$30 Thrift Store Find a $223,000 Jet Engine Valve

A Washington State online reseller has become the darling of his community after he snagged the deal of the year, at least on paper. Zach, 35 (he wouldn't tell Newsweek his last name or hometown), paid $30 at a thrift store in central Washington for an engine air supply valve that aftermarket aircraft parts dealer Aeroval says had a "reference value" of $223,520 in 2011. According to Honeywell's website, the part belongs to a GE CF6-80 engine from an A330-300, perhaps as part of the anti-icing system. Zach says he has no idea how the Goodwill store got hold of it or what its actual value might be. The section of the device with the Honeywell part number (3290628-4) is attached to other things on the assembly and they may have some theoretically astronomical value, too, but he's not banking on a quarter-million-dollar profit. For one thing, it didn't come with any of the paperwork that would make it possible to use it for its intended purpose. ... Read full article.