Hey ever'body! LAST sunday of the month/year. Time to show us all what your BEST BUYS OF THE YEAR was. One item or more is fine, show us what you are most proud of reaching deep into your pockets for.

(the regular BOTW thread will resume next sunday 1/6/13).

THANKS!

One of my best buys has to be this old Graco dealership work bench that I bought from an Oldsmobile dealer that was closing its doors! I've looked at several and this was the best one I've ever found!
One other item has to be right up there too, because of its significance to me! This Texaco Ethyl globe is as nice as I've ever seen and even though I had to buy it to get it, the fact that my good friend was willing to sell it to me is "HUGE"!

Here is the best quart I bought this year.

I bought a bunch of stuff this year but these are probably my 2 favorite buys of the year.

Here is my best Quart of the year.



I also bought this Rack at Iowa Gas.

I was very lucky to find a few things I have been after for a while, here are a few of my BOTY:

I was on a long search for a Esso Heating oil Watch Dog With original Paint. I finally found one 20 miles from my house...It was in the attic of an old oil company that sold esso oil.



Picked up this early window was a great project and find for the year:



This miller sign was the cleanest one I have seen looks like it was hung but for a very short time:

Wayne 492


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28 x 44 inch Ace high sign. Five foot trophy sign. Minnesota Keyhole globe. Four globes in the boxes. American Cash Recorder. It was a good year for finds in the wild!

Had a pretty good year adding items to my collection; hard to narrow it down but here are a few of my favorites.

Had to have this sign when I saw it. Thanks to Shipers for telling me about it and making sure I stepped up to the plate and bought it

oslosteve : ACE HIGH MOTOR OIL --> KILLER SIGN!

1937 GMC: PAIR of PEGASUS --> KILLER PAIR!

CONGRATS & HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Here is my best of the year. Happy New Year!

Was a pretty quiet year for me, though I did score this awesome porcelain and light bulb sign.

Wow, great buys guys. I have not had anything great this year, will keep trying.

One of the many great items picked this year!
I just love the look of this sign!

Congrats to all, your items are great!

All the items are "top notch", IMO.....

(oslosteve, your items as always are fantastic... IMO)

(porcelain-neon, your General Tire neon is outstanding)

This is my BOTY.

I was lucky to get the Ace High. The seller told me some guy named Kevin turned it down, thought he wanted to much! There was an auctioneer trying to get him to let him sell it. I think he was in a big hurry to get to a Casino with the cash.

Two of my best for the year were this Valvoline Counter Top Display and Tin Embossed Mobiloil sign from Kevin.

my BOTYs
nos Ace High globe, a few 6footers(2 from NM,1 local) bunch of signs,(including a 1950s Champion from the UK,a Oilzum from an oldgasser) and a couple sets of Co-Op globes. Finished the basement finally, so will be busy mounting and hanging stuff next month.
p.s.
great signs and globes everyone,and Happy New Yrs

That General sign is tops on my list, what a find and great colors also. Man hate to say it, but wish I were there.

my best buys of the year are all texaco items, one large and rare porcelain sign from switzerland, one porcelain sign from Belgium, a texaco airplane oil can from France and a conical oil can from Belgium

Garage sale find.

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Here are a couple of my favorites. Quaker State clock, Our Own Hardware Store etched gas pump globe, and a nice Oldsmobile sign.

Got this rack from esse's garage, and the cans from Aaron Severson. Getting closer to my set up!! Thanks again Oldgas!!!

Thanks
Noah

My BOTW for 2012. Just got it today. 42" double sided porcelain sign. Here's a pic before and after clean up. Still could use a little cleaning, but it was too cold to get it done perfectly.


Mac

I had a good year adding to the collection. Not as many items but some nice ones;

I got a 12 inch Sinclair Oils to go with the 6 inch one I got last year;


Two different Sinclair Marine globes;



And I got a porcelain pump to use as a night light for my storage shed;

A couple of ours up at Chadrocks. He has more but i'll let him show em.

