Jurassic Pick (S5, E1) — American Pickers — Full Episode

[00:00:01] Speaker 1: - Is this it? - No, they can't get it. [00:00:03] Speaker 2: - Oh, this guy's got the lions on it. - The lions on it? This does not look like one of our regular picks. [00:00:07] Speaker 3: - He must be done. - Must be. He's greeting us in pressed white shorts and tennis shoes. [00:00:12] Frank Fretz: Everything I got for sale. Something tells me his collection's gonna be fancy. I'm not here to pick Fabergé eggs. [00:00:19] Speaker 3: So is your dad more into cars or more into motorcycles? Man, all kinds of stuff. This kid's dad unfortunately passed away a couple years ago, and he inherited this huge collection. [00:00:27] Speaker 5: I like to sometimes just come out here and just look. Whoa. [00:00:32] Speaker 6: What's this, a piece of driftwood? It's a dinosaur bone. [00:00:36] Frank Fretz: No way. Where'd you get that at? [00:00:38] Speaker 6: They've come out of a creek bed in Mississippi. If this is a dinosaur bone, it's gonna make this trip pickin' folklore. [00:00:45] Speaker 3: I'm like Wolf. [00:00:47] Frank Fretz: And I'm Frank Fretz. [00:00:48] Speaker 3: And we're pickers. [00:00:50] Frank Fretz: We travel the back roads of America looking to buy rusty gold. [00:00:56] Speaker 3: We make a living telling the history of America one piece at a time. We're gonna put this bike at. [00:01:11] Frank Fretz: All right, look out, look out. Look out. Look what Danielle did. What'd she do? Broke her Frankenstein model. Look at the head. Hey, guys. [00:01:19] Speaker 7: You break my Frankenstein model? What? Yeah. Did you break that? [00:01:23] Frank Fretz: I don't know what you're talking about. [00:01:25] Speaker 7: Come on, I need to talk to you guys. [00:01:27] Frank Fretz: What'd you do? I don't know. She probably wants a raise or something. [00:01:30] Speaker 3: Danielle's been working for us for three years, and today is the first day that she's ever called a meeting. [00:01:36] Frank Fretz: You're not getting another raise. [00:01:37] Speaker 3: Especially since you broke the Frankenstein model. [00:01:40] Speaker 8: Frankenstein model would've never gotten broken if we didn't. If we had more room here. Yeah. The store has gotten so cramped, it's hard to even move around in here. Wait a second. [00:01:49] Speaker 3: Move this thing. Hold on a second. [00:01:51] Speaker 8: Danielle! What? Move this over here. It's like we can't even move around here anymore. Which is why I called this meeting. We feel your pain. Definitely. [00:02:00] Speaker 3: When we come here and we unload stuff, half the time when we leave, I'm thinking, "Where the heck is she gonna put that stuff?" We talked about expanding, but after we got a few bids, it became very clear that it was smarter to open a second store. I mean, if we were gonna think about a second location, I'm thinking Nashville. I mean, you and I used to set up at the flea market down there. [00:02:19] Frank Fretz: We talked about it, but we've got our finger on the pulse a little bit down there. We know a few people. We're on the same page. [00:02:24] Speaker 3: This is always gonna be our home base. We love this area, but business-wise, we have to think beyond Iowa. We have to think bigger. It's a huge step. It's a scary step, but I think it's a step we need to make. I agree. If you wanna go down there, Frank and I would flip the bill to have you at least look around. [00:02:42] Speaker 8: I'm so excited that Mike and Frank finally are ready to open a second store, and they want me to pick the location. [00:02:49] Speaker 3: I trust you. I really do. I want you to know that. Who are you talking to? We're talking to you. Me? I'm giving you some praise. [00:02:56] Speaker 8: Reality. This is a huge responsibility the guys have given me, and I'm taking it really seriously, and I don't wanna let them down. [00:03:02] Speaker 3: I don't wanna be in a strip mall. I don't wanna be, like, way the heck out of town. I mean, we need to be right in town. I wanna be, like, in a historic building, an older property. We have to be in a building that really fits our brand. I mean, who we are, man. A representation. I mean, you know what we want. I'll do it. I'll do it. [00:03:21] Speaker 8: I'll do an awesome job. [00:03:22] Speaker 3: I will. Go down there, check it out. [00:03:24] Speaker 8: I see little by little them kind of bringing me into the fold a bit more. That feels really good. [00:03:31] Speaker 3: Frankie and I are going pickin'. We're heading down south. Danny's going down to Nashville to take a look at some locations. It's a big job. Hopefully she's up for the task. Today we're going to see a guy named John. Danny said this guy's dad was a lifelong collector. He's got cars, he's got bikes, all the good stuff. Exactly what we love. Sounds like an amazing lead. I mean, if this guy's been collecting stuff his whole life like this. Right. This is an honor for us to go through it, man. This kid's dad, unfortunately, passed away a couple years ago. And he inherited this huge collection. They want to start selling some of this stuff off. Hopefully we can help him out and maybe buy a few things from him. [00:04:07] Speaker 1: This is like a residential neighborhood. He can't have one of these. Look for the guy that's got the big, huge garages. All the way up. Oh, yeah. There we go. Oh, yeah. They got a bigger garage in the back. [00:04:16] Speaker 3: Oh, yeah. We pull in the back and right away I see the Model T. It looks like totally different from the front. I look off to the left. There's a Packard. There's lots of stuff in the yard. We're home. [00:04:25] Frank Fretz: Got to make sure John's here. [00:04:27] Speaker 3: Dang, look at that dog. Hey, you John? Hey, yeah. Hey, I'm Mike. He's a big dude. Big strapping guy. Walks out. I'm looking up at him. Man, hey, how's it going? How you doing, Frank? Hey, nice to meet you, Frank. Hey, you talking to Danielle on the phone? Yeah, yeah, sure did, man. Yeah, here's one of our flyers. She said