Guitar flippers ... Hate them :-(

Jetsam1

SlopeSoarer said:

Jetsam1 said:

SlopeSoarer said:

I blame the plonkers who buy at silly prices!

Lets face it you can ask what ever you want but getting that price is something else. Lots of really nice guitars hang around unsold for a long time and that's because they are overpriced.

I feel sorry for the genuine person who decides to sell their guitar, no idea of price, has a look on sites and thinks oh, that's nice it is worth more than I expected but then feels insulted if someone offers a more realistic price.

Or just essentially stop taking part. After I sell these two guitars I am out. If I want something it will probably be new, I am done with guitars really. Used amps are creeping up feels like too. And silly prices for effects due to "mojo".

I personally think the used market place was decent In the 90s and 00s but this creeping in of "dealers" seemingly taking over all the space means it is harder to even identify if someone is an actual seller or a wannabe dealer hoovering up stock.

Again, making a profit is fine. I would like openness and honesty really, and fairness. A pipe dream I know. But ebay was ruined by chancers and Reverb looks to be much the same way.

See car dealers as well. Just might be me but all this uber commercialisation and marketing of everything makes me sad.

I don't think anyone would give up playing guitar because of so called 'flippers'. I certainly wouldn't.

I do think the internet has made it easier for people to chance their arm at selling at inflated prices but if you take eBay as an example and look at the 'sold prices' you will get a better idea of value. The auction system (rather than Buy Now) is a great leveler for me, it finds the price people are willing to sell for rather than the price people want to 'try' and get.

Regarding people being open, honest and fair, I agree... pipe dream along with world piece. I'm not sure what you would want someone to say?

Ultimately it is for us the buyer to do our research and know when to say, sorry that's too much, I'm out!

Some folk get really pissed off when a decent case is made for offering less i.e. quoting recent sold prices for like for like
(whatever it is being sold) but really I don't see the point in getting too stressed about it. Just accept there will always be chancers out there, do your homework when buying and selling, be prepared to wait for the right deal to come along if you don't want to buy new. They always do come along, patience is a virtue:-)

I meant done with buying. Done with used market. Have seen almost nothing recently that even looks decent at a decent price.

Rocky1991

One of them can't even be bothered to put the photos on Ebay and encourages you to find the guitar elsewhere and come back 

SlopeSoarer

Jetsam1 said:

SlopeSoarer said:

Jetsam1 said:

SlopeSoarer said:

I blame the plonkers who buy at silly prices!

Lets face it you can ask what ever you want but getting that price is something else. Lots of really nice guitars hang around unsold for a long time and that's because they are overpriced.

I feel sorry for the genuine person who decides to sell their guitar, no idea of price, has a look on sites and thinks oh, that's nice it is worth more than I expected but then feels insulted if someone offers a more realistic price.

Or just essentially stop taking part. After I sell these two guitars I am out. If I want something it will probably be new, I am done with guitars really. Used amps are creeping up feels like too. And silly prices for effects due to "mojo".

I personally think the used market place was decent In the 90s and 00s but this creeping in of "dealers" seemingly taking over all the space means it is harder to even identify if someone is an actual seller or a wannabe dealer hoovering up stock.

Again, making a profit is fine. I would like openness and honesty really, and fairness. A pipe dream I know. But ebay was ruined by chancers and Reverb looks to be much the same way.

See car dealers as well. Just might be me but all this uber commercialisation and marketing of everything makes me sad.

I don't think anyone would give up playing guitar because of so called 'flippers'. I certainly wouldn't.

I do think the internet has made it easier for people to chance their arm at selling at inflated prices but if you take eBay as an example and look at the 'sold prices' you will get a better idea of value. The auction system (rather than Buy Now) is a great leveler for me, it finds the price people are willing to sell for rather than the price people want to 'try' and get.

Regarding people being open, honest and fair, I agree... pipe dream along with world piece. I'm not sure what you would want someone to say?

Ultimately it is for us the buyer to do our research and know when to say, sorry that's too much, I'm out!

