DISCUSSION: Buying/selling used bows on the auction sites

[Captainkirk]

Jaydog, here's a nice BP Colt currently at under $60.00.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/291633148070?_t ... EBIDX%3AIT

I would think this could easily be snagged for under a hundred if you played your cards right. (there is a 'right' way to win an auction if you know how to play the game.)

[Kybownut]

If someone is new to archery and knows very little about bows I encourage them to buy something new with a warranty like the samick sage that doesn't cost a lot of money.
Quite often the sellers aren't archers themselves and don't meaningfully misrepresent the bow but really don't know what determines what is a good bow and what isn't ,for example twisted limbs . How often do you see bows listed without a string? I think it would be very discouraging for a new archer to spend $150.00 bucks on a vintage bow with little or no return period to string it up and it have a twisted limb or some other flaw.
That being said if you are looking for a vintage bow and know what to look for bid away because there are certianly some nice bows to be had at very reasonable prices!

[Captainkirk]

Good point, Johnny. Sage is always an excellent value and new is backed by manufacturer's warranty.
We are assuming (for sake of this discussion) you know your way around bows and are looking for a good used vintage bow of a particular make & model.

[Captainkirk]

Unreal. That nice green K-mag sold for 149.00...only one bid! I was prepared to go 200+ on it before I changed direction toward the K-Hunter.
So, you see...there are still some good deals if you watch for them!

[Dan]

Dan what do you consider low prices? My wife doesn't eat meat, so me trying to buy anything for hunting is very difficult.

Captain Kirk answered your question before I checked back and is right on. You can get some nice bows for under $200

[Captainkirk]

On the other hand...you know how I feel about Tamerlanes. BUT.....I wouldn't touch this with a ten foot pole!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-1967-BE ... SwEgVWT1CV

Why someone would bid almost 150 bucks on a bow with very obvious severe finish checking, and possible lamination cracks, is completely beyond me. And the seller seems to have no issues trying to move it.

[Carpdaddy]

Stop it Kirk, you got me looking!! And I have only bought one Tradbow in my life, a bamboo backed Hickory that was unfinished. To me they are way too much fun to build, I would pay more for the materials to build one than for the finished product, yep; I'm crazy!

[Captainkirk]

Stop it Kirk, you got me looking!! And I have only bought one Tradbow in my life, a bamboo backed Hickory that was unfinished.

Nothing wrong with looking! It gives to an up-to-date picture of the used bow market. Besides, you might just find something you HAVE to own! (How do I know this? Don't ask....)

To me they are way too much fun to build, I would pay more for the materials to build one than for the finished product, yep; I'm crazy!

Actually, I really admire your ability to build a nice bow and I don't think you're nuts! I would love to do that, but...once I build a bow, what would I do with the mold and hotbox and all the other trifles? If I was going into the business or hobby, like you, then sure! For me, it's far easier to decide on a vintage classic and then hunt one down and kill it. (we did mention this is a 'hunting' site, right?)

[Captainkirk]

I guess this thread was left unfinished, and since Dave brought up the topic, we should revive the thread.
To recap, you need to determine the Big Three before you start bow shopping;

1) Know what make and model you are looking for (roughly)

2) Know what bows of this make & model are selling for. If you don't know, simply compare the pricing on similar bows recently sold and average them out for an average mean pricing.

3) Know your limit. The worst thing you can do is get into a bidding war at the last minute. Set your absolute top dollar value and don't exceed it. Not even by $5.00. Many people don't realize eBay is a proxy bid site; that is, if you bid $100.00 and the highest previous bid was 70.00 with a $5.00 increment, you are only going to pay $75.00, NOT the $100.00 you bid (as long as you've met the minimum bid requirements). Bidding $75.00 is foolish and will likely lose you the bow, because the other bidders are likely playing the same game. Set your top dollar bid and pull the trigger (more on this later).
The proxy bid feature will automatically do a last-minute scramble between the top bidders.

Now that you've identified a couple bows you like, bid on them, Right? WRONG!!!
Now is the time to start reviewing the information you have. Look at all the photos provided. Use the Magnify tool (+) to scan the bow inch by inch looking for possible defects such as limb twist, delaminations, scratches, nicks, chips, gouges etc. Look carefully for obvious signs of finish checking. You can often times use the bow string (even if unstrung) as a 'chalkline' for limb twist just by looking at the alignment.
Now is also the time for looking at the SELLER as well as the bow. What is his feedback rating? Does he have any negative feedback? If so, review it. Read carefully what others have to say about this seller. Read carefully his description of the bow as well. Does it 'ring true', i.e. match up to what you know about the bow? (perfect example is the earlier-mentioned common blunder of reading the PATENT DATE off the bow sticker on Bear bows and listing it as a "1953 Model"). If all the info matches up and the info jives, it's now time to CONTACT SELLER.

(to be continued)

[Captainkirk]

Contacting the seller:
Why in the H-E-double hockey sticks do we want to contact the seller? Several reasons. First, many sellers don't include enough pictures, or don't give a complete visual of the bow in question. Pictures cost money on a listing. Sending you additional pictures via your email costs them nothing. If you have questions about a certain area that is blurry, shadowed (no, not you, Jason) obscured, etc, ask for better, clearer pictures and more of them. Lots more.
Second, ask a list of basic questions. Why? Because if you do ask, and they lie or don't answer them, there is a reason for that. Here are the questions I ask:

1) Is there any known damage, scratches, nicks, chips, delaminations or finish checking? If so please describe and send photos.

2) Is there any visible limb twist?

3) Are they (the seller) aware of any handling incidents, i.e dropping, dry-firing, water damage, etc?

This seems like a lot of nosy prying, but here's the thing; if they answer "no" and have lied, you now have a written communication from them stating the opposite. You can use this to dispute a bad transaction rather than "He said/she said"...same goes for the photos the buyer emailed. They can take down their ad but not your email photos. Call it...insurance.
If you paid using PayPal, PP can and will open a fraud investigation on your behalf if requested. Evidence is key here.
If any seller refuses to comply, dances around the issues, gives you a sob story about how his camera broke...don't listen. Cross it off your list and move on.Likewise, if they don't respond to your email, move on. There are plenty of other fish in the sea.

OK; bid NOW?
No. Not yet. Patience, grasshopper...

(to be continued...)