Buying a lost disc

[ehillis]

So this is similar to the info blacked out thread, but I think it's different enough. How do you feel about buying a disc that was lost but still has a phone number on it?

I think it probably depends on context. The Berkeley Marina course (CA) is right next to a large, cold, deep body of water that a lot of discs end up in. There are guys that go down there and haul up a bunch of discs and try to sell them (not obnoxiously or anything). Obviously a bunch of these discs have phone numbers on them.

My thought is that the person who threw it knew exactly where it ended up and decided not to go get it, so it's probably okay to buy a disc even with a number on it, rewarding the guys who were willing to get them and recycle them. Thoughts?

 

[mashnut]

I think those divers ought to give the people with their numbers on their discs the first chance to buy their discs back for some reasonable amount. If they're going to the trouble of going deep into water hazards, I don't have an issue with expecting some level of reimbursement for their time and effort, I just think it would be more in the spirit of the game to at least offer them to their owners first.

 

[Huk Finn]

Check this out. There are 3 amigos that run that hustle. It used to be a different guy, I know this course, it's 25mins from me.
Now one guy sits on the shore and has discs for sale, his 2 other compadres are out in canoes trying to get discs with all sorts of tools etc...

Times are tough, you gotta get your paper right?

Anyway, at the weekly in San Leandro this guy comes up to me and is like "yo, man i got your Champion Wraith I found it in Berkeley!"

Wow!

He told me he was out there playing a round and while walking through the trees he came upon a stack of about 15-20 discs stashed away. He flipped through them and recognized a lot of the names.
He snatched all of them up and gave me mine back, and was calling on the others.

Those dudes sell em 5 for $20

 

[Omega SuperSloth]

thats kind of a conundrum , i think it would be cooler to call the number and offer the owner to buy it back first and i think from what your saying about the severity of that hazard and the unlikelyness of someone ever getting their disc back or even looking for it, a reward should be paid.

But for the diver to be able to claim ownership it would have to be obvious the disc was abandoned(if the disc he pulled out was still clean and had contact info, it would not meet the requirements of being abadoned) so if he called and required a finders fee it would be kinda like "blackmail" and would be illegal to do so.

If i was him i would have a sign on a lost and found asking for a less than sell price donations for found numbered discs, and put anyone who didnt donate on a " your next found disc goes back in the water list", just dont tell them that.

 

[Ewb46]

We have a similar deal here in Spokane. You can throw a disc in the river pretty easily on a few holes. A group of kids go out and dive for them about once a week in the summer. Most people like myself just assume the disc is gone. If you walk away from the disc then chalk it up to luck if you get it back number or not.

 

[Sp00ks]

I have mixed feelings about this. If I throw a disk in the water and I'm unwilling to go wade out there to get it, I figure it is lost. However, if found on dry land in the brush or wherever, I will call the number to return the disk and expect the same respect.

I had a guy call me recently stating he found my green cyclone. I haven't had that disk since somewhere between 96-98. The course he found it on, I have never played. He said it was pretty beat up and I told him to keep it.

 

[DannyM]

We have a water course in Charleston <Trophy Lakes>, that you have MANY chances to lose a disc in the water. They have divers that go out, and get them. If you have your name/number they will call you. It's like $3 to get it back, mostly to cover the expense for the divers. If you decide you don't want it back, they put it in a bin for people to buy as used discs for like $5 a disc. I feel this is more than fair.

 

[MrFixIt]

I agree w/ mashnut and omega, the original owner, IMO, has 1st dibs.

On the other hand, DannyM brings up a valid point.

If I find a disc w/ name and #, I call, period.
If no info, I post on the local club website.
After that, I either sell it, or, give it to a newer player.

