Think before buying

Roger Miller · From: Cedar Falls, Ia.

I have been tracking this electric sitar on ebay for a week now. In Musician Friend, the guitar sells for 299.00. Now in Ebay, the price is up to 225.00 and a 25.00 shipping fee. I will be surprised to see anyone go further with this instrument, next thing you know, they could have bought it at Musicians Friend for 299.00 with free shipping. Please be aware of this type of crap.

Jim Cohen · From: Philadelphia, PA

What 'crap' is that? Uninformed buyers patrolling eBay looking for a "good deal" without knowing the value of the item? Hah! There's one born every day...

James Quackenbush · From: Pomona, New York, USA

This kind of thing happens all the time....
Folks get caught up bidding and trying to win the bid, and they don't realize that when it's all said and done, that they paid too much for something .....Also items get "hot" and "cold" ..... Sometimes you get a good deal when items are cold or there's a lot of one item around .... You have to watch the items you're looking for , and how much they are selling for .....It's very easy to get caught up in the bid though !!
It caught me only once !!....That's all it took !!.....Sincerely, Jim

George Rozak · From: Braidwood, Illinois USA

Several years ago I was interested in purchasing a Hartke 3500 bass head. I saw several of them (used) get sold on eBay for more than the price of a new one.

Hard to figure...

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Sho-Bud: Professional & Fingertip

Rick Alexander · From: Florida, USA, R.I.P.

Then there are those Artisan lap steels that sell on Musician's Friend for $59 (including gig bag and shipping) going for $100+ on eBay . .

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/g=guitar/search/detail/base_pid/518800/

I bought one of them out of curiosity, and then I bought 3 more to give as gifts. As a result there are 3 more people in the world who can play "Sleepwalk".

I'm not sure if I did a good thing or not . .

Darvin Willhoite · From: Roxton, Tx. USA

Situations like that are not Ebays fault, its the fault of uninformed impulse buyers. Even though it is against Ebay rules, there is still a lot of "shill" bidding going on too. (Bid ups by friends or relatives etc.)

I buy and sell a lot of stuff on Ebay, but I never make an umpulse purchase unless I know the deal is really good. Before I make a major purchase, I do a lot of research on the web, and anything that is still available new, I never go more than 75% of what I can get it from an online store for. That has worked well for me. I just put in my maximum bid, and if it goes higher than that, I just wait for the next one to come up.

Something else to really watch for is shipping and handling. I never leave the shipping charges open. If the shipping is not stated in the listing, I email the seller and have him give me a shipping cost before the auction ends. If he doesn't reply, or refuses to give me a shipping cost, I pass on the item. I've gotten stung a couple of times by paying about double what the shipping should have been. A lot of sellers use UPS stores or Mailbox type stores for packing and shipping, and that gets really expensive.

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Darvin Willhoite
Riva Ridge Recording

Willis Vanderberg · From: Petoskey Mi

Darvin:
It not only happens on ebay but right here on the good old Forum too.
I recently paid $ 15.00 an item and $ 5.00 shipping.The item arrived in an envelope with $ 1.88 paid postage. So My cost of the item ,went up by 20 percent it seems to me..
This is the exception rather than the rule on the Forum though.
Old Bud

Jim Cohen · From: Philadelphia, PA

Willis,
Do remember though that the cost of "shipping" is more than just the cost of the postage. Oftentimes, the shipper has to purchase a shipping carton and possibly packing material, bubblewrap, tape, etc. And I don't mind kicking in an extra buck or so for the labor (and gas) for someone to truck on down to the post office to actually mail it. When you figure these actual costs of "shipping", it probably comes closer to the $5 you paid than to the $1.88 figure.

Having said that, if the $15 was a CD and the shipping was domestic, $5 does seem a bit excessive; most of us would charge only about $2 for domestic shipping of music CDs.

[This message was edited by Jim Cohen on 29 November 2004 at 12:20 PM.]

Lefty · From: Grayson, Ga.

I learned this lesson. Bought a set of used, but like new throwing knives for my son. Bidding went to $39.00. I researched them afterwards and found them for $32.00 new. Oh well. Pays to check in advance.
Lefty
Expensive Throwing Knives

Herman Visser · From: Rohnert Park, California, USA

I try not to buy anything on Ebay, just get caught in bibing war.Two years ago I was looking at a steel(GFI)3x2.Started at $400 next thing Im at $700, got a feeling that I might be bidding against seller and backed away.Good move I think, today Bobbe is selling one for $899 new.p/s it sold for$800.YES think before buying!!!!!

Herb Steiner · From: Spicewood TX 78669

Shipping can be expensive from the seller's point of view, though there are some unconscionable charges I've seen out there foisted upon some buyers. When selling on eBay, I charge actual shipping expense plus the cost of the packaging if I have to buy it.

I've only had one deal go south on me, and it was over shipping charges. I was selling an antique printer's tray, one I had bought for $20. The auction was "no reserve," starting at 99 cents, and only one guy bid on it, so he won it for less than a buck! But when he found out it was gonna cost $12.50 to mail it to him, he never got back to me. I still have it boxed up in my garage.

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Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association

Guest · Posted 29 Nov 2004 7:08 pm

I don't see anything for sale here and why has this thread not been moved to Pedal Steel like b0b did to me when I warned of a similar eBay ripoff?

Colm Chomicky · From: Kansas, (Prairie Village)

Brian Herder · From: Philadelphia, Pa. USA

The current Musican's Friend catalog lists that electric sitar for $399. Where'd you see it for $299?

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