Mother Of God! Become An Outboard Outhoarder
You may want to sit down
Right here on ebay, thanks to Jim Staib for sharing, you can become an instant outboard guru. A “OutHorder” and crazy collector. One purchase. Why spend years having fun searching through barns. Forget the feeling of finding a jewel burred in a corner of a garage sale. Nope, not of that. This is like a car chasing dog, running into a traffic jam!
Just a small part of it
Is this a good deal? bad deal? Take the fun out of it, or, want to open an outboard museum? BAM. Does your small town need an economic boost? Open up an outboard museum.
You could have a Gas….. Can. Anyone? Try the Veal? Anyone
Or just throw them all in a warehouse and don’t allow anyone in. Grow a beard and raise small rodent in it until you die from some sort of plaige that was extinct centuries ago, and leave all this to your kids. Who by the way hate you because every time you make the grand kids hug you they smell like old oil and rat poop.
Your living room?
Wow, that was a bitter look at this. Didn’t see that coming. With all the joking aside. How cool would this be to own?
YOU CAN SEE THEM ALL HERE ON EBAY
Outboard? Outhoard? Anyone? Come on! This is comedy gold. 1960’s Catskills gold. Anyone..
Thankyou,Anyone? Cough cough.. Crickets.. I will go now.
Wonder if his wife knows about his collection?
Talk about being outed in a big way….whew!
I know some guys with hundreds of them. I think the problem is most are small and easy to carry, so you get one, then another, then another… And once word gets out, people start showing up at your door begging you take take their motor. Before you know it, you’re looking to build another pole barn.
I’m trying to keep to a rule of only one motor per boat. So far, it’s working. It helps to have only a one car garage and no space to expand, because off-site storage can get expensive.
There was even an article in The Antique Outboarder this summer about giving thought to what your family will have to do to your collection after you are gone. It’s a real issue. For many families, they hold an auction, and the scrap dealer gets the rest.
I wonder if there are American Pickers-type guys who roam around looking for special outboards?
Quality, not quantity is the key to collecting. Imo.
What if you grow a beard, raise a Siberian Husky that likes beer, and hoard parts ?
Is that weird ?
Jaxon told me, “now that’s funny”…
Yo no hablo Outboard!
And I could have been born with the beard. Don’t ever remember not having it..
“Wonder if his wife knows about his collection?” Wife…what wife?!
Holy smokes, I thought this was my father’s collection!! At least, there was the faintest hope seeing the words ‘auction’, ‘sale’ and ‘outboard collection’ strung together in the same sentence. Sadly, that hope quickly faded.
I’ll stir the pot. The outboard guys are great. They mean well. And honestly, knowledge about all things mechanical is ‘good’ knowledge in today’s world. And yes, I own four or five interesting examples not attached to a transom. But, here’s the thing. To keep folks together sharing a common interest isn’t it necessary to draw a fairly constant number of newcomers? If said knowledge is restricted by a dwindling number of purchase opportunities, won’t the finite pool of potential newcomers go elsewhere to pursue other interests? Hoarders hope their prizes will become valuable, but the opposite occurs when huge collections periodically flood the market. I guess what I’m saying is there is a lesson here for all of us whether we pursue our passions of outboard motors, model airplane kits, Model T’s or classic vinyl records.
Apparently you don’t need a warehouse, just a house(old hose that is). This guy is not married. That’s for sure!
I too know guys with hordes of outboards, restored and otherwise. Seeing that ebay listing made my knuckles hurt!
And the price has too many zeros.
Neat though.
John in Va.
Once the word gets out some times they just come to you. One morning we pulled into our driveway and there were 2 or3 parts motors laying in the driveway ever did find out who left them there. Also parts motors are good to put others together it is better than seeing them go to scrap
Its funny to watch American Pickers expose the hoarders all over the country. Its especially interesting to see them walk right by a Chris Craft you occasionally catch a glimpse of (and in decent condition). Then the one boat they focus on was a Garwood 16 footer in really bad shape and call Antique Boat America’s owner for advice and he starts off with Gar Wood’s that are worth $250,000 then works his way down to this Ensign model which, in the condition, I wouldn’t have for $2k. They’ve walked passed outboard motors as well, many times and then, boom, they’ll focus on one out of a pile of jumk saying, “Oh, these are real popular as we are on the Mississippi” lol.
so many times I’ve thought the same thing and yelled at the tv. or when the guy asks 50 bucks for something and they give him 500.00 more than he asks.
Old outboards, I love them. They can give you a lot of pleasure. They can also piss you off beyond belief. Like a lot of other things in life. I own 5 from the 30s, 40s, and 50s. I only have motors that run. Throughout the summer I try to run them all. I know guys who have a lot more, but most of theirs do not run. It is an addiction! You have to watch or they will take you over. I too have came home to a derelict outboard in the driveway. Just looking at those pictures excited me! I know I am weird, and I do have a beard.
Well in one way we are a hoarders, But we like it,I try to keep one area where boats and other stuff displayed in an organized way. But I have another building of extra engines,steering wheels,ect.my thoughts are I enjoy the hunt ,I don’t sell often,but it will get given away someday but as long as we enjoy it I am going to do it,I am lucky my wife enjoys the chase.
Homelite GrandPrix and West Bend Golden Shark in Bill’s collection – something we have in common… Like I always say, Boats, Cars, Planes, Motors, etc., – It’s all the same sickness! 🙂
I sold the only one I had that ran. A 1958 10 hp Johnson. Two other a diver salvaged and I bought. Still soaking the heads in paint thinner to free the pistons. I have an Lockwood-Ash that I’d like to get running and then hang it on the back of a period correct hull for the boat shows. Anybody that likes boats I suspect has a hoard.
When i was a kid I collected MG’s had 7 or 8, then one day i bought a motorcycle and realized i could have 20 or 30 of them and still have room for a pile of parts. So i get the fill the space, now i just have 3 boats, 2 motorcycles that i can bearly store.
Have ten. All run but one. Found 18 hp electric start Evinrude 50/1 in bottom of lake. Had it running in two hours. Started gathering 5 1/2 Johnsons for Son and Daughter and Cousins on 14 ft boats. Now have them for Grandkids. In Michigan don’t need boater’s license under six hp. Best kind of boating! My Grand Parents did it for me!
Like most, I have an outboard or 10 lying around. I just built a bathroom in the shop and spent a while trying to figure out how to turn an old outboard into a urinal. I couldnt figure a sanitary way to do so, so settled on a keg cut in half. The out board lives another day.
That’s hilarious! So beer goes in from a keg and then it’s returned to a keg?
Sounds proper to me!
The cycle of life….
Indeed.
As Treasurer for AOMCI, I’m enjoying all these threads!–My 2 cents worth says, there are no rational decisions to collecting. We see, we want, we buy,—-we don’t know why! But what I do find key in this discussion comes from first53resorter Irwin: “To keep folks together sharing a common interest isn’t it necessary to draw a fairly constant number of newcomers?”—-and that is today’s challenge!