# Is gear selling in a slump?



## 67mike (Feb 20, 2014)

Just curious if anyone is finding the gear selling market quite dead?

I mean more dead than the usual Feb/March/Apr slowdown?


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

I recently sold pedals, some went quick, very quick on here and TGP, and some still sit. Did some price checking to make sure I was on par and reasonable before listing. I feel like the market is about the same as always but that could just be me and it probably depends on what is being sold. It's easier to get the smaller items gone.


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## Guest (Apr 10, 2014)

Maybe people are waiting on tax returns. lol.
My ad's been dormant for a few days, but, I did 
sell three guitars so far (inexpensive to mid range). 
The rest will be going with me to the Elmira guitar show.


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## 67mike (Feb 20, 2014)

Man I am trying to sell a couple guitars....and it is a dead zone.....even giving away a pristine guitar for less than half of what they are asking on ebay is getting minimal response....well one guy in GTA area who is afraid to buy anything he cannot fondle in person.


I will give it a bit more time....then I guess it will be off to Feebay....I know they will go there...just don't like them or Paypal.

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laristotle said:


> Maybe people are waiting on tax returns. lol.
> My ad's been dormant for a few days, but, I did
> sell three guitars so far (inexpensive to mid range).
> The rest will be going with me to the Elmira guitar show.



Nice.....wish I lived closer.....because I am trying to sell an "off brand", you know not Gibson or Fender.....and people would blow a gasket if they see and touch these guitars (custom shop Peavey USA)....they SMOKE my Gibbo's and Fenders.


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

laristotle said:


> Maybe people are waiting on tax returns. lol.


Got mine and it was a gooder, would love to buy a Swart or a LP Historic but some tail end reno work on the house needs to be done.


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## 67mike (Feb 20, 2014)

vadsy said:


> Got mine and it was a gooder, would love to buy a Swart or a LP Historic but some tail end reno work on the house needs to be done.




My return is going to a massive mountain of debt........plus I have to now cover a Les Paul Standard and some recording gear that are in the mail to me......:sSig_DOH:


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

On the other side of selling I'm doing a decent job of buying so I'm contributing that way. Picking up something on the used market this afternoon and have a couple of wanted ads up. When it comes to pedals I'm a sucker and will continue to nickel and dime myself out of the larger purchases. Idiot!


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## 67mike (Feb 20, 2014)

vadsy said:


> On the other side of selling I'm doing a decent job of buying so I'm contributing that way. Picking up something on the used market this afternoon and have a couple of wanted ads up. When it comes to pedals I'm a sucker and will continue to nickel and dime myself out of the larger purchases. Idiot!




I need to stay off the internet......when will I learn.....I cannot help myself with this GAS.....I have a Les Paul Standard on teh way......I already have a shit-load of very nice guitars....why, oh why?????:sSig_help:


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## blam (Feb 18, 2011)

market seems hit and miss these days.

I tried trading(or selling) one of my guitars the last couple weeks with no luck so I just pulled it.

I'm on a new kick where I'm not allowing myself to bring in more gear without letting some go


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## 67mike (Feb 20, 2014)

blam said:


> market seems hit and miss these days.
> 
> I tried trading(or selling) one of my guitars the last couple weeks with no luck so I just pulled it.
> 
> I'm on a new kick where I'm not allowing myself to bring in more gear without letting some go



I think this is a big slump....for us normal income folks....disposable income is at an alltime low. The wealthy are doing better than ever....but they tend to buy new.

That is what I have done over the past 3 or 4 yrs....buy/sell/upgrade....guess I have done a good $50K or so in gear transactions over that time.


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## Budda (May 29, 2007)

67mike said:


> Just curious if anyone is finding the gear selling market quite dead?
> 
> I mean more dead than the usual Feb/March/Apr slowdown?


I dunno, but no one seems interested in my partscaster and my boutique delay took a month and a bit to sell.


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## shoretyus (Jan 6, 2007)

Flat.... I have received a couple of lowballs on my gretsch... no interest at ALL in a custom guitar I made with JS moores.... silly they lose I guess.
No interest in any thing else I have listed


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## blam (Feb 18, 2011)

I'm finding the used market is pretty dry here in edmonton as well.

mind you, im not keeping a close watch on it these days


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

I couple of recent conversations with a fellow Forum member here trying to sell some bigger items. He is either giving it away for peanuts or not having any luck at all. The gear is very nice and well priced but folks are not buying when it comes to the bigger stuff it seems. That's just an observation I haven't sold anything large in a long time.


