Shipping parts from parts car...

[EverRude]

I've got a bunch of parts I would love to sell to finance my Z car. But I've always been hesitant to sell things I'd have to ship. Seems like a lot of hassle and like it would force me to keep the price low to get the items sold. And the lower the price the more likely it's simply not cost effective.

Examples are the 3 piece spoiler my 81 ZX parts car has. Kinda cool and certainly worth something to someone but is it worth the hassle of trying to box it.

Or the Gold 14" Enkei 92's my 75 Z had. No center caps so I wouldn't be asking alot but I'd have to get the slightly dryrotted tires off and then box up 4 wheels. Not sure I could make enough to warrant the effort.

Then the numerous parts I have from the ZX or even my 70 Mustang parts car. I know I have a chunk of money in items sitting on shelves or scattered around the garage that I cannot use or probably won't use anytime soon. But shipping seems like such a pain. Is it?

I'd really like to have some extra money for the Z.

Oppinions? Advice?

[zbane]

There are places that will (for a small fee) pack and ship everything for you. If you were to include or negotiate that additional cost into what you are asking for you parts, I imagine it would work very well for you and the buyer.

FWIW

[Arne]

Sure, it'd be much simpler to see stuff locally. But in most parts of the country there aren't enough local Z owners to find many buyers. Zs are still common here in Oregon, but even so, I shipped over 90% of the parts that I sold from my cars.

Here's my advice for non-eBay sales - pick a fair price, maybe a bit less than what you see similar items sell for on eBay. Figure out what it's going to take to safely pack the item(s) for shipping first. Figure out what shipper is the most convenient for you to drop off packages, and use that shipper for your shipping quotes. For example, many medium sized post offices now have self-service shipping kiosks for Parcel Post and Priority Mail. For medium sized packages, these kiosks can be used 24x7. Try to have an accurate idea of the weight so that you can quickly give accurate shipping quotes. I normally shipped within a couple of days after receiving payment. Most buyers will realize that this isn't what you do for a living, and will be accepting of a short delay like that.

Doing it this way, I didn't find it too much hassle to ship most parts. Big items are the largest pains to deal with. The most difficult part I shipped was a cylinder head. Took a bit more effort, but it went OK.

Remember that there are two benefits to selling your surplus parts. Not only are you raising some extra cash to finance your hobby, but you are also helping other people enhance their cars, or often helping them get or keep them on the road. Very satisfying.