MTFCA Forum

Check out rbauction.com for a list of cars selling in White Bluff Tennessee. I think I counted 59 Model T's in the listing. It looks like something for everyone with only a handful of project cars.

Nice bunch of Ts in that collection. Bunch of early, 1909s, even a town car project.

https://www.rbauction.com/search?freeTe ... earch=true

Wow! That is a massive collection, not just cars but also parts.

Does anyone know who Mr Meadows is?

Don Meadows collection

He was Don Meadows. Had a museum just outside Nashville. Very large collection of Early Fords. Passed away few years ago. Always at at Chickasha, Nashville and an auction with early Fords.

Are these from one collection or from a museum that closed or from individual families of collectors who passed away and no longer want the T? Whoever buys them, I hope they are not the Boyd Coddington type and leave them as original Model T’s. That is the only danger I see in massive auctions like this.

Going to knock the bottom out of the T market. Specially the Carb and lamp market.

Wonder if they all turn over. Would not want to deal with a locked engine, although it is a T.

Wonder if they will have minimunes, since nothinglisted yet.

Most have not been run in years. I think everyone of the lots say bill of sale only, no title and have not run.

Don owned a readmix company. His cars have been well taken care of.

There is so many quality cars, I bet they will go for good money. I may throw my hat in the ring, just in case it turns out to be the bargain auction of the century.

If you are thinking of bidding on some of the smaller non car lots, be certain to read their auction terms for fees. Unless I read it wrong, they charge a minimum buyers fee of 100.00 per lot. Maybe it does not apply to this specific auction, but definitely would need to clarify before bidding.

Looks like lots of great Model T's are going to be hitting the market all at the same time. It will be interesting to see final prices.

Utilizing Ritchie Bros. to conduct an antique car and parts/automobilia auction is a very odd choice, in my opinion.

I also noticed that every car that I clicked on indicated the terms were bill of sale/no title. That also seems extremely odd. It's hard to believe that a majority of the cars don't have titles.

It's obvious that the various collections of parts were well organized by the late owner. However, creating lots of each individual collection where-is/as-is instead of breaking them up into smaller lots is also odd and perhaps lazy. I think smaller lots would bode much better for both the seller and the bidders.

I did a quick search on line about titles for antique auto in Tn and does not look like they require one. Only bill of sale.
So that may all you can get.
Does not bother me cause my state doesn’t require one either.
As far as running I think these cars have be sitting around 10 years since Don passed. I think this is a court ordered sale to settle estate.

If bargains are to be had, maybe some young people will take advantage and get an affordable T.

A lot of cars in those listings are misidentified. SEVERAL 1926/'27 cars identified as anything from brass era years into the mid 1920s. I hope bidders know what they are bidding on and get what they think they are.
A lot of nice basic model Ts in there as well as some very desirable models. I suspect a bunch of people are going to be happy with their new acquisitions.

Wonder how long it will take before they turn the bids on. I highlighted a number of cars, but nothing coming through yet. What would be the normal time period, one week before the auction ends?

Read the bidding instructions carefully!

Before you can bid you must provide your credit card number and authorize Ritchie Bros to put a hold on your card for the amount you want to bid.

The buyers fees (aka buyer’s premium) for purchases less than $25,000 is 10% with a MINIMUM buyer’s fee of $100 PER LOT! If you win a single bid for $25 the auctioneers will add an ADDITIONAL $100 to your bill.

We visited this collection some 15 years ago. Not as well organized as it is now. In one building we counted 10 open valve blocks stacked up form supports for shelving. In his office were several show cases jammed with restored brass early '09-11 carburetors. Also as many brass lamps are far and you could look in one building.

Very nice gentleman very gracious and friendly. Often saw him at swapmeets lots of purchases money did not seem an issue. Wonder were all the surplus parts are and if they are going to be sold later?.

just sayin'
frontyboy

W.O.W. what an amazing collection! Shame it has to be auctioned off and split up. I sure hope all the stuff finds a good home. It looks like they are auctioning everything from the Cars to the parts to tractors and more.
Car parts are under luxury goods. What an amazing collection!
https://www.rbauction.com/heavy-equipme ... tn-2025384

If you knew Don Meadows on a personal level and he liked you, he would give you a tour of what Dad and I called "The Secret Willy Wonka Factory Warehouse". The celebrity cars, movie prop cars were mind blowing! RIP Don...., You are missed old man! A real self made man!

You are correct Hank.
I was working a trade show in Nashville, when one of the guys I was with called me and wanted to know if I wanted to go with him to the Cars of the Stars museum.
Told him not really, let me make a call. Called Don and ask him if I could bring someone out to see his cars? Don said sure come on out. Long story short, friend said Stars museum couldn’t hold a candle to Don’s place.
This was along time before his museum. Sorry to see it broken up, that is the way it goes. Dan

Another Don Meadow story. Don didn’t mind paying for good early Ford stuff.
I went to an auction in Ind years ago. Lots of early T and pre T stuff. Left the preview, back to hotel. Said yo myself “ Looks like could be a good auction.” Get up next morning, ready to go buy some T stuff. Open the curtain, look out over the motel parking lot and there it is! Big trailer with “Don Meadow Antique Cars.”
Might as well go home. Saw him bid a 03 Model A to 227k before he dropped out. He brought 09/10 Runabout for close to 100k and a ton of other parts. 10/11 rear ends, engines, lights ect.
I was able to buy a 13 Roadster body/ project.
Should be an interesting auction.

