I can't remember the last time I bought a new gun. Perhaps that was one of the reasons I got a hankering to attend the Hessney Auction Company's rod & gun auction today up in Geneva, NY. By 10 or so last night, I had all of my auction ducks in a row. I'd given a good look over to the auction catalog, at least a half dozen times, researched some the value of several guns on which I figured I might want to bid, wrote up my own personal auction catalog (for guns on which I would bid) and printed it up to bring with me to the auction, printed up the directions, and figured that about 5 hours sleep would have me up at about 0300 or 0330 which meant I could leave the house by 0400 and get to the auction house by about 0900. That would leave me enough time to view the guns, maybe about an hour or more. I hit the hay at about 10.
About the only thing I did not give much thought to was the twinge or pain I was feeling in my left big toe. I also had heel pain earlier in the day but that had subsided after I took some Colchrys (pain med specifically for gout). Since the pain in m right heel had diminished almost completely by about 9PM or so, I expected the pain in my toe to do likewise. The thing was though that I slept in fits on and off for a couple of hours. At about midnight, or a little later, there I was scoffing down some generic for Vicodin (acetaminophen and hydrocodone) with 7.5mg of hydrocodone in it - the pain in the toe had awakened me several times by then. I guess I finally got back to sleep to get some good sleep at about 1230 or 0100. I was up at 0330 and would have been ready to go by about 0400 except for the fact that to walk the 15 feet or so to the toilet to take a pee had me in agony. My toe was just about screaming, without any help from my vocal cords, with each step I took. Oh well, I wasn't going anywhere except back to bed. I couldn't sleep and was up again by 0515. I took another pain pill at about 0530 or so and that helped some but the pain remained bad, really bad, and still does as I write this. What to do?
I am guessing that by 0600, I decided to send the auction house an email and register for the auction that way. I called them at about 0730 and left them a message, telling them I had emailed my info to them and also sent a list of items on which I wanted to bid. Someone called me back not all that long after 0900 and left me a message asking if I could give them some idea of the max I would be on each item. I obliged only because I trust the folks at Hessney. If it was an auction house with which I was not familiar, I never would have tipped y hand because they might use shills who wold then try to bid up the price on me knowing how high I'd be willing to bid. I suppose that Hessney Auction Company could do that too but I seriously doubt they do it they have too much to lose - like their sterling reputation and lots (no pun intended) of business.
Looking at my the calls on my phone's memory, I am guessing that I made my first bid at about 1045. That was on a Henry Repeating Arms lever action carbine in 22LR. That was followed immediately by more bids, this time on a Henry Classis lever action rifle in 22LR. I was outbid on both. A while later, the auctioneer's assistant (Roberta) called me back for the next item on which I planned to bid, a Beretta A303 Ducks Unlimited Gun of the Year for 9186 (new in the box). I was outbid there too. My next bid was supposed to be on item number 60A, a Savage AXIS XP in 308WIN. Somehow they skipped that one ad went right to item 60 which was a Savage AXIS XP, stainless steel, in 308WIN, unfired in the box. I had the high bid at $300. That is a good deal, in fact an excellent one as local gun stores in my area have it retailing for from $418 to 456 before tax. (Thanks to the search feature at Gallery of Guns, I was able to pull up instant price quotes online.) Yes, I'll have to either have to pay to have tem ship it to me or for gas to drive there to pick it up (which is my plan) but when I drive up there I am going to spend some time hiking and fishing and make it a mini vacation for a couple or three days. I will also start scouting my chosen hunting area for deer and bear sign. Regardless, even with all that figured in, I got that one for less than I would have had I bought it at a local gun store so it's a good deal.
I bid on a bunch of other items, all but one listed "as new" or as "unfired in box (or case). One of them I really wanted, and for which I was willing to bid $400 (or a little bit more) was a Remington 870 Tactical, 12 gauge, with pistol grip and a wire folding stock. It listed retail for $5522 to $564 in my area. Well, it could not have been more screwed up since they skipped a number and wound up on that one before Roberta realized they were on it, and she only got me just as the auction was closing. it sold for $375. Maybe I should have been pissed off about it but for once I figured why bother. Anyway, Roberta was extremely apologetic about that one. She asked if I would have been willing to beat the $375 but she already knew the answer because I had emailed them m high bids earlier and it was clearly $400; in fact though, in the interim between when I had sent the email and just a few minutes before tha one went up for bids, I had changed my mind and was willing to go $425 for it. Chances are I would have gotten that one but no such luck for me with how it worked out for some other lucky bidder.
I bid on the very next item, a Stevens Model 320 Defense in 12 gauge with pistol grip and heat shield (new in the box) and had the high bid at $175. Not a very high quality shotgun as far as I would guess, since the MSRP is only about $275 for the particular version on which I bid, but I figure that will be a fun gun and my wind up being my version of the trunk monkey. None were available around my area but another, less expensive version, was retailing for about $220 and that one's MSRP was $40 less than the one I bid on. So, it may not be a stellar deal but not bad considering.
I didn't have any other winning bids even though I bid on 15 lots in all. They had over 350 guns up for bids. In addition there were other items like ammo, decoys, deer head mounts, canoes, lots and lots of fishing gear, and so on. I restricted my bids to the guns. Not sure when I'll head up that way to claim the two guns but am guessing it will be on Monday. Sometime in there, either before or after I pick them up, I'll spend some time afield. Who knows, maybe I'' take the shotgun out in the woods with me for some small game hunting. There has got to be something in season right now even if only porcupines, red squirrels or whatever. Of course, I could sight in the Savage ACIS XP and try for woodchucks. Add a little fishing to that and it should make for a couple or few enjoyable days in upstate NY. If I get really lucky, I may run into a couple of guys for whom there is a $100,000.00 reward and get the drop on them. Of course, that is only if my left big toe is cooperative by then, right now it is starting to wail and howl in agony once again and I foresee another trip to the painkiller
bottle in a moment or so.
