Global Auction Blog

Collector’s tractors, trucks to be auctioned

Thousands expected to bid on farm ‘toys’

Friday, April 18, 2008

By Justin Mason ( Contact)
Daily Gazette Schenectady New York

Photographer: Meredith Kaiser

Charles Fang, of Boonton, N.J., reads a biography of Fred Dykman Jr. hanging from an antique John Deere tractor that Dykeman bought in Argentina. The tractor will go up for auction Saturday at Dykeman’s estate in Duanesburg, one of 400 pieces of farm and construction equipment that will be auctioned.

DUANESBURG — Fred Dykeman Jr. liked to live by the modern adage: “He who dies with the most toys wins.”

And in 67 years, the successful Duanesburg contractor made sure he amassed a lot of toys. When he died last May he left his wife with two airplanes, 13 trucks, 78 tractors and more than 100 pieces of farm equipment stowed in barns and garages he owned across the town.

“He died, quit, and declared himself a winner,” said his widow, Jean Dykeman, surveying the four-acre field of equipment outside her Weaver Road ranch.

Dykeman’s collection of equipment and tractors — all working and some valued at more than $60,000 — will be put up for sale this week in one of the largest farm auctions in recent town memory. The event is expected to draw up to 3,000 people Saturday and bids from as far away as New Zealand, said Jim MacFadden, the owner of MacFadden & Sons Auctions, and a personal friend of the Dykeman family.

“People never knew how much he had until we got it all in one place,” he said.

A lifelong resident of Duanesburg, Dykeman founded General Drywall in 1974 and built the company into a successful business that employed nearly 180 people at its peak. He later founded Duanesburg Oil, which he ran until his death.

Dykeman’s true passion revolved around finding tractors to use on his 576-acre farm, just across the street from the home where he grew up. For years, he searched for unique farm equipment he could add to his growing collection.

Dykeman said her husband was a farm auction aficionado and would often profess his intention of browsing instead of buying. He’d return later, casually reporting he didn’t buy much.

“He would say ‘I only bought a cup of coffee,’ ” she recalled. “And then slowly, he’d bring in the toys.”

Dykeman also wasn’t shy about where he’d travel, often flying his Cessna across the country.

He even imported one tractor — a 1952 John Deere G ‘high crop’ model — from Argentina. MacFadden said the antique tractor is expected to bring nearly $30,000.

MacFadden first met Dykeman the year he started his auction company during the mid-1980s. He found the gregarious collector eyeing a John Deere 4230 he had found in North Carolina; it’s now one of the many trademark yellow and green tractors dotting the auction field, off Weaver Road, which is west of the hamlet of Duanesburg off Route 7.

“It’s not just an auction, I’m selling out a friend,” he said. “Anybody who knew Fred knew him as a friend.”

Getting the auction together was no easy task. MacFadden employed 10 workers for two weeks just to gather all the equipment and has arranged for another five workers and four county sheriff’s deputies to help control traffic.

“We’ve gotten more responses than any auction we’ve ever done,” he said.

Already, dozens of interested buyers have been perusing the collection of equipment, some in awe of the sheer size of Dykeman’s collection. Clifton Park farmer Duane Lindsey spotted the auction in the paper and decided to pay a visit in advance of the bidding this weekend.

“There’s an amazing amount of stuff here,” he mused. “There’s stuff here I’ve never seen before.”

In a way, the auction will serve as a fitting memorial to Dykeman, his wife said. She could envision her husband walking through the bustling farm with a broad smile and an eye for a new toy.

“It seems like it’s all full of life again because this is what he’d like to do,” she said.

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I have been asked by many auctioneers, “What are your thoughts about auctioneer contests?” This is obviously an emotionally loaded question with many possible answers, depending upon which side of the fence you stand. My response(s) are often varied, as my answer usually depends upon the scenario and conditions in which the Auctioneer Contests take place.

