Where did all the deals go?

[Rick Potter]

For the last couple years there have been numerous great deals on Craigs List for big tools. So here I am now actively looking for a good, used but not abused, left tilt Unisaw, and have struck out for the last couple weeks.

There are two really nice ones on CL....for $1500. Wow, that is about what they cost new, on sale. There is also one they want $3500 for, and another brand new one in the box for $2700. I want some of whatever they are smoking. I should have bought that like new left tilt General 350 that was listed for a month, at $1000 last year. Wonder what it sold for?

The deals have really dried up around here. How about other places??

Rick Potter

[Cary Falk]

There would have to be deals here first before they dry up. There is somebody here that wants $600 for a Dewalt 9" 925H Radial arm saw. It's not even restored. Good luck with that.

[Dan Hintz]

The economy has picked up some in the last couple of years... not a ton, but enough to allow people to hang onto their stuff longer.

[Stephen Cherry]

Good deals are random events so they come up randomly. You need to look every day (at least) for a period of time. When you least expect it, your machine will pop up. Also, the high priced machines may be worth an offer, but you may want to let the advertisement age for a while. (they could be scams though, in my area there are the normal scammers offering HF tools at "great" prices).

Don't forget fleabay, and auctionzip.

[Bill Rogers]

There are still plenty of deals for woodworking tools on CL here in south Florida. I was told that the south Florida economy has the biggest upside of anywhere in the country. However, that sounds to me like just another way of saying that our economy has sunken the deepest!

[Paul McGaha]

My prefered source for used tools is actually here on the creek in the classified section. I think it's pretty near a 100% chance you'll be treated fairly. I'm very confident the tools will be in the condition they were described to be in. I've made 3 purchases so far and they all went well. I've made 1 purchase from ebay and none from craigslist.

My kids seem to buy a fair amount from craigslist. My daughter bought a perfect condition Ethan Allen cherry table from Craigslist for $75.

It seems to me that there was a spike at our craigslist at the start of spring. Sort of a spring cleaning I suppose.

PHM

[Julian Tracy]

Thing is - unless you are checking CL on a multi-hour basis, you really have no idea whether deals have been there or not. Good deals don't last long, and most folks take their ads down quickly.

So this supposed lack of deals could simply be the fact that if you are only checking in the am and at night, you may well be passing up some really amazing deals.

I have CLpro on my iPhone and it's very easy to check every so often as it's near instantaneous. Call it my hobby - searching for deals. As a result, not much gets by me.

Remember - what an item sells for has little to do with it's worth and has everything to do with the seller's motivations.

Julian

[Dave Carteret]

Thing is - unless you are checking CL on a multi-hour basis, you really have no idea whether deals have been there or not. Good deals don't last long, and most folks take their ads down quickly.

That seems to be true. Best thing I've done while shopping for anything specific is create a good search in searchtempest and check it multiple times daily.
Go down the list and click the top item in any region, even if you're not interested in it. Reason is to change the color of that link. Then on your next check, it takes mere seconds to scan the list and see if there's a new link since the last time you looked. Hold ctrl while clicking links, they'll open in a new tab, you can close them quickly or look at them as needed. Pretty quick & simple.

[Salvatore Buscemi]

The way it works is, you go buy one for 1500, and when you get home another one will show up for 200. That's how it happens for me anyways.

Sal

[David Kumm]

Unisaws and PM 66's are in big demand. The OWWM guys like them and the recent major increases in new saw prices have driven up that particular market. On the other hand, Delta 12-14, PM 72, Oliver 270, Northfield 4, Tanny's are as cheap as they have ever been. The bigger 3 phase machines are a steal. Find a used vfd and you are in business. Like the used car market, tough economic times sometimes cause a bubble in some used stuff. Used 8" jointers are high relative to 12", etc. Dave

[glenn bradley]

The economy has picked up some in the last couple of years... not a ton, but enough to allow people to hang onto their stuff longer.

I (without any specific research) agree on this. A year ago things seemed to be dropping out of the sky. Not so much now. I have learned to really plan out the things I will need in the future so I can (sometimes) take advantage of deals when they present themselves. "Luck favors the prepared" or something like that. Old sayings are great but, I think sometimes it is just hit and miss.

[Ryan Hellmer]

I too have noticed a decline in deals on CL. I don't know what if anything caused it but I feel pretty confident that I took full advantage of the deals I did find. I think the key is really to know what the market is, for instance, I paid $1600 for a fully loaded woodmaster 718 a couple years ago, upgraded motor, the works. Just a couple weeks ago I found one for my dad, not quite all the accessories with the standard 5hp motor, but only $600. Now I was a bit jealous at first until I realized that $1600 for what I got was a pretty fair price, below market. If you really know what a particular market is sometimes you win, sometimes you win BIG.

Ryan

[Timothy Wolf]

There are still deals here in Colorado, I check most of the state pretty regularly. I have been purchasing tools since November of last year (Sometimes just to resell them and make a little $) and have come up pretty good but things definitely slowed down in the past month or so.