that your dad was into transportation stuff. [00:04:44] Speaker 5: Yeah. My dad is a very unique person. Bobby Pounds. He was a musician. He was a machinist. He was a collector of many things. But all around, just a great person. And, you know, I dearly miss him a lot. Okay. So was your dad more into cars or more into motorcycles? Man, all kinds of stuff. My grandparents actually owned several antique stores here. So, you know, it-- He grew up there? Yeah, he came out by nature. Wow. Okay. Where can we start looking around? If you want, we'll just go over to the garages first. Okay, yeah, I'd love to. [00:05:10] Speaker 3: Okay. John starts explaining to us that his dad collected anything with wheels and a motor on it. [00:05:15] Speaker 5: So when's the last time this car ran here? Probably about a year ago. No doubt. My dad, when he retired, he had plenty of stuff to keep him busy, you know what I mean? Sure. He was very particular who he let in, you know? I'm his own son, and he barely even let me in around the stuff, you know what I mean? I like to sometimes just come out here and just look, you know? Take a look around. It kind of reminds me of my dad. [00:05:33] Speaker ?: Take a look around. Whoa! [00:05:35] Speaker 5: Whoa! [00:05:36] Speaker 3: It's the wall of death. Now this is a double-edged sword for a picker. One, you're like, this is so cool, man. There's this much stuff in this garage. And the other side of the sword is, damn, I've got to move all this to get into the garage. [00:05:51] Speaker 5: There should be a little pathway. There is? [00:05:53] Speaker 3: Yeah. [00:05:54] Speaker 5: Dang! [00:05:55] Speaker 3: If you find a pot of gold, be sure and let me know. I'm walking across the top of seats, gas tanks, handlebars. You can see there's some good stuff in there. Fraggy, Honda chopper. Oh, yeah. This Vespa's nice, if you could get it out of here. This Honda's nice, too. Have you gotten anything out of here yet? No. Whew! I could see how overwhelmed John was. I've been doing this for 20 years, and I'm even overwhelmed. [00:06:20] Speaker 5: Oh, look at this train. Yeah. It's a steam, right? Yeah, you can actually ride that. My dad was part of a train club in Columbia, Tennessee. They have a track. [00:06:29] Frank Fretz: He'd bring that and then ride it on the track. Yeah. [00:06:32] Speaker 5: My dad was a train freak. You know, he loved Lionel trains growing up. I'm kind of interested in that. That's cool. That thing is probably priceless. Is it? Yeah, it was hand-built by a man here in town for my dad. Something you want to keep? Yeah, more than likely. He starts having these childhood memories and stuff. I heard my father talk about it for 26 years, you know. We understand that. [00:06:51] Frank Fretz: I think I'm uncovering emotions that he didn't even know he had. [00:06:55] Speaker ?: Whoo! [00:06:56] Speaker 9: Shh! Thanks. Bella. [00:06:59] Speaker 3: The Sundar Bella, baby. That's cool. That's a German scooter. Is that something you'd consider selling? Yeah, we could talk something on that. It's actually kind of near the door. Yeah. These were great scooters. They had powerful motors and they had 12-inch aluminum disc wheels. They're extremely hard to find. All right. I can see the body. I can see a motor in it. It's original paint. It's a little bit sweaty. I'm interested in it. But before I start digging this thing out, it's probably going to take me like an hour. I want to establish a price. In this condition, I'm at 500 bucks. Hmm. [00:07:42] Speaker 5: I don't know. Those are pretty rare, man. They are rare. But as with anything else, it's condition. Yeah. What are you thinking? Hmm. Think 550? I ain't even going to argue over 50 bucks. [00:07:56] Speaker 3: You're going to help me get this out of here, right? [00:08:01] Speaker 5: I didn't know that. [00:08:02] Speaker 3: I tell you what. I'll give you 600 bucks if you do the majority of the digging and we'll help you get this out of here. All right. Six bills. We settle on 600. All right. Thanks. How about this grill? Yeah. That's a 32. Yeah. 32 Ford is an iconic car because it's one year only stuff. I've been buying these things to hang them on walls because, you know, that's the signature of the car, man, when they're going down the road. It's got original paint on it. It's kind of sweaty just the way I like it. It's got some personality. Would you be interested in selling this? [00:08:45] Speaker 5: Um, yeah. That's probably possible. Yeah. People are familiar with them. I know it's pretty rare. [00:08:50] Speaker 3: Well, if this thing was in mint condition, like super nice, really clean, it'd be like 1,500 bucks. Oh, wow. I mean, I'm talking like pull it out of a crate. John was left all of this stuff. He had no idea what it's worth. I felt it was really important to let him know, hey, this is the retail number, but this is what I'm willing to pay. In this condition here, with a big whammo in it right on the bottom, see the Ford emblem here, the porcelain's all chipped up on it. Yeah. Yeah. I'd be into it for like 200 bucks. Ooh. [00:09:20] Speaker 5: I mean, what are you thinking? You do 350 on it? [00:09:25] Speaker 3: No, I couldn't do 350 in this shape. I'd come up with 300 bucks on it. I'm gonna do it for three. All right, 300 bucks. All right, my friend. Thanks. We settle on $300, and me and the 32 Ford grill climb the hell out of the garage. [00:09:41] Speaker 5: I got another garage right here. [00:09:44] Speaker 3: All right, that's the old school door. [00:09:46] Speaker ?: Wow. This is loaded up. [00:09:48] Speaker 5: Yep. [00:09:56] Frank Fretz: Hey, John, what about this little Hummer frame here? Man, I know Harley made it. This is a little Hummer frame. It's a little small Harley Davidson frame. It was made in the '50s. It's a great parts piece. The front end snapped off right here. The tank's in it. The ignition's still in it. Yeah. Original headlight. Yeah. [00:10:14] Speaker 5: I noticed also when I moved this, you got some wizard motors. Yeah. Yeah, my