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Overthinking, but ... what's a reasonable price for used guitar guts?

Started by brucer, December 31, 2018, 07:03:15 AM

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brucer

Hi all.

Disclaimer / lengthy preface: I really don't like selling stuff.  The whole exchange of my stuff for your cash and potential for miscommunication and sideways-ness stresses me out.  Even though I've never had a bad transaction ... it's still a thing for me.  Also, I tend to overthink things.  [The two issues are not unrelated ... as I'm sure you can imagine.]  To date, I've tended to avoid selling by trading things in or giving stuff away or gotten it over with by asking for very little, but occasionally I have something that either isn't trade-in-able or is worth a bit more than I'd like to give away ... especially when I'd like some cash to buy something else (like a neck for a Mustang-style guitar build that I'm collecting parts for).

Anyhow ... this brings us to my question.  What do you think is a reasonable price to ask for used guitar guts? 

I posted this on the TDPRI website: http://www.tdpri.com/threads/seymour-duncan-humbuckers-59-bridge-seth-lover-neck.909089/.  I'm more comfortable with the folks here, so would appreciate any feedback on the price or any other thoughts on selling used guitar guts.

With that in mind, I also have a used 335-style split-coil wiring harness from jonseyblues (on this page: http://www.jonesyblues.com/sg--335--flying-v-wiring-.html) that was attached to the humbuckers.  Is this something you'd even consider selling or is that plain nutty?  Again, I'd appreciate any feedback.

Odd questions, I know.  It's my growth area! 

Thanks, Bruce.

fair.child

How fast do you need to get them off your hook? I mean Reverb is one way around or selling local but its all depending on how fast you want them gone. Before selling on forum, I usually do market research how much the current used value on the item you're selling. After that, you can assess whether to sell or not to sell. If you decide to sell, then try to beat used price average price or at least start from there. If not, then trade in might be better way to keep things moving.

ahiddentableau

Selling pickups is perfectly normal--not weird at all.  Selling a wiring harness is less common but by no means unheard of--especially if it was purchased from a reputable/known dealer.  As far as prices are concerned, you'll have to do the legwork on your own.  I usually start by looking on eBay.  Click on the completed listings filter and look at what people have actually been getting (not what they've been asking for).  Reverb is probably the other obvious + useful place to look for prices.  So long as you're asking for a reasonable price, are honest in your descriptions, and the items are in servicable condition there are no moral/ethical problems with selling your stuff.  So stop beating yourself up for no good reason!

brucer

Good advice guys.  Thanks!  Much appreciated.  Off to do some research, then likely onto Reverb.  No rush on my part, so happy to at least semi-automate the process.

EBRAddict

You'd be surprised what sells. I sold a set of humbuckers last month on eBay.

  • Whether on eBay or Reverb take good pictures, post accurate descriptions and set reasonable pricing expectations. If the "average" item sells for $100 and you list yours for $120 it isn't going to sell unless there is something extra to sweeten the deal. Don't try to sell broken or defective gear without clearly describing the problems.
  • Pay attention to your shipping costs, Reverb will make you put down a fixed cost and depending where the buyer is you could get hosed shipping it across the country (speaking from experience). eBay will calculate shipping for you based on weight and size.
  • I don't usually turn on offers on Reverb, they set it to 50% so not really worth my time. eBay will let you set a minimum offer amount which I use frequently.
  • Reverb is slower to sell than eBay, but the fees are much lower. Perhaps a little better class of customer IMHO.