Is it Stealing Part II?

I bought a rock poster from a guy on ebay for $50. He rolled it up in another, scrap poster for protection and shipped them to me in a mailing tube. Obviously, he thought the "scrap" poster was worthless. I didn't know myself, but I didn't care for the artwork, so, I auctioned it on ebay, starting at $15. I didn't expect much interest, until I received notification of a PayPal payment from the final bidder for $1,225.00. Zowsa! Oh, wait...should I have sent that money to the original seller who sent me the poster for free? Or, should I have refunded the buyer's money, insisting that he grossly overpaid? BTW, he was thrilled with the item after I sent it to him.

 

A somewhat similar thing just happened to me this evening. I bought a stack of CDs and when I got in the car, I realized the guy didn’t charge me for all of them. He clearly scanned them all though. So I assume he gave me a break for buying so much. I didn’t question it and don’t feel shifty about it at all.

(That was my second trip to the same store today. Yes, I have a problem.)

 

This actually happened to me. In 2012, I found the alternate cover of Laura Nyro's New York Tendaberry selling for $3.99. It goes for several hundred dollars.

I bought it for the asking price, assuming I remembered wrong and the store had to be right. But when I got home and contacted a fellow member of The Tribe (the name Nyro fans use), I found out that it was, in fact, a super-rare, super-expensive item.

My takeaway: For decades the record store crowd (and lots of rock fans in general) dismissed Nyro as an "eccentric." You got weird looks when you asked for her records. People derided her as "a whiner" -- if they'd heard of her at all. So, it was not a surprise that a used record store couldn't even be bothered to look up a proper price when it came to her albums. I felt is was poetic justice that it was me who bought this album, since I'd been singing her praises for decades to little avail.

 

ok What Poster was it?

 

At a big bookstore I once had a dispute with the manager over what I considered was an inappropriate display. He told me I was entitled to my opinion but couldn't understand what I was complaining about. So the display stayed as it was. I was rather annoyed with his attitude. On another floor I finally found a book I was looking for and there were two copies, one heavily used and one brand new. Somehow the price tags had been switched, but not by me. I walked to the cash with the new book priced as used and my irritation with the manager almost vanished.

 

Wow.

 

You’re a funny guy

 

There is no inherent value to a used item that makes it "worth $700". What it is "worth" is what the buyer is willing to pay and the seller is willing to accept. You may be really excited knowing that other people have paid $700 for practically the same item, but that doesn't make anything here morally questionable.

 

New here, hello.
I'll admit that this type thing happens.
I simply put on my poker face and move along.
My "moral compass" seems to point to me.

 

Since when is a record worth $700? Just because discogs says it's worth $700 does not mean you can sell it easily for $700.

Pay the $25 and be happy if it's a record you want to own and enjoy.

If you are just buying it to flip it on discogs, then you enter murky territory of stealing it from someone that could buy it to enjoy.

 

A Bill Graham production. The artist is unknown, according to "The Art of Rock", by Paul Grushkin. Not even near mint, it was creased and ripped, but, as I said, the buyer was happy to buy it for $1,225.00. One man's trash is another man's treasure, evidently.

 

i haven't seen a DCC or MFSL in any local shop for a long long time.

good for you.

 

My late father in law in retirement bought and sold antique cameras on weekends. Pile boxes in the car and off he'd go, to flea markets, fairs in armories, etc. He said he made money exactly because he knew better the value of stuff than the other sellers. As many have pointed out, the worth of old items, whether camera gear or records, is relative: how much can you get someone to pay for something? It's business 101 really.

 

I'm not so rich to afford being excessivelly moral, but if I was (rich), I would tell the owner about the mistake and will pay the premium price (because in general I preffer to make friends rather than saving money). But who knows, maybe if I was really rich I would be complete a..hole.. So possibly regardless of my situation I'll just pay the asking low price and will go home without any regrets.

 

These kinds of situations are what makes crate digging a sport. It actually really bugs me that the entire used record store scene has gone the way of Discogs which inflates the value of records. I like shops that price to move not price to match what couch shoppers are willing to pay.*

*Speaking from experience of course.

 

Morally certainly questionable. Better title may have been "Would you do this to your local record store owner?"

(I probably would not, although if something like this slipped through I'd be a little more concerned about the owner. Or at least their staff.)

 

You're having a laugh,right?

Firstly,if any serious record shop owner has allowed a 700 dollar record to go out at 25 then he's in the wrong business!

Secondly,if he did put it out for 25 then you can be sure he paid less than 10 for it.

Finally,gird your loins,stroll up to the counter,exchange a few pleasantries,pay the 25 and hightail out of there pronto!

 

The way we all make a living is parlaying our skills, knowledge, or expertise for some value. And that transfers to every transaction we do.

The nuclear reactor starts overheating. After failed attempts to stop it and a desperate search for anyone who knows how to stop it finally someone is found. They walk down corridors loaded with piping, gages, and valves and finally stop. In 30 minutes a $500 valve is replaced and the reactor returns to normal. The fixer submits a bill for a quarter-million dollars. Outraged, the agency demands a breakdown given that the valve was only $500. The expert says $500 for the part and $249,500.00 for knowing what part to replace.

 

but true.

 

How would that be stealing anywhere?

If someone asks $25 for something and I pay it, how did I steal it?

 

My response was off base. I should have said in some states they won't force the seller to abide by the mistaken price. I answered along those lines. You are right...in no case can you get charged with stealing.
But in some states, if the vendor realizes it is marked in correctly, they can refuse to allow you to buy it at the mistaken price.

 

I didn't view the OP's comment as an indication that they gave the item the wrong price - I viewed it as someone who didn't know what the item was theoretically worth.

When it comes the used records, there's no infallible list of accurate prices. It's not like these items have MSRPs that let you know something's clearly a goof if it's super-cheap.

If the local Honda dealer runs an ad that says they have 2019 Accords for $30, it's clearly a mistake.

If a local record dealer sells a rare album for $25, that may be an accident - they may've meant $250 - or it could just be someone who didn't know better.

When I bought the 2-track Japan for US "Wish You Were Here" for $8 a few years back, should I have alerted the store owner that it was worth $100+?

Not my job!

 

In a used goods transaction there is no true value. Whatever the seller and the buyer agree on is the unique price in that particular transaction. All prices on Discogs, Ebay, etc are just what that seller is asking for at a point in time.
I will buy a $10 power amps all day long when I stumble upon them.

 

Hardly a convincing rebuttal I’m afraid...