The stars of the show are Allen Haff and Clinton "Ton" Jones. They're actors. All the storage units are set ups, seeded with stuff that is miraculously worth money. Often the units have guns in them, and they're often rare collectables. The full list of antique and collectables this and that goes on and on.
I don't know for sure, but I think it's likely the 'experts' supply the stuff to be won at auction. They then buy their own stuff back off of old Haff and Ton. The money changing hands are props, probably not even real notes.
We are expected to believe that these expert traders drive an old van with very uncomfortable seating clear across the USA, coast to coast, and they pop in to all these storage unit auctions, which all have value in them. How about the van is different for each location and they fly in to do the filming, yeah that sounds more like it. At best they transport the same van on the back of a truck. Take your pick.
In a later series they open a pawn shop. I have a screen grab from Google street view of this location. There is no pawn shop at 142 Culver Blvd, Playa Del Rey, CA 90293 USA as at May 2015. Here is the shop...
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| Location of Haff Ton Pawn Shop |
As you can see there is now an Asian health shop there, Tai Chi type of thing. The location was used as the set for the Haff Ton pawn shop when Auction Hunters was being made. Maybe the shop was empty back when they were filming.
You know what really pisses me off about amateurs like these guys? They don't actually know what they're doing.
Winning at auction is a real art. Many of the stunts Haff and Ton claim to use at auctions are actually illegal. These guys are acting. Rival bidders and auctioneers don't let you get away with the shit Haff and Ton pull. They get away with it because none of it is real.
