Where do you find the deals in your area?

[Jon Wilson]

Me and a buddy were sitting around last night and talking about future upgrades
that may actually happen and future upgrades that, unless there is a trip to the
Lottery Commission involved, just ain't happening. After a few dreams crushed we
started talking about some of the deals that we have heard about, Sure would be nice
to have some info on how to find those deals. **hint**hint**

So, where / how do you find the auctions, closing sales, estate sales and
and other places you may be able to find those "to good to pass up" deals.

I scour Craigslist daily, sometimes 2 - 3 times a day depending on my schedule.


Spill The Beans!!! Inquiring Minds Want to Know!!!
Your Secret will be Safe with Me, I Promise ;)

[Jim Andrew]

I love bargains, and I used to drive to a city about 2 hours away to buy light fixtures and hardware that were so much less expensive than in my local town when I was finishing a project, as that trip paid better than working. But, that stopped when the prices narrowed and it did not pay. Auctions are fun to attend, but I don't enjoy standing around all day to try to get a bargain, and someone decides to pay new or higher prices for something I'm interested in. I've seen tools bring a lot more than retail at auction. So, mostly I just try to do well with my work so I can afford to buy new stuff.

[Frederick Skelly]

I havent cracked the code either Jon. I never find much around garge sales or antique stores. Around here, estate sales are turning into big business with few deals to be found. But once in a while, I walk into a store and see a closeout or a sale on something I need and save a hundred or two. But thats luck, not method. :(

[Richard Kee]

Jon,

You need to be a little more specific - deals on hand tools or deals on power tools.

I look for vintage hand tools myself and I've found that the best way in the Columbus area is to follow the professionals who conduct estate sales for individuals who have recently died, are going into nursing homes, or just downsizing. The probability of finding old tools in those instances is greater than the run-of-the-mill estate sales.

My latest find consisted of three vintage tanged Buck Brothers paring chisels in excellent condition that were in a box with other tools for $35.00. A single one of the Buck Brothers chisels is worth more than what I paid for the entire box. I also picked up a rather strange looking block plane for $6.00 that I later found out was worth about $90.00.

Do a little research and find those dealers, get on their e-mail notification list, and enjoy the hunt.

Richard

[Yonak Hawkins]

I bought some stuff for a pretty good price at an on-line auction recently. Now, lots of other stuff went for way more than I thought it was worth, but some folks clearly thought it was worth what they paid.

What's great about the on-line auction is that you don't have to go there for the event and suffer the kinds of problems you describe about regular auctions, Jim. However, I don't know how to keep up with when these auctions will occur. A friend sent the heads-up about this past one for me.

[Michael Yadfar]

I know from my personal experience I just use craigslist specifically. If you sit and wait something will come up for a great deal. I know my aunt goes to local auctions and flee markets, and has came home with stuff like working welders for $10

[curtis rosche]

Mudsale season is here in Lancaster. Tommorow is one in Bart PA, just down the road from me. tons of machines and tools. go for pennies on the dollar
one item I've seen a few years in a row. A local company donates a new shop fox planer. One went for less than 200$

[Jeff Duncan]

The short answer is it takes a lot of work and luck to find the great deals, no magic or secrets involved;)

If you just go around casually to different sales and auctions waiting for a ridiculous deal to drop into your lap the odds are probably against you. I've gotten plenty of good deals and have talked about them as have others, but I guess that can be just a bit deceiving to others. You see I get great deals, but I also buy equipment for just below fair market value. Those are great purchases for my business, but generally not as much fun to talk about. So if your reading the forums it may seem like guys are just getting great deals all the time, when in reality most of my buys are somewhere near market rate, but b/c I'm looking and going to auctions somewhat frequently I'm exposed to the occasional bargain. I'd guess not everyone is posting about their average buys? I really don't go to an auction expecting to get a bargain. I go if I'm interested in something and I'm hoping to get it for better than market rate. I can see where guys would get really disappointed going to these and coming away empty. But in reality that's more to do with unreasonable expectations than anything else.

CL is also a great way to find bargains. You do have to be vigilant if your actively looking for something and you have to use some search help to look outside your area. It's a lot easier if your only looking for one or two machines vs just looking for bargains.

Lastly you have to do your homework. I read a fair amount of posts and get the feeling guys are expecting to go out and buy a machine for scrap prices or else it's not a "deal". You need to know fair market value for the item(s) your looking for and realize that your probably not going to buy say a used Unisaw for $100. It's great if you can find one….but your chances are much higher if you have a realistic idea of the machines value in your area and can make a decision on whether it's a good buy for you. Oh and as far as finding them that's the easiest part….pick up a newspaper, you do remember newspapers don't you, not sure if the younger guys do anymore:D

good luck,
JeffD

[Sam Beagle]

I'm reading this and wondering what a mud sale is. I too live not that far from Lancaster. I absolutely love the hunt for vintage tools and great new finds too. I go to flea markets and bid boards. Actually I've gotten the best deals from bid boards..

