What's with all the low-balling nits???

[Cory in DC]

Because that's what nits do... When they see that a guy has more than one high quality cue - they think he is rich. Then they think that he can afford to let this one go cheap. I have nice cues but no money. It's because I saved for years for them. I have also bought a bunch of mid range cues and trade 2, sometimes 3 for something of great value. Truthfully I think that a lot of nits are just ignorant. They couldn't tell a Rauenzhan from ravioli...

If I'm a seller and an offer is too low, I just say "no, thanks."

If I'm a buyer and the price is too high, I just say "no, thanks."

This method covers all situations and I never find myself upset. Try it, it's good for your blood pressure.

If saying "no thanks" is too troublesome, then a really strong disclaimer on your for sale posts would probably cut out most of the offers that annoy you. Something like "This is the price. Only contact me if you want to pay the listed price for the posted cue. Please do not contact me with a lower offer, a trade proposal, or a story about your hard luck."

Cory

 

[Banks]

Don't feel bad. I get folks on Ebay low balling me on chalk... CHALK !! It's priced at $8, but I will get an email asking if they can get 2 for $10. As if that number
deserves some type of discount ? wtf ?

It's why I never have garage sales anymore, I just give the stuff to a charity and save myself the heartache

I'll go 3 for $9, but no lower! Don't think you cityslickers can pull a fast one on me now. Just pm me for shipping info.

I'll also give you $50 for your cue, but you gotta cover shipping.

 

[d_day]

I think it's TV shows like American Pickers that are doing this. They see people going out and buying stuff for peanuts and selling it for high dollars and suddenly they think they can do it too. they'll offer 10 cents on the dollar for everything they try to buy. When people make offers like that to me I tell em the price just doubled.

 

[NitPicker]

Well, a long time ago the Dutch currency used to be tulips until one day out of the blue, tulips weren't worth a damn. Who says a pool cue has to keep some ambiguous, absurd value? A booming industry creates an overpriced, oversaturated market. And a cratering industry will bring everything back down and only leave room for top performers. It's called correction.

 

[trob]

It's always been like that lol

 

[jkmarshall_cues]

I'm a 59 year old teacher that loves to collect cues, and I also build cues as a hobby. I've tried to stay current on pricing and yes, sometimes I've paid more for a cue than I wanted even though I know it may not be worth that much $$$ to someone else, it's worth that to me to have it as an example of say Rambow's, Paradise's or Scrugg's work.

I also spent 13 years in the car business before becoming a teacher years ago. I get the laws of supply and demand. I know when there's a fire sale and someone is liquidating their stock, that's the time to buy quantity. However, when someone has lowered their prices to below market value, or below cost, and potential buyers think they can low-ball you or make ridiculously low offers and want you to over-nite shipping on top of that, it irks me.

Yes, I usually just say thank you for the offer and step away, then ignore future PM's and emails from them. I've even blocked a few, most from overseas. I have seen far more of these low-ballers recently. It's sad what has happened to the industry.

John

 

[2strong4u]

Well, a long time ago the Dutch currency used to be tulips until one day out of the blue, tulips weren't worth a damn. Who says a pool cue has to keep some ambiguous, absurd value? A booming industry creates an overpriced, oversaturated market. And a cratering industry will bring everything back down and only leave room for top performers. It's called correction.

Yes...and the pain caused when it all corrects is capitulation . We haven't even touched on that yet.

 

[Bishop]

I'm a 59 year old teacher that loves to collect cues, and I also build cues as a hobby. I've tried to stay current on pricing and yes, sometimes I've paid more for a cue than I wanted even though I know it may not be worth that much $$$ to someone else, it's worth that to me to have it as an example of say Rambow's, Paradise's or Scrugg's work.

I also spent 13 years in the car business before becoming a teacher years ago. I get the laws of supply and demand. I know when there's a fire sale and someone is liquidating their stock, that's the time to buy quantity. However, when someone has lowered their prices to below market value, or below cost, and potential buyers think they can low-ball you or make ridiculously low offers and want you to over-nite shipping on top of that, it irks me.

Yes, I usually just say thank you for the offer and step away, then ignore future PM's and emails from them. I've even blocked a few, most from overseas. I have seen far more of these low-ballers recently. It's sad what has happened to the industry.

John

I'm surprised to hear that you spent 13 years in the car business only to be put off by lowballers. I worked a lot for the better part of 8 or so years and almost all the best buys were because people had the courage to ask.

99% of the time low balling is just a way to weed out a starting point, a way to find out what the sellers bottom dollar is.

I can't think of anything wrong with that. There's no harm in asking, certainly no harm in breaking the ice as long as its done with the intention of actually negotiating or seeking to make a purchase.

I never understood the guys who got pissed off because someone low balled them. I've offered 300 dollars on plenty of 600 dollar cues and managed to work out a deal for under 400 bucks.

All you have to do is politely say "no" or level with them and let them know where you need to be...or that you're firm.

Putting people on ignore because they lowballed you is like ignoring a potential customer because they wanted to feel you out by dropping a price they know you can't sell at. Its an ice breaker...people want to know that you'll work with them a bit.

This does not apply to pure tire kickers who negotiate with no intention to make a purchase and just want to see how low they can get you. Those people can go to hell.

 

[crobwin]

:bash:


I'll tell you why. Because of all the "want a be" cue dealers on this site, on Ebay, and on the Open Billiards Market site on Facebook asking for $1,200 dollars for a Meucci, then two weeks later selling the same cue in the same condition for $600.

These people ask so much from the get go and act like the cue is a bargain, when in reality, they are just trying to rip someone off.

