When it comes to new RIFs or accessories/parts is the second hand market an indicator if it’s any good

[Shep120181]

Hi all

As per the title I’m curious what other forum users thoughts are on new RIFs or parts / accessories that appear on mass or even a trickle in the second hand market place, is this an indication that it’s over hyped or buyers remorse etc ? And does this then influence your own thoughts on buying said item ?

Mods if this already exists apologies I couldn’t see it that easily myself when I searched

I have no invested interest in the outcome of this question it’s just something I’m curious on other user’s perspectives

Thanks Shep

 

[Punisher3990]

I think it can be an indication, but I wouldn’t necessarily take a sudden influx of something on the second-hand market as meaning the product is overhyped or bad.

There are a few reasons you can see the same RIF or accessory appearing for sale. Sometimes it’s buyers’ remorse, sometimes people buy something expecting it to fill a particular role and then realise it doesn’t suit their playstyle, and sometimes it’s simply people constantly changing/upgrading their setups. Airsoft seems particularly prone to the latter!

For example, a good one right now seems to be the Tac 41/SRS/VSR etc. I’ve noticed quite a few more of these appearing on the second-hand market recently, presumably because people are selling them on to fund or move over to the SB VKS, maybe.

You can also flip the question around. If a particular RIF hardly ever appears on the second-hand market, is that because it’s genuinely that good and people have no reason to sell them, or is it simply because not many people bought them in the first place?

I think that’s what makes the second-hand market quite interesting. The volume of something being sold doesn’t necessarily tell you whether it’s good or bad without knowing why people are selling it. Equally, the lack of second-hand examples could be either a very positive or a very negative indicator.

My 2 cents

(PS: I am also an addict who routinely scrolls through pretty much any 2nd hand market here in the UK daily lol gotta find those bargains!)

 

[Austeyr]

There's been a few times I've bought an accessory, put it on a replica and thought "Nah, don't like that" and stuck it on the classifieds.

I do the same with replicas too tbf, or I'll buy it and think "Yeah I like this" and then 3 months later it's not been used so it gets sold. Or something new will come up that I want, so things get sold - Like my KWA Austeyr, sold it to @ButcherBill when the A&K PKM's restocked after years (I got my baby back after much, much, much harrassment to Gavin though )

Everybody has a different taste, sometimes people buy something and don't enjoy it. Sometimes people buy something and then a more important bill comes up which results in a sale. I don't think you can really gauge a replicas performance or desirability based on classified listings alone.

 

[Shep120181]

I think it can be an indication, but I wouldn’t necessarily take a sudden influx of something on the second-hand market as meaning the product is overhyped or bad.

There are a few reasons you can see the same RIF or accessory appearing for sale. Sometimes it’s buyers’ remorse, sometimes people buy something expecting it to fill a particular role and then realise it doesn’t suit their playstyle, and sometimes it’s simply people constantly changing/upgrading their setups. Airsoft seems particularly prone to the latter!

For example, a good one right now seems to be the Tac 41/SRS/VSR etc. I’ve noticed quite a few more of these appearing on the second-hand market recently, presumably because people are selling them on to fund or move over to the SB VKS, maybe.

You can also flip the question around. If a particular RIF hardly ever appears on the second-hand market, is that because it’s genuinely that good and people have no reason to sell them, or is it simply because not many people bought them in the first place?

I think that’s what makes the second-hand market quite interesting. The volume of something being sold doesn’t necessarily tell you whether it’s good or bad without knowing why people are selling it. Equally, the lack of second-hand examples could be either a very positive or a very negative indicator.

My 2 cents

(PS: I am also an addict who routinely scrolls through pretty much any 2nd hand market here in the UK daily lol gotta find those bargains!)

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Love your reply thanks buddy

And yes I forgot to add the lack of something appearing so thanks for putting that in to the mix

I too am an avid user of the 2nd hand market so I was asking this to see what everyone thinks

Appreciate the input

Thanks again

Shep

 

[Shep120181]

There's been a few times I've bought an accessory, put it on a replica and thought "Nah, don't like that" and stuck it on the classifieds.

I do the same with replicas too tbf, or I'll buy it and think "Yeah I like this" and then 3 months later it's not been used so it gets sold. Or something new will come up that I want, so things get sold - Like my KWA Austeyr, sold it to @ButcherBill when the A&K PKM's restocked after years (I got my baby back after much, much, much harrassment to Gavin though )

Everybody has a different taste, sometimes people buy something and don't enjoy it. Sometimes people buy something and then a more important bill comes up which results in a sale. I don't think you can really gauge a replicas performance or desirability based on classified listings alone.

