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#101
Since getting back in to playing I used one of my other hobbies to fund this one. I collected vinyl toy robots collectibles made by my favorite artist. I bought tons of them, I was embarrassed by how many I had. Well over a hundred...maybe more like 2...

People gave me such a hard time about it, "It's immature, you have a problem"
I see their point I am in my 40's....I'd tell them how limited or rare a color variation was,
bla bla bla..... "It's an investment".... Kept them in the boxes.

Well, Over the last few years I've made thousands of dollars in profit. It was a gamble but paid off.
I'm worried, about to post my last big ticket item on eBay. The fun is almost over.

It's funded all my bass gear. Tried a used bass at a local store over the weekend and put it back, said I didn't want to spend the money. The GF said "just get it, we'll post a robot on eBay"

I use similar logic with my bass gear. I mostly buy used, if new it has to be a great price.
I also, make sure it's something I can either make money on or at least break even if I sell it.
 
#102
SanDiegoHarry said:
I once had a bartender (who said he was a musician) ask me about my gear. I told him and he reacted as you might expect - "how can you afford that stuff?" - He was bartender who had the absolute latest cell phone with the max package, brand new fashion-running shoes, a fairly new car, latest game console(s) and games, the maximum cable package yet was always broke. Hmmmmm.

So yeah - priorities.
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I've got several "broke" friends with quite a bit of body modification art and jewelry, not to mention a few with substance habits (not that body art and substance use are inherently intertwined).
Yeah. Priorities.
 
#105
Based upon my exposure to TalkBass I've very carefully bought just a few medium to high ticket items and am VERY happy with them. I've never had a problem with GAS. But for me it's been worth it to have very reliable, well made and great sounding gear which has never let me down in a live playing ( or other ) situation. I still look at the classifieds for fun here but have no real impulse to buy more stuff. To me terminal GAS seems almost related to a gambling compulsion but maybe a bit milder since if you know how to play the game ( with trading and selling ) it's not like you lose a lot. Or do you? :laugh:
 
#110
69Jazz said:
and live a comfortable life
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Here is the key. "and live a comfortable life". I too am financially in a good place and have commitments like putting my oldest through college. I think it comes down to relative comfort. I feel comfortable but my definition of comfort is different from everyone else's. I skimp on things that don't really take away from my quality of life, based on my opinion. An example would be if I go out to dinner, which is rare, I usually order water. Drinks are where you really pay a marked up cost for what is delivered. It was not easy at first but as I saw the money adding up, it made sense to me. I drink a lot of iced coffee, I make my own at home with a garage sale espresso machine. Coffee shops are ridiculously expensive for what is delivered. I haven't had cable or satellite for years after adding up what I was paying yearly for something I never watched. That savings alone in a year can be a nice instrument or other gear. I have a whole house fan, etc... I think you get the picture. All the small things add up to expendable income for other items such as gear or expensive instruments. Last but not least, I never pay full retail price for anything. I look for sales or work with the seller to reach a fair price. If I cannot agree on a price, I move on. I am patient because when I am purchasing something, the only thing that is abundant, in most cases, is time and that costs me nothing unless there is a sale. That is how I do it.
 
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#112
69Jazz said:
I get all that. I have no problem spending some dollars on good gear. But there is a lot of major league expensive gear that lots of folks trade like last years baseball cards. I guess I am just out of my league.
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Some guys are really good at wheeling-dealing. I am not one of them. But I think the key is to buy used. Be patient. And sell things you don't play.
 
#114
Most of my 13 basses are between $300 and $800.
The most valuable one I own is a 4003 Blue Burst fretless.
When it popped up on Ebay I borrowed the $2300 to buy it
from my son's college fund! ( he was a junior in HS then)
my wife was not amused - She gave me six months to return
the funds to the account or I would be sleeping in the shed :wacky:
I hustled side jobs, and sold off some lingering but not needed
studio gear to make the deadline:cool:
 
#116
I guess the priorities that I have of needing to take care of my family and spoiling my children far outweigh my want for a Sadowsky, Lull, or MTD bass. I never said that I wasn't happy with my gear. I have perfectly good gear; a vintage Jazz, MM Stingray 4HH, Subway D800, Eden, SWR......blah blah blah. It just struck me the other night when I posted that there is a turdload of way expensive gear for sale, and I was just pondering the notion of how folks can really afford $3K-$4K basses and all the latest and greatest, newest and bestest most expensive amps. I never wanted to enter in a discussion of how I structure my finances and savings to facilitate my buying such gear. If anyone feels the need to buy newewst, most awesomely expensive, and totally badass gear, have at it. I wish I had that disposable income to do it. I will stick to my good gear, my 20 year old truck, and spoiling my kids beyond belief. I personally get a better feeling from having my family have some of the nicer things in life than impressing a few musicians who might think my gear is cool. I have been doing this way too long to be worried about what a small handful of people think about my gear. That being said, do I lust after the best and newest and most expensive? Of course I do. Just like the car enthusiast might lust after at 1971 Hemi Cuda. As some have said, it is our priorities. If I was single, had no kids, and wanted that lifestyle, I would be all over it. As it is, I like my little comfortable life, my decent gear, and my family not wanting for anything.
 
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#117
69Jazz said:
I never wanted to enter in a discussion of how I structure my finances and savings to facilitate my buying such gear.
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I hear ya and totally respect your priorities. At the same time, I do think it's been an interesting discussion where everyone has been respectful (unless I missed something which is entirely possible over 100 responses in) and we've seen a good variety of perspectives on how and why we buy what we buy.
 
#118
mikeyjm2 said:
I hear ya and totally respect your priorities. At the same time, I do think it's been an interesting discussion where everyone has been respectful (unless I missed something which is entirely possible over 100 responses in) and we've seen a good variety of perspectives on how and why we buy what we buy.
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No, no one has been disrespectful at all. This tread just shows that all of us have different priorities. I hope I did not come off as disrespectful. We all have our own things, no one better than the other.
 
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#119
Thing is, if I was a guy who made his living selling basses and bass related stuff I would be all over a thread like this in the interest of market research. That ain't me though. I'm just a weekend warrior who mostly just buys stuff other people made.
 

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