# Starting to get ready for the first auction.....



## quads (Apr 25, 2012)

In the last three days, we have lined up 75 cars in the pasture.  There are approximately 50 more to go before we are ready for even the first auction of the estate.  These are just the cars that sat outside, there are many good ones that are inside, most of which we won't move out until the auction, especially the convertibles.  Not counting all the tractors, farm machinery, household items, etc. etc.  Sometimes it all seems overwhelming and we will never get done!






I heard a rumor once, many years ago, that one of my ancestors on this farm had acquired part of the local gristmill.  I found this hidden in a bunch of brush and was wondering if maybe this was it, but I do not know.  Once upon a time there was a steam engine on the farm too, but I don't think this would have been part of that.  The large gear is about 3 feet in diameter or so.


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## rottiman (Apr 25, 2012)

WOW..........wish it wasn't so far away.  It looks to be an awesome auction for sure.


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## DexterDay (Apr 25, 2012)

Lots of History on that Farm....... As always. Appreciate the pics... 

Hope the auction goes off well......


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## Gary_602z (Apr 25, 2012)

Thanks Quads. I hope all is well.

Gary


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## quads (Apr 26, 2012)

Well, I talked to a guy last night that knew my great uncle.  The big gear box is actually a sorghum mill that belonged to my great grandfather and his brothers and the flywheel is from a steam engine that blew up on the north side of the millpond.  So that's where I got all my rumors mixed up.  HAHA!


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## Eatonpcat (Apr 26, 2012)

Wow..That is a cool collection of old vehicles, hope you can get a picture of the ones that have been stored inside.  Good luck with the auction and keep your eyes open for this guy (If he shows up, you know you have something special)!


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## quads (Apr 26, 2012)

Thanks!  We don't have a date yet for the car auction, but as it gets closer I will take a few more detailed pics.  Plus, the auctioneers will be advertising it.


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## Adios Pantalones (Apr 26, 2012)

I love farm junk! Big gears and stuff- I don't know why, but it really trips my trigger.


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## quads (Apr 26, 2012)

Adios Pantalones said:


> I love farm junk! Big gears and stuff- I don't know why, but it really trips my trigger.


Me too!  Started moving farm machinery into the pasture today.


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## gzecc (Apr 26, 2012)

Quads, how about more car pics.  I can't believe there are 100+ cars scattered throughout this property.  Were they originally purchased, gotten for free etc.........


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## ohio woodburner (Apr 26, 2012)

Quads, wow thats alot of old cars. how many acres were they spread over?  i might have to go to an auction in Wisconsin


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## quads (Apr 26, 2012)

ohio woodburner said:


> Quads, wow thats alot of old cars. how many acres were they spread over? i might have to go to an auction in Wisconsin


He owned 575 acres.  The cars outside were only on a few acres, and down one hedgerow.  So far all the better cars that were stored in the sheds are still in the sheds.  Only the outside cars are lined up in the pasture so far.


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## quads (Apr 26, 2012)

gzecc said:


> Quads, how about more car pics. I can't believe there are 100+ cars scattered throughout this property. Were they originally purchased, gotten for free etc.........


I don't have a lot of individual car pics yet, but I will take a bunch eventually.  And the auctioneers will.  As of tonight we have 96 moved out there.  There are only about 5 more 'outside' cars to move.  The outside cars are pretty tough, mostly.  The better cars are inside and there are probably about 40 of those.  Not even sure yet.  Many were purchased, some were free, some were traded for parts for other cars, etc. etc.

Here is a pic of some of the farm machinery that we started to line up today:





And the 96 cars as of tonight:





And here is the machine we rented to move most of the outside cars out of the bushes!





He had all this stuff and the day he died his bank account was overdrawn!


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## ohio woodburner (Apr 26, 2012)

quads said:


> He had all this stuff and the day he died his bank account was overdrawn!


 
Wow that's a shame Quads. Still sorry to hear about how all this came about.  Just think there probably was $30,000 in scrap just in those cars in the brush


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## quads (Apr 27, 2012)

ohio woodburner said:


> Wow that's a shame Quads. Still sorry to hear about how all this came about. Just think there probably was $30,000 in scrap just in those cars in the brush


Well, we have been doing some figuring, and with the current price of scrap minus the cost of having them hauled etc, there is more like $45,000 worth of scrap in those cars.  Not counting all the other scrap and farm equipment.  So either way, even if nobody bought anything for other than scrap there is still money in it.  My cousin could have sold the cows ($35,000 was the final check for the herd) and then had rummage sales/sold scrap for the rest of his life and would have had plenty of money.  Not counting the 575 acres, all the houses he owned, etc etc..........


