...and I wish some of the reloading tools and ammunition hadn't been batched in such large lots, .

The one batch of reloading items went with a Machine gun belt loader, that shot the price of that batch through the ceiling

 

[Coltsfan33]

Anyone know if Earl's has released the final auction figures? Thought they were supposed to do that today.

 

[338sniper]

They can not release the figures. It is up to the courts if they wish to release them

 

[BGDave]

Thanks to all you guys for the pricing. Last gun auction I attended cured me for life. If I recall correctly a generic shotgun barrel shroud went for $85. (No, it was not for any military trench gun)

 

[3Todd]

I think my favorite "WTF?!" of the day was late, when Earl brought back in lot #124, an FN49 that sold for $800 originally but the buyer was denied by the ATF check...and it sold for $850 the second time. (Yes, there are plenty of reasons for that to be true...but it was still amusing...at least that late in the day it seemed amusing...)

 

[citizenkane]

I couldn't believe all those FN49s. I've got one in 7mm I was put on gunbroker next month but I'm thinking the market might be flooded now. I didn't count how many but I bet it was close to the number of Johnson's.

 

[Toyman317]

I was there for 12 hours yesterday...didn't even go outside one time. I didn't raise my bid card until the last hour or so when I bought the 1903 A3 for 500 and a Spanish Mauser for $150 (must have been the least paid for a rifle all day). I couldn't pass on either one. I think the only reason I got the 1903 was the auctioneer didn't say out loud what the model was. Sorry Colt. The 1903 is a beautiful gun. The IBM Garand sold for 1050 but the best deal of the day for Garands was Gun #113, a Springfield with a 500K serial number. It went for 875. I kept pretty good notes so if anyone needs any prices, just let me know. Nice snag on the Husky Doggy Daddy. I wanted that one.

 

[Colt556]

I was there for 12 hours yesterday...didn't even go outside one time. I didn't raise my bid card until the last hour or so when I bought the 1903 A3 for 500 and a Spanish Mauser for $150 (must have been the least paid for a rifle all day). I couldn't pass on either one. I think the only reason I got the 1903 was the auctioneer didn't say out loud what the model was. Sorry Colt. The 1903 is a beautiful gun. The IBM Garand sold for 1050 but the best deal of the day for Garands was Gun #113, a Springfield with a 500K serial number. It went for 875. I kept pretty good notes so if anyone needs any prices, just let me know. Nice snag on the Husky Doggy Daddy. I wanted that one.

SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO YOU got my 03!!! I wanted to bid but the guys were throwing the next load of items on the gurney right in front of me and the thing went so fast that I never got a chance. It was/is a nice rifle! Odd that for a guy that liked WWII weapons so much that he only had 1 1903/1903A3. Anyway when you tire of it let me know, lol. Oh, btw...

 

[3Todd]

By the way, does anyone know if the auction house has any no firearms signs? Not that it matters much as far as legality, but I know some folks don't want to support a business that displays these.

Maybe not as useful after the fact as before, but... I saw no such signs. I did see a few people printing and "adjusting" in ways that if the auction house was looking to harass someone about it, they could have. At one point early on, the auctioneer announced that anyone carrying was expected to keep their weapons well concealed. So, I don't think it's _that_ kind of business.

I didn't notice it through the day, but at the end of the night, Earl had a revolver of some sort (maybe a Judge?) tucked in his back pocket.

 

[3Todd]

The IBM Garand sold for 1050

That's the same price I have in my notes, but lot #112 was an IBM M1 _Carbine_, right? (I was kinda sticking around hoping that would go late enough that it might become a steal...but it wasn't quite that.)

Lot #138 was mismarked as an "FN M1 Garand" in the catalog, but was actually an IHC Garand...and brought $2200.

 

[Colt556]

Maybe not as useful after the fact as before, but... I saw no such signs. I did see a few people printing and "adjusting" in ways that if the auction house was looking to harass someone about it, they could have. At one point early on, the auctioneer announced that anyone carrying was expected to keep their weapons well concealed. So, I don't think it's _that_ kind of business.

I didn't notice it through the day, but at the end of the night, Earl had a revolver of some sort (maybe a Judge?) tucked in his back pocket.

Earl told me that he didn't want to prevent anyone from carrying a weapon but that he preferred that they be covered while at the auction. Later in the evening he took his stainless S&W revolver from it's holster and stuck it in his back pocket. I had a P7 in a leather IWB all day just as I do most days anymore.