As far as the NIB goes, sometimes you do find items that the seller has bought the inventory of a toy or hobby shop that was closing. Some of this stuff is pretty old but never opened. I actually got one older loco that was still in the factory shrink wrap.
I had a friend with a train shop. When he was ready to retire, he wanted to sell but couldn't find a buyer that could afford to buy the inventory. As my friend said, the inventory is the shop. So, he was looking to sell all the inventory in a lump sum purchase. It happens.
I have a pile of stuff I have never taken out of the box, including cars and locomotives, as well as kits, that I have on shelves that rival most of the hobby stores around here while I still am working on the new layout. Some I haven't even opened the box. I probably have more stuff than I can use now. Very soon I will make that determination as the first operating section of the layout is nearing completion. Then I will thin the herd. I doubt I would describe it as new. More likely it is not run. If I get rid of any locomotives, I will at least check to see that they run as promised, so they will have been out of the box!
Heck, you run into the same thing at hobby stores as you do on eBay. I've seen old junk priced as collectible antiques, gems priced as junk, and everything in between. If it looks wrong, don't bid. If you get junk, it is your fault. Be discriminating. I have found some stuff because the listing was wrong but I knew what it really was and could act accordingly. Same thing at train shows. Nowadays if you shop anywhere but from the catalog you better do your homework first. Even then...
Ive done my fair share of ebaying as well. and I find it a constant hit or miss deal as well as truth or dare. Ive only been on the train forum for a few months but ive been a ebayer since 2002. My general rule is not depending on the MFRP, but whats the lowest price is I can find it online, or in a store. Depending on the item,( if its still in circulation in the stores) I won't go more that 75% inc. S/H of the price that I can find it for elsewhere. Perfect Example: Amtrak Acela Set: I've seen Joe blow sellers (less then 100 feedbacks) on ebay stating there selling one Acela set NIB and retail price is $349!!! buy now for $275 and the opening bid is. $150 with a reserve! and they give you a link to Walthers website showing the price. Get real !
#1, As its been stated before in this post, Its NOT new! If there not and authorized dealer there is No warranty on the item what-so-ever. so if its electronic ( ie: train locomotives, pda's, laptops, etc.) it looks good in picture but, it does not work when U get it or brakes right afterwords , your screwed even with insurance sometimes.
#2 Research people! If you do your research, you would know U can find it online for sale @ trainworld for $179 and that is NIB w. warranty! and your guaranteed to get the item. This shows U the ebay seller is trying to price gouge people. Not thats hes false advertising but misleading big time in the going price!
#3 high a$$ reserves! most comon give away, they know there robbing people,. Real auctions hold low or NO reserves. I concider anyting with a reserve more than 1/2 the price of what I can find it for elsewhere is a sale, not an auction! Therefore not worth me bidding on it past that point.
just some tips to live by...
With that said I just won 2 Hornby MK4 coaches from and english seller for 20 english pounds total inc. s/h. ($40 USD). Not new but in mint condition.(as he described and pictures showed) and sellers feedback was 100%. I Searched english stores ( 15 of them) and each of these cars retails for about 15-18 pounds each lowest cost +S/H the the USA. So I concider that a good ebay buy.
I was tempted by a pair of SD7's and GP7, SD9's on ebay today. A check of advanced reservations show these units are coming this year towards winter. I will wait until then and get it at a discount in the Hobby shop.
Im stalking one item on ebay and the previous bidder bid twice on it meaning he bid a price, got the high bid set and then re-bid entering the maximum bid. Going to be fun stalking this guy to see what his max is.
shawnee wrote: I've done my fair share of shopping on E-Bay...enough to know the frustrations of being "sniped" on that lovely little loco I had watched for days...but I've become curious...how many of the listings are truthful.."mint in box" "factory new" "never run"...do these people really have hard-to-get, expensive locomotives just sitting around in boxes on their shelves? I dunno, but how many people can there be like that? How can you not run an engine you presumably spent over a hundred bucks on? "well, I just think I'll put this one away for a few years..."I guess me, with my silly ten loco collection (but a nice ten they are!), it's hard for me to grasp that. And it's hard for me to really tell if an engine has been run a bit (not a lot, but a bit)..and maybe it doesn't matter if the price is right, but wondering...any of the experienced MR's here have an opinion/advice on the listing and verification process on E-Bay? Are all these listings pure hype, as i presume?
I've done my fair share of shopping on E-Bay...enough to know the frustrations of being "sniped" on that lovely little loco I had watched for days...but I've become curious...how many of the listings are truthful.."mint in box" "factory new" "never run"...do these people really have hard-to-get, expensive locomotives just sitting around in boxes on their shelves? I dunno, but how many people can there be like that? How can you not run an engine you presumably spent over a hundred bucks on? "well, I just think I'll put this one away for a few years..."