Great stuff so far guys! I was very lucky this year. Thanks to Oldgas and some great friends, including 57tbirdkid and gmstuff, I was able to add some great pieces to my collection.

Being my First year for collecting Petroliana and restoring pumps it's been great! I have collected quite a few items but by far my favorite item would be my Frontier/Beeline banner I got a couple of weeks ago.
I finally hung it up yesterday in the Mancave above my garage.

Great finds for 2012 guys and good luck on the "hunt" in 2013.
Bob.



The rest of the Mancave,




My garage all collected and restored since March 2012 kinda got bit by the bug! but have met a bunch of great guys looking forward to 2013!

WOW! For your first year, that is very impressive! Nice signs pumpingethyl!! Love the oak, and the richfield!!

did not have a good year but maybe next year.A few signs and few cans,My favorite HC SIGN AND sinclair cans

I had a good year due to the sale of my 56 GMC Suburban Pickup (Cameo), my Tonka collection and a bunch of truck parts so I was able to spend a lot on petro. My two best buys of the year are a Wayne 50 showcase and a Erie 53. The stuff in the showcase and the globe body on the Erie 53 are also buys this year.

Nothing real special but here it is. I have been wanting one of these big Sinclair signs for quite a while. Then I got these very nice Exide Battery signs. Then a few of my favorite quarts.

Wow, great finds! You guys, make it look easy.

Times like this I miss collecting. Great stuff you guys, a lot of well displayed collections. Good Luck in 2013....

My buy of the year from Iowa Gas

This was the best sign I have picked up all year. Very excited to have it.

There is a Twin to your Auto heater sign in an antique shop in Wadsworth Ohio. That makes it the third I've seen in 50 plus years. Very nice.

here's my best buy my 1st visible pump

Well this is my first year collection oil stuff, been researching a looking on at a distances for about 10 years but here is what i got my first year of collecting:









Yes i know it is my laundry room but the apartment is to small!

I didn't buy much this year, but here are my best buys for 2012. M&S 80 Mobilgas Script top pump with pump plates(found in a old fuel shed as is); Bowser embossed lid & American 48 Tripple glass cylinder oil dispensers from the 20's & a Boyle Dayton 54 Pre Visible Pump from 1915.
Thanks, Bill




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Guess I'd have to pick these 4 although I was blessed with a few more





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The Romans are Killer!

Nice view Bill.

Had a good year buying.

few more items

Another terrible year trying to find any real good stuff.... that I can resell! If this keeps up I may have to get another job that actually pays money. Either that or maybe change my buying philosophy to buy what you don't like. Well it is almost over, so all the best to everyone here for 2013. Cheers!! Don.

Wow, that G&B 89 is cool. I hope to get one someday.

I sold my best petro buy. My biggest buy was a Nash dealership that closed in 49' with everything in it, Probably gonna take a year to clean it out so hopefully i find some great Nash signs . I have another of the Nash clocks NOS but i'm having a friend do the neon repair and its taking him a while with his job. Not my best buys, but my favorites.

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Great Stuff! I will try to add to it this PM. Love the finds. If you can, tell us a little story behind your finds! Its inspiration for the new year.

I found a cloth covered pump hose and a pair of Texaco pump signs at the site of a roadside Texaco seller from the early part of the last century. The hose went on my Wayne 60 and the signs are looking good on the ceiling in my man cave. And lastly, I love my recently purchased Texaco globe on my 39. That is all my petro finds from 2012.

Few things I found

I had a few BOTY, for some reason these are not the items that I got the best deal on but are much cooler for other reasons:


Story here: Chief Story

This one is one that I wish I would have bought years ago but am glad I was able to buy it now. Its the finishing touch on my backyard redo that included a firepit, b-ball court for the kids and new deck. Now I just need to do the outdoor lighting...

