Swap meet etiquette, would this piss you off??

Its happend to me and Ive done it to others. But when I do it to another its usually long after they are unpacked and i just end up scoring a good deal on something that I know I can sell at the next swapmeet.

Back when I was in high school was selling some stuff at a VW swapmeet and had a early 36hp rear cooling tin aprin for sale (forget the real term for it) with the manual crank hole cover that you flip open. I didnt need it and sold it for $10. Later I was walking around the swapmeet and saw it at the guys booth for $60.

 

The thing that pisses me off is the ones who come around all day trying to buy the part for a lowball price, and then come steal it when you're not looking.

 

bunch of sissies around here. I bought at swap meets and sold on ebay for 5 years.

I went to every swap I could get to and back in the same day. I'd get there at 6:00 or earlier, wagon in tow and load that sucker to the rafters.

if there were no lowballing scum sucking resellers at the swaps they would cease to exist. I say stay home if you are going to cry about something you sold at an agreed upon price.

 

I love the dopes with the flashlites lookin through your truck before you un load it I aways tell em loaded or unloaded price swap meets for me are my fav social place I give away more than not,hell last year at our late fall meet my decised bro had hundreds of bags of line clamps the nice ones heck people were askin me how much if they were nice I aways told them , how about free, and gave em away just my take, our hobby is about people not cars and parts ,they are just the things that get us togather, I love just siting at swap meets been at it a long time learned long ago most people no nothing about swapping and are just horders! and thats ok too its what makes this hobby great!!

 

""our hobby is about people not cars and parts"" ??

speak for yourself... my hobby is about cars and parts

 

Don't care what anyone says about "all's fair" and all that BS. I may be able to come over to your house and screw your wife, doesn't make it right or good...cept for me, maybe.

 

If he paid your price,unfortunately he can do whatever he wants after the sale? Such is capitalism and swap meets.

It sounds stupid,uneconimical and a good waste of time,but I really only deal with people I like? Then I'm happy and they got the money and sold the product and they're happy?
A good friend of mine who vends says he "reads people" and if he likes them gives them a better deal.I think that's cool and have adopted that.Pleasant people go farther in life?
"Your landing depends on your approach?"

 

It's all part of the game,you know the rules. Do you want to play? If not stay on the porch.

 

One thing about it, after the first deal you pretty well know the character of the people you're dealing with, good or bad.
Larry T

 

The American way, dig it!

 

You got your money - what he does with the stuff is none of your business, there's no reason to whine about it.

Around here we joke that by the time the public gets into a swap meet half the stuff there's already migrated two or three spots from where it was when it first got unloaded. One guy comes to some of them and just wants to get rid of literally trailer loads of shit - he sells everything for a buck each. He knows I've resold stuff I got from him. I've had guys just not want to take stuff home and dump it on me dirt cheap. I think the best one has to be a model car kit someone threw out - that I pulled out of the trash, wiped off, taped up, and sold for $10 later the same day.

And that's not counting all the stuff people buy and take home only to put on eBay or Craigslist. Sometimes I do better there than I did selling crap at the swap meet.

When I go to a meet the name of the game is to make some money, so if I see a '32 Ford grille in a spot for $20, you can bet your ass I'm going to buy it and take it to my spot and mark it way up. If you're happy selling it for $20, you have nothing to complain about, you got a price you could live with and you didn't have to take it home.

 

Ive bought stuff i wanted to keep, then someone walked by an wanted to give me way more than i payed, it was hard to say no.

I sold a model a gas tank i bought at the swap for 20 bucks, sold it to a guy for 80. Saw it two years later with 200 on it. I wasnt there when it was sold, my cousin sold it. But the guy that had it was one of the guys that follows the swap meets around.

Ive sold some stuff cheep cause i didnt know what it was then the guy sold it for more. Its just the way it is.

I forgot about the people that buy bikes, they always want my swapmeet cruiser. It seems every time i turn around my bike is upside down with some guy inspecting the serial number.When i tell them its not for sale, that i use it to go to the clean bathroom, to get food, go look at stuff, they get rude and tell me i shouldnt bring it. Usually i tell them to go fuck themselves.

Im gunna set up at the swap meet one of these days and not sell anything, tell people its all a display.

 

This whole money philosophy thing is swirling around right now (the thread, " should I make money off of a friend"?)..its OK to make money here in the USA..Do the right thing, be generous, treat others like you would want to be treated..and the rest of those sociopaths can burn in Hell....yeah, it would piss me off a little to see that at a swap meet..

 

I would have at least asked him for a cold one after finding out what he was doing. BTW: Where was the swap at, Pomona??

 

when i take stuff to a swap i take it to get rid of it..period if i wanted or needed it i wouldnt have brought it so i honestly price my stuff low so i dont have to drag it back home but i usually end up bringing most of it home anyway

 

Yeah, it happens but I don't think it is right. It is part of the reason "hot rodding" is so unaffordable to some. There will always be vultures lurking to make a quick buck but try to watch out for them. If you see them coming just say "Nope, I'll take full price plus 10% asshole tax!

 

It happens to me everytime I take stuff to the swapmeet, I don't mind cause I got money in my pocket and I am not hauling back home. I did have a weird one once though, guy asks me how much for this and I say oh I don't know 15 bucks, he says would you take 20, I act real cool and say well I guess I could, and he pays me 20! I thought my buddy standing next to me was gonna fall down trying not to laugh!