I guess me, with my silly ten loco collection (but a nice ten they are!), it's hard for me to grasp that. And it's hard for me to really tell if an engine has been run a bit (not a lot, but a bit)..and maybe it doesn't matter if the price is right, but wondering...any of the experienced MR's here have an opinion/advice on the listing and verification process on E-Bay? Are all these listings pure hype, as i presume?
I've been buying items on ebay since 2004. Other than overpaying for one Athearn locomotive (yes, an FP45), I think I've had a pretty good experience from dealing there.
All of the items that I've won which were listed as NIB (new in the box) appeared to be so when I received them. I make it a habit to make certain that the seller has a 99% to 100% Feedback record or better. It's not a guarantee that things won't go wrong, but for me it's been a good rule of thumb to operate by.
I've seen models that I've wanted but grudgingly decided not to bid at all because the sellers had negative feedback records with some containing interesting, "Yuck-Town" comments that included failing to ship, item was not as described, item in poor or broken condition.
I'm all smiles as I just won an out of production P2K GP9. Though it was a "Buy it Now" price, imho, it was very reasonable since it was listed as NIB by a seller with a 100% Feedback rating.
So all is not "doom and gloom" on ebay.
"I like my Pullman Standards & Budds in Stainless Steel flavors, thank you!"
Most of my purchases have been from LHS's(even MB Klein lists things) that use ebay--obviously usually trying to move stock that's likely been sitting on their shelves for a while. I find the deals all over the place as discussed here. My P2K E8's were fairly pricey--not surprising since Life Like's last run of them in my road was in 2001. On the other hand, pretty good deal for my USRA Heavy BLI steamer since they were over produced, so it really just depends on the item. I haven't been "burned" yet, fortunately.
Jim
Last spring, summer and fall I sold off a 25 year collection of 99.9% brand new HO scale locomotive, rolling stock, structure kits and detail items on eBay to finance my move to two-rail O-scale. I had hundreds of individual items that were brand new and unassembled in their original boxes. Yes, there are people out there that buy stuff and leave it untouched in boxes on the shelf for a variety of reasons. I'm one of them.
My eBay listing items were accurate and if there was a problem with something that I knew about I noted it. The couple of times that I made an errror I made good on the item. I also packed things extremely well and charged basic USPS Priority Mail shipping charges without any fluff added in. And if the final packaged shipping charge came in less than what the winning bidder paid for shipping I refunded back the difference.
I also always made it a point to give feedback immediately after receiving payment and never, ever, held anyone's feedback 'hostage' waiting for them to leave me positive feedback first. It's just the right thing to do because once the buyer has paid me, they've satisified their obiligation.
There are honest eBay sellers out there and I consider myself one of them.
Bob - Warren, MI
I happen to have bought a lot of HO model railroad equipment in anticipation of building a-make that-ANY layout. For the past 15 years due to job relocations, lack of space or lack of a right of way agreement with my lovely wife, I'm still anticipating laying my first piece of track.
Anything that I bought new...whether I opened the box to peek or not...is still new, as in unused. This may not answer everyone's question as to why somebody would have 'NIB' locos or rolling stock, but I would guess that I might not be the only one in the model railroading world still hoping to have a place to run his/her fleet and collecting equipment as it is introduced.
Quote- On the other hand how badly do you feel when you win an auction at 25% of the retail value?
Still waiting on that one to happen. Most of the stuff I've won has been only slightly less than retail price when you factor in S&H. Some of those I couldn't find anywhere else so I didn't care. Then there's the guys that "don't no nuthin bout trains" , but they know enough to only take pics of the good side of the item so you don't see the missing/broken grab irons/railings/details on the other side. Or the fact that some 3 year old tried his hand at weathering the other side.
Saw a guy selling brand new air tools. Buy it now price-$1. S&H-$45. Same tools I can get at Wally World for $20.
There are all manner of sleazy operators on e-Bay. I recently purchased an item with an advertised shipping and handling of $30. I paid promptly by Pay-Pal, and then received an e-mail from the seller asking for an additional $15 for postage "due to the item being heavier than thought and costing more to ship."
I fell for it and sent an additional payment. When I received the item I saw that the actual postage was less than $15, so I tried contacting him by e-mail for 2 weeks with no response. I finally sent a negative feedback.
He finally answered with a very vitriolic e-mail accusing me of being the crook because my winning bid had been less than he paid for the item, and leaving negative feedback about me as the purchaser. I only buy one or two items a year from e-Bay, so I'm not concerned about his negative attitude.
My biggest complaint with e-Bay is the extremely limited space for explaining why feedback is negative -- something like 20 characters total. I wanted to give a far more detailed explanation of what had happened but couldn't.
el-capitan wrote: I don't buy from anyone who has feedback less than 99.5%.[SNIP]
I don't buy from anyone who has feedback less than 99.5%.
