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Thread: How to best sell used equipment?

  1. #1

    How to best sell used equipment?

    This is NOT a For Sale post. I need some advice. From those of you with some experience in this sort of thing. how do you go about selling used equipment?

    I recently upgraded to an 8" long-bed jointer. Listed my used 6" jointer on Craigslist. My listing stated this was a cash only deal. Yesterday, I removed my listing from Craigslist. Just too much of a pain.

    The first response to my ad was the typical "I would LOVE to buy this. Please remove ad from Craigslist. I will send cashier's check and add $50 for you to remove the ad from Craigslist." I didn't reply. Obvious scam.

    The second response was, "I would love to buy this. Can only send check but will not pick up until check clears." Again, I didn't reply. Obviously, if one could send a check, one could go to the bank and get the cash.

    Among other things, the most obvious RED FLAG is that the FIRST response from anyone who might be interested in my jointer would be that they would like to come take a look at it, not, "I would LOVE to buy this".

    So... What's the best way to sell larger equipment? Craigslist ain't for me. Thanks.

    Royce
    Last edited by Keith Outten; 03-09-2017 at 8:06 PM.
    If fishing is a sport I MUST be an athlete!"

  2. #2
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    I just sold a Rockwell drill press to a guy who put up an add that he was looking for one. I texted him and we went back and forth,sent pictures and he wanted to see it so came out to my place and ended up taking it home with him. I also sold a lathe to a real good friends Dad. What drives me nuts is putting up adds and people phone and try to negotiate the price when they have not even seen the listed item.So now I am trying to find people who are seriously looking for what I have for sale. I will continue to scan adds watching for people who specifically are looking for what I have for sale. Hope this helps, Mike.

  3. #3
    To be fair, many of those kinds of responses to craigslist posts are done by bots or scripts, in other words, they're more like the snail mail spam you get in your mailbox. They have a low likelihood of success but they can cheaply spam thousands of people so even if only two bite, the scammer can make a profit.

    You could try ebay with "local pickup only" as the freight option.

  4. #4
    Royce - Having sold stuff on Craigslist I feel your pain. Here are my suggestions ...

    Use your phone number as a contact and state that all inquiries must be made over the phone and all emails or text messaging will be ignored. And then don't respond to emails or text messaging. Also state that if they see the ad the item is still available. These mentions will eliminate most of the weirdos and scammers. When you do get a call and someone wants to make an offer over the phone, simply ask them how they could make an offer without seeing the item and then state they will have to make the offer in person. That will probably eliminate the low ballers. At this point your inquiries will be almost non-existent but that's OK because you only want someone who is seriously interested. Be patient and keep in mind that you are trying to sell something that very few people want to buy and you are selling it on a forum that is also very limited. The last bit of advice and probably the most important is be realistic in your asking price. There's nothing that turns off a prospective buyer more than an asking price that is anywhere close to what it sold for new. Good luck!

  5. #5
    Quote Originally Posted by William Shelley View Post
    To be fair, many of those kinds of responses to craigslist posts are done by bots or scripts, in other words, they're more like the snail mail spam you get in your mailbox. They have a low likelihood of success but they can cheaply spam thousands of people so even if only two bite, the scammer can make a profit.

    You could try ebay with "local pickup only" as the freight option.
    Not trying to pick a fight but, "TO BE FAIR"...to whom?
    If fishing is a sport I MUST be an athlete!"

  6. #6
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    I've sold equipment here on SMC, on another forum I frequent, and on Craigslist. Never a problem with the wood working forum folks. Never had much trouble on C-list either, but I only respond to folks who send me legit responses, and I only deal with people on the phone and in person. I've never sold anything except in person, and it's always been a cash transaction, but I did buy a J/P from a guy across the state a couple of years ago, and paid him (PayPal) up front based only on pictures. That turned out just fine. I think the key is talking to the other person. It's not hard to tell who's honest from those who aren't.

    John

  7. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by Royce Meritt View Post
    Not trying to pick a fight but, "TO BE FAIR"...to whom?
    To be fair to craigslist and selling on the internet in general. It's a little shortsighted to discard an entire way of doing business because of a few rotten scammers.

    If you go to a store and the clerk is having a bad day, do you vow to never shop there again?