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## blam (Feb 18, 2011)

vadsy said:


> I couple of recent conversations with a fellow Forum member here trying to sell some bigger items. He is either giving it away for peanuts or not having any luck at all. The gear is very nice and well priced but folks are not buying when it comes to the bigger stuff it seems. That's just an observation I haven't sold anything large in a long time.


I've noticed the odd nicer items on the jiji lately that dont really move. on the same note, lots of cheap stuff way over priced.

i even inquired about some PA speakers the other day the seller wanted $700...they were 500 new...


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

blam said:


> I've noticed the odd nicer items on the jiji lately that dont really move. on the same note, lots of cheap stuff way over priced.
> 
> i even inquired about some PA speakers the other day the seller wanted $700...they were 500 new...


Exactly, very true, same old....etc.


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## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

I don't know about stuff selling, but there sure has been an explosion of gear for sale in these parts lately - I guess everyone is trying to pay their taxes...

I know if I had some extra money right now, I'd be buying.


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## blam (Feb 18, 2011)

I agree with most of what you said there.

some of my latest gear purchases have been kind of modeled around that train of thought as well.

boutique stuff has such a small market now especially with major brands catching onto why these companies exist and putting out higher end stuff to compete


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## guitarman2 (Aug 25, 2006)

I sold quite a bit of my gear in the past month. Some went super fast and some I got no bites. I am very happy that the pedals I have left didn't sell as I decided they will fit in to a new more compact board I am building. Sometimes its a blessing when certain things don't sell.


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## blam (Feb 18, 2011)

im finding boutique pedals are incredibly hard to move these days, personally.


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

blam said:


> im finding boutique pedals are incredibly hard to move these days, personally.


It was the opposite for me in the last round of purging, the boutique went in less than 24 hours on TGP and the Line 6 has been listed for close to 24 days between Kijiji and the Forums. I think it finally sold in the last 20 minutes though.


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## Merlin (Feb 23, 2009)

I've had some quick turnovers lately, and some not so quick. I sold some Tech21 character pedals quite easily, also an Artcore hollowbody. Sold a Protone Strat that took quite some time. Still have 3 amps for sale. 

Part of it is location; not many folks want to make the trek to Stratford. I see comparable gear fetching more money in T.O. because it's close to the prospective buyers.

I did manage to score a deal myself on the Epi Sheraton I bought. Didn't mind the round trip to Goderich 'cos it was such a deal.


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## blam (Feb 18, 2011)

vadsy said:


> It was the opposite for me in the last round of purging, the boutique went in less than 24 hours on TGP and the Line 6 has been listed for close to 24 days between Kijiji and the Forums. I think it finally sold in the last 20 minutes though.


i usually dont post on TGP. maybe I should more often.


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

blam said:


> i usually dont post on TGP. maybe I should more often.


Totally should, the dollar being the way it is and the shipping being dirt cheap to the States plus the market, can't go wrong in my opinion.


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## Budda (May 29, 2007)

nkjanssen said:


> Some random thoughts...
> 
> The guitar market is changing generally. Firstly, there just aren't as many people picking up guitar today as there once were. So the market of potential buyers is shrinking. That affects everything. The vintage guitar market will never recover to where it was five or ten years ago because it was largely fueled by a demographic who are getting older, retiring and now have less disposable income and those buyers aren't being replaced by younger buyers. As for high-end boutique guitars and amps, part of the problem is that there is a lot of really good inexpensive stuff being made these days. I used to own some very expensive pieces. I still do own one. But, personally, I can't see myself ever spending more than around $1,500 on any guitar in the future. There are just too many great instruments in that price range and below. As for custom-made or heavily-modded stuff, there's never been a strong market for that. If you're upgrading a guitar, expect to lose 100% of your upgrade costs if and when you sell it. Sure, it's upgraded, but it's also now non-original. The market won't pay you for that. Built it yourself? Unless you're a famous builder, you'll be lucky to get your parts costs out of it. Again, that's always been the case though.
> 
> Obviously the above is completely generalized. Lots of individual exceptions, but on a macro-level I think my observations hold true.


Completely agree. Priced my guitar aggressively with all those factors in mind, and the guy who showed up to try it didnt take it - i hadnt tuned it before handing it to him. Priced well within reason and still pretty much no bites. Losing enough on it as is, I don't want to practically give it away either.


