"All that glitters is not gold"

[singapore stag]

I went to view a set of Tomcat seats that had been re advertised on Ebay in Waltham Cross, they looked superb in the pics including some close up shots, nicely written description etc etc,..........WHAT A LOAD OF RUBBISH!!:X:X

Good thing I went to view them and what a blessing I was out biddedin the initial auction..........I am relatively new to Ebay but learning quick.

Has anyone been unlucky on EBAY?.........Any tips from the more experienced forum members.

Sukh.

[KOY 23]

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Sukh.

I think that this also applies to a lot of cars on e-bay.

John.

[iani]

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singapore stag wrote:

<snip

Has anyone been unlucky on EBAY?</snip>

I got home tonight to discover that the combi oil pressure & water temp gauge I bought on ebay last week had its capillary temp sender cut off an inch from the gauge, no use to anyone.

Ian

[marshman]

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Sukh,

Sorry to hear the seats were rubbish. I've used eBay for years now both buying and selling - never had a real bad item - the worst i would describe as not quite the bargain I'd hoped for but still OK. I have however had some absolute bargains - the best ever was a pair of N.O.S front bumper quarterswith perfect chrome for a Vanguard Phase 1 - they were described as chrome wheel arch trims - only paid 4.99 for them.

These are my tips for making sure you get a reasonable if not very good deal.

1. Read the description carefully - look at what has NOT been said in the description or the way it has been said. e.g. worked last time it was on the car is not the same as good working order! Paintwork OK - ideally it should say paintwork good, no chips or scratches etc.

2. Always be suspicious of "just needs a quick clean" or "should polish up ok" If thats the case why haven't they done it?

3. Look at the feed back - not just % but the actual comments. Expect to see a wide range covering packaging, delivery times as well as quality of the item. In my experience you get some which never mention "as described" or "super item" but instead have a lot of "received ok" or general non plussed type comments - I tend to avoid these unless I'm really sure the item is OK.

4. Look at what they've sold in the past. Do they know about what they are selling. This can be a double edged sword. If they do know a lot then they may be able to disguise common well known faults etc. Conversely it can mean a very accurate, honest description which tells you all you need to know.

5. If you are unsure always ask questions - genuine sellers with nothing to hide always give quick, complete answers to questions - and will even offer a contact number.

6. Have a close look at the pictures. Are they of the item itself or are they catalogue pictures. As with the description think "what are the pictures not showing"

7. Find out as much as you can in general about the item you are buying. Find out where things wear, what breaks etc. then ask the seller if these bits are OK.

8. If you can afford the time, watch as many items you can of the sort you want. This gives you a feel for the type of price it will go for, what its worth paying, the general quality/standard/condition and how often they come up. Doesn't always work though if its a rare item! You will also be suprised at how often the same names crop up - both buying and selling.

9. decide how much you are willing to pay and stick to it!! don't get sucked into the excitement as an auction comes to its end time - you will end up paying too much. Better in my opinion to use a snipe program - I use esnipe - and enter you max bid which gets placed a few seconds before the end of the auction. That way you can bid and forget. You can place a max bid direct with eBay. The problem then is someone else who really wants the item will keep upping their bid until they win. With esnipe they often don't have time - so you win (hopefully).

9. Finally, do as you did and go see the item. Or wait for an item to end and not sell then contact the seller.

These are the general rules I try to stick to. There is also the "gut instinct" that its a bargain - much harder - if impossible to describe. Usually only true for items that you know a lot about.

There all my secrets are out

Roger

[Stagdad]

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singapore stag wrote:

Has anyone been unlucky on EBAY?.........Any tips from the more experienced forum members.

Sukh.

Just put a solid stone fireplace with hearth which came out of a refurb job we are doing ,After 2 weeks of no takers with" buy it nows" i stuck it on starting at 99P just to get rid of it and save me taking it back to work to skip it .It made the princely sum of £3.25:?.New ones like this one go for about £700.

You win some you loose some,Got £150 for an old cast iron radiator the week before(It wouldn't fit the Stag :P)

[singapore stag]

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Thanks Roger, Good advice that. Can you elaborate on this Esnipe? How do you go about using/ acquiring it?

Sukh.

[marshman]

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Sukh,

www.esnipe.com

Its an American site but works OK for ebay in the UK. You have to purchase some credit via Paypal. You only pay if you win the auction - I think its 50p. If you don't win it costs nothing. I only tend to use it for things where I bid more than 20 pounds. I believe there are others.

