Primarily Petroliana Shop Talk Forums Shop Talk Petroliana Forums Showcase and Stories, Petroliana C.S.O.T.M. collector story of the month

Jan 10th already.
we're all ready for a nice juicy story!

this month 'Lastgas' will be laying a nice story or 2 on us.

Whip up a good one for us. the floor is yours!

I was at Iowa Gas back in 1999. I got there early on Friday morning, made a quick lap around the swap meet buying a few cans along the way. I tried making a deal on a nice Hull bodied Sinclair H-C red dot globe. The asking price wasn't too bad, but certainly not a bargain. The dealer had a little room on the price but I decided to pass on it until I had a chance to see what was in the auction. I went inside to see what the indoor vendors had and then over to check out what was being offered in the auction. I was amazed to see a Drake's Super Ethyl globe. Even though I was on a limited budget I knew I was taking that globe home (I had my wife's credit card, haha).
By late afternoon I was ready to get cleaned up and find something to eat, but I had to check out the auction items again to see if there were any late additions. I picked out a few cans to bid on that night, and went over to look at "my" globe again. It was GONE!!!!!! They had re-arranged most of the globes. I looked all over. I couldn't find it. John Chance was in his customary seat by the door watching over things. I went over to him in a state of panic to see what happened to my globe. The conversation went like this. (My use of all cap's is not meant to seperate my comments from John's, but to point out the difference in the decibel levels between what John and I said)
JOHN!!!!! WHAT HAPPENED TO THE DRAKE'S SUPER ETHYL GLOBE?
Hi, um, what?
THE DRAKE'S SUPER REGULAR GLOBE!!!!!! WHAT HAPPENED TO IT????? IT'S GONE!!!!!!
Oh, we re-arranged the globes. Look around.
I DID, IT'S GONE!!!!
Are you sure?
YES!!!! IT'S GONE!!!!!
Oh. Did you look up on the podium?
YES!!! IT'S NOT HERE!!!!!
Oh.
DID IT GET BROKEN?
No.
DID THE CONSIGNOR WITHDRAW IT ????
Oh, umm, ahh, yes, we did have one consignor withdraw a few items from the auction. WHO????? I HAVE TO OWN THAT GLOBE!!!
What's the big deal about this globe?
MY LAST NAME IS DRAKE!!! I HAVE TO BUY THAT GLOBE!!!!!
Oh, the consignor is Kim Kokles.
IS HE STILL HERE???
Yes.
WHERE CAN I FIND HIM???
In the west lot.
WHERE IN THE WEST LOT??
I don't know exactly where, just look around for him.
I DON"T KNOW HIM.
Just ask someone out there, they'll tell you where to find him.

I headed for the west lot at a "brisk pace". I wasn't twenty feet in the gate when I came across Ron Hoyt headed the other way. Our conversation went like this.
HI RON.
(Ron, all smiles)HI, how ya doin?
OK, DO YOU KNOW KIM KOKLES?
(Ron, smile suddenly gone) Why?
HE PULLED A GLOBE FROM THE AUCTION.
Ok.
I HAVE TO BUY IT!
Why?
IT HAS MY NAME ON IT.
That's his booth over there. He's not around.
THANKS!
Yea.

I went over to the booth. Turns out it was where I tried making a deal on the H-C globe. I looked around. No Drake's globe in sight. I paced back and forth for what seemed like an eternity. Pretty soon Kim's wife Mary showed up. I asked about the Drake's globe. She looked in their van. It wasn't there. Then she remembered that it was in a box under the table. I pulled it out, looked it over, and asked what she wanted for it. She said I'd have to ask Kim. We visited for awhile. Most vendors were packing up and there was another item I wanted to check out. She assured me the globe wasn't going anywhere. I left to see if I could make a deal on another lens. Turned out it was already sold. I headed back to get "my" globe. Kim was working on selling the H-C globe when I walked up. Mary told him I was there to buy a globe that she was holding until I returned. Kim thought she was talking about the H-C globe that he was trying to sell to another collector. I said I was interested in it, but needed to talk to him about another globe first. The other guy finally made up his mind to buy the H-C globe. Kim wasn't sure what to do since I had talked to him about it first. I said sell it. They finalized their deal and Kim asked what globe I was interested in. The Drake's Super Ethyl.
Really???
Yeah, what do you want for it?
He quoted a very reasonable price and pointed out that one lens was cracked.....(something about a guy named Jarvis. LOL. Well, not really).
I'LL TAKE IT!!!
Huh, I never thought that globe would sell so fast. Your name must be Drake.

