Question on selling kits

[tatocorvette]

Hello,

  Not sure if this is the right place for this. If not, please feel free to move accordingly.
  So it seems I'm a hoarder since I only get stuff but never get rid of stuff   And that is not just in this hobby.
  Looking at my stash I see things that are not going to get built anytime soon and I need the space.  Armor, cars, aircraft, cameras, photography stuff, books, computer stuff, toys, collectibles, etc.  So I am thinking about listing some here and other appropriate forums. There is no local market or shows where I can move model kits. I divorced Facebook and social media so no local marketplace. It's been years since I've sold anything on eBay but I think that is too much hassle for a kit or two.   
My question is on shipping.  I went to the post office and got 3 sizes of Flat Rate Priority boxes.  The regular box where I can ship a standard AMT or Revell model is already $22!!  Same price for a large flat box. Kits that are not as tall (Tamiya, Fujimi, etc.) can ship in the medium size flat box for $16.    As far as I know none of these kits are rare or expensive and I think at most I can get $20 - $30 for them.  I still need to check current prices for these items.  So either charge almost as much for shipping than the kit or end up almost giving them away for the price of shipping.  Those of you who trade/sell frequently, Is parcel post a less expensive option? Can you get tracking info on that?  It seems Priority is the standard for hobby items. 
And this is only domestic US.  I shipped a kit overseas (Singapore) and the shipping was $40 for a $20 kit. And that was over 15 years ago.
 Your comments?

Thanks,
Ismael

[robhart]

Shipping costs have become prohibitive for small retailers and private individuals trying to sell small ticket luxury items. I found myself having to deeply discount the price of the items that I was trying to sell to offset the shipping costs in order to get any movement. If you have anything collectible, I advise putting it on ebay. Most buyers on internet forums are only looking for bargains.

[4wheels]

Parcel Post doesn't exist anymore! Shipping sucks, when selling nowadays, I usually will ask if the buyer is OK with me just shipping the contents as bagged kits sometimes can fit in a smaller box, especially if you are shipping more than one.

[arcticwolf]

Jun 12, 2021 8:53:25 GMT -8 4wheels said:

Parcel Post doesn't exist anymore! Shipping sucks, when selling nowadays, I usually will ask if the buyer is OK with me just shipping the contents as bagged kits sometimes can fit in a smaller box, especially if you are shipping more than one.

Absolutely. If you're planning on building the kit, who needs the box. If you're buying it just so you can flip it later for more money, pay the shipping!

I suppose you could always try the E Bay trick, list a 50.00 kit for 20.00 and add 100.00 shipping. 

[Ben_B]

I’ve been aggressively reducing my stash, lately. Clearing out my moms house in preparation for selling it got my attention. I’ve been having so-so luck selling on the various modeling forums, but since we modelers are cheapskates, it’s more of a case of clearing shelf space than making much money. some friends have had good luck on social media marketplaces, but I don’t use those.

I agree that putting potentially valuable kits on eBay would be the way to go, even though it’s a pain in the ass. That extra shipping trick on eBay is pretty low. 

Shipping has gotten more expensive but I’ve found that most folks, including me, just accept the cost as part of buying kits. I haven’t lost any sales, yet, due to shipping costs. I do try to stick with selling domestic only, where I can track the package. I’ve had two occasions on international sales where the kit supposedly never made it to the buyer.

Ben

[Chris K. Hale]

Spend $15. on a Digital Postal Scale , I ship everything by weight and size, when boxing a model I cut the boxes to fit exactly the model box. two reasons, 1 no packing, things dont flop around in the box and get damaged and 2 a tight fit box is stronger , never had a crushed or damaged kit after 850 sales. If the box is trimmed, and with practice you can get real good at it, it only weighs a once or two. I ship then priority by weight and size, Parcel post is still there online but it is usually pretty much the same price. A regular kit should ship for $9.90 to $14.90 and a medium kit , Tamiya size, should go for about $14.90. Dont use Priority Mail boxes if you can avoid it, on the USPS Pricing there is a category for " Use You Own Box" and it save a bunch, Flat rate is a convivence for pricing for the USPS not a money saver. If you are going to sell a lot of kits , go on the USPS site , in the Priority Mail section " Free Boxes" Get Priority Mail Labels and Priority Mail Address Labels, they are free and will help ID your package as Priority when using plain boxes. Priority mail boxes use to be plain inside which was great you could just turn them inside out and have a plain box, now they got smart and its printed inside. When getting Free Boxes on USPS.com look for the 3 Regional box sizes , they also ship for less. There are a lot of tricks when shipping with the Post Office. Ebay started their automatic shipping pricing and were ripping the customer off, plus they give a 10 % discount on Priority mail shipping to the seller too. Its a long Chess Game and everybody Plays and Pays!! Chris

[sam]

I have been selling off my excess cameras and find that due to the weight, the flat rate boxes serve me best. Only one time would it have been cheaper to not use one. As far as models go, the regional boxes are great. One of them fits a standard AMT, Monogram, Revell kit almost perfectly. Parcel post is only a little cheaper most of the time, so I usually ship priority, and yes it does provide tracking. On large bulky boxes, check UPS. Saved me $60 one time. I only ship in the continental US due to overseas shipping being unbelievable. I pretty much only use eBay unless it is a really large item that would need a car or pickup to transport, then I use Craigslist. Never have used Facebook market place, but do know those who have been very successful with it.

Sam

[vintagerpm]

Jun 13, 2021 9:11:01 GMT -8 sam said:

I only ship in the continental US due to overseas shipping being unbelievable. I pretty much only use eBay unless it is a really large item that would need a car or pickup to transport, then I use Craigslist. Never have used Facebook market place, but do know those who have been very successful with it.

Sam

If you are using eBay, their international shipping is the way to go. You ship to their location is the US and they do the rest. you don't have to worry about the cost on international shipping.

I had no problem shipping stuff I sold on eBay earlier this year. You have to check the different USPS rates. A lot of times, Flat Rate boxes are not the way to go. And on expensive items, I go FedEX as it is the same or cheaper than USPS (and more reliable).

Mike

[tatocorvette]

Thank you guys!

I was going to list some items on eBay when I came across (on another forum) a lively discussion about how eBay has just changed terms of sale and how difficult it is to sell now. Apparently you don't get paid immediately and you need to link a bank account. No longer use Paypal to get paid? Can anybody confirm what's the story here?

Thanks,
Ismael

[Chris K. Hale]

Yes I yanked all my listings, w3ont sell there any more, and there was no way to Flip them Off! but, it has to do with Taxes, if you sell you will get a 1099 to report on your taxes, and your bank account could get Overdrawn because of their Crap. No PayPal, just your Bank account, thats why I am selling on forums only now. No Mas Ebay!!! Chris