Some folk get really pissed off when a decent case is made for offering less i.e. quoting recent sold prices for like for like
(whatever it is being sold) but really I don't see the point in getting too stressed about it. Just accept there will always be chancers out there, do your homework when buying and selling, be prepared to wait for the right deal to come along if you don't want to buy new. They always do come along, patience is a virtue:-)

I meant done with buying. Done with used market. Have seen almost nothing recently that even looks decent at a decent price.

Sorry, I did wonder!

UnclePsychosis

scottypro said:

It seems to be a sellers market for everything at the moment due to lockdowns. I was looking the other day on Ebay at Graphics cards, I have a spare one I bought in September last year for £150. After seeing what the same card sells for I immediately put it up for sale and it has gone. Am I classed as a flipper, no, just somebody that made a profit on something lying around.
I know it is not the same as the situation of the OP, but it just goes to show the state of things at the moment.

Graphics cards are like hen's teeth at the moment, primarily because of a spike in cryptocurrency mining. 

UnclePsychosis

poopot said:

Personally I don’t think it’s got anything to do with people making a profit... fair play to them.

I have issue with traders/flippers/bedroom dealers using this forum to get cheap stock... 

It really goes against the spirit of the forum...

same for folk that just sign up to use the classifieds.

none of these fuckers contribute anything to the content of this forum...

... And yet this thread was started by someone talking about a guitar bought on eBay being resold on Reverb.

Nothing to do with the forum, but lots of people upset anyway. 

guitarjack66

It seems to me,an uneducated new to guitar enthusiast,that buying new looks like pretty good value these days.Unless you try to sell your new guitar for double the price after a fortnight of course.

Philly_Q

I haven't sold a guitar for over six years, but if and when I do I'll probably sell them relatively cheap - I'm not really bothered about the money, I just want to get numbers down and clear some space.

Now, when I read these threads, I almost feel like selling at a low-ish price - albeit one I'd be happy with - would be frowned upon, as I'd potentially be putting guitars in the hands of flippers.  On the other hand, price things high, and I'd be accused of being greedy and inflating the market.  And then there's the third idea, that if you sell here, in the classifieds, you're kind-of-sort-of-expected to sell at "mates' rates".

It all feels like a bit of a minefield.

SlopeSoarer

Philly_Q said:

I haven't sold a guitar for over six years, but if and when I do I'll probably sell them relatively cheap - I'm not really bothered about the money, I just want to get numbers down and clear some space.

Now, when I read these threads, I almost feel like selling at a low-ish price - albeit one I'd be happy with - would be frowned upon, as I'd potentially be putting guitars in the hands of flippers.  On the other hand, price things high, and I'd be accused of being greedy and inflating the market.  And then there's the third idea, that if you sell here, in the classifieds, you're kind-of-sort-of-expected to sell at "mates' rates".

It all feels like a bit of a minefield.

I know not everyone likes eBay but personally I think the auction style (rather than the BuyNow) will always find the true value. As many guitars as there are for sale on eBay (and other various site) I think it is pretty safe to say that the guitar sections are trawled regularly, so it is safe to say the guitar you are selling will be noticed.

The other benefit with eBay is that you can get an idea of what they are like to deal with by prior feedback.

If you sell on £1 Seller Fee and accept cash on collection it is a very cheap way of selling. If you use PayPal I think they charge 2.9% plus 30p but you do get a reasonable level of protection.

Use eBay wisely and in my opinion it is a near perfect selling platform.

I've sold a few guitars on eBay, I've always done a bit of research on what I'm selling and come up with a price in mind which to me seems fair and generally I have achieved the value or a bit more. I've never been unduly disappointed but I'm not a greedy person either.

Low starting prices see to attract and retain more interest.

Fifty9

Likewise I’ve had no issues (yet) with eBay particularly on the £1 deal. 

dazzajl

Fifty9 said:

Likewise I’ve had no issues (yet) with eBay particularly on the £1 deal. 

I used to really enjoy using eBay. Efficient, good value for access to a global market and even exciting come auction end. 

Then I had a few bad buyers within a short space. The message streams, always within eBay, showed they got an item, wanted to return it and when I declined they then stated it had arrived damaged. In every case eBay support summarily called in their favour. Even though it was clear from the messages they had not read the advert and bought the wrong thing. The complete lack of care for the customer and the awful waste of something being deliberately broken was too much for me. 

