Is it still available?

RevDevil said:
:thumbup:
Responding kindly and politely is always the best way to go. Some folks get annoyed to no end by the question, but kindness is free and literally takes a few seconds. ;)
Click to expand...

Agreed, for the most part. Now if the person does that over and over, or sends multiple PM's asking the same thing before I've had a chance to answer the first, they might all just get deleted.
 
If I don't take the time (or forget) to mark my item sold then I figure I deserve to get asked this question! I will send a quick response to let them know one way or another if I still have it. A couple of times it has actually been to my benefit becasue it was an item that had not sold that I still had.
 
On this same subject, how often do you get messages asking for knives you've never listed, and how do you respond? I'm curious, because I actually sell most of my knives that way. Someone sees me post something they want, they politely inquire. OTOH, some of them can be the worst. When I posted recently that I had my second ROF Sebenza inbound I got several emails from someone wanting me to sell it to them for half of what I'd just paid! :eek: Then he sent 2 more emails in about a day and a half, before I'd gotten around to answering the first. He's one that I never bothered to answer. :thumbdn:
 
Anyone else ever post a knife in the trade section and get a pm with an offer to sell you the same knife your trying to trade off?
 
korn_2956 said:
Anyone else ever post a knife in the trade section and get a pm with an offer to sell you the same knife your trying to trade off?
Click to expand...

Hadn't had that one yet, but I did get someone ask me to sell them a knife I had a WTB posted for. lol
 
When someone say's "I'll take it" and I've received funds I put "Sold" in the tread title before and after the item. so it's the first thing you see, and also in the thread before and after my asking price. When the buyer say's their satisfied I lock the thread. I've never received an inquiry if an item is still available since I started doing that.

I have a had a couple of very polite inquiries asking if I was interested in selling a couple of knives I bought a while back though. I've always politely replied back and never considered it an annoyance.
 
ive asked the question on older still open threads before... while most have just forgotten to close it and mark as sold/traded, i have gotten a couple of yes's too, so it's always worth checking and takes a few seconds to respond.

that said- i agree that if it's clearly marked sold or thread is closed, i wouldnt bother.
 
There seems to be a bit of scheming with the eBay example. But I don't think it's a problem to ask about an open sale thread on the Exchange. If the seller didn't want inquiries he could mark it sold and close the thread... or if it's unsold, he could delete it.

But I do think it is best to ask more than just "is it still available". You could even omit that question and just make your offer. If it's not available, an offer to buy will get the same response. Asking if it's still available is unnecessary. If you want to ask anyway then you could say something like....

If the [insert make/model] knife is still available, then I'll take it.

...or...

If the [insert make/model] knife is still available and you'll accept $x shipped, then I'll take it.

That gets to the point and reduces unnecessary emails back and forth.
 
Lone_Wolfe said:
On this same subject, how often do you get messages asking for knives you've never listed, and how do you respond? I'm curious, because I actually sell most of my knives that way. Someone sees me post something they want, they politely inquire. OTOH, some of them can be the worst. When I posted recently that I had my second ROF Sebenza inbound I got several emails from someone wanting me to sell it to them for half of what I'd just paid! :eek: Then he sent 2 more emails in about a day and a half, before I'd gotten around to answering the first. He's one that I never bothered to answer. :thumbdn:
Click to expand...

I've gotten similar emails. If something is for sale then I'll post it in the Exchange, not in the discussion area. It's not a big deal though. People get excited about stuff. And sometimes it works out. Recently I bought something just for fun and found out that a friend on the forum had really wanted it. And I was able to help him out.

It sounds like the guy in your example wouldn't take "no" for an answer. There's not much you can do except ignore his emails.

korn_2956 said:
Anyone else ever post a knife in the trade section and get a pm with an offer to sell you the same knife your trying to trade off?
Click to expand...

I've had that happen once. I suppose they think that the knife is of interest to you (even though you are selling it)... or maybe just that you are interested in selling knives. It's not something that I enjoy but some folks actually enjoy buying to resell.
 
supratentorial said:
..........
It sounds like the guy in your example wouldn't take "no" for an answer. There's not much you can do except ignore his emails.
............
Click to expand...

