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The pickers and their rusty gold
They are Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz, and they’re pickers.
The show picked close to home on the January 23rd episode, when Dannie D bought a vintage AMI jukebox for $1500, and it was later appraised for $2000*. As an avid viewer and super-fan of the show, I immediately transitioned this into an excuse to re-watch every episode as “research” for this post, so that everyone can have a better understanding of just what the heck it is that Mikey and Frankie are talking about.
*Back in 1957, Megatouch was not yet owned by AMI, but oh, how times have changed. Now we’re all one big happy family, and I’ll use any excuse to do things like this.
Dannie Diesel— don't mess with her
PICKIN’ TERMS:
big flipper- items that can be sold almost immediately after they’re picked
An 8 ft., 300 lb. fiberglass cowboy boot would NOT be considered a big flipper
blind pick- a location, usually set up by Danielle when she’s mad at the guys, that Mike and Frank have no information about
break the ice- making the first sale at a pick, usually on an item that is priced higher, in order to warm up the seller
bundling- buying 2 or more items together to save money (also see “the Bundler)
cold call- see freestylin’
crazy number- also known as the “insane number”, it’s an astronomical price that Mike and Frank would ask a seller to throw out on an item that they clearly don’t want to sell
dirty inventory- stuff that a seller wants to move quickly because it’s taking up too much space
double pick- returning to the scene of a successful pick, picking it again, and finding all new treasures
farm fresh- describes an item that is in great condition
free range pickin’- driving around in the van, with no set schedule, just looking for houses that look like they might contain cool old junk
freestylin’- a.k.a. free range pickin’
FSP (full service pick)- when a seller helps load a heavy or oversized item into the van, or helps dig out an item that’s buried deep in a pile of junk
full retail- the top price that would be charged to customers when the item is sold at their store
guerrilla pickin’- pickin’ in conditions that are less than desirable
honey hole- a pickin’ location with “incredible stuff, like… amazing stuff”
junk drunk- an extremely high level of excitement regarding antiques
mega pick- a location that appears to have an incomprehensible amount of junk
MEGA PICK!!!!!
mega score- an item that can be flipped for big bucks
Nascar pickin’- traveling between pick sites in any speedy vehicle (also see speed pickin’)
NFS (not for sale)- items that the seller has too much of an emotional attachment to
NOS (new old stock)- old stuff that was meant for retail but never sold, and is still in the original packaging
out buildings- sheds or storage units on a person’s property that could be used to house awesome antiques
picker’s Disneyland- see mega pick
picker’s jungle gym- a huge pile of stuff that you have to climb over or through to get to the good stuff
Mikey navigates an authentic picker's jungle gym
pickin’ folklore- any knowledge passed down from pickers that are older than Mike and Frank, OR pickin’ something that’s old, really old
pickin’ forefathers- older people that were pickin’ before Mike and Frank were even born
pickin’ on the wild side- going into a blind pick or a pick that is not a sure thing, usually a result of freestylin’
Pied Piper of Pickin’- a fellow picker who knows all the other local pickers, and what they have in their inventory
Poseidon Adventure pick- pickin in a trailer that’s about to tip over
power pick- a pick situation where the guys want to be in and out quickly
price intervention- having to break it down and explain to the collector that they’re asking prices are just too high
primary search- as Mike says, it’s “scanning the room for anything big that’s killer”
pull the trigger- to stop bargaining and buy an item
roached- an item that’s rusted or in poor condition
rusty gold- an item found in it’s natural state that may be dirty, sunbaked, or covered in crap
secondary search- conducted after the primary search, it involves opening drawers, and digging through boxes looking for hidden gems
smalls- hand-held or smaller items that are usually discovered during a secondary search
speed pickin’- simply put, it’s pickin’ on a strict time schedule
Spider-man pickin’- see picker’s jungle gym
style cramper- when you break or scratch something after you’ve paid for it
windshield time- scouting the area from inside the van
FRANK’S PICKIN’ NICKNAMES:
The Bundler, The Bearded Charmer
FRANK’S FAVORITE ITEMS TO PICK:
oil cans, signage
Frank enters oil can heaven
WORDS MIKE LOVES TO USE TO DESCRIBE ANTIQUES:
killer, awesome, rad
MIKE’S FAVORITE ITEMS TO PICK:
anything on 2 wheels— bikes, scooters, and motorcycles
Mike, totally junk drunk from pickin' this 1937 Harley Davidson knucklehead
So get out there and hit up some garage or estate sales and confuse impress people by laying this new knowledge on them. Heck, don’t even wait for a sale. Head down into your crazy neighbor’s basement and see what treasures it might contain. At the very least, you should watch the show. New episodes air on the History Channel Mondays at 9/8c, and previous seasons are available on dvd and Netflix streaming. The shop even sells some of their picked items on ebay and you can check out their online auctions here.
You too can be an American Picker!
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