Vic’s 66 Automobilia Auction

9th Annual Live Action in Guthrie on February 18
From Maine to California they come. In every state and dozens of foreign countries, they watch and participate. The eyes of the automobilia and petrolilana collecting world will be focused on Vic’s 66 this month for the ninth annual live auction – featuring some of the most unique and hard-to-find items in the collecting world.

“It’s a truly unique experience — at least that’s what so many people who participate keep telling us,” said Seth Robbins, owner of Vic’s 66 in Guthrie. “We love having the auction. It’s a crazy time, a hectic time. But it’s also a very special time, and a time that energizes us and the people who take part in it. It’s a really fun event.”

The auction will be held Saturday, Feb. 18, beginning at 9:30 a.m. at Bible Baptist Church, located at I-35 and Exit 153 in Guthrie.

Vic’s is a mail-order company that opened its doors in 1991 in Edmond, dealing in reproduction oil and gas and automobile dealership memorabilia. Because the memorabilia is such a hit with collectors and interior decorators, the shop’s popularity has grown significantly over the past 15 years. They have a steady customer base of more than 25,000, thanks to their website, www.vicsplace.com.

Robbins bought Vic’s four years ago and has continued to grow the business, particularly the annual auction that now is simulcast on the Internet through Bidspotter.com. The business also has a presence at all major hot rod shows in the United States. But it has been the auction and the Internet presence that makes the name Vic’s 66 increasingly important in the collecting world.

“We had more than 500 people attend the auction in person last year, representing 27 states,” Robbins said. “We had hundreds more participate via the Internet, and that makes it truly exciting because there are simply a lot of people who can’t make it to the auction site in person.”

Robbins has worked hard to make this year’s auction offerings the best ever. The list will draw collectors willing to pay for some of the rarest objects in the automobilia world. From vintage automobile dealership signs and displays to original gas pump globes in mint condition, the items on this year’s auction list are the most impressive in the nine-year history of the sale, he said.

“We’ve got globes that will sell for anywhere from $500 to $15,000,” Robbins said. “These are original, mint condition items brought in from consignors all over the country, and they are some of the nicest and most difficult to find that exist anywhere in the world.”

In addition to the gas pump globes, Vic’s is offering more than 60 original auto dealership signs — some from Oklahoma dealerships that no longer exist.

“One of the neat things that I think will draw a lot of interest is our original Route 66 road sign that actually came from the Edmond area,” Robbins said. “It’s on the old metal. Those are very rare and very expensive, and ours is in good shape.”

“There’s also a Coca-Cola traffic cop that they used to use in school zones back in the 1940s and 1950s,” he said. “Those are just two examples of the rare and unique kinds of things we have on consignment for this year’s auction event.”

Putting together an auction of this scope and quality requires a great deal of preparation. Robbins said that on the day of the auction, more than a dozen people will work in various areas – from clerks who put the items in front of the video screens for Internet participants, to the auctioneers and other workers who move merchandise and check customers out when they leave.

“It’s a big job, and a really busy day,” Robbins said. “But we’ve done it several times now and I’d like to think we’ve worked out a system that works pretty well.”

Robbins said the auction would be nearly impossible without Ball Auction Services of Chandler.
“They do us a tremendous job, and we could not do this without them,” he said.

Although Robbins said the Internet portion of the auction is a boost for sales and for notoriety, the on-site customers still have advantages in obtaining collectibles.

“To make it fair to those who make the effort to be here, we do add a 15 percent surcharge to all Internet orders,” he said. “That sort of levels the playing field and rewards our in-person collectors – some of whom drive thousands of miles to be here.”

For brochures or information on the auction, or about Vic’s 66, call (405) 282-5586.