Know-nothing lazy online auction sellers.

U

unixrevolution

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I can't stand it.

From an auction online for a Yashica Lynx 5000:

This Yashica Lynx 5000 35mm camera is an estate find and not something that I used personally. Being sold as is. Appears to be in good shape with general wear. Does have a name sticker on the camera as well as the bag. The lens on the camera does not say what mm it is. Not educated enough to know off hand. Leather case has some wear along the zipper. What is pictured is what is included. If you have any questions please send a message.
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The lens says 4.5cm. I'm sorry he can't do the simple conversion to tell "What mm it is." Also, not educated? I'll say.

He could have found out a lot about this camera, including the lens millimeters, and how to test it, by five minutes of googling, and then maybe he'd get more than the $5 starting bid.

Honestly, so lazy, so idiotic. Spend time taking pictures of the item and listing it but don't spend a moment researching.

What's even worse is people like the camera store i just bought an Oly lens from for my Pen F. "Fully Tested, Functional." They didn't apparently think it was worth mentioning that the front element is fungused, and that the aperture doesnt work at all. Fully functional my left elbow! :mad:

Anyone else get fed up with know-nothing sellers?
 
His objective is to sell. Not educate. eBay is chock full of listing of obscure lenses with no mount information. eBay is full of "Leica M mount" lenses with images of an LTM lens (I just bought one). It's the buyers responsibility to know what they're looking at, not the seller's.
 
I love sellers like that, I have picked up some bargains from them in the past. The best ones are those that also misspell the names, you can get a real cheap Pentrax if you look long enough.
 
Jdi said:
His objective is to sell. Not educate. eBay is chock full of listing of obscure lenses with no mount information. eBay is full of "Leica M mount" lenses with images of an LTM lens (I just bought one). It's the buyers responsibility to know what they're looking at, not the seller's.
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Of course, buyer beware, but a seller who has his poop in a group inspires confidence. And sellers who dont misreresent items do not then have to eat shipping costs both ways, and make more money.

MikeMGB said:
I love sellers like that, I have picked up some bargains from them in the past. The best ones are those that also misspell the names, you can get a real cheap Pentrax if you look long enough.
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radi(c)al_cam said:
Yes, or «Rollie», «Liecafelx», «Ziess Icon», «Minlota», and so forth :D
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My favorite is searching for Pentex cameras :) That is a very common one.
 
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Very good Roger! there is probably a gag in there about green film but I'll leave it to someone cleverer than me to put into words without making some awful faux-pas.

The frustration I guess is that the unwary fall foul of these people. My first rangefinder turned out to be in need of CLA (all three) as opposed to the shiny and fully working it was meant to be. It is very shiny though. I have my eye on one just now, the seller deals in cameras and states in the advert that they are not sure if it is a rangefinder - they have the model name correct and a few seconds of Google would give you the answer. That and the second window on the front.

Unfortunately we can't change the world, just try to reap the benefits of the lazy. Convenience costs money - good listings and good prices go together.
 
johnnyrod said:
Very good Roger! there is probably a gag in there about green film but I'll leave it to someone cleverer than me to put into words without making some awful faux-pas.

The frustration I guess is that the unwary fall foul of these people. My first rangefinder turned out to be in need of CLA (all three) as opposed to the shiny and fully working it was meant to be. It is very shiny though. I have my eye on one just now, the seller deals in cameras and states in the advert that they are not sure if it is a rangefinder - they have the model name correct and a few seconds of Google would give you the answer. That and the second window on the front.

Unfortunately we can't change the world, just try to reap the benefits of the lazy. Convenience costs money - good listings and good prices go together.
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You are right to point out that sometimes it works out in our favor. Getting a slightly harder to find item for a good price, or the occasional "As is, untested" that works perfectly like my Sonar autofocus SX-70. For those other times, we can file a return request ;)
 
I've picked up unknown, also described as not working cameras/lenses even from major sellers/retailers that ended up being perfectly functioning.

You have to know more than the seller if you are buying.
You should know more than the buyer if you are selling.
 
Grandma wants to sell some of her cameras, but she doesn't have internet access.

She phones her grandson:

«Darling, would you be so kind to put some of my cameras on Ebay?»

«Sure. Just tell me what I have to write.»

«First of all, there's a FUJI.» (She pronounces it the Spanish way.)

«Granny, wait. How is that written?»

«With an ‹u›, Darling. Then, there's a MINOLTA. And there's a NIKON.»

Grandson places the advertisements.

After some time, Grandma calls again.

«Tell me, Darling, are there many bidders?»

«Not really that much. But there are many many weird comments, and complaints, and many insults that I'm a half-moron.»

«What!? In how far?»

«I don't know, Granny? There are some hundred people watching these items, and perhaps they're just bored. Last but not least, the Ebay management told me, I should stick to my computer games, because they won't let me resume that I offer a ‹KNEECON›, a ‹MEANOLDER›, or a ‹****HEE› camera!»


;)
 
What amazes me the most is when the auctionl liating is wrong even when the name.of the camera is STAMPED. ON. THE. CAMERA.

Surely they can get at least that much right?
 
MikeMGB said:
I love sellers like that, I have picked up some bargains from them in the past. The best ones are those that also misspell the names, you can get a real cheap Pentrax if you look long enough.
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Thanks for the tip! I'll keep that in mind next time I'm hunting.
 
How about this Nikon SP, which is listed as "Fully functional, light cosmetic wear."

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Nikon-SP-Ra...-EX-Condition-Fully-Functional-/291858838933?

s-l1600.jpg
 
I pointed out the broken lens, and they didn't see fit to respond personally, but they did mark that the "[SIZE=+0][SIZE=+0] lens will need repaier"

[/SIZE][/SIZE]They also apparently sliced $200 off the sale price.
 
radi(c)al_cam said:
Well … apparently they're experts on records, CDs and so on? … But they also have a «Vintage Agaflex Camera», a «Vintage Mammiya-Sekor 135 mm F:45 Lens With Case», a «Vintage Gaflex Crown Graphic Kalart Synchronized Range Finder Camera» … ;)
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Wonderful. Is that like a Panasoanic or a Polex? :)
 
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