dad was a big collector of the wizard because, you know, they came out when he was a youngster and all that. [00:10:23] Frank Fretz: The wizard motor was something a kid could turn his bicycle into a motorcycle. They were made in 1947, 1948. It was some of the first motorcycle stuff he rode, you know, so. I got you. The three of them are incomplete, but there's some great parts on them. What do you think about wizard motors and this frame here? I don't know. I think 400, 500 maybe? Yeah. I mean, we're not too far off here. The motors are pretty easy to find. Yeah. I'm thinking about 100 for the motors and I'd probably go 200 on this. I could do a little better, but the front end is shot. Right. I'd do 300 on the little pile here. [00:10:59] Speaker 5: You know, I really need to start moving some of this stuff. Yeah, I think we could do 300. All right, 300. All right, man. Good deal. Sounds good, buddy. They paid a fair price for that, you know, in the shape that they're in. [00:11:17] Frank Fretz: Check this out. Sitting in the garage under all this junk is a 1930s Auburn coffin-nosed cord. I mean, you just don't see this kind of stuff. Woo! Look at that. Is there original paint? Yep, original paint. They're either 100% restored or they're in somebody's museum. You do not find them in the original state like this. This car is cool. [00:11:36] Speaker 3: Look at the fenders on this thing, man. This thing looks like an airplane going down the road. [00:11:52] Speaker 5: Do you remember where he found it at? I am not real sure exactly where he found it. It had to have been in a barn somewhere. That was one of the first cars that he had actually started collecting. I mean, it's packed, it's buried, but this is feasible. I could get this car out. Hey, John, is this a car you'd sell? I talked to the president of the Auburn Cord Club. Yeah. He said they could bring 40,000 to 140, depending on condition. The hood's beat up on top here pretty good. [00:12:18] Speaker 3: I mean, real good. Yeah, you can see someone's done some body work on it. People who buy these cars are very particular, but this cord is in really decent shape. I know we wouldn't have a problem finding a buyer for it. This cord is cool. [00:12:30] Frank Fretz: This is the kind of stuff that you don't ever see. I mean, I'm ready to dig deep on this. I've got to have the car. I look over in the corner and I see John. He's starting to get a little nervous. [00:12:41] Speaker 5: It's an awesome machine. There's not another one like it, you know? It's just bringing up old memories and stuff, so. Did you come up with a number on it? Man, just thinking about it and all that, and just being with it as much as it meant to my dad. I'm not feeling like I'm ready to sell it yet. It's got a lot of sentimental value to me. I thought I might be ready to sell it, but, you know what I mean? [00:13:11] Speaker 3: No problem. That's all right. No problem, my friend. [00:13:14] Speaker 5: When it came down to it, we never had anybody in front of us with money ready to buy. I felt like in my heart and, you know, my dad's spirit and everything in me and all that. Couldn't let it go today. You have family history, okay? Right. [00:13:27] Speaker 3: I mean, that's the huge thing. [00:13:28] Speaker 5: You grew up around this. And this is one of my dad's prized possessions, you know? And I understand that. [00:13:32] Speaker 3: You know what the ultimate thing would be? Is if you restored the car. If, like, you dug in it. [00:13:38] Frank Fretz: Yeah. [00:13:39] Speaker 3: We don't want to buy anything you don't want to sell, my friend. Yes, sir. All in all, it was a great day. We got to meet a young kid that was passionate about his father's collection and preserving his father's legacy. All right, guys, I'm here for moral support. Hand it on us. [00:13:51] Frank Fretz: Of course we built it. I bought the Harley Hummer frame for $200. I think I can part it out for at least $500. [00:13:58] Speaker 3: Do you really see the wham-moes on outside here? I got it, yeah. I know, it's cool. I like it. I bought the 32 Ford grille for $300. I'm gonna ask $650. [00:14:08] Speaker 6: Lift. [00:14:11] Frank Fretz: Yeah. There, I fixed it. Nice adjustment. That's $39.99 alignment there. You like that? [00:14:16] Speaker 3: I bought the Zundap Bella scooter for $600. I'm gonna ask $1,500. All right, John, hey. Hey, man. Thanks, man. I'm glad you decided to keep the car. [00:14:27] Speaker 5: Now, looking back at it, I think I'm pretty glad about it, too. I would definitely put it in shows. I'd probably get a picture of my dad, put it on the dash, you know, and just kind of make a memorial to him. If you get rid of the wall of death-- [00:14:37] Frank Fretz: If you get rid of the wall and you start getting some of that motorcycles out, give us a call, 'cause we'll take a look. Awesome, man. I'll do that, guys. All right, buddy. Thanks. Thanks, John. John had a ton of stuff in his dad's collection that we weren't even able to get to. When he's ready to sell, this would be a great place to revisit. [00:14:52] Speaker 6: See you, John. [00:14:53] Frank Fretz: All right, man. Take care, man. Take care, man. I'm glad we didn't buy the car, because-- Well, I don't blame him. [00:15:00] Speaker 3: I mean, he grew up around that stuff. It was his father's things. He's torn. It's the emotional attachment and the burden of trying to get rid of it. Yeah, I mean, I was just overwhelmed, man. [00:15:08] Frank Fretz: He was overwhelmed with all that stuff. I'm feeling for him. You know what? [00:15:12] Speaker 3: I had a dream the other night that you were in a moon pie eating contest. We won 1,500 bucks. But the weird thing about it is, I was reading in the paper today. Yeah. There's gonna be a moon pie eating contest. I'm trying to go on diet. [00:15:31] Frank Fretz: If you win this contest, that takes care of all our hotel, all of our fuel, everything. I'm not ready to stuff my face to make some extra money. Luckily, Daniel sent us a lead. Today, we're