Thardy
Veteran
Shopping eBay is like that old stock market saying. Don't use money you can't afford to lose.
A Positive E-Bay Story
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Rick Waldroup
Well-known
I must be very lucky. I have been buying and selling camera gear on ebay since 1999, and have yet to have any serious problems whatsoever. None at all. With close to a thousand deals on ebay with probably about 80% of them having to do with camera gear, I have had great success using ebay. However, I am very careful in who I deal with and what I buy or bid on. If a listing or an auction just doesn't sound or feel right, I stay away from it.
And I've never had any problems at all selling gear, either. I do not use ebay as much as I did in the past, but I still find it an excellent place to find some good deals on used gear.
And I've never had any problems at all selling gear, either. I do not use ebay as much as I did in the past, but I still find it an excellent place to find some good deals on used gear.
farlymac
PF McFarland
My most recent problem came out okay. I bought a 35mm lens for my Leidolf C-35, which is kind of hard to find that particular lens for. It had a dented filter ring, but since I know how to fix that , it was not a concern. The seller described it as in working order, so I went ahead with the transaction.
When it got here, I immediately set to fixing the dented filter ring. Took all of five minutes, and I thought "Well now I finally have a full kit". Whoa Nellie! Further inspection of the lens showed that it wasn't put back together properly, as the focusing ring was way off. And I couldn't get it apart because all the set screws had been snapped off.
So I contacted the seller (in Poland), requesting a refund, and I would send the lens back. After a couple of broken English messages later, they said they would send another lens. I took this to mean a replacement. Turned out they meant it as a parts donor. I again contacted them, explaining how I couldn't repair the one I originally got because of the reassembly damage from before, and then they agreed to refund my money after I returned the lenses. It all came out good, except for the postal fee I had to eat on the return. I did eventually get a lens, but from another seller. Luckily, I didn't have to escalate the issue, as I really hate doing that, and the sellers were nice enough to make an effort to rectify the situation with the parts donor. I probably would not have gone through all the trouble of handling it myself, but they are a camera shop, and I know how hard it can be these days to run one. I wouldn't hesitate to buy from them again if they had something I needed.
PF
When it got here, I immediately set to fixing the dented filter ring. Took all of five minutes, and I thought "Well now I finally have a full kit". Whoa Nellie! Further inspection of the lens showed that it wasn't put back together properly, as the focusing ring was way off. And I couldn't get it apart because all the set screws had been snapped off.
So I contacted the seller (in Poland), requesting a refund, and I would send the lens back. After a couple of broken English messages later, they said they would send another lens. I took this to mean a replacement. Turned out they meant it as a parts donor. I again contacted them, explaining how I couldn't repair the one I originally got because of the reassembly damage from before, and then they agreed to refund my money after I returned the lenses. It all came out good, except for the postal fee I had to eat on the return. I did eventually get a lens, but from another seller. Luckily, I didn't have to escalate the issue, as I really hate doing that, and the sellers were nice enough to make an effort to rectify the situation with the parts donor. I probably would not have gone through all the trouble of handling it myself, but they are a camera shop, and I know how hard it can be these days to run one. I wouldn't hesitate to buy from them again if they had something I needed.
PF
Pioneer
Veteran
I do have to agree with Rick. I have been buying and selling on E-Bay since 98 and over the years things have generally worked out very well, whether selling or buying. Occasionally there have been small problems but nothing that could not be worked out.
I don't sell as much as I used to but that is more a result of the increased cost of doing business.
I don't sell as much as I used to but that is more a result of the increased cost of doing business.
Woody 63
Member
I have just had a purchase from Ebay, that i had a feeling the seller would not honour, how wrong i was.
I placed a bid for a Rolleinar 2 Bay 11, the was a 99p starting bid, no reserve.
Anyway, i waited the five days, there were no more bids, so i expected people to start bidding at the last minute, nothing, there were no other bids at all.
As i won the auction for 99p, i expected the seller to try and back out, as there were two other Rolleinar 2 Bay 11, one for £125 and one for £105.
Well, i was really surprised when i got a message via ebay to say the item had been shipped, they had supplied the tracking number.
So on Thursday, i received it, very well packaged and the Rolleinar is in mint condition including the leather case. So think this must be the cheapest Rolleinar 2 Bay 11 ever bought, i am over the moon.
The seller must be the most honourable seller on Ebay.
I placed a bid for a Rolleinar 2 Bay 11, the was a 99p starting bid, no reserve.
Anyway, i waited the five days, there were no more bids, so i expected people to start bidding at the last minute, nothing, there were no other bids at all.
As i won the auction for 99p, i expected the seller to try and back out, as there were two other Rolleinar 2 Bay 11, one for £125 and one for £105.
Well, i was really surprised when i got a message via ebay to say the item had been shipped, they had supplied the tracking number.
So on Thursday, i received it, very well packaged and the Rolleinar is in mint condition including the leather case. So think this must be the cheapest Rolleinar 2 Bay 11 ever bought, i am over the moon.
The seller must be the most honourable seller on Ebay.
Sejanus.Aelianus
Veteran
I think people sometimes forget that the vast majority of eBay transactions are successful.
I've bought and sold a lot on that site and only ever had two bad transactions. The first was resolved quickly and amicably. The second required the intercession of Paypal and the, somewhat foolish, vendor was the only loser.
I think that puts my failure rate at around 0.1%, which is pretty good, in my opinion.
I've bought and sold a lot on that site and only ever had two bad transactions. The first was resolved quickly and amicably. The second required the intercession of Paypal and the, somewhat foolish, vendor was the only loser.
I think that puts my failure rate at around 0.1%, which is pretty good, in my opinion.
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