- Joined
- Apr 9, 2023
- Messages
- 235
I hate posting a thread on something as subjective as value, but this particular class of object seems to have such a deceptive price point that I need some experienced input. That being said:
I've been looking for a baby knee mill...and in my area of the world - Olympia, WA - that seems to be very hard to find. You can get bigger stuff all day long, but the smaller versions are unobtainium. Same goes for small lathes, shapers, grinders, etc, but I digress. I've found a Taiwanese-made Husky AIS that looks to be only lightly used, and it's only about 45 minutes from me: it's the right size and it seems to have a generic DRO, powerfeed, and a couple of small bits of kit that go with it. There's a vise of questionable usage in the deal, but it would be enough to get me going. Light usage - aren't they all? - but clean enough in the photos to warrant a visit to see it in person.
The only problem is the the seller wants $3500 for it, and seems rather... curmudgeonly...to say it politely. When first posted, their ad was very sparse, said "no pictures because I'm too lazy" and "the web has answers that I don't have" and both of those statements were true: no pictures, next-to-no info. That ad has since been amended with a few pics and the info I've already mentioned, along with "FIRM" and "NO TRADES" and "phone call only"...the latter of which is a pain when one has my amount of hearing loss, but whatevs. I suppose my question is this: should I even bother? I feel that the price is high for what's there, but the language in the ad tells me that this person may well be the type that will let that tool sit and rust before they don't get their $3500. I've bought a lot of stuff over the years by being polite, decent, and bringing plenty of cash...but this one is giving me warning flags despite the close proximity.
So, opinion needed: are they too high on the price, or am I too unrealistic in what it'll take to get a mill in this particular flavor? I won't be offended if you guys think I'm the unrealistic one; machine tool values aren't my forte.
Thanks in advance.
I've been looking for a baby knee mill...and in my area of the world - Olympia, WA - that seems to be very hard to find. You can get bigger stuff all day long, but the smaller versions are unobtainium. Same goes for small lathes, shapers, grinders, etc, but I digress. I've found a Taiwanese-made Husky AIS that looks to be only lightly used, and it's only about 45 minutes from me: it's the right size and it seems to have a generic DRO, powerfeed, and a couple of small bits of kit that go with it. There's a vise of questionable usage in the deal, but it would be enough to get me going. Light usage - aren't they all? - but clean enough in the photos to warrant a visit to see it in person.
The only problem is the the seller wants $3500 for it, and seems rather... curmudgeonly...to say it politely. When first posted, their ad was very sparse, said "no pictures because I'm too lazy" and "the web has answers that I don't have" and both of those statements were true: no pictures, next-to-no info. That ad has since been amended with a few pics and the info I've already mentioned, along with "FIRM" and "NO TRADES" and "phone call only"...the latter of which is a pain when one has my amount of hearing loss, but whatevs. I suppose my question is this: should I even bother? I feel that the price is high for what's there, but the language in the ad tells me that this person may well be the type that will let that tool sit and rust before they don't get their $3500. I've bought a lot of stuff over the years by being polite, decent, and bringing plenty of cash...but this one is giving me warning flags despite the close proximity.
So, opinion needed: are they too high on the price, or am I too unrealistic in what it'll take to get a mill in this particular flavor? I won't be offended if you guys think I'm the unrealistic one; machine tool values aren't my forte.
Thanks in advance.