FWIW -- Not all one tons are the same -- i.e., 1-ton pickups and 1-ton dually flatbeds are very different trucks when it comes to valuation. It helps if the seller understands that, too.
He didn't say, but Steve's friend's $15K 1-ton might have been a pickup??
Bottom line is that the duallie flatbeds seem to be a lot more plentiful than the express body (pickup) 1-tons and therefore can be had for a lot less money.