Used Gym Equipment
Done properly, hunting for used gym equipment can save you many hundreds of dollars on gym equipment that functions like new. Done incorrectly, you could end up paying for something you could have gotten new for just a bit extra, plus a warranty. There are many places to look for used gym equipment, and this article will give you a rundown of the best places and ways to purchase machines.
Local advertisements
You can’t beat seeing equipment in person and getting a feel for it. It’s not uncommon for people to purchase gym equipment and find it’s not exactly what they had in mind or not perfectly comfortable for them to use.
People are constantly taking up fitness and purchasing equipment brand new, only to decide it’s not for them and sell the equipment at massively reduced prices. Keep a look out in your local newspaper or store windows and you’ll be surprised what turns up.
Pawn shops
Another great way to find used gym equipment going for way below new prices, plus the benefit of seeing and trying it out in person. Plus, with pawn shops you can often get a guarantee on the equipment; you normally won’t with a personal sale.
eBay
The world’s largest auction site is one of the best ways to find used gym equipment. Often, if the equipment is being sold by an individual, they may insist on collection which can put people off. Sometimes, however, it’s to your advantage as people are often willing to arrange for a courier if you agree to pay the higher costs, and people are often receptive when you send them a message requesting this.
If the seller of an item is close enough by, and allows a cash payment and wants collection, you also have the advantage of being able to check the equipment out in person, so if it’s not up to spec you can even maybe haggle the price down or refuse to pay – though when you win an item on eBay you are obliged to complete the sale, and it may result in negative feedback or jeopardize your account if you don’t.
Although you can’t check the equipment out on eBay yourself in person, you can always ask the seller any questions you have and they are usually very keen to help.
If you find a piece of used gym equipment on eBay and aren’t quite sure how it is ‘in person’ then why not check out your local gym or fitness store which may have similar or identical pieces of equipment you can try. You will then know precisely, or have a much better idea, of how the equipment really is and whether you want to bid/buy it or not.
Finally, do plenty of research by reading equipment reviews on various sites as this will help to give you a less biased view of how the equipment functions.
Web store returns / reconditioned equipment
Believe it or not, many web stores which deal only in new equipment actually sell equipment that is either reconditioned or returned, hence used a little, but almost as good as new. A top tip is to build up a list of the stores which do this, and check them regularly. You can sometimes get lucky by seeing something you’ve always wanted at a greatly reduced price simply because somebody decided they wanted a refund, returned the equipment and the store now wishes to re-sell it but it’s lost it’s ‘new’ premium.