It's too bad you can't see these kinds of people coming, I think as age creeps on us, we become totally intolerant of others who waste our time, more so when you have a busy lifestyle.
Personally, I don't call unless I have the money and the intent to buy, I show up, if the item is not to my liking or different than I expected, I leave, thank the person for their time, and that's it. If the price is too high, I'll make an offer, either some negotiation takes place and a deal is made or not.
I will cite a recent example:
End of March 2012, I finally had some extra cash for something I have needed for a long time, a log splitter. I did my research, know my needs, and what I am looking for, a Huskee or Speeco, 28 or 30 ton model. Now TSC carries the Huskee branded model, so there are a lot of them around, often times garage kept and light use, several hundred bucks less than new.
So I see an ad, call the guy, says its only done 4 cord, kept under cover and is in perfect shape. I saved the ad, a screen capture off craigslist.
I arrive, turns out I went to school with the guy, years back, he did graduate from a different school, so I had not seen him since, what are the odds, was great to see someone you have not in close to 30 years.
I look the unit over, getting towards dusk, he wanted 1300, I offered 1000. He said it will stay at that price, he dropped to 1200, and delivered it. I did notice a bearing cap off one wheel, but not much else, well the threads on the oil fill of the honda motor were deformed a bit, but the cap still threaded in, maybe not as easily as it should.
I get it home, notice the paint on the hydraulic reservoir is severely bubbled, spalling, popping off in some places and so on. Factory paint, no primer, crappy job from the start. So.... these are so simple to work on, I'll sandblast it, prime and paint it, re-decal it etc.
Now, the ad said it was in perfect shape, actually it was not, and it was not kept under cover, judging by the aluminum on the cooling fins, muffler etc. Bearing cap missing too, paint bubbling off. He said it was only 2 years old, was almost 5 years old. I did not say a word, or call the guy and complain, some would though and cling to that ad he placed stating it was perfect. See if I had done that, I'd probably still be looking and not have the work done, and to me getting work done on time is critical to many aspects of life.
I look at it like this, these are not often available used, you see them for sale once in awhile, so to save a few bucks, like about $500 in this case, who cares, petty little things, all that can be fixed, it works great, most of my wood is split and drying over a month, and now I own a sorely needed piece of equipment, and saved some money.
I like things that are well kept, in nice shape, holds resale value better, usually performs as it looks, and helps you take pride in it, take care of it etc. so I try to find things in good clean condition, but does not always happen.
I changed the oil, ordered and received that non typical bearing cap, re-packed the wheel bearings, ordered and received the log catcher and the 4 way wedge, will take care of that hydraulic reservoir when time permits.
I'm happy with it, though I think I paid a little more than it was worth, I still saved a fair amount over new, people ask 2/3 or = that price for the old types of splitters, that don't go vertical, don't have 2 stage pumps, and less power, 12-20 ton, I see those often, like Didier and similar types.
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