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## Jack Straw (Apr 27, 2012)

Sounds like a classic hoarder......my neighbor down the road probably has close to $100k in scrap machinery and refuses to sell it.


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## firefighterjake (Apr 27, 2012)

I hope not all of those cars are scrapped . . . some look like they could be the start of a nice restoration or the foundation for a hot rod.


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## quads (Apr 27, 2012)

firefighterjake said:


> I hope not all of those cars are scrapped . . . some look like they could be the start of a nice restoration or the foundation for a hot rod.


Well, probably not all of them will be scrapped, but that depends whether anyone buys them.  You just never know how auctions will go.  Certainly the inside cars should go to restorers/collectors, but I imagine the scrappers will be there bidding on everything too.


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## Jags (Apr 27, 2012)

Wow - that is some sort of amazing.


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## Crane Stoves (Apr 27, 2012)

wow, amazing thread, i really hope you continue it and add more details and pics.... amazing stuff to me, id have that big ole' gear and motor powerwashed and painted and planted right at the end of my driveway if i could =P i want more pics inside that barn of everything not just cars (if you get a chance sometime without getting in trouble or anything?)

The owner was probably happy to have his farm and didn't "want" for anything (i know alot of old timers who are quite happy with that, so dont feel to bad for him, he died on his land, his farm with his stuff and theres alot to be said for that)


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## peakbagger (Apr 27, 2012)

A friend of mine has an uncle that likes to collect things. I think he has seven model Ts in a barn, the contents of two blacksmith shops and another barn full of every pipe fitting you could every want plus a lot of brass valves and fixtures from old papermills. He really wont sell anything but on rare occasion might trade. In his later years his wife will make the comment when he brought things home that "they would look good at the auction" as she has told him that when he passes, she plans to auction the whole pile. Unfortunately I think his kids already have the auctioneers phone number on speed dial as they dont want to have anything to do with it.  

I dont know if its a hoarding mentality or more of someone brought up in the depression as to those folks "stuff" is far more valuable than paper money


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## quads (Apr 27, 2012)

doug crane said:


> wow, amazing thread, i really hope you continue it and add more details and pics.... amazing stuff to me, id have that big ole' gear and motor powerwashed and painted and planted right at the end of my driveway if i could =P i want more pics inside that barn of everything not just cars (if you get a chance sometime without getting in trouble or anything?)
> 
> The owner was probably happy to have his farm and didn't "want" for anything (i know alot of old timers who are quite happy with that, so dont feel to bad for him, he died on his land, his farm with his stuff and theres alot to be said for that)


Sure, I'll take lots of pics eventually.  I won't get into trouble, it's my stuff now!  HA!  Well, partially mine anyway.


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## quads (Apr 27, 2012)

peakbagger said:


> A friend of mine has an uncle that likes to collect things. I think he has seven model Ts in a barn, the contents of two blacksmith shops and another barn full of every pipe fitting you could every want plus a lot of brass valves and fixtures from old papermills. He really wont sell anything but on rare occasion might trade. In his later years his wife will make the comment when he brought things home that "they would look good at the auction" as she has told him that when he passes, she plans to auction the whole pile. Unfortunately I think his kids already have the auctioneers phone number on speed dial as they dont want to have anything to do with it.
> 
> I dont know if its a hoarding mentality or more of someone brought up in the depression as to those folks "stuff" is far more valuable than paper money


Really, my cousin made that hoarding TV show look like amateurs!  You guys don't know the half of it.  Consider this, he owned 3 farms, 5 houses, an auto parts store, an auto body repair shop, and many many other buildings (all filled to the brim with cars and everything).  Him and his mother (he was a bachelor that lived with his mother, and she died ten years ago at 90) kept every single card they ever received (many of which still had money in them, some 50 dollar bills even) and they had more clothes than I have ever seen in a clothing store, a large percentage still had the price tags on them and had never been worn!  Goodwill has sure been happy with us, 40 large trash bags full of new clothes and still counting.  It just goes on and on.  I can't even begin to describe to you how he lived.  I was about the only person that knew the extent of it while he was still alive.  The other relatives are still in amazement, having found out after he died.