going to meet this guy named Don. He's an auctioneer. I guess he's got a huge collection. And Daniel says he's ready to sell. [00:15:52] Speaker 1: Is this it? No, that can't be it. [00:15:54] Speaker 3: This is what the map says. Oh, oh, this guy's got the lions on it. If you've got lions in the entrance instead of your driveway. This guy's got pillars. [00:16:00] Frank Fretz: I know. This can't be it. This don't look like our kind of spot. [00:16:03] Speaker 2: This does not look like one of our regular picks. Let's see. There he is right there. [00:16:07] Speaker ?: Right here. [00:16:08] Frank Fretz: You must be Don. Must be. How you doing? Hey. Doing fine. Talk to Daniel on the phone? Yes, I sure do. [00:16:15] Speaker 10: Hey, I'm Mike. Nice to meet you. [00:16:17] Speaker 3: This guy, Don, does not look like our usual seller. He's greeting us in pressed white shorts and tennis shoes. But in this business, you've always got to keep an open mind. You never know when you're going to stumble on your next mega pick. Daniel said you're in the auction business. Yeah, I sure am. You still in it? [00:16:32] Speaker 10: Yeah. Everything I got for sale. [00:16:34] Speaker 3: Oh, that's cool. Everything I got for sale. We like that. No emotional attachment. [00:16:38] Frank Fretz: No, whatsoever. Something tells me about Don that his collection is going to be fancy. I'm not here to pick Fabergé eggs. Can we look around? Yeah, sure. Just come right on in. [00:16:47] Speaker 10: All right. [00:16:51] Frank Fretz: Oh, yeah. [00:16:52] Speaker 10: The house looks pretty good on the outside, but it's pretty rough on the inside. [00:16:55] Speaker 3: Man, every room is packed. He's got airplanes hanging from the ceiling, toys off to the right. Whoa! Frankie. [00:17:02] Frank Fretz: He's got stuff piled all over the place. Don's house, it may be a mansion, but I feel right at home. [00:17:07] Speaker 3: This kind of looks like your house, Frankie. It does, yes. This is kind of like my place. [00:17:11] Frank Fretz: You know what? This place has got potential. [00:17:13] Speaker 3: So all this stuff you got at auctions? [00:17:14] Speaker 10: Well, I'd say probably 50% of them. I started collecting about 45 years ago. I'm a bottle collector and a toy collector, and I like stone jugs and pottery, and just about everything you can think of. I like it. [00:17:28] Speaker 3: Frankie, look at that. What is it? Hopalong Cassidy sweater. Hopalong Cassidy was originally a storybook cowboy, but in the 1930s, when he went on to the silver screen, he became one of the biggest Western stars in Hollywood history. Was that yours when you were a kid? [00:17:43] Speaker 10: No, I bought that off some lady. [00:17:45] Speaker 3: I've been doing this for 20 years, but I've never seen one of these sweaters. [00:17:59] Frank Fretz: What do you value that at? [00:18:02] Speaker 3: I'm prepared, man. He's going to hit me with a heavy hitter number. I mean, this guy has got it in his junk room framed, and it's on an easel. [00:18:10] Speaker 10: $7,500. $75 to $100. [00:18:12] Speaker 3: $75 to $100? Yeah. This sweater is awesome, and it's priced to sell. $75 sounds better than $100. [00:18:19] Speaker 10: I'll do $75 for you if you want, yeah. [00:18:21] Speaker 3: All right, $75. All right, thanks. That's cool. [00:18:24] Speaker 10: I'm an auctioneer, and I'm a deal. [00:18:25] Speaker 3: Oh, that's right. That's right. I know. [00:18:28] Speaker ?: I like that. [00:18:28] Speaker 3: There's nothing here. I like where there's no emotional attachment. [00:18:30] Speaker 10: There's nothing I wouldn't sell. Most people wouldn't live in my house the way it's cluttered up. [00:18:37] Frank Fretz: Each room's another adventure here. [00:18:39] Speaker 10: That's the reason I need to sell stuff, because I need to get some stuff out of my way. I just let the dust accumulate. Makes it worth more when it gets dusty. [00:18:48] Speaker 3: Oh, look at that. We walk into the kitchen, and he's got so many collectibles on the counter that you can't even see the countertops. Oh, my gosh. [00:18:55] Speaker 10: That's kind of unusual right there. [00:18:57] Speaker 3: 50 bucks. [00:18:58] Speaker 10: You wouldn't give 60? With a money-back guarantee. [00:19:01] Speaker 3: All right, money-back guarantee, 60 bucks. [00:19:03] Speaker 10: I'm an auctioneer, and I'm a pretty fast tongue, so I can stay in there with any of these traders. [00:19:08] Frank Fretz: Hey, Don, what about these cans? [00:19:10] Speaker 10: They're good ones. [00:19:11] Frank Fretz: How about 20 apiece? All right. How much for this? [00:19:14] Speaker 10: Well, I was asking five, but I would take three. [00:19:17] Frank Fretz: Three bucks? [00:19:18] Speaker 3: Yeah. I'm your guy. What do you get on this, the battle shield? [00:19:22] Speaker 10: 20. [00:19:23] Speaker 3: I'll take it. Don's prices are so reasonable, it's like a red tag sale. [00:19:27] Speaker 10: What I've got in here is mostly military stuff. [00:19:30] Speaker 3: Oh, wow. Ooh, what's this? I picked this thing up. It's this really cool blue bomb. Bomb practice. [00:19:39] Speaker 10: Yeah, right. [00:19:40] Speaker 3: That's kind of cool. It's got the fins on it. It's got some graphics on the side of it. I mean, this thing is so cool. [00:19:45] Speaker 10: Those come off the Mylon arsenal. [00:19:47] Speaker 3: Sometimes when you're looking at junk, you have to think out of the box. Somebody can either make this into a lamp or somebody that collects military memorabilia. This would be a perfect piece for them. How much is this? [00:19:57] Speaker 10: $20. Hey, that's a bargain. That's a bargain. 