GOOD Craigslist stories?

Mustion

Senior Member
There are more than enough threads on here complaining about Craigslist, which makes sense as people are more likely to share a bad experience than a good one (see: any restaurant review on yelp). And certainly CL has its share of weirdos for sure! But how about those feel-good stories? That amazing kit you found in an attic for a steal, that great band you found and have been in for years now, or just some cool/interesting drum people you've met?

I say CL still has a lot to offer...
 
I have only good CL stories. My current band line up is from a CL ad. Not every situation works out but you can't expect it to. I have met a lot of great people and seen a lot of talent.
 
We have a lot of drummers looking for gigs on CL. I responded to one guy one time, and we chatted a little bit. I'm pretty sure once he found out I was over the age of 25, he stopped talking to me.
 
Joined a band eight years ago by answering a CL ad. It was apparently a decent fit.

Have picked up many good buys through CL as well, such as a pair of K/Z hats plus a few cymbal stands ($100), a 5x12 snare with stand ($100), and a 22" AAX Omni ($150). I've also sold hundreds of dollars worth of gear through CL - it's key to have a super detailed description and good pictures.
 
I responded to one guy one time, and we chatted a little bit. I'm pretty sure once he found out I was over the age of 25, he stopped talking to me.

Yeah, it's pretty dispiriting looking at the musicians section and seeing all those age restrictions. I mean, I get it, a bunch of 21 year olds in a punk band don't want a 45 year old bassist or whatever (and vice versa) but it almost seems like if you're over 30 you're only eligible for bar/wedding bands. Maybe we need our own site for "mature" musicians? The ourtime to craigslist's okcupid?
 
I answered an ad for a guitarist looking for a drummer 7 years ago. To this day we are in still in a band, and I was the best man at his wedding last year.

Other than that I have bought and sold thousands of dollars worth of gear and have had very few nagative interactions.
 
Saw an ad for a Yamaha Power V Special 5-piece kit for $100—guy was moving soon, hadn't played them in years, and just wanted to get rid of them. They were in decent shape but were missing the rack tom holders, so he knocked a few bucks off the price. Brought 'em home and they sounded great. A few weeks later, he contacted me and said as he was doing his final cleaning, he'd found another tom in storage and did I want it? So my 5-piece became a 6-piece for the same price.
 
I've only done three deals on CL, once when I sold a Tacoma EM9 guitar, once when I bought my PDP CX kit, and once when I bought a cheap bass amp for my grandson. I've seen some things that I might be interested in, but many are from parts of town that I wouldn't go to without an armed escort; or would have to drive a couple of hours to get to. We seem to have constant news stories of CL robberies, kidnappings, etc.

I haven't found a decent listing for musicians on CL in this area. I've had much better luck with Bandmix for that.
 
One thing I will say about the safety issues around Craigslist:

I have a feeling that niche markets like ours aren't as ripe for that kind of thing. I mean sure there's could be a few wacko drummers out there but I would think that if one's intent is robbery, they cast a wider net and use something more commonplace as the bait; i.e. a laptop, iPhone, whatever. Knock on wood, but that's my assumption at least...
 
I recently bought a complete 5-piece Sonor kit from CL with hardware, cymbals, and some extras, all for $700. (Seller was moving, bought an electric kit, and had to dump his acoustic stuff quick.) Not super high-end but everything was in good shape, well-cared for, and the deal was super easy to negotiate and close. I wanted to add a double-bass pedal, and I found a DW 9002 on CL in great shape for $300. So there are two wins right there.



Aside from that, I've had good luck with buying and selling things on craiglist like bikes and motorcycles, and I got a killer deal on a Sprinter camper van from outside the area.


You sometimes need to deal with flakes and scammer but you figure out how to protect yourself.
 
I got my full birch custom tama from a craigslist ad that seemed to good to be true. I ended up driving into the city to check it out, get there and it looks great, setup is weird and dude didn't really seem to have played them at all... Said they were for music production and they started using programmed beats which made sense. I paid the very low $400 cash and started taking stuff down to the car. He had a very greedy/eager look as he took the money; and as I said, this was practically steal. He also pointed out a stack of electronics and some other music production gear, asked if I was interested, but I was way stretching even to give the 400.

By my second trip up the stairs to get the next load, I had lost track of the guy... He lived there, knew I was going in and out and had gone totally missing!

Well, he re-appeared just as I was getting the last bit of stuff. He was nodding off as he stood in front of me and could no longer speak properly.

Then it hit me. This nice apartment was seeming kinda sparse now that I thought about it. Hookups for a TV on the wall, but no TV, stereo and other stuff stacked and obviously recently disconnected from wires still going to cable boxes. He mentioned living there for 2 years but it looked like he just moved in or was starting to move out.

Dude was in the beginning/early stages of losing his life to probably heroin. He was selling his stuff at stupid prices and immediately injecting the proceeds; best I could tell.

