SJF Road Crew- Purchasing from Coast to Coast

by samsterner on February 21, 2012
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The previous two weeks once again saw truckloads of new equipment coming into the yard here at SJF.  It started with Dave Kieper and Sam Sterner taking down conveyor previously sold by us.  One advantage to buying used is the high chance of selling the equipment right back when changing the facility!  In and out in two days only, and there is now over 150′ of great shape used Ermanco Lineshaft conveyor in stock here in Winsted.

 

Wire baskets have been a hot commodity upstairs in the Sales room lately at SJF, so we could not pass up the opportunity to purchase over 900 barely used collapsible wire baskets from California late last week.  These should be arriving here in Minnesota any day now.

If ever given the opportunity to purchase some great shape, heavy duty beams, we never pass it up.

 

These Keystone style beams recently came in from the East coast.  We even hired a different crew out there to do the banding and loading work for this purchase, and couldn’t be any happier with the results.  All in all it was a great buy working with great people.

 

This pallet flow rail came through and had us drooling here at SJF.  It looks like the rail is new and never used.  We jumped on this immediately and had it sent straight here all the way from South Carolina.

 

This carousel is almost an exact match to that we purchased last week.  Located right here in the Twin Cities, we couldn’t say no.  This carousel is in absolutly pristine condition, and we look forward to receiving it in early March.

 

Auction Buying Demystified ( part 3 )

by staff on February 8, 2012
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Auction Buying Demystified ( part 3 )

An Insider’s Guide to the parlor tricks auctions use to separate you & your money.

In my previous two articles on auction buying secrets, I have exposed the common ways that auction houses get the pigeons to part with their money and actually buy (some of) the junk they are selling. In part three, I’ll discuss some common practices that I have come to rely on that usually drastically increase my chances at paying less and getting more.

Tip #1: The Devil is in the Details

Fine Print

The Fine Print.

Every auction starts and ends with paperwork. 99% of all of the people at the auction never read the fine print at the bottom of the terms and conditions of bidding at registration time. These terms will lay out ALL of the costs that will be associated with bidding on and purchasing items at this particular auction. Extra expenses that most auctions include that will be tacked on over and above your winning bid prices can include but are not necessary limited to:

  • Sales tax (This can be an additional 3 to 13%.)
  • Buyers premium (Often 10% to 15% or more)
  • Removal fees
  • Loading fees
  • Security Fees

Many of the details that will affect what you can afford to bid will be determined by what is in those terms and conditions. It’s vital that you think through these details before you even bid as they can greatly increase the cost of the equipment to much more than it’s worth.

Points to think about:

  • Is the equipment being auctioned still standing/installed?
  • If so, Who will be responsible for the removal?
  • If it’s you, the buyer, what will it cost to get it removed?
  • Is there a deadline for removal?
    • If so – what are the penalties or consequences if it’s not removed within before the deadline?
    • Will you lose ownership of the material?
    • Will you be fined?
    • Will it be removed for you at an exorbitant expense that you will be responsible for?
  • Can you remove it yourself or must you use a pre-designated removal crew?
    • If so – what will they charge?
    • Do they have to be certified? Union?
  • When, with whom, and how will you remove and/or load the equipment?
    • What expenses will that entail?

    Continue reading →

    SJF Road Crew Report – January Ends in a Auction Buying Bonanza

    by samsterner on February 1, 2012
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    SJF Pallet Rack Storage Buiilding #3

    SJF Pallet Rack Storage Building #3

    Over 50 Loads of Pallet Racking Arrived at SJF in January

    Over 50 Loads of Racking Arrived at SJF in January

    The last week saw large quantities of rack come in through SJF.  One look down our receiving isle will show the evidence, we are full of pallet racking.  Recent purchases came from several auctions and sources spanning the entire  U.S.

