Selling equipment...Make sure you set your price high enough

You just can't make this stuff up....

And people wonder why I don't have people skills.....

My drum mower is too big for my tractor so decided to get a smaller mower rather than bigger tractor. Have a buddy I've known for 20 years who is shacking with my wife's best friend of about as long so we all know each other pretty good. He just bought a tractor and needed a mower which mine would be just fine. I paid 250 bucks for the mower, picked it up, changed the gear oil, put all new knives (with new bolts and spacer washers) cleaned it all up and lubed everything and it worked like a new one just not real pretty. Told him a couple weeks ago that he could have mine for 400 bucks. Never heard from him so put an ad in the paper. Got plenty of calls and sent pictures to a couple folks when my buddy has his GF call and ask what I wanted for it. Being the nice guy I am, I said he could have it for 300 bucks if he took it right away.
He gets on the phone then and starts asking questions about it (everything that I had already told him). Kept my people skills in tact and answered him and they both jump in his tractor and drive the 15 miles to our place to pick it up. In the meantime, another person called and said that he wanted it and would give me 500 bucks. Said that someone was coming to look and I'd call him back.
Buddy gets there in pouring rain and I tell him he can have my bar rake for another 50 bucks, he starts inspecting both which is OK then raises the mower up and starts checking the knives which translated to doubting my word. I asked "whatcha doin'"? and he said that he wanted to make sure that everything was OK because I was askinga lot less than other folks were asking. I lost it... Told him he had 5 minutes to get it unhooked and his tractor off my property or I was kicking his a$$.
They left and I called the other guy back. He showed up with a truck and loaded it up and asked about the bar rake and offered 150 bucks for it. I let him have it for 50 (only paid 10) and he was tickled to death.

Still shaking my head....

Dave

When it comes to money, you don't know who your friends are. Years ago I sold a motorcycle to a "friend" for a really good price. He said he wanted it for his kid. The next day he sold it for a good profit.

Knew a guy that had a car for sale out by the road for 1200.00 that car sat there for seven months no one bought it. He lower the price down to 950.00 still no takers, so his mother went out and changed the 950.00 to 3500.00 and the very next week a guy stops and talks them down to 2500.00 and was happy when he drove off!

I had that happen to me too. I had a little Honda 50 Three wheeler. I had fixed it up for my boy when he was nine or ten. It set for 7-8 years after he out grew it. My nephew Ty(ten years old) came over here last spring and asked me about it. So he and I got it out and cleaned it all up. I even went an got a new carburetor kit and installed it. It ran like a dream. Ty was in love. He would come over everyday he could and rode it. His Dad, my Brother-in-law, came over around Memorial Day and asked me what I would take for it. I told him since Ty liked it so much he could just have it for a hundred bucks. It would have brought 500-600 easy. So he came back with Ty an pays me and off Ty goes. I saw Ty two weeks later an asked him how he is getting along with the three wheeler. He tells me his "Dad" let him ride it home. His "Dad" had someone waiting there to buy it at $500 bucks. Sold the thing right in front of his kid. I could not believe it. I called and asked my sister if this was true. She said yes and that Ty was being a big baby about it. I BLEW UP. I MEAN seeing red kind of mad. I went straight over there and drug my worthless BIL out of the house and "we" went to the woods and had a "discussion" about it. Ty has a brand new Four wheeler setting in my barn that he comes and rides everyday. I told his dad and my sister that if I hear of them pulling something like this again. I will kick them out of my house and sue for guardianship of Ty. Yes the idiots rent off of me and try to pull a fast one like this for beer/gambling money.

I read of a guy who had a good working but unneeded refrigerator, set it out by his driveway with a sign saying "free".
It sat there for a week with no takers, so the owner changed the sign to "for sale, $20".
that night someone stole it.

Lemme get this straight(and I went back and read your post twice)- you got mad at a guy for visually inspecting a peice of equipment he was paying you for? And that was was unacceptable?

(quoted from post at 00:09:14 09/28/10) Lemme get this straight(and I went back and read your post twice)- you got mad at a guy for visually inspecting a peice of equipment he was paying you for? And that was was unacceptable?

Click to expand...

unacceptable was a guy that you helped out when needed and grilled countless steaks and burgers for for 20 years doubting your word and saying (not in so many words) that "I'm gonna take advantage of your generosity but wanna make sure you're not trying to rip me off."
The other guy that showed up was a complete stranger and showed more respect and trust (even though he gave a good inspection also).

Water under the bridge now though.

My brothers friend use to paint house's
in a surrounding town, he never got any of the jobs he would quote on, doubled his prices and had plenty of work people must have thought the low price = poor quality.

too bad ,, sounds like 20 yrs blowed to heck....seems like a terrible lack of people skills all the way around ,,, are you friends aquantance or friends ?....

(quoted from post at 07:03:13 09/28/10) too bad ,, sounds like 20 yrs blowed to heck....seems like a terrible lack of people skills all the way around ,,, are you friends aquantance or friends ?....

Click to expand...

we'll still visit and help out as needed, I'll just never do any kind of business with him again. I don't put a lot of store in people so don't get to upset or bothered if they decide to take their ball and go home or throw it to someone else. "Friend" is a term that people throw around so much that the meaning is lost.

Kinda like the word neigbor. Some folks call a guy he kinda sorta knows from work a friend, some folks call the jerk up the road a neigbor.

Got a cousin with a story like that. Spring storm took down a big oak tree in his back yard. Just to prove to his wife he could do it, he cut it up and went out back every day after work and took a few swings with a maul. By fall he had it all split up. Tried and tried to give it away to folks he knew. Couldn't even get any one to take a few chunks to cook hot dogs over. Piled it up by his drive way with a for sale sign stuck in it. Some one stole it all even the sign the first week.