[Joe Federici]

I would agree last fall it seemed there were a bunch of fire sales on CL but for the most part I think to get the most out of it you just need to be actively looking and jump on something when you fine it. It may also be the area your in. I live in NJ just outside of NYC and deals run crazy cheap then way over market.

[Rick Potter]

I agree with all who have said you have to haunt CL. I look twice a day, and am a veteran CL shopper. I am in no rush, and since I want a fairly specific model, left tilt Unisaw, it may take a while. Some of the prices they are asking, like the $2700 one now, are rediculous. Some people just don't know what they have. One lady had a Delta contractors saw, with pictures for $300, but called it a Unisaw, and copied the description of the brand new one for her ad.

All things come to he who waits.....the trick is in not waiting too long.

Rick Potter

[Don Jarvie]

Up here in Boston it ebbs and flows. Much larger tools have shown up lately, 24 inch planer, a few drill presses (Delta, Walker Turner). I saw a Powermatic 72 for a good price but 3 phase.

Unfortunatly I have no budget so I can look and dream then hit the back button.

[Frank Guerin]

Down here in South Texas a broken pair of pliers is evidently thought of as a gold, I check every morning and nothing. Of course in the next week or month I will see the same add. And they have decided to ask more for what ever reason.

Anybody want to buy a fifteen year old edger that is hard to start with started fluid and must be used real slow or it stalls. I can't even find enough bad conscience to put it on CL.

[Gary Hodgin]

I'd never looked at CL before last spring. Only bought two things, a planter's rack and a small B&D workbench. Got great deals, but that was last year. I noticed quite a bit of what looked to be good ww machinery at really good prices. That's gone now. By far most of the stuff looks like excess inventory from Harbor Freight. Multiple listings by the same seller. The small amount of good stuff list at premium prices. I guess the local economy is much better.

[Chip Lindley]

I agree with all who have said you have to haunt CL. I look twice a day, and am a veteran CL shopper. I am in no rush, and since I want a fairly specific model, left tilt Unisaw, it may take a while. Some of the prices they are asking, like the $2700 one now, are rediculous.

All things come to he who waits.....the trick is in not waiting too long.

Rick Potter

Umm...sometimes 5 minutes is too long!

$2700 for a LT Unisaw IS a bit much. But, that shrewd seller needs only one Needy Unisaw Nut out there willing to spend. Who knows? Seller may part with the LT Uni, dickering down to $2495! Needy Unisaw Nut really RIPPED him on that one! ;-)

[Brian Elfert]

It seems like I can find a dozen of whatever I want on Craigslist at a good price, but as soon as I actually have the money and am ready to buy the deals all dry up.

I bought a gasoline powered air compressor about a month ago for $270. It was actually a pretty good price, but as soon as I bought one I saw several for less. Maybe not as nice of shape, but all I cared is if it worked.

[Myk Rian]

BARN SALES. That's where I find a lot of deals.
I also look through CL several times a day.

[Pat Germain]

It's not just tools. I'm looking for a 1969 or 1970 Mustang Mach 1 project car. For a long while I saw many good project cars advertised, but I wasn't ready to buy. For two years I watched an ad for my perfect car in Texas sit on a web site unnoticed. Now that I'm ready to buy, two weeks ago I contacted the seller. He replied and confirmed it had a manual trans, which is what I'm looking for. I replied and asked him if I could please get the door tag number. A few days went by; nothing. I sent him another message politely asking for the door tag number. He replied and said, "Sorry, I sold the car 4 days ago". :rolleyes:

I'm trying to get some information on another car. I received one, brief email reply from the seller; then nothing. Every time I try to call him, I get an "All circuits are busy" error. His ad is still on Craigslist. Not sure if he sold it. Not sure if he's getting inundated with interested buyers. It's just a mystery... Meanwhile, I'm not seeing any other good candidates.

[Rick Potter]

Myk,

Barn sales...?

What is a barn? Do they still have them? Haven't seen one around here in at least 20 years. No joke.

Rick Potter

[Pat Germain]

Myk,

Barn sales...?

What is a barn? Do they still have them? Haven't seen one around here in at least 20 years. No joke.

Rick Potter

I know what you mean. I grew up California. I think all the old barns in CA have been bulldozed or contverted into upscale, custom homes. The new barns are gigantic, steel buildings with heat, air conditioning and automatic milking machines.

[Brian Elfert]

What annoys me most is no replies to email and no phone number. One guy I emailed from both home and work multiple times with no reply. I think some people sell the item, don't take down the ad, and get sick of replying to emails.

I will never put my phone number on a Craigslist ad, but I do reply to every email even if I sold the item to someone already. I also take the ad down right away when sold. I gave away a tube TV last fall and got two dozen emails in an hour. I took the ad down even before it was gone and replied to everyone.