20 bucks is? Yeah. That's a bargain. Hey, if it's not a bargain, bring it back and I'll give you money back. That's the way I come. [00:20:08] Speaker 3: I like this guy. Bring it back. I like his prices. All right, $20. That's a deal. [00:20:13] Frank Fretz: One great thing about Don's collection is it's very diverse. I mean, he has all kinds of different things, and that's always a good sign of a great pick. This is just stuff here. That's overwhelming here. Mmm. Also a nice spot, this beautiful vintage television. Wow. [00:20:32] Speaker 3: Ooh, fraggy. [00:20:33] Frank Fretz: This Sentinel TV is a rare find. This portable TV was made in the 1940s, and to find one in a condition like this is very rare. [00:20:41] Speaker 10: That's the best one. All these I've got is an old one. [00:20:44] Frank Fretz: These TVs are highly sought after. Today, everybody has iPods and laptops, but back in the day, this was state of the art. What do you get for something like this? [00:21:04] Speaker 10: It's kind of partial to that. And I said I'd sell anything in here, and I will. Right? A hundred and a quarter. A hundred and a quarter is your bottom? Yeah. That's a good TV. [00:21:15] Frank Fretz: I was thinking more like about 60. [00:21:17] Speaker 10: Oof. Oof. Oof. Oof. [00:21:21] Frank Fretz: How about 65? I just can't get it. [00:21:26] Speaker 10: I mean, does it work? I don't get you, it does. I mean, I'm taking a chance it doesn't even, I'm not even plugging it in. [00:21:30] Speaker 3: Yeah, don't plug it in. You never ever plug in vintage electronics, because nine times out of ten, you're going to fry the unit. It's always best to take it to a professional and have him check it out. [00:21:40] Frank Fretz: What's our bottom on it here? [00:21:42] Speaker 10: A hundred and a quarter. A hundred and a quarter. You know, I've been pretty reasonable, but that's good, I'm not kidding. [00:21:49] Frank Fretz: Don's not budging. At 125, he's not going anywhere. I'm going to have to change my strategy. I'm not going anywhere. I spot this cool looking toy. You've been negotiable. [00:21:58] Speaker 10: I have. I told you, I was in business selling. [00:22:01] Frank Fretz: This is a Chrysler Woody, made by the Wyandotte Toy Company, made in the 1940s. It's a very collectible toy, and hopefully I can use it to sweeten the deal. How about a hundred and a quarter you throw the car in? [00:22:15] Speaker 10: You know that's about a hundred dollar toy, don't you? [00:22:18] Frank Fretz: I don't know if it's that much. [00:22:19] Speaker 10: How much do you think the toy is worth? [00:22:21] Frank Fretz: I'm thinking this is worth 50. [00:22:25] Speaker 10: I'm giving you a bargain. I'm going to let you have it. I'm giving you a bargain. [00:22:28] Frank Fretz: All right. You've been giving me a bargain since I've been here. Good job. [00:22:31] Speaker 3: Thank you. Now does that get the money back guarantee? [00:22:33] Frank Fretz: Yes, sir. All right. Money back guarantee. When I plug it in, does it work? That's right. Today was a great pick. I mean, me and Mike were able to get some great items, and Don's prices were unbelievably fair. It just goes to show you, you can't judge a book by its color. [00:22:45] Speaker 3: All right. Is that TV heavy, Frankie? [00:22:47] Frank Fretz: Not that's too heavy for me. I paid $125 for both items. I think I can sell the car for at least $100, and the TV for $150. [00:22:55] Speaker 3: The blue bomb. I got the bomb for $20. I'm going to ask $200. There's my baby doll here. I bought the Hopalong Cassidy sweater for $75. I'm going to ask $2 and a quarter. [00:23:07] Speaker 10: All right, Don. I was really impressed with both of them. And they were real fair with me. I mean, they were real reasonable about everything. Thanks, Don. Thanks, Donny. They were both my kind of people. I like people who like John. In fact, I hope they come back. I'll always have something to sell them. [00:23:24] Speaker 1: See you later. [00:23:29] Speaker 8: Right now I'm in Nashville, and Mike and Frank are out picking. So I'm scouting for a new shop for us. Finding this space is about location, location, location. I've set up an appointment with a commercial real estate lady named Sarah, and hopefully we can really find something cool. So here we are. OK. Come on in. OK. From a business perspective, this is a big risk. And I'm not going to lie, I'm a little nervous. Good traffic flow, total about 5,000 square feet. Antique archeology needs to have a building that personifies what it is we do. I like the tin ceiling, and it has some age to it, but-- The space isn't bad, but it's in a strip mall, and Mike would hate it. You know, it's an option. OK. Let's keep looking, too. OK. I will not settle for anything less than what we deserve, and we deserve a rockin' killer place. So nice to meet you. Mike and Frank are very picky, they're very opinionated, and all the pressure is on me right now. I know I will find the right spot. [00:24:43] Speaker 3: While Danielle's in the big city, me and Frankie are tearing it up on the back roads of Tennessee. We're looking to do some backwoods gorilla pickin'. [00:24:49] Speaker 1: This ain't a bad place of freestyle right here. It's not one too bad. [00:24:53] Frank Fretz: That's poor man. [00:24:54] Speaker 1: No. It's a basketball. Look at this place right here. You think anybody lives there? Nope. Oh, look at all this stuff. [00:25:00] Speaker ?: Oh, look at that. It's got some stuff. Wow, that's cool. [00:25:03] Frank Fretz: It's got some big golf, big Texaco. Uh-huh. Oh, these are big signs. Who knows what he's got inside the building. Good eye, dude. Let's just whoop in here. This guy's got some stuff. Hey, partner. How you doing? Good. Hey, my name's Mike. Bobby. [00:25:15] Speaker 3: Check this out. We're pickers. We're from Iowa. We buy and sell a lot of stuff. I got quite a bit of it. Anything for sale? Well, I sell a little. All right. He said he'd sell something. Can we pull up here? Yeah, sure. [00:25:26] Speaker 6: All right. As long as you're not selling nothing. We're buying it. I ain't selling. I'm buying it. Bobby looks like a good old boy. He's got the beard. He's got the overalls. He's got the sun hat. I hope he has that southern hospitality. You collect these? I collect everything. I'm a junker and I'm retired. So you do a lot of barn digging? [00:25:40] Frank Fretz: