Missed Opportunities!?

[Spartcom5]

Hey guys had a rather unpleasant experience today... I'm a huge watch guy and when I walked into this sale they had a Bulova Accutron Astronaut w/ box for $400, 50% off so $200. It was sitting in the dang display case still for sale!! However the clerk told me that someone was thinking about buying it, she wouldn't let me have it, and sure enough a lady comes from behind and says I'll take it and bought it... I don't understand why they would leave it right in front of my face! Like put it behind the counter so at least I wouldn't have known I missed out on a great looking watch for an absolute steal ughh. What a pain, anyone have any stories like this!? I also missed out on a 1928 $100 gold certificate at an estate sale for $105 by mere minutes, that was probably the worst thing I've missed out on so far...

 

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[ashleyj]

I missed out on a 18k gold shell cameo for $10 by a minute. I walked in just behind the other gold guy.

 

[kingskid1611]

I missed out on the Gold Rush by a hundred years and also the circulation of gold coins so now I have to try to find all I can cheap......

 

[Drmad7]

I've missed out on so much stuff it would drive me crazy to think about it. I just tell myself "It was not meant for me this time". Then forget about it. Mainly because I KNOW every time I score something good, I just beat another picker to it.

 

[Beans]

Put off buying some Chinese reverse paintings at a Garage sale. They looked old and the back of the frame was thin wood. After reviewing ebay I think I should have taken the chance. 3 large paintings for 10 bucks.

 

[bigcaddy64]

When i was about 11 years old, Dad and i were out going to yard sales and couldn't decide which sale to hit next, according to the text in the pennysaver. We went to the better sounding sale and then came back to the other one that was also nearby. As we pulled up, we saw a guy loading up a pair of 1950s matching Schwinn Black Phantoms into his truck!

Another time my dad pulled up to a sale and saw a guy walking out with a beautiful Winchester 1895? lever action rifle. He only saw if for a second but overheard the guy telling his friend he only paid 50.00 for it.

I can remember going to a sale that didn't look that great but i went anyways, after i had stopped by another on the way. The guy had a garage that was absolutely stuffed with tools (all SNAP ON) and a guy i knew bought the whole garage for 400.00 bucks, 5 minutes prior. It also had vintage muscle car parts, Coleman camping stuff along with tons of other neat items and I couldn't buy a thing! My sad consolation prize was a Cammilus USMC bayonet i found under the house.

 

[mugsisme]

I passed on a $12 jewelry jar after giving it half a glance. Lady next to me immediately says, I'll take it.
Then I notice the Silpada necklace and the other silver pieces .... Grrr

 

[1treasurehunter1]

Just recently missed out on a 24k solid gold ring (sold for $25, probably $500 worth of gold from the looks of it). The guy was ecstatic about the 999 hallmark. A couple years ago missed out on a vintage Zenith El Primero watch, sold for $10, worth $2000-$3000. Possibly missed out on what looked like a solid old thick figaro Italian gold bracelet and necklace set at a thrift store, was about to ask to see it but the lady in front of me beat me by 2 seconds and bought them. Missed out a dozens of hundred, two hundred, three hundred dollar scores over the years such as a pair of Moorcroft vases that sold for 50 cents each, a huge lot of "mothers" silver and gold jewelry ($30)<---the guy who bought the jewelry even tapped me with his finger on my shoulder because I was staring at the jewelry and couldn't take my eyes of it while it was still sitting on the table while he was scooping it up ("hey buddy, its sold!" he yelled)... I try not to remember, I try hard to forget..painful, it feels like getting totally dominated and there is nothing you can do.

 

[dejapooh]

I never worry about the ones that got away. I'd have a heart attack if I did.

 

[silverdollarbill]

I've missed out on so much stuff it would drive me crazy to think about it. I just tell myself "It was not meant for me this time". Then forget about it. Mainly because I KNOW every time I score something good, I just beat another picker to it.

Can't agree with this more. So much competition here, every great find I get is a disappointment to someone.

 

[watercolor]

When I was 12 (I'm now 66), my parents & I went out for breakfast and next to the restaurant there was an antique shop. After breakfast, we stopped at the antique shop and I saw the most beautiful coehorn bronze mortar. . . it must have weighed over 100lbs because I couldn't move it, had a dark brown patina, and was very ornate-looking by the touch-hole and handles. The wooden sled it was mounted on looked really old & worn and the dark, rusted iron looked like it was hammered. It had a pricetag of $115.00 and I BEGGED my dad to buy it. Even though I PROMISED to pay him back, it was to no avail. I was heart-broken.

 

[famous turtle treasures]

I would be driven crazy if I thought about the ones I have missed. I prefer to look forward.

 

[ARC]

I could keep you guys entertained or annoyed for at least an hour.

 

[ARC]

My first mistake... back when I was 17... in eighties...
I made a 15 dollar cast iron mechanical bank mistake... (yes it was real) on a buy I decided not to buy...
That cost me potentially well in excess of 5k ... THEN.

Which I later topped with another 5k + mistake on a mid century chair that got wet in the rain while cleaning out garahe and a downpour started...

I decided it was ruined and put to the curb.

About 2 months later I was in Barnes and Nobles doing some research and saw an antique book that was in the sale section...

I kid you not... I flipped it open... the middle centerfold WAS THAT Chair... Bad condition... over 5k.

 

[ARC]

Oh !... and my chair had the hassock. heh

 

[1treasurehunter1]

Oh !... and my chair had the hassock. heh[/QUfOTE]

Oh man... What is the value of that chair in good condition?

 

[ARC]

Sheesh in auction... who knows.

In fact... you might cry with me on this...

I never even checked to see if it was really ruined...

NOW...
There is actually more to this story ... heh... believe it or not.

 

[ARC]

So...
I kept an eye on that damn chair...
Since those days...
Now many have "surfaced"...

You can get a reg condition SET for ehhhh 3.6k - 5 now.
But at one time...
THE TIME... heh
It could have pulled all kinds of stupid money at auction.

 

[ARC]

In case you are curious about this chair in question...

here is it is. Exact.

Authentic Rosewood Herman Miller Eames Lounge Chair Mid Century Modern | eBay

 

[ARC]

Some more to the story...

I traded a cheap small microwave for it.
That I would have sold at a yard sale for 10 bucks.