Just wish people would start out with an honest value and sale price, instead of being dishonest and trying to rip people off.

Funny how they value a cue so low if someone else it selling it-------but if they are selling it, all of a sudden it's $500 dollars more valuable.

So many people out there who have no idea what a cue is and what it's worth.
Makes me sick in the stomach when people always want to throw in the retail value.
That is a sure sign of someone asking way too much for a cue. The retail value is nothing but a marked up price to make something look more expensive then what it really is.

And if you want to use the Blue Book for prices....LOL, it's nothing but a reference of inflated prices on most cue.

Very well said!

 

[bigdogk9]

predator Low balling nit

I guess I am one of them low balling nits......
I was interested in buying three cues, SE2, SE3 and 8 point SP. You have them listing for $700 SE2, $700 SE3 and 8 point for $425 totaling $1825 plus fees. Your offered them to me for $1785.00.. What a discount... $40.00 off listed for sale price.
I offered you $1700 in a US Postal money order to eliminate fees... Not sure that was a low ball offer for cues you've had listed for almost a year.

Thanks

 

[fjk]

Why are there so many low-balling nits crawling out from under their keypads lately on for sale items??? I don't remember this being that big of a problem in years past. Is it the economy??? or ??? Ideas??? Man, what a bunch of tire-kicking idiots!!! I've blocked a half-dozen idiots from PM-ing me recently so I don't get caught up in their drama.

John

Perhaps folks are just offering reasonable prices to nits with overpriced cues. Just a thought.

 

[classiccues]

What I have noticed is a correlation in lowballers and non-pricers. Usually when they have a cue for sale, they say make me an offer. Not because they want to know your price, they want you to "price" their item so they no where they should start their now known asking price, usually 1000 more than you offered, because they assume you're low ballin'... lol

JV

 

[jkmarshall_cues]

I guess I am one of them low balling nits......
I was interested in buying three cues, SE2, SE3 and 8 point SP. You have them listing for $700 SE2, $700 SE3 and 8 point for $425 totaling $1825 plus fees. Your offered them to me for $1785.00.. What a discount... $40.00 off listed for sale price.
I offered you $1700 in a US Postal money order to eliminate fees... Not sure that was a low ball offer for cues you've had listed for almost a year.

Thanks

You are not the nits I was referring to. I was talking about the overseas buyers that want to buy a cue below half the price of a low market price and have me pay for shipping and insurance on top of that. By the way to Spain and the Middle East I have found shipping to be EXTREMELY HIGH well over $125.00 per cue.

I would love to sell you these cues. Let's talk privately however.

John

 

[63Kcode]

Twenty yeas ago. A friend of mine was flipping cars. He would low ball people. His thinking was " that is the best offer they had that day". Lots of people called him a Nit. His thinking was" all I did was make offers. If they took a took lowball offer. It's their fault." if you don't like the offer "just say NO!" . Today my friend is worth millions. Who cares what people called him years ago.

Larry< the guy who wishes people were calling me a nit/lowballer years ago!

 

[deanoc]

I always get a kick out of Larry Vigus,he is not only always on the money with understanding the real issue,but also so humorous


I also think he is a great cue maker.He made my present 60 inch cue for me
I know there are people who say its not the arrow,it is the Indian,but since I started playing with

with my Vigus cue,I am beating people easily that used to play me even.I am consistently making spot shots and controlling the cue ball on long banks,long shots are easier and little delicate
draw shots are easier to control the cue ball

My cue,"Wonderboy" ,can be seen in the gallery,it is not for sale and I don't know if Larry is taking orders,

but if he is,you all would be wise to call him and pay his asking price without haggling
because he doesn't enjoy cheap offers for his work

Having said that his prices are already too low

Back to the thread,I believe any offer is better than no offer,don't be so thin skinned
just say thanks for the offer and wait till you get what you are asking or get reasonable

 

[WildWing]

I think they say in the car selling industry, whether it be new or used:

When both seller and buyer are equally unhappy...

Then that's the right price...

Might apply to cues...

 

[cuesblues]

In sales, the beauty of being the seller is that you can say yes, or no, or you can make a counter offer.
It's probably a good thing that you got out of sales when you did.

 

[dom_poppa]

I guess I am one of them low balling nits......
I was interested in buying three cues, SE2, SE3 and 8 point SP. You have them listing for $700 SE2, $700 SE3 and 8 point for $425 totaling $1825 plus fees. Your offered them to me for $1785.00.. What a discount... $40.00 off listed for sale price.
I offered you $1700 in a US Postal money order to eliminate fees... Not sure that was a low ball offer for cues you've had listed for almost a year.

Thanks

That is more than fair.

The problem here is the seller. He's not willing to budge for $125 and this is a $1700 deal.

What the real problem here are sellers complaining and they are watching too much American Pickers.

 

[Rjmoncrief]

On the flip side, what is with all the over priced cues being bumped to death. If something doesn't sell, you (in general,not to the op) might want to adjust, or expect low ball offers.

Seems to me that a lot of the sellers are,as far as pricing, living in the past.

Exactly right! I'm actually tired of seeing $5000 cues get bumped 17 times. I think there should be a separate thread for the higher end cues. Some are pretty to look at but to spend that kind of money is a different story.
JMHO

 

[Ron Swanson]

I think they say in the car selling industry, whether it be new or used:

When both seller and buyer are equally unhappy...

Then that's the right price...

Might apply to cues...

A good compromise leaves everyone unhappy.

As for people trying to sell 10 year old used predators for a thousand dollars, well, my sympathies lie elsewhere.

Then again, i am from overseas.