YES Dan..., He was something else and had real class. I got crapped on by a very well known supplier to all antique/vintage cars and he found out what really happened after he was bragging about it. Don called me at home asking questions about this guy and said nothing else. A week passes and I receive a registered letter envelope with a handwritten apology letter with a check in it...., Sorry for being such an a$$h0le"! I never knew you were such a dear friend of Don's.

Now if that does not show you a man's character!!!!! Don called me a week later and just said...., "Did he make things right"?

He protected his friends and if he knew you wanted a car at a show, he would back off the bidding, REAL CLASS!

Before his death he wanted me to restore the rarest of the rarest Model T and Model A....., ALL Aluminum to include the frame, axles, engine, etc.

Wow lots of early Ts... it was interesting to read the serial numbers on the pdf download...
The 09s in particular..28xx. Is a low number.. but the other two are higher than the 1909 serial number range.

I wish they had more photos of the engines, rear ends ect

Has anyone been in to preview ? It would be interesting to see what's under the hood.

Crazy amount of early restored carbs and lights!

Very surprised to see Richie doing the auction, must have been his construction background??
This is another example of the next generation having no interest in antiques.. It’s all about the money.

The early stuff should bring good money, but with the volume of black era Ts, there should be some real bargains!

TrentB wrote: ↑

Fri Sep 12, 2025 11:38 pm

Read the bidding instructions carefully!

Before you can bid you must provide your credit card number and authorize Ritchie Bros to put a hold on your card for the amount you want to bid.

The buyers fees (aka buyer’s premium) for purchases less than $25,000 is 10% with a MINIMUM buyer’s fee of $100 PER LOT! If you win a single bid for $25 the auctioneers will add an ADDITIONAL $100 to your bill.

I just spoke with the folks at Ritchie Brothers and it is a $100 Transaction Fee (Buyers Premium) per lot up to $1,000, then 10% thereafter. So, if the smaller lots are selling for under $1,000, add $100 to each lot you buy. One hundred becomes two-hundred, 200 becomes 300 and so-on, YIKES!

If I was actively looking for a 1909 or another special early T I would be making hotel reservations and heading down to do an inspection prior to the auction. The black cars might go cheap but I am not going to drive 12 hours to buy a common Model T that I can probably get closer to home. I resent the fees but that is part of the deal. Cheap selling price plus 10% plus 3% credit card plus tax is still cheap for the right deal. That said I will pass on this auction.
Anyone interested in the snowmobile beware, it is a cut down touring, not a runabout.

Someone has bid $5.00 on 25 different small items. That’s $2,500 in bid fees for $125.00 worth of toys. Apparently someone didn’t read the terms and conditions!

Today's the day!

As of yesterday (9-26-25) they had changed their Transaction Fees on their website for the Don Meadows auction from $100 per lot to 10% of the sale price. When my son was there on Monday to preview he confirmed with them again that it was still $100 per lot, something or someone must have gotten in their ear to change it.

One of the 1909 Model T’s brought $13,500
What a deal!
The 1908 Model S brought $35,000

I added up the six 1909 Model T bids. The Total of the bids was right at $106,000

My son had gone and done a preview on Monday and just about everything on his list of notes was within +/- 2% of what he had written down, with only a couple of exceptions. A lot of flat/bad tires and almost everything had 10 year old gas in the tanks.

One of the things he/we were interested in were the coil testers, the one with the Western Electric gauge is an original Ford unit stamped with the 18Z number ($550), the one with the General Electric meter did not work ($650) and the Allen was nicely restored ($3,250). He will be heading back this week to pick-up the spoils.

I just got in from the auction. I was shocked that the black cars brought good money. Some really good. The model A’s brought good money too. I can’t believe what the brass cars brought 1/2 of what I thought they should. Sold a nice 11 touring for 17k and a nice 11 torpedo roadster for 17.5k. The ‘09 #5XXX only brought 31k.
The good news is I am the proud owner of a 1924 model T fire truck. Something I have wanted in my collection for 40 years and of all the A’s and T’s it had to bring the highest bid.

Is there anywhere you can find the collection including the results? Can someone post the link? Thanks. (I looked and looked, but I couldn't find it, butts I not smartz on compukers.)

Try this link
https://www.rbauction.com/heavy-equipme ... tn-2025384

I’m already seeing them for flip on Facebook marketplace, they just reused the same auction photos!

Are they real ads or scams.

Sorry: the link I sent has pricing on my phone cause I was registered for the auction.