Everywhere. Everywhere? That's the same thing as this. Yard sales, estate sales. Flea markets. Flea markets. Twice a week, Saturday and Sunday. Bobby goes to two flea markets a week. [00:25:48] Speaker 6: I'd love to see what he's brought home. Come in, come in and enjoy the cup. We're going to get some fun. We're going to get some fun. We're going to get some fun. We're going to get some fun. We're going to get some fun. We're going to get some fun. We're going to get some fun. We're going to get some fun. We're going to get some fun. We're going to get some fun. We're going to get some fun. We're going to get some fun. [00:26:02] Frank Fretz: I'm going to get some fun. I'm going to get some fun. I'm going to get some fun. I'm going to get some fun. [00:26:06] Speaker 6: I'm going to get some fun. I'm going to get some fun. I'm going to get some fun. I'm going to get some fun. I'm going to get some fun. I'm going to get some fun. [00:26:12] Speaker 9: I'm going to get some fun. I'm going to get some fun. I'm going to get some fun. [00:26:15] Speaker 3: I'm going to get some fun. I'm going to get some fun. [00:26:17] Frank Fretz: I'm going to get some fun. I'm going to get some fun. I'm going to get some fun. I'm going to get some fun. I'm going to get some fun. I'm going to get some fun. I got a nice big building here. [00:26:32] Speaker 3: It's bigger than my house. [00:26:33] Speaker 6: It's bigger than your house? My wife said, I can't believe build a junk building bigger than their house. [00:26:39] Frank Fretz: It's got some real age to it here, you know? [00:26:41] Speaker 3: A little bicycle, Frankie. [00:26:43] Frank Fretz: I got it. [00:26:44] Speaker 3: Ooh. What's this? [00:26:47] Frank Fretz: It's on record 45s. [00:26:50] Speaker 3: Bobby, how about this bicycle light? It's got the mounting hardware on it. This light is over 100 years old. It's made for a bicycle. Very cool piece. I'd like to have 50. 50 bucks? Actually, this one's not too bad of shape. Still got the nickel plating on it. Any bicycle collector would love to have this light for a turn-of-the-century bicycle. It's got a really nice reflector in it. The lens isn't cracked. The mounting bracket's there. I mean, all that stuff is hard to find. How about 45? That's close. That's close. That's close? Real close. Work with me a little bit on this one. 45. All right. All right, 45. Cool. I got a bicycle I'll put this on. Okay. That's cool. I'll be thinking about you. I can already picture it on one of my bikes hanging in the shop. Bobby has an eclectic collection, but I see there's one thing that he must really like. So, I noticed that you're a lantern collector. Well, that's my... That's your passion? Yeah, I'm the Lantern King. You're the Lantern King? I mean, this guy had tons of them. Shelves of them. I got 700. 700? Wow. Dang. [00:28:17] Speaker 6: Now, how did you start collecting lanterns? I just need to collect something and they were cheap. They were cheap? I probably started collecting lanterns probably 20 years ago and it was just a whim. Everything I collected is just a whim. I just see it and I like it and I buy it. I've got no reason really for what I collect. I just collect. Yeah. It's a little wallet. [00:28:37] Frank Fretz: Somebody got down. Somebody spent some real time on that. [00:28:43] Speaker 6: Well, that's cool. [00:28:45] Frank Fretz: It's a wire recorder. A wire recorder? Yeah. I've heard about these things before, but I've never seen one. That's your recording. That's an hour. One hour on them. One hour is full. [00:28:57] Speaker 3: That's wild. Never seen that before. [00:28:59] Frank Fretz: Wire recorders were used from the '40s to the '50s before tape recorders became popular. The audio was recorded onto stainless steel wire. [00:29:11] Speaker 6: Hello, America. [00:29:12] Frank Fretz: This is Edward Merle speaking from London. What's something like that worth? [00:29:19] Speaker 6: I want $40 for that one. [00:29:22] Frank Fretz: Bobby wanted a little bit more than I wanted to pay for this, so I thought I'd bring something in to sweeten the deal. Let me keep this off the side here. [00:29:29] Speaker 6: I'm going to think about it. He's a bundler. I like to put things together. He's a bundler. You don't bundle in Tennessee, you pile. [00:29:36] Frank Fretz: Oh, that's even better. Piling. I love that word. I'm going to start using it myself. All right, what do you want on this? I found this really cool Carhartt overall sign. It's made of porcelain and probably made around the 1930s. $35. How about $60 for the little pile here? [00:29:57] Speaker 6: We can handle it. We can handle it. [00:29:59] Frank Fretz: Call it a bundle or call it a pile. Either way, it works for me. You got a lot to look at. A lot of smalls. We like smalls. How about this trigger sign? [00:30:10] Speaker 3: Five bucks. All right, I'll take it. Trigger, baby. [00:30:14] Frank Fretz: Hey, Bobby, how about this little licea plate topper? I'll do five. [00:30:17] Speaker 3: Five bucks? Yeah. [00:30:19] Frank Fretz: You got it. [00:30:20] Speaker 3: How about this? It's for a bicycle. Five dollars. All right, I'll do five bucks on that. Bobby loves to buy random stuff at flea markets. And lucky for us, he likes to sell it too. [00:30:29] Frank Fretz: What about your calendar here? [00:30:31] Speaker 3: Oh, yeah, she's cute. Fifteen. [00:30:33] Frank Fretz: How about ten? All right. Ten dollars? All right. If there's such a thing as a smalls honey hole, this is it. [00:30:48] Speaker 6: Anything in there is not for sale. Okay. [00:30:51] Speaker 3: That's my dad's. [00:30:52] Speaker 6: There's a private collection there? [00:30:53] Speaker 3: Yeah, dad and mother's. Every collector has those special items that have sentimental value. In this case, it's personal items from Bobby's family. [00:31:00] Speaker 6: And that lantern that belonged to my daddy, I carried that lantern when I was little. I had to hold it up with both hands, keep them dragging the ground. Really? When I was a kid, my job was feed the mules and shut up the chickens. Okay. And we had an old battery radio, and I'd get to listen to the radio, and I'd forget my job. Oh, yeah? And he'd kind of tune me up a little and give me that lantern and I'd go. They dusted your pants in. [00:31:23] Speaker 3: He dusted your pants off? Yep. So you've had that lantern that long? Yeah. That's really cool. Well, you know what? I mean, do you think that lantern is what started you collecting lanterns? Just that one thing that you remember as a child, it carries with you through life. [00:31:40] Speaker 6: I doubt it, 'cause he tuned me up pretty good a few times. Yeah? I like that. Tune him up. Tune him up? I don't think that made me want lanterns. [00:31:51] Speaker 3: So what's your-- does your wife collect stuff? No. Were you collecting stuff when you met her? No. What'd she think of your new pastime? 