ebony

I need the boards help! I am looking for a used longarm and found one on Craigslist but.........
a 24" Nolting longarm on a 12 foot table about 10 years old. I have conversed with the seller through e-mail sending and receiving several bits of information. My concern is this--several times I have asked for the serial number--the seller will not give it to me.??? Would you be concerned? They are asking $4,000 in cash. What do you think?

thanks

suern3

I honestly don't use a long arm so no info on that, but if I would be very suspicious of a seller who won't give you the serial number. I can't think of any legitimate reason for that. I would leave that one alone.

midwifehc

It might be that the serial number is under the machine head, or in an otherwise inaccessible location which would require the machine removed from the table to find. That's a 2 person job.
I'm not sure why you need the serial number at this point. I recently bought a used APQS millennium, and spoke with the company directly prior to purchase-all I needed was the sellers name and they looked her up in their records and gave me all the information on the machine they had.

ube quilting

The serial# is right on the side of the machine. Weird not to give it to you. The Nolting Company is great and make wonderful hardworking machines. I own a pro 24 w/ 12' table. I would contact Noting and see what used machines they have right now. It is a big investment and the company will back the machine up and take good care of you.

I would suggest the old adage If it sounds to good to be true and if in doubt. If the seller seems reluctant to answer questions.......

I don't like the idea of cash either.

Hope you find a machine to love.
peace

Prism99

I don't know about this seller, but I sometimes have difficulty seeing serial numbers well enough to write them down. Either I have to bend at an awkward angle or the light isn't good enough for my aging eyes. I am thinking there might be a legitimate reason why they are not sending you the serial # and they may not want to admit why.

Is there a specific reason why you need the serial #? I cannot imagine anyone stealing a longarm setup! I would perhaps call Nolting, explain the situation, and see if they can verify the information you have received so far.

Peckish

What does the seller say when you ask for the serial number? Are they not replying? Flat out refusing? Claiming they don't know where it's located?

You could tell them straight up that without a serial number, you're not interested.

Just curious - what does the serial number tell you, anyway? It would be pretty difficult to steal a longarm, they're quite heavy and awkward.

Another thing - if you're nervous about the cash, insist on using an escrow company.

Prism99

I forgot to add that it seems more important to me to try out the machine and make sure it is working properly. Can you do that? This seems more important to me than getting the serial # in advance, especially since when trying it out you could copy down the serial # yourself.

So I guess my short answer is that, in the absence of additional information, no, it wouldn't bother me.

Genden

I would not go to try out the machine alone and I wouldn't take cash with me. I see a red flag. If you are still interested, take someone with you to look at the machine and try it out. You can evaluate the situation with the safety of someone with you. Often sellers request cash because they don't trust a check and that is understandable.
i may be unnecessarily suspicious, but if they don't actually have a machine but are only interested in taking your cash when you get there, that may be the reason they don't give you a serial number. It pays to be cautious when answering Craig's List ads.

patski

BEWARE, if it not local forget it, If it is get someone to go with you to look at it. Also check at local dealers, I paid 7200 for my long arm and it was a demo model. Great machine and 12 foot table. The used ones were even less

Prism99

By cash, I am assuming they would take a cashier's check (bank check)? These are made out to the specific seller, but you typically would not go to the bank to get a cashier's check until after you had tried out the machine and made a verbal agreement with the seller. I personally would never bring $4,000 in cash anywhere. My assumption was that "$4,000 in cash" simply means they do not want to take a personal check.