Going bargain hunting at an auction...

Oct 2 2007 by Liz Shankland, Western Mail

There’s nothing like an auction to get the pulse racing, as our smallholder columnist knows only too well

I DON’T know about you, but I can’t resist a bargain. It doesn’t matter what it is – a massive discount in the January sales or a yellow Asda “Whoops!” sticker knocking a few pence off something for dinner – the thrill is always the same.

Like so many other internet-savvy shoppers, I’m addicted to eBay, and I’m always tracking something or other, but going to a real market, auction, or car boot sale remains my favourite way of shopping.

Gerry had a rare spare Saturday at the weekend, so we decided to drive to Ffairfach in Llandeilo for the monthly farmers’ mart. We discovered Ffairfach a few weeks before we moved into our smallholding and ended up buying lots of farming tools and other bits and bobs which we knew would be useful.

Once we moved in, it kept on drawing us back for more, so we always kept the last Saturday of every month free. In the past few years, however, with Gerry working a lot of weekends at the Millennium Stadium, our visits have been rarer, so when we see a window of opportunity, we go for it. The great thing about a mart like this is that it’s never predictable – anything and everything can turn up in the back of someone’s Land Rover and you never know what you might find.

There are lots of car boot stalls to look at on the way in, and there are normally four separate auctions taking place simultaneously – poultry, new tools/DIY stuff, farm machinery and other vehicles, and a bizarre variety of furniture, bric-a-brac, and odds and ends from people’s barns.

This final auction is usually the most fascinating of all, because it’s literally a cue to clear out your shed or the cupboard under the stairs. There are always plenty of old baths, broken tables, LPs, and the odd three-piece suite, but there are often collectable farmyard relics like cartwheels and milk churns lurking about, if you’ve got the patience to look.

We like to get there before 9am to park easily and allow plenty of time to stroll around, buy a bacon and onion roll, and check what’s on offer before the crowds start flooding in for the 10.30am start.

Last weekend, Gerry got a bit enthusiastic about the new tools section. He bought a few things I hadn’t expected, but, if it makes him happy, I’m happy. At least he didn’t go mad in the “big boys’ toys” section, where you can buy anything from tractors and horseboxes to caravans and quad bikes.

I had a good look round that section, though. One thing which caught my eye was a sheep turnover crate, which would have made trimming the ewes’ feet a damned sight easier. Unfortunately, I was at one of the other auctions when it was snapped up for £75.

Don’t you just hate it when something like that happens? I’m definitely in the market for one, since fracturing my spine. Even if I recover at a speed which confounds medical science, I reckon I’m going to have to be really careful for a good few years, and I’ll probably have some sort of spine weakness for the rest of my life.

Bending down for long periods and lifting awkward loads are out of the question, so that kind of puts paid to basic sheep husbandry. I’m not going to get rid of the sheep, so the only practical answer is a turnover crate. Hugely expensive to buy new, they do occasionally come up for sale, so I’m keeping my eye out for a decent one.

If you know anyone who wants to sell one, let me know. Me and my poor bad back would be eternally grateful.

You can write to Liz Shankland c/o Western Mail, Blue Street, Carmarthen SA31 3LQ. Please enclose an SAE for a reply. Or email downtoearthliz@hotmail.co.uk