[Perfessor5646]

Sold the K3 Mk2 w/BG, 16-85, the 15mm Ltd, the DA* 55mm, 20mm -40mm Ltd and have a pending sale on the 70mm Ltd. If this keeps getting drawn out I may just kept it.

[pepperberry farm]

one Leica Elmarit-R 135/2.8....

[ivanvernon]

I am 81 years old, and have a ton of Pentax and Sony equipment. I got the K-1, K-3, K-5, K-01, K-20, K-10 (2 copies), Pentax Q, Pentax X-5, Pentax auto 110, PZ-1P, MZ-S, Samsung 5X, Sony alpha 350, Sony alpha 390, Sony alpha 6000, and Hasselblad HV (same as Sony alpha 99 A-mount), Yashica-Mat EM, as well as the 645D, 645Z, and 645N. I have about 150 lenses including all the Pentax 645 and Pentax 67 lenses except maybe five at the longer and shorter ends. I have all the Mamiya 645 C lenses to use on my K-1, and around a dozen A-mount (Minolta and Sony) lenses. There are also loads of other stuff, maybe a dozen working strobe flashes and tripods, lens adapters, etc. At the age of 81, I am getting seriously worried if my beloved family will be over-burdened with all this optical/camera equipment when I die, and considering reducing my collection to a more manageable level. I am thinking of selling the Pentax X-5 and the Samsung 5X, would possibly sell the Pentax K-01 yellow brick. I would greatly appreciate any recommendations anybody can offer.

[ehrwien]

I am thinking of selling the Pentax X-5 and the Samsung 5X, would possibly sell the Pentax K-01 yellow brick. I would greatly appreciate any recommendations anybody can offer.

I'd say those three don't make that big of a difference.

Are you still using all the cameras and lenses from time to time? Would someone in your family appreciate inheriting some of the gear with the intention of using it?

I'd say any gear that gets a NO to one of the questions above you could put on the marketplace right now.

And perhaps create at least a list of everything you want to keep and include its value on the used market, instructions what goes together with what (or point them to pentaxforums.com and show them where they can look those things up), and where and how you would sell the items. In my limited experience buying used gear I'd say that as a seller you fetch the best price if you sell everything individually, but with that much gear that will be a massive undertaking. Perhaps create some bundles that might make sense, like the Q + all Q lenses. There are some problems with bundling stuff together, like someone might already have some of the things that are bundled in with others that he might want, so the price for the bundle will have to be lower than for the individual items to make the bundle more attractive.

Your family should have a solid idea of how much they can ask for everything. If they ask too much, people will be intimidated and not buy; if they ask too little, they'll lose money (and someone else will be very happy; I've been on that side of a deal more than once).
And they should know that it might take some time for everything to find a buyer.

Perhaps it would be possible to "outsource" the process to an ebay shop (for some percentage as commission)?

Best case perhaps, there's a camera shop near you that buys and sells gear. Just send them a list with what you have, ask what they would take and how much they would be willing to give. Negotiate until you're both happy with the deal.
As a buyer I was always happy to get something for closer to the lower end of the range I can see here or on ebay. If you don't sell something directly to another user, you'll have to take off a lot for the party in-between for taxes and profit, so they can sell the stuff to someone that will be happy to buy. Perhaps something like mpb.com can be an option, apart from ebay, craigslist, ... perhaps B&H or some other big store that sells used gear might be interested as well, but I don't know how good they pay for used stuff.

Worst case, all your gear gets bundled together and put on ebay starting at $1 and it will all be gone, but you will definitely not even get close to half of what it's all worth.

[Gary H Perth]

I am 81 years old, and have a ton of Pentax and Sony equipment. I got the K-1, K-3, K-5, K-01, K-20, K-10 (2 copies), Pentax Q, Pentax X-5, Pentax auto 110, PZ-1P, MZ-S, Samsung 5X, Sony alpha 350, Sony alpha 390, Sony alpha 6000, and Hasselblad HV (same as Sony alpha 99 A-mount), Yashica-Mat EM, as well as the 645D, 645Z, and 645N. I have about 150 lenses including all the Pentax 645 and Pentax 67 lenses except maybe five at the longer and shorter ends. I have all the Mamiya 645 C lenses to use on my K-1, and around a dozen A-mount (Minolta and Sony) lenses. There are also loads of other stuff, maybe a dozen working strobe flashes and tripods, lens adapters, etc. At the age of 81, I am getting seriously worried if my beloved family will be over-burdened with all this optical/camera equipment when I die, and considering reducing my collection to a more manageable level. I am thinking of selling the Pentax X-5 and the Samsung 5X, would possibly sell the Pentax K-01 yellow brick. I would greatly appreciate any recommendations anybody can offer.