    Recently received in from Illinois-Large quantities of T Bolt:

    • 450 36”x24′ Uprights
    • 250 48”x25′ Uprights
    • 3700 108”x4” Step Beams
    • 3300 108”x5” Step Beams
    SJF.com - T-Bolt Pallet Rack Beams

    SJF.com - T-Bolt Pallet Rack Beams

    SJF.com - T-Bolt Pallet Rack Uprights

    SJF.com - T-Bolt Pallet Rack Uprights

     

    Recently at another Auction in  Minnesota – Heavy Duty Teardrop Pallet Rack:

    • 450 144”x6” Step Beams
    • 100 42”x15′ Uprights
    • 40′ of 42” Belt on Roller Conveyor, like brand new
    SJF.com - Tear Drop Pallet Rack Uprights

    SJF.com - Tear Drop Pallet Rack Uprights

    SJF.com - Keystone Pallet Rack

    SJF.com - Keystone Pallet Racking

     

    Recently received from Massachusetts – Keystone/Republic and Teardrop Rack

    Republic:

    • 400 96”x4” Step Beams
    • 500 144”x4” Step Beams
    • 30 42”x16′ Uprights

    Teardrop

    • 140 96”x4” Step Beams
    • 40 144”x4” Step Beams
    • 50 42”x9′ Uprights

    Recently received from Illinois: White Vertical Carousels

    • 180” Overall Height
    • 112”x60” Bin Dimension
    • 12 Bin Unit
    • 800lb Bin Capacity
    SJF.com - White Vertical Carousel

    SJF.com - White Vertical Carousel

     

     

    Recently received from Missouri: Large quantities Structural Ridge-U-Rak Pallet Racking

    SJF.com - Ridg-u-rak Structural Beams

    SJF.com - Ridg-u-rak Structural Beams

    SJF.com - Ridg-u-rak Structural Uprights

    SJF.com - Ridg-u-rak Structural Uprights

     

     

     

     

    Auction Buying Demystified (part2)

    by staff on January 26, 2012
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    Auction Buying Demystified ( part 2 )

    An Insider’s guide to the parlor tricks auctions use to separate you &  your money.

    In part 1, I reviewed the 4 very simple auction facts that most insiders don’t want you to know.

    They are:

    1. Auctions are designed to sell stuff. All. The. Stuff. Good, bad and even really bad stuff.
    2. Auctions are designed to sell items for more, not less, than it’s really worth.
    3. Auctions are designed to confuse you into making bad decisions and mistakes.
    4. Auctions are designed to get as much of your money as fast as possible with no possibility that you can ever get it back. (This is all done completely transparently and 100% legally.)
    Take My Money

    Take My Money!

    In part 2, I’ll expose these top 4 auction secrets that net more and more pigeons every day. Here’s the good news. After you read this article, you’ll trade in your pigeon wings to some other sucker standing next to you who didn’t read it.

    Let’s start with the basics…

    (1) Auctions are designed to sell stuff. All the stuff. The good, bad and even really bad, stuff.

    All the Stuff
    All the Stuff.

    The main purpose of any action is to sell all the stuff. This includes all the good stuff, but what we’re concerned with here is all the bad stuff (I’m talking about the broken, manufacturer is out of business stuff). The next priority is to get the most money possible for the stuff on sale. The more bidders bidding the better the chances that the seller will obtain higher bids.

    All auctions are comprised of good and bad stuff. The good stuff is purposely dispersed evenly among all the bad stuff (filler) to keep as many people engaged for as long as possible. Unfortunately for you, they don’t have tags or any sign saying what’s good and what’s bad. Mixing the good and bad stuff together assures a steady stream of bidders from the beginning to the very end of the auction.

    Continue reading →

    Auction Buying Demystified

    by staff on January 19, 2012
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    Auction Buying Demystified ( part 1 )

    An Insiders guide to buying the jewels while avoiding the junk at  auctions.

    Everyone likes a deal right? There’s always that chance that you’ll get something for nothing. You too can pay pennies on the dollar for prime merchandise. No other place gives the little guy the buying power of the professional than an auction…right?

    Not unless you believe in fairy tales! 

    I’ve been buying used material handling equipment at auctions for over 30 years. Over that period of time I have purchased literally hundreds of thousands of dollars of equipment. The art is to find, bid for and buy the hidden jewels amongst a wide variety of worthless junk. I am about to share some of my best personal insights and advice on how to avoid ending up with the junk and avoid the parlor tricks designed to get you to overpay for the good stuff.

    Continue to read an insider’s best tips on how to get a fair shake at an auction.

    Continue reading →

    Polls Feature Added

    by admin on January 19, 2012
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    Just a quick announcement – We have implemented a poll feature on this blog on the left-hand side of the page (below the category list).  Please take a moment to answer the current question and as always, keep checking back at sjf.com/blog for new questions.

    We now return you to your regularly scheduled material handling postings…

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