So a flippers life is not for me. 

I had built up a lot of stuff over the last year and in the last week I listed four guitars and three amps here. All but one amp have gone to a forumite and I’ve ended up only about £250 down on the whole lot. I’m genuinely really pleased with this, I’ve enjoyed getting to play all of the loads, they’ve all gone to folks here for a good price and it’s a pretty inexpensive hobby over a year. 

BeardyAndy

For every flipper, there's an anti-flipper like me. 

I keep buying guitars to flip but keep forgetting to sell them!

Philly_Q

SlopeSoarer said:

Philly_Q said:

I haven't sold a guitar for over six years, but if and when I do I'll probably sell them relatively cheap - I'm not really bothered about the money, I just want to get numbers down and clear some space.

Now, when I read these threads, I almost feel like selling at a low-ish price - albeit one I'd be happy with - would be frowned upon, as I'd potentially be putting guitars in the hands of flippers.  On the other hand, price things high, and I'd be accused of being greedy and inflating the market.  And then there's the third idea, that if you sell here, in the classifieds, you're kind-of-sort-of-expected to sell at "mates' rates".

It all feels like a bit of a minefield.

I know not everyone likes eBay but personally I think the auction style (rather than the BuyNow) will always find the true value. As many guitars as there are for sale on eBay (and other various site) I think it is pretty safe to say that the guitar sections are trawled regularly, so it is safe to say the guitar you are selling will be noticed.

The other benefit with eBay is that you can get an idea of what they are like to deal with by prior feedback.

If you sell on £1 Seller Fee and accept cash on collection it is a very cheap way of selling. If you use PayPal I think they charge 2.9% plus 30p but you do get a reasonable level of protection.

Use eBay wisely and in my opinion it is a near perfect selling platform.

I've sold a few guitars on eBay, I've always done a bit of research on what I'm selling and come up with a price in mind which to me seems fair and generally I have achieved the value or a bit more. I've never been unduly disappointed but I'm not a greedy person either.

Low starting prices see to attract and retain more interest.

Fifty9 said:

Likewise I’ve had no issues (yet) with eBay particularly on the £1 deal. 

I've sold a lot of guitars and other stuff on eBay in the past, before I fell into the non-selling rut I've been in for the last few years.

And touch wood, I never had any major problems.  A few issues with delivery, a couple of things which got slightly damaged in transit, but only one scammer (and that was when I was buying, not selling).

But I've read so many stories - mostly on here - in recent years of dodgy eBayers, claiming not to have received items, or claiming they're damaged, etc.  And as already noted, eBay seem to side with the buyers over the sellers.  It's put me off using it.

ronnyb

There are scammers on all types of buying and selling platforms. Mrs R has been hankering after a dog for ages and the price of them has skyrocketed since the pandemic began. The night before last she saw some puppies, Yorkiepoos i think they were on Pets 4 homes. £1500. There was one left so she messaged the seller to see if it was still available and received a quick reply to say that it was. Problem is it's about 100 miles away, current travel restrictions etc. Our son in law sometimes travels there on business and happens to be going next week so it was agreed that if it was still for sale he would see the dog and leave a deposit. Last night she checks the ad to see if it is still listed and it was, but it's now £2k. No reply from the seller when she messaged her, surprise surprise.  

SPECTRUM001

Likewise, I have become quite nervous to sell items of value on ebay. Would much rather use tFB classifieds if at all possible. I don't have much of a business head, so like others, I have lost out on much of the gear I have had/sold over the years (amazingly, I sold for more than I paid twice - by £10 and £15 respectively - albeit that didn't even cover purchase postage costs).

In my mind I have decided that buying and re-selling is a rental scheme (ie if I get to play a guitar, it cost me £xxx to do so) - pretty obvious that I am not in it for the money !!

Aside from entrepreneurs ridiculously speculating for the future, I think ebay does allow market value to find its level - isn't it inevitable ? To the OP, I am sure we have all experienced being outbid, and that is why ebay works (you had a ceiling at the given time, and the buyer's was higher. Perhaps they were prepared to go even another £100 higher - you will never know). 

