buying through ebay?
Ted Rosen
through ebay? Any good or bad experiences? Any suggestions?
Thanks,
Ted
Lndsh95725
coast. It came in a reasonable amount of time, with new strings of my choice
and in tune. This was through a music store however, and I'm sure situations
vary. Caveat emptor.
Good luck,
Greg
Wengr2
for hundreds of dollars worth of work.
Luke B
(especially from an individual) you might give some thought to getting a few
agreements down on paper and maybe even exchange personal information like
driver's licenses, photos, and SSN's just to protect each other. Also photo
copies of previous sales receipts, etc. (how did this person come by this
instrument anyway?). Always beware of a fast deal - no matter what the
situation is.
Good Luck
Luke B.
"Ted Rosen" <ro...@ican.net> wrote in message
news:XYdG6.29448$Fd2.23...@news2.tor.primus.ca...
Tom Walls
says...
I bought an archtop that way and had a good experience. Be carefull. Only
buy from someone with good references. I prefer dealers who have a lot of
experience selling over ebay, and umpty-dum positive references. The dealer
should assume liability for the guitar arriving at it's destination in good
shape. Only buy if you have a grace period during which you can spend time
with the guitar and make sure that you're happy with your purchase.
--
Tom Walls
the guy at the Temple of Zeus
http://www.arts.cornell.edu/zeus/
Richard
your SSN, and driver's license (photocopy?) to some stranger you're
simply buying a damned guitar from.
That aside, for eBay my experience is that I've sold a couple guitars in
very good shape to people who were very happy with the deal. They paid a
very fair price, too.
I've bought one guitar on eBay, a '72 335 that the photo indicated was
your standard cherry finish. I got it at a good price from a seller with
0 feedback. When I got the guitar, it was the ugliest purple-over-
walnut-stain finish you could imagine. A Gibson-authorized
luthier/repairperson said the finish came from the factory like that; it
was originally stained walnut, but had the stain removed (as much as
possible, which isn't much) and then done up purple.
Other than the suprise on the finish, the guitar was in superb condition
and both plays and sounds completely great. The owner had certainly
taken very good care of it.
On reflection, I suppose I was hustled (substituted a picture of a cherry
335 for the guitar I bought), but the guitar has certainly proven more
than worth what I paid for it (which was about $1200).
It's butt-ugly, though, even after a sunburst refin. The walnut stain
just didn't come out.
luke...@knts.com says...
--
"The worm that destroys you is the temptation to agree with your critics,
to get their approval." -- Thomas Harris
This post simply contains some of my personal opinions.
ObURL: http://home.earthlink.net/~huddler
Mark Guest
do is communicate, first by email, then (after the auction) by phone. If you
can't get comfortable with the seller through email before the end of the
auction, don't bid. It would be interesting to learn whether buyers or
sellers suffer the most. I've heard some pretty sad stories from sellers.
Most buyers seem pretty happy with their purchases. Even the ones with
purple 335's :-O
--
Mark Guest
JazzerWB at JahWho dot com
"Tom Walls" <tw...@cornell.edu> wrote in message
news:9cbve7$m35$1...@news01.cit.cornell.edu...
Dave
maybe the seller "missed" the hairline fracture at the base of the neck!
etc, etc. I'm not saying the guitar you're looking at has faults, but you
have to trust the seller more than you would if you were seeing the guitar
in person. I'm not prepared to do that, FWIW.
Dave.
Ted Rosen <ro...@ican.net> wrote in message
news:XYdG6.29448$Fd2.23...@news2.tor.primus.ca...
Peter Grey
pretty pleased with the results. I've also bought stuff through internet
ads. When I bought a Guild X-175 through an e-bay auction, I spent a fair
amount of time with the seller on the phone before I bid. I had played a
number of the X-175s before I bought this one so I knew I liked them. He
represented the guitar as in "excellent shape" and if anything he under
represented its virtues.
I won't buy or sell to anyone I don't get a good feeling about when I speak
to them on the phone. I'm undoubtedly a bit of a snob, but if they don't
speak well, sound honorable and like a nice guy, I won't buy from them.
Peter
Lawson Stone
I think you're safer buying a "factory" guitar like an Epiphone via e-bay. I
got an Epiphone Sheraton II that way and absolutely love it. A buddy also
bought one the next week through E-bay and it was a doll as well. We both
paid less than $425 for near-mint guitars.
You have to look at the feedback rating of the seller carefully and you need
to ask for more info if you need it before you bid.
I think the factory or Korean imported guitars are a better risk because
they are not nearly as delicate as the nicer archtops. The high-end archtop
is a custom animal, and even a nice one to the seller might be horrible to
the buyer. Factory-made plywood guitars are more generic and durable, and
thus a better risk.
Even so, it is still a risk and people do have bad experiences.
