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Event Coverage Swap meet versus Internet

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by scharleyride, Oct 20, 2019.

  1. While walking the Autofair at Charlotte yesterday looking at new and used parts, It just looks as their are less people and vendors. The couple of things I had planned to pick up new they did not have and gave me a catalog and told me to order from their web site. And other than a thirteen dollar lunch some carbs and intakes I really did not find much for my project . So is the internet killing swap meets . Or have we just got lazy and want to go the easy way. What do you think?
    Will i need to get new tires for the swap meet wagon, had a flat and ruined a tire, Turkey run coming and plan to walk and look .
     
    jim snow and Speed Gems like this.
  2. For some of us it is an economics thing. Those of us that live a couple of hours from anyplace that has a swap meet have a few things to consider. For example: I live near Mojave California. It is about a 1.5 hour drive to the routine Pomona and or Long Beach swap. That may as well be a tank of gas at California prices, then parking price, and entry fees. Basically out $100 without even buying anything. Counter that with internet convenience, and shipping cost, online shopping for some items makes more sense. But then again there is a great charm in the walking the aisles, chatting with like minded folks, and making a good deal face to face. I usually physically go 1-2 times a year with a group. I like both ways of buying
     
  3. alchemy
    Joined: Sep 27, 2002
    Posts: 20,404

    alchemy
    Member

    Swap meets have much better "deals" than internet sales. And it's hard to see exactly what you are buying from a small screen. I prefer swap meets and always will.
     
    enloe, WTF really, Montana1 and 21 others like this.
  4. jetnow1
    Joined: Jan 30, 2008
    Posts: 2,152

    jetnow1
    ALLIANCE MEMBER
    from CT
    1. A-D Truckers

    I suspect that for many of us the people who have era correct stuff is getting scarce, the ones who have it and decide they do not want it anymore may have reached a point where health keeps them from
    bringing it to a swap meet, we are all getting older. Look at how many threads are on here that state
    how age is effecting their ability to build. Couple that with the popularity of later model muscle cars
    and thus the amount of swap meet stuff that is marketed to the restorers/builders of the muscle cars
    means I find less and less for the vehicles I am looking for. Plenty of non auto stuff, china tools, and old lawnmowers, etc. Have not found anything for my 50 Chevy pickup or 39 Buick in a couple of years, but I figure it is still affordable entertainment for a day, though my knees are questioning it.
     

  5. Binkman
    Joined: Nov 4, 2017
    Posts: 378

    Binkman
    Member

    I find that swap meets are bascially a social event these days.
    I totally agree with "Green 73" above. The costs associated with attendence at the big swap meets doesn't add up. I guess the same can be said for many of the big car shows. Taking the family to an event, parking, buying food, gas, etc and easily be two hundred bucks or more.
    I am only attending the smaller, local events these days.
     
    Montana1, Hombre and Sandgroper like this.
  6. wvenfield
    Joined: Nov 23, 2006
    Posts: 5,580

    wvenfield
    Member

    I went to Hershey and found one thing I was looking for. Lot's of stuff and lot's of people along with what I thought were high prices. While I enjoyed seeing all the stuff, my feet don't hurt scouring the internet for deals.
     
  7. quickchangeV8
    Joined: Dec 7, 2010
    Posts: 533

    quickchangeV8
    Member

    You didn't go to Hershey did you? Over 9000 vendors, fields full of early car parts. You can find almost anything there, even the rare and very hard to find stuff. Everything has it's place. The internet is convenient but you pay extra for shipping and applicable taxes,and you are looking at pictures of items to buy instead of picking up a part and actually checking it out.For the swap meets you have to physically get there, and that means fuel to get there, admission charges, food, lodging if far away, and time spent driving and walking the swap meet grounds. The Hershey swap meet looks to be doing quite well but I have noticed some of the smaller swap meets have now become just large yard sales and generally have become a waste of time if you are looking for old car parts. I know that Hershey is a one of a kind swap meet and there isn't another one like it, but I still prefer swap meets over the internet. The fun is in the hunt. Like I mentioned before, everything has it's place.
     