That's a tough decision process Ivan. I am younger than you and have less gear, but I am also trying to figure how to keep enjoying my hobby and balance with not overloading the estate. Tricky thing is that some items are quite valuable, but only when sold through the right channels, like the PF marketplace.

Stage 1. I have decided to sell off my film cameras, each with at least two lenses in a package, given the youngsters (in their 20s and 30s) who are now into film photography. Also anything that does not have a real market can go as retro display items, like my Minolta 110 and Argus TLR.

Stage 2. Then I will sell off the older digital bodies like K-30 and one K-m cheaply, each with a lens or two just to reduce numbers. A couple of your Sony A bodies would be in this category.

Stage 3. Rank the remaining lenses, sell off duplicates and lesser performers without necessarily seeking a great cash return.

By then, after about a year, I will have each digital body with a set of matched lenses and purposes. This will leave me with about 6 bodies and 30 lenses, all committed to regular use and enjoyment. Then I can go out for a day or a week with a kit that I know well, and switch between the kits. I can tabulate these with suggested market values and hope that my family will be able to sell off using ebay or Gumtree.

In your case, the 645 gear will be the hardest to realise true value, so this is probably the gear that you would get best outcomes by selling yourself, while you can still value it and advise potential buyers. Problem here is that maybe you are too committed to it to want to sell off while you are still using and enjoying it. If I were in your position, the hardest decsion would be to sell any of the 645 lenses or bodies, given their image quality and the enjoyment thet such quality equipment will give you as a keen photographer.

Not sure if this helps you, but this is how I am approaching the same dilemma.

[GeeEmm]

I have been selling off my APS-C gear, lenses and bodies, since I acquired the K1, and I quickly acquired the basic FF lenses. Some of this was recognition of the physical limits of lugging a 500mm up and down hills, but mainly I had a LOT of redundant gear. With the sale this week of my 8-16 Sigma, I am down to one lens (DA18-135) and a K20 body to be sold, so I (and my bank manager) are pretty happy!

Ivan, couple of good thought starters above, I'd endorse a list with prices/values, and I'd also suggest you talk to your executor, and maybe plan out with him/her a strategy for disposal (ideas above) maybe starting with you commencing the sale process. If you are able to demonstrate a process and means of successfully selling your gear, they will be much better placed to continue the process. Of course you may end up out-living your collection if this goes well/quickly, and I am sure we all hope that this happens!! Just hang onto your favorites so you can keep snapping!

[steamloco76]

My nearly pristine 35-105A “Stack of Primes” is off to a new home in New York, where it will actually get used.
No money made on the sale, but I like to keep the equipment karma in balance.

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[disconnekt]

My nearly pristine 35-105A “Stack of Primes” is off to a new home in New York, where it will actually get used.
No money made on the sale, but I like to keep the equipment karma in balance.

Yeah, the film gear that I had sold off (stuff I wasn't using after I CLA'ed some cameras/upgraded some gear), I sold at the price that I bought it at, in most cases less than what I paid for, and most stuff that came "extra" with the stuff I bought (camera straps) I sold for cheap/lost money on which I don't mind, mainly because seeing how the prices for film gear has gone up so much the last couple years, I figured I'd rather have the stuff be used rather than sitting on the shelf gathering dust just to make a buck

[ivanvernon]

I have been selling off my APS-C gear, lenses and bodies, since I acquired the K1, and I quickly acquired the basic FF lenses. Some of this was recognition of the physical limits of lugging a 500mm up and down hills, but mainly I had a LOT of redundant gear. With the sale this week of my 8-16 Sigma, I am down to one lens (DA18-135) and a K20 body to be sold, so I (and my bank manager) are pretty happy!

Ivan, couple of good thought starters above, I'd endorse a list with prices/values, and I'd also suggest you talk to your executor, and maybe plan out with him/her a strategy for disposal (ideas above) maybe starting with you commencing the sale process. If you are able to demonstrate a process and means of successfully selling your gear, they will be much better placed to continue the process. Of course you may end up out-living your collection if this goes well/quickly, and I am sure we all hope that this happens!! Just hang onto your favorites so you can keep snapping!

Thank you very much. This sounds like a great approach. Unfortunately, last time I began listing everything, I discovered that I did not have the Pentax 67 75mm f 2.8 lens, and decided to buy one to (almost) complete the P67 set of lenses. I have all the P645 and P67 lenses now except for the P645 25mm, the P67 35mm fisheye, and a few super-long lenses that do not tempt me.

---------- Post added 01-09-22 at 01:17 AM ----------

My nearly pristine 35-105A “Stack of Primes” is off to a new home in New York, where it will actually get used.
No money made on the sale, but I like to keep the equipment karma in balance.

Yeah, my problem is that my collection is growing out of balance, or rather growing beyond the storage/display space available.