  8. #8
    Quote Originally Posted by John TenEyck View Post
    I've sold equipment here on SMC, on another forum I frequent, and on Craigslist. Never a problem with the wood working forum folks. Never had much trouble on C-list either, but I only respond to folks who send me legit responses, and I only deal with people on the phone and in person. I've never sold anything except in person, and it's always been a cash transaction, but I did buy a J/P from a guy across the state a couple of years ago, and paid him (PayPal) up front based only on pictures. That turned out just fine. I think the key is talking to the other person. It's not hard to tell who's honest from those who aren't.

    John
    I agree with John in that even in a phone conversation it's much easier to gauge the sincerity of a person than the anonymity of an email or text message. Only a face to face meeting is better.

  9. #9
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    IMO Craigslist is really the best option. For some reason I never get contacted by scammers anymore and I have stuff listed on CL everyday for months on end. Different things and some the same that take forever to sell. That said I sell a ton on eBay and via forum classifieds sections.
    If at first you don't succeed, redefine success!

  10. #10
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    Unfortunately, CL probably has the biggest audience. It is free so you have to put up with the scams and the flakes. I have seen my share of both. Forum classifieds are great because of the target audience but is only useful if there is a large local audience for things that can't ship cheaply. EBAY and Paypal fees are so high anymore and you are still stuck with local pickup so you might as well use,

  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by John TenEyck View Post
    I've sold equipment here on SMC, on another forum I frequent, and on Craigslist. Never a problem with the wood working forum folks. Never had much trouble on C-list either, but I only respond to folks who send me legit responses, and I only deal with people on the phone and in person. I've never sold anything except in person, and it's always been a cash transaction, but I did buy a J/P from a guy across the state a couple of years ago, and paid him (PayPal) up front based only on pictures. That turned out just fine. I think the key is talking to the other person. It's not hard to tell who's honest from those who aren't.

    John
    Same for me John with respect to selling on CL. If your expectation is you're not going to get some flakes then you probably should just not be selling things. Checking my email and ignoring the flakes and scammers is about as easy as it gets. I'm not giving my phone number out. What an inconvenience. I'll share a recent experience I had selling a brand new, never opened Delta X5 jointer on CL. I listed it on CL because I didn't want to ship it. I was asking about what I paid for it 12 years ago because I hoped/needed to recoup that money. I know Delta was no longer making a jointer that good and tried to use that as a selling point. I got several emails from idiots. One guy trying to convince me I'd be lucky to get $300 and he'd give me $200 IF I sold it today. Never even replied and didn't get bothered again. Got a number of the I'm interested do you still have it then nothing. Also, if you expect people to be able to read, as in "if this ad is still up then the XYZ is still for sale", you'll be disappointed. I had to relist it two more times but eventually a gentlemen from San Antonio saw the ad. Came and looked at the boxes and said he'd take it. I was a bit worred that after 12 years sitting in my garage the tables had developed some rust but I told him I made no promises or guarantees. He got home, unboxed and set it up then let me know he was as happy as a clam. By the way, tables were as pristine as they probably were the day it arrived at my house.

    I think CL is a great site to sell stuff. I try to take good pics, be clear in my description and let people know exactly what they're getting. It helps to have some common sense too, low expectations and patience.

    Good luck selling your stuff.
    Last edited by Mike Manning; 03-09-2017 at 12:45 PM.

  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by Ben Rivel View Post
    IMO Craigslist is really the best option. For some reason I never get contacted by scammers anymore and I have stuff listed on CL everyday for months on end. Different things and some the same that take forever to sell. That said I sell a ton on eBay and via forum classifieds sections.
    Are you saying you're THAT guy who EVERY day list his nut splitters for $8? Or his worthless old 1 and 2 gallon plastic gasoline containers for going on 3 years? Ah!!!!!!!! I hate you!!!!! ;-)
    Last edited by Bruce Page; 03-09-2017 at 3:41 PM.

  13. #13
    Quote Originally Posted by Mike Manning View Post
    ... I'm not giving my phone number out...
    Mike - I'm curious, why not give out your phone number?

  14. #14
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    Don't discount people from far away if the deal is good. I found a really nice 16" jointer on Craigslist two states away. I told my friend who was looking for a big jointer and he bought it based only on a phone conversation with the seller and photos of the machine. We had it shipped, which cost nearly $800 all said and done, but the price he paid for the jointer was so low that his total cost is still less than a the cheapest 12" Grizzly with spiral head.

    John

  15. #15
    I never understand why people get so bent out of shape by a spam/scam email. I must get a dozen snail mail pieces every week saying "We want to buy your house!" or "We need your vehicle trade in!" - pretty much the same thing, yes?

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