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Old 22nd Jan 2017, 10:33 pm   #1
indigo.girl
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Default Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

I've just noticed that one of my recent posts has been closed by a moderator with this final comment added:

"As this radio is now on eBay, the Forum has no further interest in it"

Is it against forum rules to sell items that have been restored?
I am not actively promoting my selling on the forum so I don't see the problem. This is a hobby I enjoy and yes, I sell thing on after I've mended them, mainly to fund my hobby and a rather modest way of life and to stop my house filling up with it all.

Has no-one else ever sold on their restorations?
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Old 22nd Jan 2017, 10:39 pm   #2
G4YVM David
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

The point is, and many forums also follow this principle, once an item is on ebay it is considered rather bad form to keep advertising on the forum as well. Whilst your post on here might not have been a for-sale ad per se, it is tied up with the sale on ebay and thus tarred with the same brush.

Im sure it is no slight on you or your selling of gear...it is all about the conflict of interests...forum and ebay.

David
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Old 22nd Jan 2017, 10:49 pm   #3
indigo.girl
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

The thread now stands as a record of the restoration to help members who might have problems in the future. I'm always mindful of this and make sure I put plenty of information on there so it can be followed later. I never suggest that it is now for sale.
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Old 22nd Jan 2017, 11:23 pm   #4
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

It isn't against forum rules to sell things on eBay or anywhere else.

However, many members will be less than pleased to have talked a beginner through their first restoration only to see the result immediately put up for sale. If you continue to use the forum in this way, you should expect resentment from some members. This is a forum for enthusiasts, not traders.
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Old 22nd Jan 2017, 11:52 pm   #5
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

What if a person is an enthusiast and also trades, surely they must exist?

Lawrence.
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Old 22nd Jan 2017, 11:57 pm   #6
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

Are there not people on here who are self-employed constantly looking for help with restorations?
(Rhetorical)

Last edited by Steve_Bell; 23rd Jan 2017 at 12:10 am.
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Old 23rd Jan 2017, 12:02 am   #7
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

That is me. I am self employed albeit in a different industry but occasionally I dabble in the test gear trade, an enthusiast, a restorer and an amateur trader as well.

I tend to purchase things, restore them and sell them immediately unless I have a use for them. This isn't for the sake of profit, which is rare, but to fund something else that needs restoring. My joy in this comes from returning something to order and learning something in the process, not from collecting things. In fact by the time I've restored something I can't stand the sight of it most of the time!

If you ask me, it is counter-intuitive to prevent further discussion on the matter even if the unit is sold. I came to this forum after searching for information on something. If I found I couldn't contribute to a thread, because it was locked and closed I'd probably go elsewhere.

Also I'm not bothered if I laboriously help someone and they sell it. It is their item regardless of our standards.

I appreciate the moderation quality on this forum but I have to agree that it seems illogical.
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Old 23rd Jan 2017, 1:43 am   #8
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

This does seem rather strange.

Unless there's been some post that has been removed from the thread in question which had advertised that the set was up for sale on the auction site then the last post on the thread was on the 7th followed by a moderator post on the 8th and then a moderator post actually 'advertising' the fact that it's now for sale on 'said site' with the thread being closed.

I'd no idea that the set was up for sale anywhere as I'd not been looking, but perhaps I will now - just for the sake of looking at the advert.
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Old 23rd Jan 2017, 1:46 am   #9
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

Agree with Mr Bungle.

My interest/hobby is repairing equipment.

I buy faulty radio related test equipment from 50's to 2000 (Particular interest in Racal Dana) and I love going through the learning curve, the frustration, and elation when finally you understand and resolve a problem.

My interest is in the repairing not the owning!

I do ask for help here occasional, and always try and offer help when I can offer anything constructive.

However when i have finished I rarely have a need, or wish, to keep the item, so offer it for sale in various places, then move on to my next project.

I certainly do not make any money from doing this (even before considering time) and will often spend more to repair an item than it is actually worth.

Am I a dealer?
Am I welcome on here?

Peter
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Old 23rd Jan 2017, 1:50 am   #10
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

I'll admit my inability to see why the forum should care in any way when a restored item is listed on eBay. Any real conflict of interest would seem to require the forum to be a rival eBay trader whose operations are impaired by members' sales.
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Old 23rd Jan 2017, 1:59 am   #11
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

It may well be the case that some people may still want to discuss the 'ins and outs' of that particular set. It may even be that a future new owner may want to continue the thread with questions with regards to the radio.

I have to admit that I hadn't particularly followed the thread on that radio, but gather that it had been somewhat modified which would perhaps be a better reason for closing the thread - that's if there should need to be a reason?
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Old 23rd Jan 2017, 8:07 am   #12
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

I am also puzzled by this decision and also other times when threads are locked for various reasons. This site remains a valuable one for repair/restoration tips on all sorts of vintage gear and whether the item is subsequently sold, on an auction site or anywhere else, is totally irrelevant.