For the record, I have been asked to participate in Auctioneer Contests before, but to date I have yet to participate in one. My personal opinion has always been that, for the most part, they are often political. There are many stories that circulate in the auction industry about auction contestants who have either won, and or lost, due to the prevailing undercurrent and political agenda pursued by those contest producers. Personally, I have usually been too busy (i.e. performing an auction for a client) to participate in one. I approach Auctioneer Contests with the following question in mind. “Why do I need to win a contest to prove I am good, especially if I am already getting more business than I know what to do with?” I have my client’s approval, and therefore my clients must obviously think I am good. Isn’t this what really matters (business)? Auctioneering is an industry right, or did I miss something when I went auction school?

On the negative side, Auctioneer Contests can be a very political, an act of vanity, and worst of all, not even a true measure of an auctioneer’s talent and ability. I know of many auctioneers who share this opinion! I have known some auctioneer’s who won contests because of who they knew, or because they come from well known auction families (politics). I have even known some auctioneers whose only goal (vanity) in their careers was to win to a major contest. My question in response to these auctioneers is this: “When are you going to work on developing your actual auction business?” I have observed that some of these contest winners still have yet to have any real auction business to speak of to this day, but golly gee they won a major contest. The worst case scenario on the dark side of Auction Contests is a talented auctioneer, who attends one of these contests, and is passed over because of one the above mentioned situations. I have witnessed some real talented auctioneers lose to lesser qualified contestants. Major auction contests are definitely not for those new to the craft and profession. Like showbiz, be prepared to accept rejection.

On the positive side, Auctioneer Contests have the potential to promote the Auctioneer Industry, healthy and positive competition, create opportunity for the winners, and they can be an unbiased gauge of an auctioneer’s ability in the right setting. The best contest’s I have seen have been those that the contestant’s did not take too seriously. Everyone had fun and a good time. Perhaps even a charity was being supported through the items being sold during the competition.

In 2000 I had the opportunity to meet Lori Kiko, one of NAA’s past Women’s Division International Auctioneer Champions, at the Northwest Auctioneer’s Association Conference. Out of all the auction contest winner’s that I have met, I was most impressed by her. Given the accolades of her achievement, she has consistently maintained her humility, grace and poise. Most impressive was the fact that during this time period of her achievement, she also maintained and ran her very successful auction real estate company in Ohio. Now that’s success!

If you are considering participating in an Auctioneer Contest, then ask yourself what your true motivation is for participating? Is your participation for fun, money, accolades, or some other reason? Just be honest with yourself. Believe me everyone will know in time what your true motivation really is. Make it selfless and for good. No matter what the final outcome is, just remember it is not a true reflection on you or your successful business.

Tom DiNardo is co-owner of DiNardo & Lord Auctioneers of Anacortes, WA. Tom is an Auctioneer, Appraiser, and Writer.

To contact Tom, visit www.DiNardoandLordAuctioneers.com

(c) 2004 Tom DiNardo - All rights reserved.

Popularity: 70% [?]

Farm Auctions: A Place to Buy and People Watch

by Ethan Book

on 04/08/08 at 11:10 AM

With Spring (despite the snow forecast for tomorrow) comes one of the greatest social traditions of many agricultural communities, the farm auction. I absolutely love farm auctions! Of course they are a place where you can find good deals on farm equipment, but they are also the place to catch up with neighbors, learn from the old timers, and experience the great “culture” of the agricultural community.

(By the way, the picture above is of an auction I was at last summer. I think it is a great representation of a small farm auction in Southern Iowa.)

One interesting phenomenon that I see is that many farmers don’t go to the auction with the intent to buy or even fill needs for their farm. For many of them, the reason they are there is because the auction signifies the end of a farming career. You see, farm auctions are usually held because a farmer is being forced out of business, because they are retiring, or because they have passed away. So, the people come out to reminisce, or sympathize, with the owner of the farm.

For me, I go to the farm auctions because I’m looking for good used equipment for the farm, because I enjoy the relaxation of the day, and because I love to watch the interaction of the various people there (young farmers, old farmers, antique hunters, and even Amish in our area). This year I hope to find some more materials to make chicken pens, some fencing equipment, some hay racks, a wagon to use for hauling water, and anything else that catches my eye!

If you have had the opportunity to attend a farm auction, I would love to hear your stories. If you have not been to one, I think it is something that everyone needs to experience at least once. Sometimes they even have some good food!

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