Why are some steels difficult to sell ?

Steve Spitz · From: New Orleans, LA, USA

I don't want to mention any specific brand or model here, but it seems that some steels, really nice instruments, are nearly impossible to re-sell. I know the economy and the size of the market are factors, but it still puzzles me. I'm talking like new, modern steels at reasonable prices. It looks like there are a few brands , even though they are great axes, you may have a real challenge selling .
Why is that?

Let's try and NOT mention specific guitars for sale. This great forum is funded by sales, and I don't want any negative press on anyone's for sale listing.

Just what makes us less eager to consider some steels over others ?

Ken Pippus · From: Langford, BC, Canada

Perception. Everybody wants X and Y, because everybody wants X and Y. So you can't sell Z.

We're still herd animals.

Jason Putnam · From: Tennessee, USA

I think a lot of it has to do with brand. Not necessarily quality, but name. You usually have two kinds of buyers. Beginners looking to get started, and seasoned veterans who know what they want. Veterans I don't think usually buy very often. I may be wrong as I am not one. But they hold onto their gutars and they usually have allegiance to a certain brand that the love. Beginners just coming into the game probably haven't heard of a lot of the different brands so they purchase what they see and hear the veteran players using.
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Alan Brookes · From: Brummy living in Southern California

I suspect that there are a lot more PSGs by companies like Emmons and Sho-Bud out there than there are by smaller builders, so people buy what they think they can rely on rather than take a chance on an instrument they've never seen played or had to chance to play themselves, no matter how good that instrument may be.

Steve Spitz · From: New Orleans, LA, USA

I think the few builders that have gone after the entry level buyer have been smart to do so, and they have been rewarded with a good share of that market. It's a huge price point commitment, so the entry level steel makes the most sense for the beginner.

So, for the sake of discussion, I'm mostly referring to the more experienced player. It makes it seem a greater risk choosing certain brands, knowing if you choose to sell down the road, it may be difficult.

Bill L. Wilson · From: Oklahoma, USA

A steel guitar is a big investment, and buying sight unseen is a gamble that most folks won't take. Sometimes the seller here on the forum, will post sold locally, after the guitar has been for sale, for awhile. I've had my Emmons since '05, bought here locally with insurance money from a bad car wreck, and it will be my last steel guitar. Of course, I see Zum's, Franklin's, Mullen's, and all these other steels on here for sale, and would love to have another one, but I don't need them, I've got an Emmons.

Scott Duckworth · From: Etowah, TN Western Foothills of the Smokies

A factor could be that the experienced player is satisfied with his guitar.

There are probably several categories of buyers:

Resellers (probably looking for less that market value so they can resell the guitar for profit)

Newby (looking for entry level guitar that is cheaper so that they can explore the waters)

Income challenged (the player who doesn't have a lot to spend, but looks for the best value for what he does have to spend)

Income advantaged (looking for a particular guitar and will pay more to get the one they want)

Others...
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Paddy Long · From: Christchurch, New Zealand

There are quite a few guitars on the market that are simply inferior - and subsequently not particularly sought after !!
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chas smith R.I.P. · From: Encino, CA, USA

Kevin Raymer · From: Chalybeate, Kentucky, USA

I've been playing about two years.
Two years of playing spread across 10 years of time.

I have owned 11 different pedals steels in that time across 7 different brands.

It's all about the market and the price point.

If you watch a guitar sit and sit for sale the pure and simple fact is that the the price point is too high for what the market will bear.

If you do your homework and understand what the market will yield in a given product you can make good decisions on the buying and the selling.

In matter of fact guitar A may be physically identical to guitar B in function and features.
But guitar A might be worth 30% less than guitar B on the open market

Why ?? Supply and demand.
The reasons vary but can include a bunch of stuff like, Brand, perceived value, perceived quality, color, configuration, sometimes it's down to what dad or grandpa played or feelings of nastalgia, could be what your favorite player plays, or what your teacher recommends. There are a thousand things that make up "what people want". And ultimately what people want define why some things sell and some don't..

But... Get the price right and it'll move. Every time.

And so ends Econ101 for today.

Smile

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Henry Matthews · From: Texarkana, Ark USA

The two biggest factors to whether a guitar sells or not is the Brand name and other being price. Myself and I would think some others won't give the big bucks some are asking for their guitars, don't care what brand they are. Therefore, they stay on the market for a long time. JMO
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Per Berner · From: Skovde, Sweden

Some owners are convinced their brand X or Y steels are worth a certain amount (and won't budge), while the potential buyers out there don't agree. Everything is easy to sell if the price is right. Which in some cases sadly needs to be very close to zero, no matter how nice a certain steel may be. And in some cases it can be astronomical, for no logical reason. Life's unfair, that's about it.

David Nugent · From: Gum Spring, Va.

Having been a member of this Forum for a good number of years, I have observed several major brands and models reach their popularity (and price) peak only to eventually settle back into normalcy. It has also appeared over time that soon after the news is divulged that a certain brand is planning to cut back production or cease manufacturing entirely, examples of these guitars which are normally posted very rarely for sale, magically appear in numbers at premium prices. If these are the ultimate, "must have" guitars, once sold, what is a suitable replacement to be, one of those not so desirable, lower priced guitars?..The preceding are my observations only, YMMV.

