Some of your points may be valid, Ig, but I see this same situation every
year. Extra holiday gift cash has been spent, heating bills are peaking, and
yesterday was a superbowl game (major distraction to some folks), so I
believe other factors are involved (generally always).
About the end of March and into April, competive bidding will pick up again,
in anticipation of tax returns, lower heating bills, warmer weather
activities and other factors.
I'm surprised by some of the prices sometimes, generally when a new member
gets involved in the bidding, and also a number of items that normally sell
from moderate to high prices, that don't even get bid on.
I'm still bewildered at the over $150 that I got for a used music CD when I
started selling in 1999. The ad had poor pictures but a detailed
description, but I wasn't an experienced seller.
Experienced sellers will hold onto items that know will bring exeptionally
good prices until things pick up again, IMO.
I watch a wide range of lot of different types of items from tooling,
machine accessories, video, audio, some avionics, hand tools, certain
vintage power tools, various electronic gear/parts, etc.
This is generally a good time to buy things that are sluggish at this time
of year, but it's a typical annual situation, IMO.
I'm convinced that there are completely unpredictable circumstances, such as
a buyer that's missed out on numerous attempts to get something cheap,
finally decides that they're done trying, and go ahead and spend 2-4 times
as much as they had been hoping to get the item for.
An 8" pressure gauge is definitely an obscure item, and I wouldn't have any
idea of how to consider it being an economic indicator.
--
WB
..........
metalworking projects
www.kwagmire.com/metal_proj.html
s13011" wrote in message
...
I have had just a few observations of prices on things that I am
familiar with. And I think that outside of the realm of unsold
overpriced BuyItNow stuff, the prices for used industrial related
things that actually sell, are tanking dramatically.
Here's one example.
I sold a 8 inch diameter steam pressure gauge this summer for $240 or
so. (to someone who operates a real steam engine railroad, no less)
Just now, I needed one, and won a supposedly very similar condition
steam pressure gauge, made of brass, 0-200 PSI, for just $31. The
gauge was perfectly well described, all the right keywords were in the
title, etc. This was not in any way any unusually lucky purchase. It
just shows that the market that was willing to pay $240 for a steam
gauge, can only pay $31. So whatever sorts of people who were buying
steam gauges before, do not have any money left.
I am observing the same things occur in other sorts of things. A 8
inch three jaw chuck, L0 mount, great condition, $50. It is a
little scary to see the extent of it.
What muddles this is that eBay changed its fee structure, and there is
a lot of stuff listed with Buy It Now, that is overpriced and creates
an impression of high prices, but it is a false impression.
The one implication is that if you stil have a job and money, and
space in your shop, it is a great time to buy used stuff like this
right on ebay.
The other implication is that if you go to liquidation auctions
infrequently, it is a good idea to recheck the prices that you used
to base your bids on, in order to not overbid.
Agree? Disagree?
--
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