Orvis/Timeless Airstream Auction

[Bill M.]

Trailer is featured in the new Airstream Life magazine that I got this week.

[SteSpot]

I am sure it cost far more than that to build the trailer. Let's hope they get a fair price for both the buyer and the seller.....p

[FlashSilver]

Originally Posted by SteSpot

I am sure it cost far more than that to build the trailer. Let's hope they get a fair price for both the buyer and the seller.....p

I see that even at $80 k, the reserve has not been met. Orvis may be stuck with it.

[BessieB]

I just saw this trailer auction today, getting the Orvis catalog. What a dream project!!!!!!!!!! I wouldn't allow my husband to use it if it were mine. It takes him 2 months to clean out the trailer after hunting!! I like how the trailer was raised for better off-roading. That is the one gripe we have, is the low wheel base, but we will survive.

[FlashSilver]

I see the latest bid is now $84,000 and the reserve is still not met. I think Orvis is very proud of this trailer.

[flyfisher]

I have a couple beautiful VINTAGE Orvis mens ties that would go very nicely with this trailer. One has rainbow trout on it and the other has ducks. I'd be willing to sell them to anyone here that might be interested in them. I also have a set of Orvis optic crystal highball glasses with handpainted trout on each glass that are probably 40 years old that I'd also be willing to part with. (I donated my Orvis bamboo rod to our local Trout Unlimited chapter for an auction almost that long ago, so it's no longer available.)

When you guys are trying to decide whether this trailer is worth its price or not, don't forget that it comes with an Orvis bonus gift: Orvis Edition HMH Spartan Vise. That vise alone is probably worth at least $10.00, but you can buy it directly from Orvis for $195.00. (For you fly tyers in the crowd.)

John

p.s. I'm thinking of asking $250 each for my ties, and probably a bit more for the highball glasses (the rim of each glass is gold embossed).

[cojer]

Originally Posted by FlashSilver

I see the latest bid is now $84,000 and the reserve is still not met. I think Orvis is very proud of this trailer.

orvis is proud of all thier crap...it's all about maintaining the "orvis lifestyle image"....that's what they would try to make us believe during thier little seminars. take it from an "orvis endorsed flyfishing guide" if the orvis name is attached to the product you're better off to just walk away from it. unless you have more money than sense......but boy she sure is purty!!!

[SL4BLLT]

I think the coach is just a prime example of the investment that Orvis makes in all of their products. Whether you agree or disagree.

I've been to a few of the Orvis schools and came away with a different mindset than the one you are sharing.

As for the Orvis, crap, send it back. No question, and a full 100% refund regardless of how long you owned it.

I wouldn't call it an image, but I would certainly agree with life style of keeping the item for life, with life being the operative word.

You get what you pay for and with a company that is still American owned (since 1856) and been around for as long as it has I'm glad it aligned itself with Airstream as previously mentioned.

Keep in mind that the reserve has NOT been met, but this is also a nonprofit charity fund raiser that these funds will go to is what I assume based on the auction site.

So Orvis in a sense will get some as a write off, (maybe) but provide a smile to some in need and that one fortunate person that now paid for a quality once in lifetime item, actually twice due to the history of the Flying Cloud, that will be one of a kind.

So lacking "sense", which I feel they have plenty of or they wouldn't be bidding at this level, I'm glad some good folks out there see the purpose and have the resources that some of us have to be more restraint in spending. We wish them luck and continue to cheer them on.

I'll make sure I do all of my fly fishing seminars up in Manchester Center. Thanks for the tip.

Good luck to the bidders with the bidding, and to all, Happy Airstreaming!

SL4BLLT

[SteSpot]

I, for one, am not surprised the reserve has not been met. Having rebuilt a 1968 Ambassador from the floor up, I have some understanding of what has gone into the rebuild of this trailer. I also think it is a beautiful job and hope someone will be lucky enough to be able to take her home.

I continues to amaze me about how easily we can criticize what other folks choose to do or not do on the forums. It is not like anyone has a gun to their head. I say, go for it. Enjoy it....I appreciate it even if I won't be the lucky winner. paula

[Ag&Au]

I wonder how much money they would make, if instead of auctioning it, they sold lottery tickets for it.

I am guessing - a whole lot more.

Ken

[Gene]

There is a difference between looking for good quality products and conspicuous consumption or buying more than you can afford.

Where Orvis fits into all this, I don't know. I look for high quality because it costs less in the long run. I'm not sure buying an Airstream is a practical choice because of QC issues, though a used one seems to get a fairly good price. Buying the most expensive version of any product seems to have extra profit built in and I avoid those things—is a "Limited" model* of a vehicle worth that much more than the next trim line down? Is a Lexus that much better than a Toyota? Is granite worth more than Formica? My answer is Formica has no maintenance, is more forgiving when you drop something on it, is very hard to stain, looks almost as good and costs less.

The Orvis trailer is quite nice, but I can live without it. Maybe because we used to backpack, having an RV that is a miniature mansion does seem over the top. To us, it is camping after all.

Gene

*Full disclosure—we bought a 4Runner Limited model for the leather and a few other things. We are over 86,000 miles and will keep it for quite a while longer, so it will not be much more over time. We also got it very near invoice.

