bpmcgee
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Post by bpmcgee on Jul 27, 2015 6:31:02 GMT -8
Well it's fine for the super rich who want a nice big shiny trailer and not have to do any of the work. But we are Hobbyists... We are in it for the fun of procucing something ourselves, in our spare time, with very little in the way of tools, space and money. This aint Flyte Camp. All true, it's unfortunate more and more sellers think it IS Flyte Camp. LOL. We were watching that show just last night -- the episode about the Kit Chateau. Two things really irk me about the show -- first, it feels like they rip off EVERY seller. In this episode they buy what looks like a 35 foot Spartanette in almost MINT condition, and he's telling the seller "I can't pay $6500 for that. I can't make any money at that price." He already KNOWS he's going to charge his customer $80k for it, so why can't he pay a fair price? Second, they always start off saying "We want to keep this trailer as original as possible" but they end up totally b*stardizing it! Granted, they had to build new walls for the Kit, but they put in strange, cr*ppy windows, new aluminum without the original pittsburgh joint, and did an entirely new interior floor plan. It's almost too frustrating to watch. B
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mobiltec
5K Member
I make mistakes so you don't have to...
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1954 Jewel In Progress...
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Post by mobiltec on Jul 27, 2015 11:29:46 GMT -8
All true, it's unfortunate more and more sellers think it IS Flyte Camp. LOL. We were watching that show just last night -- the episode about the Kit Chateau. Two things really irk me about the show -- first, it feels like they rip off EVERY seller. In this episode they buy what looks like a 35 foot Spartanette in almost MINT condition, and he's telling the seller "I can't pay $6500 for that. I can't make any money at that price." He already KNOWS he's going to charge his customer $80k for it, so why can't he pay a fair price? Second, they always start off saying "We want to keep this trailer as original as possible" but they end up totally b*stardizing it! Granted, they had to build new walls for the Kit, but they put in strange, cr*ppy windows, new aluminum without the original pittsburgh joint, and did an entirely new interior floor plan. It's almost too frustrating to watch. B That's reality shows for you. Nothing real about them at all. The producers are looking for content that includes a lot of drama. That's what TV is all about. Drama. They could care less about vintage trailers. They just want to see drama.
Our hobby is not reflected in anything they do on that show. We are not rich. We don't have $80k trailers. We build them ourselves. We experiment. We come up with solutions. And we try to keep our beauties as close to original as possible. The majority of people who watch that show are too fat and lazy to actually go out and restore one themselves and they don't have the money to buy one of them. So the show has to be all about drama. I watched it twice. Hated every minute of it. They have prostituted our hobby and now we have a very hard time finding an old trailer for a decent price. You know I only spent $1300.00 on my first restoral project.
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Post by danrhodes on Jul 27, 2015 13:33:03 GMT -8
LOL. We were watching that show just last night -- the episode about the Kit Chateau. Two things really irk me about the show -- first, it feels like they rip off EVERY seller. In this episode they buy what looks like a 35 foot Spartanette in almost MINT condition, and he's telling the seller "I can't pay $6500 for that. I can't make any money at that price." He already KNOWS he's going to charge his customer $80k for it, so why can't he pay a fair price? Second, they always start off saying "We want to keep this trailer as original as possible" but they end up totally b*stardizing it! Granted, they had to build new walls for the Kit, but they put in strange, cr*ppy windows, new aluminum without the original pittsburgh joint, and did an entirely new interior floor plan. It's almost too frustrating to watch. B That's reality shows for you. Nothing real about them at all. The producers are looking for content that includes a lot of drama. That's what TV is all about. Drama. They could care less about vintage trailers. They just want to see drama.
Our hobby is not reflected in anything they do on that show. We are not rich. We don't have $80k trailers. We build them ourselves. We experiment. We come up with solutions. And we try to keep our beauties as close to original as possible. The majority of people who watch that show are too fat and lazy to actually go out and restore one themselves and they don't have the money to buy one of them. So the show has to be all about drama. I watched it twice. Hated every minute of it. They have prostituted our hobby and now we have a very hard time finding an old trailer for a decent price. You know I only spent $1300.00 on my first restoral project.
It's the Pawn Stars effect.
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txoil
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1960 Shasta Deluxe 19
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Post by txoil on Jul 27, 2015 16:19:52 GMT -8
And this is one of the reasons that I got out of the gas pump and soda machine game in the late 90's. Before reality TV, but with the Interwebz, an item would sell for a stupid high amount somewhere, and suddenly everyone thinks that is the 'normal' price for that item. In the mid 90's I could find truck loads of barn fresh 1920's-1950's gas pumps for $50-$200 apiece, and do a full out museum quality restoration, with a selling price of $1000-$1300 depending on rarity and desirability. Suddenly people were asking $1500-$2000 for the same rusty pumps, and some restorers were occasionally selling on Ebay for $4000+. I walked away from that hobby. Now, I'm seeing the same phenomena with vintage campers, and it truly sickens me. There will always be opportunistic and greedy vendors, but the numbers of (not knowing any better) suckers being fleeced is just deplorable. Good work costs, and those who do good work deserve to make a decent return from their labors, but the real beauty of canned hams is the fact that almost anyone can do the work themselves, if they have basic tools and basic skills. I can but hope that newcomers to the trailer hobby will educate themselves, and perhaps help check the greed-flation.
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kimberwarden
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17' 64 Oasis
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Post by kimberwarden on Aug 4, 2015 8:03:40 GMT -8
Two things really irk me about the show -- first, it feels like they rip off EVERY seller. In this episode they buy what looks like a 35 foot Spartanette in almost MINT condition, and he's telling the seller "I can't pay $6500 for that. I can't make any money at that price." He already KNOWS he's going to charge his customer $80k for it, so why can't he pay a fair price? That's my main complaint about that show. The way they take advantage of the sellers SICKENS me! They show up at someone's doorstep with a camera crew, and then the seller is too starstruck/afraid of looking like a jerk on TV/whatever and so they agree to whatever ridiculous price they're offered.
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