Trixter
Veteran Member
I unfortunately received a PCjr chiclet keyboard in original box that way... yesterday. Argh. I should have sent the seller a message but "real collector's item!" in the listing led me to believe they had respect for the box.
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How *not* to sell me your old computer
- Thread starter rittwage
- Start date
I unfortunately received a PCjr chiclet keyboard in original box that way... yesterday. Argh. I should have sent the seller a message but "real collector's item!" in the listing led me to believe they had respect for the box.
rittwage
Veteran Member
A new wrinkle on my article from years ago. I got a call from someone in Connecticut or somewhere up north, asking me to buy their computer. They INSISTED I put an ad on their local Craiglist and wanted to know why I am in Georgia and would not buy their computer. I told them I have never put in a Craigslist ad outside of where I live... Augusta, Georgia.
Anyway, they insist again and say they are "going to turn me in to Craigslist for fraud". Very funny, but still I didn't want people flagging my ads. I again told them I never made such an ad in their area, they are free to contact Craigslist since there must be an error in their search, and could they forward me the ad they are talking about.
Well, they sent the link and guess what? It was someone posting a wanted ad in their area, but they linked to the article on my website!
The seller visited the link, contacted me, and assumed I was the one who put up the ad.
Anyway, they insist again and say they are "going to turn me in to Craigslist for fraud". Very funny, but still I didn't want people flagging my ads. I again told them I never made such an ad in their area, they are free to contact Craigslist since there must be an error in their search, and could they forward me the ad they are talking about.
Well, they sent the link and guess what? It was someone posting a wanted ad in their area, but they linked to the article on my website!
The seller visited the link, contacted me, and assumed I was the one who put up the ad.
VERAULT
Veteran Member
As someone who lives in connecticut i assure you the northeast is high on scammers and fraud. Sorry for your yrouble. What were you selling?
For the record
I have some ads up on craigslist. Most stuff i get has zero follow throughs. The rest is asking ebay prices or higher.
For the record
I have some ads up on craigslist. Most stuff i get has zero follow throughs. The rest is asking ebay prices or higher.
bladamson
Veteran Member
Me: Please make sure that everything is wrapped up good in plenty of bubble wrap and that the heavy items won't crush anything. I'll pay a little extra for shipping if needed.
Guy: *Randomly throws everything in a box with some packing peanuts, then rolls it out of the bed of a pickup in front of the FedEx office in the rain.*
(Several days later, computer arrives smashed to bits.)
Me: Files complaint with ebay after getting no response from the guy after a couple days, then gives negative feedback.
Guy: WAI YOU GIV BAD FEDBAK?
Guy: *Randomly throws everything in a box with some packing peanuts, then rolls it out of the bed of a pickup in front of the FedEx office in the rain.*
(Several days later, computer arrives smashed to bits.)
Me: Files complaint with ebay after getting no response from the guy after a couple days, then gives negative feedback.
Guy: WAI YOU GIV BAD FEDBAK?
RadRacer203
Veteran Member
I've got a local wanted ad on Craigslist looking for "older than Windows 95" computers because a lot of people don't know much about the specs. 99% of the replies I get are something to the effect of "I've got this core 2 duo Dell Dimension, would you pay $200 for it?" I've also been getting people replying to my ad who want to buy computers from me lately for whatever reason
shirsch
Veteran Member
Even after painstaking explanation of good packing technique, a Mac Plus and original 128k Mac both arrived with the cases smashed. The shippers did get it together to protect the sides, front and back, but left the machines sitting directly on the bottom of the box where the first drop off the conveyor belt broke it. Sorry to be blunt, but "You can't fix stupid..". My all time favorite was the person in TX who shipped a Xerox 820 system in a thin box with an old winter coat wrapped around the sides. Naturally, no top of bottom protection and - equally naturally - smashed case. When I complained, they abruptly closed their eBay account and disappeared. Fortunately I was able to glue the case together and straighten out all the bent internal pieces. Incredibly enough, CRT was fine and the system works to this day.
ngtwolf
Veteran Member
As someone who lives in a major city in the Southwest, I think scammers and fraud are more specific to the folks who frequent these sites.
I never get the 'ebay prices', and particularly love when they reference ebay prices in their emails as to how they priced it. If they want ebay prices, go sell on ebay. Oh, wait, they don't want to because they don't understand ebay and don't want to pay all the fees? Exactly... And I don't want to buy their product for ebay fees and deal with driving over to pick it up when I can have them ship it to me for the same price.
The only reason we really buy locally is because we'd rather the hassle then spending the extra money. I personally don't like to deal with strangers, and I hate trying to ship equipment, so I never manage to sell anything i need to sell. I do belong to a local retro group so usually i just give/trade them stuff I don't need, or sell it really cheap just to avoid the hassle. I've had friends get out of the hobby because they went 'all in', doing 'hauls' and fixing and cleaning up stuff, selling it... they turned the hobby into a second job and didn't have any time to enjoy the stuff they had...
Haha, I do see 'vintage' computers on craigslist pop up here that are old HP/Dell computers, it's kinda funny. But, I guess it is vintage to the 20 something year old who needs rent money before their roommates throw them out.
For the folks who are writing, asking for equipment, I'd invite them to whatever local computer group you have in the neighborhood. That way you can vet them out and see if they're actually interested in the hobby or it's just a business for them. If they're into the hobby, it's a great way to exchange stuff (or skills) without the hassle.
Trixter
Veteran Member
Likely because the smashed case and bent metal took the impact instead of the tube.