'Cause a lot of people, you know, they get-- a lot of spouses get upset and keep bringing [00:32:01] Speaker 6: home stuff. She likes it, 'cause I used to honky-tonk. It's a lot safer than honky-tonk. I've never had-- I've never had my life threatened at the flea market. Frank has. Yeah. What's this, a piece of driftwood? It's a dinosaur bone. Dinosaur? [00:32:29] Speaker 3: No way. [00:32:31] Frank Fretz: I can't believe it. [00:32:36] Speaker 6: This is dinosaur bone? Yep. Where'd you get that at? Ripley flea market. They've come out of a creek bed in Mississippi. The man wouldn't tell me where. [00:32:45] Speaker 1: No way. [00:32:46] Speaker 3: This thing is heavy, man. I've never held a dinosaur bone before, so I don't know what to look for. Are you sure it's not like a giraffe bone or something? [00:32:53] Frank Fretz: Yep. What's that from? Like a transtaurus rex or something? I think he said a duckbill or something. Duckbill? I've seen Jurassic Park three times, and I don't remember seeing any dinosaurs that look like ducks. [00:33:05] Speaker 3: That's the duck that had this man coming at you. I know. [00:33:08] Speaker ?: Oh my God. [00:33:08] Speaker 6: That's... [00:33:09] Speaker 3: My shop's called antique archaeology, not antique paleontology. How am I supposed to know what a dinosaur bone looks like? To be honest with you, I've never seen one. I'd say that's almost the oldest piece I got. That's... I'd say this is the oldest piece you got, too. The oldest thing I've ever picked before was Civil War relics. But the thought of picking something prehistoric is super cool. [00:33:42] Speaker 6: Is this thing for sale? [00:33:44] Speaker ?: Uh... [00:33:45] Speaker 6: $500, I'd think about it. $500? Yep. I mean, have you had it-- have you had it appraised or something? No, a man told me it was worth $1,500, so I don't know. What, was he sitting on a bar stool when he told you? [00:34:10] Speaker 3: We've been playing it safe today buying a lot of smalls, but I'm ready to take a gamble. How about $400 bucks for this? $450. $450? [00:34:24] Speaker ?: Mmm. [00:34:25] Speaker 3: If this is a dinosaur bone, it could be worth a lot more than that. If not, it's a lot of money for a petrified piece of wood. How about $425 for the dinosaur bone? [00:34:36] Speaker 6: I'm firm on $450. [00:34:38] Speaker 3: You're firm on $450? All right, let me think about it. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. $450, all right, stick it out. All right, I bought a dinosaur bone. Don't drop this thing, it'll shatter. I bought the dinosaur bone for $450. I'm gonna take it to an expert and see if I can get it authenticated. If this is a dinosaur bone, it's gonna make this trip pickin' folklore. I like smiles, they're easy. I picked the bicycle light for $45. I'm gonna ask $95. [00:35:19] Frank Fretz: All right. I paid $40 for the wire recorder. I think I can get at least $125. [00:35:26] Speaker 6: Well, I don't do that for that, Bobby. [00:35:27] Frank Fretz: I appreciate the deal, I think. It's been a real privilege to be at Bobby's today. I mean, here's a guy that started collecting things to keep himself out of trouble, and he bought stuff that he loved. All right, sweet pickin'. [00:35:36] Speaker 6: Hey, Bobby! [00:35:43] Speaker 3: We've been drivin' around with this dinosaur bone, or what we hope is a dinosaur bone, in the back of the band. I laid down $450 on this bone. I need to find out if it's a real deal or just a piece of driftwood. You want the heavy end or the light end? [00:35:56] Frank Fretz: The heavy end. [00:35:58] Speaker 3: Danny called us and said she's got a guy lined up. His name's George. He's a paleontologist. He's gonna be able to tell us everything we need to know about this bone. Hey, you George? [00:36:07] Speaker 9: Yeah, yeah, I'm George. [00:36:08] Speaker 3: You're a little bit hard to find, man. [00:36:09] Speaker 9: Got off the beaten track here. In most cases, in my profession, someone calls you and say they have a dinosaur bone, it's going to be a big block of wood, petrified wood, so it's a fossil, but it's not a dinosaur bone. Or it's gonna be something completely different, a big rock that's shaped like a bone, or what some people think is a bone. [00:36:28] Speaker 1: Here it is, my friend. I've been dying to see this. [00:36:30] Speaker 9: Ready? Whoa! Oh, my goodness. Let me pick it up. Can I pick it up? Yeah, do whatever you want. Wow. [00:36:39] Frank Fretz: Oh. You could tell right away that he was excited, and we think we brought it to the right guy. [00:36:45] Speaker 9: Just on its weight alone, it's gotta be a dinosaur bone. This thing's big. He's excited. That's good. When they brought this thing out and unveiled it, I couldn't believe it. I was really taken aback. Well, Mike, you've picked a winner here. Really? This is part of treasure. Oh, yeah. [00:37:00] Speaker 3: So it's definitely a dinosaur bone. [00:37:01] Speaker 9: Oh, definitely a dinosaur. [00:37:02] Speaker 3: I can't believe I actually own a real dinosaur bone. Right now, I'm cooler than Fred Flintstone. Tell us about it. [00:37:08] Speaker 9: What is this? It's from a