Used Tow Bar Values

I consider the used price of an item, its age and condition. Also the supply and demand. Forty to sixty percent would be a high offer and twenty to thirty percent a low price.

I do a lot of bundling items when at a second hand sale. Just recently, wife and I bundled a list of items we were interested in and made an offer to the owner. He accepted. Included in our purchase was a nice electric bicycle which cost me zero.

I purchased a nice electric wheel chair and repaired it for a total investment of $150.00 and a friend wanted to trade me a like new 10,000 lb. Blue Ox Adventa II tow bar for it. We made an even trade and both were/are happy and both of us have enjoyed many years of service from our items. He had no use for the tow bar and I had no use for the wheel chair.

A bargain is when both the seller and the buyer are happy with the transaction.

I bought my Roadmaster Stow Master 5000 for $300. it was like new. the guy said he only used it once for a 1200mile trip. It sure looked like was never used. and came with the cables and 2 drawbars for a baseplate for a different car (no baseplate included though). For the $300 I also got an older brake system.

I agree though that if I`m only saving a couple hundred bucks over new its not worth it. I think mine new is around $600 or $700.

Just went thru this for a friends wife. He pass away and she was getting rid of the rv. My friend had damage his tow bar and he repaired it himself . Found some paper work where he order some new seals and pins but the worse part the rod he had x-rayed and it show crack no just a few but many and the main part with many cracks it self. He had taken the unit to the machine shop and had the rods straighten and had been using it for years that way. I was shock that he spent over half of what a new one cost to jerry-rig it. I took it apart and put it piece by piece in the re cycle bin. So buy have the one you are looking at x-rayed and go from there.

I'm sure there are lots of opinions on this, but for me, I wouldn't take the chance buying a used towbar. The manufacturer of mine recommends "service" every year or two if I remember correctly. If a new one cost $1k and a used one was $500, I personally couldn't justify saving $500 for something that has a lot riding behind it! For others, it's an acceptable risk.

Don't get me wrong, I buy used stuff all the time, but in my mind, some used things just aren't worth the risk. Fire Extinguishers are another thing that comes to mind!