Auction Hunters

Auction Hunters
Title card of the show, showing Allen Haff (left), and Clinton "Ton" Jones (right).
Genre	Documentary / Reality
Starring	Allen Lee Haff, Clinton 'Ton' Jones
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	28 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers	Scott Gurney, Deirdre Gurney
Producer	Philip Lott
Production location	Southern California
Running time	22 minutes
Production company	Gurney Productions
Original release
Network	Spike
Release	November 9, 2010 (2010-11-09) – present

Auction Hunters is an American documentary reality television series that premiered on November 9, 2010, on Spike and is produced by Gurney Productions Inc.

On December 1, 2010, Spike announced that it had ordered a third season of 26 episodes.

Summary

The show follows Allen Haff, a second generation antiques dealer, and Clinton "Ton" Jones, who has experience in a variety of fields including guns and mystery safes, as they participate in storage unit auctions throughout Southern California and occasionally other locations around the United States. Each episode leads viewers through the pair's activities of bidding on and winning abandoned storage units, appraising the items found within, and selling the most lucrative and interesting pieces to experts or collectors.

Each episode begins with a text disclaimer stating that Haff and Jones purchase hundreds of units each year, and that only their rarest and most valuable finds are presented on the show. They claim that most of their units end up making little to no money, and that in fact they follow the 80%/20% rule in that they make 80% of their profit from 20% of the units they buy. Ton Jones typically announces an incredible find with his signature catch phrase, "Holy crap!"

Episodes

Season One

#	Title	Location	Original air date
1	"The Wild West"	San Bernardino	November 9, 2010
Ton and Allen head to auctions in the desert town of San Bernardino. Ton scores a deadly 19th century British Pepper-box handgun and tests it at the gun range. Allen wins a unit for $1 and finds a fully functional pre-WWI train set. Paid: $376 Value: $1,190 Profit: $814
2	"The Big Score"	Downtown Los Angeles	November 9, 2010
Ton and Allen bid on units in downtown LA and uncover a ‘70s German H&K P7 pistol and a rare copper cash register. Paid: $2,025 Value: $5,850 Profit: $3,825
3	"Ton's Got a Gun"	Mission Hills	November 16, 2010
Allen encounters some old rivals in the Valley. Ton and Allen uncover a Depression-era “Art Case” slot machine, a custom minibike and a Wild West 1880s Colt Peacemaker. Paid: $1,900 Value: $9,450 Profit: $7,550
4	"Strat'ed for Cash"	West Adams	November 23, 2010
Allen and Ton venture out to storage auctions in the heart of a mansion-lined Los Angeles neighborhood. Allen first discovers a vintage Maui Blue of ‘70s Fender Stratocaster. Later, the guys find a rare 1936 Schwinn Autocycle. Paid: $975 Value: $6,200 Profit: $5,225
5	"The Real Thing"	Oxnard	November 30, 2010
In a small beachtown’s storage unit auction, Ton and Allen run into an old rival. They win a vintage GMC truck and also uncover one of the first upright coin-operated Coke vending machines. Paid: $2,450 Value: $9,400 Profit: $6,950
6	"Weapons of Past Destruction"	Sunset Boulevard	December 7, 2010
Ton and Allen travel to Hollywood and uncover an arsenal of antique weapons: Civil War-era black powder muskets, ceremonial Masonic swords, a samurai sword, and a polygraph machine to boot. Paid: $295 Value: $1,635 Profit: $1,340
7	"Gangster Whiskey"	Moreno Valley	December 14, 2010
A rare baseball card, a classic jukebox and an early model CD player are among items found by Allen and Ton in their auction wins. Paid: $525 Value: $2,800 Profit: $2,275
8	"Home on the Gun Range"	Corona	December 21, 2010
A single unit auction yields a 1940s Kissometer arcade game, a 1901 Winchester 10 gauge shotgun and a seemingly antique crossbow. Paid: $875 Value: $3,400 Profit: $2,425

