General expectations - of what you would truly get- when $ selling your gear

[rjgiddings]

This thread is just more of a head check for sellers and potential sellers- on Scubaboard.

I'm seeing a lot of classified ads here and Offer Up, FB Marketplace and Craigslist for dive gear.

The prices that people think their gear will sell for - is roughly 40%-50 % higher than reality.

I really think there's a few factors in play which harvested some surreal twilight zone price listings.

First is our natural desire to re-coup as much as possible on this very expensive stuff we love and don't wanna lose too much when we do decide to sell.

Second is the weird behavior that eBay has incubated/ manifested over the last 20 + years of their items having this perceived worth.

It's eBay that's spent millions in getting customers to start bidding soon, then changing their business model to show Buy It Now options, and Best Offer options.

Third - is a close relation to two - and that is the Internet made our sellers platform (audience) so much larger than ever before in the history of commerce.

I remember economics 101 from my college days- so- yes the market determines whatever it will bear.
Things go up, things come back down. Capitalism, free market economy, and straight up greed all comes in to play. I get it.

Some items - because of their coveted nature will maintain a high value - Shearwater Perdix AI is one of those items.
A really nice dive light will always be a high demand item.

But selling practically everything else; read: fins, wetsuits, tanks, weights, masks, snorkels, drysuits, and most reg sets out there -
can be easily found at a garage sale down the street especially in the springtime. Even more so if it's heavy like tanks and weights.

Or like in 2009 when the economy tanked people were selling off dive gear like it was kryptonite.
First thing that goes when dad loses his job ? Yeah - the play items go first. And at basement prices.

Some websites are just designed and written to be so inclusive they provide really little insight on market value.
Criagslist is possibly the worst of the bunch. Offerup is only slightly better. Then FB marketplace.
Then eBay is just all over the place. Sometimes a win - sometimes a dud.

Scubaboard - because it's divers selling to other divers - is in my opinion the best of the bunch. By a mile.

And yet - I still see people asking for top dollar on some of their used gear.

Anyhoo...I had to throw this out there.

Best,
Jim

 

[lexvil]

It really depends, if you have desired stuff it will get a higher % return but now days shipping is a big factor, some bulky stuff like fins aren’t worth the cost of shipping them. I’ve started tossing a lot of gear in the trash that won’t fit into a flat rate box.

 

[hedonist222]

While I realize that you're expressing an opinion, ultimately though, the market determines the price. If it's selling, then that's an acceptable price.

I usually price my used items as following:

Retail price today minus 20% to 30%.

Because I take care of my things & sell before it becomes obsolete.

I never sell below 30% reduced from retail unless it's really old or really worn out.

 

[Wibble]

Depends what you're selling. A lot of the common kit -- BCDs -- are only worth a fraction of the new price. Obviously it's up to whatever the buyer will pay and inexperienced buyers will tend to pay a lot more than experienced buyers.

Less common kit tends to keep a fairly high price. Specialist torches, camera kit (as long as it's not outdated), rebreather parts... all have a lot higher residual value.

Same with highly regarded branded kit -- e.g. Halcyon, Shearwater -- will be a lot more second hand than the mass market stuff.

Personal kit -- masks, wetsuits tend to not hold their value. Drysuits are a big gamble with fit and leaking.

Safety kit -- regulators -- must factor in a service. Until you know better, assume you'll be taking it for a service. The new shiny crap from all the manufacturers is a simple rip-off. All regulators work, all quality regulators anyway. Just because ScubaPro/Apeks/Mares/whoever thinks that they can change the colour and charge double is just a tax on fashionistas.

The reason ScubaBoard is good is it's full of "experts" who will point out if something looks wrong, hopefully helping a naive buyer.


And for newbies: the prices in the local dive shops are silly. Second hand stuff saves you a fortune, especially the common kit. You don't need a shiny new BCD when a second hand one for 20% of the new price will do just fine -- it's a bag of gas; inflate it and it shouldn't leak.

Tanks/cylinders... It's all about the test. If it's out of test you MUST GET A GUARANTEE from the seller that you get a refund should it sell. A scrap cylinder is worthless. The cost of a test -- plus rumble -- must be factored in to the price. Often a well-priced new cylinder is better value than a second-hand one, especially as there's no worries about testing.


The the final rule: whenever you need something there's never one available second hand. So keep an eye out for a bargain, they do come up when you're least expecting it.

 

[Marie13]

Apeks regs, Halycon BP/W, SP regs, Shearwater Perdix Ai/Teric/Peregrine & related transmitters hold their value.

In my area, used HP100 tanks always go quickly.

Anything unusual that’s desirable goes quickly - Halcyon short BP comes to mine. Mine sold quickly and for about $175, IIRC. New was $250ish at the time.

 

[rjgiddings]

All good points here. And yes, certainly everything I type is my own opinion.
I've been looking at/ buying/ selling dive gear since before I even started scuba...so 20 + years ago.

I've seen people asking just top dollar for very used gear and it makes me raise eyebrows like Mr. Spock every time.

Few years ago...I went to visit an instructor/ friend Peter ( down in Olympia ) and he was clearing out his inventory of sets of tech gear back plates/ wings/ SMBs because he had stopped teaching and just had way too many sets - not being used- so of course his prices were good. (I didn't even buy anything but just chatting w/ him was great.)

I've seen CL ads where the seller was asking for $600 for four steel tanks, saying they were all the same size when clearly the tanks were visibly totally different sizes. Some little 72's, (?) and none were in hydro.

If you have a dry suit that's even 10 dives old - just please don't think it will fetch close to the original MSRP. It's fantasy land.

 

[Wibble]

I've seen CL ads where the seller was asking for $600 for four steel tanks, saying they were all the same size when clearly the tanks were visibly totally different sizes. Some little 72's, (?) and none were in hydro.

Main thing is that the seller knows what they're selling. As with any specialist bit of kit, unless you're part of the community, there's a load of ignorance around it. For some reason an ignorant person will get offended when you offer to take away an out-of-test cylinder and expect them to pay you to dispose of it

I keep away from them.


Another place, I hear, is the faecesbook "kit for sale" threads. Would help if I were a member but I'd sooner stab myself in the leg.

 

[Alfa13]

It seems harder and harder to find a reasonable seller/listing on Facebook marketplace nowadays. If the asking price is too close to the MSRP when new, I'd rather buy through a retailer who can at least offer me a return policy or some product support.

 

[Marie13]

A lot of the gear I see for sale on Craigslist is old crap from the the 80s. Maybe it’s kids clearing out their parents’ stuff, but I’ve seen stupid prices. A sure sign that an aluminum tank might be junk is a Dacor sticker.

 

[Bob DBF]

The prices that people think their gear will sell for - is roughly 40%-50 % higher than reality.

Or much more. A lot of really old gear priced as new. Most times due to the seller having no idea what it's worth. Some will listen to reason, others will own it forever.

Main thing is that the seller knows what they're selling. As with any specialist bit of kit, unless you're part of the community, there's a load of ignorance around it. For some reason an ignorant person will get offended when you offer to take away an out-of-test cylinder and expect them to pay you to dispose of it

I keep away from them.

A two way street, I've found a lot of deals because the seller had no idea what it was worth and undervalued it. The biggest edge one can have is to know what you are looking at, how much it is actually worth, having the cash in hand, and patience.

I was looking for one piece of gear on ebay, for months people were asking stupid prices. Eventually the demand was met and I picked it up for a less than reasonable price.

Craigslist offers have been good because one gets a chance to deal with the seller, more than once I've left a card and been called back because no one else was really interested.