[Charles Wiggins]

So, where / how do you find the auctions, closing sales, estate sales and
and other places you may be able to find those "to good to pass up" deals.

I have rarely found good deals that actually closed through Craigslist. I've sold more than I have bought that way.

Out of the five auctions I've been to since I moved to this area in 2008 I've only won bids at one. People get "auction fever" and drive the prices through the roof, way beyond what is reasonable. I don't know how may times I have dropped out of bidding to see used items go up to within a few dollars of new prices. Eby is even worse. I've seen items go up beyond brand new cost. My best auction deal ever was a Fein Multimaster for $27.50. I actually had no intention to buy it, but it was about to go for $25 and I just couldn't pass it up. I don't think anyone else knew what it was because it took forever to get the first bid and then no one, including the guy with the opening bid, bid against me.

Other than that, I've found my best deals in working directly with other woodworkers, either here on SMC Classifieds or the classifieds on another WW site that I participate in.

From what I read here and around the Web, the BEST deals seem to come from knowing the right people or being in the right place at the right time.

[Mike Heidrick]

Save a fist full of cash and be ready to immediately commit and be ready to drive. Five hours one way better be acceptable for some items. Know the cost of pickup or delivery and your time to asses the value. Target machines that even at deals folks cant handle like super heavy items, 3 phase driven machines, etc. Scour CL using google and other search engines. Search ebay for general terms and misspellings. Know everything there is to know about what you want so you can spot it when sellers have no idea about the item or their families and ex's etc. Ask for help in looking for what you want with a WTB thread. Make friends/conversation with folks who have bought similar style items.

[Steve Rozmiarek]

Before my most current capital crisis, I would use auctions to source good deals. It's a little counterintuitive though. Educate yourself as to what the quality tools of yesterday were. Odds are they still are. It's not uncommon to see a shiny new looking crappy quality tool sell for more than a much better but obviously used tool. Most buyers have no idea what quality is. Specialize your knowledge. Don't worry about what someone else does at one, just stick to your budget, and if you get it, great, if not it was not right for you. That's the tradeoff, all money saving approaches trade time for money. If you want it now, pay full price. If you want it sometime, you can get a deal.

Forgot to add, look for the odd tool in a sale bill full of ceramics. Out of place items will draw less crowd, and will probably sell last, meaning your competition thinned out a bit. Odds of scoring huge on a well advertised focused auction are much less than a little auction that is only locally advertised.

[Wayne Jolly]

I'm in northern California. There are no deals.

X

[Jon Wilson]

WOW! That's a lot to digest, I'm going to read the responses over and over.
I want to be clear on what advice you have given.

To be a little more specific; I'm mainly looking for power tools.

I can go piece by piece and really focus on one piece at a time
seeing that the only really decent tool i have is a Craftsman 113.xxxxx
table saw that I recently bought for $70.00

I'm not against driving a little out of my area to hunt down tools,
I'm also willing to put in the time to research the particular item that I am
focused on at any given time.

I'm not expecting a Great Deal Fairy to appear and
grant me the craziest deals you've ever heard of. The closest thing
that I have to the fairy is the Craigslist app. It works great but I always seem to be
the second guy that has called about that tool. And for all the complaining
I hear about no-shows for CL pick ups, that never seems to be the case
when I'm next in line. "Patience is a Virtue" is the truest statement I have
muttered during the hunt for deals.

The advice has been fantastic but to narrow down my question;
I was wondering if there are any websites that one can use to
see upcoming, sales, auctions, etc... in your area or within a reasonable drive.

Any periodical that may be a nationwide affair with regional breakdowns.

Something along those lines.

Need any more info just let me know.

Thanks again!

[Judson Green]

flea markets and garage sales. usually find something at a flea market (not always) but the garage sales, well you can go for quite a while and get nothing, but then you find it.

[Earl McLain]

I've done all right on the big online auction, but not as well in the past few years. People seem to get auction fever online just like in person, so the best buys tend to be for more obscure items/brands. I've done well on Craigslist over the past few years. For me the keys to CL have been patience and timing. Eventually something of interest will come up on CL, but the bargain prices move fast. I was home for lunch a few years ago, and spotted a CL ad for a Grizzly 6" jointer that had posted about 5 minutes earlier (for something like $130 +/-). I called, he was about to list a Jet mortiser and a few other items. I ended up getting the lot of $250 or so. When the kid delivered, he knew the house as he'd gone to school with my son--and i knew his father who had passed away.

