Guitar wheeler dealer project - you tube channel

gazrichards

Strangefan said:

gazrichards said:

I will hold my hands up to the error regarding how long your guitar had been in sale for. I thought it had been around for a while as I’d seen it had been bumped a few times and I thought forum rules say you can’t bump more than once every 48 hours or something??? 

I think your suggestion that I’m not interested in my “clients” happiness is a little rude and unfair. I’ve had no complaints from any of them yet I even text one today to say thanks and he said he was happy with our exchange and was enjoying his new guitar. No one was held up against a wall or anything!!! Some people like to swap guitars they arent happy with for other ones and the potential value of the instrument isn’t the ultimate factor. During this project I’m not really interested in anything about the guitar other than if I can move it on to another person, the difficult part is finding the right person, it seems I got it wrong with you!

So you hold your hands up but  it's my fault? it was bumped more than it should have been?....... Erm it wasn't, 

All you're interested in is moving the guitar on not if the person you're trading with is getting a fair deal if they don't know about guitars? ...... So again more like a bedroom seller. 

Yes, I hold my hands up to the fact that I made a mistake regarding how long the guitar had been for sale for. It had only been for sale 2 days but because you dumped it every day when I opened the thread all I saw was lots of bumps making me think it had been for sale for a week or so. 

I don’t know why you are getting your knickers in a twist over this?? All the guys that I’ve dealt with are happy with their cash or instruments, end of story. 

Please go and troll someone else

gazrichards

New video coming soon! I acquired the latest step of my project this evening. 

Fifty9

Wasn’t an ‘as new’ musicman was it??

gazrichards

Fifty9 said:

Wasn’t an ‘as new’ musician was it??

No, I’m not in the human trafficking game!!

gazrichards

https://youtu.be/0ptuK6PXZkQ

New video, new guitar!

gazrichards

So, I’m back and I think I’ve finished my project as this week one of my dream guitars is arriving. 

I’ll talk you through how I did it and soon there will be unboxing videos etc too. 

So I started by buying a mex deluxe strat for £310. 

They were local, I collected on the way to band practice. The guitar needed cleaning up, it had been living under a bed for years unused but a clean and new strings got it back up and running. 

Finances -£310

I swapped that within a few days for a mex classic player strat. The guy was local also and wanted a strat with a different neck shape. I got a cheapo reverb pedal in the deal too. He was so local that when I forgot the trem arm Etc I cycled over to his house the next day to deliver them  

Finances -£310

Before I’d even picked up that switch I’d arranged a trade for a charvel dk24 with an extra pickup. The guy lived miles away so we met half way which was about a 40 min drive for me. Nothing too bad. 

I sold the pickup for £50. So at this point I have a charvel dk24 for £260. I liked the charvel a lot and considered keeping it. I gave it a set up as if I were keeping it. The guy messaged me a few days later to say he loved his new Strat!

Finances -£260

Then an epiphone Les Paul turned up for £150. Just over an hour round trip away. The guy had stopped playing and wanted the dosh and space I think. This was another that needed a bit of a clean and strip down but again nothing major. I sold it for £195 after postage so I still have the charvel at a cost of £215 (a bargain). 

Finances -£215

Next the charvel goes for £600. Another hours trip to drop it off but I combine it with picking up a guitar if left with my tech anyway. 

Finances £385 up and no guitars to sell

I found a prs s2 custom 24 local for £350, it was “road worn”, pretty badly actually but a clean up and new strings makes it look 100 times better. All damage is just cosmetic. Again that’s an hour and half round trip. 

Finances £35

I swap that soon after for a baudier roadster custom built guitar. High value but small market for it but I didn’t mind keeping it and in theory it cost me nothing. I love this guitar and think I’m done with the project and want to keep it. I use it in band rehearsals and everything. It was going to be a keeper!
finances £35 profit and a Baudier roadster

Then I see a musicman reflex and manage to haggle to £650. It’s in mint condition so just new strings required. 

I really like this one too and think hard about keeping it but it’s not as good as my other musicman or the Baudier and I know there is value in it. It sells on this forum for £1000 (and the buyer is now trying to sell on eBay for £1500 so he must feel he got a good deal!)

Finances £385 up and the Baudier 

Next a squier classic vibe strat with a generic hardcase for £175. Squier sells a couple of days later at £250 and I kept the case. Didn’t even change the strings on it. It came in, I listed it on Facebook and it went out a day or two later. 

Finances £460 up still with the baudier. 

Then I see a duesenberg 59er on reverb at a shop. I negotiate a deal of the baudier plus £600 for the duesenberg. I’ve never owned one but wanted one for a while and really hope that it’s great!
Finances -£140

That puts me £140 down (even taking into account my initial £310 outlay) and in possession of a duesenberg that arrives later this week!!!!

A £2000 guitar (used value £1200/1400 maybe) for £140!!!!!!

gazrichards

https://youtu.be/DrvWjRA80rM

Here’s a very much delayed video finalising my project 
How to get a duesenberg for £140!
some of your guitars are even in it!

Creed_Clicks

Remember the guy years ago who started with a paperclip on ebay I think, and ended up with a house, just get trading and trading etc.

gazrichards

Creed_Clicks said:

Remember the guy years ago who started with a paperclip on ebay I think, and ended up with a house, just get trading and trading etc.

