New here

[CHawley]

Hi there new here.
My name is Christina.
Recently I had a family member pass away who had/ has a lot of tools and needless to say we’re wondering what to do with them.

It’s a hard time right now and wondering if any of you can offer some guidance on how to sell these.
Attached is a photo. I can take more detailed photos of contents as well.

Are there local chapters etc of GarageJournal where I could locate some interested people?
Thanks in advance.

 

[gmcgeo]

Craigslist or Facebook

 

[BlakeTheCarGuy]

You can post them in the classified section here. I’d take as many pictures as you can and list them.

 

[CHawley]

Thank you guys. I’m a Nurse and know nothing about tools but I know he’d want them to go to someone who would actually use them. Appreciate any help you guys can give me.

 

[FMB4]

Welcome aboard and sorry for your loss. You may want to consider selling that huge tool lot through a consignment outfit. That said, I'd be very careful about having any just anybody show up to look at that huge tool lot unless you have a very good security system and very secure storage for said tools. There are a lot of crooks out there that will swing by to look at that lot while 'casing' your place, or wherever that tools are stored, with the intention of coming back and burglarizing the place.

 

[nadogail]

Welcome to the Forum. I too am sorry for your loss. Your location is important, because someone may be familier with local needs in your area.

Off the top of my head, if you have a local vocational education program there will be students who will be assembling tools to follow the careers they are learning about.

 

[Jinks]

Hi there new here.
My name is Christina.
Recently I had a family member pass away who had/ has a lot of tools and needless to say we’re wondering what to do with them.

It’s a hard time right now and wondering if any of you can offer some guidance on how to sell these.
Attached is a photo. I can take more detailed photos of contents as well.

Are there local chapters etc of GarageJournal where I could locate some interested people?
Thanks in advance.

I'm sure there are some G.J. members near you, but since we don't know where you are it'll be difficult to tell which ones. If you post your state & town a few may contact you. You can verify their membership before replying to them.

 

[engineer2]

Sorry about your loss.
Best to find a trusted friend or relative who knows about tool values.
f you take them to a consignment store, auctioneer, pawn shop, etc, their only interest is to maximize their profit.
If you advertise locally, be wary of strangers coming to your house, especially with that many tools.
GJ members can provide estimated values, but we would need brand, model number, size, condition for each set of tools, which is a lot of work. A quick way is to open the drawers, take lots of pictures and let GJ members see what there is, and give advice.

 

[rburke65]

Welcome to The Garage Journal and condolences to your family. A location in your profile would help immensely . An easier way would be to contact an auction company and have them sell the tools and they will write you a check. Good luck.

 

[CHawley]

Thank you everyone for the replies.
Location is Venice Florida.

 

[Viper98912]

Sorry for your loss.

The reality is that selling tools is difficult, and if you want the money but you don't know what they are, you are going to spend many many many many hours trying to figure it out, and then spend hundreds of more hours trying to list them and sell them. And you'll meet many people who you know will be trying to put one over on you because they'll know you don't know what you have.

My recommendation is this, similar to what others said:

1) If you're interested in maximizing your money, find a consignment outfit that might be willing to sell/auction these for you. But you will pay the consignment fees.

2) If you're not as interested in the money, I would find a local vocational/tech school that needs some classroom tools and/or knows students who may be willing to buy bulk tools (an entire chest at a time) at a discount. This is what I recommend honestly, as you know the tools will be living on with someone who needs them and will use them.

 

[NUTTSGT]

You can post them in the classified section here. I’d take as many pictures as you can and list them.

Correct, however, you'll have to follow the forum rules regarding posting classified ads, other wise, the threads will get deleted.

 

[Skooterj]

2) If you're not as interested in the money, I would find a local vocational/tech school that needs some classroom tools and/or knows students who may be willing to buy bulk tools (an entire chest at a time) at a discount. This is what I recommend honestly, as you know the tools will be living on with someone who needs them and will use them.

So sorry for your loss. And I want to second this suggestion. If you want or need to sell them, that is great. But if you are in a position to donate them, many high school vocational programs are in need of tools. They will defiantly be put to good use. Again, sorry for your loss.

 

[MerlinsBeard]

Can you donate them to a local high school or tech school in your area? Is there a Habitat for Humanity or other similar non-profit that can use the tools? Is there an auction type place that can sell the material for you? These would be relatively low time investment options, but also low return.

You can do Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace but you'll likely need to invest a lot of time to get closer to aftermarket value.

 

[Vwpower]

Contact a local auction house. They will even come and pick them up.

 

[jives]

You want to sell them as large lots, not piecemeal. Do not let the general public rummage through box after box, looking for hidden gems. And unless you know exactly what is there, it would be best to have someone you know with tool knowledge, or an auction house, do the selling. For example, one of those boxes may be filled with Walmart tools and the box and contents worth $50. On the other hand, filled with quality tools the box and contents could be worth $500.

 

[ddawg16]

Sorry for your loss.....

Because those tools are not something you're familiar with, it's going to be easy for someone to take advantage of you.

Unless they are cheap Chinese knockoff's....you're looking at thousands of dollars in tools.

Open some of the drawers and take photos. Lots of tool guys here who will give you honest advice

 

[kbuhagiar]

Open some of the drawers and take photos. Lots of tool guys here who will give you honest advice

This is excellent advice, and a good way for you to determine your next step.
Concentrate on pictures of brand names on the boxes and tools.