Knowing (or having an idea) of what tools are worth helps a lot too. Month or so ago i spotted a Powermatic 1200 drill press for $150 or so, fresh listing, 30 minutes away. Spent a half hour digging around for reviews/prices and ended up being caller #2. For that price i was stupid to check, should have just called. Missed it. I even let the guy know it was worth well above his asking--he knew but needed the space.

I've gotten a few little items given to me from folks at church just because they know what i do as a hobby. Those aren't usually such usable tools, but they bring great pleasure for the thought!!

earl

[Michael Mahan]

I myself have done quite well here NorCal on used tools & machines ,
the North Bay is ripe with used tools/machines @ Garage sales , Fleamarkets & CL
It DOES take some effort & time

Even New machines
Two winter's ago I got a $600.oo Craftsman standing drill press for $1oo.oo NEW at Sears in San Rafeal the day after Xmas . it was a floor model missing manual,parts ect. & they had a new model with the lasers , nicer finish , bigger motor ,keyless chuck that replaced it placed right next to it . It was buzi , the sales guy was lazy & didn't want to move the thing so he rang it up , then had me go to the pick-up door , that guy gave me the new model in the box . I would guess this a Gloat Thingy :rolleyes:

[Cary Falk]

Do a search for Government Liquidation. It is a auction site that handles tools all over the US. They may or may have a location close to you.

[Myk Rian]

Barn sales out in the country.

[Paul Incognito]

Between craigslist and the classifieds on forums like this, I've outfitted a whole shop.
And for hand tools, flea markets, second hand stores and estate sales can't be beat.
There is an auction house not far from me, but I haven't bought much there. As others have pointed out, the bidding sometimes gets ridiculous.
Paul

[Earl McLain]

Between craigslist and the classifieds on forums like this, I've outfitted a whole shop.
And for hand tools, flea markets, second hand stores and estate sales can't be beat.
There is an auction house not far from me, but I haven't bought much there. As others have pointed out, the bidding sometimes gets ridiculous.
Paul

Good point Paul, and one i thought of on my way back to work this afternoon. Some of my best deals on items small enough to ship have come from the classified's on a few woodworking forums. Good folks who understand the value of giving a brother or sister woodworker a break. I like that about our community.
earl

[Doug Ladendorf]

http://www.auctionzip.com

[Judson Green]

Yeah auctions can great kinda crazy.

[Rick Potter]

In my area, SoCal, CL is by far the best source. Auctions are almost non existent, as are Barn sales. There are occasional estate sales, but few with desirable tools. One key to finding deals is to be patient, and willing to lose the deal. Depending on what kind of tool it is, some are really hard to sell. If interested, I make contact and ask the pertinent questions, getting a feel for how attached the person it to the tool. Often they don't even know what to advertise it as. If the tool is priced higher than I wish to pay, I politely tell them it is out of my price range, and wait. After a couple weeks, I check back, to see if the price has softened. If it is a hot seller, I am willing to lose it, if the price is too high.

Radial arm saws are a good example. They are not in big demand, and even the good Delta turret, and DeWalts go for pretty low prices, unless it is something real special like a 16" model in good shape with a single phase motor. Right now, there are 100 RAS on my local CL. Most are Sears, some are absolute boat anchors, but there are several very nice ones at a decent price, which have been available for a couple weeks. That is the kind of tool, I am willing to be patient on, but also willing to lose. They are like a bus...always another one coming.

I recently bought a Delta/Rockwell, Penny's labeled, turret RAS.....one owner, for $50. That was in Phoenix. I haven't seen it in person yet, but a buddy picked it up for me.

Rick P

[Jeff Erbele]

Well there are a fair amount of "gloat posts", there are a lot of SMC members. If there is a Gloat a day and 10,000 members (made up number) you would be really really old until your turn came around :p

I find more deals on CL than I have space to put the machines I would like to buy. Also we are moving in approximately 3-4 months so unless it is a super deal I just force myslef to wait. Living in the Denver Metro area, I check other cities in the metro area besides Denver. Living near the cross roads of I-25 and I-70 there is a lot of opportunity 2-4 hours in 3 directions.

Besides CL, I see a lot of deals in Face Book for-sale groups as well. Two of those are military groups. We live 5 miles from Buckley AFB and most any military base has an inherent transient population. Big shop machinery is seldom seen, but hand tools and hand held power tools are listed more often. Often the sellers with limited time to ship out, are highly motivated.

Recently I saw Lowes' had a scratch & dent, clean out the odd-ball, one of a kind, open-packages, partial packages and last year's model sale. Then a few weeks later they did the same with power tools. It appeared like they were selling their rental tools, replacing those with new models.