Auction Hunters: Season 2, Episode 5: “Labor of Love.”
The guys went down to West Los Angeles for what was supposed to be a five unit auction. Unfortunately there ended up only being one unit for sale and it looked pretty bad so they left.
Allen and Ton decided it was good day to go through two containers they had won a week ago. They paid a man $300 and a case of beer to deliver that day and then set to work.
Radio Container
They paid $250 for the first container. They were interested in it when they saw a Marantz radio, but unfortunately after plugging it in they discovered that it no longer worked.
Fact: Saul Marantz was a pioneer in the development of Hi-Fi audio systems.
There were some old bird cages, boxes, a purse and dead speakers inside, all of which was pretty worthless to them.
They did find a faux vintage table that Allen said would be worth $50.
Then they found the shoes. Lots and lots of shoes. Vintage Nike shoes, in mint condition and still in their original boxes. Many of them were Air Jordan shoes.
Fact: Bill Bowerman created Nike’s signature “waffle sole” using his wife’s waffle iron.
They took the Nikes to Bobbie, a Nike expert, who was quite impressed with the collection. He pointed out that one pair was actually a Nick Diamond shoe.
Fact: Nick Diamond’s ‘Tiffany’ Dunk SB was the most hyped and sought after shoe in Nike history.
Another was a Pushead shoe.
Fact: Pushead has created artwork for Metallica, Travis Barker and the misfits.
Bobbie was clearly very excited about the collection and paid them $3500 for the whole lot.
Inside the container they had also found a Ms. Pac Man arcade game
. Allen got super excited when they plugged it in and it still worked. He started playing immediately. He wondered how they were going to ever get anything done for the rest of the day. Ton unplugged the machine. Yep, that’ll do it.
Fact: In Ferris Bueller’s Day Off and Footloose, the sound of Pac-Man dying occurs in crucial scenes.
Since the machine was missing a lot of its original artwork and not worth a lot as it stood, they decided to spend a bit of money on fixing her up.
Fact: Since 1980, Pac-Man arcade games have been played more than 10 billion times.
$175 and six hours later, the guys had the machine looking pretty again and placed an ad for it. A guy named Nathan came by to look at it. He bought it from them for $1300.
Fact: The coin box in a Ms. Pac-Man can hold $600 worth of quarters.
Garage Container
They paid $200 for a unit that had a bunch of coolers, b
oxes, old wheels and bikes inside it. As soon as they opened it, they did spot a couple of items worth a little bit of money: a camping stove worth $40 and shop vacuum valued at $50.
Allen found a leather motorcycle jacket worth $175. He tried it on and was quite 
pleased with the look.
While going through the container they kept finding parts to a Harley Davidson Softrail bike, including a frame and an “Evo” motor.
Fact: You can identify Harley “Evo” Motors by their blocky rocket boxes and aluminum heads.
They took all the pieces to “Mean” Gene a motorcycle expert.
Fact: Prior to 1958, Harley manufactured Hardtail motorcycles which lacked rear suspension.
At first he wasn’t very impressed since the frame was so old and in bad condition but then he spotted a number on it which said the bike was from 1958, the very first year that particular kind of bike had been made. The frame suddenly became the part he was the most excited about.
Fact: Harley Davidson Softtail frames have a pivot point near the rear axle.
The “Evo” motor was also still in great condition. Ton pointed out it was only a few years old.
Fact: “Evo” motors made motorcycles more popular because of their easy maintenance.
Gene paid them $4500, for all the parts.
Fact: Evolution “Evo” motors are V-Twin engines manufactured by Harley Davidson since 1984.
Two months later, Ton went back to Gene, to see the bike all put together. And of course, being Ton, he took it out for a spin.
Auction Total:
Paid $950
Sold: $9300
Profit: $8350
Please post your insightful and thoughtful opinions in the comment box below.