Like many woodworkers, I’m always on the hunt for new toys - I mean tools! - for my workshop. When I was starting out, I always bought new - partly because when I needed something for a project, I didn’t have the luxury of waiting to find just the right thing, partly because I didn’t always have a cargo van with which to transport an acquisition, and partly just because I didn’t know of places to shop for good used tools.
But in recent years, I’ve gotten better at finding - and executing on - good deals for used equipment. Not only is buying used better for the environment, but in some cases, older tools are much more solidly built and higher quality than newer equipment, even by the same brand … or that older brand, which developed a great reputation for quality, is just no longer around.
So I thought I’d share a few of my sources, tips, and tricks here.
Craigslist Messageboard
Came free with an air compressor I bought probably 15 years ago; under $10 if bought new now so no point trying to sell it; never used and have no intention of ever using, but surely someone else can use it? It was claimed in under 3 hours on Craigslist.
The tools section of Craigslist is my regular go-to to look for deals, sometimes for something specific I need, but more often just to peruse to see what I might come across. I’ve gotten a few good deals here - an impact driver; my original dust collector (still in use); another dust collector (for parts). Just be careful: the majority of “new in box” tools are likely stolen; and ideally, be sure you can test something out before you take it home.
I’ve also used Craigslist for occasional materials - I picked up some free walnut logs and some very inexpensive sheet metal. And whenever I have something that still has life left in it but that I no longer need and I can’t imagine Goodwill or Salvation Army taking, I post it in the free section. Without fail, it’s claimed and picked up within 72 hours and often much faster: hardwood offcuts; a beat up old workbench; a small flexible air hose. So, similarly, though what you’ll find here is much more varied than the more-focused tools board, you may find something you need on the free board!
Though I’ve never had an unsafe experience on Craigslist, do practice good physical safety as most deals are for cash: meet in a public place, know your surroundings, etc.
Auction Sites
MachineryMax and WestAuction are two sites I regularly check. MachineryMax focuses more on industrial machinery (and then, for site liquidation sales, the smaller power tools such a site may also have) nationwide, so I’m interested in the stuff at more of their auctions, albeit only a fraction are physically nearby enough for me to consider bidding; WestAuction has a larger set of industries they handle, but is just on the west coast, so I’m interested in fewer of their auctions but a larger fraction of them are close by.
Both of these sites typically advertise an auction for a week or more before bidding is allowed, have 3-10 days for actual bidding, and then require pickup for the winners in a 2-5 day window a few days after the auction. In most auctions, the “bid price” is the amount that goes to the tool owner; the winning bid is then bumped up for sales tax and “buyers premium” (i.e.: the auction company take) typically of 15%, and if you’re paying by credit card, a 2-3% transaction fee. So the actual price can be 25% higher than the winning bid.
The auctions also typically have one inspection day, where you can see and sometimes test the equipment in person, but the few of those I’ve attended suggest to me that most participants bid sight unseen. But, given that the equipment was generally in use by a real company prior to sale, I’d think it’s fair to assume that there’s fewer outright scams / sales of non-working things. Still, you don’t always know exactly what you’re getting, and you’re generally responsible for load out / transport.
They usually use “second price” auctions so there’s less fear of overpaying and more incentive to share your “true” willingness to pay, but for most auctions, I’ve found nonetheless that there’s a lot of waiting until some last minute bid “sniping” in the final hours or even minutes of the auction. Still, I’ve gotten some great deals:
iVac Automated Dust Collection Controls at 80% off!
$250 for about $1300 of iVac dust collection blast gates & remote controls; this win was a pleasant surprise because the seller was packing it up for me, he found more pieces than he had advertised (so what I thought was worth $1000 new turned into $1300, and all of which I ultimately used in my workshop).
$120 for an ~$800 vacuum pump which I use for veneering and clamping; this win was perhaps due to the fact that the pump was advertised as needing a part, which took me some time to source but ultimately I got for $25.
I’ve also lost bids on an SCMI planer, lots of smaller power tools and clamps, and some teak and veneer sheets.
Local Message Boards
Here I don’t have nationally-applicable sites to point to, but I’ll share a few examples of message boards or mailing lists that are relevant in the bay area:
Local maker spaces: if there’s a maker space in your community, they might have an exchange or mailing list. MakerNexus in Sunnyvale, where I teach periodically, has a Slack channel #buy-sell-trade-giveaway and an annual in-person event that goes by a similar name. I tend to see more smaller-scale parts & tools here, but occasionally there’s 3d printers or bigger things. For those in the San Francisco Bay Area, the MakerNexus slack is open to non-members as well.
Got this jointer as part of a lot of many tools; after unloading the other tools I didn’t want, the jointer was almost free. I’ve since done a few upgrades to it - modern safety switch; better dust collection; rust removal; helical head; motor upgrade - and it’s now a workhorse with many more decades of life in it.
Local woodworking groups: similarly, there might be a local woodworking group. I’m a member of Bay Area Woodworkers Association, which hosts monthly meetings with guest speakers on niche topics, and has periodic social gatherings and “field trips”, but also has a mailing list that occasionally advertises tools & materials, often on-the-cheap. I picked up a Powermatic jointer as part of workshop cleanout of a retiring woodworker not too long ago, and seen a few other nice tools go by that I wish I had the space for!
And of course, there’s Facebook; though I deleted my account due to the rightward shift of their CEO, I do acknowledge it has it’s uses. One community I was temporarily a member of was “Pacifica Free Stuff”; there’s also Facebook Marketplace, Felder Owners Users Group, …. and countless other niche communities where you may be able to find folks hoping to rehome their tools and equipment.