Al Menashe asks, "Who are the buyers?"

Well, I don't know too much about antiques and music auctions, but at
horse auctions the buyer seems to be someone who doesn't know enough
about horses, looking for one "cheap," and the seller is someone who
does not want his name attached to the horse he's selling.  A rodeo
cowboy we know says, "I can get you a good Quarter Horse for a
reasonable price, but if you see me selling a horse at the auction,
don't buy it."

We once bought a pretty horse for $300 off the side of an auction
(i.e., before it was entered for bid, without having to pay the 15%
premium), and should have taken notice when the seller said, "I need
the money to pay my wife's hospital bill."

We should have put two and two together, and figgered out why his wife
was in the hospital.  Six weeks and two near-death experiences later we
sold the same horse at auction to the meat man for $158.

I'll bet the buyers of the sorry machines that go for too much are the
same ones who don't get them properly restored or keep them in shape,
and who never buy more than one roll or disk of tunes.  And I'll bet
their bookshelves are full of those impressive "furniture" books that
look real but don't have any pages.

Peter Neilson
Sanford NC