I would hope (and I may be misguided) that the small businesses hoovering up gear will either find they cannot shift at their prices, or the market is too slow for them. Which hopefully may limit the amount they are prepared to invest.

Sassafras

ronnyb said:

There are scammers on all types of buying and selling platforms. Mrs R has been hankering after a dog for ages and the price of them has skyrocketed since the pandemic began. The night before last she saw some puppies, Yorkiepoos i think they were on Pets 4 homes. £1500. There was one left so she messaged the seller to see if it was still available and received a quick reply to say that it was. Problem is it's about 100 miles away, current travel restrictions etc. Our son in law sometimes travels there on business and happens to be going next week so it was agreed that if it was still for sale he would see the dog and leave a deposit. Last night she checks the ad to see if it is still listed and it was, but it's now £2k. No reply from the seller when she messaged her, surprise surprise.  

Wouldn't it be better to get a rescue dog?

ronnyb

Sassafras said:

ronnyb said:

There are scammers on all types of buying and selling platforms. Mrs R has been hankering after a dog for ages and the price of them has skyrocketed since the pandemic began. The night before last she saw some puppies, Yorkiepoos i think they were on Pets 4 homes. £1500. There was one left so she messaged the seller to see if it was still available and received a quick reply to say that it was. Problem is it's about 100 miles away, current travel restrictions etc. Our son in law sometimes travels there on business and happens to be going next week so it was agreed that if it was still for sale he would see the dog and leave a deposit. Last night she checks the ad to see if it is still listed and it was, but it's now £2k. No reply from the seller when she messaged her, surprise surprise.  

Wouldn't it be better to get a rescue dog?

Yes we've looked into that with all the local rescue centres but they always seem to be either old, too big or difficult to handle and we've got 3 young grandchildren. 

gazrichards

ronnyb said:

Sassafras said:

ronnyb said:

There are scammers on all types of buying and selling platforms. Mrs R has been hankering after a dog for ages and the price of them has skyrocketed since the pandemic began. The night before last she saw some puppies, Yorkiepoos i think they were on Pets 4 homes. £1500. There was one left so she messaged the seller to see if it was still available and received a quick reply to say that it was. Problem is it's about 100 miles away, current travel restrictions etc. Our son in law sometimes travels there on business and happens to be going next week so it was agreed that if it was still for sale he would see the dog and leave a deposit. Last night she checks the ad to see if it is still listed and it was, but it's now £2k. No reply from the seller when she messaged her, surprise surprise.  

Wouldn't it be better to get a rescue dog?

Yes we've looked into that with all the local rescue centres but they always seem to be either old, too big or difficult to handle and we've got 3 young grandchildren. 

Or.......
get a shit load of dogs from rescue centres and sell them for 2 grand each online!

Logie

I see a business opportunity

ronnyb

gazrichards said:

ronnyb said:

Sassafras said:

ronnyb said:

There are scammers on all types of buying and selling platforms. Mrs R has been hankering after a dog for ages and the price of them has skyrocketed since the pandemic began. The night before last she saw some puppies, Yorkiepoos i think they were on Pets 4 homes. £1500. There was one left so she messaged the seller to see if it was still available and received a quick reply to say that it was. Problem is it's about 100 miles away, current travel restrictions etc. Our son in law sometimes travels there on business and happens to be going next week so it was agreed that if it was still for sale he would see the dog and leave a deposit. Last night she checks the ad to see if it is still listed and it was, but it's now £2k. No reply from the seller when she messaged her, surprise surprise.  

Wouldn't it be better to get a rescue dog?

Yes we've looked into that with all the local rescue centres but they always seem to be either old, too big or difficult to handle and we've got 3 young grandchildren. 

Or.......
get a shit load of dogs from rescue centres and sell them for 2 grand each online!

Nobody would buy my grandchildren, they're a bit unruly.

Voxman

BeardyAndy said:

For every flipper, there's an anti-flipper like me. 

I keep buying guitars to flip but keep forgetting to sell them!

Yup...It's a common condition called GAS; I'm afraid there's no vaccine for that one!