THE SEARCH
We started searching for a vintage trailer by searching on Ebay,
craigslist, vintagetraveltrailers.com, birchwood beauties, and several
other sites. There were many old trailers to be had for less than
$1,000. We decided early on that we did not want to 'be had' nor were
we just looking for the one, we were looking for the 'one for us'.
THE FIND
Then, in November of 2006, I was surfing Ebay late one night and
found it. I was so sure that I found it, that I had to wake Elizabeth up
and show her. It had birchwood interiors, a shower, a toilet, fridge,
kitchen, stove, heater, electric hookups - the works! Add to that the fact
that it was a Yellowstone Travel Trailer in pristine condition from 1958!
After reading the description and seeing all of the pictures, we decided
that it was just what we were wanting.
We placed a bid and hoped for the best.
It wasn't long before we were outbid BUT the reserve price had not
been met. I decided to try a different strategy. I contacted the owner
and told them that if it didn't sell, then to please contact me so that I
might make an offer.
A few days later, he called me and told me that it had not sold. As it
turns out, he lived in Topeka, Kansas and had the trailer there. Lucky
for me, I had worked in Topeka for a couple of years and had a friend
(Scott) who could go take a look at it in person and tell me what sort of
offer I should make. We arranged a meeting between the parties.
LOST
The seller cancelled the day of, and then sub sequentially cancelled
two more "showings". I told Scott to forget about it and we decided that
we should keep looking for a more reliable seller. It was very hard to
pass this one up.
THE TWIST OF FATE
Two months later, as we were having the lucky black eyed peas for
New Years Day, the phone rang. It was the seller from Topeka.
It turns out that he had sold the trailer to someone and had taken it to
deliver it. The buyer decided they did not want it after all. So the seller
called me and said that he had driven the trailer all the way to Texas to
deliver it and did not want to take it back to Kansas - "make me an
offer". I put him on hold and asked Elizabeth if she still wanted that
trailer. She was excited that it was so close by and that we could go
see it.
We pre-discussed a code phrase for her to say if she wanted me to
buy it. If she really liked it and wanted me to get it, she was to say, "I
think Johnathan would like this trailer."
No sooner than we stepped inside she said, "I think Johnathan would
like this trailer!"
I was so surprised by how quick it came that my immediate (and
unrehearsed) response was "Really?!". That was my cue to make an
offer. The seller and I negotiated for a little bit and settled in on a fair
offer for both of us.
He even delivered it to us! We had our trailer!
After kicking around a few names, we decided on the name 'Pixeldust'.
We started searching for a vintage trailer by searching on Ebay,
craigslist, vintagetraveltrailers.com, birchwood beauties, and several
other sites. There were many old trailers to be had for less than
$1,000. We decided early on that we did not want to 'be had' nor were
we just looking for the one, we were looking for the 'one for us'.
THE FIND
Then, in November of 2006, I was surfing Ebay late one night and
found it. I was so sure that I found it, that I had to wake Elizabeth up
and show her. It had birchwood interiors, a shower, a toilet, fridge,
kitchen, stove, heater, electric hookups - the works! Add to that the fact
that it was a Yellowstone Travel Trailer in pristine condition from 1958!
After reading the description and seeing all of the pictures, we decided
that it was just what we were wanting.
We placed a bid and hoped for the best.
It wasn't long before we were outbid BUT the reserve price had not
been met. I decided to try a different strategy. I contacted the owner
and told them that if it didn't sell, then to please contact me so that I
might make an offer.
A few days later, he called me and told me that it had not sold. As it
turns out, he lived in Topeka, Kansas and had the trailer there. Lucky
for me, I had worked in Topeka for a couple of years and had a friend
(Scott) who could go take a look at it in person and tell me what sort of
offer I should make. We arranged a meeting between the parties.
LOST
The seller cancelled the day of, and then sub sequentially cancelled
two more "showings". I told Scott to forget about it and we decided that
we should keep looking for a more reliable seller. It was very hard to
pass this one up.
THE TWIST OF FATE
Two months later, as we were having the lucky black eyed peas for
New Years Day, the phone rang. It was the seller from Topeka.
It turns out that he had sold the trailer to someone and had taken it to
deliver it. The buyer decided they did not want it after all. So the seller
called me and said that he had driven the trailer all the way to Texas to
deliver it and did not want to take it back to Kansas - "make me an
offer". I put him on hold and asked Elizabeth if she still wanted that
trailer. She was excited that it was so close by and that we could go
see it.
We pre-discussed a code phrase for her to say if she wanted me to
buy it. If she really liked it and wanted me to get it, she was to say, "I
think Johnathan would like this trailer."
No sooner than we stepped inside she said, "I think Johnathan would
like this trailer!"
I was so surprised by how quick it came that my immediate (and
unrehearsed) response was "Really?!". That was my cue to make an
offer. The seller and I negotiated for a little bit and settled in on a fair
offer for both of us.
He even delivered it to us! We had our trailer!
After kicking around a few names, we decided on the name 'Pixeldust'.
| Click any picture for a closer look! |
