Primarily Petroliana Shop Talk Forums Shop Talk Petroliana Forums General Petroliana Discussion Cold call BOMB!.....F bomb that is.

Early this morning while the sun was shinning and the birds chirping I jumped into my pick-up and drove out to the only petro. service and repair business in our area.
30+ years in business with a HUGE stock pile of old pumps piled behind the shop. A few days ago I had no idea this place existed. No phone book listing, no local advertisement, Just a run down old building buried in the middle of a industrial park with a broken sign out front that says equipment repair. I only discovered it by mistake while picking up supplies in the area and damn near drove off the road when a old Tok. clockface caught my eye. I turned around and stopped by but no one was there. Same thing the following day so I tried again today and here's how it went:




Does this mean maybe? ..I think he likes me

if at first you dont succeed.... flash some $$.might change his tune!

see if you have something he can fix first, change his cranky tune, then ask

Joe: that is definately code language for "stop by anytime and we'll go get a coffee together".

I say drop by every week until he yells at you in a fit of rage to just out back and load all those @#$%^&* pumps and take them home.

That's what I thought. I mean how could anyone be mean and nasty to little old me? Or wait till he's out back by the pumps and ***** him off so he starts throwing parts at me

Don't take it personaly, you surely aren't the first to stop and ask about the pumps.
That guy has probably been bugged to death.
He has probably had folks stop and take a bunch of his time and not wanted to pay his price.
If he has something you like, don't give up.
Stop back again but not too soon, figure out another way to approach him, like the offer of hard cash first thing.
If it doesn't work the second time ,I would give up then.

Nuttin like a grizzled 'ol pump mechanic !!!

Send in a Pamela Anderson look alike to ask about the pumps.

Funny story Joe...... next time hand him a $50 dollar bill and say "lets talk"...... maybe that will loosen him up a little bit and he'll know that you are serious.... hey it's woth a shot if you are really serious about getting the pumps.
Good Luck,

Once I had a woman tell me she would sell me her pumps if I could find her a female silver donkey to buy.
She had a male and wanted to raise silver donkeys.
It was a Wayne visible and a 241 cast sentry...never found that donkey.

PLEAZZZZ can I buy a pump from you?
If that don't work I'll fall on the ground in front of his shop and have a fit... .. .. .. ...

JK,
Too bad about that, I have two female mini donkeys for sale, gray in color though.

We have a local bakery that I like so I take people that I am trying to soften up doughnuts or a cinnamon roll. And it makes it harder to curse at you when your mouth is full of a giant cinnamon roll.
Good luck.
Mike

In my business I've always found that a written correspondence works best. Send him a nice, short, letter explaining that you would be interested in buying his pumps and that you are not going to waste his time. Tell him you are a serious buyer and collector and love to restore pumps. Might get his attention or might not but at least he would have you contact information for another day down the road
Ray

You may want to take a few pics of "before and after" of your pumps, show him that you have a true appreciation of the history/hobby. Some people just don't get it until you "educate" them about the world of petro. Be honest with him and it will work out eventually. Good Luck, M

I agree with Matthegasman.That's basically how I do it except I use my showroom (invite them over) to demonstrate my respect for history and to show that pumps are only a part of preserving and displaying pieces that relate to the gas and oil industry in general.

I have yet to meet a visitor who did not respond in a positive way to that approach.I know some other collectors who use the pictures approach to show they are serious and knowlegable about the hobby.Seems to work out for them.

JUST DON'T GIVE UP! YA KNOW WHAT JOE, I HAD THIS FAMILY SO ***** AT ME, THEY HAD A 1964 CHEVY NOVA THAT WAS UNDER A CAR COVER FOR YEARS! "I DON'T SEE WHY" IT WAS ROUGH, VERY ROUGH!BUT I LIKE ROUGH RIGHT! SO I HAD BEEN THREATENED MANY OF TIMES BY THE WIFE MAINLY,ABOUT ASKING TO BUY THE NOVA,SHE WOULD SAY "THAT'S WHY THE DAMN THING IS COVERED UP CUZ EVERYONE WANTS TO BUY IT!SHE WOULD ALSO ADD "AND WE AINT GOT NO TITLE"LOL IT WAS LIKE WATER ROLLING OFF A DUCK! I NEVER LOSE SLEEP! LOL ANYWAYS THIS WENT ON FOR QUITE SOME TIME ! BEAUTIFUL DAY IN JULY, I'LL NEVER FORGET! I GLANCE OVER AND THE CAR COVER IS OFF OF THE NOVA AND THE HUSBAND WAS OUT SIDE RAKING THE YARD,THAT LOOKED LIKE DIRT!LOL SO I PULL IN AND ASK ABOUT THE NOVA ANTICIPATING THE "BACKWOODS DELIVERANCE TALK"THAT I USUALLY GOT! AND THE GUY SPOKE UP BEFORE I COULD GET A WORD OUT,AND SAYS $300. AND YOU CAN TAKE IT AWAY! WE AGREE,AND HE SAYS LET ME GO INSIDE,EXCUSE ME ,I'LL GO GET THE TITLE!!!!!! IM DOING KART WHEELS IN MY HEAD! THE BOTTOM LINE JOE, I WOULD HAVE BET MONEY THAT THESES FOLKS WOULD HAVE BEEN A LITTLE TO PROUD OF THERE NOVA FINANCIALLY ,AND REALLY ATTACHED TO IT ,BY SOME OF THE REMARKS I GOT OVER THE YEARS! MY PERSISTENCE PAID OFF DEARLY! MY POINT DONT GIVE UP! I PROMISE YOU, 1 OF THOSE PUMPS WILL BE IN YOUR GARAGE ONE DAY!

