What would you do?

What would you do?

  • Pay the man and get the hell out of there before he realizes what he has

    Votes: 2 25.0%

  • Say, "That's OK, I was going to put new strings on anyway", and give him his asking price.

    Votes: 4 50.0%

  • Tell him it's worth way more than $75 and give him a few hundred for it.

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Tell him it's worth thousands and pay him a fair price for it.

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Tell him it's worth thousands and you'll help him sell it for a fair price.

    Votes: 2 25.0%
  • Total voters
    8
shoeless

shoeless

Riffin'
Here's the scenario. On a whim, you stop at a yard sale on a Saturday morning. You see a dusty old guitar case in a pile of clutter. You open the case to find an old Martin Dreadnaught that obviously hadn't been played in years. It's missing a couple strings and the ones that are there are rusty, but the neck looks straight and the body appears to be structurally sound aside from aging. You ask the guy about it, he says it was his dad's and has been sitting in the basement for decades since he passed away, and is just looking to clean up clutter around the house. He notices the missing strings and offers to take $10 off of the tag on the case, which is $75.

What do you do?
 
With just a quick inspection I'd just give the man 75 bucks and take it home for a thorough inspection. While of course it might be worth much more, there might also be plenty wrong with it that might not be immediately apparent. If someone cannot be arsed to find out what something's worth it's just a good deal :shrug:
 
I voted to change the strings and pay the asking price because he set a value on “cleaning up clutter”.

That said, I’d try to gauge what’s going on. If I felt a hint of “I’m trying to pay some bills.” I’d have a chat with him.

Either way, if I ever profited in a big way from it in the future, I’d be paying him a visit.
 
If it was obvious that it's worth much more, I would offer him a few hundred for it. I would let him know that he still may be selling it for too cheap of a price.
If I ended up with it, I would sell it and buy something in the grand auditorium, or grand concert size. Dreadnoughts are too gigantic for my taste.
 
I'd let him know it was likely worth far more than that. I'd feel like it was bad ju-ju to buy it for that low, knowing I'm really ripping the guy off.
 
I’d pay the asking price and take it to someone
who knows Martin guitars to make sure it’s not junk or fake. If it turns out to be a solid instrument that does not require outrageously priced repairs I’d keep it and depending on the value would determine my next move. a 25 year old bottom feeder Martin not likely to offer anything. A prewar money mountain I’d sell and give him a cut.
 
i've already had a similar experience, but the difference is that i KNEW what the girl had and felt obliged to tell her, because she was leaving it in the case on the back seat of the car.
she brought it in to get it 'fixed'. the trem springs were worn out and the bridge was an inch off the body. she said her dad let her use for guitar lessons, but it needed 'fixed' so it was playable.
tan rectangular case....OLD......Oly white and needed cleaned.....according to the neck plate....1963 Strat.
i wasn't ABOUT to pop the neck to see what was there. it had never been cracked from new.
she said her dad bought it new in high school and played in a high school band, but hadn't played it in decades.
i told her what it was worth and to get her dad to buy her something inexpensive to learn on, and never leave that strat in the car ever again!!!
 
Honestly don't know, depends how much I need the potential money it could be worth.

I'd like to think I'd tell the guy that it could be worth more, potentially a lot more than $75, particularly as he seemed honest and decent by offering to take $10 off for the missing strings and that's bad karma to take advantage of someone like that. I wouldn't be the right person to sell it but I'd point him at the right place to find out.
 
obviously the implication from the question is that a) it is valuable and b) you know it is worth far more than he is asking. that's where the moral dilemma comes from
 
smurfco said:
obviously the implication from the question is that a) it is valuable and b) you know it is worth far more than he is asking. that's where the moral dilemma comes from
Click to expand...
That is what I was going for. I like the approach @Gary Blanchard and a few others have stated...buy it at his price and find out it's true worth before making a next step. I'd like to think that I'd do that, but also know the temptation to just take advantage of an insane deal would be tough.
 
not in the same league but i saw some lady on facebook selling an american elite strat as an "american standard" for less than I thought even a standard would be worth. i sent her a message letting her know and she said thanks. now the ad says "american elite standard strat" and it's the same price... oh well
 
I'd do exactly what a friend did years ago in a very similar situation. Let the seller know they are sitting on a potentially valuable instrument and recommend a very reputable shop that can accurately assess the condition and approx value.

If I was interested, I'd make a reasonable offer.
 
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