group of dinosaurs called ornithopods. And this is a tibia. This is the front end. Okay. The kneecap sits up here on the thigh bone. And this is the shin right here. Mm-hmm. This is by far the most complete one I've ever seen. So here is the left rear leg of a horse. Oh, my gosh. [00:37:39] Speaker 3: Look at the size of this, Frankie. [00:37:41] Speaker 9: That's big. Horses are big, too. That is the thigh bone, and this is the tibia. Okay, okay. So this is the piece we have right here. Exactly. [00:37:49] Frank Fretz: Right, yeah. Look at that. When he pulled out the horse bone, I mean, it looked like a pool stick and a toothpick, you know? I mean, you could just see how massive these animals were. Now, when they found this in the washed out river bank, do you think there were some other bones laying around? [00:38:03] Speaker 9: Well, you generally just find one or two pieces. Just here and there. The fact that you've got a whole bone is incredible. Now, uh-- [00:38:10] Speaker 3: Oh, because usually you would just find like a shard of it. Exactly. Just like a little tiny piece. Have there been a lot of bones like this found in Mississippi? [00:38:17] Speaker 9: Not many. Not many. This would be probably bone number 25 that resides in this. Really? [00:38:22] Speaker 3: Yeah. I'm now realizing that this bone isn't just rare for what it is, but it could be more rare because of where it's from. [00:38:28] Speaker 9: If this indeed is from the Ripley, Mississippi area, those geologic formations there are right at about 65 million years old, and that's when the dinosaurs became extinct. [00:38:39] Speaker 3: To find something on a pick that's 65 million years old is epic. 65 million years. Yeah. [00:38:47] Frank Fretz: Just think if we could get like a dollar a year for this. I know this has a lot of miles on it, and it's 65 million years old. What's it worth? [00:38:55] Speaker 9: Frank, I'm not a dealer. I'm a paleontologist. I just couldn't speak to that end. [00:39:04] Speaker 3: Okay. George is a scientist. He doesn't buy and sell things, but more than most people, he's going to know the true value of this bone. [00:39:11] Speaker 9: To the world of paleontology, it's absolutely priceless. It's that rare. [00:39:16] Speaker 3: I completely agree with George. Sometimes you just can't put a price on history. [00:39:21] Speaker 9: What is your plans for this very important scientific discovery? That is very rare and... [00:39:33] Speaker 3: I could see how much this bone meant to George. I've always in my life felt like I find them and then I put them in their place. Mm-hmm. You know what? It's... It's yours. Seriously, it's... I think it's found a great home. [00:39:46] Speaker 9: When Mike said, "Let's go ahead and donate it," I thought, "Fantastic." We've got a good home for it. The Mississippi Museum of Natural Science in Jackson, Mississippi. It'll be appreciated by a lot of people there. Trained professionals to educators to little kids. [00:39:59] Speaker 3: Can you imagine how big George is going to be around the water cooler? Oh my God. Yeah. Out of all the things that me and Frankie find down the road, this item is by far the most important. [00:40:08] Frank Fretz: We made history today, dude. I know. Cool. [00:40:12] Speaker ?: That was awesome. [00:40:24] Speaker 8: I've seen a couple places with Sarah, but the plan of ATT&CK is to find something way more awesome. Sarah set me up with a friend of hers that represents this supposedly really killer building in Nashville. [00:40:36] Speaker 11: Hi. Hi. Hi. [00:40:39] Speaker 8: Hi there. How are you? Good. Well, this is the front right here. Right away. I already have a better feeling about this location. I'm really liking this place. Whoa. There's hardwood everywhere and exposed brick. This feels much more like us. [00:40:59] Speaker 11: This actually used to be an old car manufacturer. Cool. They made the marathon car here from 1907 to 1914. [00:41:07] Speaker 8: When Cindy told me it was an old automotive factory, the first thing I thought of is our clientele's going to love this. [00:41:13] Speaker 11: The brick is original. I'm feeling it. This building has been here for years. We're on the historical registry. [00:41:18] Speaker 8: It was like a perfect first date. She said all the right things. I like it. I like it. I'm going to take some pictures and send them off to the boys and feel out what they think about it. Honestly, it's much bigger than what we really need. But I'm kind of thinking that the guys can keep their big items here. Motorcycles, old cars, the big stuff. Thank you. [00:41:38] Speaker 11: You're welcome, hon. See you soon. Okay. [00:41:45] Speaker 8: I cannot wait for them to get these pictures and then send me the kudos and accolades I've been deserving for quite some time. Danny D does it again. [00:41:57] Speaker 3: All right. Danielle's sending us an email. All right. All right. Looks like our girl is coming through here, my friend. Danny said she's not only found the right property, but it's a historic property. She said it's going to blow us out of the water. Check out these photos. Oh, that looks pretty cool. I like the brick wall. See, this is perfect. I like the beams. Oh, my gosh. Look at this. She said it's an old car factory, which is totally perfect. It's got great character. [00:42:18] Frank Fretz: This is the kind of place our stuff can really shine. I think Danielle hit it out of the park. She did good. [00:42:23] Speaker 3: I'm going to email her back. Looking good, mama. Iowa is always going to be our home base, but opening up a second store, that's the next step we need to do. How much? How perfect is that? Is it in our budget? The price seems decent. Right. But I'm going to have to fall back on the moon pie eating contest. I got you something. Smell it. Smell it. Isn't that good? See, you can eat like 47 of those, can't you? You're there. [00:42:45] Speaker 1: You're there. This is going to be awesome, man. [00:42:48] Speaker 11: Nashville, here we come. Aye!