Pictures On Rock Island Auction~

[cirelaw]

I noticed R.I. A. offers only 3 pictures on some lugers for sale! Can you request more. Its really a luger blind date!https://www.rockislandauction.com/de...er-auto#detail

[Edward Tinker]

yes, if serious. I would expect that if you requested a lot of pictures you'd get ignored

ed

[cirelaw]

What a 20 grand gamble! They probably have some hidden restocking fees! It will take me time to review these conditions. In law school the longer the more you lose! Thank You Ed~! https://www.rockislandauction.com/pr...auction-terms/

[alvin]

Consign items to RIAC is an easy way to sell. They charge 20% off hammer price. If an item hammer price at $5000, buyer pays $5750, RIAC makes $1750, owner gets $4000. Not bad. Especially for guns with price tag of $5,000 or higher,,, and it's major challenge for most individuals to sell a gun over $10,000 value themselves. But for auction houses, that's nothing -- most buyers willing to pay that kind of money for a gun are in auction houses... over there, gun is not a gun, it's just a picture, money is not money, it's just a number.

[cirelaw]

Are they seller fees? Can you set a reserve?? Very Important!

[Norme]

Originally Posted by cirelaw

What a 20 grand gamble! They probably have some hidden restocking fees! It will take me time to review these conditions. In law school the longer the more you lose! Thank You Ed~! https://www.rockislandauction.com/pr...auction-terms/

Originally Posted by cirelaw

What about seller fees?

It's a free country Eric, no one's forcing you to buy at auction.
Norm

[alvin]

Originally Posted by cirelaw

Are they seller fees? Can you set a reserve?? Very Important!

They charge 20% of hammer price. I have never set reserve though...

But, only consign good items to them. People go there have budget, looking for good items. So, consign good items.

[cirelaw]

Norm, Are they free to sell your 1902 Fat Barrel for two thousand bucks? Great for the buyer and R.I.A. What about a reserve?????? As a buyer is there a 3 day inspection, no strings attached? Who sets the original asking price? Legally very important! Eric, Esq.

[DonVoigt]

Eric,
if you really want to know, ask for their consignor contract.
It may even be on line.

[alvin]

They have low estimate and high estimate on your item. I believe the auction usually starts from 50% of low estimate. Assume your 1902 fat barrel has estimate of $8k to $12k, then, auction starts from $4k (or $5k, $6k if they felt the item being hot due to many bidders registered on it). That's probably the default reserve? God knows... if no one bids on $4k, they may lower starting to $3.5k, or $3k... It becomes a Dutch style auction.... but that situation is very rare though, most items sold between estimates. Many hot items sold above high estimate. Fewer items sold below low estimate.

Their initial assessment is based on pictures you send to them, pending hand-on inspection adjustment. That gives you a range of value. If the estimate is too low, you keep the gun, don't consign to them. It's so simple. But, be aware you will only get 80% of the auction hammer price -- if a gun came to you not cheap, say, $8k, consigning to them, it sold $10k hammer price,, that's higher than your cost, but only they will make money ($2k + $1.5k BP), you earn nothing though. So, that must be put into consideration.

Many high-value items mainly come and go via auction houses. Most buyers depend on future value increase-non-stopping, otherwise, it's not easy to break even, due to the transaction cost associated with those items. If counting on that expectation, really should NOT buy those.. the return does not worth the risk. As a hobby to spend some money, people could do that though.

[cirelaw]

Alvin thank you for the explanation, I will stick with our known dealers as most of those I that I own we purchased from friends and members on our forum~ My biggest issue is the number of photographs and descriptions lacking. Your buying a luger like a wife who maybe with you the rest of your life!! Better yet for the past years George Anderson has had the absolute finest lugers at a fair price and accepted payments. I guess its a matter of preference. In law I learned keep it simple. Auctions involve too many variables and your favorite may get lost in the shuffle or 3 or 4 of the same model! Your wonderful explanation scares me even more!! Our forum is a great example. Often there are ten technical views on something simple as a holster or magazine. Both forum rip apart anything they think is wrong. The other problem is you don't have adequate time to run it by our members the with only 4 pictures!! I trust my wife Debby, George, Ron, Jerry, Ed, Pete and a few others and not the auction house and their overwhelming control and last word contained in their contract at a first glance!With our heros I can sleep soundly at night. They are there at anytime! They have provided me with over 10 years of trust! I'm sorry if I offended anyone as I see nothing wrong with what they are doing but I'm still a stubborn attorney even after my stroke!!I'm a romantic who believes in buying my luger from a seller often a friend! that we can deal! At a gunshow you can make friends and actually hold and inspect a luger and agree on a fair price devoid of commissions "An Arm Length Deal"~ You can trust him who knows your gun, your bottom price with wiggle room! There is nothing as rewarding! Most of all whether using a seller or owner, you are not pardon the expression, "Under The Gun" of instant bidding. We have lost the art of face to face negotiation and the Gentlemans' Handshake! Eric

[alvin]

In C&R, generally speaking, Luger is a mid-value-range gun. There are some very high-value variations, but most variations are in mid-range. So, private transaction should still works. Same is true for C96, most of my guns were acquired and sold privately, so I avoid auction BP and auction seller's fee, that's an advantage. For guns in this range, individual gun price is not a very big problem, there is some challenge from volume. For example, selling two 3000-dollar guns is one thing, selling one hundred 3000-dollar-guns is another thing -- simply because of volume. Lots of work.

[cirelaw]

Well Put!!!

[Dwight Gruber]

There is a button in the description allowing you to ask for additional information. If you ask, they answer. If you request specific pictures they take them and send them to you.

--Dwight

[sheepherder]

Originally Posted by cirelaw

Your buying a luger like a wife who maybe with you the rest of your life!!

It's odd that you should say that...Aren't you on your third wife??? Or fourth???

[cirelaw]

Third for 12 years, but whose counting! First died and second ran of with a biker as soon as she found out about my stroke in Costa Rico and my life insurance lapsed!! TOO Bad!

[sheepherder]

Originally Posted by cirelaw

Third for 12 years, but whose counting! First died and second ran of with a biker as soon as she found out about my stroke in Costa Rico and my life insurance lapsed!! TOO Bad!

The hazards of being a rich successful attorney.

[cirelaw]

Rich in spirit, Haven't Practiced law since my stroke 14 years ago! Short term memory is mush! Permanent right sided Subdural Hematoma as result of a fall on vacation on Jaco Beach, Costa Rica~~ Ouch!!! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subdural_hematoma

[cirelaw]

Thank God for ssi!!