One of my favorites... "How much for this" ......50 bucks... "Is that the best you can do?" ......Nope, $75... "Huh? I asked if you could do better on the price" ....I am !! ...this is the point where they realize just how asinine the question was in the first place. I don't price the stuff I will carry to a swap because I carry a ton or two ( literal ) of NOS stuff..I pull, replace, restock with different things almost every trip, and it comes off the shelves, dust and all...that helps when you have a place that has been open 60+ years. I also know what replacement costs along with trip expenses that play in. Sometimes I make money, MOST of the time it is a total loss. And yes, sometimes I will take stuff with me that is not for sale...Mainly because a lot of the younger crowd has NEVER seen or touched the speed equipment fron "the days gone by"...how many kids out there, right now, have never even laid eyes on a 78 rpm record?
we only price the "high ticket" items or the big items that everyone would be interested in we have our parts in groups, ford over here chevy over there ect. prices are not fixed in stone we would rather sell it to you than have it on a shelf not being used and the only thing that pisses me off at swap meets are the ass hats that raise the price when you try to deal....try to deal on the same part that you are currently dealing on ... and dick hole who run over your stuff because they don't know how to drive( which happened on thursday morning) now thats swap meet etiquette tk
It would be nice if you could go to a swap that sells car parts. There is way too much shit to weed through that has nothing to do with cars. Jefferson boasts 3100 swap spaces. Too bad 2/3 of them are selling crap! Who the hell wants (or even wants to look at) grandma's broken blender from the 80's??? There are still good deals to be had at swap meets though. I picked up a 32 tailgate for $25 complete with hinges and blasted clean at the last one I went to. Of course there was no price on it. He just dragged it out of his van. I got the "Its not mine" when I tried to talk him down a couple of bucks - hell, it's worth a try (more beer money). All in all they still beat egay. I woulda had to spend that on shipping alone there...
I also think it's time for some "Rules of Etiquette." I have attended (as a VENDOR) a very small swap meet three years in a row held near where I live. 1. EVERYTHING, that I put out for sale has a price tag. 2. I TRY to identifiy the years (and or models) that the parts fit. 3. I'm ALWAYS open to negotation on the price. (but I might say, "Sorry I'm not going to let that go for that price; especially if I know the guy is going to take it back to his table, and mark it up 100%) 4. I'm into flatheads. Been collecting for 50 years and you tend to acumulate more parts that I'll EVER use! When young fellows (had a couple of gals too) start looking over the various flathead parts, and IDENTIFY what they are; I usually ask what their building. If I get the impression their serious, I'll take them aside, and ask them, "What parts are you going to need to get your engine running?" Often it's a starter, or generator, or a distributor. With that, I'll take the part, (often cores) and hand it to them for FREE; making them promise they will drive by my place and show me the final product. Yeah, I get a nice feeling when I do that. I now have a lad who is building a "flattie" cause that's what his dad has. (I gave his dad some cores many years ago) Dad was with his son at the swap meet and insisted on paying for the parts I gave him. My response; "Happy Birthday!"
THANKS FOR ALL THE POSTS ITS GOOD TO SEE THAT THE WORLD HAS SOME GOOD PEOPLE TRYING TO HELP THE "CAR GUY"OUT We love swaps and will continue to go .. all the bad dudes will not keep me from gettin the stuff that promotes my hobby/ way of life.. ALL OF MY GRUMBLING WAS JUST AT THE SURFACE HERE.. AND ANY OFFENDED PARTYS HOPEFULLY ARE NOT THINKING IT WAS PERSONNAL... AFTER READING ABOUT ALL THE GOOD SCORES BY OTHERS IN IOLA ... I REALIZED I HAD A REAL GOOD DAY THERE TOO. SEE YA NEXT SWAP PUT UP A H.A.M.B. SIGN AND I WILL BUY FROM YOU ... PROMISE PAPERDOG
Long Island Vic was the first HAMB guy I ever saw with a swap meet sign, and I've had one on my van window at every swap meet since.