[Darkspeed]

I will see your sillyness and raise you a mobile estate...

Anderson Mobile Estates Online

[FlashSilver]

Originally Posted by CrawfordGene

There is a difference between looking for good quality products and conspicuous consumption or buying more than you can afford.

Where Orvis fits into all this, I don't know. I look for high quality because it costs less in the long run. I'm not sure buying an Airstream is a practical choice because of QC issues, though a used one seems to get a fairly good price. Buying the most expensive version of any product seems to have extra profit built in and I avoid those things—is a "Limited" model* of a vehicle worth that much more than the next trim line down? Is a Lexus that much better than a Toyota? Is granite worth more than Formica? My answer is Formica has no maintenance, is more forgiving when you drop something on it, is very hard to stain, looks almost as good and costs less.

The Orvis trailer is quite nice, but I can live without it. Maybe because we used to backpack, having an RV that is a miniature mansion does seem over the top. To us, it is camping after all.

Gene

*Full disclosure—we bought a 4Runner Limited model for the leather and a few other things. We are over 86,000 miles and will keep it for quite a while longer, so it will not be much more over time. We also got it very near invoice.

I'm with you, pay for quality not for a name. I drive a Toyota, and will until the wheels fall off. But whenever someone tells me that something is almost as good as something else, I find that it rarely is. My quandary begins when trying to ascertain how much I am willing to pay for "the best". The last time I looked Mercedes Benz cost twice as much as a Caddilac, and was maybe 15 or 20% better. There was a time when the quality was worth it, but not any more, at least where cars are concerned. Now fly rods are a different story. As are travel trailers.

[SteSpot]

[QUOTE=CrawfordGene;1080300]There is a difference between looking for good quality products and conspicuous consumption or buying more than you can afford.

The Orvis trailer is quite nice, but I can live without it. Maybe because we used to backpack, having an RV that is a miniature mansion does seem over the top. To us, it is camping after all.

QUOTE]

Not sure how we can judge the quality of this unit. Timeless has a very good reputation of rebuilding trailers. Airstream sells shells to them to complete the inside rebuild and I know of no other restorer that Airstream does that for......

I also know from experience that some rebuilt trailers are made better than the original trailer ever was...and that takes $$$.....it all "depends" on what was done and the skill level of the doer.......so it sort of comes down to if you have the money and want it, go for it.....and everyone else's opinions of value, quality, etc. don't really matter. There is no Vintage Police out there that I know of that patrol this area.

And, these trailers are experiencing 3.5 or better earthquakes everytime they go down the road....our highways are in terrible shape and we are lucky that they hold together as well as they do.

We are old backpackers as well and used to make fun of those folks that had to take their homes with them to the wilderness....now, I am one of them.......I want a bed and a bathroom and a kitchen and a......well, now a motorhome. Guess I should never say never.......Are we ever happy? p

[Gene]

[QUOTE=SteSpot;1080390]

Originally Posted by CrawfordGene

We are old backpackers as well and used to make fun of those folks that had to take their homes with them to the wilderness....now, I am one of them.......I want a bed and a bathroom and a kitchen and a......well, now a motorhome. Guess I should never say never.......Are we ever happy? p

Yes (but no motorhome).

We went from backpacking—up to 12,500' one time and at that altitude the pack weighs 500 lbs. and we could walk about 50' at a time before resting—to car camping to Airstream. The car camping was really a truck and eventually we got a bigger tent we could stand up in and an air mattress. Then a CD player and speakers, big cooler with dry ice could keep food cold for a week, and it just got silly after a while. We tried a truck camper but the QC was awful and it was too small for our bodies to fit well. We returned it in a month. Five years passed (PTSD of a sorts) and we started looking at Airstreams. Ever since we bought it, we have been doing improvements—not the scale TTT does, but to increase functionality and looks with emphasis on functionality.

So now we are those old fogies who have RV's. No miniature dog though.

Gene

[sinjin]

Originally Posted by Darkspeed

I will see your sillyness and raise you a mobile estate...

Anderson Mobile Estates Online

I can't read the website, black background with grey type?? What's that all about?

[Frank's Trailer Works]

you might want to hit "refresh" because it is easy to read for me. Even impressed me too boot!

[truckasaurus]

Those Andersons trailers are crazy! (I'm not sure about the Orvis though, the dropped tanks look out of place to my eye).

[Brett - TTT]

The Orvis trailer will be featured in a segment of Ultimate Travel: Tricked Out Trailers on the Travel Channel, Sunday, December 11 at 7:00pm EST. Please check your local listings for your time zone. The auction ends at 9:00pm EST the same day.

[Denis4x4]

Originally Posted by w7ts

I wonder how much money they would make, if instead of auctioning it, they sold lottery tickets for it.

I am guessing - a whole lot more.

Ken

In as much as laws vary from state to state, setting up a national lottery would be costly and time consuming.

There are always lotteries advertised in AUTOWEEK for special interest cars benefiting different charities. However, the net proceeds to the charity are usually small after advertising and administrative costs are taken out.

It would be interesting to know if the charity is something like Trout Unlimited.