Someone mentioned him earlier in the thread. 

I’m not the first guy to do this - trogly (YouTube guitar dealer) has done a few but he has a fan base and a viewing public - I have here and Facebook and a reverb page. 

prowla

The idea of tracking your profit as you buy & sell is perfectly valid (and sensible); however, at what point in buying and selling do you officially become a trader?

gazrichards

prowla said:

The idea of tracking your profit as you buy & sell is perfectly valid (and sensible); however, at what point in buying and selling do you officially become a trader?

Does that matter? 

Everyone was happy with either their fistful of cash or the guitar they got in trade. 

I’m not making any taxable income because I’m doing it to get a guitar rather than straight profit. 

And what’s wrong with being a “trader” anyway??
i guess I’m a trader in the sense that I’m buying the stuff off folk in full knowledge that I’m going to move it on but as you see from the video, I thought I’d finished a bunch of times when a nice guitar came through the door. 

Hattigol

Did you tell the sellers that this was what you were doing?

Epsilon

gazrichards said:

prowla said:

The idea of tracking your profit as you buy & sell is perfectly valid (and sensible); however, at what point in buying and selling do you officially become a trader?

Does that matter? 

Everyone was happy with either their fistful of cash or the guitar they got in trade. 

I’m not making any taxable income because I’m doing it to get a guitar rather than straight profit. 

And what’s wrong with being a “trader” anyway??
i guess I’m a trader in the sense that I’m buying the stuff off folk in full knowledge that I’m going to move it on but as you see from the video, I thought I’d finished a bunch of times when a nice guitar came through the door. 

Nothing wrong with it at all, but your logic that you're only making profit to get a guitar won't hold water with HMRC. I could open a shop and say "I'm only making a profit to pay my mortgage/buy a car/etc". Point is you are buying and selling with a view to making a gain.

This isn't to say that I haven't enjoyed your project, and I've no issue with the idea of trading up, but do consult HMRC's website on the definition of trading income.

Snags

OTOH by the time he offsets fuel costs, use of home as office, materials used cleaning/polishing/sprucing up the guitars he'll have made a thumping loss for tax purposes anyway

Off the top of my head, the threshold for paying tax on 'hobby' income is £1k gross [EDIT] although it's a bit unclear in some wording whether it's income or turnover. If it's turnover then technically Gaz has probably crossed the threshold, but that depends on how you account for the trades rather than cold hard cash.

gazrichards

I’m self employed and run “multiple” Businesses and my gig income through myself as a sole trader basically trading as “me”. 

I could very easily add or deduct any of this stuff from my tax return without issue. 

Did I tell people I was doing this, some I did some I didn’t. 

All the people were happy with their cash - I didn’t twist anyone’s arm. I know some folk won’t believe that or will have issue with what I’ve done but it’s out of jealousy if I’m honest. I’ve told you how I did it and how you could do it too. It’s not easy, it takes a bit of cash to start and a fair bit of time. I’m fortunate that I have a flexible lifestyle that I can drive 45 mins at the drop of a hat most of the time to collect something or I can waste an hour trawling classifieds for bargains or message 20 people to get turned away by 19 (because someone else got their first or they aren’t interested in the trade I offer). 

Snags

Does it actually matter why one is buying a thing, if a mutually satisfactory price is agreed and nobody pulls an unethical stunt?

My views might be coloured by being brought up in a household where my dad wheeled and dealed in motorcycles as a hobby/for a bit of fun and interest. All of these hobby/interest situations are ones where you know some people will be buying stuff to sell on, or because they're getting a job lot but only want one part, and will out the rest, and some people will be buying stuff to keep indefinitely. As long as you don't screw anyone over (e.g. the classic widow/family member of the deceased offering something highly valuable for peanuts because they don't know better) then there's nothing unethical about it either way.

munckee

Snags said:

Does it actually matter why one is buying a thing, if a mutually satisfactory price is agreed and nobody pulls an unethical stunt?

My views might be coloured by being brought up in a household where my dad wheeled and dealed in motorcycles as a hobby/for a bit of fun and interest. All of these hobby/interest situations are ones where you know some people will be buying stuff to sell on, or because they're getting a job lot but only want one part, and will out the rest, and some people will be buying stuff to keep indefinitely. As long as you don't screw anyone over (e.g. the classic widow/family member of the deceased offering something highly valuable for peanuts because they don't know better) then there's nothing unethical about it either way.

Have you got a big roll of 20's bound with an elastic band in your pocket Pete : )

Hattigol

gazrichards said:

I know some folk won’t believe that or will have issue with what I’ve done but it’s out of jealousy if I’m honest. 

I don't mind you doing it. But I do mind you suggesting that anyone who has an issue is 'jealous'. It might just be the case that scratching around like Del-boy flogging bottom-end guitars to make a few hundred quid (less expenses) simply isn't a lot of people's idea of fun.

gazrichards

They are hardly bottom end guitars. I’ve had a duesenberg , 2 musicmans , a bunch of fenders and Gibson’s and currently got a PRS. 

Snags

@munckee No, I'm just pleased to see you