Flipping basses for profit – fair game or not cool?

[Allaboutthebass]

Hi All, 

 

Just wanted to throw something out there and see what people think.

 

Basschat’s always felt like a proper community to me, people helping each other out, sharing gear, advice, and good vibes. However, I’ve recently noticed a case where someone has bought a bass locally at a very good price, then flips it immediately for a profit on BC.

 

Now, I get that people are allowed to make money and everyone’s got their own reasons for selling gear. But it does make me wonder, is that kind of flipping really in the spirit of the community? This isn’t meant to be a shop, and I think most of us list stuff here with the idea that it’s going to another player, not just being resold for cash.

 

So I’m curious what others think:

 

• Is flipping gear for profit on Basschat fair game?
• Is there a difference between selling something you no longer need vs buying just to resell for profit?

 

Anyway, just wanted to get a feel for what others think. Maybe I’m overthinking it, maybe not.

 

Not trying to stir the pot, just genuinely interested in hearing different views. Let’s keep it friendly! 

 

 

[12stringbassist]

A bass is only worth what someone will pay for it. I got very annoyed when someone talked me into parting with a fairly collectible bass a while ago and then he promptly flipped it. I think with a price hike... But I wasn't using it much, so....

 

I'm selling a few basses locally thru fbook and they've been in my collection for years and it's just time to part with some that don't get played. The days of silly money for basses appear to be over.

 

I do see some wacky asking prices and tend to scroll on....

[Downunderwonder]

I find it distasteful but not against any rules so can't really speak against it. Perhaps the altruistic could all start high and wait for a bite giving all the opportunity to buy at market value.

 

[WalMan]

Not against the rules, but certainly against the spirit to immediately repost for sale at a profit.

 

My problem…I buy stuff but rarely move stuff on. I have purchased a few things here, always to use not flip, and if it’s not quite my thing I will re advertise here after a bit of use but at no more than I bought it for…then again others might say I’m a fool to myself 🙂

 

If I have had and used something for a while and do decide to move it on, and the market has moved that’s a different matter, but not as a buy and flip.

 

Certainly don’t expect me to resell the Wal I’ve had for 40+ years for what I paid for it 🤣

[BlueMoon]

2 hours ago, WalMan said:

My problem…I buy stuff but rarely move stuff on.

Must be something in the “Basschat water” 😁

[Beedster]

I used to have strong feelings about/against it, but firstly it's what shops such as Bass Direct/Bass Bros do and we don't have a problem with that. Secondly (and more importantly) we never know what a person is dealing with in life, quite a few members have lost their jobs recently, or have other financial problems (divorce/increased cost of living etc), and while I've historically tended to flip basses for a loss here, if I were in a difficult situation financially and struggling to pay the bills/put food on the table, I'd have no problem doing it for a profit. I hope it doesn't come to that, and I suspect I'd probably still make it clear where the bass came from.

 

Basschat is a strong community the members of which are 99.99% of the time highly supportive of each other, even to the point of happily donating gear and even money to other members with problems. Perhaps part of that charitable ethos is also to allow other members to make a few quid buying and selling? 

 

 

[Burns-bass]

17 minutes ago, Beedster said:

I used to have strong feelings about/against it, but firstly it's what shops such as Bass Direct/Bass Bros do and we don't have a problem with that. Secondly (and more importantly) we never know what a person is dealing with in life, quite a few members have lost their jobs recently, or have other financial problems (divorce/increased cost of living etc), and while I've historically tended to flip basses for a loss here, if I were in a difficult situation financially and struggling to pay the bills/put food on the table, I'd have no problem doing it for a profit. I hope it doesn't come to that, and I suspect I'd probably still make it clear where the bass came from.

 

Basschat is a strong community the members of which are 99.99% of the time highly supportive of each other, even to the point of happily donating gear and even money to other members with problems. Perhaps part of that charitable ethos is also to allow other members to make a few quid buying and selling? 

 

 

My thoughts exactly. It used to annoy me, especially when it was clear where items had come from (and what people had paid) but it can be more complex.

 

The economic argument (“it’s worth what someone will pay”) is a truism, and it fails to tackle the morality of doing so.

 

As an example, I was asked by a friend to value the items her deceased husband had acquired. She would have taken what I said was fair. That could have been £100 or £1000. (In the end, I wrote advert text for her and she sold them privately.)

 

Sometimes it’s not all that it seems.

 

I bought a Pedulla from an auction for £900 (I was there to bid on another item which I won, but it’s a handmade mega beast of a bass). Add fees to that (£250), new strings (£75), the tools to work on it (truss rod tool needed to come from the States £20), parts (new bridge adjusters £20) set-up (£100) and the new bass was a little more costly than purchase price.

