What's it worth

[peterb]

Hi All
Just wondering what people would be prepared to pay if I sold my turntable. It was made from wine barrel ends the pieces stuck together with dowels and marine grade epoxy glue, the inner pieces of timber under the shaft are Tassie oak and the top piece that bolts to the table if you work on cascades is meranti and Tassie oak. The shaft is all hand turned out of stainless and instead of bearings I pressed in toughened nylon and machined it to a slide fit. The barrel bolt is also hand made out of stainless. I turned and knurled inserts for the bolts to go through so they don't crush the wood and these were glued in with epoxy as well and then all the wood was coated with marine grade epoxy resin . Reason i'm looking to possibly sell is I want to buy an dslr camera and this money would go towards it
regards
peterb

[peterb]

well I guess the silence has spoken , no one would want to buy it anyway guess i'll have to fund the camera in another way

[Jarad]

It's been 5 hours dude, just give it time.

[kcpoole]

Awefully fine work there Peter.
I have no need for one but would think several hundred$ would be appropriate

[shibui]

Manufactured items are worth the cost of materials + the cost of time to assemble and market them. If a manufacturer starts charging higher someone else will start making them and undercutting the price.

a better approach would be: I can make these for $x. Is anyone interested at that price?

[Watto]

You might be able to sell it at the AABC convention in a couple of weeks. Plenty of keen bonsai folks at such events.

[squizzy]

Hey peter

It's interesting this whole topic of what things are worth. It gets harder and harder to charge for well made things as we get more and more cheap made stuff from overseas. My dad is a fitter and turner who does the odd job for people. He is an exceptional tradesman but can't bring himself to charge for time it takes to make things. These are things that you can't buy off the shelf as well. It would appear to me that this has taken you at least 16 man hours to produce but I doubt you are going to reap the appropriate reward for such efforts. It's a shame but it's reality. I look at it like this. When I was young my grandfather would spend a good few hours re sharpening handsaws but be buggered if I could justify that now when for $15 I can simply get a new one. Problem is I have 15 blunt saws in the shed that I can't throw out. Talk about torn between what's right and what makes sense.

Good luck

Squizz

[peterb]

Hi All
Shibui mate this would be a once off , it doesn't sit well with me to sell it after all the work I put into it , the only reason i'm thinking of it is I would like to buy a decent camera but funds are pretty limited, so I thought I would try to make up the money and then at a later date take the 6 months it took to make this one to make another. I did make one for a very close friend out of recycled and new jarra with a bead blasted stainless body , really came out the goods. Thanks for the replies folks, the suggestion of AABC is a good one
kind regards
peterb

[shibui]

Shibui mate this would be a once off , it doesn't sit well with me to sell it after all the work I put into it , the only reason i'm thinking of it is I would like to buy a decent camera but funds are pretty limited, so I thought I would try to make up the money and then at a later date take the 6 months it took to make this one to make another.

You and Squizzy have both pointed out what most bonsai sellers and many artists find - buyers are reluctant to pay for the time that goes into an item. However you are prepared to discount your time in order to obtain funds for something else you desperately want and that puts another perspective on the transaction and the value.

Another piece of advice from an elderly Italian: Never be both buyer and seller. What he meant was that it is up to the seller to set a value on the transaction and to decide how much negotiation and discount might be acceptable. The buyer's job is to get a good deal rather than set the asking price.
I think you will have much better chance at a sale if you set a price you are comfortable with. Your turntable is a one off, handmade item so there is no benchmark for potential buyers to start negotiating from. You will need to give some guidance to most potential buyers.
The convention will see lots of the right sort of potential buyers in one spot so would be a good spot to try for a sale but there will likely be some logistical problems. The organisers have costs to defray and will usually demand that sellers pay a fee for the privilege of accessing the market they have drawn together. Trade tables tend to be fairly pricey but maybe for a single item you may be able to work out a better deal or get one of the commercial traders sell it for you on commission.

Good luck with the sale

[Elmar]

Good advice shibui!

I hate it when I go to look at something and they say "Make me an offer!"
I often don't have an idea (to start of with) and don't want to offend. But at the same time I don't want t be ripped off!
Peter, the wood factor wouldn't really be of consequence to me, but your workmanship is excellent! Perhaps you could put up your gut feeling of its value...?


Cheers
Elmar

[peterb]

Hi all
Thanks for the replies, shibui that is very sound advice , both yourself and elmar have pointed out something that irratates the life out of me when i go to a certain Bonsai nursery in adelaide, whenever you ask about a tree they say what are you willing to pay , and now I'm doing the same thing. I'll chat to some of my friends and see what they think, but i must admit it's looking less and less desirable to let my table go and I've been speaking to the minister of finance about other ways of funding this camera . Think I'm starting to get cold feet
Regards
Peterb

[peterb]

Hi all
sorry guys tables off the market , father inlaw came to stay for a few days and said there's no way I can sell it after the work I've put in so he has fronted $250 towards the camera , but thanks for all the input I've learnt a lot for in the future if I want to sell something else
regards
peterb

[Pup]

Hi all
sorry guys tables off the market , father inlaw came to stay for a few days and said there's no way I can sell it after the work I've put in so he has fronted $250 towards the camera , but thanks for all the input I've learnt a lot for in the future if I want to sell something else
regards
peterb

Gotta love ya Dad when he appreciates your work.

[peterb]

Hi Pup
Me old man's passed away , but i have to say my father in law has been a pretty good replacement
regards
peterb

[treeman]

Good advice shibui!

I hate it when I go to look at something and they say "Make me an offer!"
I often don't have an idea (to start of with) and don't want to offend. But at the same time I don't want t be ripped off!
You won't be ripped off if the offer you make is accepted. It is the price you are prepared to pay. You won't offend any decent seller by offering too low a price for them. They will naturally want the highest price possible so to accept the first offer is probably rare. If you start lowish, you will soon get an idea how much they want by the respose and you take it from there.


Cheers
Elmar