Freecycle (Merged Thread)

Buttercup.x

I was wondering if you use free cycle are you concerned about where your items are ending up? by this i mean on car boots or e bay as such.

Also how do you choose the person who gets what you have offered? is it a first come first served basis / name out of a hat or do you choose who you think is more worthy?



I personally would prefer my stuff not to be sold on but you can never tell who really needs this stuff i mean i had someone come collect a sunbed the other week and she had a lorry load of stuff which looked like she had been collecting from other people.. this really got to me and i wish i had the guts to say to her face what she intended on doing with it.

in the original email she sent to me she said it would be for her daughter who was always using hers, but when she came for it she didn't look old enough to have a daughter that should be using a sunbed

JimmyTheWig

Buttercup.x wrote: »

I was wondering if you use free cycle are you concerned about where your items are ending up? by this i mean on car boots or e bay as such.

This would concern me if I was putting on anything of significant value. But we don't tend to have much new stuff and certainly don't replace things until they need replacing. Things that we think we can get a good price for with minimal effort we'll sell (ebay or car boot) so not much of value goes on freecycle from us. The fact that the stuff we do put on goes quickly (e.g. 4 emails about a _broken_ sat nav by the time I got around to refreshing my email after listing it) suggests that there are plenty of people who want stuff.

Also how do you choose the person who gets what you have offered? is it a first come first served basis / name out of a hat or do you choose who you think is more worthy?

Don't go in for any sob story. If someone sounds particularly friendly then would be more tempted to go with them. When they can collect also helps. And I'm much more likely to phone a landline number than a mobile number. But all else being equal then it's first come first served. You snooze you lose.

grannybiker

Some interesting points of view have been discussed recently, all of which I can sympathise with to a certain extent. However, just thought I'd share these recent posts on a local site with you.

Members of this site must reckon the fairies are in generous spirits!
(Have ***ed names & locations rather than "Name & Shame!" The comments after each were my gut reaction to the post and my personal opinion.)

Wanted......please. Portable DVD player

Posted by: ***********************

Wed Aug 27, 2008 11:24 pm (PDT)

I am desperately trying to persuade my daughter that she would like a
trip down to Cornwall this weekend, but she's not keen due to the long
journey. Please,please, please does anyone have an in-car portable DVD
player that they no longer use,
I would really appreciate it, I'm a single mum and my wages dont stretch to on the spot luxuries.... .lol.

Thank you for looking.

Why doesn't she tell her daughter to be grateful for the chance of a holiday by the sea instead of trying to reward her sulking brattiness at others’ expense?!

16a.
wanted please ***

Posted by: *************************************************************

Thu Aug 28, 2008 2:35 am (PDT)

please can anyone help my little brother in law he so wants a laptop as
he is starting senior school in september and it will help him with his
homework and school work but his mum cannot afford one as she is a
single parent if anyone has one they no longer need or use he would be
so grateful and it would make his day thanks for looking

Perhaps little brother will learn how to punctuate and pass on such valuable knowledge!

***WANTED*** SAT NAV ***********SAT NAV

Posted by: **********************************************************

Thu Aug 28, 2008 1:40 pm (PDT)

HI HAS ANYONE GOT AN OLD SAT NAV THEY NO LONGER NEED.AS I COULD REALLY
DO WITH ONE BUT CANT AFFORD ONE THANKS ***.

Yeah, me too, but I don’t expect others to fund such an extravagant “Want!” (Clever inventions these road-maps by the way, try ‘em. They’re not rocket science!)

I’d also like a camper van or new car & caravan- full tank of petrol please, fancy phone, high-spec. laptop, and jeans that make my bum look like a peach- don't have the audacity to post tho'!



However, they’re beginning to bite back….



re-offered: Toshiba p100 laptop manual - ***

Posted by: *******************************************************************

Thu Aug 28, 2008 12:33 pm (PDT)

Re-offered due to a vast number of time wasters, people with the inability
to read and people with a huge list of sick/disabled children who it would
be ideal for.

This is the MANUAL for the popular toshiba p100 laptop...

It might be useful to somebody..?!

To be collected in town centre *** area.

My mind is boggled!
Also, not a single one of these, (– except the “Offer,” interestingly!) follows the agreed format of “Wanted/ item / location.” Surely the mods could limit them on these grounds alone?

That said, I still think the ethos of Freecycle is basically sound, and the majority of folk well-meaning. As ever, it's that small minority that take the proverbial.

Cardew

Buttercup.x wrote: »

I was wondering if you use free cycle are you concerned about where your items are ending up? by this i mean on car boots or e bay as such.

Also how do you choose the person who gets what you have offered? is it a first come first served basis / name out of a hat or do you choose who you think is more worthy?



I personally would prefer my stuff not to be sold on but you can never tell who really needs this stuff i mean i had someone come collect a sunbed the other week and she had a lorry load of stuff which looked like she had been collecting from other people.. this really got to me and i wish i had the guts to say to her face what she intended on doing with it.

in the original email she sent to me she said it would be for her daughter who was always using hers, but when she came for it she didn't look old enough to have a daughter that should be using a sunbed

You would have to be really naive to believe that Freecycle was not a happy hunting ground for the Ebay/car boot scavangerers; modern day 'Rag and Bone' merchants but without the scruples.

Frankly they disgust me!

Ferris

Cardew wrote: »

You would have to be really naive to believe that Freecycle was not a happy hunting ground for the Ebay/car boot scavangerers; modern day 'Rag and Bone' merchants but without the scruples.

Rag and Bone merchants have scruples?!? i wonder who they managed to steal them from?

Cardew

Ferris wrote: »

Rag and Bone merchants have scruples?!? i wonder who they managed to steal them from?

I quite liked Steptoe!

At least the Rag and Bone merchants are up front in that they are collecting items to make a profit and don't use deception like the EBAY/boot sale scavengers.

frugalpam

I absolutely agree!
I recently sold my 2 year old Satnav on Ebay for £70 - if I'd given it away on Freecycle I can almost guarantee it would have been sold on.

Cardew wrote: »

I quite liked Steptoe!

At least the Rag and Bone merchants are up front in that they are collecting items to make a profit and don't use deception like the EBAY/boot sale scavengers.

emmy05

i love freecycling myself, have picked up many items as well as given some away - i dont worry about ebayers, car booters, mainly cos if they got the time to faff about putting it up for sale etc, then fine by me, if i wanted to, i could always put stuff up for sale, but the whole point about freecycling to me is just getting rid of something i dont want, and quickly. Another thing that annoys me when putting things up for sale is the fact that it might well take a few buyers to come around and look before the items gone, adding up to a waste of time really - at least with freecycling, its more than likely guaranteed to go straight away.
i do happen to answer some wants sometimes cos at least i know theyre definately wanted and needed, but again that would depend on how their post is worded tbh.

JimmyTheWig

emmy05 wrote: »

i dont worry about ebayers, car booters, mainly cos if they got the time to faff about putting it up for sale etc, then fine by me, if i wanted to, i could always put stuff up for sale, but the whole point about freecycling to me is just getting rid of something i dont want, and quickly.

A good point. You don't make much out of selling on eBay. Really it just pays for your time, not the goods you have to sell.

stilernin

Not sure what the mods will think of this, but it made me laugh............... No doubt offers from other Freecycle groups will be considered!


[toon] WANTED: N.U.F.C. Manager (again) (Toon)

A new manager for a football club in dire straits again needed asap...
Person should be aware of previous managers and why they left Sid James
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Perks of the job will be a free seat at the Stadium of Light during the
SAFC NUFC derby.......