I set up and sell at 2 swap meets per year. I carry some nice stuff and some cheap shit. I mark the prices. Last week at the saginaw car show I had a group of parts and a sign 1 dollar pile. You would not belive the idiots that did the following . How about 2 pcs for a dollar or pull a 50 or hundred out for a dollar part. I gave one 49 ones in change and the other I told to set the part in my truck and come back when he has a one. I was also offered 50 cents for a item. I also had a free pile and one guy came up and started off with all of it. I told him to set it down and told him how greedy he was. I had one guy stop me before I got to my spot and buy a gas pump and a barrell with a pump. I shot him a buy it now price and he paid me then. The last is the ass looks at a item gets a price and walks off then he watches you load up all and comes and wants a part. Most of the time I say sorry we are closed... Most of all I price my shit to sell I dont want to carry it home..
Love going to swap meets, always have and probably always will. I was at Iola with PBRmeASAP and others. Great for the FNG to meet some other HAMB'ers, but not real impressed with the swap. The vendors who had prices and applications were a treat to shop at.
racer, reminds me of a trick I tried last year. I had an old engine hoist for sale that was just taking up valuable room. I put a sign on it that said, "This hoist will be sold by REVERSE auction!" The sign went on to say, "The opening price is $119.00! (paid almost $300.00 originally) Every hour or so, I will REDUCE the price by $10.00 until it's sold!" Well .. the price was marked down to $99.00 and I spotted two guys hanging around, watching each other to see if the other was going to make a move, especially if I marked it down another $10. Along comes a "comely young lady" (honest, she was a "looker!") She walked up and quietly asked if I would speak to her grandfather on her cell phone. (her back was to the two guys, and she was out of their "ear shot.") I take the phone and the voice on the other end asks if I was planing to drop the price again soon. I said, "No, I'm leaving it at that price for a while." He said, "OK, let me talk to my grandaughter again." 30 seconds later she handed me a $100.00 bill, and said, "I'll take it!" The look on the faces of the two "lurkers" was just priceless!! Was worth the price of admission!! Plus I didn't have to take it home!
That happened to me a few years ago at Rhinebeck. I had a factory Cadillac tripower intake that one guy came back to look at about 47 times. After I had loaded the truck for home (with the cast iron on the bottom, of course), he came back and said, "I guess I'll take that intake". I said, "Fine. Money in advance, and you unload and reload the truck to get it". Guess he didn't want it that bad!
I said the same at the last swap I went to, plenty of car parts but you had to wade through a lot of booths with miracle polish, hot wheels cars, and 2 for $10 sunglasses. They all have their place, I just wish that seperate the car parts vendors from the flea market stuff.
I recently went through this at Pomona Swap with a 26-27 Roadster body that was from the lakes area and an original documented car from the late 40's, just some history to it. Asking price for the car at the swap was $1200.00 complete with the one required patch panel...no takers but alot of B.S. looky lou's. Pissed me off so bad I brought it home and listed it on E-Bay and it sold for $3600.00 and the guy drove from L.A. overnight to get it. After meeting him and talking I threw in a ton of stuff to help him out. Turned out nice for both parties involved and no more cry-baby dreamer Bull Shit to deal with. And we all ask why E-bay is ruining swap meets...maybe it's just the guys that want to enter our realm are ruining it by not having the common knowledge to respect those that came long before them as I for one am not required to pass my collection off for free and will share at the drop of a dime when you treat me with respect. Just my 2 cents for what the Hell thats worth!
People are dumb in general. I had 2 Torque thrust wheels for sale. They had a huge paper sign with the price and the note that read "No, I don't have 4 of them"........ I still had people asking where the other 2 were.
It would be much better if they would enforce their own written policy - this is taken directly from their (madison classics) website: http://www.jeffersonswapmeet.com/falJeff.shtml SWAP SPACES Pre-registration for swap spaces closes September 1st and spaces will not be available at the gate the weekend of the show. Spaces are $55.00* each for a 10' by 20' space. Vendors must have at least 80% auto related products for sale. Those that cannot meet our criteria will be asked to leave.
