CHECK OUT AMERICAN PICKERS TV SHOW

Yee Haw! I can't wait!!!

Thanks for the reminder Alex!  Got it on now!

~Jeffrey

Watching it now.  Haven't yet seen the train, but some neat old toys!

Jim

The pickers paid $8,000 for it.

$4600 loss!

Ouch, You were right Don! Stay away from Standard gauge if one does not have a clue.

I guess we won't be seeing them pick toy trains again any time soon...

Andy

Still one of my favorite shows, but I think this was a good object lesson in that trains have a legitimate value and like anything else you need to do your homework and buyer beware.

Danielles mistake of not putting in a reserve was another mistake.  What they don't take into account was what was the cost to them, and the buyers premium?   

Pretty set though.

"Train Wreck" article HERE.

I think the lesson to be learned here is that if you intend on dealing (as a buyer and seller) in the high-end of any kind of collectible market, you really have to know that market inside and out.

Still love the show, and I don't think this train wreck will derail them.

Andy

Ol' Cecil made Frank look like a rank amateur.  It was like watching a train wreck unfold right before your eyes.  Good thing Frank and Mike are making a living from the TV show.

Phil

Wonder if Cecil was the auction's buyer? Wouldn't that be a hoot.

Any idea who 'Bill' was that appraised the train after inspecting it? I missed his introduction...

Buyers have been trying to low ball sellers since forever, and I doubt this will make it any worse. Sellers will continue to feign offense and slam their items back in a box and the whole act gets played out again and again and again.

With all the stories that buyers and sellers throw out, I wonder how they sleep at night.

I must say a great show to watch and also the other show that was on just before American Pickers, it's called Pawn Stars. It's very nice to see some old items in great condition, I will watch these two shows from now on.

Thanks, Alex

Wouldn't you think the amount of the reserve would have been part of the discussion, along with auction fees, etc.  between Danielle and Frank when he told her to take it to auction? 

I also get a chuckle when they "ship" large, expensive items back to the shop for Danielle to get appraised while they're on the road.  They sure aren't using UPS.

Makes you wonder how much is staged and how much is real.

Phil

LOTS of it is........When the show came to West Virginia to film a few shows my son ran into them at the Charleston airport. Needless to say they don't drive to all these states....and they already knew where they were going and who they were seeing....so much for 'free styling' as they call it. It's entertainment...and that's all.....the reality 'style' is in...but it's scripted as much as any show. That or everyone wears a mike pack around the house all the time.  

Their first big mistake was having the so called expert who they called on the phone just look at a cell phone photo of the set and tell them go for it.  Dont think many serious collectors would shell out $8000 without wanting to see the item themselves or a least have an appraiser physically see the item.

I watched the show and remember thinking that when Frank was getting all gaga about the State set it did not seem right.  Frank has trouble parting with $20 for some trinket,but here he is plunking down 8 grand for a train set, phony.  That's showbiz. Fred

When the camera first showed the car roofs it was apparent they were repainted. The missing handrail was also easily seen. While Frank appears to know his toys, its obvious his knowledge of trains is pretty slim. He shouldn't have had to ask if they were all original.

Pete

100% staged, as are all shows of this type.

If I had an old Std. Gauge item that I wanted to have fairly and accurately appraised and valued, there's only one person I would contact:  Bruce Greenberg.

I also saw this show...There were very fast shots of other Lionel items that I thought they may inquire about, but didn't...It looked like some Lionel dealer display items and what appeared to be a dealer train display, albeit, a small one.  But the guy had some very nice items.  I won't go into the buying and selling of the State set, I just had breakfast!!

Marty

I enjoyed when he asked where the caboose was. 

 That very question was a HUGE clue to his knowledge of toy trains!  

Agree with all others on the "reality" TV shows.  Not very real at all...it's all staged and rehearsed.  Reminds me of the latest news about the HGTV shows where homes get remodeled, buyers look for homes, etc.   The" reality" comes in by not having to deal with and pay few actors/agents.  Just find a bunch of ordinary folks who want to be on TV and go along with the fairytale.

Jim in Colorado

I did laugh.....wounder if that was added to help the story and explain the big loss....DRAMA!!!

That's what was funny to me, no reserve like some said above people in this business would absolutely   discuss a reserve price for an item that high in price, so it was staged, but I enjoyed it anyway.

Alex

Frank has made some bonehead buys of old cars too.

I suspect that Danielle, Mike and Frank make far more money from the show business aspect of this than they ever have from the buying and selling of stuff.  I recollect reading some years back when Jon and Kate was still on, that they were being paid $75,000 per episode plus all the promotional merchandise and trips they received.  If Pickers is doing at least that well, these guys can afford to lose money on a few more old trains and they still won't go hungry.

Curt

Cecil is Cecil Hopper and was featured In Classic Toy Trains Jan 1997.In the article he had several Lionel display layouts and some primo PW trains.Apparently he has started the downsizing process.Maybe we will see him on some of the other reality shows like Pawn Stars trying to sell his trains........

There has been a time or two where a prospective seller has given them a price and been clueless as to the value of an item and Mike has actually offered him more. 

I guess I should say "her" as he only seems to do it with women.

Curt

Here's a news article about the show from a couple of years ago:

http://www.rcreader.com/news/a...pickers-feature/all/

It covers how the show came to be and even touches on all of the criticisms and assumptions being made about the show and the pickers themselves.  Anyone remember the circus/carnival banner episode?  They made a point of sharing the profits of the sale of that banner with the original owner.  And the above article states that this happens more than is shown.

There is no doubt that they are now doing well financially, but I applaud them for their success and the hard work it took to get them to where they are today.

Andy

And all this time we've been wondering why they never buy trains. Guess we have our answer now! oof

Gilly

These pickers can come by my house ANYTIME!

I own a big old cable bridge that connects Brooklyn with Manhattan that they may be interested in.