Usee Equipment

[basejumper]

How do people decide how much used equipment is worth? Do you use a percentage formula or check out other sites to see home much they sell for?

The prices of equipment on here is insane. Someone was selling lights that cost $225 new for $215 and a BRS biopellet reactor for $55 and they are $50 new. I didn't even bother to respond.

I saw 3 radion xr30 generation 2 for $725. Which is obsurd to charge when you can get gen 3 new with a full warranty for $750. I asked if he could a deal on all 3. He told me thay $725 is a great deal for lights under 2 years old and ran only at 60%. Then he proceeded to call me a piece of crap low baller. I told him he must be cracked out and asked him if he will drop the price when the gen 4 come out. He never responded.

 

[ReefWreak]

Totally personal.

I've literally and figuratively "given" things away if I wanted them gone in a hurry. Some people value their things highly and will say that giving you $25 off the price new is a break. I just don't buy those things.

I've been burned on both sides in this hobby, as selling something and buying something. At the end of the day, you get a feeling for what prices you would be willing to take as a seller, and what you're willing to pay as a buyer. If you offer them what you consider a fair price, and they're offended, then there's a big disconnect there. Then it's up to you whether you'd like to send them the completed ebay auctions or other craigslist ads that show how you made up your price number. Sometimes it matters, frequently it doesn't.

I usually just compare prices to craigslist or ebay completed auctions, and if there really are none, maybe start at 20-50% off what it can be bought for new, depending on age and condition.

For lights, I haven't bought used lights in a while, but I know I bought my old 250w metal halides for probably 30-45% off retail price, because they were used for a year or two (these are ballasts and sockets, the person threw in bulbs for free on top of that).

It's as free a market as it gets, so anyone can put any price or pay any price. Sometimes used can go for more than new if there is a restricted supply, such as with many of the corals in the hobby that have waitlists for a frag.

Also, one reason, especially with lights, that the prices may be artificially high, or close to retail, is recent upgrades or customizations to the unit. You may value them at $0 or even negative, but if someone just replaced all of the bulbs in a cheapo brand fixture with high-end bulbs (or ballasts, or a controller, etc) then they might value it at retail + mods, and you value it at retail - depreciation.

Oh well, sorry you haven't had luck with stuff recently. I've been mostly pleasantly surprised by the prices posted on here. It looks like most of the threads I've seen have had reasonable if not good prices for items.

 

[edd]

for equipment, if its more than 1/2 what it goes for new i will buy it new with a warranty.
i don't care how old it is because you won't really know.
how many lights you see for sale and the bulbs are always less than 3 months old. so they say.