As a collector, I recognise that some items have to be sold off in order to fund the next addition. But how do you let go of something that you may never find again or afford again?
Happy 2020 all!
Seller’s remorse has hit me several times in the last 24 months. I have (in hindsight) sold on pieces that I almost instantly regretted afterwards and have yet to be able to replace. A MultiCam Crye Precision Field Shell 2.0 made me a very quick and easy £100.00 when I sold it on, but I have been kicking myself since; it is not a piece that appears regularly and rarely at a price under what I received for my one. Of all of these regretful sales, I’ve only ever managed to replace a Crye Precision Loft jacket after selling my first one on for a minor profit.
Another MultiCam Crye Precision piece – their Windliner – was again an item I sold on far too quickly and I didn’t even make a profit on it either…several have slipped through the net since.
I acquired an immaculate Orc Industries L5 PCU set – items I had been after for almost a decade – and sold them on within a week as they were too big and the pocket location on one of the arms was all over the place! Crye Precision’s Range Vest was a personal kit ‘unicorn’ that disappointed me so much once I’d finally tracked one down that it was gone, large profit in hand, mind, within a week…
I have a load of Triple Aught Design clothing that I haven’t worn much since changing jobs…should I now look to shift it, or will I come to use it again? If I did sell it, it would cost and arm and a leg to replace them should I come to regret the kit clearance…
I currently have several top tier items which I had bought in new condition and I am now struggling to decide: to sell on and make money on them while they are in unused condition, or keep as they won’t be buyable again and just use them?! I have just sold youngest younger brother my TM H&K Mk23 SOCOM as it just wasn’t being used. He will have it as a near silent back up for his Silverback SRS.
On my ‘maybe to sell’ list are:
– Triple Aught Design flag. Potentially £60.00.
– Crye Precision SPS pouches (1 x 5.56/7.62/MBITR, 2 x 6x6x3 GP, 2 x 9x7x3 GP and 1 x 11x6x4 GP). Potentially £280.00.
– Platatac H Smock in Afghan NDS camouflage. Potentially £180.00.
– Platatac CUTS in Afghan NDS camouflage with new Platatac elbow pads.. Potentially £180.00.
– Platatac Tac Dax pants in Afghan NDS camouflage with used Platatac knee pads. Potentially £220.00.
– Platatac ball cap in Afghan NDS camouflage. Potentially £60.00.
– Platatac shemagh (in an AMCU compatible pattern). Potentially £20.00.
– Crye Precision AVS with multiple items from the modular options available, including a Crye Precision LAP with soft armour. Potentially £900.00.
– Crye Precision Loft jacket. Potentially £200.00.
– LBT-1794 Mk23 SOCOM holster. Not much use to me now after selling off my TM Mk23. Potentially £250.00.
– A used US Woodland M81 G3 cut set, which just are not getting used now. K-SOG G3 style combat shirt and custom G3 tailored BDU pants. Potentially £125.00.
I know full well that I could make some serious money from the above bits and pieces…if the right buyer came along…
…But I also know that you just don’t see these items on the market, and certainly not for what I grabbed them for.
So, how will I know if or when to sell?! Will it need a daft offer to force my hand? Will it be because something has come onto the market that will need serious funds to buy (”hello” about-to-arrive-in-the-UK TM Mk46…)?! Will it be if a surplus of these items become available and thus diluting the market (I suspect only the AVS is the most likely from that list to appear in any significant numbers, a la the glut of Crye Precision CPC surplus items last year, although, CPCs are now back to being £450.00+)?!
It is a tough one. And it is one question to which I cannot yet answer fully. I have certainly sold off some items over the last two years that I’ve not had any regretful thoughts over since: a Crye AOR1 RACK, an LBT Flotation vest (the piece that started it all), a set of L1 Orc Industries thermals, two Ops-Core Gunsight Mandible attachments, a KWA MP7A1 GBB and my Crye CVC being a handful of examples that I have bought and sold on without a second thought. Will I regret my TM Mk23 sale? I guess it will at least be a fairly common item which I could replace readily if needed…available funds withstanding.
Main points to consider before selling:
* Rarity – how rare is said item and is there more value in keeping something very few people will ever own.
* Ease of finding a like for like if needed after seller’s regret.
* Current usage; if you aren’t using it, or your loadout has changed, you may as well part will any unused pieces and make some money back.
* Profit margin – if you are going to make a tidy little earner off of a piece of kit, why not eh?!
Once you have weighed these factors up, you can decide whether that bit of kit is worth shifting on.
Thanks for reading this little TGC offering.
Make sure you have yourself a Happy New Year! Please keep coming back to TGC; I feel 2020 will bring some amazing gear and Airsoft finds to share and compare on this blog.
TGC.
TGC - @CryeMeARiver 