Opinion on EBAY

[AggroJones]

QUOTE: Originally posted by deschane

Dear AggroJones,
This is understandable! Your not paranoid, your just cautious!

[(-D][(-D][(-D][(-D][(-D]


By the way Mark, if you model NP in the '50s, have you heard of Jack Parker?

[Anonymous]

My first and last purchase via Ebay.

I purchased an out of print "used" book via Ebay from a used book reseller. It has now been 2 months and 5 e-mails since the order. E-mail correspondence with them hasn't been positive. In their first e-mail reply they said it was shipped and maybe it got lost in the mail, they didn't know. The second e-mail I got stated that they only had one copy which had been sold to someone else and they would give me a refund. That was 3 weeks ago!!!

• Have I received the book - NO!
• Have I gotten my refund - NO!
• Will I buy again via Ebay - NO!!

I have been told by many of my friends to stay away from Ebay. I should have listened!!

[Anonymous]

AggroJones, Yes I have heard of Jack Parker. I have seen his layout featured in Mainline Modeler and of course here on Model Railroader! I also like Cental Valley stuff so I am a big admirer of Mr. Parkers.

[Anonymous]

Many good points made in the various replies. I've been E-Baying for nearly 5 years and have never yet been ripped off. I recommend it to anyone for finding unique and/or out-or-production stuff, and above all for finally unloading all that stuff you know you're never going to use. But I ascribe my own E-Bay success, not to mere good fortune, nor to the (erroneous) notion that nearly all E-Bayers are "good people". As several of the posts suggest, READ THE FEEDBACK before bidding. Its true that regular E-Bayers are reluctant to leave negatives for fear of retaliation, so my initial reaction to sellers with negative feedback is to tread with extreme caution. On the other hand, I've purchased successfully from several people with some negative feedback. Its like the Better Business Bureau: if you conduct hundreds of transactions, human nature combined with the laws of statistics says that there are a few people who just cannot be satisfied. Read the negatives, ask yourself if they appear justified, look at how recent they are, compare with the positives. Overall, I have had better experiences with E-Bayers than with many mainstream mail-order firms.

I would also stress the use of "ask seller a question". When I have sold stuff, I have always been surprised not to receive any questions. When I am bidding or thinking of bidding, I nearly always send a question. Mostly because I want to be sure of what I am bidding on, but also because the response in itself is usually great feedback on the quality of the seller.

I want to concur with several other posters about the absurdity of some pricing. I win a relatively small percentage of the auctions I participate in. As a buyer I believe that an auction, with its inherent risks, should always represent a bargain compared with alternate channels and my maximum bids reflect this belief. Although it is unarguably true that any item is worth what someone is willing to pay, a number of bidders appear to be ignorant of pricing and availability. I periodically see currently-available HO items bid up above their full-list retail price; it is common to see items bid up above the discounted price from one of the big mail-order firms.

I don't see businesses "dominating" E-Bay HO. RIght now, there are over 23,000 HO items for auction. I randomly selected Fleischmann (143 items) and randomly opened 14 items (10%). None were for sale by businesses. Although this is perhaps a little low, and its true that some of the businesses have a disproportionate share of sales, its a fact that the overwhelming majority of HO items are still being offered by individuals.

[Anonymous]

Rails5,
I feel you have miss quoted me by stating I said; "nearly all E-Bayers are "good people". What I really said was; "I feel most folks on ebay are good people". My opinoin is there is a differance between "most" and "nearly all" Also, I started this thread with a personal finding that approximately 1 in 25 to 30 Ebayers arn't trustworthy. This is a statistic I found true in my dealings with Ebay. So if I have given "Erronious" information on Ebay, I would ask you to prove this to me!

[Anonymous]

Look for people with high ratings to avoid being ripped off. Sellers don't get a rating of 1000+ points by scrweing people over.