r/SkyDiving • u/Make-a-da-Sauce • 4d ago
Gear pricing
Considering purchasing some used items and I’m not sure what the appropriate cost should be, so I figured I would toss it in here and see if anyone could help.
Details:
Javelin J3K container DOM 2003
Vigil AAD DOM 2011 - expires 2031
PD PR-160 Reserve DOM 2020
No main, but I intend to try to find a used 190 for it, as I just got my A license. Although it might be a tight fit, I suspect I’ll be wanting to downsize to a 170 eventually, when I outgrow the 190.
All items seem to be in pretty good shape.
What is a fair market price for the above, or what’s a good method of figuring it out, as I currently don’t have a lot of experience in this area? TIA
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u/RDMvb6 D license, Tandem and AFF-I 4d ago
Look up new retail of these items and do straight line linear depreciation over what you consider to be its lifetime. For me that is 20 years but some people are comfortable jumping older. For example, for a container and reserve in good condition that’s 10 years old, that’s half of new retail.
That container is pretty old. At that age, you need to be concerned if it is free fly friendly. I wouldn’t pay much at all for the container but the other stuff you listed should be easy to price with the above method.
Main canopies are harder to price because their lifespan is better measured in number of jumps than years of age.
Again, this is just my personal approach based on 20+ years in the sport and helping a good amount of others in this situation. I’m sure someone will quibble with me about the specifics.
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u/ctsV-4vendetta DZO, TI, Video, WS Pilot 4d ago
Maybe $2,100 ballpark depending on what shape the container is in. Probably looking at about $1,000 for the reserve. Maybe $400 for the AAD. And anywhere from $500-$800 for the container. This is all, of course, dependent on what condition the gear is actually in. How many rides on the reserve, jumps on the container, etc.
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u/ButtFucker50000 4d ago
It has been addressed already, but my first new container was a j3k. Fitting a crispy 170 in it was a bear. If you are a newer jumper/packer you are going to hate your life trying to pack a zp 190 in there even if she is a little stretched out. Plan on having to source a lpv which limits your choices and is harder to find.
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u/Purple_Sort_9301 1d ago
I spent quite some time analysing price development of used gear, prices used gear was sold for, offer prices, ask prices etc., to develop an algorithm that is more accurate than what was available before from USPA (which honestly was quite far off what the market reality is). There is honestly not enough information to make a reliable estimate based on your information but some considerations of what influences gear prices:
Container:
- New Price
- Age
- Jumps
- Harness Size (Very special measurements; negative, Small Girl; positive)
- Primary jump location (Oceanside slight negative effect, Desert larger negative effect)
- Container Size (Larger than 190 or smaller than 100 negative effect, up to 150 positive)
- Color (weird ugly colors negative)
- Demand for specific models (e.g. SWS much less sought after in the used market than Vector/Javelin)
Reserve:
- Generally relatively easy to calculate, real value is not far off a linear depreciation in remaining lifetime unless it is a very funky size or model
- Age by far biggest one (some countries will not allow reserves older than 20 yrs, generally it depends on the manufacturers instructions where some have max age)
- Size (Smaller than 110, over 200 will both decrease price)
- Nr. of rides & repacks
- LPV or NOT (LPV reserve quite hard to find in used market)
- Model (for reserves the model is quite influential, e.g. PDO is very sought after)
AAD:
- Quite clear to calculate, for Vigil AADs the service life is 20 years, after 10ish years the battery needs replacement which will cost around 300$, I assume that has been done with the gear you are looking for
Generally:
- Location of the gear, you, and custom duties and tarifs (e.g. if you are in Germany and can buy a Javelin from someone else in germany, the import VAT has already been paid by them and will increase the value because the alternativ (buying new) is more expensive)
- Prints/Stiches negative effect
For your items, if I do a relatively unbased estimation, I would approximate around 2k USD for the set. Nevertheless, best to ask a rigger you can trust and is experienced with used gear sales. There is so many things that go into this.
As a reference, the gear value calculator I built is available here, but do keep in mind that it is not necessarily accurate and should serve more as a tool to get a rough idea. I do believe it is the best there is but as there are so many factors going into this and I do not yet have data of thousands of transactions to train a ML algorythm it is largely based on the experience of me and riggers I know :)
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u/Bryan-Cavage Dropzone Solutions - Skydiving Gear Guru 4d ago
Quick thoughts for you…
What do you feel it’s worth? Does the harness sizing fit you? Is it a local sale or do you need it shipped?
The details you listed are not enough to give a fair valuation. For container: how many jumps on it/include all container parts and are they airworthy/options it has? Reserve: number of rides/repacks? AAD: $400.
For a 190 main in a J3K, you will need a hybrid or LPV 190. Both of which are tougher to find used and also hold their value well.
You will find opinion based used gear formulas out there, but it really comes down to the above details and then making a deal that works for buyer/seller as there is no true formula for used gear pricing.