the shop I mentioned I a nice small antique shop that specializes in singer fw and the really old machines including treadles and handcrank. ver small and very helpful. I haven't bought many from individuals and when I have I haven't bargained (at least not yet!) but I would be more likely to pay the asking price or a bit more from someone who seems to care about the machine than someone who doesn't. I did the 'make offer' on ebay a few days ago and was surprised they accepted but the buy it now was too high for the age(wasn't vintage or collectible) and missing accessory box and accessories (I have those from broken machine). my offer with the shipping was less than half the asking buy it now price...hmm maybe I still offered too much LOL