Car boot sellers

[yashica1943]

There is a weekly car boot sale within walking distance of my home. I have been going there for about 5 years and have picked up some really good bargains as have noted in the 'ebay section'. There is a hard core of sellers who are there in the same spot every week, even when the weather is very cold.
One of them usually has a decent looking old camera on his stall but he always wants far too much money.
About two years ago he had a Fujica SLR body for sale, it is missing the top and front plates and the mirror mechanism can be seen. It is a mess and probably worth £0. I then asked him what he wanted for it, he said £10 I said that I only want it for the odd screws on the carcase, his reply 'There's nothing wrong with it!' I said 'Ill give you 50p for it' he was rather rude to me so I never even look at his stall now.
A few weeks later he was explaining to a prospective buyer of the 'Fujica' - 'It only needs a lens'.

In the meantime I have bought a working Lordomat for £5, a Leitz Afloo for 50p and a modern 400mm Opteka lens nearly new in a box for £5 plus a £35 Parker fountain pen for £2 and other items..
The 'Fujica' is still on his table.
One year on, February 2018, the Fujica wreck is still on his table.

[belgiumreporter]

Some people just ask silly prices and hope some day a sucker will come along who's willing to buy.

At one of the second hand sites wich i visit on a daily basis, somebody is trying to sell some hasselblad and nikon stuff. He's very persistent as for several years now he keeps on advertising the same chrome Ft3 nikkormat body(275€), Distagon 50mmf4 (750€) micro nikkor 105mmf4 (750€) to name just a few of his "bargains".

I often wonder if these people never compare prices on what is actually sold and adjust accordingly, or are these just hoarders who rather take their stuff with them in the grave then selling below the (un-realistic) price they had in mind.

Furthermore what these people are selling is often broken beyond repair, but they claim it's in good condition, has only a small part missing or needs minor repair. 

[kenzie2k3]

We have quite a few boot sales around here. One stand has an AGFA of some description but the shutter is stuck half open and it has fungus but he still wants a tenner. Also an old m42 body for £30! On the plus side I have had some bargains. An Envoy Wide Angle for 2.50, Canon AE 1 program for a fiver, Polaroid 1000 for 2.00 and a Trip 35 silver button fir a fiver. Can't wait for the new season!

[johnbear]

Feb 23, 2017 15:51:02 GMT -5 belgiumreporter said:

I often wonder if these people ...  are just hoarders who rather take their stuff with them in the grave then selling below the (un-realistic) price they had in mind.

I think that assessment is totally spot-on. I see the same cameras listed month after month on eBay. They never get a bid, but the price never drops, and then one day they stop being listed and you wonder if the seller has decided they would rather dispose of the item than offer it at a lower price?

[yashica1943]

I have just returned from the local car boot sale. I have bought a Lordomat SLE in nice condition, the exposure meter works and everything seems in order. With it was a Leidolf Wetzlar Schacht- Travenar 135 f4 lens in it's leather case. Unfortunately the telephoto has some fungus and dirt internally, I think I will sell that off to somebody who can dismantle it and clean it.
Also - on another stall I bought a Kodak Vest Pocket 'Autographic' 'Soldier's' camera in decent condition.

I paid £22 for the Lordomat and lens. I listed the lens with all its faults and it was sold for £25, so the camera cost me - minus £3

[kenzie2k3]

My last run netted a Nikon FM for £1. Winder is broken but it can be advanced using the winder port on the bottom.

[flatcreek]

Years back I was at a garage sale where I saw a camera behind the lady at the counter. I asked her if I could see it.I looked it over, then asked her how much she wanting for it, she said five dollars, I said 'what five dollars?'. She said I'm not going hagle, take it or leave it{real snotty like}. I took it, a IIIF leica.

[yashica1943]

I owned an Olympus Trip 35 from about 1980 for several years and it went to a lot of different places with me including Northern Norway in winter where it performed faultlessly. Later on the lens unit became a little loose so I sold it as spares or repairs on ebay.
Recently I have been looking for another good one for old times sake to collect. I didn't want to pay the £20-£40 that some sellers seem to want.
This morning I got lucky, I found at the car boot sale a clean working Olympus Trip 35 in original packaging, with instructions and warranty card. (Bought June 1981 in South London) £5 .

[kenzie2k3]

I managed to get an Olympus OM1 with 50mm f3.5 macro for £10 just recently.

[chilla]

Sept 23, 2017 0:37:22 GMT -5 flatcreek said:

Years back I was at a garage sale where I saw a camera behind the lady at the counter. I asked her if I could see it.I looked it over, then asked her how much she wanting for it, she said five dollars, I said 'what five dollars?'. She said I'm not going hagle, take it or leave it{real snotty like}. I took it, a IIIF leica.

Small bout of KARMA and ignorance all rolled into 1  - Well played and great find!

[yashica1943]

I attend my local car boot sale as often as I can, some weeks I find absolutely nothing of value, but other times I find odd things that jog my memory or look as if they might be valuable.
What annoys me is the people who turn up & set up a table or two and leave the sales to somebody who doesn't know the price while they go off and have a cup of tea. Also those who sit in their car and won't get up and discuss their goods and their prices. (Unless they are disabled of course, I know a couple that are.)
There is one regular who has a loud voice, always has overpriced objects on his stand and was very rude to me once, I will never buy anything from him. There is another, constantly there, seller who specialises in cheap artists paints and Parker pens, all at high street prices, why they turn up I have no idea. Others turn up late, go off & have their breakfast before setting up!?

[yashica1943]

Not a car boot sale, but I visited a town some miles away that I hadn't been to for years and there is a charity shop there with a lot of old cameras.
On one side of the doorway the window is stacked with good quality film cameras from the 60's, 70's & 80's locked behind a grille.
Unfortunately the very high prices put me off!

[hansz]

Sad but true: most bargains at charity shops are gone, mostly because of the internet where they search for current prices:-(
Hans