Diamond Lifetime
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I have noticed this quite a bit lately. Someone asking more than retail for a used (or new, but not from a retailer) item.
I understand folks want to get the most they can for something, but what makes you think its worth more from you than the factory?
Another one I dont get is how someone thinks that all the accessory's and extras you added raise the price of a firearm dollar for dollar. As a general rule the more extras and custom a thing is the less of the invested dough your going to recoup. Its just the way it is. It does not matter if its a car, a boat, a house or a firearm. There are a very few exceptions, like if what you have is rare or collectable, but as a general rule the money you spend your not going to get back. AR's are good examples. If you buy a basic AR for $600 and leave it alone and put a few hundred rounds though it you can probably get $500 or even $550 for it used. If you by a $2000 AR and put $2500 worth of optics, custom bits and extras on it your going to be real lucky to get $2500 and even that is going to be tough. The vast majority of people are going to see that they could buy a new one for $2000, most of that expensive crap you added on there is not stuff that they want anyway. They will pay a little extra but thinking your going to get $4250 for this used custom rifle that has a base price of $2000 new is delusional.
Just poking around this morning there where two that stuck out. One was a stock, used without the box. I clicked on the link and the price is almost 50% higher than the one I just ordered of the same make and style new from PSA
The other had a link right to the manufactures page with the price on the manufactures page lower than their asking price. Hu? Why would you put a link in your listing showing a price LOWER than what your asking?
Firearms as a general rule seem to be priced high. One of the things I think is most folks are not able to discern how much a firearm has been used. This fall I was looking for a M&P full size 9MM. They are pretty hard to come by used so just about any that popped up I inquired about. A new one with two mags can be had for less than $500. A used one popped up with three mags and a holster the guy was asking $500 for but a few messages and he said he would take $450. So I go to look at this thing. It is in the worst condition of any modern handgun I have ever seen. finish is gone in several places, pitting and rust. rifling almost not existent and pitting showing in the barrel. Much of the plastic gone just from wear. Sights banged on with what must have been a steel punch, a nick the size of a finish nail in the barrel crown. Just astounding. It had to have had 15,000 rounds through it and been carried by a knuckle head for most of a decade. Actual value of the pistol was probably in the $150-$200 range, which even that is a testament to how strong resale value is. For most tools in that condition the value would be its weight in scrap. The guy was incredulous when I told him I would not give him the agreed upon $450. All I could think was "are you serious? Do you honestly think this shot out rusted hunk of metal is worth within $50 on a brand spankin new one?"
Am I just a cheap bastard? I honestly feel like a person can ask what ever they want for something. Its theirs, the market will determine if they are pricing it right. However I also feel compelled from time to time to just send a "What the hell are you thinking?" message, even though I know it wont do anything but piss the person off.
I understand folks want to get the most they can for something, but what makes you think its worth more from you than the factory?
Another one I dont get is how someone thinks that all the accessory's and extras you added raise the price of a firearm dollar for dollar. As a general rule the more extras and custom a thing is the less of the invested dough your going to recoup. Its just the way it is. It does not matter if its a car, a boat, a house or a firearm. There are a very few exceptions, like if what you have is rare or collectable, but as a general rule the money you spend your not going to get back. AR's are good examples. If you buy a basic AR for $600 and leave it alone and put a few hundred rounds though it you can probably get $500 or even $550 for it used. If you by a $2000 AR and put $2500 worth of optics, custom bits and extras on it your going to be real lucky to get $2500 and even that is going to be tough. The vast majority of people are going to see that they could buy a new one for $2000, most of that expensive crap you added on there is not stuff that they want anyway. They will pay a little extra but thinking your going to get $4250 for this used custom rifle that has a base price of $2000 new is delusional.
Just poking around this morning there where two that stuck out. One was a stock, used without the box. I clicked on the link and the price is almost 50% higher than the one I just ordered of the same make and style new from PSA
The other had a link right to the manufactures page with the price on the manufactures page lower than their asking price. Hu? Why would you put a link in your listing showing a price LOWER than what your asking?
Firearms as a general rule seem to be priced high. One of the things I think is most folks are not able to discern how much a firearm has been used. This fall I was looking for a M&P full size 9MM. They are pretty hard to come by used so just about any that popped up I inquired about. A new one with two mags can be had for less than $500. A used one popped up with three mags and a holster the guy was asking $500 for but a few messages and he said he would take $450. So I go to look at this thing. It is in the worst condition of any modern handgun I have ever seen. finish is gone in several places, pitting and rust. rifling almost not existent and pitting showing in the barrel. Much of the plastic gone just from wear. Sights banged on with what must have been a steel punch, a nick the size of a finish nail in the barrel crown. Just astounding. It had to have had 15,000 rounds through it and been carried by a knuckle head for most of a decade. Actual value of the pistol was probably in the $150-$200 range, which even that is a testament to how strong resale value is. For most tools in that condition the value would be its weight in scrap. The guy was incredulous when I told him I would not give him the agreed upon $450. All I could think was "are you serious? Do you honestly think this shot out rusted hunk of metal is worth within $50 on a brand spankin new one?"
Am I just a cheap bastard? I honestly feel like a person can ask what ever they want for something. Its theirs, the market will determine if they are pricing it right. However I also feel compelled from time to time to just send a "What the hell are you thinking?" message, even though I know it wont do anything but piss the person off.