Online Military Surplus Auctions

Military surplus stores and auctions have been around for some time now but only in recent years have risen in popularity through online auctions. They are convenient and allow you to bid on all types of military goods and memorabilia from the privacy of your own home without the "hustle and bustle" of a live auction. For those of you who don't know, army/navy surplus stores sell or hold auctions for military goods and equipment that are no longer able to be used by our military because they have been replaced by newer models or that simply no longer meet the military's demanding technology and other specifications.

Some of you might be curious as to what military items are auctioned off online. If you're only thinking about weapons and munitions then you definitely have the wrong idea, although rarely they are also auctioned off, but at live military surplus auctions rather than online ones. Generally the online auctions sell items such as camping equipment (tents, sleeping bags), tools, equipment, parts, clothing (mainly jackets and shirts), and even helmets and field gear (compasses, belts, backpacks.) If you are looking for rarer perhaps even valuable military goods and memorabilia then attending live auctions, or physically going to Army/nay surplus stores would be your best bet. But, if you're looking to get a new tent for camping or a wicked vintage army shirt then checking out an online military surplus auction would be a good choice for you.

Now you're probably curious as to why these perfectly items that once served a valuable purpose for our nation's armed forces are now being auctioned off to the general public for a fraction of what the army/navy (or other DOD division) had originally paid for them. There are a couple of reasons as to why this is the case. The first reason is simple: military goods that have been classified as surplus are ones that may be becoming too old or obsolete for our military's current use.. Tents, sleeping bags, and clothing all experience wear and tear and it's only a matter of time before the military deems the items unfit for official use.

The second reason for the surplus auctions is also quite simple: technology advancement. For many of these items sold as surplus, there have been new ones with modified technology for today's military use on the market. For example, military sleeping bags from the 1980s are very different from the ones the military uses today. They could be made from a different fabric, might be designed differently, and today are able to withstand colder and hotter temperatures. Note that this applies to instruments used in the field as well, and not only to tents and military issue clothing. In shorts, basically the reason why military surplus goods items are such bargains online is that the military need to keep our armed forces modernized and supplied with cutting edge technology is your gain!