 

If your ok with the price that you got and agreed to sell the parts to him who cares if he tries to make a profit. I'm sure we have all done this in the past. It's called free enterprise. Scott

 

chock it up to "WTF" it happens . I sold a wolf whistle years ago to a guy on the barn after he talks me down a few dollars and the day he got it in the mail he put it back up for sale and asked about 25 bux more for it. It is what it is and the guys an asshole. it's the world we live in

 

If the some would get off their ass and go to the swap meet bright and early, then it would be more affordable for them. Actually, posts like this are why I don't feel guilty doing it, the lazy whiny grandmothers who expect me to give them something for cheap just because it fits into their tilted view of what's right and wrong can pay triple the going price as far as I'm concerned.

 

I had some heads I was tired of hauling around and this guy seemed interested, so I gave him a super deal ($15 for all) he new they were worth more and he tryed to get me down even further and I settled at $14. I thought I gave him a deal and he would be thank full for it. Later that day I came to his booth and he had something I wanted and I thought since I gave him a super deal he would be nice and give me a deal. WRONG! I gave him an offer that wasnt too far off from his asking price and he grabbed it out of my hand and said F-YOU and put it back on his table! Kind of confused, I just walked off and commited his ugly face into my picture memory bank. So next time I have something he wants Im going to work with him down to a price he likes (ill go really low) and when he says "ok" im going to tell him "oh too bad, I dont feal like selling it to you". I have a "dont sell to assholes" policy.

 

The time I have most things stolen is when I am loading the truck to go home. They see your attention is elsewhere and they help themselves. Also, some swap meets will allow free admission on the afternoon of the last day. When the free people come in, watch your ass. Somebody trying to con you out of something is just part of the swap meet game. Somebody stealing from you is not.

 

You took it there to sell it. As long as the guy didn't laugh at you from across the aisle and or moon ya, you should be good. How do you think half of these guys on here get theses cars. Swap and deal. If a guy wants to sit at a table in the hot sun with a pile of parts every weekend for 5 years to get a car done, hey give him some credit.

 

all people suck,,i price my good stuff high,,,if you buy it you pay the asking price ,,unless your a friend,,,if you want to sell it for more and can get it good for you,,cause now you have a part that prob over list,,i take stuff to sell but not to give away,,,ill take it back to my big garage,,if you try to move me and low ball me ,,i will throw it at you,,or break it then throw it at you,,i dont mind putting it all back in the van in that swaps are just a reason to meet friends

 

I find this really funny. I've been selling at swap meets for decades. I have different products that no one else has. It's a small nitch and I have a following. If a guy comes over with a flash light He's told to clear out before he gets hit in the mouth. I have a markey that I set up. This site is non political so I can't mention whats written on the Marquee. When they come over offering a price. I ask if they have read the Marquee. There always confused. I tell them to read the fucken marquee first. If they won't, I tell them to hit the road of else. If they try to low ball me on the price. I raise the price the amount they low ball me, and I mention to them that there on the fucken black list. I say it just like that. There not alowed to buy from me at any price. My buddies and I screw with the ass holes all weekend long. We go for the comradery, and not really to sell anything. The funny thing is I almost always sell out. That's when the economy was in good shape.
Look it doesn't hurt to be a good guy and try and give someone a break. I understand that, but some of these guys really suck. You have to be ready for them from the time you arrive till to depart.
If your wondering what crap I sell check out my photo albums.
We have the greatest times at these shows/flee markets, and we screw with a lot of ass holes. On the other side we have a lot of friends and they in turn screw with the ass holes. On Saturday nights we swap stories. Its great fun.

 

maybe he wasn't really trying to sell it. I've purchased stuff at swaps and when I go back to my buddies booth sometimes just put a silly price on it. I don't want to sell it, but if someone wants to pay me 3 times what it is worth, I'll sell it to them and go find another one.
________
Cheap glass pipes

 

I get what everyone is saying, I sold it, deal with it. Which I am, I just wanted some input on how others felt. I got some $$ but that's not the issue. It's that he was saying how the grill would be great on his car and that he could clean it up and use it so I cut the guy a deal. It's just the deception that is upsetting. It's a sign of the times, there's not much honor out there anymore, everyone is about "me me me..."

 

AstroZombie, I agree with you 100%. I would rather give a part to a guy who can use it, rather than sell it to him. I ain't rich, but believe "the pay it foward" works. What pisses me off to no end are the guys who plays off your character and integrity to benefit financially. They are losers, they are the ones who lock their car doors to pump gas, look you in the eye, then lie like a dog to benefit. And they have their supporters who say "too bad", smarten up, etc. Stay true to your ways, I admire you.

 

The only advice I can give is to NEVER believe sob stories, no matter how sincere they sound. Set your price, and try to get as close to that price as you can. And once your parts are gone, put them out of your mind forever. Where they go when they leave your booth is out of your control, so don't worry about it.


Business is business, and if you start giving people breaks, you'll just lose your ass when trying to sell stuff. Set a fair price, and stick to it. You'll be a lot happier with the extra money in your pocket.


Nick

 

First hour at a swapmeet is other vendors out looking for a deal.As long as they give me my asking price they call sell it or use it,I don"t care.Best time to get the good deals is when everybody is starting to pack up.If I take high dollar items to the swapmeet and have nothing but lowball sobass stories on them,doesn"t bother me to take them home and sell them later.You get all kinds at swapmeets but the worst thing at the swapmeets are damn thieves.The guys I set up at the swapmeets with are a tight knit group and we keep an eye on each others stuff.Best thing to tell the sob stories about I can"t afford that price is then what the hell are you even looking at it for and wasting my time.Time wasted with dumbasses is time not spent selling to real customers.