Not sure if this would be considered a "benefit" but PT sales put money in the producers pocket.

Every lot that is sold PT has been through the auction room, at least once. There are several reasons to buy in the PT room in addition to supposedly getting bargain basement prices. Last minute order after that item was offered in the auction room. Buyer not getting enough in the auction room to fill his orders.

When the fur market is strong and pelts are selling with good prices, the PT person is like the Maytag repairman in those old TV commercials - he/she sits around with nothing to do. When the market is low (as it is now), any PT sales get the pelts moving rather than sitting in cold storage.

I thought NAFA went belly up, that just an ugly rumor?

Very ugly rumor. They are doing some restructuring but for the near future, it is business as usual for the most part.

Sorry Jtrapper, I know how much you wanted that rumor to be true.

I figgure that exactly right before when post on mink prices, $6 bucks take home, after commision, withing pennies $6 bucks, for all mink in 3 sales, the first sale brought$16-$15-$14 for some, $10 an change on averages, coon not all sold, I guesstimating between $14-$16 average

It's a good thing they got my WFSC money...us trappers will keep 'em in business.

Nah Nancy, need all the outlets possible to move fur not less but unless something drastic change's in the next few years
I imagine a lot of things are going to start folding up across the board in the fur trade. Can kind of read the writing on the wall
already.

Well you don't send fur to Nafa when it can't sell so I wish them luck this year. Colorado sale will be busy this year.

I believe a lot more fur will be sold through Groeny, country buyers, and state sales this coming season(s).
Colorado does a great job every year. But I’m sure they can only handle a certain amount?

I was only speaking for the ones that said they were switching.

I agree that the Colorado sale will be busy this year. I hope they are planning ahead. Their facility can only accommodate so much fur. And it isn't fair to sellers to be selling goods at one in the morning (just an example).

I think NAFA will still get a good number of coyotes. They will push for that item in their advertising.

With the building we have now and the experience, Colorado can handle 5000 coyotes, plus the regular amount of everything else, February 2020 will defiantly be an interesting time!!
We may have the move the bears, lions and antler auction to Tuesday to buy time for the coyotes. Not our first rodeo, we will make it happen!

Would that make it a 3 day sale? Bears, lions, antlers on day 1. Tanned goods and misc on day 2. Raw fur on day 3.

If so, that will make for an extremely long week for the volunteers. You may have to bring in extra help.

I know that Colorado runs a very efficient sale. I'm sure they can handle what ever they get. Just nice to know they are already thinking about it.

We are there for 7 days already. everything is cataloged by 2pm Monday. Inspection for bears, lions and antler could be Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning with the auction at 1:00pm done by 6pm. The folks that come for those goods normally buy and fly, they done stick around for much else.

GFW is a whole different story given their export business and producing some tanned fur, but do you think a majority of country buyers are going to offer higher prices than the crowds that NAFA or FHA can gather at their auctions? I'm talking mainly about coon here. I did nicely on my average on coon at the 1st 2019 NAFA auction, less at the second but I knew that because there were more smaller sizes sent. Its the last one where nothing sold. I know that I'm lucky (usually) to have my coon fall into the higher sought after regions.Some guys are lucky to have buyers outside of GFW that have also developed their own end-user connections and will get better pricing but I don't think that's a majority of the country. If you think you can, go for it. I think there will be more skinning machines sold or built and more fur sold green in-the-grease. Guys that have a skinning machine and don't finish fur are maybe happy with $5-7 averages. Not me.

With that said, given the amount of new water around here and probably visiting my kid's Army graduation, I'm going after mrats in early Nov and hopefully yotes after the main gun season here closes in early Dec. I can catch some coon for people after Christmas for a while and I'm sure I'll pick some up in yote sets come Dec. Maybe most of the newly appearing local "western semi-heavy" region coons will get distemper and I go back to my 65-30-5 percent region ratio (WNC, WN, WSH) that it has been in the past...

I couldn't make go trapping coons for $5-$7 average an wouldn't do it , 4-5 years back I sold finish coon to gfw for $7.50 average an rember the last time though he stop, in early Feb, big finish coon for $5 average, I went back nafa the next season

Go study the catalog and report back.The $2 and $3 coon sold. Those Chinese coats are only $200 so how much money do you think they will spend on coons?

What do you suppose will happen to the 10 thousand stale bobcats left up at Nafa? I'd really like to know. I've got a bad feeling they're just going to get staler.

Coonman220, you live in the golden triangle. Guess what us PA guys get about- half that (me anyhow) for my coon and I cherry picked.

Maybe I should send Alaska marten to Colorado.

Yep, feel for you eastern guys at those prices. Even a big catch, a skinning machine, and selling green isn't going to probably pay for input costs. Have to treat it as a recreational hobby that's going to cost you money to do (can't go to a movie without spending money but people still do it) or quit. Maybe coon has become the new nutria except for a few choice areas. From what I've read, the people who target nutes primarily do it for landowners (sort of adc service) or do it mostly for sport. A sad day for American historical culture if that happens but perhaps only a few select wild furs will make it very far into the geo-political-economic global market of the 21st century. Or we just make some sort of fertilizer out of them. I've bought fish-based garden fertilizer before. Its pretty expensive stuff compared to nitrogen derived from industrial chemical production but its more "natural"...