Besides I've heard that rock salt shot out of a 12 ga dbl barreled shotgun at close range doesn't hurt that much............................... after 5-10 years.

Should be able to sit without one of those cushions after that amount of time, lol.

I went thru the same thing with 50 premo pumps in a yard. Guy asked me to make him an offer, and then he said I insulted him. So, stopped by with a box of donuts, and the lady not very politely told me to take them outa here, we dont eat that **it. Ok patience. Finally I called the guy and asked if he would sell me the extra parts that were on the pile. He then told me, why would I sell you the parts if I don't sell you the pumps. At that time I was tempted to tell him to stick 50 pumps where the sun don't shine, but didn't figure it would buy me anything/ 2 weeks later he calls me and asks if I want to buy everything, for a good price. agreed- 55 pumps, took a 28 foot u haul and 3 pickups to get it home. Moral is- patience, if it was meant to be...
In this case, go see the guy, if you can, shoot the **it about something not related to the pumps...then when yer in good with em, say, I was noticing you have some old pumps out there...they for sale??? Or like one of the guys said hand him some green to talk with ya. In my case, the guy had sold his property and the pumps were considered hazardous waster and they had to go before the sale went thro...maybe he's got a room full of eco air meters in the back room...

good luck

I ran into a old man that seemed like one of the most foul mouthed unhappy people I had ever met. I stopped by a few times talking about his special breed of apple trees and the new drug he was taking that was actualy making him younger. He talked about how the electrons were shooting from side to side in his head making him younger while also treating his wife like the rug I was standing on. I actualy grew to like him and realized it was he and his wifes special relationship and the 850 Tokhiem sitting 5 feet from their drinking water may have had something to do with the mental state. I helped him by removing the 850 from next to his well and he took the 2 ton electric chain hoist I traded him and threw it with all the rest of his junk sitting out in the weather. Joe, your a fab shop would it help to ask him a question about how to weld something up maybe related to the business he was in. Just guessing, If you could break through the shell there is probably some very interesting things you could learn about the gas business, posibly about the rest of the pumps sitting out at his house?

I agree with everything stated here. Patience is the best method

I don't think there is a fits all answer to the problem, but here is what happened to me and it worked out well.
I was driving down a street in Bloomington Ill. and on a corner of a parking lot by an independant garage owner, stood a Phillips 66, 20 ft. boulevard sign, complete with lights, in great shape. I turned around and my bride says where are you going? I'm gonna buy that sign.
The owner and two of his buddies were sitting in the office drinking coffee. so I popped the question "are you interested in selling that Phillips sign"? he sat the cup down, and said yes I will SELL it. what I will NOT do is take it down, load it onto a trailer, and deliver it to you, and stand it back up, ,which is what every other person that wants it would like me to do, and give it to them for free.
If you want it its $250.00 and you do all the work.I keep a couple of $100.00 bills just in case this happens. I gave him one he said "its yours" pay me the rest when you get it. When I went to take it down, he threw in 2 Phillips lubsters, and a Quaker State thermometer for free. We have since become friends and he stops to check out his sign which is up and lit at night.
Sometimes you just never know! Norm.

Here's my experience with trying to buy pumps signs oil cans or what ever else I'm chasing that day. I find out who owns it and try to explain to them what I'm doing and carry a portfolio of pictures or my digital camera and show them my collection or part of it. Just like matthegasmas said and educate them on preserving part of the history. And I'v have pretty good luck with that and give them a business card with a brief discription & my name & phone # . And never low ball them, and I'm always invited back. in case something else turn up.

Baby steps......Stopped by in my company truck in a hurry and said:
Then while looking at the logo on the side of my door he says
Holy pump guts did he just say he would sell me a pump?



I will have one of those pumps even if I have to pay too much for it!!

That was a much better approach, after reading your first post about asking for parts first, He probably thought you were one of the hundreds who have stopped and wanted a pump for $50. Good Luck and see if he will let you take a picture next time

Good for you Joe.Driving your company truck was the best thing you did,IMO.I have found that whenever I wear my company hat,people who recognize it realize that it's just a hobby for me and I'm not out to "make a buck".Things usually go well from there on.

I think you will do well.Best of luck.

Joe,
He is just tired of every other "picker" wanting a bargains bothering him, handing him a 20$ just to ask a few question wouldn't hurt, or find someone that knows him. tt