That's true. I recently had a similar incident with a knife that WAS listed. Guy sent me a low offer, claiming he could get it elsewhere for the offered price. I asked for the link to the comp, and it was a bogus site. I pointed that out, and got some nastygrams back that went into the virtual trashcan.
 
Reminds me of an exchange exchange I had a few years ago.

Email: Is it still available?
Response by me: Is what still available?
Emailer: The knife.
Resp: What knife? (I had put no knives up for sale for years at that point).
Emailer: The one on Bladeforums!
Resp: I haven't sold a knife on Bladeforums for years.
Emailer: The post was on xx/xx/xxxx (several years back).
Resp: What knife is it?
Emailer: You don't remember?

This went on for a bit more only to find that the knife was never sold and I hadn't closed the thread. The fellow then offered half of what I had asked.
 
GronK said:
Reminds me of an exchange exchange I had a few years ago.

Email: Is it still available?
Response by me: Is what still available?
Emailer: The knife.
Resp: What knife? (I had put no knives up for sale for years at that point).
Emailer: The one on Bladeforums!
Resp: I haven't sold a knife on Bladeforums for years.
Emailer: The post was on xx/xx/xxxx (several years back).
Resp: What knife is it?
Emailer: You don't remember?

This went on for a bit more only to find that the knife was never sold and I hadn't closed the thread. The fellow then offered half of what I had asked.
Click to expand...
Holy crap just reading your post drove me nuts. Best part is the half price offer. That gets old too.
 
I simply respond to the question in a simple and polite manner. I prefer the "kill 'em with kindness" approach on the forums.
 
I sold a ZT 0300BW on another forum last weekend that was listed in Nov 2014! Guy PM'ed me to see if it was still available so I sold it to him (I never closed the thread since it did not sell)...I have no idea how he found it because I did not even remember posting it for sale and it took me a few minutes to search out the old sale posting just to see if I had actually posted it or if he had me mixed up with another member :rolleyes:
 
Last edited:
coinbuysell said:
I sold a ZT 0300BW on another forum last weekend that was listed in Nov 2014! Guy PM'ed me to see if it was still available so I sold it to him (I never closed the thread since it did not sell)...I have no idea how he found it because I did not even remember posting it for sale and it took me a few minutes to search out the old sale posting just to see if I had actually posted it or if he had me mixed up with another member :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Is that an uncommon knife? Pardon my ignorance, I'm not really a ZT person. If it is, he may have just done a search for the model and sent inquiries on open threads. I've done that hunting UG Sebenzas, and landed a nice one that way once.

I've also drooled over many that were long gone! :foot:
 
Lone_Wolfe said:
Is that an uncommon knife? Pardon my ignorance, I'm not really a ZT person. If it is, he may have just done a search for the model and sent inquiries on open threads. I've done that hunting UG Sebenzas, and landed a nice one that way once.

I've also drooled over many that were long gone! :foot:
Click to expand...

Pretty common knife, this black wash version is not as common but they are not rare by any means. The whole thing was just a little weird...
 
coinbuysell said:
Pretty common knife, this black wash version is not as common but they are not rare by any means. The whole thing was just a little weird...
Click to expand...

Hmmm.... Apparently just a patient person who really wanted one. Glad it work out for both. :thumbup:
 
korn_2956 said:
Anyone else ever post a knife in the trade section and get a pm with an offer to sell you the same knife your trying to trade off?
Click to expand...

Probably has happened to me. I get more messages about folks trying to get the same knives that I have in my wanted section of threads though. I think they just see the model in the thread somewhere and assume I have it. Skimming threads and see what they want to see I guess.

If I'm purchasing or interested in trading with someone I read the entire thread. It gives you an idea of what that person's about. Half the time I'll search their profile too. Never hurts and you learn a little bit about that potential buyer/seller/trader.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top