American Pickers

[Saga]

i really dig the show too. i think the comments that they rip people off are unfair. as previously stated, the guys will often offer someone more money than they were asking for or will even show up and give the person more money if they make a huge profit.

they may pressure someone to sell an item, but its not as though they're putting a gun to someone's head.

and also, there is a big difference between someone who is a hoarder and someone who is a collector.

 

[FreezeC77]

i really dig the show too. i think the comments that they rip people off are unfair. as previously stated, the guys will often offer someone more money than they were asking for or will even show up and give the person more money if they make a huge profit.

they may pressure someone to sell an item, but its not as though they're putting a gun to someone's head.

and also, there is a big difference between someone who is a hoarder and someone who is a collector.

I think the misconception with the system is that the viewers don't really know all the work they have to go through to sell the item they picked. VERY VERY rarely when they leave a pick and you see the graphic showing "Bought for: $XXX" do you see "SOLD: $XXX" it's almost always "VALUED: $XXX"

Which means they *think* they can get that value for it, but at the time of the episode being cut they still haven't. If they come to your house and buy a sign off you for $100 they're probably thinking they can sell it for at least a $50 profit or more. Does that mean you yourself will be able to sell it for $150 to $200 on your own?

They've been at this for awhile and have a lot of contacts. They know the auction game, they have clients who specifically want certain items so they have an idea of being able to sell to those clients. All of those things the collector/hoarder does not have. I don't think it's feasible for them to be able to look at their collection of usually thousands of items and be able to find each items value and then sell it to someone for closer to retail.

I saw an episode where they bought an old rusted scooter from some guys farm and then sold it to someone nearby for maybe a $100-$200 profit. That guy ran a scooter shop and would rebuild the scooter and sell the scooter for like $5,000+. Does that mean he ripped off Frank and Mike? Just means he has a skillset that will enable him to make money off the item, just like they have a skillset that enables them to make money off stuff they pick.

 

[Lookingglassman]

Well I would never sell anything to them since I have the time to research and a small network of collectors who I know also who will give me more for an item than they would. Before I sell anything I thoroughly research it and see what the maximum I can get for it and 90% of the time I get the maximum amount for an item.

 

[RoJoHen]

I have the time to research and a small network of collectors

Well, that's the thing. Most people don't have those things.

 

[Owain Taggart]

I think the misconception with the system is that the viewers don't really know all the work they have to go through to sell the item they picked. VERY VERY rarely when they leave a pick and you see the graphic showing "Bought for: $XXX" do you see "SOLD: $XXX" it's almost always "VALUED: $XXX"

Exactly. I'm always confused when I see the stats they put on the screen as there's a lack of context for them. Kind of wish they'd show more of the other end of the deal, with customers making the purchases. Could be same show or could be another show down the road with a followup, but there's a certain disconnect in seeing the numbers.

 

[the G-man]

With god as my witness, until I saw a promo for this show last night I thought it was about bluegrass musicians.

 

[Owain Taggart]

With god as my witness, until I saw a promo for this show last night I thought it was about bluegrass musicians.

That's what I thought it was about too originally, cause I had never heard the term "pickers" before and I still don't really know what it means.

 

[gh4chiefs]

I admit I haven't seen a bunch of episodes, but from the few I have seen, it doesn't look like they're making crazy profits on a lot of the stuff they buy. Yes, they are making money, but it's not like they're buying something for $50 and then turning it around and selling it for $5000 while laughing maniacally in the shadows.

I haven't seen a lot of episodes either but I did see one epiosode where they bought this old sadlle from an old farmer for about $75, and the appraiser told them with the right collector it would be worth $4-5K. That kind of bothered me a little bit, but I didn't know about this:

They've been known to go back and give money to the previous owner if they feel they've made such a huge profit off of the item. I've actually seen it happen once, on TV, and I've heard about the others.

See that I did not know and makes me feel a lot better about the program in general. I don't begrudge them at all making a profit, it's what they do and in my mind, they're simply performing a service for people who have stuff that's otherwise just rusting away.

I was always bothered by the saddle deal a little bit, but know they recogonize at times they made "too good" of a deal and go back and take care of the original seller makes me have a lot of respect for them.

 

[The Evil Dead]

I've never seen the show but I work for the production company (Cineflix Productions) that makes it so I'd just like to take a moment and let you guys know, you're welcome!

(I actually have very little to do with the show, but it's fun to pretend.)

 

[TheSeeker]

Well I would never sell anything to them since I have the time to research and a small network of collectors who I know also who will give me more for an item than they would. Before I sell anything I thoroughly research it and see what the maximum I can get for it and 90% of the time I get the maximum amount for an item.

So basically you called them rip off artists for doing the exact same thing you do.

 

[Amaris]

See that I did not know and makes me feel a lot better about the program in general. I don't begrudge them at all making a profit, it's what they do and in my mind, they're simply performing a service for people who have stuff that's otherwise just rusting away.

I was always bothered by the saddle deal a little bit, but know they recogonize at times they made "too good" of a deal and go back and take care of the original seller makes me have a lot of respect for them.

Exactly. I like their approach. Now, to be fair, Frank is my favorite of the two (if we count Danielle, well, it's Danielle ). I wasn't a fan of Mike at first because I thought he was arrogant and pushy. Over time I've come to realize he's just very devoted to what he does, and he's passionate about picking, and that puts things in a better perspective, because it's not to say I don't like Mike, I do, I think I just relate to Frank a little better.