I've tried to keep the policy if I am vending at a swap, that's what I'm there to do. If I want to go buy, I make sure I have a buddy or my Dad to watch the space. I also take a walkie talkie along so if someone wants more info/better price they can get a hold of me immediately. I try to price everything before it goes into the truck, so when you have the "fresh truck vultures" circling, I know what I want for it, and don't get caught of guard. I was really disappointed in Iola this year! I've gone for at least the last 12 years, and always come home with a bunch of great deals (a really nice $50 gas pump one year) but came home with nothing but an old club plaque this year. I didn't see many people walking around with much, and prices seemed higher than ever this year.
This thread is a great thought-provoker. There seem to be as many different strategies and standards of conduct as there are buyers and sellers. Just an observation, for what it's worth; some folks are comfortable with haggling and some would rather go for a rootcanal. The whole process looks like ESP whenever I've seen it done by a pair of past masters. When I try it looks more like a bad game of charades.
I will agree,swapmeets have really gone downhill the last few years.I have done swapmeets as a vendor and spectator for about 25 years now.I set up at 1 auto swap now,and do about 5 tractor swap meets as a vendor.Tractor swaps are actually a great time,as nobody is comparing the size of their wallet. When I do the car swap,it is in January and indoors.I use this for a social event and only bring parts that I do not consider worth listing on Ebay. It continues to surprise me what junk people will buy.I too am guilty of throwing stuff in a trash can when someone really low balls me.I have intentionally broken parts too,right in front of them.Excellent shock value. I always bring some model car kits,mainly 80's stuff.I quoted a price to a guy for like $10.00 on an old kit once...he thought I was high...but the look was priceless when I gave it away to an 8 year old kid. Ebay has been good to me,both as a buyer and a seller.I am only close to 1 major swap meet (Kalamazoo)...which is basically a "parts show" Guys that drag parts to swaps that aren't for sale just tear me up.You KNOW those parts will most likeley never be used again.That is a shame.
Here's a few things - 1. eBay prices - I know half the guys looking at my stuff want things to eBay, so why should I mark it much less than I'd get if I did it myself? You're not paying shipping and handling, that's your deal. If I don't sell it at a couple of shows, I'll throw it on there, maybe I'll get more - I did with the Stromberg 48 I carried around for a month with $60 on it. 2. Don't: Shout from halfway across the booth and interrupt me talking to the guy who was ahead of you, to ask a price. Especially if the item's marked in two or three places. And don't act like an ass when I turn long enough to tell you it's marked and go back to the guy I was already talking to. 3. Don't: pick up an item marked $5, pretend not to see the $5 and ask me how much, hear me say 5, and wave a $1 at me. He offered three after I explained $5 again and I said no. 4. I carry toy cars, model kits, model trains, and some DVDs and things why? Because I sell a lot more of that stuff and with a lot less hassle. One show I sold $50 out of the one box of model trains and sold stuff I can hardly give away at a model train meet. It was worth having along. Kids are usually too dumb to haggle, if they have the money they buy. Hotwheels for a buck and other kids stuff gets the kids to come over and beg mommy to buy them something, sometimes it gets Dad to see something he'll spend real money on. 5. I swap out my stuff and carry less car parts now because guys root through, pick stuff up, then never even make an offer, or see a price and put it back. I tell people 'what do you want to pay me' and they can't even come up with a number - most times I'll take it, unless you're one of those "worthless" or "a dollar" guys. I have a tarp I put out and everything on that is a buck. If it's not marked, that means while it's not a dollar, it's not that crucial to get a million bucks for it either - $5 or $10 and it's yours. 6. Don't sit there and bitch to your friends, or the air, that my prices are too high. No one else has had a damn '64 NY Trailer plate in any condition at any of the shows I've been to all year - I only have 7 bucks on the thing. If it was really nice, it would be 3 or 4 times as much. 7. Don't be this asshole: Picks up half a '55 Dodge grille from under the table, with one end rusted pretty bad but decent chrome, tells me it's worthless but he'll give me a buck to take it away for me, acting all slick. I tell him I wouldn't take less than $20 for it - I picked it up in the junkyard with an idea I might use it. He drops it like a hot potato on my table, mumbles some kind of thanks anyways, and is too lazy to even put it back where he found it. I used it as a footrest the rest of the day. I can't replace it for a dollar, $20 just pays the gas I had in getting that part - if you want to give me a buck, let me run it over with my truck first, then it's a buck. 7. Realize that just because I have this stuff out doesn't mean I'm destitute and will take any offer to get rid of it. Some stuff I could give a crap about. Some stuff I'll either use one of these days or I know sooner or later I'll get a guy who'll pay me what it's worth. One vendor I know throws stuff away, or sells it all cheap, at the end of a show. I buy stuff from him once in a while. He enjoys smashing it up when it won't sell, he's been collecting the stuff for years and wants to clean out two semi trailers loaded with this junk. Sometimes I think he has the right idea.
