"One Man's Trash Is Another Man's Treasure"

Preparations for the annual aviation swap meet of the year, EAA AeroMart, are in full swing with anticipations for another greatly successful year. AeroMart provides a common place where people with spare, usable aviation parts and people looking for them meet and do business. Bargains are common, sales are final, and both buyer and seller are satisfied.

Chairman Mark Landvatter, member of EAA Chapter 1158 in West Bend (WI), says apart from some technology changes to improve service to the customers, AeroMart will operate much like last year. "We're in the same location, on the west side of the Fly Mart," he said. "We've upgraded our technology again this year with new cash registers, file servers, and digital automation."

People from throughout the country have inquired about the AeroMart and there are already trucks and trailers planning the trip to Oshkosh from all points of the compass, Landvatter said. As are volunteers: while Chapter 1158 constitutes the central core of the volunteer force, other people come to help from all over the country, as well as internationally.

Hours for buyers begin on Tuesday, opening day (July 27) and run from 0900-1700 daily. The days before convention, Sunday and Monday, are for sellers. "Sunday and Monday are strictly for assembling the inventory, people bringing in their merchandise," Landvatter said. That will continue through the first several days of the convention, with new merchandise being added to the shelves every hour.

He added that the high-traffic time tends toward the early and middle parts of the week, after which the selection declines through Sunday. Rather than cart their parts back home, some sellers opt to donate unsold items to the chapter. "We're bringing a truckload full of donated parts up from West Bend," he said.

"The whole mystique of AeroMart is one man's trash is another man's treasure. It's a great place to get a bargain. It's a high-risk, low-cost environment, because you're dealing with stuff with unknown history and on an as-is basis. It's fun, and it's incredible the things people come up with year in and year out."

FMI: www.aeromart.org, www.airventure.org/2004/whattosee/aeromart.html