[GMAN]

Originally Posted by lowrange

Man, I'm just so unplugged with everything. What's an oil change cost nowadays? No idea. Price of fuel? I just go to any TA Rates? I just know my rate, 30 cents per practical mile (32 cents per rip off mile, but I like to go by the actual rate). Yeah, I know that's a low rate, but it's all no touch, great lanes, and there are all of one companies with a hub 3 miles from my house.

I guess I should have know about the impact of Arrow, I just remember Landstar was pushing flatbed hiring when I was considering them again last spring.

I hear you on the wife, God bless her. I'm glad to hear you're working, too.

The cheapest oil change that I have seen lately is $169.99. Most will be around $225-250. The price doesn't seem to change much. Fuel seems to be running between about $2.82 to $3.09 most places where I have been running. Your company may be getting some discounts at TA. At least when you are a company driver you don't need to worry about repairs, fuel costs and all the other things that an owner needs to be concerned about.

[no_worries]

Originally Posted by lowrange

This is a great post, you're somebody who really understands me. Indeed, I do just want it gone, but I don't want to be lazy about it. We had an old pickup out in the drive and I wanted that gone, too. I was going to put it on Craigslist for a $100 and somebody said put it up for $300. It sold the first day for $250.

For awhile now, I've wondered if I might find a "future" buying and selling on places like ebay. My instinct is to shy away from negotiations- just take a job and get a paycheck and be done with it. I see that "shyness" as a weakness, not something to give into, something to overcome. I know if I had dependents, I'd be motivated to fight for them, an extra buck is an extra buck for them. I don't have dependents, though. I don't want to be lazy about something that has value, not getting the value out of it.

It's not necessarily a "weakness"; sometimes it's just a matter of priorities. I know guys that will spend days, weeks, or months agonizing over selling something because they don't want to get "taken." In the end the end up making a couple hundred extra bucks. Was it worth it? Sometimes to them it is because the idea of losing out on that money is too much to handle, but the time value...to me it was a big waste. It's the same as the guys that will sit an extra day in order to get another $.25/mile. Was that $250 worth the added road expenses and day away from home? Not in my book. Sometimes I will trade in a piece of equipment rather than selling it myself. Sometimes it might amount to a few thousand dollar difference. But to me, I'd rather be done with it than have to spend a month or two working on selling it. Not to mention storing it and working out the logistics of the sale. It all comes down to how much you value your time and effort...I tend to overvalue mine

[lowrange]

Originally Posted by no_worries

It's not necessarily a "weakness"; sometimes it's just a matter of priorities. I know guys that will spend days, weeks, or months agonizing over selling something because they don't want to get "taken." In the end the end up making a couple hundred extra bucks. Was it worth it? Sometimes to them it is because the idea of losing out on that money is too much to handle, but the time value...to me it was a big waste. It's the same as the guys that will sit an extra day in order to get another $.25/mile. Was that $250 worth the added road expenses and day away from home? Not in my book. Sometimes I will trade in a piece of equipment rather than selling it myself. Sometimes it might amount to a few thousand dollar difference. But to me, I'd rather be done with it than have to spend a month or two working on selling it. Not to mention storing it and working out the logistics of the sale. It all comes down to how much you value your time and effort...I tend to overvalue mine

I really do appreciate your perspective. I went looking for the title yesterday and couldn't find it. That makes things easy at this point!

I do understand the buying and selling process somewhat, at least mentally. I'll never be a slick talker trying to jam somebody into something that may not be best for them, and I've run across that. But, there is this matter of communication to a broad audience, casting a wide net. One guy just doesn't care much for what you have so the value to him is little. Another guy likes what you have and is willing to pay the money. It's finding the right guy. I communicated my desperation to move the truck to these mechanics and their offer reflects it, they figure they have no competition. I work a couple weeks to net $1200, or so. I may just need to do the work to take the pictures and run the ads. What kind of hurts is advertising that it isn't running because it isn't too far from doing so.

My sister and her husband are all up in this buying and selling game as realtors. They'll work with a client for a couple years, using their gas, and they won't make one dime when the client takes another option. Another guy, he lists today and his house sells tomorrow and he does the math in his head and he's upset because the realtors are making so much for doing so little. It really sounds like a tough game, but they have each other to keep their courage up. And, their house and cars suggest they're doing just a tad better than a trucker's wages.

