jakc3 Report post Posted June 3, 2016 (edited) Hello! I need some help with a deal. Someone i know put me in contact with an older leatherworker who is going to retire in a couple of months and he is selling his machinery. I went to see what he's offering today and he made me a great offer. All the machines are older models but they were well taken care of. He is selling: German Fortuna leathet splitter (35cm width) German Fortuna edge skiver 3 Pfaff sewing machines (each is different but i do not know the models) All of the machinery is industrial grade ,built like a tank, he got it from factories that went bankrupt in the '80s and '90s. He is offering me all of the above with lots of spare parts and other small things like thread, needles, stitching pony, rivets, some handtools etc.. The price is 2500 eur which is somewhere around 2800 dollars. Is this a good deal? He will also put me in contact with people who know how to service these machines and with people that sell spare parts. Many thanks, Jakob Edited June 3, 2016 by jakc3 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Yetibelle Report post Posted June 3, 2016 Well that sounds like a deal 5 machines for $2800 . If you get the model numbers you can then run a quick search on e-bay to see what they typically sell for. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MADMAX22 Report post Posted June 3, 2016 4 minutes ago, Yetibelle said: If you get the model numbers you can then run a quick search on e-bay to see what they typically sell for. Or what the typical highly inflated price of sewing machines go for. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JMWendt Report post Posted June 3, 2016 When he tells you he has to send you check first and you should cash it and then send him some gift cards as compensation, you'll recognize it as a scam. Sounds too good to be true. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mikesc Report post Posted June 3, 2016 (edited) Depends entirely upon precisely what each machine is ( type and serial numbers etc )..and their condition ( how do they sew or skive etc ) ..Without that information it is simple Steel scrap in Europe goes for 5 cts of a Euro per kg..cast Iron scrap in Europe goes for 15 cts of a Euro per Kilo.. Mixed scrap ( unsorted machines without all the non ferrous parts taken off ) goes for 5 cts to 10 cts per kilo..( Yes that figure is higher than the steel price because the dealers figure that there might be something "interesting" in there* ) If it is oily ( traces of oil , like on a maintained machine count as "oily" ) the scrap price is nearer 5 cts per kilo. The copper in the windings in the motors is worth a little more as scrap , as is any bronze in the bushings.. Old thread is usually rotten or has "compressed" and is worthless, old needles are usually rusty and also worthless.. Railway track ( depending on where it is from ) for example has higher levels of manganese and some other things in there..any chromium fittings , or nickel fitting , or tin etc can move the price above the base scrap rate for steel ..but not by too much.. Some counties figures are higher or lower, like most "commodities" the price of a kilo of anything, depends on where it is and what quality it is and how scarce it is where the buyer is ..leather is like that too..as are 501s :) Edited June 3, 2016 by mikesc Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RockyAussie Report post Posted June 4, 2016 Sounds to me like the deal of a lifetime and he must like you a lot. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jakc3 Report post Posted June 4, 2016 Well I went and saw the machines personally. The splitter looks in mint condition and it works perfectly well too. The sewing machines look like they have been through a lot but they work well. Anyhow at 100 eur per sewing machine I can afford to have it serviced if anything is wrong. Also the man offered to teach me how to use the machines before selling them. He looks trustworthy so I will most likely go through with the deal. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RockyAussie Report post Posted June 4, 2016 You are very fortunate I believe. Please think to pay him the respect of listing well. As I said before he must like you a lot. May I ask from which country you are? Here in Australia I would think without any training we would be looking at a value of $15,000 to$20,000au. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jakc3 Report post Posted June 4, 2016 I am from Slovenia. We had a few very good tanneries and lots of good companies producing leather products, most of which went bankrupt at the end of the previous century due to the bad economy, poor leadership and corrupted government. Because of this there are many machines in the hands of people who worked in those companies and got the machinery as compensation when the company closed down. Nowdays the leatherworking is almost dead here and I think that's why the price is so low. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Darren Brosowski Report post Posted June 4, 2016 Te splitter alone sells for that Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