Dave
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Old 23rd Jan 2017, 8:52 am   #13
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

Well, if a forum member buys it, there is a possibility of the thread being re-opened. But otherwise, there really isn't anything more to be said about it, so closing the thread seems about right. If someone else has questions about a similar set, they'll still be able to search for that thread, if it helps, and they can start a new thread to discuss their own problems.

There's a distinction to be drawn between selling a set because you can't keep them all, and running a business making money out of the goodwill of strangers. The former is more or less expected; for many the enjoyment is in catching the fish, less so in eating it. People have tried the latter, without remembering the important rule about not ping off anyone who helped you, around here before; but the goodwill has always evaporated sooner rather than later.
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Old 23rd Jan 2017, 9:47 am   #14
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

I agree with Julie's comments.
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Old 23rd Jan 2017, 10:12 am   #15
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

Perhaps it comes down to intent and open-ness?

Otherwise, the unasked question arises of how long a delay is OK.

How often has the advice to a newcomer been "The xxxxx is a difficult set to restore so buy a cheap 1950's 'woodie' to learn on before tackling the difficult high-value job" If they don't want the wooden set afterwards, selling it afterwards seems understandable. Peple have contributed not to the set but to the experience and knowledge of its temporary owner.

I also don't have problems with "A guy brought a xxxxx into the shop yesterday wanting a yyyy fault repairing. I've not done one of these before...Any guidance on where to start?" Yes, there's profit involved, but again knowledge is passed-on and everything's in the open. The forum may gain a thread on something new for future reference.

I've bought dead but exotic receivers and fixed them to see what they perform like and to study their innards. They've been either given away or sold for exactly what I paid. One particularly wild one was given to a club to auction for funds. But mostly, I buy test gear with faults and repair it to use it. Sometimes I get something better than my current item and the old one may get given away or sold. I keep commercialism for the day-job.

What would annoy me would be the feeling of being exploited if someone was fixing a 'seller' and wasn't open about it.

David
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Old 23rd Jan 2017, 10:29 am   #16
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

I've noticed an occasional tendency for moderation to be arbitrary, curt, dogmatic, and occasionally downright rude. I've spoken to people who have left the Forum as a result of it, and my first thought on one occasion was to do the same.
However, the knowledge and the helpfulness of the 'regulars' outweighs such niggles a hundred times over. It's rare to find a Forum this good, and I'll not be walking away without very good reason.
That said, "...the Forum has no further interest in it" IS a bit much. Do we really have no further interest? Has anyone even asked us?
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Old 23rd Jan 2017, 10:37 am   #17
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

Various folks on here including myself have helped the OP to troubleshoot problems she's had with her radios etc, if she decides to sell them then that's her right entirely and nothing whatsoever to do with anyone else.

It's clear to me reading through her posts that a lot of time and effort has been spent in order to reach successful conclusions, that's evident by the nature of the various enquiries which clearly show a willingness to learn and understand. There's also the quality of the photo's and diagrams with their annotations clearly showing what's what, not to mention the time taken to make videos and post them on Utube to show the various problems that have been encountered.

It's also clear that she has a genuine interest in vintage stuff in it's own right aside from trying to make a little bit of money from it.

So far as I can make out I can't see any reference to suggest that any of the forums Ebay rules have been breached or that she's declared on the forum any intention to sell anything on Ebay whilst posting her enquiries for help.

Good luck is what I say, nice to have beginners with some nowse, enthusiasm and some go in 'em

As for any moral finger wavers, all I would say is try walking a hard road in someone else's boots.

Lawrence.
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Old 23rd Jan 2017, 10:43 am   #18
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

The title of this thread is misleading. It should be something like "Is it OK to profit from the goodwill and generosity of this forum members".

Regards
David
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Old 23rd Jan 2017, 10:59 am   #19
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

I think that some unease arises from the fact that this particular radio was not restored in the sense that many of us would understand. The part that actually makes it a radio was removed and the remains were sold to be used as something completely different from the original set.

Of course it is up to the owner to say what they do with their own property and if the RF section was beyond reasonable repair then there would be no problem but I was uncomfortable with what was done in this instance.
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Old 23rd Jan 2017, 11:01 am   #20
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Default Re: Is it wrong to sell your restorations?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Brigham View Post
That said, "...the Forum has no further interest in it" IS a bit much. Do we really have no further interest? Has anyone even asked us?
Once it becomes known that an item is on eBay it is almost inevitable that the relevant forum rules will be violated sooner rather than later, or we would get posts by members who feel their generosity has been taken advantage of. We have been there several times in the past.

By closing the treads we are trying to prevent any such issues, and are intentionally using a fairly nondescript explanation to avoid highlighting the potential issues.

It is always a difficult balance with thread closing reasons like this. We don't want to sound like we are making accusations but we need to give a valid reason.

The thread still exists for future reference which may avoid the need for others with similar issues having to ask the same questions.
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