jmizera Loc: Austin Texas

Hi folks,

I've sold gear on ebay numerous times, and it's ok, but you give up a pretty good chunk of value. I also have sold a lot of audio gear over the years, and have come to prefer a site focused on better stereo equipment called Audigon.com. There is just a small posting fee, plus 2.75% if you use their payment processing. Reverb.com is a similar site focused on band equipment, and Etsy.com specializes in vintage and handmade items. All of these sites let you keep more of the proceeds from the sale, and tend to attract more qualified buyers, and less bad actors.

As far as I know, there is no such site for camera equipment. At least not that I've yet found. I think this is a great opportunity for someone with the right skillset.

rjaywallace Loc: Wisconsin

Joe - right under your nose...there is a site right here at UHH. At the bottom of this page click on the link to all sections, then scroll down to "Members Buy/Sell/Trade - Classifieds", join it and sell away (into the sunset). You can also sell camera gear to B&H Photo, Adorama, KEH and other major vendors.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

I like FredMiranda.com. There are a lot of enthusiasts and pros selling gear. My transactions there have been flawless, even when the item I've purchased was flawed or not as described. In each of the 3 situations where this has happened, all I did was alert the seller that such was the case, and a call tag (prepaid shipping) was issued and the refund provided upon receipt of the item. Of course, regardless of where you buy/sell your gear, using Paypal provides reasonable protection to both parties by making it hard for scammers to get involved, and recourse even if they do.

joer Loc: Colorado/Illinois

I use KEH and avoid the hassles and bad actors. Yes you pay for the risk free convenience but its worth it. You didn't really take "investment" literally did you?

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

One of the advantages of Ebay is that it is international. I sold all of my film Hasselblad equipment to Europe, no American sales. Europe, at the time, was still into film and I got more for it selling it to Europe. With international sales I get a lot more interest in my products. And now Ebay makes international sales easy, you just send it into their processing center and they handle EVERYTHING.
Bottom line, even with Ebay charges I get a LOT more than trading it in, A LOT MORE. It is well worth the time and effort. It is my time and effort and I get rewarded handsomely.

SonyBug

Yes, there is a Classified Section here. And there is one anomaly that keeps me wondering about trust. Here it is. I have a "rating" for having done many transactions in the past with stellar results. But, if someone posts they want to sell something, they have no "rating" and yet want my money before they send the equipment. So, why should I trust them as they are unproven, when they don't trust me after I have proven myself.

Just my rant.

jmizera Loc: Austin Texas

I'm aware the classifieds here on the UHH, and I do appreciate that it's free. It's not really quite the same as a dedicated resale site as the ones I've mentioned. I also don't care for the fact that others can post public comments to your classified ad, and you have no control over it. I believe this hampered the sale of a lens I had posted here in the past.

Fred Miranda himself is a great contributor to the art. I still use some of his Photoshop actions. Again, the resale section is really just another forum posting. And with a monthly fee at that. Forum postings are not likely to draw buyers who aren't already users of that forum. They also lack the oversight and other sales tools that Etsy, Audigon, and Reverb offer. Ebay too for that matter.

KEH is very much the other direction of what I am talking about. No doubt the easiest route, but you keep an even smaller fraction of the equipment value.

jcboy3

I have sold frequently on eBay. I disagree with the notion that you give up a lot of money to sell. eBay fees are reasonable.

You can also list items for sale on Amazon. I haven't done that, but there is a lot of used gear sold on Amazon. You may find Amazon to be a lot harsher on sellers, however.

If you live in a major population center, then Craigslist is an option. It's intended for local sale. There is no risk of post sale returns. But there is risk in getting ripped off, so care must be taken. I use Craigslist quite often, but for items that I can quickly check at point of sale when purchasing. When selling, you have to deal with hagglers, no shows, and point of sale hagglers. Although I've done the POS haggling when I find an item is not quite as described.

If you sell to a reseller (like KEH or Used Photo Pro), you need to recognize that you will be selling to them so they can make a profit. Be prepared to get 50% or less of what the items sell for.

jeep_daddy Loc: Prescott AZ

That is why I sell on Craigslist. I get all the money and don't have to pay any commission. I've never been screwed by selling locally on Craigslist because I don't buy into some of the scams that people play. Just tell the potential buyer that you only accept cash, will only meet in person at a public place. Simple as that .

jmizera Loc: Austin Texas

Make no mistake, I'm a Craigslist user and a fan. It solves the sending money to someone with no other support problem. It's just local unfortunately, unless you go and post in multiple cities.

OneShot1 Loc: Wichita, KS, USA

I've looked at mpb.com, but have not yet purchased from them.

BudsOwl Loc: Upstate NY and New England

My solution also. I’ve sold two cameras, one with a lens plus two additional lenses and other miscellaneous stuff on Craig’s list. I have also sold two cameras and two lenses to four different friends. In all cases I got cash.

IDguy Loc: Idaho

UHH has been best for me.