[SNIP]
Even THAT approach isn't a guarantee. I recently purchased an item from an eBay seller who has this level of rating and has sold MANY items. That said, the quality of the item I purchased was pure crud and was not apparent from the item photo. I emailed the seller and expressed my displeasure. He told me that I should have ASKED about the quality (gee, I'm sorry, I thought that posting a picture and describing the item was supposed to be truthful!). He went on to say that it's always eBay buyers with low feedback scores that complain. I have 100% positive feedback but only 32 transactions so explain to me why that means I'm the PROBLEM?!
Finally, the seller basically told me that if I left HIM negative feedback he would to the same to ME! Awfully nice of him to pad his feedback scores with THREATS to anyone who dares give him a bad rating. Because I'm proud of my score and KNOW that I didn't do anything wrong I reluctantly did not provide any feedback rating.
Chuck
jeffshultz wrote: Since I'm performing my side of the deal first by paying, I want to get my feedback first as well. That's going to be my new standard - and it ought to be the standard. Sellers should not be allowed to receive feedback until they have left it.
Since I'm performing my side of the deal first by paying, I want to get my feedback first as well. That's going to be my new standard - and it ought to be the standard.
Sellers should not be allowed to receive feedback until they have left it.
Exactly Jeff,,,,,If you pay for your purchase in a timely manner,, your obligation is complete...and you Deserve a good feedback.....immediately, period..
When I purchase an item, I would rather be pleased with my purchase and leave the seller a good feedback...Sometimes this just isn't the case...Before I leave any type of feedback, I will review the ad and the photos....If there is something that I missed in the pictures, that would be partially my fault...If the pictures are limited, and the ad text claims there are no defects, that is misrepresentation....I may e-mail the guy and let him know that I am not pleased.....In a case like this, I have gotten partial refunds before....Some sellers are not necessarily crooks, but just don't know that much about what they are selling....Now, lets say I don't get a reply to my e-mail...If they have not left a good feedback for my prompt payment,,I will not leave them any feedback; good or bad, ...period.....the reason being.....I don't want or need them shooting back at me with a bad feedback that I do not deserve...A crook WILL do that...That would make my rating look bad....In the event that you have received a good feedback for prompt payment, and you do leave a negative feedback,,, to protect your rating, make sure that you never do business with them again........
By the way,,, at one time , I started a "lie ing sack of crap list" of the sellers on eBay....the list got so big, it was unreal..
One tip,, If you spot a lie ing sack of crap,,, check his other items that are for sale,,,,If he has fifty items for sale,, those should become fifty items on your blacklist,,,, unless you are willing to take a gamble.
I had one major retailer try and rip me off once also... I won bid on a new train,at a good price, and never received it,,,, I called them and was told that they had never received my payment, although my money order had been cashed...I waited till the next day and called at a different time.....I got a complete different answer....The manager was in the background, he said that they were out of that train, and authorized a refund....plus ten bucks for my trouble.....So what kind of crap was this??? they sold me a trainset that they didn't even have, and then one of the workers tried to steal my money.....Needless to say, they will never deal with me again.
I like to do repeat business with sellers that I know.....Personally, I am willing to spend more when I am dealing with someone who has earned my trust...
windy as usual, BDT
Hi guys
EBay is
Buyer beware if it sounds too good to be true it probably isn't true
Also Know your product and its value I nearly got caught but did not win an Item that it was claimed was made buy a well known manufacturer I was suspicious enough to contact the manufacturer and found out they did not and never had make the item.
What I was looking at was a very nice piece I did want it, but it was not as claimed so not worth what it went for someone will not be happy
Remember what you are getting will be mostly second hand so be careful of wild claims.
regards John
They do have some strange birds on the bay. I saw an auction for a couple of Atlas driveshafts, still available on the Atlas site for .50 cents each. The same parts went on Idiotbay for $8.50 a pair!
The first thing I do is go to the OEM site and check price / availability so I have a base price to compare with.
What is wrong with these people? Is the Hale Boop comet returning? Maybe having internet access in the loony wards is not such a good idea.
Deals can still be had but you have to look harder and have more patience than in the past.
My favorite is the guys who represents CN boxcars as a 'rare misprint' because they have Canadien National on one side.
They get really nasty when you inform them that it's not a misprint because it's in French, as required by law and thus, not particularly rare.
When they do that I take great glee out of informing the bidders that it's still available at retail.
AntonioFP45 wrote:Or: Athearn F7, Santa Fe, smooth running VERY RARE! Start Bid:$20Or: Atlas GP7 mint condition. (and it's actually an RS11)Or: Santa Fe FP45 by Athearn. Nicely detailed, looks like the real thing. (and it's an AHM unit!)I just now use the old adage of Caveat Emptor.
