> Bill,
>
> As noted in my previous e-mail to the list, I agree that finding a
> freshly rebuilt trans/rebuilt O/D combo for $600 sounds too good to be
true.
I looked for 5 years without finding one of these amazing bargains. Go
figure.
Well, it only took me a few months after I began looking for one in earnest,
and I bought one from a list member for about $400-$450 as I recall. But
everybody has a different experience perspective.
>
> But if I may, I think the real objection that some might have is how
> you are using the list as a "fee-free" auction for your own benefit,
> by pitting list members against themselves, as if they were on eBay (as
> when you said "high bid is currently $400").
I never posted "high bid is currently $400" to the list. I said I had
the od/tranny to sell and then took all of it off the list. That was
part of a private email sent only to the six people who were informed up
front that I was going to do this as a mini-auction. Any of them could
have opted out or just not bid. I assumed that when no one objected to
the originally stated conditions that they were interested in doing it
that way.
Ah, I understand now. I didn't realize that you hadn't posted the current
"bid" amount. It's difficult to tell sometimes what has already posted and
what hasn't, as my personal experience has been that sometimes I get list
mail, and sometimes I don't! Sometimes I don't even see my OWN posts, and
only know that it posted because someone replies to it!
> In other words, yes, you're
> offering your stuff to the list, but it doesn't appear that you're
> providing any real benefit to anyone other than yourself, since it costs
> you nothing to conduct your own, personal auction before a large crowd of
> interested parties.
Yes, but Ebay has a reputation for running the price of things up far beyond
their actual value. I thought having a chance to bid only against a small
group would have its value and keep the price from being forced to the
absurd.
In general terms, I'd have to disagree with your assessment of eBay. Yes,
some items do get run up, but I wouldn't say that's the rule. I see
overpriced items often go without a single bid. I can certainly understand
how you thought that by confining it to the list, you might keep the bidding
lower, but in practical terms, I'm not sure how you could come to that
conclusion, since I would expect most everyone on the list frequents eBay if
they're looking for an overdrive trans anyway. The only difference between
conducting an auction via the list as opposed to eBay is that you have no
listing or final value fees to pay and no risk of negative feedback (except on
the list of course, which probably doesn't matter to you at this point, I'm
guessing).
>
> In short, you ain't doing the list members any favors in this instance.
Rest assured, I won;t even consider it in the future.
Again Bill, no skin off my nose. Rock on! But just understand that by
conducting a private auction on a list populated by Spitfire owners, you're
really not providing anyone special consideration. At least, that's my
opinion, as misguided as it may be...
>
> Now, if you simply listed the price you wish to reasonably receive for
> the combo ("first $450 plus shipping takes it"), then I don't see how
> anyone could object, unless MJB simply doesn't wish for people to
> advertise items for sale on the lists, which I don't believe is an issue.
I don't know an absolute value for it. Look at the garbage I took over
trying to price my car. But I do want to get as much out of it as I can.
That was stated in the private message to the original 6 people who expressed
interest as well.
Okay, since you admit that you want to get as much as you can for it, then why
would you have slammed eBay for running up prices to the absurd? Think of
what you paid for it, then think of what you would feel too guilty to accept
for it (we can call this the "ceiling of absurdity" if you wish) and then pick
a figure somewhere in between and see if it sells! If you want to get as much
for it as you can, then according to your own statements, you should most
definitely have listed it on eBay. That way, all the bidders can see exactly
what the others are bidding and they know that you're not playing one against
the other, which as things stand now, you could easily be doing. I'm not
suggesting that you are! I don't know you. But that is an impression that
you'll have to contend with by conducting a silent auction with none of the
usual safeguards or accountability in place.
>
> I didn't get my tit in a wringer when you announced that you were selling
> your Triumph to buy an MG. Hell, I used to own an MGA, too. Big deal.
> But to discount the intense rivalry between the marques and to
> underestimate the loyalty of Triumph owners probably set you off on the
> wrong foot from the get-go.
And how is offering someone the chance to get something as rare as an OD
tranny slighting Triumph owners?? I could have just put it on Ebay in the
first place. Maybe I should have.
Well, I apologize for the confusion. Offering an OD tranny isn't slighting
anyone certainly. I was referring to your first series of posts in which you
announced your intention of selling your car to buy an MG that you liked
better, and then kept "reminding" everyone that it was still available, but
that you were getting no offers, etc. Sorry for not being clear. Quite
frankly though, I don't think OD transmissions are all that rare. At least,
not single rail J-types. I seem to see them offered on a fairly consistent
basis, and as noted above, I didn't have to spend that much time finding one.
>
> BTW, I really don't care about what you're doing now, but I think you
> deserve to know why some may take a hostile stance towards what you are
> doing, even if you can't put it together for yourself.
If giving listmembers first shot at something like this a bad thing, so be
it.
Giving list members first shot isn't the problem. It's pitting them against
one another for the highest amount you can possibly get off the list is the
problem. Do you see the distinction? I hope so. For example, Glenn Trunnell
announced on the list the other day that he had a bunch of Spitfire books for
sale. Before putting them on eBay, he wanted to offer them to the list. He
did his homework, came up with prices that he considered fair and reasonable,
and listed them. He didn't put anybody off by saying "Hey, I sold my Spitfire
for a Miata, I don't need these anymore.". Not that he sold or ever owned a
Spitfire to begin with. I have no idea. In this case, "less" as in "the less
we know about why you're selling them, the better" , IS more. I wanted the
Practical Classics Spitfire restoration manual. He wanted fifteen bucks.
I've seen them on eBay go for around $25. SOLD! And thank you, sir! Do you
see the difference here, Bill?
>
> Enjoy your new MG and good luck unloading all your other stuff.
> Personally, if I were you, I'd either list prices for everything on the
> list and whatever doesn't sell, throw it on eBay, OR simply throw it
> on eBay.
I was trying to avoid Ebay as I find it somewhat repulsive. I have put
prices on the MK IV parts on my website. I don't know if they are realistic
or not. I basicly looked at prices in catalogs and availability. I am sure
most here wil think they are all too high. In which case, nobody has to buy
them.
Excellent point. Nobody does. But it would behoove you to do a little
research and price these things to put more money in your pocket and more
parts on the road, wouldn't it?
> Once upon a time I had a free auction site for Triumph owners
> like you to list items for bidding for free, but nobody used it so I shut
> it down. Eh!
I went looking for it. It was the first place I thought of when I finally
something worth selling. I would have put my car up there too. Sadly, I
think a lot of the parts currently resting in my shed are going to end out
in the scrapyard.
Bill, if anything ends up in the scrapyard, it's because you want to put it
there. By the way, I tried to sell a Mk1-3 bellhousing with throwout fork on
eBay for $1 plus shipping. No bites. If anyone on the list wants it for the
cost of shipping, it's yours. If I can't GIVE it away, ONLY then will it find
its way to the scrapyard, after I remove the throwout fork.
Cheers.
Jeff
bill
--
Bill Gunshannon | de-moc-ra-cy (di mok' ra see) n. Three wolves
bill@cs.scranton.edu | and a sheep voting on what's for dinner.
University of Scranton |
Scranton, Pennsylvania | #include <std.disclaimer.h>
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