froggy
New Bee
Hi, just reading about " the bad bee keeper " by Bill Turnbull, great read by the way. He mentions that there are Bee equipment auctions ,,,,,,,,wondering if its an annual thing ? maybe local to me!!
Bill Turnbull
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Quite a few beekeeping auctions around the coutry at the beginning of the season - at least one in your county IIRC.
Good place to get rid of all your old sh!t which you wouldn't want to spoil your bonfire with and plenty of nutters willing to pay top dollar for it
on the flip side, usually a place where you can get decent kit at rock bottom prices. Just a matter of caveat emptor and using your common sense 
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I have never been to a beeauction . I have no intention of going.
From what I have read here and elsewhere:
Used equipment fetches high prices.
Some of the live bees sold MAY have disease ..- some are tested prior to sale, some not.
There are few of the normal come backs if things go wrong.
New equipment at sales can be very cheap.
And I would only buy bees from a reputable source.
If I did buy secondhand equipment, I would sterilise it carefully - With AFB that means flaming the inside of hives. And it would have to be cheap less than 1/3rd new price.. (discounted new price that is)
From what I have read here and elsewhere:
Used equipment fetches high prices.
Some of the live bees sold MAY have disease ..- some are tested prior to sale, some not.
There are few of the normal come backs if things go wrong.
New equipment at sales can be very cheap.
And I would only buy bees from a reputable source.
If I did buy secondhand equipment, I would sterilise it carefully - With AFB that means flaming the inside of hives. And it would have to be cheap less than 1/3rd new price.. (discounted new price that is)
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I've been to a couple ... never fails to amaze me at how much some real crap hives go for ... there's always a few bargains to be found if you are a bit canny ... one of my friends picked up 7 zinc covered Langstroth roofs for £3 !! but the following lot was two National felt covered roofs that fetched £20 !!!!
An old rusty cast iron honey press went for £50 and a home made one made of plywood and solid beech made £2 .... No sense in it at all. I saw two manky galvanised extractors go for less than a fiver each to the same person ... and a week later they sold on ebay for £25 and £30.. .. presumably for someone who wants to put plants in them ??
An old rusty cast iron honey press went for £50 and a home made one made of plywood and solid beech made £2 .... No sense in it at all. I saw two manky galvanised extractors go for less than a fiver each to the same person ... and a week later they sold on ebay for £25 and £30.. .. presumably for someone who wants to put plants in them ??
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Russel
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For want of a better word
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AND that BIG auction site FleaBuy...... sold a stack of virtually unusable kit last year to see it coming up for auction later at silly prices...3 worm ridden WBC lifts and stand... only as a garden piece £230..... .... I sold it with a few solid National floors and an old smoker for £25... cash!
Yeghes da
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and I've seen one manky galv extractor go for over £100.00 whlst the next lot - a nearly new plastic extractor go for £20.00!!
itma
Queen Bee
I believe Mr Turnbull makes clear in his book that auctions can be a real risk for the unwary.
Don't pay more than you can afford to lose - once you find out WHY someone put it into an auction ... you'll likely either regard it as a loss -- or you'll enter it into another auction!
Don't pay more than you can afford to lose - once you find out WHY someone put it into an auction ... you'll likely either regard it as a loss -- or you'll enter it into another auction!
Gilberdyke John
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Quite a few beekeeping auctions around the coutry at the beginning of the season - at least one in your county IIRC.
Good place to get rid of all your old sh!t which you wouldn't want to spoil your bonfire with and plenty of nutters willing to pay top dollar for it
I go to Newark, Lincoln, Beverley and York. It's important to be picky about what you want to buy and not get caught up in bidding frenzy
Some things are very cheap, some ridiculously expensive. I like the boxes of assorted bits and pieces which often go for virtually nothing but the contents add up to very good value. One box I bought for £8 contained 4 almost new no2 pozidrive screwdrivers, an unused,unopened sealed bag Thornes comb cutter, hive tool, frame groove scraper and some hive straps. Added up quite nicely
Beverley insist all bees offered for sale are recently checked by the bee inspector. Not all auctions do this and foulbrood was found at one last year
The auctions are usually mentioned in the forum closer to the time.
