Advice on selling a vintage Strat..

[Aussie Mark]

I'm gonna insist that whoever buys it must come to SoCal & pick it up in person.

Really limiting your market when the USD is in the tank.  For example, the AUD is the strongest it has ever been.  I was buying stuff from the US a couple of years ago when the Aussie dollar was only worth 60 cents US.  Now it is worth $1.03. 

That makes US items real bargains in the global market now.  40% is a huge price difference if someone is looking to buy a vintage or high end instrument.

And, if you are selling something only to Americans, 10% of your target market are out of work at the moment and don't have any money.  Not a smart marketing move at all.

[Dave W]

Ugh- didn't realize their terms had changed re: wire transfers.  I personally wouldn't want to take Paypal for something like that.  Too much potential for someone to take advantage their "buyer centric" return/charge-back policies.  Might get it back with MIM parts...

I hear what you're saying, but it hasn't seemed to bother sellers like Olivia's. And that's why I mentioned videotaping everything. Even if you're consigning at retail, it's possible that an unscrupulous buyer could switch parts. Document everything and you'll be relatively safe.

[Pilgrim]

Might check to see if you can set up an escrow for an Ebay purchase...they used to have that option.

[chromium]

I hear what you're saying, but it hasn't seemed to bother sellers like Olivia's. And that's why I mentioned videotaping everything. Even if you're consigning at retail, it's possible that an unscrupulous buyer could switch parts. Document everything and you'll be relatively safe.

Yeah cover yer butts!  I've read some amazing accounts of buy-switch-return - buyers removing expensive expansion boards from studio gear, pulling rare and expensive components/chips/etc from electronic instruments and returning as not-working, and so on.  Best you can do is have photos - inside and out - to back it up.  And honestly, I'm not even positive that would always help to convince Paypal!  I have yet to experience this first hand thankfully (knocking on wood...)

I've also been taking detailed photos of my packing jobs - just in case I ever have to duke it out with UPS claims.  Not sure (yet) if that will come in handy,  but at least I have some evidence that its not an amateurish packing job when they try to dismiss it as such.

[dadagoboi]

I've also been taking detailed photos of my packing jobs - just in case I ever have to duke it out with UPS claims.  Not sure (yet) if that will come in handy,  but at least I have some evidence that its not an amateurish packing job when they try to dismiss it as such.

I used to be the largest UPS shipper in my (small) county.  In my experience unless you ship an item in a drop tested to UPS standards package you will have little luck with a claim, photos or not.

The package is dropped from from a specified height (I want to say 30 inches, it's been a while) onto all eight corners.  Your minimum dimension around the item should be at least one inch in all directions with proper packaging material.  Don't use peanuts or low density styrofoam, corrugated cardboard specifically designed for packing is best IMO.

I insure packages basically to protect against loss, not damage.  For something REALLY valuable I'd have a UPS store pack it.  Then there could be no chance of a claim being denied.

And I totally agree with Mark, the best market for US collectibles is export and it's only going to get better (or worse).

[chromium]

In my experience unless you ship an item in a drop tested to UPS standards package you will have little luck with a claim, photos or not.

I insure packages basically to protect against loss, not damage.  For something REALLY valuable I'd have a UPS store pack it.  Then there could be no chance of a claim being denied.

Thanks, this is good to know!  I'm never trading in high dollar stuff, but even to have a shipping damage claim denied for a 1-2K instrument would cause me to have a very bad day!

Any experiences with USPS claims?  I've wondered if their claim process plays out differently, since they don't offer their own packing service like UPS (that I'm aware of, anyway).

[dadagoboi]

Short answer on USPS, no.  I've shipped 6 basses in the last 2 months with USPS, all insured, about  a dozen in the last year.  They've all arrived undamaged.  With the basses I'm shipping I've been using a 50" x20" x 8" box that is dimensionally just at their oversize limit of 106 inches (ships as if it weighs 30 lbs, usually weighs 12-14).  I split it lengthwise to make a double sidewall 50" x 20" x 4" (approx) box.  Then I use a lot of cardboard and bubblewrap around the body and head stock.

I figure if one does get damaged I have a record of at least 6 that arrived undamaged and all the people at the small Post Office know me and might back me up.  That's as much as I want to think about it.  I used to file a claim with UPS about once a month.  It was usually a hassle but eventually they paid.

[Dave W]

Might check to see if you can set up an escrow for an Ebay purchase...they used to have that option.

They do allow it through escrow.com and no one else. Probably because there were so many phony escrow services set up by crooked buyers and their accomplices.

[uwe]

I've received countless basses via USPS from the States. Not one of them damaged in transit. And that includes a Peavey T-40 in its original plastic case with just one lock taped shut and my adress on paper behind some adhesives - no cardboard around it! But then T-40ies don't break - ever.