Howard Steinberg · From: St. Petersburg, Florida , USA

Having sold 2 steels and purchased 1,in the past 6 months, using the forum., i have a couple of observations. It's fairly easy to determine a reasonable selling price on a guitar that exists in good quantity. One of the guitars that I had sold took much longer than expected as there were numerous similar guitars of the same brand that showed up immediately after I listed mine. Some of them were simply more desirable than mine (ie. Lacquer, more levers, newer).

The guitars that seem to sit are the less well known brands that are priced comparibly with guitars that are better known. The very high end ($ 4500+) seems to sit for a long time waiting for the right buyer to show up.
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Jason Putnam · From: Tennessee, USA

I fall into the income challenged dept. That's one reason I chose to buy a Sho-Bud. I love their tone. Its a Pro Level Guitar and they are pretty close in price to a new beginner model. And its something I can work on a little at at a time until it is the way I want it.
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Jim Cohen · From: Philadelphia, PA

The combination of having few opportunities to try an expensive instrument before one buys and possibility of having to resell it if not happy with it, would tend to encourage folks to buy the major, most in-demand brands while equally good, but lesser-known brands, may take much longer to sell.
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Erv Niehaus · From: Litchfield, MN, USA

If you think you got a really good deal on a pedal steel, wait until you try and sell it. Then you'll find out. Whoa!

Darrell Birtcher · Posted 22 Aug 2014 8:48 am

A couple of other factors I've observed:

Some folks are just out of touch with reality when it comes to prices and refuse to accept the fact that their used steel is not worth what they paid for it new. These often never sell til the item ends up in their estate. They are usually not forum members and are out of touch with the price info that is available here and on ebay.

Others simply need the cash for their next dream steel and would rather wait for the right buyer to come along. These steels are often specialized in their configuration (finish, copedant, pickups, etc) and may have less appeal to the masses.

Steve Spitz · From: New Orleans, LA, USA

I think Jim summed it up well. It requires a big commitment for an item you may not be able to test drive. I can't play a standard set up, so I can't make an informed decision until I've changed the set up. If after all that time and investment, I can't sell it and move on, I'm in bad shape. It keeps me from rolling the dice on some really cool, like new steels.

That's why I asked the original question. Some really interesting like new modern steels for sale, at decent prices, but with some risk if you decide it's not for you.

A few years back I bought the "must have " steel . A Lot of the top players raved about it. With my set up, it was a bear to play. I had to sell it. Fortunately, it sold quickly, but if it hadn't been the "flavor of the month" must have axe, I might still have it.

I realize the market is soft. Steels will sell, but the market may dictate a lower price point.

Lee Dassow · From: Jefferson, Georgia USA

Henry hit it right on the nail. T.L.
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Alan Brookes · From: Brummy living in Southern California

If you watch any item being sold on eBay, what you notice is that identical items sell for vastly different amounts even within short times. I've seen a tape recorder sell for $800, when the previous week an absolutely identical one sold for $50. It's just a matter of whether someone is looking for what you're selling at the time you're selling it. And even after you've sold it, that same buyer is not going to buy a second one the next day.

Sometimes I've seen something that has sold for $40, and thought to myself, "I should have bid on that". But I wouldn't have got it for $40, and neither would the guy who bought it. One of us would have gone higher, and the seller could have received a lot more.

Another factor is whether you know the seller. You might not have heard of a particular brand of pedal steel, but if the person selling it is famous and/or known by you to look after their instruments you'll be more comfortable in buying it.

The marketplace is a very hit and miss affair.

Dan Hatfield · From: Columbia, Mo USA

Why does a vintage Silvertone six string sell for $100 and a '52 Telecaster might go for $30,000?
When it comes to pedal steel, if I have one that I have to constantly flip upside down and adjust, or if I have to constantly fine tune on a band job, I'm probably never going to buy another one of that brand. When I find one that I rarely have to tweak adjustments on, as is the case with the one I now play, I will probably stick with that brand the rest of my life and I will pay twice as much for that brand as I would for some other brand.

Henry Matthews · From: Texarkana, Ark USA

Len Amaral · From: Rehoboth,MA 02769

Most guitars are built for the buyers specification (unless a stock setup) that includes pedal and knee lever setup, color hight. I would think a single neck standard E9 may be attractive for a beginner or someone that wants to downsize and hauls a D-10 and uses the C6 for an arm rest.

Just an opinion Smile

Eugene Cole · From: near Washington Grove, MD, USA

I seems that this thread has pretty much been covered... so what is the demand for a fill-in-name model over another name of a different model?

Demand varies depending on the time of year.

I look at eBay to get a sense of what the real street price is for guitar of a similar configuration. Sometimes less common models simply do not come up as SOLD on eBay and I am not familiar with the nuances enough to buy one without having more input from someone that has owned one.

I am not particularly brand-loyal. Although there are some makes and models that I have liked more and less than others.

PSG's are not easy gifts so that means that most buyers are the people that will be playing them.

The other thing is that for a PSG to sell; typically the seller needs to know a good deal about the instrument so that the initial Q&A portion of the transaction constitutes a meaningful dialog. A guy that owns a music store that specializes in Band instruments is probably not going to be able to tell me if the guitar is a Day setup or some other setup.
* Is it an all-pull?
* Do you have the copedent for this guitar?
* how high is the undercarriage?
These questions posed to a player will be simple questions. To a music shop that knows rental Band Instruments: these questoions will be from mars and as a buyer I will not risk payng a higher price that a knowledgable owner could get from me.
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