Sold today

I stopped by an older gentlemans place today to sell my meager harvest for the year and I'm glad I did.
Bill is a real nice guy that's been doing this for over 40 yrs. We shot the breeze for awhile before he looked at my fur and when he did he said my put up was real nice! I knew about what to expect from everyone on here and would have been happy if that's what I got, but he gave me more than what I expected! Not a lot more but in the end I'm very happy. I met a new friend, had a good time and for me that's what its all about. If we are both still around next year we might shoot the breeze a little longer.

wowwwwwwww great times

Every year my buyer tells me what a great job my put up is. But pays me less than what guys on here are getting.

I'm glad you did a little better, and had a good chat with him. Trappers are salt of the earth.

Too bad the days of the country fur buyer are about gone. What you experienced was what most of us took for granted in the 70s and 80s. Haul a load to the fur buyer and chat with him and the other trappers there. Make new friends. Learn some things from the older trappers and help out the younger trappers.

In the late 70's until the late 80s during a fur boom in which I was trapping full time, there were five country fur buyers within an hour of my house. I sold to all of them from time to time, and sometimes if I felt I could do better I left and went to a different one. A little competition is good for the producer.

Well you do have to remember that the county guy has to make a profit as well. The one buyer I know wants to make $20 a fur.

Ohio fur is different from Mn fur or even Iowa fur. Even with a great put up there will be differences. Acorns (timber trapping) only vs corn (much of Midwest) only vs a heavy fish base (big fertile rivers) all lead to different fur qualities. In southeastern mn, we have big, yellow cast coon. Buyers like the size but NAFA doesn’t really like the color in a down market. Then there is the ‘eye of the beholder’ aspect of buyers. Some are honest, some aren’t and everyone in between. Fortunately I’ve only had to deal with one buyer who wasn’t very honest, in my 40+ year trapping career. Most however, made me feel welcome. And even in a bad market year, I felt and continue to feel I’ve been treated fairly.

Experience in knowing how to work with people and take rejection helps a lot. Just because you think your fur is top lot doesn’t mean it is. You have the right to accept the offer or take your fur somewhere else. If it’s green you may not have much choice if there isn’t a buyer you’re willing to drive to. But if it’s put up, you can ship to international auction facilities, drive to another buyer or sit on your fur till the market gets better. Getting mad because the buyer didn’t want to pay what you thought was right is not the way to build working relationships for the future.

there used to be a buyer like that when I was a kid. Real good guy. He pretty much always paid me top dollar for the few animals I had to sell. I overheard him telling my dad one time that he like to try to encourage the young trappers. Guess he did his job well on that because here I am 40 years later, still trapping. He's long gone now.

On the other hand, there used to be a buyer near where I now live that is a real sleezeball. If the guy was talking he was lying. I sold a few pelts to him a couple of times and then decided I'd ship my furs to Canada before I'd sell anything to him again.

Sure wish we had a reputable local guy.

Yep, in high school in the late 70s there were furbuyers aplenty. I had my license and I'd make the rounds and hit them all. Man did I learn a bunch. Some good, some not so good. One old boy used to bottle up his coon dog urine and sell it as fox pee so the fox around here got a break.

Is that $20 per cat

please for the love of Larry, do not post what you got for your fur.

Yep those were the days, trade a hide for a dozen traps, etc. Get schooled on what to do and not to do to
get more for your fur, etc. All long gone now, just a heartless faceless Canadian casino now.

You know what they say, you can wish in one hand and (This word is unacceptable on Trapperman) in the other.

I remember one time as a kid just starting to drive dad an I were squirrel hunting an there were 5 coon in a big tree sunning them self dad an I shot them an I haul them to truck dad said what do you want with coons I said I was going to take them to fur buyer dad sat in truck while I when inside an told [jon] what I had an that they were shot with bird shot in head he gave me 35 dollars apiece went back to truck .dad said how did you do I said good we were riding home and dad said how much you get I said 35 he said to stop at store an buy him a 6 pack I paid going down road he looks at me an said 35 apiece an I laugh an said yes he said I didn't complain enough about buy his beer lol

nice memory,dahlgren,thanks for sharing

Good Deal...a good experience!