Can I ask a question about an auction that ended earlier this evening

[gimpyrobb]

I am beginning to question the integrity of the auction process there.

No offense Phillip, starting!?!, thats the funniest thing I've heard all month!

 

[rhurey]

I just talked with the manager of GL at Fort Lewis/McCord last week and he told me that management was trying to bring in more money using this "reserve" strategy .

Yeah, saw all the larger ammo can lots seem to suddenly have reserve prices. Of course, the reason they were going cheaper is that the number of folks who can move a thousand cans (or 10 pallets even) is lower. I just don't get why they don't just sell them a pallet at a time if they want higher prices.

 

[pmramsey]

Good Morning Gimpy you're up a might early this morning I see. Glad I am making someone laugh today. OK, no doubt there have been various and strange anomalies in the process all along. However, this is the first time I personally have been touched by it since the one M818 I purchased out of Wright-Patterson back in 2010 mysteriously became two. As you recall both had less than a hundred miles on complete rebuilds. While bent out of shape at the time, I cannot ever thank you enough for loading those out for me. They are two of the best and hard working trucks I've ever owned. I sold one to a farmer down the road and I just crossed 4000 miles on the other last week hauling a load of hay. In the long run, it was not so bad.

 

[SLOrazorsedge]

I've also seen some shady bidding going on by a bidder that hits all the high value auction materials. Case in point were basically 10 NOS 8X8X6' shipping containers out of Herlong with a late "reserve" imposed by GL. This shady bidder managed to hit all of the containers for $450 "reserve not met" while the GL site was down right at 2100 hrs PDT. By the time I was able to logon to GL at 2145, this guy had hit all of the containers 45 minutes before. As the auction was in the final minutes before the 15 minute closing period. He chased the bids up over $1100 on all of the containers. The bidder bailed on each of the containers one by one as the bidding price exceeded reserve and $1100. Mulltiple bidders bought the units, some bought 2 yet this bidder did not buy any when the day was done. If this guy had over $11,000+ to throw down on containers and yet doen't buy a single unit, it sure looks like a possible "internal" manipulation of the auction.

 

[Suprman]

All those trucks GL was moving over the last few years they were keeping 70 or so percent of the money. They bought the truck centers for military truck offsite resale. That's a huge loss in revenue not having the truck sales. Plus they are still paying Truckcenter overhead. With the truck sales they made so much money the other stuff really didn't matter. There's so much of the non rolling stock the market is flooded most of it dosnt go for much and it's gotta be expensive to manage all that stuff. Especially with smaller sites that did both rolling and non rolling stock before.

 

[pmramsey]

I have observed much of the same on many of the high value auctions. It could be from the inside but it comes just as easily from the outside. I have listened to guys brag about "playing" on the auctions. They have no money or intentions of actually buying something but when they see a bunch of high dollar stuff going cheap, they can't resist "making" real bidders pay for something they can't afford. So they bid a price they know would not touch the winning price and they will do it on 10-12 or more units of the same type. They bid as if it is a cat and mouse game hoping not to be caught with a live high bid. If they do end up with the win, they just disappear. The number of default sales per auction is unbelievable to most of us. Only recently I experienced such bidding behavior. There were three high dollar units each with a reserve. It was myself and one other bidder crabbing about the three units looking for the reserve. When I finally met the reserve, the other and now TWO bidders continued to bid on the two remaining units but both stopped short of the reserve amount that I found on the unit I won and purchased. If you knew the reserve was $3000, then why stop bidding at $2700 and $2900 if you really wanted one of the units why would one not bid another $100 and get it. Go figure.

 

[rhurey]

Went to the local auction yesterday. First thing they to is scan your drivers license barcode, seen people rejected right then and there. Or guys getting their "buddy" to get the bidder card and get tossed when the associate is banned.

Then you actually win something with a title... The nice girl is there before the next lot opens for your $300 CASH deposit. They have 3 or 4 walking the crowd. Don't have it? The lot will likely come right back up.

The anonymity of the internet makes all kinds of crappy human behavior possible. Just generate another fake email address and a credit card number.

GL at least tries to close fake accounts. Somehow I'd opened two by accident. Never bought anything from the first one, and forgot about it. Used a different email for the 2nd one. Took them 6 months or so but I got an email that was insanely cryptic that they'd closed one, and do it again and get the boot forever.

Just watch an episode of Storage Wars sometime, half the "drama" is one guy trying to run up another guy just to cut into his profit for the **** of it, and the other half is someone trying to dump it on the guy doing it. People think ... causing others problems & costing them money is a fine way to have some fun.

 

[Triple Jim]

Just watch an episode of Storage Wars sometime, half the "drama" is one guy trying to run up another guy just to cut into his profit for the **** of it...