All the best,
Glenn B
About the only thing I did not give much thought to was the twinge or pain I was feeling in my left big toe. I also had heel pain earlier in the day but that had subsided after I took some Colchrys (pain med specifically for gout). Since the pain in m right heel had diminished almost completely by about 9PM or so, I expected the pain in my toe to do likewise. The thing was though that I slept in fits on and off for a couple of hours. At about midnight, or a little later, there I was scoffing down some generic for Vicodin (acetaminophen and hydrocodone) with 7.5mg of hydrocodone in it - the pain in the toe had awakened me several times by then. I guess I finally got back to sleep to get some good sleep at about 1230 or 0100. I was up at 0330 and would have been ready to go by about 0400 except for the fact that to walk the 15 feet or so to the toilet to take a pee had me in agony. My toe was just about screaming, without any help from my vocal cords, with each step I took. Oh well, I wasn't going anywhere except back to bed. I couldn't sleep and was up again by 0515. I took another pain pill at about 0530 or so and that helped some but the pain remained bad, really bad, and still does as I write this. What to do?
I am guessing that by 0600, I decided to send the auction house an email and register for the auction that way. I called them at about 0730 and left them a message, telling them I had emailed my info to them and also sent a list of items on which I wanted to bid. Someone called me back not all that long after 0900 and left me a message asking if I could give them some idea of the max I would be on each item. I obliged only because I trust the folks at Hessney. If it was an auction house with which I was not familiar, I never would have tipped y hand because they might use shills who wold then try to bid up the price on me knowing how high I'd be willing to bid. I suppose that Hessney Auction Company could do that too but I seriously doubt they do it they have too much to lose - like their sterling reputation and lots (no pun intended) of business.
Looking at my the calls on my phone's memory, I am guessing that I made my first bid at about 1045. That was on a Henry Repeating Arms lever action carbine in 22LR. That was followed immediately by more bids, this time on a Henry Classis lever action rifle in 22LR. I was outbid on both. A while later, the auctioneer's assistant (Roberta) called me back for the next item on which I planned to bid, a Beretta A303 Ducks Unlimited Gun of the Year for 9186 (new in the box). I was outbid there too. My next bid was supposed to be on item number 60A, a Savage AXIS XP in 308WIN. Somehow they skipped that one ad went right to item 60 which was a Savage AXIS XP, stainless steel, in 308WIN, unfired in the box. I had the high bid at $300. That is a good deal, in fact an excellent one as local gun stores in my area have it retailing for from $418 to 456 before tax. (Thanks to the search feature at Gallery of Guns, I was able to pull up instant price quotes online.) Yes, I'll have to either have to pay to have tem ship it to me or for gas to drive there to pick it up (which is my plan) but when I drive up there I am going to spend some time hiking and fishing and make it a mini vacation for a couple or three days. I will also start scouting my chosen hunting area for deer and bear sign. Regardless, even with all that figured in, I got that one for less than I would have had I bought it at a local gun store so it's a good deal.
I bid on a bunch of other items, all but one listed "as new" or as "unfired in box (or case). One of them I really wanted, and for which I was willing to bid $400 (or a little bit more) was a Remington 870 Tactical, 12 gauge, with pistol grip and a wire folding stock. It listed retail for $5522 to $564 in my area. Well, it could not have been more screwed up since they skipped a number and wound up on that one before Roberta realized they were on it, and she only got me just as the auction was closing. it sold for $375. Maybe I should have been pissed off about it but for once I figured why bother. Anyway, Roberta was extremely apologetic about that one. She asked if I would have been willing to beat the $375 but she already knew the answer because I had emailed them m high bids earlier and it was clearly $400; in fact though, in the interim between when I had sent the email and just a few minutes before tha one went up for bids, I had changed my mind and was willing to go $425 for it. Chances are I would have gotten that one but no such luck for me with how it worked out for some other lucky bidder.
I bid on the very next item, a Stevens Model 320 Defense in 12 gauge with pistol grip and heat shield (new in the box) and had the high bid at $175. Not a very high quality shotgun as far as I would guess, since the MSRP is only about $275 for the particular version on which I bid, but I figure that will be a fun gun and my wind up being my version of the trunk monkey. None were available around my area but another, less expensive version, was retailing for about $220 and that one's MSRP was $40 less than the one I bid on. So, it may not be a stellar deal but not bad considering.
I didn't have any other winning bids even though I bid on 15 lots in all. They had over 350 guns up for bids. In addition there were other items like ammo, decoys, deer head mounts, canoes, lots and lots of fishing gear, and so on. I restricted my bids to the guns. Not sure when I'll head up that way to claim the two guns but am guessing it will be on Monday. Sometime in there, either before or after I pick them up, I'll spend some time afield. Who knows, maybe I'' take the shotgun out in the woods with me for some small game hunting. There has got to be something in season right now even if only porcupines, red squirrels or whatever. Of course, I could sight in the Savage ACIS XP and try for woodchucks. Add a little fishing to that and it should make for a couple or few enjoyable days in upstate NY. If I get really lucky, I may run into a couple of guys for whom there is a $100,000.00 reward and get the drop on them. Of course, that is only if my left big toe is cooperative by then, right now it is starting to wail and howl in agony once again and I foresee another trip to the painkiller
bottle in a moment or so.
All the best,
Glenn B
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