The big draw of the shows are A) people love to old toys/equipment/oddities and B) in this economic age everyone wants to believe that they have a pile of junk that will make them money.
Storage Wars bothers me because the totals are just tallied from the winner saying "I can get $200 for that couch" or "That (insert item) has a great patina. Thats worth (insert on site estimate). I'll pay for the whole locker right there." But people still watch the show because in the end you just want to know what that stupid old desk lamp is appraised at.
The problem is where it crosses over to reality. It's shows like that that brainwash sellers into thinking everything is worth money. And thats why sellers are asking hundreds of dollars for rusty bikes that were never of value when they were new. I see the same thing with instruments. Market price and actual worth are pretty far apart.
It's a rare day when you meet an honest seller who just has no need for something and isn't just trying to make a buck.