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Absolutely agree with everything you’ve said

Thanks for replying pal

Just to add to my question as this does apply to me due to my disability’s

Does the purchasing of anything airsoft increase its chances of appearing on the market 2nd hand ?

For myself 90% of what I buy is online and I’ve lost count of how much money I’ve lost selling on a near new item at 70% less or lower lol

 

[Cannonfodder]

I wouldn't say how often something appears in the classifieds alone is an indication of whether it's good or bad as there's so many reasons why players sell on guns and gear. If a bit of kit is particularly good or bad then you're more than likely going to hear about it on social media etc

Does the purchasing of anything airsoft increase its chances of appearing on the market 2nd hand ?

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Yes and no. The more people who own a bit of kit then the bigger the number of potential sellers but this doesn't necessarily mean they'll sell

 

[Punisher3990]

Yes and no. The more people who own a bit of kit then the bigger the number of potential sellers but this doesn't necessarily mean they'll sell

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Aye, a good example would probably be a TM Hi-Capa. I see loads of the Gold Match ones appearing on the classifieds all the time. Are they being sold because they’re rubbish? Probably not, the Gold Match is a good GBBP.

I think it’s more likely that so many people own a TM Hi-Capa that the second-hand market is simply saturated with them. There are just so many available that they become harder to sell, so the same ones end up sitting around for longer.

That can then create the impression that there are loads of people selling them, when in reality it might just be that there are loads of them in circulation and they take longer to move.

I suppose that’s another thing worth considering when looking at the second-hand market. The number of listings you see doesn't necessarily reflect how many people are unhappy with a product; it could just reflect how many were originally sold and how quickly they tend to sell used.

 

[Galvatron]

To answer the first question, I think it's a bit of both along the African elephant in the room being the cost of living. Some players also almost hoard items (myself included) from clothes to RIFs to sights, etc and decide to move them on after years of not being used in the rotation of kit that is used. I have taken some financial sting with reselling RIFs I never fielded but I'm happy they went to someone who would appreciate them more. Another factor to take into consideration is that some RIFs fall out of favour but don't appear in listings because they're so unpopular that they'll sell for pennies on the pound they were bought for so the seller doesn't think it's worth it (cough, cough, several Raven and Vorsk pistols).

The influence on me buying X and Y comes partly from those I play alongside and some from online reviews, particularly when the reviewer paid for it themselves and didn't get it from a retailer or manufacturer where they may be under pressure not to call out serious negatives to continue receiving freebies.

 

[ButcherBill]

Dunno if my opinion counts as I don't sell rif's or kit very often but I've certainly noticed a flurry of certain rif's every so often, I generally consider that a sign that the rif isn't all it's cracked up to be but I'm a collector so performance doesn't really matter to me as much as the looks, or a if it simply catches my eye.
Most of my collection was bought from the classifieds and I've been lucky enough to get my money back on most of the rifs I have sold, but that might simply be because I refuse to sell for less than I originally paid (unless I need the money for something else at the time).
As for accessories etc... I have around a dozen boxes of bits n pieces I've bought for builds that haven't been used yet or stuff I've replaced with newer bits. (handguards mainly), I've considered selling off some bits but the postage often makes that pointless, one of these days I'll take boxes of bits to sell at a site but that never happens.
If I see a wanted add for something that I have but don't have a use for I'll often message the buyer to see if they want X,Y or Z.

 

[Shep120181]

Aye, a good example would probably be a TM Hi-Capa. I see loads of the Gold Match ones appearing on the classifieds all the time. Are they being sold because they’re rubbish? Probably not, the Gold Match is a good GBBP.

I think it’s more likely that so many people own a TM Hi-Capa that the second-hand market is simply saturated with them. There are just so many available that they become harder to sell, so the same ones end up sitting around for longer.

That can then create the impression that there are loads of people selling them, when in reality it might just be that there are loads of them in circulation and they take longer to move.

I suppose that’s another thing worth considering when looking at the second-hand market. The number of listings you see doesn't necessarily reflect how many people are unhappy with a product; it could just reflect how many were originally sold and how quickly they tend to sell used.

