Selling to KEH - Any experiences?

[scottwallick]

My Nikon kit has gone neglected for too long. I just don't pick it up any more. So I am considering selling the lot of it off: a FM3a body, five lenses, hoods, flashes, a motor drive, cases, etc.

Considering taking the photos, writing descriptions, posting ads, going to the post office, etc., I'm almost just as likely to leave it be in a lonely box in my closet. So I was thinking of selling to KEH

Has anyone sold gear to KEH before—or other similar shops? Experiences - good or bad?

Thanks in advance.

[CameraQuest]

you will get more for your used equipt if you sell direct to users,

like in the RFF classifieds.

Stephen

[CK Dexter Haven]

KEH might give you 20% of what you could get by selling it yourself.

I love KEH, but not to sell TO. Try RFF classifieds, photo.net classifieds, craigslist, or ebay.

[david.elliott]

KEH gives you very very little money for your gear. Use the classifieds.

edit: for example, some lenses that they sell for $500 - $600 they quoted me at $95. LOL?!

[MCTuomey]

scott, keh will give you an online quote, subject to final inspection. that'll give you a pretty good base on which to judge. afaik, they give well under 40% of their used gear pricing.

[coelacanth]

I agree with Stephen.

I do love KEH, but they simply can't match with the direct classifieds price. If you need a quick buck without worrying about fraud or any other hustle, KEH all the way, but their purchasing price will be much much lower than you could get from directly selling to a buyer.

e.g. One camera I was selling, KEH's quote was $850. I sold the same camera for $1400 on RFF.

[dap]

I will chime in with the others on this one. I have sold to KEH in the past, but only after getting an instant online quote. For the majority of items you will get MUCH less than market value (KEH is not unique in this respect...all online dealers and brick&mortar stores will offer you a relatively small percentage of the equipment's worth - it is just the nature of the business), but for some items they will give you more than you were expecting. Classifieds or Ebay is the way to go to maximize your dollar (but be warned,both methods can be a royal PITA - dealing with people can be a bitch. 99% of deals go just fine, but there is a stinker in every crowd)

[coelacanth]

Another way is to sell to smaller camera-show type dealers. They mark up tiny bit when they resell compared to big guys like KEH, so you can end up higher amount if what you wanna sell is what they wanna buy. However, that means they are picky what they want, so they might not be interested in your item no matter what price you are asking.

[catamaran]

My experience selling to KEH has been good based on what you're selling. My average return from KEH on lenses has been around 75% of my original retail purchase cost, which I thought more than fair. Camera bodies on the other hand were always low balled, so I don't sell those that way. I've also done the trade vs cash option and gotten even better results, plus a 10% bonus for trading. Checks arrived every time within two days. My experience. YMMV.

[srtiwari]

I have sold to KEH, both on the phone/web, and in person. They have a running "value" of the equipment that they buy, heavily factored by how many pieces they have.
They recently offered me $400 for an M4, and $600 for a similar M3 SS, as "we have too many M4s in inventory".
Otherwise they are very fair, and reliable.
Subhash

[catamaran]

Canon L glass. Current EF mount. I think timing as regards what they really want/need plays in to it as well.

[scottwallick]

Thank you all for your suggestions.

What I'll take away from this thread is: take the time, inventory the stuff, and sell it directly. Look for a Nikon fire sale later today.

I have sold on the auction site from time to time. Lately I sold a few things here and there here on RFF. I will probably go that route. Folks here are better to deal with than the unwashed masses. ;)

[JohnTF]

I watched KEH buy about $70K of equipment, some of the quotes were pretty low, some OK. It does depend on what they have and need.

Some folks had written quotes from them, and the prices were honored, though they were higher than the buyer initially said.

Adorama also buys, as does Igor of www.Igorcamera.com, try them all, and sometimes a shop will take consignments.

John

[Mephiloco]

I was going to sell KEH my AE-1 Program along with a lens. The only reason I ended up ebaying the kit (body, 50/1.8, 28/1.8, flash, 2 rolls tri-x, bag, 3 filters) and getting something like $75. KEH offered me about $65 for less stuff than I sold on ebay (I think just the 28/2.8 and the body). Only reason I didn't sell to KEH is because they have a minimum value or whatever.

I've put other equipment through their quote generator and sometimes I get pretty good quotes, and sometimes crummy ones (depending on equipment). They offered me $215 for my Summarit (i checked out of curiosity) and said it was EX- I think.

[scottwallick]

Well, in the end, I took Stephen's advice (http://rangefinderforum.com/photopost-classifieds/showproduct.php/product/17739).

[ChrisPlatt]

I have sold a few items to KEH. For in-demand used items they pay a fair price;
better than many dealers, and better than the bottom-feeders in the classifieds.

Chris

[rphenning]

for a 1D, 1D mark III, 16-35 II, 24-70, 70-200 2.8 IS they quoted me like 3 grand. I laughed.

[kshapero]

you will get more for your used equipt if you sell direct to users,

like in the RFF classifieds.

StephenKEH is good people but Stephen is right. I use them as a last resort.

[MacDaddy]

I got a quote on a near perfect 9 month old Pentax K20D kit I'm selling with their wonderful 35mm/f2.8 DA Limited Macro lens, 16-45mm/f4.0 DA lens and RRS "L" bracket and BH40 ballhead, among other items. I THOUGHT they'd offer me maybe $14-1600 for the whole kit, since I have boxes, software, manuals, etal. When they offered $1000 TOPS after seeing it I walked out and am now looking to sell through Craigslist. They seem to lowball the seller, even on desirable items, based on my 7 years of trying to sell to them. Just my two cents (which is about what they offer on the dollar!) *o)

[raid]

I once bought an M4-MOT and then sold it to KEH within a few hours for twice what I paid. This is the good part.

I bought a Canon 500mm 4.5L FD for [$2200 + a Pentax 500mm/4.5SMC]. This may have been a bad deal.

[Mudman]

I sold a little Yashica P&S to them for close to $200... Ebay prices ranged from $50 to $300 depending on the mood so I was more than happy.

[ZeissFan]

In general, the rule of reselling is to buy low and sell high. If I were KEH, I would offer below-market value for a camera and then sell it for slightly above market value.

[spyder2000]

I wouldn't expect to receive near market value for items sold to a business like KEH. They live on the markup, having to provide a warranty (60) days on the things they buy and sell. KEH and other businesses require profit to stay in business.

As an individual, you don't have to warrant your sales but think about how you'd handle a return of an item sold and returned because it was DOA through no fault of yours or the buyer. Repair or toss? I offer and expect the ability to inspect and test an item and I do not expect a hassle should something not be what was described.

So, for maximum return, sell it yourself. For rapid turnover sell it to someone else. For something in the middle, consign it.

[rbsinto]

I recently sold a number of pieces (lenses, bellows and bodies ) to the KEH purchasing rep. who attended a photo Buy/Sell/Trade show here in Toronto.
I didn't get a great deal of cash for the pieces in comparison to what I might have realized through ebay or craigslist. But on the other hand, this stuff was all old manual focus film equipment, so who knows how long it would have taken to sell it , if ever, and I avoided packaging, and fooling around with payment etc.
For me, it was stuff I inherited, but didn't need so the money I got on the spot was found money, so I'm happy with it.
Not a solution for everyone, but it worked for me.

[helenhill]

DON'T...they give extremely low prices !!!!!

Best to YOU - H :)