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Advice needed on estimating value

C

centervolume

Apr 7, 2013
7
4
mississippi
www.soundclick.com
#1
I read the rules and browsed the forum titles and did not see anything dedicated to this question.

What are the best steps to take when figuring out a price for a vintage bass?

There seem to be enough of these wishful “price it super high” ads that using online listing is not very reliable.

If this is the wrong place for this question please direct me to whichever sub forum is appropriate, thanks
 
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#5
bholder said:
Interesting way to approach such discussions.
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Ok, seriously, I'm not sure where the OP intended to go with this, they left it pretty wide open - depending on the specifics, it might be anything from a veiled attempt to subvert the "no selling in the main forum, use the classifieds" rule - if OP is only interested in one specific instance, for example. Or, on the other hand, if meant truly generally, it could spark an interesting discussion of what constitutes value (and to whom) in today's market - well within rules and could be helpful. Hoping more towards the latter, of course... (not second-guessing the mods at all, here, just pointing out that one end of the spectrum is questionable, rules-wise, so let's everyone keep that in mind. ;))
 
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#8
Easy, find recent sale prices of unmodified, mint examples. Then find equivalents where non-original mods or damage has occurred to get an idea of how different factors affect prices.
Some things that are extremely rare are worth a lot - but only to the right buyers, so choosing the right ship-window can be important for specialty items.
Very generic answer. But it was a very general question!
 
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#9
centervolume said:
I read the rules and browsed the forum titles and did not see anything dedicated to this question.

What are the best steps to take when figuring out a price for a vintage bass?

There seem to be enough of these wishful “price it super high” ads that using online listing is not very reliable.

If this is the wrong place for this question please direct me to whichever sub forum is appropriate, thanks
Click to expand...

look up recently sold listings of the same bass and adjust based on the condition of whatever you’ve got.
 
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#10
In the event of an item that has been reissued, what effect does that tend to have on the original ones if any? Since there are now more basses similar to the one I’m trying to assess.

Looking up recent sales applies to eBay but not much else. Is that all we have to go on? Talking with vendors who used it back in the early 2000s, they indicate the site seems to have passed its heyday for this type of equipment. Does anyone else feel that way? Also best offers not disclosed right?
 
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#11
There’s a Vintage Guitar publication that has vintage instruments for sale and corresponding prices. If it’s really old and valuable send it to me and I’ll be glad to help.
 
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#13
Reverb allows sold item search and is more aligned with this type of gear. There is a markup factor whereby in order to realize say $2000 for an instrument, it has to sell for $2500 give or take to cover fees, shipping and taxes. Any of those items can be absorbed by either party of course, but they are the variables that differentiate sell price and net money.
 
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#14
No matter what anything “is worth” right now, expect to sell it for 50-60% of that, if it sells at all. And expect to wait a while before anything sells. I’ve been buying and selling records, gear and instruments online since early 1999 and I have never seen it this slow. There are very obvious reasons for this state of affairs, but we’re not allowed to talk about that stuff here.
 
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#16
centervolume said:
Yes indeed that’s a rule of thumb I believe in. I’m interested to know if there might be other rules of thumb. For example a piece is all original but with pro / not homebrew refinish. Is that automatically 25%, 35% or more ??
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The opposite. Parts basses and modified basses are usually going to sell for less. Especially vintage stuff. If it’s modded or has new parts people will not pay market price for it.

If you have a MIM Fender and you’ve upgraded all the hardware and electronics, you’re still going to get roughly the same used price that you would if it’s stock.

Funny enough, I’m having more luck selling on Craigslist lately. It’s usually the opposite. Reverb was great until this last year. Their selling fees are now more than eBay and shipping gets more expensive every month. And the cost literally everything will be skyrocketing in the coming weeks. Local cash sales are king.
 
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#17
Levitamin said:
The opposite. Parts basses and modified basses are usually going to sell for less. Especially vintage stuff. If it’s modded or has new parts people will not pay market price for it.

If you have a MIM Fender and you’ve upgraded all the hardware and electronics, you’re still going to get roughly the same used price that you would if it’s stock.

Funny enough, I’m having more luck selling on Craigslist lately. It’s usually the opposite. Reverb was great until this last year. Their selling fees are now more than eBay and shipping gets more expensive every month. And the cost literally everything will be skyrocketing in the coming weeks. Local cash sales are king.
Click to expand...
Sorry I meant 25-35 percent deduction
 
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#20
Go on Reverb and eBay and look at sold instruments. Not 100%, but better than asking a bunch of strangers on the internet.

Years ago I posted that I had purchased a Rickenbacker 4003 for $1200 and a bunch of Richard Craniums came on to tell me I’d been had, that they were selling for $900. I decided sold on Reverb and eBay and there weren’t even any for $1000.

Who knows why people do this?
 
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