Outstanding Marble Auction June 16Th Cambridge, Ohio

[smitty]

http://www.auctionzip.com/cgi-bin/auctionview.cgi?lid=1445228&kwd=&zip=44663&category=0

They just keep getting better! This one is June 16th in Cambridge, Ohio. Some unbelievable consignments this time.

Be sure to click on the link "view photo gallery"

[IowaMarble]

Wow! That does look like a great auction - wish I lived closer!

[lstmmrbls]

When are these going to be on the internet???

[spara50]

Yeah, step into the 21st century and increase profits by 50%.

[clydetul62]

My thoughts exactly. An auction is suppossed to garner the best price for them and the cogsigner. But if you dont do internet bids nor absentee bids you cut down on potential money.

[smitty]

Sorry guys, but I disagree. We get plenty of bidders at our auctions and it only takes 2 interested persons to drive up the price, if it was open to the entire internet or phone, fewer people would actually show up at the auction and would cause the lower valued lots to not get the attention they deserve.

We started these because we wanted to get back to the old style auction, where you show up, inspect them in hand, be the high bidder, we hand you the marble, you pay your bill and take the marbles home. (Remember those days) By the end of the day, everything is finalized! And our consignors get their check within 3 or 4 days.

I've seen many lots bring way more than expected because of the heat of the moment. Here in Ohio there are dozens of auctions to attend on any given day, I go to quite a few and not very many auctioneers accept bids unless you are there. Partly because of waiting for payments, hoping they clear, out of state checks, arranging for shipping charges and shipping the items, only to have the person unhappy because the item wasn't as nice as they had hoped.

There is a reason our auctions are getting better every time, because it's working. If it aint broke , don't fix it.

If we were going to do it any other way, we may as well sell them through Ebay and take away the whole social element. If there is anything you absolutely must have, and there is no way to attend the auction, I would suggest you email me and I can give you contact info for several persons who could bid on your behalf, but all sales are final, and shipping and payment would be totally between you and that person. It is not shill bidding, they are basically buying it and reselling it to you. [email protected]

[VTAndrea]

I agree with Smitty's analysis of live vs. internet auctions. Ebay has caused a huge drop in value in many prized marbles such as lutzes and other handmades. If I bid on a marble and lose, I always say to myself "there will be others like it". I can only remember one live auction in VT devoted to just marbles and that was about 12 years ago, arranged by Mike Wilson. I dropped a bundle but the excitement was mostly what drove the bidding.

[greg11]

well, Ebay killed the fun of flea market finds, that and the price guides

[BobBlock]

Hey! :-)

[greg11]

true, it's the misuse of a price guide. I love seeing flea market people using books to price things, they always pick the most expensive thing and use that to price their stuff.

[lstmmrbls]

Ebay didn't do anything but let people know that the believed rarity of many items was no were near reality. I miss a few of the antique stores and flea markets I used to go to but I now also know I used to way over pay for many items. Heck I remember when any German handmade in an antique store had at least a $30.00 price tag on it.

[smitty]

Just added some more pics to the auctionzip website.

http://www.auctionzip.com/cgi-bin/photopanel.cgi?listingid=1445228&category=0&zip=44663&kwd=

[wvrons]

June 16th not far away.

[smitty]

Forgot to mention in my explanation paragraph above, that we don't charge any buyers premium, we don't charge any sales tax, and there is no shipping fee involved. This all helps the consignor garner more profit in a roundabout way. We charge the consignors 20% of what the marbles sell for. Out of that 20% "WE" pay: the auctioneer, printing, the advertising, mailing flyers, banquet room, hired help, and any other expenses. The consignor receives exactly 80% of what the high bid is. Any funds remaining, go back into the Eagle's Flight LLC account. So, it's not like we are making a fortune.

Also wanted to mention that we do have some bidders that are not on the internet, don't know exactly what some marbles are worth, and don't care. If they like them, they buy them!