FeeBay and Price Guides

[crunchee]

This might be more of a "industry insider" question...but, I wonder if the people who put together the "price guides" take into account FeeBay (Ebay) final sales price averages and such; and if so, by how much? I'm just curious, I haven't looked at a "price guide" in years.

From what I've seen traditionally, dealer prices are higher than what instruments and equipment go for on FeeBay, although not always...gotta watch out for the occasional motivated buyer in any auction! And sometimes, it seems to me that most of the supply of the more esoteric or obscure stuff (think obscure high end private makers at one extreme, and utililarian gear or no-name lap steels or vintage student level stuff at the other) often shows up on FeeBay, and hardly at all on Gbase or Guitar Centers used/vintage site, or at a big vintage dealer.

Anybody know? TIA!

[cmatthes]

The way I feel about Guitar Price Guides = The way Muse feels about eBay

[Jimbilly]

I believe that the price guides, like the VG price guide, are there so that buyers in vintage guitar stores feel like they're getting an ok retail deal, -and I have no problem with that. Private sellers should not expect to be able to sell for what the VG price guide shows.

[BadgerDave]

My understanding is that the price guides are constructed by surveying experts, rather than by gathering actual sale price data. The experts are almost exclusively owners and managers of retail guitar stores who are highly motivated to inflate their opinions of retail prices.

[murkat]

The way I feel about Guitar Price Guides = The way Muse feels about eBay

yup.

The GC here in Nashville, goes by the Fleebay price guide... the average Sold price of a USED piece.

[Never2Late]

FeeBay prices don't reflect - shipping costs, packaging costs, ebay sales fees, PayPal money transfer fees, taxes, or store overhead. If they DID include all of that UP-FRONT, ebay wouldn't exactly look like the bargain compared to the brick-and-mortar store....once taxes are levied against online retailers for internet sales, there may very-well be NO difference in price at all....