At least we can rest easy, since Storage Wars is as fake as it gets, script and all, but I'm sure "enemies" at real auctions pull dirty stuff on each other too.

 

[rhurey]

At least we can rest easy, since Storage Wars is as fake as it gets, script and all, but I'm sure "enemies" at real auctions pull dirty stuff on each other too.

Yeah, it's on TV. All TV is fake. The "news" is questionable.

But people want to be like TV. Not that I think Storage Wars drives real behavior, beyond sending folks to storage auctions and advertising for whatever company is pushing them nationally. But the mindset that idiocy like that is a good thing seems prevalent.

 

[Rebel635]

Quick update. After working on them today i can update this post a little bit. As i suspected, the "cranks but doesnt start" most of these gennies got as a description was due to draining of fuel. All had fuel filters missing from canister and o-rings were shot. Managed to get one canister sealed, bled fuel lines and cracked injector lines and she fired right up. We removed exhaust and inspected manifold, no water found. Drained oil and no water came out.

Ran it for a bit, no coolant in it but ran enough to confirm power on all phases.

Due to missing parts stopped work until we can get needed parts.

So far im happy. Other than minor gaskets and filters and one lower rad hose, everything else looks good.
Oh and the 802 is miles quieter than the 002. Even with doors open and top covers open for maintenance, i ran my 002a 10 ft away from 802a, stood in the middle and you can barely hear the 802 over the 002.

 

[gimpyrobb]

There's so much of the non rolling stock the market is flooded most of it dosnt go for much and it's gotta be expensive to manage all that stuff. Especially with smaller sites that did both rolling and non rolling stock before.

I have to disagree there. I have bid on at least 50 lots in the last month, none of them were won. Yes I am cheap, but if I can't get something reasonably priced(half of retail), I let it go. It might be because I am near a national outlet, but still, the prices I have seen, are high.

 

[Suprman]

Surplus retail but not new manufacturer prices.

 

[Rebel635]

Meh, i'd pay $800 for the 802a all day long. I dont know what kind of expectations you guys have but from what i saw while bidding on the 002a i won a few months back and what i read here, average prices for 802a's are in the mid 1000's for average and 2k + for nice running units.

**** i was reading a topic on a guy who bought 3 of em for 2K total and they were total basket cases. Seized engines NEEDING rebuilds.

 

[Interceptor]

Anybody see what the 803a went for on GL Mechanicsburg tonight? $4900 final bid. That's over $5700 out the gate for unknown running condition. Sure it looked nice, but isn't that full retail price for a tested working unit?

 

[Grimm21]

I know I'm a little late on this thread but I won one of the 802s at letterKenny I payed 800 and mine is missing the main fuel filter housing and the fuel water separator filter was crushed what a pain to get out. The unit does show wet stacking around the exhaust so I will be looking closer at that. The unit was a tier 2 overhaul with 143 hours I hope to finish getting what I need to fire it up in the next few weeks.

 

[rustystud]

Anybody see what the 803a went for on GL Mechanicsburg tonight? $4900 final bid. That's over $5700 out the gate for unknown running condition. Sure it looked nice, but isn't that full retail price for a tested working unit?

I have been seeing a lot of generators going for very high bids in the last two years now. I think the word is getting out to the general public that these military generators are a good buy. You see articles in a lot of DIY magazines talking about military generators. I have even read some in a few 4X4 magazines. So either the Sheeple are buying them or the surplus guys are upping there game to meet demand.

 

[Rebel635]

Man, talk about human nature. So the rest of the gennies with the previous reserve just finished bidding. Most ok ones went for more than what the reserve was set at last time!

So no reserve and you guys are bidding away like crazy? Weird.

 

[Grimm21]

I did not watch the auction so just curious what did they go for as I posted previously I got mine for 800 and I have put all most that much into it between the batteries and fuel filter housing and filters and I'm still not quite done yet but it did run and it does make power so I think I'm doing pretty good

 

[Interceptor]

Man, talk about human nature. So the rest of the gennies with the previous reserve just finished bidding. Most ok ones went for more than what the reserve was set at last time!

So no reserve and you guys are bidding away like crazy? Weird.

Chambersburg? I wouldn't say it was crazy. Five of them went for under $600. I bought four that I considered "good" for $600, $616, $670, $800, including one runner. The rest were between $800-1000 except for a runner with 20 hours on the meter that went for ~$1500.

I'm feeling good about the ones I got. That may change after I get them home.

 

[Rebel635]

The ones with low hours went for 1000+. The higher hours were around 900, the really high hours were in the 600s and the basket cases went for 400s. So far two of mine from the same lot as yours only needed secondary fuel filters and orings. Two had good water separators. All had the bowls. After priming the system the two i tried fired right up. I ordered 6 sets of air, fuel and oil filters for $170 bucks. Theres a place in texas thats easily half of what local places wanted.