Here are a few of our favorites from 2012.. It seemed like it was a great year for smalls.. I was able to pick up this killer Kwick Work paint display from another Old Gasser, Thanks Nick!! I was also able to add this MINT French Auto Oil can to my collection; I've always wanted that can! My dad was able to pick up this 60" Chevrolet sign from a good friend.. The Wizard globe isn’t really that special to globe collectors but it is defiantly one of our favorites of the year.. It was bittersweet to finally purchase this globe, it was in a friend’s collection and we have been trying to purchase it for years, he unfortunately passed away this fall and his wife decided to sell some items in his passing. It is from a very small local oil company, The Red "C" Oil Company.. We have only ever found a handful of items from this company so this was a great addition..

Enjoy, Keith

Here are three of my favorite pieces for my buys of the year. SHELL lubrication rack, SHELL thermometer, and PAN_AM Doughboy...Dale

Dale

That shell thermo is killer....hope to get one someday

Thanks Charles. I'd been looking for sometime before I found that one. I already had the other porcelain one. Both came from Iowa Gas....Dale

Here are my favorites of 2012. My Marathon globe collection expanded by 3 globes this year, so now I have 4 different running man versions. I don't really care much for the later plain ones without the runner so I only have a few more versions to find, lol. In the world of Mobil, my favorite buy is my 1934 White Star shield. Since space is at a premium in my apartment, the only large shield I was going to own for now was going to be a White Star, and a fellow Old Gasser Butch hooked me up with this one last summer. It's not mint but still one of my favorite signs!
Darin

Here are mine. chuck

Goodyear display



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Nourse paddle sign



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Cardboard Ethly corp. inhouse motivational poster. one of my favorites of the year!



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Schlach Boyce moto meter display parts case.



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RCA display. really sweet with amazing colors!



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a few more...

killer mcgraw tire flange. thanks greg!



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a Polarine drum. great graphics. another favorite for sure!



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a schrader display. never seen one before this year, and now i own 2!



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these 3. porcelain, tin and cardboard!



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Last, a cool Westclox tin display



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Here are two that I have been looking for a couple years. Then some globes maurice helped me get what a great friend!

"Take Day Off" LOL …..That is to cool! Gotta have one…………..

I love those Caterpillar Pedal Dozers! Looks awesome!

Forgot this one.

Had lots of buys of the year, hard to pick !

How about several large Pontiac signs and then several smaller ones in the same year.

Great buys everyone! Some awesome globes, pumps, signs, cans, you name it!

We were fortunate to have had a great year with quarts this past year and here are our best/favorite buys.

Lonnie & Aaron Hop

Great cans Lonnie and Aaron.

"Take the Day Off" sign - What a great sign and as I tell my former co-workers, yes I have forgotten (by design) all political correctness training I had! And those "Haffner globes"... Had a grandmother whose maiden name was Haffner... always makes me wonder if I have a huge estate just waiting for me! But I think she only had one "f" in Hafner... so as usual, close but no cigar!

Aaron great cans I would be happy with those too

couple of my BOTY

Got a lot of good stuff this year, but these are my favorite.

Some Great Rare pieces there Avio....love that GMC !!!!

Ditto!

Love that ACE HIGH lense + CONOCO flange sign!

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A few more of the BOTY for me.

A globe lens that i have wanted for a million years!! Love that Montana stuff!!

By the way Chadrock, love that Oliver Plow sign!!

Awesome globes avio those are killer

Killer Stuff Avio!!!! I never realized there were different versions of that Ace High Sign.

I know I'm a little late on this topic!! But here are some of my favorite purchases from 2012.....Just click on the link below and it should take you to an album.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=...mp;l=1146999797

you had a good year John..

John the Crescent & Sunset are killer

Yeah, looks like a real tough year, great stuff.

My God.

Wow, nice additions!

My two favorite for the year! The 866 I found still in the wild!



On the farm


Safe at home

this was my first sign I ever got. I bought a rack sign off ebay and fed ex bent it in half during shipping. the guy gave me my money back, I asked if he had any other signs he said this gulf sign and his wife wanted it out of the garage asap. he is an old timer mechanic still working at the garage that was the former gas station. this sign was up in the rafters for the last 30 plus years, I got it for about what the cost of the original ring that came with it is worth. have not even cleaned it. scott