I just boxed up a monitor this weekend with the help of a friend; we put 2" firm foam on all six sides, plus filled every void with foam or bubble wrap. It's wedged in there good and doesn't move or rattle, so fingers crossed it makes it across the world to its destination.
rittwage
Veteran Member
I have had this happen. Sometimes you run into a large lot and they want it all gone and you can't leave it or it doesn't seem right to leave it. In these cases, I just pick out what I need and head to the dumpster with the other stuff immediately- it never makes it home. (I'm not talking about anything anyone would want- I'm talking about the Laserjet II's, the SCSI scanners, and the "box of wires and software").
Trixter
Veteran Member
Those are my litmus tests for whether or not I'm dealing with a hoarder. (ducking)
VERAULT
Veteran Member
Ill take a Laserjet IIp any day of the week, those things are workhorses. Sorry don't agree with you about that... Or a II or III base unit. All good.
bladamson
Veteran Member
CRTs are hard to pack.....
I recently got a M1212 Mac monitor, well packed, that still ended up with a little crack on top. I think I will be able to fix it from the inside when I get around to (*ducks*) retr0briting it.
I recently got a M1212 Mac monitor, well packed, that still ended up with a little crack on top. I think I will be able to fix it from the inside when I get around to (*ducks*) retr0briting it.
ngtwolf
Veteran Member
Yeah, the laserjet II was a nice printer, but to be fair, they are a bit bulky and there are only so many printers you can hoard. I've been hoarding dot matrix printers lately that I really need to sort through, but they are hard as hell to get rid of and take up too much storage space.
I also might disagree on the cable aspect of his as well. I've dumped a number of cables only to wish i've kept them. Even if the cables seem useless, they actually can be re-purposed for other things. For instance, I keep IDE cables because you can re-use them for making other types of cables.
So anybody who wants the misc stuff that makes the machine actually useful would be a hoarder (keyboards, mice, printer, scanner, monitor, cables for all that, and original software)?
I have over 100 computers (if you count laptops), 4 laser printers (3 are vintage), 2 scanners (1 USB and one SCSI which I purchased new back in the 90's), a few dot matrix printers, boxes of cables (mostly breakout cables for video editing cards and they tend to be pretty long), and lots of boxed software plus misc disks.
When some people offer up lots of all or nothing stuff without pictures you have no idea if they are cleaning their basement and expect you to bring a semi truck and take it all just to get that Commodore 128 you do want. There have been a few times where people were offering stuff I had to take a few things I didn't want or need and then I have to either junk, give away, or sell it off. Personally I don't need any off brand CRT monitors, misc barely legible home made moldy floppies. hacked cables I will never know what they go to let alone use, or anything too dirty or infested that I am afraid to touch (dust I can live with).
Hoarders never throw away anything even if it is trashed, non working, and they have working copies of. They also tend to just toss things in piles and never touch them again.
I know a few people who snag hoards of old PCs and they let me take what I want with the knowledge that if I want something out of a tower I have to take the whole thing and dispose of the unwanted stuff. Generally all of it would end up at the dump (they snag the newer stuff) so I don't mind raiding a computer missing a front face or door for a nice aftermarket heatsink, maybe a CPU+ motherboard I want, or just a nice graphics card and junk the rest. Last Thursday I tossed a nice looking Thermaltake mid tower because it came without the front face plastics and I already have a test stand case (NZXT Whisper EATX full tower in mint condition minus the door panel) so I took the motherboard and tossed the rest.
This is a good example of how "free" can end up being expensive. I wouldn't go as far as to call it an alternative origin of the maxim "never get it for free when you can pay for it" though...
ngtwolf
Veteran Member
The only thing I might suggest is to drop it off at a donation place rather than a dumpster.. At least it opens up the door for some folks who might want that stuff, or if nothing else, might get it routed to an electronics recycler.
rittwage
Veteran Member
Nobody around here will take that stuff anymore. Goodwill, Salvation Army, etc. refuses because it is heavy and sits around and they can't sell it. Heck, I can't technically even put it in out work dumpster- they want to charge you to take electronic waste if they catch you. At least around here, there is no electronic recycler that will take this stuff. They would be overwhelmed. I know guys in Atlanta that stopped years ago because they can't get the scrap prices to make it worth doing. They only survived on recycling grants to do it and those dried up also.
Keeping old wires, generic monitors, printers, software, etc. is a whole other level of hoarding - You and/or your surviving family will regret taking it.
maxtherabbit
Veteran Member
agreed, rather have those than any modern laser printer
hoarding garbage tier printers like bubble jets and dot matrix, ok that's pretty dumb
VERAULT
Veteran Member
Most people (ones who aren't in the know) who still print; and primarily documents for work. Think that thier only option is inkjet. Up until the last 6 or 7 years I was still refurbishing Model 4 or 5 HP laserjets I got for free and other than maybe an hour or two of maintenance and a new pickup roller and a refurb toner pack, I would sell them to someone. Attach them to an external jetdirect and connect it to thier home network. They were all happy.. and when I show them the price of a toner card and the fact that they wont have to worry about it for at least 5 years.. They see the difference from inkjets right away.
Honestly screw paperless. I am all for recycling and not wasting but I print alot. I like holding documentation in my hands. I wouldnt consider myself a big waster either.. no I would stick that label on all the junk mail I get from obvious garbage and credit card crap.
Trixter
Veteran Member
If they already have bins and bins of those items, yes.
I'm talking about my test for people I'm dealing with; I'm not talking about you.
FTFY. Hoarding is a spectrum. Some thoughts on the subject.