When John Chance saw me at the auction that evening he asked if I got my globe. I replied yes, and thanked him.

Not many guys can say they own a globe with their name on it. Here's mine.





[This message has been edited by Lastgas15 (edited 01-10-2005).]

The Hemingway is comeing out in you Bob great story.
Now why was it pulled from the auction?
?????REX?????

I went to a bulk plant auction about 4 years ago. The auction ad listed a Mobilgas globe.

I figured there had to be something there besides the Mobilgas globe so I made the 3 hour drive. I spent 45 minutes or so looking over the merchandise, then about 15 minutes before the sale started I went and got my bid card.....#6. I was thinking "Great!, no competition", but I knew better. LOL.

They started off selling a bunch of hay rack items (junk). I think they were on the 3rd rack when they got to some old logo Gulf bug sprayers. There were 18 of them. They sold from $18 to $30 each. All of a sudden I wasn't so confident about some of the better items that were coming up. I missed out on item after item before I finally scored a 7' X 5' single sided porcelain Kerr McGee sign that I hoped I could make enough on to pay for my gas (I finally did...3 1/2 years later. LOL).

As the sale progressed I started seeing more and more familiar faces. I started getting nervous!
About 3 hours into the sale they got to the rack that had the globes. There was a Phillips 66 shield globe, a Phillips 66 on a very rare old style wide capco body, a single Mobilgas on capco, a Rock Island and Rock Island Ethyl on very rare cream/yellow capco bodies. The globes took some abuse sitting on that rack. Guys were digging through the JUNK looking for something good and kept banging stuff into the globes. Someone even moved the rack. I don't know what kept the globes from falling!
As the auction truck pulled alongside the rack the auctioneer said "what do we have here boys?" One of the ringmen pulled a box off the rack that held a breakfast in bed type tray, and started saying it was new in the box. When he pulled the box out, he hit a globe. It tipped into the next! then they hit the next globe!! They were going down like dominos!!!!! The petro collectors all gasped in horror. Well, maybe just me. LOL. Thankfully there was a 2X4 bolted across the back of the rack. When the last globe hit the 2X4 they stopped falling. I cut through the crowd like Mike Singletary through an offensive line. I lowered my shoulder and moved the stupid !@#$%#!!! ringman out of the way. I stood the globes up, all the while questioning the ringman's intelligence and family heritage. The crowd got a good laugh out of the show. LOL. The auctioneer sold the tray for 25 cents, then asked "what's next?" The ringman replied "we have a bunch of reproduction gas pump globes". Apparently he wasn't paying attention to what I had said. LOL.
They choiced them out. First choice went for $975. The buyer said he'd take both Rock Island globes. I quickly pointed out that the Ethyl was cracked. He passed on that one. Whew! Choice again...I won and took the Rock Island Ethyl (with one cracked lens)...the auctioneer said something about a guy from southern Indiana named John.
Choice again...$375. I was the back up bidder and knew I should have gone higher. I knew the sheild was going to be the high bidder's pick. Wrong! He took the Phillips on old capco. Not a bad price, but the shield would have been better. The auctioneer asked if anyone else wanted a globe for $375. I gambled and didn't take the shield. The high bidder looked at it and passed. Whew!
Choice again. I was astounded when I was the winning bidder at $125!!! I took the Phillips shield and the Mobilgas on capco. The Mobilgas was a single lens. It wasn't a bargain but the Phillips shield sure was.
As I was carrying my globes out to the truck someone said "Just think what those would be worth if they were real". He was serious.
I bet that guy and the ringman still think those globes were repros! Gotta love ignorant people.