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## 10409 (Dec 11, 2011)

i've never had a problem selling any gear...but when i decide i want to sell something i price it to sell. if you're selling something for an "average" price expect to wait. to my experience most people don't buy things that they aren't confident they could easily resell for the same price (or more) if the need arises.


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## Budda (May 29, 2007)

mike_oxbig said:


> i've never had a problem selling any gear...but when i decide i want to sell something i price it to sell. if you're selling something for an "average" price expect to wait. to my experience most people don't buy things that they aren't confident they could easily resell for the same price (or more) if the need arises.


Maybe I need to list in Ottawa? $500 guitar plus $150 in parts for $300 doesnt move lol


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## guitarman2 (Aug 25, 2006)

Budda said:


> Completely agree. Priced my guitar aggressively with all those factors in mind, and the guy who showed up to try it didnt take it - i hadnt tuned it before handing it to him. Priced well within reason and still pretty much no bites. Losing enough on it as is, I don't want to practically give it away either.



Yeah not tuning it before a viewing is a no no. :smiley-faces-75:


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## 10409 (Dec 11, 2011)

Budda said:


> Maybe I need to list in Ottawa? $500 guitar plus $150 in parts for $300 doesnt move lol


pretty well anything half price is a guaranteed quick sale here


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## blam (Feb 18, 2011)

guitarman2 said:


> Yeah not tuning it before a viewing is a no no. :smiley-faces-75:


not tuning a guitar before playing is a no no.....:smiley-faces-75:


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## 10409 (Dec 11, 2011)

My latest sale was an older blueridge. I wasn't playing much this winter, and when i finally opened the case my humidifier had dried up and there were 3 cracks in the top. I made this perfectly clear in the ad, and listed it for 400$ or about 1/3rd of the retail value. it literally sold in half an hour.


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## blam (Feb 18, 2011)

nkjanssen said:


> $150 in upgrades/parts = $0 market value
> $500 guitar (used and not original condition) = $250 to $300 market value
> 
> I'd say $300 is probably on the high end of an average fair market price for that. Not great; not bad. Just average.
> ...


I personally aim to get for 70% for higher end items, higher if it's something I know never pops up on kijiji.. 60% for lower end stuff. I try to buy at 60-70% MSRP as well.


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## Budda (May 29, 2007)

nkjanssen said:


> $150 in upgrades/parts = $0 market value
> $500 guitar (used and not original condition) = $250 to $300 market value
> 
> I'd say $300 is probably on the high end of an average fair market price for that. Not great; not bad. Just average.
> ...


i know i wont get upgrade costs back (luckily those were minimal). But i see listings of similar guitar, stock, older, asking $400 and no one bats an eye. So I list mine at what I would pay for a stock one. It's the zero bites that blows my mind more than the lack of sale.


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## doriangrey (Mar 29, 2011)

If gear selling is in a slump it's sure not my fault...bought lotsa stuff lately...bought a guitar off craigslist today...damn I have to stop doing that...not sure what the wife will say when I get home...she doesn't notice new pedals but it's hard to hide a guitar...but it was only $200 so should be ok...

I think once people start getting tax return cash back more gear will start to sell...


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## Adcandour (Apr 21, 2013)

vadsy said:


> Got mine and it was a gooder, would love to buy a Swart or a LP Historic but some tail end reno work on the house needs to be done.


Let me reno the house, so I can use your money to buy some gear. Yikes, read the fine print for my travel costs.


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## Adcandour (Apr 21, 2013)

I find that my boutique pedals move pretty quick. These did too:

My fender with an amateur neck repair



And my custom Shitar (with poop brown finish):


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## bluzfish (Mar 12, 2011)

adcandour said:


> I find that my boutique pedals move pretty quick. These did too:
> 
> My fender with an amateur neck repair


Oh, no! Not another Fender Bender!!!


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## smorgdonkey (Jun 23, 2008)

I vote for major slump...but then again, I live in Nova Scotia where everything is in a slump. I mentioned somewhere that a few weeks ago a Seagull S6 was on kijiji for about 4 or 5 days for $150...including a hard shell case. A normal market would have that gone in hours or definitely the same day.


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## Disbeat (Jul 30, 2011)

The past few months i've actually had a lot more luck on kijiji in Halifax then I have on Guitars Canada. But it's still painful dealing on kijiji for the most part.


smorgdonkey said:


> I vote for major slump...but then again, I live in Nova Scotia where everything is in a slump. I mentioned somewhere that a few weeks ago a Seagull S6 was on kijiji for about 4 or 5 days for $150...including a hard shell case. A normal market would have that gone in hours or definitely the same day.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

I don't have much luck selling here



Maybe because I work in sales, I don't work hard on this site to sell things, but most things I offer for sale here remain unsold.

