I am always checking out the local online second hand websites for deals on gear. I have also used these sites to move gear, and other household stuff.

I often advertise things on kijiji and freecycle.org that I don't really want to try and sell but still has value for someone, so I put these items for free.

When my wife and I took possession of our current house 3 months ago, we inherited a series of appliances that while working were older. We have had a heck of a time getting rid of this stuff. People who want free dryers, fridges etc. are far too picky! I actually had a person ask if I could deliver it to them.

Gear wise I just had a guy call about a $10 tuner and wanted to know if I could drive for 45min to take it to him.

Do you folks find this sort of mentality prevails in your area's as well? Is it just an prevailing attitude of wanting something for nothing?

Thoughts?

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CREDO ELVEM IPSUM ETAIM VIVERE

Yes and consider the motivators:

There will always be the greedy who are compelled to push as far as they can to get as much as they can for nothing or at the utmost expense of someone else. With these types, it appears to be a lifestyle.

There are those who feel they have been royally screwed over in life where they are bitter and now of the mindset that everything should and must come to them on their terms because of their personal history.

There are the narcissistic types who prey on sellers where 'getting over' is simply a 'must win' game to them where it isn't enough that they win but they must win by the biggest margin possible. These are often 'tire kickers' too. Meaning, they have no intentions of buying whatever you are selling but it is enough in their ever needing to be fed psyche that they totally forced you to cave in to their demands.

There are the sociopathic types. You know, the, "business is business" ilk who must get it as cheap as possible because they only equate the purchase with how much profit they can flip it for. There is absolutely no conscience involved.

Lastly, there are those who have the mentality where if you're trying to sell something, they are personally doing you a stranger, a huge favor by buying it from you because you put it up for sale and so, they should get it for next to nothing on 'general principle' as they supposedly went out of their way to respond to you.

When dealing with the general public for any reason, one must keep in mind that everyone doesn't think alike be it good, bad or indifferent (per our own perceptions, of course). Granted, many of our thought processes can and will be astounded by many others' where we simply cannot comprehend their's but what it all boils down to here is that our consternation doesn't change the reality where this conceptual door swings both ways. So, we must accept their reasoning process without necessarily understanding it and select one of the following choices as applicable: Put up with it, try to change it or get out of it as the bottom line usually is, we reached out to them on whatever level.

The above is why I rarely put up stuff for sale to the general public and prefer to stay well within my comfortable circles. When I do a transaction, I always endeavor for both the other person and myself to have a good feeling thereafter that we both got a good deal. Yea, I'm blowing my horn but I still feel that doing the right thing by others (and that includes perfect strangers too) is more important than money. I'm a firm believer in, "What goes around, comes around".

As always, this is merely IMO where YMMV.

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You dig?

Amazing what people will try to do.

Last year I put my Left Handed Gibson CS-336 up for sale on Craigslist for a very reasonable price ($2,200). I had one guy contact me and try to convince me that my Custom Shop 336 was worth less than an ES-335 and tried to get me to sell it to him for $800. When I turned down his offer he had a female friend of his contact me and offer me $1,000 and sexual services!! Again the offer was turned down.

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Chet Feathers

Authorized TonePros Dealer
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http://www.facebook.com/cafeathers


I didn't Lose my mind, I traded it for this guitar.

Martian why not tell us how you really feel.lol

I only buy on my ebay account and could never put up with the torture that a lot of people go through dealing with the majority of idiots out there.

LOLOL!

You meet the classiest people on C/L.