  8. 50John
    Joined: Jun 24, 2005
    Posts: 194

    50John
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    When I got my 50 Chevy it wasn't even 25 years old. It was still viewed as an old fashioned car but you could find a lot of vendors at swap meets that got old stock from parts stores and nos parts from dealers clearing out shelves. It's like seeing 90's car stuff at swap meets today. I think much of the issue is that the stuff we are interested in is much older now and not as common to find.
     
    dan c and Sandgroper like this.
  9. The Auto Fair at Charlotte Motor Speedway has been around for a long time, unfortunately the recent reconfiguration of the infield to accommodate the Rovol track resulted and many long time swap meet spaces were forced to be moved, I know a few people that had excellent locations that were moved to a completely different field.

    Add to the fact the long time vendors are getting older and their parts inventory is drying up, Last time I was at Charlotte the majority of parts were geared to the post Hamb era crowd, I'm not saying there were no vendors with what appeals to our liking but they were few and far between, it was also apparent that the yard sale mentality is becoming a part of the swap meet scene, not just at Charlotte, but at Maggie Valley too.

    This past summer I returned home from Maggie Valley with a set of Fog Lights, a original 1932 grille shell insert and a 8" Griswold cast iron frying pan, I only bought it after making a call to a local collector and he made it worth my effort.

    As the old timers are fading away the younger guys that don't have the years of accumulated vintage parts bring whatever they have to dill up their trucks in hopes of covering the expende of a space, a motel room, gas and food.

    The swap meet spaces at Charlotte continue to escalate and I'm sure places like Hershey are no different, I was content with the local swap meets like Fletcher, Maggie Valley and Charlotte until I made the trek to Hershey, if you can't find it there it doesn't exist or it's made from unobtainium.

    I will say the monthly North Georgia swap meet continues to grow and I have to say I have been a happy vendor and buyer, if you haven't gone to this one your missing out, it's usually over by around 3 PM so most of the time you get back home before it's dark. HRP
     
    jim snow likes this.
  10. ramblin dan
    Joined: Apr 16, 2018
    Posts: 3,609

    ramblin dan

    When I go to garage sales I have found only about one in ten of them before I seem to find anything of any use to me. I get the impression people don't seem to be parting with items as much these days at swap meets. Is it just me or has anyone been noticing there is less and less going up for sale on Ebay in regards to actual used parts?. Only a few short years back I was finding some great deals on Ebay from guys selling off parts from projects and now all I see odds and ends and pages and pages from the same on line retailers.
     
  11. Flathead Dave
    Joined: Mar 21, 2014
    Posts: 3,959

    Flathead Dave
    ALLIANCE MEMBER
    from So. Cal.

    The thing with swap meets is that the seller will have things that he thinks other people will want or need and is NOT the case most of the time. A lot of it is junk.
    When I sell at the Pomona and Long Beach Swap Meets, I bring a lot of flathead parts. I also bring assorted parts/junk from other makes and models than Ford. I am not guaranteed a sale of anything because people are not interested in the same stuff that I am into or have for sale.

    Pomona and Long Beach have turned into a Chevy paradise. Sometimes it's hard to find any Ford items so people respond to the internet for their purchases.

    EBAY, MAC's, LONG's or any of these places have stuff but are too expensive/ way over priced unless you really need it.

    I don't think the internet is any better but people don't have the time for walking swap meets and garage sales. Swap Meets cost a lot of money to get into for parking and gate admissions and then you have to pay for the junk that you bought and you pay shipping on the internet.

    I guess a person has to do what's best for them at the particular time.
     
    arkiehotrods and KiWinUS like this.
  12. I have been going to Charlotte for many years but have backed off in the last few. I went Friday afternoon as I had to pick a H&C rotor up from a friend thought while I were there I would briskly walk the infield. Only interested in flathead or 36 Ford parts. I had a great afternoon with many great scores & struggled to carry all my finds. I guess it depends on what your into & prepared to drag home. A great day for me!
    Cheers
    Tony
     
  13. Something that annoys me about swap meets is the"professional collectors" that snap up all the reasonable deal early and then display their "collections" and attach prices that no one is willing to pay. Why don't they just open a museum?
    her.jpg
     
    enloe, Blues4U, INVISIBLEKID and 28 others like this.
  14. el Scotto
    Joined: Mar 3, 2004
    Posts: 4,698

    el Scotto
    Member
    from Tracy, CA

    I like swap meets and the Internet, they each have their place.
     
