A bought a welder on Craigslist

[looch]

...and it was a super smooth deal, for a change.

I was looking for a DC stick welder and came across an ad on Craigslist for a Hobart Stickmate LX 225 AC/DC, with accessories. I emailed with questions, they responded, I emailed back with an offer, they accepted, I drove out to pick up my new-to-me welder. The gentleman - and I mean that in every sense of the word - retiree led me to his garage where there were exactly 3 things touching the immaculate, so-clean-you-could-eat-off-of-it floor: a generator, a compressor, and the welder. He included 2, 5-pound boxes of electrodes - each missing about a pound. That was the total quantity of sticks that this thing had seen. Also included, a 30' 6/3 extension cord he had made so that he could build the stairs to his back deck in place. Helmet, dolly, and chipping hammer were also thrown in. I quickly handed him my cash and loaded everything up, feeling like I just knocked over a convenience store.

I have been witness to the prevalence of absolute lunacy in the classified market. This was surreal - easy communications, correctly described product, open to reasonable offers - it felt like I had stepped through the looking glass.

To top it off, once I got home I checked my email to find a message from the seller thanking me for buying his welder. :confused2:

 

[ArlyA]

Good buy! At least if you don't find problems at a later date. You are correct that lots of people have an X for sale on CL but can't send a photo, don't know who manufactured it etc, etc. Lots of filtering must be done to find the widget..

 

[fried1765]

...and it was a super smooth deal, for a change.

I was looking for a DC stick welder and came across an ad on Craigslist for a Hobart Stickmate LX 225 AC/DC, with accessories. I emailed with questions, they responded, I emailed back with an offer, they accepted, I drove out to pick up my new-to-me welder. The gentleman - and I mean that in every sense of the word - retiree led me to his garage where there were exactly 3 things touching the immaculate, so-clean-you-could-eat-off-of-it floor: a generator, a compressor, and the welder. He included 2, 5-pound boxes of electrodes - each missing about a pound. That was the total quantity of sticks that this thing had seen. Also included, a 30' 6/3 extension cord he had made so that he could build the stairs to his back deck in place. Helmet, dolly, and chipping hammer were also thrown in. I quickly handed him my cash and loaded everything up, feeling like I just knocked over a convenience store.

I have been witness to the prevalence of absolute lunacy in the classified market. This was surreal - easy communications, correctly described product, open to reasonable offers - it felt like I had stepped through the looking glass.

To top it off, once I got home I checked my email to find a message from the seller thanking me for buying his welder. :confused2:

There are lots of us around, but.......we are from a different era......OLD!

 

[RNeumann]

Interesting- you wouldn’t have had a chance to buy from me. I only negotiate price in person. Glad it worked out for you.

 

[herm0016]

There are lots of us around, but.......we are from a different era......OLD!

It's this kind of thinking that keeps everyone else from believing there are good people in every generation.

have done lots of CL deals with all kinds of people. Most of them have been like the OP's.

sounds like you got a great deal.

 

[ArlyA]

Well gee, I'd say there are good people on CL selling from all age groups. And the same goes for the people who don't know what they are doing.....

It's this kind of thinking that keeps everyone else from believing there are good people in every generation.

have done lots of CL deals with all kinds of people. Most of them have been like the OP's.

sounds like you got a great deal.

 

[fried1765]

Interesting- you wouldn’t have had a chance to buy from me. I only negotiate price in person. Glad it worked out for you.

So why would I drive from anywhere USA to look at your item for sale, only to find that we could not agree on a price?
If we can first agree on a price,..... I may drive X number of miles to look at it.
If we cannot agree on a price, I will look elsewhere (and you loose a potential buyer).
From my perspective, North Idaho is not exactly close to anywhere, (Spokane?) and for many items, the potential very local buyer list would seem to be rather thin.

 

[RNeumann]

So why would I drive from anywhere USA to look at your item for sale, only to find that we could not agree on a price?
If we can first agree on a price,..... I may drive X number of miles to look at it.
If we cannot agree on a price, I will look elsewhere (and you loose a potential buyer).
From my perspective, North Idaho is not exactly close to anywhere, (Spokane?) and for many items, the potential very local buyer list would seem to be rather thin.

The price is listed in the ad.

 

[looch]

So why would I drive from anywhere USA to look at your item for sale, only to find that we could not agree on a price?
If we can first agree on a price,..... I may drive X number of miles to look at it.
If we cannot agree on a price, I will look elsewhere (and you loose a potential buyer).
From my perspective, North Idaho is not exactly close to anywhere, (Spokane?) and for many items, the potential very local buyer list would seem to be rather thin.

Yeah - the location was a little out of my way, on the island of Montreal. I'd rather eat a bag of hair than drive there. Also - even though I find it a little distasteful - the reality is that the majority of sellers pad their prices. The ones that don't are wise to put "firm" somewhere in their ad.

 

[Teachu2]

I've bought and sold on CL numerous times. When buying, I expect the seller to know very little about the item - because that is usually correct. If something is listed at $2901, but should be selling for $10,000, I don't bother calling. If there isn't a phone number (just a CL email) I usually won't consider it. When selling, I try to disclose every issue the item has. I give the reason I'm selling it. I clearly state my asking price, add FIRM or OBO depending on my intent, and describe that I'm 20 miles east of Bakersfield. I also add a paragraph relating to scammers, Western Union, shipping agents, checks, trades, CODs, and all that jazz.

Buyers can be just as bad. I had a 1980's Mitsubishi 23hp 4wd tractor for sale. I'd bought it used, and it worked fine with a 4' brush hog. A 5' one would cause it to overheat. It had 30 years of weathering on it. I put all that in the ad when I posted it on Sunday. Priced it accordingly, with OBO. Listed my cell phone number. Got an email from a person in Fresno (130 miles away) offering $500 more than my asking price if I'd deliver it to him. I said I would, but only with him sending me a $500 non-refundable deposit, since he refused to come see the tractor. I asked him to call me to discuss. More emails, wanting to know if it was in showroom condition, do all the idiot lights work, etc. I had a dozen pictures in the ad. I gave him detailed answers to all his questions, and sent close-up photos as well. After several emails back and forth, I got a call from a local guy who dabbles in buying and selling used tractors. Said he'd come up three days later if it was still available. I informed the guy in Fresno that I had another interested party, so make a decision. More emails wanting me to compare it to others he was considering, give him pros and cons, and make his decision for him. By Friday night, MY Idiot light was burning brightly.
Saturday morning, the local guy calls and sets an appointment to see it right after lunch. He shows up on time, looks it over, checks the oil, fires it up, and pulls out a wad of $100s. We came to an agreement, including my delivering it to him in town - about 40 miles one way. Hands me the money, gives me directions, and drives off in his mini-truck. An hour later, I unloaded the tractor at his place. He put it back on CL the next day at double the price, and sold it three months later for something less than that.
The week after it was sold, I got an email containing an angry rant from the guy in Fresno. He was distressed that I'd sold it to A DEALER. I told him I'd sold it to a BUYER! He was irate - a classic case of non-buyer's remorse. Had I not sold it, he'd still be asking questions. Three years later, I bet he still doesn't have a tractor....