---------- Post added 01-09-22 at 01:19 AM ----------

I'd say those three don't make that big of a difference.

Are you still using all the cameras and lenses from time to time? Would someone in your family appreciate inheriting some of the gear with the intention of using it?

I'd say any gear that gets a NO to one of the questions above you could put on the marketplace right now.

And perhaps create at least a list of everything you want to keep and include its value on the used market, instructions what goes together with what (or point them to pentaxforums.com and show them where they can look those things up), and where and how you would sell the items. In my limited experience buying used gear I'd say that as a seller you fetch the best price if you sell everything individually, but with that much gear that will be a massive undertaking. Perhaps create some bundles that might make sense, like the Q + all Q lenses. There are some problems with bundling stuff together, like someone might already have some of the things that are bundled in with others that he might want, so the price for the bundle will have to be lower than for the individual items to make the bundle more attractive.

Your family should have a solid idea of how much they can ask for everything. If they ask too much, people will be intimidated and not buy; if they ask too little, they'll lose money (and someone else will be very happy; I've been on that side of a deal more than once).
And they should know that it might take some time for everything to find a buyer.

Perhaps it would be possible to "outsource" the process to an ebay shop (for some percentage as commission)?

Best case perhaps, there's a camera shop near you that buys and sells gear. Just send them a list with what you have, ask what they would take and how much they would be willing to give. Negotiate until you're both happy with the deal.
As a buyer I was always happy to get something for closer to the lower end of the range I can see here or on ebay. If you don't sell something directly to another user, you'll have to take off a lot for the party in-between for taxes and profit, so they can sell the stuff to someone that will be happy to buy. Perhaps something like mpb.com can be an option, apart from ebay, craigslist, ... perhaps B&H or some other big store that sells used gear might be interested as well, but I don't know how good they pay for used stuff.

Worst case, all your gear gets bundled together and put on ebay starting at $1 and it will all be gone, but you will definitely not even get close to half of what it's all worth.

You are right. Selling these three will just get the process started. Thanks for your comment and ideas.

[pepperberry farm]

one Mamiya-Macro-Sekor 60/2.8

[ivanvernon]

I just sold two cameras to Forum members: (1) MZ-S with grip and (2) Pearl River TLR knock-off of Yashica-Mat. Nice buyers, thanks guys.

[pepperberry farm]

a K10D, battery grip, charger, batteries....

[Lord Lucan]

Ivan, couple of good thought starters above, I'd endorse a list with prices/values, and I'd also suggest you talk to your executor, and maybe plan out with him/her a strategy for disposal

That would be great as long as the executor is willing and able to take that approach, but I don't think all would be. They also need to have experience in selling in the used market, and whatever notes you leave them they will still need some knowledge of the gear to answer buyers' questions and perhaps avoid being tricked.

I am currently trying to downsize my old film kit via Ebay, and getting any decent value for it takes a lot of time and work - taking photos of the stuff, parcelling up individual items for shipping etc etc are all jobs to do. It is asking a lot from an executor. Then there are the Ebay re-listings to deal with if it does not sell - You get 8 (I think) free re-listings and after that they automatically charge a fee, to avoid which you have to cancel and re-list afresh with at least slightly different wording and photos.

With certain exceptions, things are not selling well at the present time (or the forseeable future?). 10 years ago, anything I put on Ebay promptly got bidders who drove the price up from 99 pence to a good level. Put anything of for 99 pence today and it might sell at that to a lone bidder, and I've watched things (not mine) worth £100 go for 99 pence because the seller was inexperienced. I always have an auction start price of at least £10 (the trip into town and parking fee to post it costs me most of that), but I've been unable to sell some of my 3rd party lenses and flash units for even that. I shall probably throw them away in the end.

The alternative is to sell it all as a job lot. But no-one is going to want that exact combination of gear, so they will only bid for the value of the parts they want, and the sight of a job lot puts most buyers off anyway. I've bought some fantastic bargains in "mini" job-lots. The only people seriously interested in job-lots are dealers, and they pay low - aiming to make 100% profit or more on cherry-picked items. Watchng Ebay, it is sad to see what look like the nice kits of deceased enthusiasts, perhaps being sold by widows, being bought for peanuts.

My advice is to sell as much as you can yourself.

[luftfluss]

Got some perestroika going on at my house... paka paka to my Jupiter-9 and Helios 44-2.

[ivanvernon]

Over the past 10 days, I have sold three cameras through Pentax Forum--an MZ-S with grip, a Pearl River TLR (Yashica-MD knockoff), and just today a Pentax PZ-1, all at concessionary prices aimed at getting the equipment into individual hands of fellow Pentaxers who will enjoy and use the equipment. I feel good about it plus it opens up a little more space for my Sony A-mount collection.