Rant on lathe seller

[MBfreak]

Hi.
Have been looking for a good lathe for 2 years, seen a few. Most were just too big, while the ones that would fit ( 6-8 inches above bed, 40" long) were all far too primitive, asian junk imports or very worn.
So, a couple of days I found an ad for a Rosenfors DL 8 toolroom lathe. Price was about right and the pisc looked really good. Called the seller, yes , it is in very good condition.
And only 50 miles from here.
Went there Wednesday. And the seller was a bstd. The lathe he had was a DL8 but totally clapped out, weld repairs on the bed and a pallet full of rusted out tools.
" Well , my camera was not working, used som pictures I had."

Rosenfors was the premium tool room lathe in Sweden 50/60´s. Very well made, used advanced Swiss gear cutting machines from the gas turbine industry.
Also well laid out, and excellent spindle gearbox and likewise feed/threadcut stuff. Bed width about twice the swing. It will not get better.

So, I feel like a regular idiot to fall for the guy on the phone/internet.
But the ride was a beautiful autumn day thru a really nice landscape.
Take your perks where you can get them.

Ola

 

[honcho]

Many (most?) people selling things like to make their items sound good to prospective buyers and often fail to mention the flaws. At least you were smart enough to know what you're looking for and not buy something that didn't meet your needs.

 

[LOTW]

Good lord! Whenever selling something I am sure to point out the flaws. I at least avoid the "I drove all this way and didn't know about that scratch, I'll give you half"

That guy needed an *** whooping.

 

[Ohmthis]

I too list the flaws of an item I am selling. I say all the nice and great things first and then state the cons or flaws. I've had several people go in with rose colored glasses by stopping at the good and then contacting me. On guy got really angry and told me I had lied in my ad. To which I told him to go back and look at the ad again. He walked away to his truck and a few minutes later came back and actually apologized. Good for you to know what to look for and how much to spend.

 

[PJNJ]

It's happened to me a few times. About 4 years ago I was looking for a project car. I wanted one that had very good paint and body - everything else I can work on. One seller listed "low mileage" (about 13K), excellent condition, and posted photos that made the car look brand new inside and out. He even went so far as to call it a "cream puff". The add was re-posted for about 2 months and the price gradually went down to the area of my budget. So I called and he confirmed condition, etc. Drove that Saturday for an hour and a half. Pulled up to a POS parked at the end of his driveway. My wife saw it and said let's leave - she wouldn't get out to look at it. Looked liked it hadn't been washed for years, interior beat, broken passenger seat (leaned against window), started up and ran like ****, had to bang on dashboard to get gauges to work, etc. Turned out the photos were about 5 years old. The 13K mileage - no way but how could I tell since the odo seemed to be broken. And he had given it about two years before to his college age daughter to drive and beat to ****. Total waste of time. I got mad and said I was leaving - his response was "don't you even want to take it for a test drive?". I can't print my response. Oh well have to take the good with the bad. Over the years I have also been surprised with items that are in much better condition than the listing and good, decent sellers.

 

[VoodooCLD]

It's happened to me a few times. About 4 years ago I was looking for a project car. I wanted one that had very good paint and body - everything else I can work on. One seller listed "low mileage" (about 13K), excellent condition, and posted photos that made the car look brand new inside and out. He even went so far as to call it a "cream puff". The add was re-posted for about 2 months and the price gradually went down to the area of my budget. So I called and he confirmed condition, etc. Drove that Saturday for an hour and a half. Pulled up to a POS parked at the end of his driveway. My wife saw it and said let's leave - she wouldn't get out to look at it. Looked liked it hadn't been washed for years, interior beat, broken passenger seat (leaned against window), started up and ran like ****, had to bang on dashboard to get gauges to work, etc. Turned out the photos were about 5 years old. The 13K mileage - no way but how could I tell since the odo seemed to be broken. And he had given it about two years before to his college age daughter to drive and beat to ****. Total waste of time. I got mad and said I was leaving - his response was "don't you even want to take it for a test drive?". I can't print my response. Oh well have to take the good with the bad. Over the years I have also been surprised with items that are in much better condition than the listing and good, decent sellers.

So how was the paint and body? You did say that's mainly what you were worried about, and then proceeded to pick apart everything else about the car.

 

[Zeke]

It's happened to me a few times. About 4 years ago I was looking for a project car. I wanted one that had very good paint and body - everything else I can work on. One seller listed "low mileage" (about 13K), excellent condition, and posted photos that made the car look brand new inside and out. He even went so far as to call it a "cream puff". The add was re-posted for about 2 months and the price gradually went down to the area of my budget. So I called and he confirmed condition, etc. Drove that Saturday for an hour and a half. Pulled up to a POS parked at the end of his driveway. My wife saw it and said let's leave - she wouldn't get out to look at it. Looked liked it hadn't been washed for years, interior beat, broken passenger seat (leaned against window), started up and ran like ****, had to bang on dashboard to get gauges to work, etc. Turned out the photos were about 5 years old. The 13K mileage - no way but how could I tell since the odo seemed to be broken. And he had given it about two years before to his college age daughter to drive and beat to ****. Total waste of time. I got mad and said I was leaving - his response was "don't you even want to take it for a test drive?". I can't print my response. Oh well have to take the good with the bad. Over the years I have also been surprised with items that are in much better condition than the listing and good, decent sellers.

So how was the paint and body? You did say that's mainly what you were worried about, and then proceeded to pick apart everything else about the car.

...and you had to ask?

 

[My Old Tools]

OWWM Rule #1. A seller standing beside a machine in broad daylight with access to all sides, cannot/will not describe the machine correctly.