OK fast forward to a couple weeks ago . Another Hamm s collector gave me a call and wanted to know about a sign on eBay whether it was a legit sign or not . Imagine my surprise when I pulled up the number and the same sign was staring me in the face . My first thought was the original owner was selling the sign he had purchased several years ago but then noticed this one was located in Idaho . It was a fairly new seller to eBay with just 10 feedbacks and only one other selling experience . The sign appeared to be in mint condition although the pictures were not the greatest . As I proceeded to tell my fellow collector of the story of the first one , I scrolled down and noticed there was a Buy It Now option on this sign . As my fingers nervously clutched the mouse , I asked him if he was going to buy the sign . No , I d really like to but I can t afford it right now he said . I don t think I ve ever clicked a mouse that fast in my life . He said he was thinking about telling his other Hamm s collecting buddy about the sign that night to see maybe he d be interested in buying it . Too late for that I said , it s already sold . Oh that s fine he said . I know it s going to a good home . After paying for the sign with Paypal , I noticed that if the Buy It Now option was taken the shipping would be included . I then e-mailed the seller and told them just to keep the 40.00 shipping and package the sign better with the extra money . After a couple agonizing days without hearing back from them , I m thinking oh crap someone got to them and made a higher offer . Finally on Friday I got an e-mail from the seller saying the sign was on the way and they provided a tracking number . I swear I checked that number 10 times a day watching the progress of the sign as it made it s way here from Idaho . The lady who sold it mentioned that her husbands father was in the beer business in Montana back in the 60 s and ended up bringing home several sign to light up his downstairs bar . She was pretty sure that they were new signs when he brought them home which explains what this one was in such pristine condition . She also thanked me for letting her keep the 40.00 as it ended up costing 112.00 to ship the sign . Sadly it was the only Hamm s sign he had but I was sure happy to add it to my collection . Keep looking guys , the stuff is still out there .
Page 10
Several years ago I had a group of people on their way to a BCCA Canvention called
me and ask if they could stop for a visit and tour of my collection . Of course they were welcomed with open arms and several new friends were made that day . A year or so later , a member from that chapter contacted me after seeing the article in their chapter newsletter about my collection . He was in the process of selling a Hamm s Beer sign and sought my advice on selling it . He had already listed the sign and mentioned that he had several offers to end the auction early and was wondering what he should do . I then asked him to describe the sign to me and he proceeded to talk about a sign that I had never seen . I finally just asked him to provide the eBay number of the sign so I could see what he was talking about . When I pulled up the provided number , I about fell out of my chair . I was now looking at a Hamm s sign that I had never seen before in all the collections I had viewed including my own . It was unlike any other type of sign in construction using a blue anodized frame around the main part of the sign . I knew it had to be a West Coast edition coming from either the San Francisco or Los Angeles Hamm s Brewery . The sign he was selling appeared to be in excellent condition which made it even more desirable . I then asked him what was the highest offer he had to end the auction early . When he replied 250.00 shipped and insured , I knew immediately who had made the offer . When I mentioned the name , you could have heard a pin drop on the other end . I asked him if he was hard up for money . No was his reply . Then why would you even consider ending this auction and not letting it go the entire 7 days , I asked him ?. To that he had no answer either . I told him if in fact he wanted to end the auction early , I would give him much more than the 250.00 off plus I d pay for the shipping and insurance . My advice to him is to let the auction runs it s course virtually insuring him that the sign would do much better than the token offer he had just received . I loaded up a substantial bid to be placed at the end of the auction and was quite confident that it would be coming to Winnebago . Needless to say my bid didn t even make the grade when the sign finished up at 2250.00 . It went to a member of our Hamm s Club here in Minnesota and created quite a stir throughout the membership when pictures of the sign were produced at the next show .
Continued on the next page
Page 3