 

If someone saw I’d paid £900 at auction, selling for £1500 would seem usurious, but it’s probably what it cost me.

[binky_bass]

This topic has been raised numerous times with the same opinions offered. If someone is happy to sell an item to someone for price A and the buyer then does a little tinkering, freshens it up, plays it for a while, then sells it on for price B (higher) I really don't see the problem. The problem would be if the buyer misled the seller by saying something like "Please can you sell it a little cheaper as I only have X much cash and this is an item I have always wanted" and then they flip it for a profit straight away. 

 

I have bought literally thousands of guitars and basses over the years, my 'buying rule of thumb' is to never buy something for a price where I'll likely loose money if I sell it. This has given me a fantastic opportunity to play with more basses/guitars/amps than I EVER would have had I paid absolute top dollar all the time. It's also meant many many people have made a sale at a price they were happy with. Being honest, on balance I've probably made a little money on most basses etc. I've ended up moving on down the line, but they have typically left me in better condition than they arrived. 

 

I've also sold basses to known BassChatters at X price to the see it listed for a much higher price a week later. So be it, I sold the bass so I then don't have a stake in what that buyer does with it after that - I've got my cash. 

 

While direct profiteering might not be in the spirit of BassChat, I don't have an objection to it so long as the seller wasn't misled by the buyer. We dont complain at Bass Direct and Bass Bros making their back end, nor about literally any shop we buy anything from. 

 

Just my two cents! 

[BigRedX]

If I'm putting a bass or anything else up for sale, it's because I don't need it anymore. What happens to it after it has gone is no longer my business and TBH I really don't care.

[synthaside]

I think there are two distinct differences scenarios that are being confused a little 

And both do need to be thought of differently

 

Option A. 

 

Bass was advertised on basschat sold , and is now back on basschat for a higher price , for whatever reason.

 

Option B

 

Bass was bought locally in a smaller market for a different price and is now being sold on basschat for a higher or perhaps /more realistic price.

 

 A usually makes me suspicious of the bass either having an issue or that something distasteful going on, but you had the chance to get that previous price and didn't so it's perhaps only slightly sour grapes that now when you can buy it's a different price.

 

B .. is basically what car dealers do for a living .. the difference is you don't know any better about the history ..  unless the buyer had a lengthy post about there amazing Facebook marketplace find in west nowhereslip .

[jonno1981]

I think the price is only a question mark if not enough time has passed. 

For instance, what if you brought a Wal bass in 1988 from a mate for the going rate of £500. You sell it in 2025 for £5k. Seems ok to me. However, if you brought it from them less than a couple of years ago for £500 and sold for £5k and he found out, it’s gonna be a sore point in your relationship isn’t it? 

[synthaside]

Aye but it's only flipping a bass if it enough time has passed if you've had it for a month and are moving it on that's totally different. The topics on flipping 

[Paul S]

I sold a rare bass on here for under the market price as I no longer had a use for it.  It's what I do because I hate stuff hanging around when I no longer use it.  Saw it for sale on another resale site - might have been Reverb - for around twice what I sold it for.  Fair play.  But using my pictures?  Not so much.  

[basexperience]

8 hours ago, 12stringbassist said:

A bass is only worth what someone will pay for it. I got very annoyed when someone talked me into parting with a fairly collectible bass a while ago and then he promptly flipped it. I think with a price hike... But I wasn't using it much, so....

 

I'm selling a few basses locally thru fbook and they've been in my collection for years and it's just time to part with some that don't get played. The days of silly money for basses appear to be over.

 

I do see some wacky asking prices and tend to scroll on....

You're selling basses through fbook? You're braver than I thought. Surely you just get a constant stream of DMs and comments which make no sense, all in caps with no punctuation, and endless halfwit tyre kickers asking if you'll take £10?

[basexperience]

This is a moral question which applies to any asset someone buys, then sells. They're buying with the express motive of making a little money. That's what some people find offensive - now, that's the interesting thing to dig into. Personally, I think any transaction is atomic - it's what happened, right there, right then. The seller agreed to sell. The fact they might find out they could have sold it for more when they see it listed and sell for more is actually irrelevant - and feeling aggrieved on their part as a third party seems pointless.

 

We know some platforms will get more - basschat, reverb - and some less - (maybe) eBay (depending on who listed it - again, the person listing it has listed it at whatever for their own reasons!), Facebook, etc. People sell stuff for varying reasons - could be a distressed sale (can't make the rent, bills to pay, etc). All those are valid reasons why someone gets a bargain. That they decide to flip it, is entirely their business - they bought the bass, it's theirs to do with as they will.

 

What makes more sense is to educate. Give people the confidence to research what a bass is worth - even if it's as trivial as knowing how to filter on eBay for sold items (I always do this before I sell anything) - you can get ideas of what you should be paying for something (or indeed, selling it for).

