'Pawn Stars' boss Rick Harrison pays $100 for an unwanted toy that guest picked up from garage sale
Sellers who come to "Pawn Stars" usually bring items that they feel are worth a significant amount. But some of them are happy even with a hundred bucks. That’s exactly what one seller got from Rick Harrison in an earlier episode of the show. The guest had brought an old toy, which looked like it had seen better days, which the guest said he had picked up from a garage sale for just $25.
It was a toy army truck, which had a cannon attached to its back. It was not in the best condition, but the upside was that it was rare. Harrison figured that it was made before World War II, which was surprising for the guest, who didn't expect it to be that old. The reason the pawn shop owner figured this out was that the word ‘Germany’ was engraved on it instead of ‘West Germany.’
The guest had said that he did not know how much the toy was worth, and neither did Harrison. So, the latter called in an expert to take a look at it. The expert confirmed what the pawn shop owner had expected. This toy was made before World War II, more specifically, in the 1930s. The expert believed that any toy from that era was going to be rare.
“The toy comes from the company Tipco. The owner of Tipco was Jewish. He was forced to flee the country (Germany) before the ‘30s. He later came back and took back his company and started reproducing toys again,” the expert explained. He also noted that the toy was missing several parts, like the driver and a couple of gunmen who would have been stationed behind the cannon.
The expert also said that the cannon was operational, meaning that it could shoot projectiles out of its nozzle, which was pretty cool for a toy of its time. “You've got a few condition issues. It looks like it was played with, but then again, back then, people were trying to put food on the table, let alone buy toys for their kids, so you know, you got one toy and that was it,” he said.
When asked about the value, the expert said that even in that condition, the toy could be able to earn $150 to $250. The guest probably felt a bit cheeky after hearing this, as he asked for $300 at first. “Really? We’re really going to start that way?” Harrison asked. The two then negotiated for a while and settled on $100 as a fair price for the toy. “I’m happy with what I got,” the guest added.
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