Season Two

Episode #	Series #	Title	Location	Original air date
1	9	"Miami Heat"	Miami, Florida	April 5, 2011
A 1970s NASA countdown clock, a 1960s Delta relay rocket, and an all-terrain hovercraft are featured. Paid: $ 2,800 Value: $10,640 Profit: $ 7,840
2	10	"Quadzilla Attacks!"	Playa Vista, Los Angeles	April 5, 2011
An 1880s Palm-Squeezer pistol, a Western Electric telephone from the 19th century and an ATV are examined.
3	11	"Sink or Swim"	Torrance, California	April 12, 2011
An 1897 Regina music box, an Addictor 190 mini boat and a Thomas Edison gramophone from 1905 are examined. Paid: $1,725 Value: $6,825 Profit: $5,100
4	12	"Disco and Dice"	Fort Lauderdale, Florida	April 19, 2011
A 1978 pinball machine, a vintage Breathalyzer and an 1898 gambling device are featured. Paid: $ 3,450 Value: $10,600 Profit: $ 7,150
5	13	"Labor of Love"	West Los Angeles	April 26, 2011
A Ms. Pac-Man arcade machine; a Harley-Davidson engine, 1958 frame and other motorcycle parts; and an Air Jordan vintage collection make Allen and Ton a good profit. Paid: $950 Value: $9,300 Profit: $8,350
6	14	"The Chicago Grand Slam"	Chicago Heights, Illinois	May 3, 2011
A 1984 Yamaha SS440 snowmobile; a baseball signed by Hank Aaron; a toy Robby the Robot from the 1950s. Paid: $1,050 Value: $3,905 Profit: $2,755
7	15	"The Chi-town Showdown"	Chicago, Illinois	May 10, 2011
A Victorian-era metal casket; glass fire grenades from the 1870s; a Chicago fire alarm call box from 1896. Paid: $1,000 Value: $8,100 Profit: $7,100
8	16	"Fire in the Hole!"	Rancho Cucamonga, California	May 17, 2011
An 1890s treasure chest with secret compartments; a dynamite detonator box from the 1930s; Ton forges bricks of silver by smelting jewelry. Paid: $1,175 Value: $6,150 Profit: $4,975
9	17	"Animal Instincts"	Orange County, California	May 24, 2011
An 1897 Winchester pump-action shotgun and big-game taxidermy are among the valuable finds. Paid: $2,700 including $500 in gun fees Value: $9,600 Profit: $6,840
10	18	"Everything's Bigger in Texas"	North Texas	May 31, 2011
Ton and Allen head 225 miles north of Dallas to the largest storage auction in the country: 800 containers that day. Their main competitor is a lookalike of George W. Bush, whom Allen nicknames "W". They buy 11 units, one of them a companion to one bought by W. A grandfather clock pendulum is traded to W in exchange for some firearms. They also find rare slot cars, antique crystal, and a large collection of firearms in immaculate condition. This was the most profitable outing yet. Paid: $2,975 Value: $20,570 Profit: $17,595
11	19	"The Smoking Ton"	Worcester, Massachusetts	July 17, 2011
The guys find an 1890 humidor, a gun barrel for a World War II-era M3 Stuart tank and an antique safe in Worcester, Massachusetts. Paid: $1,875 Value: $10,450 Profit: $8,575
12	20	"Top Gun Ton"	Ontario, California	July 19, 2011
Ton and Allen buy two units. One contains a collection of vintage cameras, the other is full of radio control equipment, including two large airplanes. Ton crashes one of planes that the potential buyer values at $600, but the other, a top-of-the-line jet, goes for $9000. Paid: $1,750 Value: $10,825 Profit: $8,475 (counting $600 lost due to crash)
13	21	"Beantown Bidders"	Boston, Massachusetts	July 19, 2011
A 1940s-50s Schwinn tandem bicycle, assorted bicycle parts (one valued at $800), and a black powder bomb lance whaling gun from the 19th century are found in two units in Boston. Paid: $ 975 Value: $7,300 Profit: $6,325
14	22	"Diesel Digs"	Los Angeles, California	August 2, 2011
In an industrial area of Los Angeles, the pair get a 1981 Bobcat 743 front loader, which they unload for $6,500, and a World War I trench mace. Paid: $1,350 Value: $8,575 Profit: $7,225
15	23	"The Dallas Mavericks"	Dallas, Texas	August 9, 2011
The guys go to Dallas, where they find a handcrafted cowboy saddle and a working military cruise missile jet engine, which they sell for $8,500. Paid: $ 2,150 Value: $12,125 Profit: $ 9,975
16	24	"Knuckle Dust"	Hollywood, California	August 16, 2011
The guys sell a 19th century French "knuckle duster" (a gun, knife and brass knuckles all-in-one weapon) for $4,200, a George Rodrigue original trademark Blue Dog painting for $8,250, and various collectibles, including an autographed Raging Bull movie poster. Paid: $ 1,050 Value: $13,750 Profit: $12,700
17	25	"Half Pipe Dreams"	Long Beach, California	August 23, 2011
The guys find a 1970's Z-Flex Jimmy Plumer Poolrider skateboard and a collection of bulletproof vests and ballistic S.W.A.T. helmets. Paid: $1,400 Value: $5,300 Profit: $3,900
18	26	"Viva la Vegas"	Henderson, Nevada	August 30, 2011
The guys head to Las Vegas to acquire a Zig Zag magic sword box, 1910 poster of Chung Ling Soo, a 1800's naval cane sword and German beer steins. Paid: $ 320 Value: $5,070 Profit: $4,750
19	27	"Rodeo Ton"	Anaheim Hills, CA	September 6, 2011
The guys head to Anaheim Hills, CA and discover a 1970's El Toro mechanical bull, WW II-era banjo; and a collection of 1800's handcrafted hunting duck decoys. Paid: $ 1,100 Value: $16,600 Profit: $15,500
20	28	"Sin City Shootout"	Las Vegas, Nevada	September 13, 2011
The guys head to Las Vegas, NV and discover a bumper car designed to look like a 1953 Chevy, M16 rifle magazines, a photo booth and a set of potato guns. Paid: $ 1,150 Value: $13,750 Profit: $12,600

See also

• Storage Wars, a similar show on A&E
• Storage Hunters, a similar show on Tru TV

External links

• Official website
• Auction Hunters at IMDb
• Auction Hunters at Gurney Productions