Once you have signed up you can download a small program so that when you are on ebay and view an item you want to bid on you "right click" and select esnipe. This automatically starts esnipe and fills in the ebay item number. you just enter the amount you want to bid and leave the rest to them. It automatically places a bid about 6 seconds from the end of the auction - usually too late for anyone else to respond. The use of these snipe programs is why the final value of many auctions suddenly rockets up in the last few seconds. There are others about, google them, but esnipe is the only one i've ever used.

roger

[Moraystag]

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Gent's bought my Stag via internet. I work abroad and am away for a month or more at a time, so like a fool and in a moment of madness I committed myself after various phone calls to the sellar.

I was told that the car was superb and tip top condition, no rust on this car sir and runs like a dream. Rubbish just spent a packet on it and more to go. Funny thing is I bought it from a millionaire buisness man and I though that the guy would have thrown money at her, I was wrong. Never mind it's been a roller coaster ride taking her back to good condition and good running order, but getting there now.

Never to old to learn a lesson, there are not to many honest people out there, and it's easy to be duped into buying especially when you are a novice like myself.

Lesson learned: Mike

[RobM]

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Moraystag wrote:

I bought it from a millionaire buisness man and I though that the guy would have thrown money at her, I was wrong.

Thats why he's a Millionaire.......

[V Mad]

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Sukhi. I find that ebay is great but there are a few tips. Roger has covered most of it, but I would add my experience: If you are going tobuy a fairly expensive item, its worth using Paypal as this can protect you. I have bought two separateitems tht were 'not as described' and got a refund on both.

Also, check values before you bid. Some stuff is selling for more than main dealer prices!

And for seeling, the 'final value'fees are getting expensive, check them out.

And finally, the worst time to bid on a Stag is Saturday eveninig after you get back from the pub! Everyone is trigger happy then!

[Ian B]

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marshman wrote:

Sukh,

http://www.esnipe.com

Its an American site but works OK for ebay in the UK. You have to purchase some credit via Paypal. You only pay if you win the auction - I think its 50p. If you don't win it costs nothing. I only tend to use it for things where I bid more than 20 pounds. I believe there are others.

Once you have signed up you can download a small program so that when you are on ebay and view an item you want to bid on you "right click" and select esnipe. This automatically starts esnipe and fills in the ebay item number. you just enter the amount you want to bid and leave the rest to them. It automatically places a bid about 6 seconds from the end of the auction - usually too late for anyone else to respond. The use of these snipe programs is why the final value of many auctions suddenly rockets up in the last few seconds. There are others about, google them, but esnipe is the only one i've ever used.

roger

this is only any good if you are the only bidder with this system, more and more people have this or similar systems so kinda defeats the object.

Ian

[GDPR]

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My Stag was an ebay purchase, but I did go the 100 odd miles and "kick the tyres" first. It had a buy it now price on it as well as the auction running, and to avoid someone else outbidding me I paid the price, despite afterwards, and really close inspection at home, thinking I'd paid too much. Over the time I've had it, and 15000 miles, maybe the price was high but it has been fabulously reliable, and none of the horror stories that have turned up on here! The reliability has now got Swmbo sold on classics!

I use powersnipe on ebay, it costs £32 a year but must have paid me back several times over by now in time and money saved.

Russ

[marshman]

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Ian B wrote:

this is only any good if you are the only bidder with this system, more and more people have this or similar systems so kinda defeats the object.

Ian

I agree that it doesn't work as well as it used to because more and more people use it.
BUT I think it does do three things.

• Firstly you can set you max bid and get it placed at the last minute without you having to remember to log on at the right time - so no more stomach sinking moments when you remember 2 minutes after the auction finishes.
• Secondly as I said it stops other casual bidders keep bidding up the price to beat your max bid because right up to the last moment know knows you are even interested in it.
• Finally it stops you getting carried away and bidding more than you really wanted to as the price goes up at the end of an auction. There is always the temptation when you are bidding live at the end of an aution to just bid a pound more - then another pound until you realise you have paid way more than you really wanted to - its human nature:?

The only problem I have occaisionally found is that I win things I had forgotten I had looked at let alone bid on:shock:- perhaps I should look on ebay for some new memory

Roger

[Wendy]

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marshman wrote:

www.esnipe.com

I use www.justsnipe.com - this one is free for the basic deal - you can pay more to cut it finer. I think the default free time is 8 seconds before the auction ends - it's rare that I miss out unless someone else has already lodged a higher bid directly with ebay.

[grahamb]

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I do not think that these last second buy systems are a good idea. If all the bidding actitivity is as the end, its not a properauction, just a tool to lower the sale price. If someone bids in the last minute, then the auction should extend for a minute in my opinion. That continues until a bid sits without a counter bid for 60 seconds.