I quit selling at swap meets years ago because I got sick of people stepping on my parts, stealing them, insulting me, and jewing me down. On Ebay, I am honest with my description, am fair with customers and do not inflate the shipping price and people bid up, not down. I went to Iola last year to buy, not sell and haven't been in about 15 yrs. had a good time. This year went to Jefferson and I will never go again. I have never seen so many motorcycles, lawn mowers, cheap tools and other junk at a swap meet. Remember when they used to sell car parts at automotive swap meets??! This has been my two cents and its worth much less. Thanks for listening Chris
Where can I get some info on the local Twin Cities Swaps? I will be in the cities several times over the next few weeks and wouldn't mind stopping in for some. Andy
I would love to get rid of the lawnmower, bicycle, chinese tool, socks, military clothing, old lady knick knack, home crafts, "just because it is old it must be worth selling", kind of sellers because they fill in too many spaces. I don't care about the haggling, the "game", the no price, or any other aspect of it...just show me parts..auto parts you know. the 80% rule I heard was enforced this past spring at Carlisle, and it helped, but it isn't enough. I agree with what clark said along time ago, keep the catalog guys in their own area and let us run through the traveling junkyard.. tok
who cares.... i got the swaps to hang out with friends, and enjoy looking at old carp. yah you get deals every now and then, you just gotta look.... how about a few years back and a set of 5 54 chevy grill teeth for 10 bucks, they had no idea what they were from and just said make an offer! yah, and this year reconditioned sun tach and transmitter, 6cyl and 12 volt... 40 bucks took it! yah, look, but if it's specific stuff ebay is sometimes better.... PS, Murphbar likes to drink beer
[Paperdog, I can see your point about swaps, but I haven't run into most of the problems you list. I don't let sellers get to me, if they're indifferent I just move on, I won't buy from assholes. The only bad part in be a seller is watching for the thiefs who work in pairs and try to bag any thing the can. I do a Model A swap in Paso Robles, Califorina every year as a vendor and its way cool place to sell. I price the big items and answer all the good questions and the strange ones. I'll take offers even if I have stated a price thats what a swap meet should be. Wear some tall boots, pass the asshole vendors and find the cool vendors they are there. Maybe the goodguys should put up a white flag. Good swaping to you Cruiser 49
I like both swap meet shopping AND ebaying. There are advantages and disadvantages to both, but they're both fun for me. It's always baffling to me to look at some of the stuff guys lug around to swap meets all season tho, when it looks like one trip to the recycler would be way more profitable that gas and time spent showing off a pile of scrap metal. Some guys clearly must like just HAVING all that junk, they seem so proud of it that selling it isn't really the goal.
It's a hobby not a business chance to meet and get accainted with buddys older they are the less they give a damn get used to it shit happens
This is just my thinkin on this. E-bay prices find the way into swap-meets and this is kinda bad. For instance if you se a highly sought after part on the bay that would be #s matching to a rare ass car every ass-waud that has any part that could possibly be bolted onto that same car now thinks his part is worth the same inflated dollar. Now inturn this makes every aluminum small block chevy manifold fit a corvette or a SS and be very pricey. And how many times have you tried to buy something from a vender and he tells you ""I saw one go on E-BAY last week for big $$$$$$$$.>>>>
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