*****************************************************
"Go sleep it off Ike; you talk too much for a fighting man"--Wyatt Earp
Lawson Stone-Professor of Old Testament, Asbury Theological Seminary
Jazz Guitar, Cowboy Action Shooting, Leathercraft, Horses, Old West
Randy Graves
through eBay, mostly good deals, including one that I had converted into
my main current (8-string) guitar. My current Polytone MB-IV amp was an
AS-IS eBay purchase, since refurbished at the factory, also a good
deal. I'm currently selling a few guitar accessories (shameless advert:
see my mostly unused Boss ME-30, eBay item #1425643231, which ends
tomorrow morning.)
Now for the advice... I believe that it is IMPERATIVE to deal only with
sellers with high Positive eBay Feedback totals (preferably with NO
Negative feedbacks). Let the experience of other buyers be your guide!
Randy Graves
C Long
transactions have generally been pleasant ones. One key to a good sales
transaction is to accurately describe your product - if anthing, lower
their expectations. Probably a more important consideration is that if
there is a problem, don't hesitate to make it good. I've recently paid a
buyer for a fret level (the E string buzzed at the 17th fret) and split a
neck reset on an old Kay bass. I honestly didn't know about these issues
and we both came away happy.
I don't do phone business. The one time I did, the guy hounded me at home
and work and wound up returning the Rickenbacker Bass. Thats the only
return I've had.
The feedback rating is a great tool for the buyer and seller. If you're
going to by an expensive archtop, you might want to build your feedback up
on small items. Its much easier to buy and sell with a good feedback rating.
Mines 43 perfectly positive.
From a sellers standpoint, you really have to have a strong stomach, don't
shy away from problems, and do what it takes to make people happy. They pay
a premium for your items.
Chip
Mark Guest wrote in message <9cc36u$99r$1...@slb7.atl.mindspring.net>...
Richard
> Now for the advice... I believe that it is IMPERATIVE to deal only with
> sellers with high Positive eBay Feedback totals (preferably with NO
> Negative feedbacks). Let the experience of other buyers be your guide!
Generally good advice, but the one deal I did where the seller was
deliberately trying to rip off the buyer (ie, me) was with a guy with
very, very high positive feedback. I filed a fraud complaint with eBay,
and after three months of constant effort I got a enough of a refund from
the guy for me to call it even.
*Very* high feedback sellers are usually the worst about giving feedback
to the buyer, returning e-mail quickly, shipping quickly, etc.
In my case (with the rip-off artist) the guy rang up a bunch of feedback
on $5 auctions, and then posted a relatively high-ticket item. When I e-
mailed him after I received the item, his first reply was "Go ahead and
give me negative feedback. I'll give it right back. I've got 300+
points, and you've got 30. Who's it going to hurt?"
--
kaetae
There are two ways to look at it.
If you buy from a seller with a lot of good feedback you should get what is
advertised.
But most of these guys are dealers or collectors and want a good buck for
the guitar.
If you buy from a seller with little or no feedback, you are most likely
buying from a private seller
which would, in some cases, keep the price lower.
Either way if you are buying a collectable guitar you have to deal with
collectors.
A note about selling: Many of the buyers are dealers.
They will give you about 1/2 of what it is really worth.
They are in business to make money and they make a lot of it.
Pt
Vinyltap
>Would the members of this newsgroup >recommend purchasing a used arch top
>through ebay? Any good or bad >experiences? Any suggestions?
There used to be a thing on ebay called i-escrow, and now it's called,
"Tradenable."
They act as a third party and hold the cash while the buyer inspects the
purchase until
approval. It costs 2%, way less than sales
tax in any state I know of. If you return the
puchase they keep the 2%. Not much excuse for not using this to buy a guitar on
e-bay.
All this said, I avoid buying on E-bay or the net. I look for stuff for sale
locally that I can pick up. To many potentially disastrous problems. Imagine if
you bought an L-5 and
it arrives with the neck broke off. I'm sure UPS is more than capable. And
dealing with the shipper to get a claim paid is a total pain in the ass. I did
get a Les Paul
goldtop reissue destroyed by ups. They broke the headstock of. Bad
experience...don't go there is my advice.
Kenneth Akoh-Arrey
those written are possibilities, but here is a real situation that carries
not risk, in so far as the condition of the guitar and my integrity are
concerned. If you are into guild guitars I have posted an X-170 for sale. I
have two Guilds, X-170 and X-700. Look at my posting above, on this
newsgroup with further information and pictures. I sold a guitar ealier on
e-bay at a great loss. I was inexperienced and the only person who bid for
it was only $5 over my asking minimum price and when the time ran out, I had
to honor the deal and ship the guitar to him. He was happy. I am scared of
fraud and dishonesty too and I'd be asking all those questions too. It's up
to you what your insticts tell you.