Do It Yourself - On Multiple Fronts

    I was reading a vintage automotive magazine this week that featured the theme of DIY - or do it
yourself. The stories were rather entertaining as well as inspiring. One article asked the reader to take a good, long look at oneself as to define the limits of our capabilities. While the author praised and emphasized a do it yourself mentality, he also put forth the concept of getting in over our heads; regardless of what that task was. Because by the time we cross the point of no return, saving money, which is big draw for the DIY aficionado, goes out the window. The articles reminded me of my Dad, who passed about two and a half years ago. While he lost his sight to glaucoma about ten years before he died, I can vividly remember a man who could literally almost build anything himself. This included remodeling or updating a house, (he was a master electrician), woodworking, plumbing, building a motorhome out of an MCI passenger bus, as well as knowing a vintage VW Beetle inside and out. When I was growing up, I knew many relatives and neighbors who could do the DIY thing in regards to almost anything, with their eyes closed. I truly believe that mechanical items were far easier to fix over 50 years ago. 

One aspect that has limited my DIY capabilities when it comes to vehicles, besides the modern technology problem, is my impatience level. Impatience always leads to frustration, which usually leads to anger issues. Another article in this same magazine put me more at ease, however, when the author went into detail about how he yelled at a valve cover that was removed from a 1970 Mustang as he threw it across the street from his driveway and how it unceremoniously landed in a ditch across the street. And it barely missed a landscaping truck when it bounced twice before coming to rest. Okay - I'm not that bad. But it brought to mind another aspect of my hobby of collecting certain vintage automotive and drag racing memorabilia. It seems that people selling their wares on numerous websites from eBay to Facebook as well as others, seem to be more out of touch than any point in history. And that brings about frustrations among collectors. I'm seeing more and more of the following sentences: "Bought these items at an estate sale, don't really know anything about them, unsure if anything works (in regards to some items) and no returns." However, they all seem to know what the full pop price is based on a casual glance from some price guide or what a friend told them. Usually they are informed of something to the tune of "Oh, they're worth a lot of money." No research is ever done. And I'm more than over the acronym of VRHTF - which stands for very rare, hard to find. Be it a vintage car, toy, or piece of memorabilia. That acronym seems to add even more money to the asking price to the uniformed seller.

   Granted, it's your stuff - you can list it or sell it for whatever you want. But as enthusiasts and collectors, we must at least take some of the control back and we must do it ourselves. I can remember a time not that long ago when numerous vintage vehicles were inexpensive to purchase and was a great way for the entry level car nut to get started in the hobby, especially if they wanted to tackle certain repairs or restoration aspects themselves. Nowadays, complete basket cases that can't even qualify as parts cars are selling for thousands of dollars. The mentality is if it's old, it's gold. Getting back to the estate sale & not knowing anything about what some people are offering really seems to resonate with vintage slot cars. Numerous sellers, in addition to having no clue as to how these toys work, they refuse to have any accountability if they don't function properly. They just want top dollar and move on to the next sucker. Take the picture (right) for example - the seller has no idea if any of this set works; but they want almost $1000 for it.

  

Okay - enough bitching. Here's where we have the solution - don't buy into this trap. Have patience and persistence when collecting. Value what you collect. Don't collect for the value. The good deals and bargains are still out there. It may take a while, but they do come. I scored some very impressive deals just yesterday but it's been at least a few months since the last time this happened. I'm okay with that. Too many hobbyists seem to be in a rush to purchase as much as possible in the shortest amount of time like it's some maddening 100-yard dash. We can fool ourselves into thinking that we beat out the next person in getting the item or entertain the thought process of while we paid too much, but the value will increase almost overnight. Clueless sellers and scalpers are counting on this along with a lack of knowledge and the emotional purchase. Stop - just stop. 99% of the time, you'll be better off in the end if you resist the impulse or emotional too high a price purchase. Yes, there are those very rare occasions (there's that term again) that the item truly fits the description and it will be years before you see another one. But it's VERY rare. Use your best judgement before parting with some serious cash. 

Whew - I'm done with today's rant. Yeah, I feel better. Peace out.