Auction Hunters

Chris here,

Next on the docket in the Pawn/Storage Locker/Auction show category is the show "Auction Hunters" on Spike. I can honestly say I've never watched anything on the channel prior to Hunters so the network is new to me.

"Auction Hunters" is all about the happenings of Allen Haff and Clinton "Ton" Jones, two professional storage locker buyers. Both Haff and Jones roam the country looking for the next "find" in an abandoned storage locker.

Haff is an antiques dealer and Jones has experience in guns and safes. Hunters shows the chemistry between the two when buying the storage lockers. Both whisper quietly to each other to keep a low profile when hammering out how much to bid on a locker. 


Hunters is a hybrid of the previously mentioned A&E show "Storage Wars" and History Channel's "Pawn Stars." It is a hybrid in that both Haff and Jones try to get the winning bid on a locker like on "Storage Wars" and attempt to sell and hammer out a deal with the local person who specializes in the item(s) the two are attempting to sell, like on "Pawn Stars."

Some of the finds on Hunters are on a bigger scale compared to Wars. On a recent episode in Dallas the guys found a jet engine made for a cruise missile, something you would never have thought to be stored and left to be unclaimed in a storage locker.

"Auction Hunters" and "Storage Wars" are very similar. They both premiered within a month of each other in late 2010. They differ in the sense that Wars primarily takes place in the Southwestern United States whereas Hunters takes place all around the country with episodes filmed in Chicago, Boston and Dallas. 


The show airs on Tuesday nights at 10 p.m. on Spike. Visit the show's website here.

Clinton "Ton" Jones and Allen Haff, the "Auction Hunters"

Another man's trash is another man's treasure....or possibly my next career choice!

Chris here, large and in charge. A bit about me. I am a multimedia journalist at The Oakland Press, I focus mostly on editing, building pages (assembling the actual paper), social media (Facebook and Twitter) and shooting video. I live in Allen Park, a city in the Downriver area (we are referenced in the classic Journey song "Don't Stop Believin' as "South Detroit").


I thought I would throw my hat into the ring with my second guilty pleasure outside of Yacht Rock (Hall & Oates, Michael McDonald, Kenny Loggins, Toto, Billy Ocean, you get it) and that is this new wave of pawn, auction and junk collecting reality shows.

The rough list (and it seems to be growing lately) includes "Pawn Stars," "Oddities," "American Pickers," "Auction Kings," "Storage Wars," "Auction Hunters" and "Storage Hunters." An honorable mention would be "American Restoration" but I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.

Rick Harrison, Chumlee, Corey Harrison and Richard Harrison- the Pawn Stars

So I begin my foray into this topic with the one show that started it all for me- "Pawn Stars." I got into these shows beginning with Stars sometime around December 2009/January 2010. I remember hearing about it for a while and one bored weekend I watched the entire first season On Demand. Something about it stuck with me. Maybe it seemed like a mix of "Antiques Roadshow" and "American Chopper." The fact that people bring such unique items into the shop is what always keep me watching.

A rundown about the show. It airs Monday nights at 10 and 10:30 p.m. on The History Channel. It takes place in Las Vegas (my all-time favorite vaca spot) but it's not located anywhere near the glitz and glamor of the strip. This is the Vegas most people don't venture to when on vacation. The cast of characters include Rick Harrison, the de-facto "boss" of the shop; his son Corey Harrison does the day-to-day; their father and grandfather Richard Harrison is the patriarch of the business and rounding out the motley crew is Austin "Chumlee" Russell, Corey's childhood friend.

The cast each has their own quirks. Rick is well versed in the trade and also a history buff. He seems to always know the background of the items people bring into his shop. Corey, also known as "Big Hoss" is a bit of a bully when it comes to dealing. He seems to always start with a lowball offer before coming to an agreement with the customer. Richard, also known as "the old man", acts very much like his son Rick in that he knows his history well but is always seen sleeping most of the day. Chumlee is the comic relief of the shop. If you're familiar with "American Chopper" consider him the Mikey Teutel of the shop. Chumlee means well but is geared more for laughs.