OT:what would you do, re: purchase

I notice that all the replies you've received fall into one of two categories: 1) You owe the other guy nothing, period, or 2) You owe him nothing but you might consider doing something to make it a modified win/win situation rather than the win/lose situation it is now.

Since you did nothing wrong, I'm inclined to agree with those who suggest that you mainly think about how whatever you decide will make you feel in the long run.

You might consider the Golden Rule in this incident, what outcome you'd consider fair if the situation were reversed. You wouldn't expect a stranger to do you a favor that would cause him to take a loss, but you'd probably think highly of him if he came up with a fair way to get some balance back into a situation that you lost out on because of your (apparently mistaken) reliance on a third party.

If your description of the situation was that the other guy had come to you to say that the seller had let him down, that he knew you got the equipment fair and square but wondered if there was a way to work it out so that he didn't have to lose out completely, it wouldn't make him sound so bad. I can imagine myself in this guy's position---stating my disappointment, explaining why I felt that my actions had not been careless, making it clear that the other person had no responsibility to me but wondering whether he'd sell me a piece of equipment at a fair price. If he then told his friends that I had come to him with a sob story and asked him to do me a big favor, there's no doubt how that language would color the advice his friends gave him.

Only you are in a position to say whether this guy is a disappointed regular person, or a whiner and a blamer and a butthead, and only you can do anything to influence the outcome that will leave you with the memory of how the situation was resolved. It's good that this isn't a situation that has the potential to make or break you financially, so you really only have to be concerned with how you're going to feel about it in the future.

Good luck with it, Stan

As Rocky says, Money talks, BS walks, so true.

Offer if for sale at whatever you intended to ask for it. If he wants it, he will buy it. No different than Ebay, just that it is in person rather than over the internet.

Charles

I once was at a auction and they were within one item of a unit I realy wanted when the pager went off, auto accident. I did holler one bid before I got out of range, just could not wait for another. After returning to the sale I was offered by three different men a chance to purchase their items at their cost. Seems they seen me looking over the items in detail prior to the sale, I only knew one of the guys, the other two are my good friends now. Word had spread that I was a decent guy in a bad situation, and everyone had heard the pager go off in the small croud. That was four or five years ago, now if I'm at a auction and they bid on a item I stop. I now belong to a nice family of auction goers, and we can kind of sence if one of us wants a unit, the rest of us give them a break. I also always give in to the other bidder if the ring man and auctioneer get locked in on two different bidders for the same money. I sure sence that in my small comunity that the good words travel almost as fast as the bad words. If I EVER purchase a item at a auction and find out later that someone had a misfortune / wrong understanding, or the auctioneer made a error, and even a family / good friend related deal. I go right to the indavidual and offer the item at no mark up REGARDLESS of a real good deal or not. This is usualy related to a lack of going to sales, or a old age factor. We have perhaps the best well organized auction house in our parts, you can guess three hrs in advance within five munites when any item will sell. But some folks just don't understand auctions. Sometimes inbreeding has to be a factor perhaps.

I have had numerous chances to skin a widow of her goods / junk by giving her what she asked, thus trusting me. Trust is a big deal in the midwest. Those situations could tempt me to be a dishonest person. That would probably cost more in lost sleep, and could lead to not knowing right from wrong.

Your guy is no doubt a pretty big butt head to do anything more than point out a honest mistake or his poor decisions to not do a follow up. But then again it could have been no fault of his own. Will this getting rid of one item make or break you? Or will it matter twenty years from now? Compared to your self satisfaction of being the bigger man?

Darn it, I have been trying to learn this lesson for 20 years, and sometimes I forget. I guess that is the trouble with being young, I hope it dosent take another 20.

I have seen great progress when one side is generous, but not a pushover.

Don't worry about it - I agree with Charles, guy just sounds like a whiner.