I recently listed a dead V1 and a dead V3, clearly mentioning their condition. They both sold within the hour, even though they were listed at 12 am! Can't expect sanity in such a market.

Repo Man11 wrote on 2025-02-16, 20:38:

There was a local Craigslist ad for a Voodoo 3 where the seller said it was "Untested." I sent him a message saying that I was interested, and I would be willing to bring over a PC that it could be installed in so I could test it, as I wasn't willing to pay what he was asking if it didn't work, but I would be fine with his asking price if it did work. He never responded.

I wouldn't want strangers coming to my house either and certainly wouldn't want them anywhere near my workshop. I wouldn't want buyers banging on my door demanding a refund when they mess something up or decide it's not the item they wanted. Some people are batshit insane.

kixs wrote on 2025-02-16, 11:58:

This can be true for anything sold online. Buy from a reputable seller. Everything else could be a gamble.

Same. Impulse buying stuff usually ends up in disaster and the 3dfx logo causes people to bid without inspecting the card first. I never had a problem with my usual sellers because they always sell tested stuff and post a million high-res pictures. I can view the test results and 3D scores of graphics cards. It comes with a higher price tag though.
The problem starts when I'm bidding on untested stuff from dumpster divers and house cleaners who know nothing about computers and manhandle everything or worse, start plugging in hardware to see if it does anything.

StriderTR wrote on 2025-02-16, 23:24:

Repo Man11 wrote on 2025-02-16, 21:47:

My take was that he didn't want to test it - he wanted to be able to sell it as is for the price he was asking, and if I tested it and it was in fact either non working, or not fully functional, then I would want a discount. From his perspective he was better off waiting for someone who would be wiling to take the chance, and if it in fact did not work they would have no recourse. I was better off for not being willing to take that chance. He eventually stopped relisting it, so I guess he finally found someone who was willing to roll the dice. There is also a better than zero chance that he did know the condition of the card and knew that being honest was not in his best financial interests. Caveat emptor.

Yeah, I agree. Sounds like if he found out it had issues (or already knew/suspected), he'd lose his asking price.

If that had been me, I would have taken you up on your offer. In fact, I probably would have asked if you had stuff you may want to trade if you were a local. I may have assumed you were a fellow "retro junkie". I've done that before. 😜

IMO if he had been a good faith seller he would have replied and we could have worked something out. Twice now I've contacted Craigslist sellers who lived farther away than it was worth to drive (gasoline, bridge tolls etc.) and we established enough trust so that I paid them and they shipped the part to me. Still a roll of the dice, but communication is key.

I would never sell a component as "untested." I test everything I sell, and when possible (motherboards, video cards) I provide screen shots that prove it was working. I have a Slot A CPU that I considered selling, but I have no idea if it works and I have no way of testing it, so I just keep it in the stash.

Repo Man11 wrote on 2025-02-17, 08:58:

IMO if he had been a good faith seller he would have replied and we could have worked something out. Twice now I've contacted Craigslist sellers who lived farther away than it was worth to drive (gasoline, bridge tolls etc.) and we established enough trust so that I paid them and they shipped the part to me. Still a roll of the dice, but communication is key.

I would never sell a component as "untested." I test everything I sell, and when possible (motherboards, video cards) I provide screen shots that prove it was working. I have a Slot A CPU that I considered selling, but I have no idea if it works and I have no way of testing it, so I just keep it in the stash.

Yep, that sums up how I do it as well. I also won't sell "untested", but I have sold "for parts not working" before, along with details on what I know or tried, and at a very low price.

Locally, I run a few Craigslist ads looking for parts, but I've run into the same issues. Only found one guy so far who was open and trustworthy, he's where I got my recent parts haul from.

Still, I do it all in the hopes of finding parts I can actually use. 😀

I'm not convinced that 3dfx hardware is somehow more fragile or prone to failure than anything else. I think it's just the market conditions and cult like status it has causing more broken cards to be sold

I'd be thrilled to get my hands on a Voodoo 1, or even a 2, working or not. Would love one in my DOS rig.

I had a V1, V2, and 2 V3's many years ago. Sold them all off for like $10 each. Silly me. 🤣

I'll find one eventually. 😀

maxtherabbit wrote on 2025-02-17, 19:03:

I'm not convinced that 3dfx hardware is somehow more fragile or prone to failure than anything else. I think it's just the market conditions and cult like status it has causing more broken cards to be sold

Wouldn't make a big difference from the perspective of a buyer. If the 3dfx that're available on the market are less reliable then that's the outlook. Not reflected in the price though, and they're still sold as tested and working.

I'm sure 3dfx knew when they came out with the original Voodoo that they could improve on it quickly and that it would be obsolete soon. No point upping the price for longevity at that point, and they don't seem to have. I think at the least manufacturers who weren't solely chasing the gaming market would've had their eye more on durability.