 

Caveat.... everything, I guess!

 

I know it sounds terribly dispassionate, detached, etc - but you're not going to alter the sociopaths by pointing at them and saying "but it's wrong" - better to starve them of their exploitable population. Which goes for a lot of stuff outside buying and selling at the moment.

[Burns-bass]

5 minutes ago, Paul S said:

I sold a rare bass on here for under the market price as I no longer had a use for it.  It's what I do because I hate stuff hanging around when I no longer use it.  Saw it for sale on another resale site - might have been Reverb - for around twice what I sold it for.  Fair play.  But using my pictures?  Not so much.  

That’s really bad. My view is if you’ve added value, you deserve the premium. (This includes owning something for years, like the Stingray I bought here for £600 and sold for £850 10 years later).

 

I think we all remember the guy who picked up 2 Epiphone basses here for £75 each then advertised them the next day for £350 each.

[lowdown]

2 hours ago, Beedster said:

I used to have strong feelings about/against it, but firstly it's what shops such as Bass Direct/Bass Bros do and we don't have a problem with that. Secondly (and more importantly) we never know what a person is dealing with in life, quite a few members have lost their jobs recently, or have other financial problems (divorce/increased cost of living etc), and while I've historically tended to flip basses for a loss here, if I were in a difficult situation financially and struggling to pay the bills/put food on the table, I'd have no problem doing it for a profit. I hope it doesn't come to that, and I suspect I'd probably still make it clear where the bass came from.

 

Basschat is a strong community the members of which are 99.99% of the time highly supportive of each other, even to the point of happily donating gear and even money to other members with problems. Perhaps part of that charitable ethos is also to allow other members to make a few quid buying and selling? 

 

 

 

 

 

My take as well.

[Clarky]

I spotted the post that the OP is referring to and found the local sale by googling (I was bored, OK!) My take is that this is like finding something undervalued at a car boot sale and subsequently selling for the market price - and it will only sell on BC if the price is right. My real gripe is that in 17 years on BC I have only ever sold at a loss, which says a lot about me!

[Beedster]

7 minutes ago, Clarky said:

17 years on BC I have only ever sold at a loss, which says a lot about me!

 

Yes, it speaks positively mate 👍

 

In similar vein, and I won't embarrass him by naming, but one long-standing member here bought a bass from me, sold it for more, and sent me 50% of the difference out of the blue. Did I expect him to? Absolutely not. Would I have been pissed off had he not done it? No. Did I appreciate it? Hell yes  

 

[Lozz196]

I don`t see any issues in buying something at current market value, then selling it some years later at the then current market value. Similarly if lucky enough to pick up a bargain and selling it at market value, well the new buyer isn`t being ripped off as that`s what the item is selling for.

 

Still looking for that `59 Les Paul up for a tenner at the local boot sale, it`s there somewhere......

[Burns-bass]

3 minutes ago, Beedster said:

 

Yes, it speaks positively mate 👍

 

In similar vein, and I won't embarrass him by naming, but one long-standing member here bought a bass from me, sold it for more, and sent me 50% of the difference out of the blue. Did I expect him to? Absolutely not. Would I have been pissed off had he not done it? No. Did I appreciate it? Hell yes  

 

 

This has happened to me several times (and I've done it too) and it's always a nice gesture. 

[Steve Browning]

6 minutes ago, Beedster said:

 

Yes, it speaks positively mate 👍

 

In similar vein, and I won't embarrass him by naming, but one long-standing member here bought a bass from me, sold it for more, and sent me 50% of the difference out of the blue. Did I expect him to? Absolutely not. Would I have been pissed off had he not done it? No. Did I appreciate it? Hell yes  

 

 

It's never going to happen (I always aim to sell on here at mate's rates - maybe my mistake) but I would be inclined to do that myself. I know there are dealers on here and their pricing indicates who they are. I would be unlikely to want to sell to them.

[knirirr]

24 minutes ago, Clarky said:

in 17 years on BC I have only ever sold at a loss, which says a lot about me!

 

You're still doing better than I am! Selling things even at a loss seems rather difficult. 

[Beedster]

21 minutes ago, Steve Browning said:

 

It's never going to happen (I always aim to sell on here at mate's rates - maybe my mistake) but I would be inclined to do that myself. I know there are dealers on here and their pricing indicates who they are. I would be unlikely to want to sell to them.

 

You've twice sent me gear free of charge Steve, not a great business model! All joking aside, hugely appreciated both times mate, and both still in regular use 🙏

[oldslapper]

I’ve done all 3 with items bought here and from other sources.

Sold at a profit

Sold at a loss

Given stuff away

 

My question is at what point does an item become “flipped”? One day, one week, one month?