What is the Difference Between Collecting and Hoarding?

[WHX?? 50,791]

13 hours ago, benji756 said:

what year is the ford truck?

Just like you guys to look at a pic of a girl in a bikini and wondering what brand of beach ball she is holding! ....is a nice truck tho JA & the cubs are cool!!!

 

Sounds like you got it all figured out @Johndeereelfman and I agree with you 100%! In fact I agree with just about all of the above... Life is all about balance ....between work and play, being a kid and an adult,  wife and hangin with the boys, buying and selling, workers & trailer queens... you guys get the idea!

 

I am a collector...hoarders don't line their tractors up on their front lawn for photo ops or have well kept barns for that matter! 

[stevebo-(Moderator) 8,398]

Lots of good insight from you all. When I first began in this hobby I would buy package deals (mostly on workers) that I could refresh and sell for a profit. Other times I would buy a package and sell off attachments to pay for the lot. This is how I was personally able to build my collection at a low out of pocket cost (not including my time or labor). Over the years I have been able to build my collection to what I have today and in all honesty outside of a nice 754 I feel I have every model I could want. I even have a few that I would sell if I replaced them with same model in better condition. I also have some rare models like Matt said I cannot replace (original 56' SR, 4 Rj 35's LSE and 520-8). Those are keepers. 

 

I see the newer members here doing the same thing I did and just kinda watch from a distance. I am beyond having the desire to hustle that hard at this point but then again I have been there. I did the same thing a few years back with the old antique outboard boat motors and have since reduced the number of those as well. It has to be a special motor or tractor for me to pop on it. At the show this past June I bought a parts 35 to complete one of mine and I sold the rest to 3 other members while at the show for them to complete they're projects. In the past that entire machine would have been back at the house sitting on the shelf. I also made what I considered a very solid offer at the show on a 754 but the owner wanted that one as a keeper which I respect. 

 

 

[kudzu3 323]

If you can't afford it, but get it anyway, if you love it, take care of it, keep it inside with the others... you're a collector . If you get it take it home, set it out in a field somewhere with the others, forget it until someone ask if it is for sale...you're a hoarder . Well...that's the way I see it anyway.

[clueless 3,118]

Just asked the wife of 39 years, said I was a cohoarder, combination of both. 

[SPINJIM 1,984]

When I buy too many to fit into my 30 x 30' pole barn, then it's called hoarding.   I have room for one more, so it's still collecting.  I actually managed to get one of my cars into the garage (tight fit) last week.   I'm going to an auction this weekend, so I don't know how long that will last.

   Jim

[TDF5G 2,072]

14 hours ago, Johndeereelfman said:

I don't know yet what category I fall into, but I know one thing for sure, and that is I won't show this topic to my wife!    I'm pretty sure I know what her answer will be. 

 

I have a large "collection" but I don't feel like that makes me a hoarder. I pretty much stopped buying tractors a few years ago when the round fenders were all collected. My personal feelings about these two subjects is this:

 

Hoarders have a condition that can't be controlled. A hoarder will buy just for the sake of spending money, however most hoarders want everything for little to no money. They also don't have intentions or goals of restoring or repairing a tractor, has no real interest in going to a show, and nine times out of ten, don't even know what he has. They just like to accumulate whatever they can, because they enjoy seeing clutter. If they want something in particular, they don't care about how much money they spend on a piece, aren't concerned about originality or condition, and will more than likely die before the piece is ever sold or given away. Hoarders don't usually have their items covered, and their junk usually just sits where ever they decided to unload it.

 

Collectors can stop buying when they know there are other things that are more important. Collectors also have a goal in mind whenever it comes to purchasing a certain piece. They intend to restore, repair, or just get their latest investment running. Some collectors will take their prized pieces to a show, as this gives the collector a sense of pride. Yes, some collector garages are cluttered, however most collectors can't stand to see it for very long. A collector not only knows what the tractor is that he recently bought, but could probably tell you the serial number, the year, and be able to name every attachment that was made for the tractor. Collectors do their homework or research on a certain piece, and know what the value of the tractor is worth.  A collector will sell if the price is right, and in most cases, a collector will be willing to help out another fellow collector if needed or can. Collector will also take care of their stuff, usually tucking it away in a garage, shed, or home built lean-to. 

 

So with this all said, how do each of you look at yourselves now? Does this make the decision of which group type you are any easier? 

I'd go along with that.  

[953 nut 58,042]

6 hours ago, clueless said:

just ask her she'll tell you which one you are.

You need to change your screen name from "clueless" man of great wisdom!     

[DennisThornton 4,771]

Simple!

 

Collecting if I'm doing it!  Hoarding if someone else is doing it!

 

Heck, I'm just gathering the tools I need to get by...

[Retired Wrencher 5,651]

23 hours ago, oiluj52 said:

I like the part about meeting people when out buying. Like the time I drove out to the middle of nowhere in OH, to my surprise, the seller was a 13 year old kid! The high light was when his parents saw the PA plate on my truck, as it turns out, they used to live in the town just over the hill from me. Talked a lot about what is going on back home!

I really can say I have not had a bad Wheel Horse experience. Some buys are better than others, but over all folks that own these machines are pretty cool.

oiluj52. I agree.  It is not just the tractors it is the people also. Going to places trying to find a road that is not on a map or It is way out in the back roads some where you just sit for a while and take in the beauty of the area. I like the ones that do not have a clue what they have and I give them a history lesion about these tractors and this site. I can see there eyes and think Wow it is not just a pile of Iron that they had. This is my .