  15. jim snow
    Joined: Feb 16, 2007
    Posts: 1,807

    jim snow
    Member

    I’m with you on this. I don’t buy to resell.I am the end user. Snowman
     
    Hombre, NINE INCH and quick85 like this.
  16. AldeanFan
    Joined: Dec 12, 2014
    Posts: 892

    AldeanFan

    I’m planning to vend at the Ancaster Ontario Swap-meet next Sunday.

    I don’t mind if I bring it all home, just looking forward to a day out and seeing some friends.
    At the same time, everything will be priced to go, I’m not trying to make a living at this just hoping to unload some stuff I don’t need that others do.





    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
     
    Hombre, Flathead Dave and ramblin dan like this.
  17. uncleandy 65
    Joined: Jan 14, 2013
    Posts: 4,140

    uncleandy 65
    Member

    I have done swap meets for 40 years all over the US. I use to sell on Evilbay. I think there are less people doing projects so it becomes harder to sell parts and you have to ask yourself is the juice worth the squeeze. At my age it is sometimes easier to leave the part at home then to barely make expenses.
     
    jim snow and arkiehotrods like this.
  18. I enjoy doing both.. The internet and swap meets, Both buying and selling. Now mind you the time and expenditures for a swap space and what people want to give you for your stuff, Just breaking even or just a few bucks ahead is getting tuff. While listing on the internet with set price when it sells you pack and ship, EASY ! for the most part, You get that idiot that doesn't like the little scratch even though it was listed as such and wants to return a used part. SHEESH. That is the good thing with the swap meet it is in YOUR hand and can touch it unlike pictures...
     
    Hombre and arkiehotrods like this.
  19. ramblin dan
    Joined: Apr 16, 2018
    Posts: 3,609

    ramblin dan

     
  20. Choffman41 hit it right on for me.

    And the bad part is,,,,these same guys will have the same parts for 20 years after and still have not sold them.
    They sell some stuff,,,but I can recognize the same exact parts many years later.
    Oh well,,,, no one has to buy it,,and someday,,the parts will change hands somehow.
    I just don’t want to fund their retirement accounts.

    Tommy
     
  21. quick85
    Joined: Feb 23, 2014
    Posts: 3,047

    quick85
    BANNED

    Sometimes I look back and want to kick myself for the way I damn near gave parts away.
    I didn't want to screw someone and I didn't want to bring things home, but I can at least
    say that I sold my stuff and not have to carry it from meet to meet.

    Ebay and craigslist slay me. Everything is "classic" and "rare" and priced accordingly.
    I want to write to some just to ask if they're f*****g insane. Instead, I just move on
    and go without.
     
    Hombre, 41rodderz and Flathead Dave like this.
  22. the other side: half a day to load the truck, get up early, unload, take your good morning wake up shit in a blue plastic shed, watch as parts get picked up and put down, take unreasonable low prices for good parts just to recoup the swop meet fee, load up the truck and spend the next day putting it back in inventory.
    take photo, list, package, mail.
     
    INVISIBLEKID, ahshoe, Hombre and 8 others like this.
  23. arkiehotrods
    Joined: Mar 9, 2006
    Posts: 6,803

    arkiehotrods
    Member

    I used to sell at swap meets but not worth the time, cost and effort compared to what I made in sales. I go to swap meets to hang out with friends, make new friends, and sometimes find something I didn't know I needed until I saw it.
    When I need a particular part pretty quickly, the internet is where I find it. The cost is almost always reasonable, even with tax and shipping, and it is delivered to my door in a few days.
     
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  24. Been selling car parts since I was about 16 - a little over 50 years - swap meets for almost as long and still prefer that kinda deal with a face to face buyer. Sold some stuff on the internet and have a good rating there - like was said not all have a "Hershey" close to them for convenience.
     