That's ok though. I don't come here just to peddle things.


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## marcos (Jan 13, 2009)

Been selling a few items in the past months. Sometimes its about being lucky and getting the right buyer at the right time. Most of the stuff i sold was below 200.00 anyways so that could be a factor.


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## Mooh (Mar 7, 2007)

Selling privately or on consignment at the local mom'n'pop music shop has been slower for me in the last couple of years. I get things moving with lower prices and extra advertising through Facebook and my business, but I did take a bath on a couple of things just to get rid of them. Cautious buyers are the order of the day. I don't know what's worse, my own experience or listening to students and their parents endlessly obsess about models/prices/sales. 

Peace, Mooh.


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## 67mike (Feb 20, 2014)

Wow......just had a guy offer a PRS trade for my Peavey.....other than that...just a tire kicker.....SLOW, SLOW, SLOW. Posting one of my Gibson's just to see what is what in the market....if that doesn't move.....hmmmm scary.


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## J-75 (Jul 29, 2010)

nkjanssen said:


> Some random thoughts...
> 
> The guitar market is changing generally. Firstly, there just aren't as many people picking up guitar today as there once were. So the market of potential buyers is shrinking. That affects everything. The vintage guitar market will never recover to where it was five or ten years ago because it was largely fueled by a demographic who are getting older, retiring and now have less disposable income and those buyers aren't being replaced by younger buyers. As for high-end boutique guitars and amps, part of the problem is that there is a lot of really good inexpensive stuff being made these days. I used to own some very expensive pieces. I still do own one. But, personally, I can't see myself ever spending more than around $1,500 on any guitar in the future. There are just too many great instruments in that price range and below. As for custom-made or heavily-modded stuff, there's never been a strong market for that. If you're upgrading a guitar, expect to lose 100% of your upgrade costs if and when you sell it. Sure, it's upgraded, but it's also now non-original. The market won't pay you for that. Built it yourself? Unless you're a famous builder, you'll be lucky to get your parts costs out of it. Again, that's always been the case though.
> 
> Obviously the above is completely generalized. Lots of individual exceptions, but on a macro-level I think my observations hold true.


I don't get it when someone buys a $3-4K guitar and changes out the pickups right away. First, do you think a company would not consider the best choice in pickups for one of their higher-end instruments? Part of a guitar's perceived value lies in the way it sounds - that's what supports its resale value. If it didn't _sound_ good to the original buyer, why did he buy it?


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## Disbeat (Jul 30, 2011)

Gibson, or other mass produced guitar builders best choice for pickups they make as opposed to other pickups available on the market are 2 different things.


J-75 said:


> I don't get it when someone buys a $3-4K guitar and changes out the pickups right away. First, do you think a company would not consider the best choice in pickups for one of their higher-end instruments? Part of a guitar's perceived value lies in the way it sounds - that's what supports its resale value. If it didn't _sound_ good to the original buyer, why did he buy it?


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## Stonehead (Nov 12, 2013)

I listed my no so beloved Gibby 339 and got a ton (50+) of responses on Kijiji. There were the usual low-balling & junk dealing offers but ended up doing a trade + cash for killer G&L ASAT "S" in mint condition. If you are looking for cash only then things can take time. If your willing to mix it up and trade +/- cash then the market opens up to a larger crowd.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

There are effectively three gear markets: the collector/vintage market, the seriously player market, and the entry market.

The vintage market started slowing down a half dozen years ago or so, and was slowed even further by the bog flood in Nashville that resulted in many salvaged instruments entering the market and lowering prices. The 2008 crash didn't help either.

If it appears the market for beginners and post-novice player gear has tanked, it probably has more to do with the glut of decent affordable stuff lining everybody's basement and bedroom. When we ask folks here how many guitars they have, it is exceedingly rare that they say "one". Folks have a half dozen or more guitars, and a couple of amps, at least. So when they decide to cull the herd, that is a LOT of gear that enters the market.

Maybe some of you are too young to remember, but there was a time when one would look for 2nd hand gear in the local newspaper classifieds, or the Pennysaver. If 3 or 4 instruments showed up in those ads during a given week, in a city of 500,000, it was a bloody _landslide_. I contrast that with the number of gear ads that pop up on Kijiji or Craigslist, and its like day and night. So the "problem" is that there are many more owners and sellers than there are "wanters" and buyers.


