Would this put you off as a buyer?

[BD Jones]

My favorite Mexican food restaurant has "NO SUBSTITUTIONS" posted at the top of every page of the menu. Why? It makes things more difficult for the servers and the cooks. When you order the "Dinner #1 Beef" the server just has to write down "#1 Beef" and the cooks know exactly what goes with it (by the way, it is 2-enchiladas of your choice - beef, chicken, or cheese-, a chalupa, rice, refried beans. I can't' even tell them no tomatoes on my chalupa, I just pick them off). They have a HUGE menu and it is too tough to do subs. I see the same thing here. You want to sub the case for a different one. That makes it more difficult for the seller as they have to actually swap the case then change the listing for the other bass. I'd tell you "no", too.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

So I was looking at a bass on Reverb and a large volume seller has a bass I like priced at $2700, the bass is within a fair price range for what it is although on the high end, one of the downsides for me is it has a non original damaged case. The sellers price is firm, no " make offer" feature

The same seller has another bass of the same make, model and vintage with a nice original case but the color and condition of the bass is less desirable so its priced at $1800

* I had mistakenly suggested he has hundreds of guitars listed, most of his inventory are pedals, he has 18 guitars listed in total*


I had emailed him and said I would be interested in purchasing your $2700 bass if you would swap out the case with the case from the other listing.

He replied with one sentence that he " wouldn't be willing to do that "

Me personally, to make a sale, I would be happy to, in my opinion the condition of the case really has no bearing on value of the instrument it's more the fact I already have several basses with worn broken cases.

The demeanor of the reply makes me want to take an antacid for my G.A.S and move along


Am I unreasonable?

maybe not unreasonable, but just a tad out of focus. Let me ask you this, would have been willing to pay $2800 for the same bass with a nicer case? If so, buy his as advertised, buy the case you want, and sell the one you don’t want on craigs list.

In answer to your initial question. No I would not be put off by the seller. Buying a bass over the internet is always a non-starter with me.

 

[Admiral Thrawn]

if you read other threads some people on here think the bottom will fall out on nonessential goods soon but that was not my point, my point was the case is damaged and shipping is a pig in a poke right now , drivers are overwhelmed, I've heard first hand reports of damage on other threads that people speculate is from the increased work load / different employee's, basically that items aren't getting the same quality of care as usual

If that's such a concern, then don't buy anything that requires shipping and avoid any issues altogether.

As for the matter of being unreasonable, the ad said no offers accepted, you made one, got rejected, and now it's a problem?

I've seen For Sale ads here on TB where the seller responded with "Can you even read the ad?" or something to that extent. And while it's not the best customer service, there is a point there. The seller owes you nothing other than the product as offered for the price as advertised. You may factor in wiggle room in your For Sale ads, but that isn't a requirement for anyone, yourself included.

It's cool that you do that, but it is unreasonable to expect others to operate the same way you do.

However, you've put some emphasis on shipping issues. So, here is where I would repeat my first paragraph.

 

[JZQuantum]

It's so easy just to move on to the next seller. He lost you as a customer, probably for life.

 

[Peaveylover]

What was rude? The seller made it clear there were no offers considered, yet the OP went there anyway. The seller didn't owe him a response at all.

I think any seller should write more than just one curt sentence if someone is interested in their 2700 dollar bass. A "thank you for the message" and an "all the best, thanks again!" is really all that was required.

 

[Peaveylover]

Where was the rudeness?

Seller said " no offers". That the potential buyer even received any response is more than was warranted.

Possibly, but since the seller chose to respond a simple "thank you for the message" and a "take care" would have been a nice addition to the mix.

 

[Admiral Thrawn]

I think any seller should write more than just one curt sentence if someone is interested in their 2700 dollar bass. A "thank you for the message" and an "all the best, thanks again!" is really all that was required.

The ad, according to the OP, said offers were not accepted. He made an offer. The seller responded professionally. Maybe not to your liking, but professionally nonetheless.

 

[gln1955]

I think any seller should write more than just one curt sentence if someone is interested in their 2700 dollar bass. A "thank you for the message" and an "all the best, thanks again!" is really all that was required.

If he has over 100 items for sale, he's probably spending a fair amount of time fielding questions from all kinds of people. That he's all business responding to an offer he didn't solicit is reasonable. No one should be getting their feelings hurt in that scenario.

 

[9c1ny]

jesus the misinterpretation in this is staggering

he never explicitly said ' no offers ' , the listing lacked the " make offer " feature. So not exactly the same and the ad also said " open to trades" , that should open up a whole new avenue of speculation and wonderment.

I guess I'm in the minority right now thinking essentials / money > basses as we head towards a 20% unemployment rate.

I'll find someone who is happy to take 5 minutes to swap a $75 case and revise a listing for $2700 worth of inconvenience to feed their family

 

[BassmanBender1]

I would not buy anything from that seller. You were willing to spend $2,700 on a bass. To me, that's a lot of money. The seller should have treated you like royalty, not like you were pestering him. Just move on. If the seller is like that before the sale has been made, think how the seller might behave if you had a problem with the purchase.