We've taken to watching American Pickers, Pawn Stars and Hardcore Pawn around my house. I just like to watch the haggling, but the history of the artifacts they bring in is interesting, too. It's funny how set up for TV it is. Some guy brings in an antique and says "I really don't know what it's worth, I just want to sell it". The guy replys, "I have a buddy who is an expert in this stuff and he'll come in and tell us both at the same time what it's actually worth"....Uh huh, that's the way it works in the real world! LOL

Hardcore Pawn looks the most real. Not ancient treasures but something worth just enough cash to get you a dime bag!

[Steel Horse Cowboy]

Originally Posted by lowrange

Starter is new, must be the starter solenoid. And the transmission, something called XY shifters, something like that. May do the ebay.

Yes, the X-Y shifter was bad in my truck as well, thats what EATON covered under warranty. The repair price would have ran me $7,500 but luckily I didnt have to pay it

[arky]

If you decide to part it out, just remeber that your going to need some equipment capable of handling an engine, trans., drive axles, etc. etc. You could have it towed to the garage and pay them to disassemle it as you sell stuff (probably what I would do).

No doubt, you could part it out for more than you'll get by selling it whole, but it's a lot of work. If you want to play with and hone your marketing skills, what better way to start? Take a look on ebay and you'll find several salvage yards are selling the smaller pieces on there (seats, hoods, etc., etc.) You will be amazed at how much the small stuff adds up to. There may well be $4,000 worth of small stuff on a truck.

If you do part it out, you need to formulate a plan on how your going to handle the shipping (small stuff on ebay), and the labor to disassemble.

[lowrange]

Originally Posted by arky

If you decide to part it out, just remeber that your going to need some equipment capable of handling an engine, trans., drive axles, etc. etc. You could have it towed to the garage and pay them to disassemle it as you sell stuff (probably what I would do).

No doubt, you could part it out for more than you'll get by selling it whole, but it's a lot of work. If you want to play with and hone your marketing skills, what better way to start? Take a look on ebay and you'll find several salvage yards are selling the smaller pieces on there (seats, hoods, etc., etc.) You will be amazed at how much the small stuff adds up to. There may well be $4,000 worth of small stuff on a truck.

If you do part it out, you need to formulate a plan on how your going to handle the shipping (small stuff on ebay), and the labor to disassemble.

Here's another very good post, thank you. This is kind of what I expected, there's money to be made on ebay. I hadn't imagined stripping it down that far, but I'm looking at giving up a whole lot of truck for the sake of convenience. Having said all this, talking about ebay and what not, right now I'm back leaning toward just brooming the thing. LOL

I have one job, I don't have either the time or the motivation for another. (we don't exactly work 40 hours per week) We'll see, first I have to get back to the house long enough to find the title.

[Steel Horse Cowboy]

You also have to take into consideration that ebay charges seller fee's and a comission too, that you have to pay.

I'd suggest just getting it running and then marking it up to $7,500 w/o the tanker stuff, or if you are so busy with the other job, then just call that guy up and tell him to bring $4,500 and he can have it. The extra $$ you'd make parting it out isn't worth the time and effort. Especially since you don't seem to have the extra time to tear it apart. And once you sell all the parts off it, you will still have to pay a wrecker to haul it to the scrap yard.

[lowrange]

I just thought I'd share how it turned out, because the truck is gone, now. I was out in the yard getting ready to go into the crawl space to do some work under the house. The leaves were brightly colored, the weather was great, but there was also this coolness in the air that gave a slight warning of the harsh, unforgiving "ice age" that will soon descend upon us. I've got my driving job, I've got my home restoration projects, I just wanted this truck dealy over with. Just done, just out of sight and out of mind. When that cold descends, I want my duckies all lined up, a toasty warm little house, the leaves raked and the yard ready for snow, 3-4 months of icy roads, gray skies and short days, my eye and my mind already on March. I called the guy up and took his 4,000 bucks. Done. Finished. Finito. If I get another truck, and I don't expect to, I need to go new or nearly new and make my money running it up and down the road and not trying to find someone to replace this thing or that- at $85-$100 per hour. Ebay will have to wait, I guess.

[no_worries]

You can always make more money...can't get back lost time.

[Steel Horse Cowboy]

Congrats, and I think you did better than parting it out.