Why Some Auction Bargains Never End Up Running
I buy machinery at auction regularly, and so do many of my customers. Most buyers go into an auction with good intentions and a clear plan: buy a machine, move it, install it, and put it to work.
In practice, that plan doesn’t always survive contact with reality.
This isn’t a criticism of auctions. Auctions serve an important role in our industry. But over the years, I’ve seen a common outcome that surprises many buyers — a significant amount of equipment purchased at auction is never reinstalled.
Here’s why that happens.
The Plan Is Often Built on Assumptions
Before an auction, buyers typically form a mental picture of how a machine will be used. That picture often includes assumptions about completeness, condition, compatibility with existing systems, and total cost.
At auction, there is rarely enough time to confirm every one of those assumptions. Some turn out to be correct. Others don’t.
Missing components, outdated controls, incompatible electricals, or unexpected wear can change the scope of a project quickly. What looked like a straightforward purchase becomes a more complex — and more expensive — undertaking.
Lot Changes Can Break the Economics
Many auction purchases are made based on how equipment is grouped. A buyer may be expecting conveyors, drives, or support equipment to be included, only to find that lots were split, combined, or changed close to sale day.
When equipment arrives without key supporting pieces, the cost to source or fabricate replacements can erase what initially looked like a bargain.
Removal Has a Way of Changing Everything
Removal is often underestimated. Rigging challenges, limited access, weather delays, site restrictions, and coordination with other buyers can all add cost and risk.
Even when removal goes smoothly, damage can occur — not from negligence, but from the realities of moving large, heavy machinery out of tight spaces on a fixed timeline.
Once a machine is down, disconnected, and loaded, the project clock is running — whether the next steps are ready or not.
The Cost Stack Grows
Auction buyers typically focus on the purchase price. That makes sense — it’s the number in front of them.
What comes later is the cost stack:
- Transport
- Rebuild or repair
- Controls updates
- Engineering or layout changes
- Installation
- Lost time while decisions are reworked
Individually, none of these costs are surprising. Collectively, they can push a project beyond what originally made sense.
When “We’ll Get to It Later” Becomes Permanent
This is where many machines stall.
Equipment gets stored “temporarily” while other priorities take over. Budgets shift. Personnel change. The project loses momentum. Eventually, the machine becomes inventory instead of infrastructure.
Again, this isn’t a failure of auctions — it’s a reality of how projects evolve when uncertainty stacks up.
Why Outcome Matters More Than Purchase Price
The true measure of a successful equipment purchase isn’t the hammer price. It’s whether the machine ends up installed, running, and doing the job it was bought to do.
For buyers who need certainty — whether due to downtime concerns, budget constraints, or project timelines — reducing unknowns often matters more than chasing the lowest possible price.
How Dealer Support Changes the Equation
Working with a dealer doesn’t remove all risk, but it often changes the nature of it.
Being able to compare multiple machines, understand known condition issues, test-run equipment, rebuild or recondition as needed, and tailor conveyors or systems to a specific layout reduces the chance that a project stalls after purchase.
Just as important, there’s someone involved who has seen these outcomes before — and can help buyers avoid the common dead ends.
Auctions Still Have Their Place
Auctions remain a valuable and necessary part of this industry. For the right buyer, with the right experience, timeline, and risk tolerance, they can be an excellent tool.
The most successful buyers understand when an auction makes sense — and when a more controlled, supported approach will lead to a better outcome.
In the end, the goal isn’t to buy equipment cheaply.
It’s to buy equipment that actually goes to work.
— Ken Dickert
President, Ben Jones Machinery
Buying, Selling, and Brokering Wood Products Machinery Since 1993