    Hombre likes this.
  25. Mr48chev
    Joined: Dec 28, 2007
    Posts: 33,861

    Mr48chev
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    There are a couple of characters who have shown up at the Tri- cities Wa swap meet every year since I started going there and have parked their trailer in exactly the same spot and I don't think that they even unload the trailer year to year but may fill in blank spaces with something new.

    I probably bought parts from Stillrunners at Pate or the Dallas swap meet that they held in the bank parking garage for a few years back in the 70's.
    I still like packing up a load of stuff and hauling it to one of the near by one day swap meets. I usually end up selling enough to pay for what I buy and the space gives me a base camp. I'm not sure if I want to haul a truck load of stuff to Portland or Monroe or Chehalis/Centralia for a weekend swapmeet though.
    I sell and buy on the internet all the time often selling stuff to build up the funds to by something. Craigslist has been a bit of a bust around here lately as many in this area have taken to posting on FB marketplace. That can be a real nut farm with all he yahoos who answer your adds though.
     
    arkiehotrods likes this.
  26. gene-koning
    Joined: Oct 28, 2016
    Posts: 4,040

    gene-koning
    Member

    I haven't sold anything at a swap meet for years! I used to haul a truckload of parts to swap meets, most of the time I barely made gas money home, never seemed to have the right stuff with me.
    Going to the swap meets with a truck load of stuff made life at the swap a lot more fun and a lot less stressful.
    These days, just going to the swap meet is getting awfully expensive. Almost not worth the effort. I often buy something so I can say I got something at the swap meet.
    We live about 90 miles from Jefferson WI swap. At the fall swap, my son and I bought a total of $50 in stuff, we each got a couple things on our lists. The trip expenses run about $60 each. It costs more to go to the swap then for the things we have bought the past few years. After this years swap, we were both hurting (my feet & legs, his back) from the experience, our bodies are not as young as we used to be. Gene
     
  27. MAD MIKE
    Joined: Aug 1, 2009
    Posts: 772

    MAD MIKE
    Member
    from 94577

    This is why I don't go, plus the parking/gate/food fees.
    Found a few neat/useful things, priced like a used car loan.
    It's the smug/rude 'I know what I got' attitude that doesn't help either.
    I miss a good respectable haggling. That shit was fun. Seems like no one knows how to enjoy making a deal.
     
    jvo likes this.
  28. Flathead Dave
    Joined: Mar 21, 2014
    Posts: 3,959

    Flathead Dave
    ALLIANCE MEMBER
    from So. Cal.

    I know exactly what you mean about others snapping up items and then selling them in their spots at the swap meets.
    I keep my junk under the tarps until the next day when the swap meet opens. I don't really care if I sell anything on the space set up days.
    Sometimes, those guys who roam the swap meets the night before looking for a deal are an annoyance to me. They have those stupid skull lights and every where they look, is the beam of light from it glaring into my face and eyes. I'll chat, cook out and drink coffee with people the night before the swap meet opens but I won't open my tables to anyone.
     
  29. HSF
    Joined: Oct 25, 2014
    Posts: 225

    HSF
    Member
    from Lodi CA

    Turlock is in 3 months, can't wait!!
     
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  30. partsdawg
    Joined: Feb 12, 2006
    Posts: 3,503

    partsdawg
    ALLIANCE MEMBER
    from Minnesota

    If I am going to a large multi day event I'll rent a swap space and drive in my empty truck early on set up day. THAT'S
    when the bargains are bought. Any swapper that's been doing it a while knows parts can change hands 2-3 times from Thursday to Saturday morning.
    I buy what I can Thursday and have the option of buying more,setting up to swap or going home on Friday.
    I have found that it really doesn't pay to stay until Saturday and most times I'm on the road home by Friday afternoon. I probably missed some stuff Saturday morning but set up day and the next morning have proven to me that after that it's just another hotel and restaurant bill.
    There are a few 1 day swaps locally that allow setting up the day before the actual swap. Set up is on Saturday and the actual swap is on Sunday. I go to these every year and my space is sitting empty on Sunday.
     

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