Or: Athearn F7, Santa Fe, smooth running VERY RARE! Start Bid:$20
Or: Atlas GP7 mint condition. (and it's actually an RS11)
Or: Santa Fe FP45 by Athearn. Nicely detailed, looks like the real thing. (and it's an AHM unit!)
I just now use the old adage of Caveat Emptor.
Well Folks,,,,a good share of the ads invite you to ask questions before you bid,,,,so for me,,,this is how things go sometimes::::
VINTAGE LIONEL STEAM ENGINE IN EXCELLENT CONDITION, WILL MAKE A NICE ADDITION TO YOUR COLLECTION
Question:: Do you have the cowcatcher that is broken off the front of that nice engine??
Answer:: What is a cowcatcher??
Question:: Is there some special reason you hooked the tender up backwards to the lococotive??
Answer:: ? this one appeared to be in some sort of foreign language???
Question:: Do you have the rest of the wheels for that locomotive??
Answer:: This is the way I got it.
Question:: Do you have the tender for that set??
Answer:: What is a tender??
ebAY entertainment at it's best....I have been left rolling in laughter many times..BDT
FIRST, my six cats and I are offended by the "crazy lady" label. That being said I do enjoy the occasional trip to E-Bay for amusement. " I don't know anything about trains, but I accquired this as part of an Estate Sale.....an extreemely rare....". One has to wonder why we have less that full trust of someone who has all but admitted taking advantage of some poor widow, plus telling us that not knowing anything about our hobby an item is "rare". I am with AntonioFP45 in letting the buyer beware. On the other hand how badly do you feel when you win an auction at 25% of the retail value? Ah well it is an auction and both sides stand an equal chance of "winning". What did P.T. Barnum say....?
Will ... it is a real zoo at feeding time!
loathar wrote: I forgot my favorite tag line...Tyco locomotive....BEAUTIFUL detail!!!
I forgot my favorite tag line...Tyco locomotive....BEAUTIFUL detail!!!
el-capitan wrote:The lionel taglines are the worst. Every guy and his brother who find a rusted out boxcar in the attic think that they have a ticket to the easy life. It really makes me laugh when I read this stuff. While there is some Lionel stuff that is worth ALOT of money, most of it is mint in box. People don't realize that collectors shy away from most anything that is abused or neglected.
A number of my "New In Box" out of production kits were opened and missing quite a few number of pieces. This is a real bummer when you pay a super premium on something like a blast furnace.
Don - Specializing in layout DC->DCC conversions
Modeling C&O transition era and steel industries There's Nothing Like Big Steam!
Check out the Deming Sub by clicking on the pics:
Recently I picked up an old Lobaugh SP brass caboose kit for $25 from some guy who listed it as a "Lobaugh toy train caboose", in a category other than O scale trains. These kits routinely go for over $100. The kit was mint, all parts included. The best finds are the ones that are not listed in their correct category. The only way I found it is by doing a search through all of ebay for "lobaugh".
My worst experience on ebay was when I bought a Pecos River Brass ATSF oil column for around $100. When I recieved it I noticed a small dent on one side and a handrail needed to be resoldered. Niether of these things were mentioned in the item description nor could you see them in his pics. My first instinct was to send it back and demand a refund. After realizing I would probably never get another one of these (that one was the only one I have ever seen on EBAY in the past 5 years) I decided to keep it. The handrail could be soldered and the dent would not be noticeable after paint. So I decided to just let the seller know that I wanted to keep it but he should really do a better job of looking at and describing the items before sale on ebay. Without asking, he refunded 25% of the sale price. I have made over 50 purchases on ebay and this was the only one not described properly.
The truth of the matter is as soon as you buy a locomotive or freight cars and walk out of the shop its used.Of course this does not apply to returns.
So,IMHO there is no such thing as NIB from a private seller.It should read use or at the most test ran only..
Larry
Conductor.
Summerset Ry.
"Stay Alert, Don't get hurt Safety First!"
It's true about the feedback piece, El Capitan, because I don't know if some LHS would have a good "score" on that...I know some internet hobby sites surely wouldn't!
I have tried to steer towards the big sellers with a track record they care about.
I've scored a couple of nice Kato engines at good discount, and they look ok, even if they're not "factory new". I guess all that means is they're nice enough that you can't tell.
I've learned recently it makes no sense to bid early or bid high early, you just get sniped for a dollar more on any nice item at the last minute. Happens invariably with any quality item that is Norfolk Southern, or CSX engines. I've been keeping my ammo dry, putting on the stove timer and battling the snipers on their last minute bids...it's kinda fun. Like I said, won a couple.