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I've been doing some research on the potential in selling e-waste via eBay, and I'm thinking of putting an ad in the paper offering a service in a few small nearby towns to pick up people's old computers up for them free of charge.
Does anybody else here have experience/success with this strategy?
Most of us buy computers. So pickup is part of the game.
free pick-up works to some extent. A lot of it probably depends on where you're at, and how you approach it
you'll do well to study some of the previous threads about it
You might also want to go here and introduce yourself so we know a little more about you, makes it a little easier when answering a question, we know a little more about your experiences, tools etc.
http://www.scrapmetalforum.com/introduce-yourself/
I have mentioned giving them 'a 1Lb bag of quality cat food for each computer they give you' before.
Since most of us like cats & a cat owner is going to trust a cat lover before anyone else. It'd work for me.
And I just noticed the post above ^ hehe. Mechanic688's signature pic :D
Depending on where your from there's probably a couple of people already offering some kind of free pick up on CL or local flyers,newspaper(for who ever reads that anymore). Up here in the northeast you have to pay to play and picking up is part of the game. Definetly do some reading. Good luck.
Hey, just suggestion that has worked pretty well in my area, I have posted several times on the yahoo group freecycle for my area and have always received several computers, check it out for your area and see if it works.Quote:
Originally Posted by tgbyhn
picking up even free single computers is at best a break even. been there done that.
yeah its 2 or more computers for me to bother picking them up. usually most of my money comes from "can you get rid of this for me too?" or "do you have anything else thats in your way? I might be able to get rid of it for you"
If they seem chatty, talk for a few minutes, thiers friends may call you with computers or scrap in a few days if they like you.
you gotta be careful too in what they offer, one guy wanted me to drive a number of miles to pick up what I found to be a single computer power supply(but who knows, I never made it over there). Sometimes when you ask an amount, they get mad and don't write back. Once I picked up "some computer stuff" which turned out to be a 15" LCD monitor, a keyboard and a mouse, ohwell! I used the monitor at least on another test bench in another area.
Those are just some odd examples, there are as many other times when it was more than worthwhile
i thought free pickup is when you drive around the neighborhoods the evening before trashday?
Call around to your local computer shops. I did this and I got a 6 foot bed, and a Chevy Express Van full of Computers for free. Scrapping is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gunna get.
Thank you Forrest Gump.
lol: I once drove 70 miles round trip to pick up 7 "computers" I questioned the guy to make sure they were "computers" by the time I got there there were 7 monitors lined up by the road to pick up he just finished burning the towers in his burn pile to get the copper and. steel cases.' he knew they had copper and the cases were steel didnt care about any thing else, he saw the monitors as plastic and glass. didnt know they had copper in them or they also would have hit the burn pile too. he was an old time scrapper who couldnt read or write that learned from his dad.
hahaha Olddude!
Thats like throwing a $50 bill into the fire :(
Quote:
Originally Posted by olddude
The free pick-up might work depending on where you are. Around here there are a ton of "free pick up" ads on craigslist, so pretty tough to get much. With free pick up you will get the single computers from individuals mostly. For me it is just not worth it.
I would rather pay to get the bigger deals. I usually pay for my ewaste, and usually come home with a truckload at a time. I show up as a professional buyer, mostly to businesses, just works better for me.