I will go ahead and share the story of one my best finds. While I always had an interest in old gas items, it wasn't until 2006 that I decided I was going to get seriously involved in the hobby. I signed up for Old Gas, more than likely became one of the "annoying newbies"
getting my feet wet in the hobby. My Dad had some Petroliana in the shop when I was growing up, and I remember hitting one of my Dad's Sinclair Aircraft signs a lot as a kid, as it sounded like a big gong to me! Needless to say, I no longer hit it when I see it, lol.
Anyways, I had been collecting mostly cans and smalls when about a year in I decided it was time to look for a pump. I always took notice of any pumps in the wild, but figured if they were still there they probably weren't for sale, so I just started word of mouth advertising, asking people if they knew of anyone that might have a pump for sale. I never realized how close I had been to one all along. I mentioned to my female co-worker what I was looking for as her husband is a farmer. She said we have one in the barn, I'll ask Russell about it. Within a day or two Russell stopped in and said, "I hear you are looking for an ol' gas pump. I got one in the barn, if you want it, you can have it. Dad and I pulled it 25 years ago and threw it in the corner of the barn when the EPA was getting on farmers to pull underground tanks and it's sat there ever since."
I'll admit I wasn't all that excited as I figured it was going to be a run of the mill 1950's pump, like a Tok 300 or a M&S 80, but since it was free and I didn't have a pump, I was going to get it regardless. Within a few days I headed out to Russell's place in my boss' white Sprinter, feeling just like a picker! First Russell took me to a scrap metal pile as he still had a set of doors off the diesel pump he had scrapped a year or two before. I was extremely sad to see a set of Tokheim 36B doors laying on the pile.....she had went to the scrap yard.
The doors were free for the taking, so they went into the Sprinter as I knew I could sell them no problem as they were nice and had perfect bezels. I just wish I could have been taking the whole pump home, but it wasn't meant to be.
Now it was time to check out the ol' pump in the barn. I almost fell over when I turned the corner and saw a Wayne 866 sitting there! I was able to contain my excitement well, but I knew from what I had learned on this site in that first year that this was one of the really desirable pumps, but I honestly had no idea the pump was as collectible as it was. Russell asked me in his usual slow speech, "So, you want it?" I of course said yes, I would be very happy to have it. I had brought my camera with me to document my first pump find, so below is a pic as it sat in pieces when I first saw it, and a pic after I got it home and reassembled it. Needless to say, I still haven't restored the pump, but hope to someday when I have the space to work on it. Moral of the story is you might still be pleasantly surprised by what is sitting in barns and other places. I know I sure was!
Darin