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## Crane Stoves (Apr 27, 2012)

quads said:


> Really, my cousin made that hoarding TV show look like amateurs! You guys don't know the half of it. Consider this, he owned 3 farms, 5 houses, an auto parts store, an auto body repair shop, and many many other buildings (all filled to the brim with cars and everything). Him and his mother (he was a bachelor that lived with his mother, and she died ten years ago at 90) kept every single card they ever received (many of which still had money in them, some 50 dollar bills even) and they had more clothes than I have ever seen in a clothing store, a large percentage still had the price tags on them and had never been worn! Goodwill has sure been happy with us, 40 large trash bags full of new clothes and still counting. It just goes on and on. I can't even begin to describe to you how he lived. I was about the only person that knew the extent of it while he was still alive. The other relatives are still in amazement, having found out after he died.


 
can we say EBAY BABY! =P


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## Eatonpcat (Apr 27, 2012)

quads said:


> Really, my cousin made that hoarding TV show look like amateurs! You guys don't know the half of it. Consider this, he owned 3 farms, 5 houses, an auto parts store, an auto body repair shop, and many many other buildings (all filled to the brim with cars and everything). Him and his mother (he was a bachelor that lived with his mother, and she died ten years ago at 90) kept every single card they ever received (many of which still had money in them, some 50 dollar bills even) and they had more clothes than I have ever seen in a clothing store, a large percentage still had the price tags on them and had never been worn! Goodwill has sure been happy with us, 40 large trash bags full of new clothes and still counting. It just goes on and on. I can't even begin to describe to you how he lived. I was about the only person that knew the extent of it while he was still alive. The other relatives are still in amazement, having found out after he died.


 
You're a good man...I don't know what I would have done if I was in your position, But I tend to think all the work you & your family are doing would annoy the heck out of me!   That being said, Please keep the pictures coming because I am fascinated by all the cars and equipment!  Thanks for letting us in on the action!


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## quads (Apr 28, 2012)

Eatonpcat said:


> You're a good man...I don't know what I would have done if I was in your position, But I tend to think all the work you & your family are doing would annoy the heck out of me! That being said, Please keep the pictures coming because I am fascinated by all the cars and equipment! Thanks for letting us in on the action!


You're welcome!  I enjoy sharing my pics and stories with you guys.  And yes, all the mess that my cousin left for us is very annoying.  Out of the 27 heirs to his estate, there are only 3 or 4 of us that are doing any of the work and none of the others have even offered to help.  My cousin used to tell people that his relatives were going to be unhappy with him because he wasn't leaving anything to them.  But he lied about having a will, he never made one even though he said he did.  Well, I can tell you this, there are 36 or 4 of us relatives that would have been very happy if he had left all of this to someone else!  HAHA!


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## Crane Stoves (Apr 28, 2012)

quads said:


> You're welcome! I enjoy sharing my pics and stories with you guys. And yes, all the mess that my cousin left for us is very annoying. Out of the 27 heirs to his estate, there are only 3 or 4 of us that are doing any of the work and none of the others have even offered to help. My cousin used to tell people that his relatives were going to be unhappy with him because he wasn't leaving anything to them. But he lied about having a will, he never made one even though he said he did. Well, I can tell you this, there are 36 or 4 of us relatives that would have been very happy if he had left all of this to someone else! HAHA!


 
One thing i know about is the adverse effects to those dealing with an estate with no will =\ Ive seen cases where will's were lost, disappeared, etc. to the benefit of those who had access to the property during those final days. Ive seen will's appear months or years later from deposit box keys found or old local attorney's who were holding a copy, at any rate whomever was named executor by the court should have the right to collect up to 10% of the estate for the work involved (you can ask a local attorney about these rules), a court can also be requested to assign compensation to the beneficiary's who paid any money's (including their labor) which was paid on behalf of the settlement of the estate (this would certainly include all this preparation, heavy equipments, labor, time, auction fee's and expenses, etc,etc.). Those expenses and labor costs would come right off the top PRIOR to the division of assets to each beneficiary! save all your receipts, save all your time logs, save all your photos of the work which was preformed to get this estate settled (some distant beneficiary sucking on a martini in Cost Rica should NOT expect to do nothing and pay nothing for all that's involved in settling an estate such as this!). It is a tremendous amount of work and time involved in order to get the full and best value of the estate made "liquid" (this cost money, time and labor to do and a court will know this and allow for it!)