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Exactly the kind of insight I was after for all to see

Thanks buddy

 

[Shep120181]

To answer the first question, I think it's a bit of both along the African elephant in the room being the cost of living. Some players also almost hoard items (myself included) from clothes to RIFs to sights, etc and decide to move them on after years of not being used in the rotation of kit that is used. I have taken some financial sting with reselling RIFs I never fielded but I'm happy they went to someone who would appreciate them more. Another factor to take into consideration is that some RIFs fall out of favour but don't appear in listings because they're so unpopular that they'll sell for pennies on the pound they were bought for so the seller doesn't think it's worth it (cough, cough, several Raven and Vorsk pistols).

The influence on me buying X and Y comes partly from those I play alongside and some from online reviews, particularly when the reviewer paid for it themselves and didn't get it from a retailer or manufacturer where they may be under pressure not to call out serious negatives to continue receiving freebies.

Click to shrink...

Real useful rely to my question thanks buddy

 

[Shep120181]

I wouldn't say how often something appears in the classifieds alone is an indication of whether it's good or bad as there's so many reasons why players sell on guns and gear. If a bit of kit is particularly good or bad then you're more than likely going to hear about it on social media etc

Yes and no. The more people who own a bit of kit then the bigger the number of potential sellers but this doesn't necessarily mean they'll sell

Click to shrink...

Appreciate you adding to this question pal

Love hearing opposing views on topics like this

 

[Shep120181]

Dunno if my opinion counts as I don't sell rif's or kit very often but I've certainly noticed a flurry of certain rif's every so often, I generally consider that a sign that the rif isn't all it's cracked up to be but I'm a collector so performance doesn't really matter to me as much as the looks, or a if it simply catches my eye.
Most of my collection was bought from the classifieds and I've been lucky enough to get my money back on most of the rifs I have sold, but that might simply be because I refuse to sell for less than I originally paid (unless I need the money for something else at the time).
As for accessories etc... I have around a dozen boxes of bits n pieces I've bought for builds that haven't been used yet or stuff I've replaced with newer bits. (handguards mainly), I've considered selling off some bits but the postage often makes that pointless, one of these days I'll take boxes of bits to seel at a site but that never happens.
If I see a wanted add for something that I have but don't have a use for I'll often message the buyer to see if they want X,Y or Z.

Click to shrink...

Thanks for replying exactly my initial impression if there’s loads it must be crap but listening to other replies I can now see that with a different perspective

 

[Shep120181]

Thanks to all the members that replied so far I just hope this helps somebody with the initial impressions I had when looking at the 2nd hand market

 

[Cannonfodder]

isn't all it's cracked up to be

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I can't help but wonder if some rifs suffer from their own hype and despite being perfectly skirmishable are crapped on for not turning the average noob into the reincarnation of Carlos Hathcock. Th way some reviews lay it on you could play airsoft cliche bingo

 

[ButcherBill]

I certainly have some working rif's that I wouldn't even consider taking to a game day, but that's prob due to the choice I have, and some are better/favoured more than others.

& a couple I wouldn't skirmish due to the sheer cost or trust issues. My XM7 cost too much for me to risk using in game & I only have 1 mag so far, my L85A3 I don't trust & expect it to fall apart the second it's fired in anger.

 

[Punisher3990]

I can't help but wonder if some rifs suffer from their own hype and despite being perfectly skirmishable are crapped on for not turning the average noob into the reincarnation of Carlos Hathcock. Th way some reviews lay it on you could play airsoft cliche bingo

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Like the Gate PTX?

Everyone though that thing was going to kill the hicapa and rise to pistol godhood; it ended up being shit (very expensive shit,but shit nonetheless) lol

 

[Austeyr]

I certainly have some working rif's that I wouldn't even consider taking to a game day

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We're all friends here, you can be honest that you're scared they'll come back not working

 

[Adolf Hamster]

I can't help but wonder if some rifs suffer from their own hype and despite being perfectly skirmishable are crapped on for not turning the average noob into the reincarnation of Carlos Hathcock. Th way some reviews lay it on you could play airsoft cliche bingo

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Depends on the rif.....

For sure many "god" guns are nothing more than gats that can be made above average with minimal skill.

But there are gats that thanks to proprietary parts have a solid cieling on their performance.

For all the tm fanbois fawn over them, they are no better than a common cyma if the person doing the tweaking knows what they're at....

Meanwhile an ares or ics gun is stuffed full of proprietary parts that makes it near impossible to get them at the bleeding edge of performance......

 

[Punisher3990]

I certainly have some working rif's that I wouldn't even consider taking to a game day,

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NGL, idk how people take their like £1k + guns to games. I would be so worried about tripping or something.