 

[Admiral Thrawn]

jesus the misinterpretation in this is staggering

he never explicitly said ' no offers ' , the listing lacked the " make offer " feature. So not exactly the same and the ad also said " open to trades" , that should open up a whole new avenue of speculation and wonderment.

I guess I'm in the minority right now thinking essentials / money > basses as we head towards a 20% unemployment rate.

I'll find someone who is happy to take 5 minutes to swap a $75 case and revise a listing for $2700 worth of inconvenience to feed their family

Ah, my mistake on the offer thing.

Do you accept offers on items if you don't have the make offer feature enabled? If so, that's pretty cool. But again, expecting others to operate as you do is unreasonable. Different people, different motivations, different needs, and all that.

You also bring up a good point about essentials being greater than basses at this point. Perhaps this seller is insulated from the possible unemployment spike (I am) and doesn't need the money as much as you want the bass?

And if essentials are more important than basses...why are you looking to drop $2700 on one?

 

[dan1952]

I've heard various reports of an increase in broken items during the pandemic, different employees , longer transit times etcetera

Call me old fashioned but to take a bass that you bought solely to sell for profit and to swap cases with another bass of the same make and model that you also bought solely to sell for profit shouldn't be any big deal for a $2700 sale


It's crazy to me to sell an excellent condition bass in a poor condition case while you sell the same bass in poor condition in an excellent condition case

I hardly think I'm being illogical, I've bought and sold in excess of a hundred basses in the last several years and could write a thread of the ridiculous questions, demands and offers I have received

Please give it up. Several people have told you the same thing, please listen to them. Enough already.

 

[DrMole]

Possibly, but since the seller chose to respond a simple "thank you for the message" and a "take care" would have been a nice addition to the mix.

Niceness is nice. I am still old-fashioned and generally use proper grammar in most of my text messages. Considering how most people communicate via text these days; the fact that a reaponse was received is still a bit surprising.

 

[el murdoque]

anyone want their $2700 vintage bass shipped in this versus a clean vintage G&G case?

I've had a more expensive bass shipped in a case that was in a worse state. It arrived intact - and that was the only thing important to me.

 

[ajkula66]

I'll find someone who is happy to take 5 minutes to swap a $75 case and revise a listing for $2700 worth of inconvenience to feed their family

Will that "someone" have the exact same bass ? If they exist, why not buy from them in the first place ?

 

[Cliff Colton]

in all honesty I've seen similar examples come up in the $2200-$2500 range but they pop up sporadically, as far as waiting well I'm at home and have the free time to enjoy now rather than later

Maybe the seller doesn’t want to switch the cases because he would have to redo the classified ad for the bass you’re not buying. Offer to buy the bass without the case for a small reduction in price, then go buy a gig bag. Remember to apologize profusely for the inconvenience and let him know you won’t tell anyone so they won’t ask too. People like secrets.

 

[9c1ny]

Ah, my mistake on the offer thing.

Do you accept offers on items if you don't have the make offer feature enabled? If so, that's pretty cool. But again, expecting others to operate as you do is unreasonable. Different people, different motivations, different needs, and all that.

You also bring up a good point about essentials being greater than basses at this point. Perhaps this seller is insulated from the possible unemployment spike (I am) and doesn't need the money as much as you want the bass?

And if essentials are more important than basses...why are you looking to drop $2700 on one?

I'm generally pretty flexible, if someone had a reasonable offer say $100 or asked for a different case or asked for free shipping I'd generally not disregard them with a " not interested " , worst case I'd meet them in the middle.
I probably shouldn't be buying it but I'm trying to maintain a sense of normalcy and spend what could be my last weeks or our last weeks as a civil society doing something I enjoy

 

[9c1ny]

I would not buy anything from that seller. You were willing to spend $2,700 on a bass. To me, that's a lot of money. The seller should have treated you like royalty, not like you were pestering him. Just move on. If the seller is like that before the sale has been made, think how the seller might behave if you had a problem with the purchase.

I'm not expecting to be treated like royalty but at that price point at the very least a " hey I appreciate the offer but I'm really sorry I can't do that" would have perhaps made me say, hey I get it, didn't hurt to try, I'll go ahead and grab it anyway

 

[Admiral Thrawn]

I'm generally pretty flexible, if someone had a reasonable offer say $100 or asked for a different case or asked for free shipping I'd generally not disregard them with a " not interested " , worst case I'd meet them in the middle.
I probably shouldn't be buying it but I'm trying to maintain a sense of normalcy and spend what could be my last weeks or our last weeks as a civil society doing something I enjoy

The seller's response to you is clearly an indication that you two have different views on the present and future.

It's probably for the best that you don't do business with him since his approach to customer service is not in line with your values as a customer.

I wish you the best of luck finding a comparable bass!

 

[9c1ny]

actual convo if anyone is interested