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## quads (Apr 28, 2012)

doug crane said:


> One thing i know about is the adverse effects to those dealing with an estate with no will =\ Ive seen cases where will's were lost, disappeared, etc. to the benefit of those who had access to the property during those final days. Ive seen will's appear months or years later from deposit box keys found or old local attorney's who were holding a copy, at any rate whomever was named executor by the court should have the right to collect up to 10% of the estate for the work involved (you can ask a local attorney about these rules), a court can also be requested to assign compensation to the beneficiary's who paid any money's (including their labor) which was paid on behalf of the settlement of the estate (this would certainly include all this preparation, heavy equipments, labor, time, auction fee's and expenses, etc,etc.). Those expenses and labor costs would come right off the top PRIOR to the division of assets to each beneficiary! save all your receipts, save all your time logs, save all your photos of the work which was preformed to get this estate settled (some distant beneficiary sucking on a martini in Cost Rica should NOT expect to do nothing and pay nothing for all that's involved in settling an estate such as this!). It is a tremendous amount of work and time involved in order to get the full and best value of the estate made "liquid" (this cost money, time and labor to do and a court will know this and allow for it!)


Yes, you are correct.  The estate administrator keeps telling me that I have to get paid for the work I am doing.  I keep telling her that I'm not doing it for the money and that I am not keeping track of my time.  She says she is keeping track of my time for me.  HAHA!  It's not a big deal to me.  When he was alive I milked the cows for him just because I liked the cows.  I am helping with the estate just because it's the right thing to do, and has to be done.  If I get compensated for it in addition to whatever my inheritance may be, well so be it.


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## nate379 (Apr 28, 2012)

The 2 gay dudes that pick through peoples barns on that TV show would have a field day over there! And they said I had a car problem... I'm only at number 7 or 8!


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## Crane Stoves (Apr 28, 2012)

quads said:


> Yes, you are correct. The estate administrator keeps telling me that I have to get paid for the work I am doing. I keep telling her that I'm not doing it for the money and that I am not keeping track of my time. She says she is keeping track of my time for me. HAHA! It's not a big deal to me. When he was alive I milked the cows for him just because I liked the cows. I am helping with the estate just because it's the right thing to do, and has to be done. If I get compensated for it in addition to whatever my inheritance may be, well so be it.


 
Thats great and he is surly smiling down from the heavens seeing you taking care of what needs to be done, Its also good the administrator is well aware of your efforts and theoretically its her job to do everything like this so im sure she will make certain your treated fairly in the end for helping her deal with things that your much better equipped to handle then her (im sure she has alot of stuff she has to deal with that she is better equipped for as well)..... team work and like minds always wins!


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## quads (Apr 28, 2012)

nate379 said:


> The 2 gay dudes that pick through peoples barns on that TV show would have a field day over there! And they said I had a car problem... I'm only at number 7 or 8!


HA!  Funny you mention that, I was just handed their contact information a few minutes ago and the guy that gave it to me told me they are aware of the place and want to attend the auctions.


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## Eatonpcat (Apr 28, 2012)

quads said:


> HA! Funny you mention that, I was just handed their contact information a few minutes ago and the guy that gave it to me told me they are aware of the place and want to attend the auctions.


 
Funny, But I wouldn't want them at my auction, They won't pay you what anything is worth, they are just looking to get good crap for cheap IMO!

Never thought about them being gay....Not that there is anything wrong with that! LOL


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## nate379 (Apr 28, 2012)

Nothing wrong with it, but I figured everyone would know who I was talking about since I couldn't remember the name of the show.  I just have seen in in passing as it bugs me that they root through old peoples stuff and give them pennies on the dollar for it.... AND brag about it right on the show!


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## Crane Stoves (Apr 29, 2012)

nate379 said:


> Nothing wrong with it, but I figured everyone would know who I was talking about since I couldn't remember the name of the show. I just have seen in in passing as it bugs me that they root through old peoples stuff and give them pennies on the dollar for it.... AND brag about it right on the show!


 
idk man... ive seen those guys pay pretty good money for stuff and even go back to the seller to share more money's if they happen to hit a crazy good score. I think they make their money on the show moreso then the items so they dont have to screw people over.

P.S. yaa...ive long thought they were gay as well (not that their anything wrong with that)...


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## Pallet Pete (Apr 29, 2012)

Quads I am glad you seem to be doing ok those pics should be framed for sure ! It looks overwhelming from a distance but it would be fun to come and see.  

American pickers ? There commercials are driving me crazy lol.

Pete


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## begreen (Apr 29, 2012)

Wow. Quads that is an incredible story.