I ended up buying a truck load of stuff that day. There was a group of locals nearby talking about me. Eventually their spokesman came over and started talking to me. After a few minutes he asked where I was from. I told him. He asked how far that was. I told him. He shook his head and asked if there wasn't an auction closer to home that I could have gone to instead. I laughed and said I passed 6 auctions on the way to this one. He was mumbling something about intruding on his territory as he walked away.
Here are the 3 globes I got that day.


[This message has been edited by Lastgas15 (edited 01-12-2005).]

TWO GREAT STORIES, POPS! IT'S ALMOST LIKE I WAS THERE EXPERIENCING THE WHOLE SHA-BANG YOU TELL IT SO GOOD!

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DOC @ TAG/WEST

great job bob, cheese

Pops...awesome stories...i love stories about this stuff...way to go on the globes my friend.

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Hubba: GAS GEEK , OIL FREAK and humble moderator

Hey Bob, great stories.

I broke into a cold sweat when you were running back and forth for the globe, I think we've all felt that. You know it's at your fingertips but until you have it in hand there's that empty feeling.

This story is about some friends of mine.

My friends Ray and Jan May auctioned the majority their petroliana collection at the end of February 2003. Aumman Auctions conducted the sale on the Friday and Saturday before set up time for the Chicagoland's show at Peotone,IL.
Everyone was shocked when Ray decided to have an auction, but he assured everyone that he was going to continue to collect. The hammer had hardly fallen on the last item in his sale when he bought the first item for his new collection. It was mid-morning at the show on Sunday when Jan stopped by to tell me that "He's done it already". Not knowing what she was talking about I asked who had done what. She replied that Ray had just bought a Johnson can. I had to go back to Ray's swap space to razz him. When I got there Ray was sitting there with the biggest smile I'd ever seen on his face. Sitting next to him was Neil Johnson. To say the expression on Neil's face wasn't as enthusiastic as Ray's would be an understatement. Ray wasn't too mobile because he had his ankles fused a few months before. Ray related the following story to me.
He said, We were sitting here eating breakfast and visiting with Neil when a guy walked up to the dealer across the aisle and pulled a 5 gallon can out of a bag. He could see the touring car pictured on it, then he saw the Johnson logo. Ray said he looked at the guy holding the can, he looked over at Neil to see if he'd seen it yet. He looked at the can, then threw his plate of scrambled eggs at Neil and jumped over the table so he could beat Neil to the can.
Ray hadn't thrown his eggs at Neil, and he didn't jump the table, but he must have been moving remarkably fast for a guy that had arthritis so bad that he had to have his ankles fused. Ray had two steps on him by the time Neil figured out what was going on.
Ray bought the can for $250.
Sadly, Ray passed away early last year. Aumman's auctioned the remainder of his collection yesterday. Jeff Johnson, Neil's son made the long drive from Atlanta to central Illinois for the sale. Jeff made several purchases, but he was on a mission to get that can. There were four bidders at first, then three, then just Jeff and an internet bidder. The price climbed from $1100 to $1200, $1300, all the way to $1700! Jeff won (I think, LOL).
A short time later I saw Jeff talking on his cell phone. I asked if he was talking to his Dad. He shook his head yes. I said (loud enough for Neil to hear) If you'd moved faster a couple years ago, you could have saved $1500! I wonder if he had the same look on his face that he did when Ray was telling me about jumping over the table.
Neil and Jeff are two of the nicest guys in the hobby. I'm glad they finally got the Centralene can. The story behind it is priceless, and I'm sure they'll get a kick out of telling it for years to come.



[This message has been edited by Lastgas15 (edited 01-23-2005).]

Another GREAT story Bob!! I don't (didn't) know Neil or Ray, but I did meet Jeff and he most certainly is a nice fellow. It's a SUPER looking can and I'm glad they were able to get it. And based on the most recent free-market sale, it's now worth exactly $1700!!

Richard

Thanks Richard. Ray lived just a few miles from me. He was great guy and had an awesome collection. Neil and Jeff are both super guys, and I think its cool that a father and son share the same hobby.
Bob