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#609234 Sun Apr 19 2015 08:43 PM
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Vernski Offline OP
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While I am really new to this petrolania hobby, I'm not new to swap meets as I have been selling & buying Model A Ford parts for years. I attended my first oil & gas show/swap this past weekend & had a great time. From watching this forum for a while I've learned that good quality original items command high prices. The one thing I don't understand is vendors who do not put a price tag on anything on their table. I get the idea that this allows the seller to interact with the potential buyers, maybe do a little dickering but it keeps me from even asking. Maybe it's just me, but I'm left with the feeling of "if you have to ask, you can't afford it".

I don't know if it's laziness or arrogance on the part of the vendors. I encounter this at the old car swap meets as well and I usually just glance at the offerings and move along. I have to really need the part to ask the price. I know I probably pass up some good deals, but too often the vendor isn't even at his table & the person minding the store has no idea of what he wants for the part. I have always put a price tag on my items, and if I go wandering, the folks I leave minding the space know how much I'll knock off, or they can call me for a price check.

But again, maybe it's just me.

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I agree! If there is a price, it gives both myself and the seller a starting spot.

Maybe if I could hear from the other side on the opinions of not marking prices on items, I might understand.


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Mike

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I always try and mark my items.. I can understand if putting a sticker or a tag on the item might damage it.


Looking for Keystone,Pure,Sinclair,Texaco,Sterling and Gulf...Thanks, Brian
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Love unpriced stuff. Sometimes it means they dont know what they have and i let them price it. "It's your stuff price it!"
Had some good deals at Spring Peotone show because of unpriced stuff.
Sometimes it is not that way and people are scared to price it.Those people i dont understand why they set up, unless it is just a display.


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I generally bring thousands of items to a show. Many I decide to bring at the last minute. It takes a huge amount of time to price everything. I have been pricing my smalls that are in display cases the best I can. The larger items if I have time, I will take a post it note and price.
Tied tags fall off, or get damaged, caught on things in transport. Real hassle.
It is always good to have at least some things priced both high items and low. This can give the shopper a quick sense as to weather you are rational in your pricing or somewhere in the Milky Way.
I have found as a shopper, always ask if you are interested. You never know what the vendor will say and don't nit pick over a few bucks. Vendors remember the good and bad customers.
Most customers have no clue what it takes to set up at a show.

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Like 60wayne I bring a large number of items to the show, but even worse my turnover is normally very quick because I setup at more than shows. I go to various shows and flea markets where a tagged price can be a deterrent rather than a draw.

I'm not Walmart or some retail shop, I wheel and deal, and those who take just a moment to ask me about an item realize that's true. I try to ask potential buyers what they are looking for and what their price range is and can indicate several pieces that might fit the bill.

A price tag might be easy for you to look at and simply walk away because you don't like the number on it. Or maybe you're just window shopping comparing prices on similar signs. You let the price tag tell you what you want to know rather than asking the guy who is selling the item.

A true salesman wants to sell an item, wants to interact with prospective buyers, and wants to do all he can to maybe sell you more than just one thing. Or develop a long term buying/selling relationship. I have regulars at shows and markets who know to ask me and that's why I'm successful.

Car shows, petrol shows, etc are communal events, they aren't retail shops, they are places to not just buy but to make connections that may last years. Price tags are great for retail operations, but for those of us who like to buy and sell at events we know they aren't what sell the items.




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i have expressed my opinion on this many times... price your items.

unless its an ultra rare sign, or cities item, or sweney item... if there is no price, i will not ask for a price... i will simply keep walking.

a perfect example of this: there was a restored pump at the Dixie show that I walked by and looked at it at least 5 or 6 times between thursday and saturday... and I never saw a price on it, so I just kept walking. Later on Saturday, I walked by again and saw a very small tag hanging behind the hose, so I stopped again and looked, and there was the price... and I bought it. Had that pump not been priced, there would have been no sale on it.


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I love sellers who don't price things because it keeps the majority of buyers away and makes for a more negotiable seller at the end of the day,I've found.


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I'm with you ,Vernski!No price-no buy for me!I was turned off from this "no-pricing" at a tractor swap-meet.I asked a lady how much something was,she didn't know and would have to ask her husband(who was inside of a horse trailer)he was 10-15 feet away but couldn't see me,and had to have his wife point to me *before* he could price it,he didn't realize I could hear him!I passed on the item quickly.
At the same show another year,3 of us went into a booth ,and asked about the same item ,from the same seller and got 3 different prices.Youngest(me)got the high price,and my dad(oldest)got the low price!

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I've bought several items that were priced at a great low price that I didn't need, hoping that I would need it some day. If it hadn't been priced, I would had never asked how much and moved to the next vendor. Brady

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I've been going to car swap meets for years, and I have no trouble asking the seller what the price is on an item I may be interested in. On the other hand, it's nice to see prices on items that may fit my car or a friends, just so I can keep up on their values. I'm new to this hobby and I've only been to one show. I don't have any specific areas that I'm interested in just yet, so I appreciate priced items so that I can get an education. I feel like I may be wasting a sellers time if I ask him the price on several items without being a serious buyer.
Ken

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As as a seller I always price everything I have for sale at a swap meet or flea market. When I was selling at automotive swap meets I'd have as many as 3000 items for sale. ALL priced.

As a buyer I prefer to see things priced as it saves time.


Wanted: Gas pump globes:Sinclair & affiliates, IL companies. Ripple bodies. Anything Sinclair, Stoll, Pierce, 4 Bros.


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i don't ask either... i figure they're on a fishing trip. No price i walk on...


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Do you know what a gas show would be like if everyone didn't price there items? It would be miserable!


Looking for anything from Hoosier Pete, Platolene 500 and Red Bird.
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I don't understand , at a show a firm option of I will not buy if it is not priced. This is just a loss for both buyer and seller.

In a brick and mortar shop I would expect items to be priced. There is no rush to get your items displayed if you are selling.

With shows, there is a transient group of sellers and buyers. You are very limited on time.
Mason Dixon Gas for me , a day of packing and deciding what I can deal with in the limited time and space. Three plus hours of driving, about three hours of set up, a few hours of sleep, five hours of dealing and socializing, two hours of packing , then a long tiring drive home. This year I had to pull over and let my buddy drive for awhile.

For me this is a hobby not a business. I might of sold a hundred items, some priced some not. I came home with four items, only two from the show, less money then I started with and a head full of memories and renewed friendships.

If you are interest in an item, slow down and take the time to ask the price. You might not buy the item but you might end up with a friendship or just a good conversation.

On Saturdays I like to go to yard sales, flea market, auctions.
Yard sales you have from 7 to 11, flea from 7 to 2, auctions are at 10 am. Almost nothing is ever priced. Have to decide, can't always do everything. I start the day and if I am having a good time, I don't worry about getting to the next event. There is always another one next week. What great find did I miss by taking my time and enjoying life. It really does not matter, it is just stuff.

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