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

I would agree that opening it up for trades possibilities adds to the chances of moving gear. I had a pedal listed for 2-3 weeks without much luck but after adding a few things I'd like to try it went overnight with a waiting list even. It's fun to trade, you get to try something new and it could end up being a pleasant surprise plus you don't see the cash leave the bank account.


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## Stonehead (Nov 12, 2013)

vadsy said:


> It's fun to trade, you get to try something new and it could end up being a pleasant surprise plus you don't see the cash leave the bank account.


This is what happened to me last week when i traded my 339. I was in the market for a Tele and probably would of never considered G&L until this guy brought it over to trade. Out of the 6 Tele's I have owned in the past this is without a doubt the best one I have ever played. Just an extremely well sounding & well built instrument, I would easily say its on par with a Fender CS. 
Although I'm technically still in the honeymoon phase I don't see this one ever leaving my hands.


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## rhh7 (Mar 14, 2008)

I am sitting here this morning with $630 burning a hole in my pocket. This is the result of the past 3 weeks of feverish wheeling and dealing on my local kijiji. Things are not moving well, so it's a challenge. But it's been educational, and lots of fun! I have had to resort to parting out several Squiers, which are apparently worth more dead than alive. I have had great luck cashing out the loaded bodies, leaving me little or nothing in the loaded necks. I also sold one Squier Tele loaded neck, and a couple of small tube heads, which had sat in my basement untouched for years.


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## kat_ (Jan 11, 2007)

I'm currently trying to sell some stuff that's just plain difficult to move. I'm helping a friend sell a high-end 5-string electric violin. Now there's a limited market. Cheapy 4-string electrics seems to be popular with kids but this is the kind of thing that will have a wait for a gigging fiddle player. I fully expect it to sit on Kijiji for months, but eventually the right person will find it. I've posted one of my G&Ls too, to try to offset the cost of recent car problems. It'll probably take quite a while too.


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## Swervin55 (Oct 30, 2009)

I've tried to sell nice stuff for less than reasonable prices with little to no success in the past year. I don't have a lot of patience for low ballers, scammers and punks that don't show up and probably never had the money in the first place. Trades don't work for me when the motivation is to shed unused gear so I've taken up the art of gifting. Yes, you would want to be my friend as I have given away some nice gear in the past year. I can imagine how this sounds, but it is truly rewarding when the recipient is appreciative.


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## vadsy (Dec 2, 2010)

Swervin55 said:


> Yes, you would want to be my friend as I have given away some nice gear in the past year. I can imagine how this sounds, but it is truly rewarding when the recipient is appreciative.


Ahem...hmm..hmm... sorry, just clearing my throat.

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Kidding, you've been very kind, thank you.

- - - Updated - - -

I actually just put things down after a little practise, I'm sure you can guess what I've been using.


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## Stonehead (Nov 12, 2013)

Swervin55 said:


> . I can imagine how this sounds, but it is truly rewarding when the recipient is appreciative.


I do the same thing when we are "cleaning house". It isn't worth the hassle to haggle with strangers and all the kijiji goofs out there. So we just put it up for free. I know some people will just resell the stuff but its off my plate and out of my way. I know some of the people i have given things to really appreciate the gesture. I helped a older lady going to night school with a free laptop. It was an older unit but it did the trick for her. Gave another laptop to a guy who works for an eye glass charity so he could run some sort of software to grind the lenses. I also put up an ad last fall to give me your best "why i deserve this" story and gave away a mim strat. I actually got quite a few angry emails from people calling me names!!?? it was hilarious...Like you said it can be rewarding to help others.


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## bluzfish (Mar 12, 2011)

Swervin55 said:


> I've tried to sell nice stuff for less than reasonable prices with little to no success in the past year. I don't have a lot of patience for low ballers, scammers and punks that don't show up and probably never had the money in the first place. Trades don't work for me when the motivation is to shed unused gear so I've taken up the art of gifting. Yes, you would want to be my friend as I have given away some nice gear in the past year. I can imagine how this sounds, but it is truly rewarding when the recipient is appreciative.


I love buying gear but I hate selling anything so I am quite happy to pass things along when they no longer have any real value to me. If the item has monetary value, I'll try to get a few bucks out of it to fund my next purchase, but I can be just as happy to give an item to someone who actually wants it.

As a matter of fact I may be pulling an nkjanssen any day now... :smile-new:


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