 

[solomon.trenton]

I think those divers ought to give the people with their numbers on their discs the first chance to buy their discs back for some reasonable amount. If they're going to the trouble of going deep into water hazards, I don't have an issue with expecting some level of reimbursement for their time and effort, I just think it would be more in the spirit of the game to at least offer them to their owners first.

there is a guy that dives my local course and charges between 2-5 bucks depending on plastic. but he always calls the numbers on the backs first. but he doesnt mail them

 

[jkdisc]

i recently threw a dx valk into water, this water it waist deep but the mud is very deep. it was my first disc i lost so i went in for it with a few friends for help. we could not find it but we did find 30 others, most with no numbers. this water has moccasins and cotton mouths in it, so it was scary. so my question is... should i ask for a finders fee because of the risk we took to get these?

 

[80playedin10states]

thats kind of a conundrum , i think it would be cooler to call the number and offer the owner to buy it back first and i think from what your saying about the severity of that hazard and the unlikelyness of someone ever getting their disc back or even looking for it, a reward should be paid.

But for the diver to be able to claim ownership it would have to be obvious the disc was abandoned(if the disc he pulled out was still clean and had contact info, it would not meet the requirements of being abadoned) so if he called and required a finders fee it would be kinda like "blackmail" and would be illegal to do so.

If i was him i would have a sign on a lost and found asking for a less than sell price donations for found numbered discs, and put anyone who didnt donate on a " your next found disc goes back in the water list", just dont tell them that.

more ramblings that make no sense..blackmail? illegal? STUPIDITY

 

[80playedin10states]

i recently threw a dx valk into water, this water it waist deep but the mud is very deep. it was my first disc i lost so i went in for it with a few friends for help. we could not find it but we did find 30 others, most with no numbers. this water has moccasins and cotton mouths in it, so it was scary. so my question is... should i ask for a finders fee because of the risk we took to get these?

a moccasin is a cottonmouth..if you want to be a douche, you ask for money..

 

[jkdisc]

sorry, moccasin and copperheads, i dont wanna be a douche

 

[80playedin10states]

sorry, moccasin and copperheads, i dont wanna be a douche

it is a big game people play...but you will be a douche if you run around asking for money...most that lose plastic realize they may never get it back and most i deal with will offer something other than money for your time and effort..i personally go thru hundreds of discs every year and call every one(if there is a number). most say to keep it, but it feels good to get someone's "baby" back to them..imagine having a disc for years and losing it, only to see someone throwing it a week later..imo, it is not a question of legality, just doing what is right

 

[jkdisc]

i just wonder if they left it because of the snakes. like i said only a few had numbers most just had initials or some kinda mark.

 

[DiscJunkie]

i recently threw a dx valk into water, this water it waist deep but the mud is very deep. it was my first disc i lost so i went in for it with a few friends for help. we could not find it but we did find 30 others, most with no numbers. this water has moccasins and cotton mouths in it, so it was scary. so my question is... should i ask for a finders fee because of the risk we took to get these?

No, I don't think you're a douchebag if you ask for money. You'd be a douchebag if you asked for a lot of money.
I'm conflicted about this, but I've settled into this opinion:

If the disc goes in the water, and they don't go in after it, then it's abandoned (regardless of any "legal" definitions). If you go in after it (with all the attending dangers and discomfort) and find it, it's yours. If you are very considerate and call, they should offer some money (a couple of doollars maybe) in consideration for your efforts. If they don't offer a little money, they're the douchebag.

I've been the beneficiary of several found discs and I have called to return discs. So I think it's the thing to do if you find it on the course.
If you find it in while in the water, it's a diffferent story.
Just one opinion among many.

 

[jkdisc]

thanks thats all im askin for. i think i found their disc because i went where they would not (and it sucked!) im not tryin to get rich, i just hope there is a reward for the risk i took.

 

[Disc Golf Cowboy]

thanks thats all im askin for. i think i found their disc because i went where they would not (and it sucked!) im not tryin to get rich, i just hope there is a reward for the risk i took.

But you went in there looking for YOUR disc not theirs. You were taking the risk to get YOUR disc back and came across theirs in the search.
Damn guys just make a call, We all know it's the right thing to do. You must know or you wouldn't be asking for someone to back you for not calling.

 

[jkdisc]

hey i didnt say i wasnt calling, i am. i was just asking for thoughts on risk and reward.

 

[tmahan]

I couldn't in good concience ask for money in return.