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## quads (Apr 29, 2012)

As of today, 105 cars in the pasture.  I may have miscounted by a car or two tonight though.  About 30 more in the sheds yet.  We also got a couple of the shed cars evaluated by some car buffs today.  1969 Mustang Cobra Jet.  It is potentially an $80,000 car, I guess.  The engine is out of it, but it seems to all be there.  As is, worth $40,000.  Still can't believe how much cars can be worth.  Honestly, it's all junk to me and I wouldn't give 50 bucks for a car that I had to overhaul the engine.  1966 Ford 7 Liter convertible, serial number indicates the 4th car off the line, in excellent original condition other than covered in dirt from setting in the shed for so many years........$65,000 as it sits!  Unbelievable to me!

I don't have pictures of any of the shed cars yet, but here are a few snaps I took tonight:


An artsy pile of rims:






A black and white of an old Chevy and one of the farm houses:





One of the outside Mach 1 Mustangs;





Old Dumpy:


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## ohio woodburner (Apr 29, 2012)

Dumpy.... i love it.  Great pics as usual quads. I still say i'm bringing the trailer and coming to the auction.


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## gzecc (Apr 29, 2012)

As I have said before you have a great eye for picture taking. The B/W pic with the house in the back is poster quality. If you need a profession, send some of your pictures to studio's looking for photographers.


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## firefighterjake (Apr 30, 2012)

quads said:


> Yes, you are correct. The estate administrator keeps telling me that I have to get paid for the work I am doing. I keep telling her that I'm not doing it for the money and that I am not keeping track of my time. She says she is keeping track of my time for me. HAHA! It's not a big deal to me. When he was alive I milked the cows for him just because I liked the cows. I am helping with the estate just because it's the right thing to do, and has to be done. If I get compensated for it in addition to whatever my inheritance may be, well so be it.


 
And that right there . . . that attitude . . . is why you of all people should get a bit of the compensation . . . because you are thinking with your heart and your soul.


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## firefighterjake (Apr 30, 2012)

nate379 said:


> The 2 gay dudes that pick through peoples barns on that TV show would have a field day over there! And they said I had a car problem... I'm only at number 7 or 8!


 

You're from Maine originally . . . I'm pretty sure it's a requirement of residency here that you own at a minimum 3 or 4 vehicles and that you keep 3-4 vehicles that don't run out back of the house in case you want to restore them or part them out.


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## firefighterjake (Apr 30, 2012)

Eatonpcat said:


> Funny, But I wouldn't want them at my auction, They won't pay you what anything is worth, they are just looking to get good crap for cheap IMO!
> 
> Never thought about them being gay....Not that there is anything wrong with that! LOL


 
I wouldn't feel too badly for the folks selling their old stuff . . . most know what it is worth or have a fair idea of the price. I was reading that when they came up to a place here in Maine they had a scout from the show visit first to see if there was anything good or not before the Pickers came along (shocking isn't it -- a reality show that doesn't mention the fact that they've had someone at a place to scout things out and see if there is some valuable stuff or if it is just junk) . . . and they had to be assured by the seller that some items would be sold for a decent price. However, it seems as though the actual stars of the show don't know what they may find . . .

http://bangordailynews.com/2012/02/...els-american-pickers-visit-lisbon-collectors/


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## quads (Apr 30, 2012)

The date for the auctions has been set.  The household items/farm machinery/antiques will be on July 20th and the automotive items/cars/trucks will be on July 21st.  There will be another auction at a later date for the third farm that is not attached to the main farm, approximately 20 miles away.


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## smoke show (May 3, 2012)

Is Central Sands west of Waupaca?


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## quads (May 4, 2012)

smoke show said:


> Is Central Sands west of Waupaca?


Yes, south of Grand Marsh on Hwy B.  Gavin Brothers are doing the auctions.  It's not on the web site yet, they will be taking pics and making lists as early as today for the advertisements.


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## Jack Straw (May 4, 2012)

I love the pics Quads....especially the B/W pic of the house.


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## bogydave (May 4, 2012)

Great pictures Quads.
Some of the stuff you're finding probably surprises you 

Looking from here, at the big picture of one of your "life is" events, You are doing a great job!
Lots of respect from here


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## quads (May 5, 2012)

bogydave said:


> Great pictures Quads.
> Some of the stuff you're finding probably surprises you
> 
> Looking from here, at the big picture of one of your "life is" events, You are doing a great job!
> Lots of respect from here


Thanks!  Surprises is an understatement!


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## loon (May 5, 2012)

Your cousin looks and sounds like he was one cool dude 

Good luck with the rest of the work eh.. 

loon


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