I felt a little torn, and he was passed out when I left, locked the door behind me and shook my head. I could actually use these drums, and if I didn't "take advantage" of the situation someone else would. It was basically too late to change my mind anyway, and he was literally unconscious.
 
Craigslist is my friend - I've bought a whole slew of really good stuff from various craigslist deals.

Let's see... I got my Mesa/Boogie Mark IV combo for 1100 nine years ago or so. Maybe not a steal, but it's been really good to me in the whole time I've had it.

I once bought a DW kit for 900 bucks, then sold it for 1200, and kept the hardware and the snare that came with it. I later traded the snare for a COB Supraphonic.

I got a 1985 Marshall 4x12 cab for 400 bucks on my way home from the mountains a few months ago - two G12T-75s and two Greenbacks, and has that funky fading grillcloth. Very cool, sounds incredible.

I got a 6.5x13 DW Craviotto snare for 340 bucks when I lived in Boston. Had to drive an hour and change each way, but it's the best 13" snare I've ever played.

And back at the beginning of the year I picked up a set of Ludwig Standards for 400 bucks, which I've since cleaned up. 12/13/14/16/22. Blue strata looks great, the 14" floor tom is super rare, and those drums have "that" Ludwig sound in spades.

And most recently, I went through West Virginia on my way home from Pennsylvania, and picked up a gold mine of gear for a thousand bucks, including a 1981 stop sign badge Gretsch kit 24/14/16/18 with a Gold Series bell brass snare, a couple cheapo guitars, a stack of records, and a set of Pearl Export shells. Those Gretsch drums sound absolutely incredible.

It's coming to the point where I probably need to get rid of some gear, but for the life of me I don't know what I'd let go of. Maybe I should just... stop... buying more stuff.
 
Ok here’s a positive one. I’ve only been taking drum lessons for 6 months but decided to step out of my comfort zone and try to join a band. I’ve jammed with a friend before, but he was always busy with work so I decided to check out Craigslist. Someone posted an ad looking for musicians to jam and have fun - no stress. I responded (only drummer who did, I think) as did a few guitarists. I invited over these complete strangers to my house, and tonight we jammed for 90 minutes and had a great time. So great that we’re making plans to do it again. Couldn’t be happier. So I’m not sure but...I think I’m in a band? ☺️
 
No too long after signing with Yamaha, 7 years ago, I listed one of my custom kits from the company I was previously signed with on Craigslist. I got a reply from a drum tech I know, and he offered a trade instead of cash.

He offered a 4pc Custom kit from Spaun, or 5pc Yamaha Recording Custom from the late 80's in a super rare finish, with a rare tom configuration. I had always lusted after a set of RC's. I agreed to the trade, loaded up my kit and drove it over to the guys house that night. This kit was 25 years old and still had the factory heads on it! Only a couple small scratches that aren't really noticeable.

I've since use that RC kit on almost every recording session I've done, and play it every day in my private studio.
 
Short version:

1964 Ludwig Downbeat with Supraphonic (Collector grade with original heads), all hardware, and full set of 60's Zildjians. $300

NYC Bd of Ed 1976 6.5x14 Acrolite with factory imperial lugs. $300

Placed an ad for a lead singer. The first person who responded was a perfect fit, a ridiculous lead guitarist, and one of the most genuinely nice people I have ever met. Been with us for 6 years now.

1947 Ludwig and Ludwig Deluxe Standard snare, with very rare Art Gold hardware. $175
 
It's coming to the point where I probably need to get rid of some gear, but for the life of me I don't know what I'd let go of. Maybe I should just... stop... buying more stuff.

Well, I know a great home for those 12" and 14" Standards... just saying :)
 
after 4 emails, and photos and descriptions posted, a guy shows up to buy my Gretsch 10 inch tom mount, and then says, Oh, I'm looking for a 12 inch. Duh
 
My CL experience selling, pretty flippin ridiculous. Hard to believe people can be that flakey. Buying, got almost all my drums hardware and cymbals off there, and saved hundreds of dollars. Lots of drummers in this town.
 
I was giving away a set of dishes I no longer needed. Had them in the FREE section. Was posted about 5 minutes when I got 2 emails. One guy was coming after work, I told the other party that, and after it got late it was obvious he wasn't coming by. I told the lady about him and if he didn't call back, I would email her. she started asking the goofiest questions. The photos showed the color, I mentioned one piece was missing. No reply, I emailed her again, no reply. For Free stuff. amazing.
 
I was giving away a set of dishes I no longer needed. Had them in the FREE section. Was posted about 5 minutes when I got 2 emails. One guy was coming after work, I told the other party that, and after it got late it was obvious he wasn't coming by. I told the lady about him and if he didn't call back, I would email her. she started asking the goofiest questions. The photos showed the color, I mentioned one piece was missing. No reply, I emailed her again, no reply. For Free stuff. amazing.

I listed something for free, once: a rusty old Lodge brand Dutch Oven. I probably got 20 emails within the first ten minutes of it being up! And they were all legit, unlike when selling something...
 
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