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Question about Buying My first guitar off of Ebay?


Lloyd Rummell

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I'm bidding on a guitar and think I may win it, the seller has 100% positive feedback rating with 24 positive feedback remarks, about 1/2 of them are from buying, 1/2 from selling.

I plan on paying with Paypal if I do win and I was wondering if I pay for the item and the seller never ships the guitar is there any course of action to take or am I just out the money and can doing nothing but leave a negative feedback remark.

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If you pay via Paypal, you will be able to file a claim and get a refund if the seller can't prove the item has shipped. You can also file for 'significantly not as described'. If you pay with a credit card, you also have the ability to file a chargeback through the card company.

Ebay also has a buyer protection program, but it's capped at $200 and forces you to jump through multiple hoops to get a refund.

I normally would not buy a guitar or other expensive item from someone with feedback that low. I prefer to see at least 100.

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Originally posted by Lloyd Rummell


:confused:



Type A: "I would never buy a guitar sight unseen and can't understand why anybody would buy online."

Type B: "My son/buddy/self got ripped off on eBay and I would never buy there again."

My experience (208 rating on eBay): Relax, Lloyd. :)

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I've never had a bad experience on Ebay......I'm not really an Ebay whore though either. I wouldn't worry about it, you already bid and worrying about getting ripped off is the type of thing you do before you hit the submit button. You are more than likely going to get a perfectly fine guitar in 5-7 days after the auction ends so chill out and have fun....:thu:

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Originally posted by chevette



Yeah, but how will he get there if nobody ever buys from him

 

 

True.

 

I have made some excellent deals with Ebay newbie sellers. It comes down to communication. Establish an e-mail correspondence early. Ask lots of friendly questions about EVERYTHING: condition, history, mods, stuff that might not be obvious, nick-picky details about the neck pocket, the condition of pots, jack, tuners, any "issues", funny smells, exposure to smoke, how they plan to pack and ship. Don;t be afraid to raise your concern about the low feedback number; let them put your mind at ease. A telephone call can tell you a LOT about the seller, if they will allow it.

 

If the correspondence feels funny or fishy, don't bid.

 

Newbie auctions tend to finish with lower bids because of the fear of low feedback. If you do your due diligence and use your common sense, I'd say your chances of coming out all right are quite good.

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Originally posted by hollowbox

I've never had a bad experience on Ebay......I'm not really an Ebay whore though either. I wouldn't worry about it, you already bid and worrying about getting ripped off is the type of thing you do before you hit the submit button. You are more than likely going to get a perfectly fine guitar in 5-7 days after the auction ends so chill out and have fun....
:thu:



You're right, thanks everyone for helping Me relax:thu:

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Yeah, you should be covered by Paypal. It will probably be a chore and take some time to get stuff resolved though. Keep a copy of his auction saved locally as well as all emails from PayPal and Ebay if you win. Keep any corresponence with the seller too. Doco never hurts. You can always delete it months down the road.

24 feedbacks at 100% isn't bad. Contrary to what you may read in our almost daily "eBay sucks" threads, most people on eBay aren't out to screw you. It often comes down to bad communications and expectations.

One of the things I do that will decide on whether or not I buy a guitar off of ebay is just to send the seller an email asking for more pics, history, anything just to see if a real person answers and how he/she answers.

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Originally posted by Koz

Contrary to what you may read in our almost daily "eBay sucks" threads, most people on eBay aren't out to screw you. It often comes down to bad communications and expectations.


One of the things I do that will decide on whether or not I buy a guitar off of ebay is just to send the seller an email asking for more pics, history, anything just to see if a real person answers and how he/she answers.



Yep! :thu:

Communication is KEY.

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Pay through PayPal with a credit card. That way you're protected almost as completely as you can be.

You should ask the seller questions to see how they respond. If they don't respond quickly or act like you're annoying them or give you some other reason for pause, then you probably should avoid buying from them.

While their FB isn't that high they can still be good sellers. Check their feedback and look for soft positives like, "Item OK but shipping was slow" or "Not quite what I was expecting but otherwise OK". Things like that might make you want to reconsider.

Also watch out for common scam listings on hijacked accounts. I posted a message in the sticky Fake Chinese Guitar thread that might be useful to you.

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I've bought 2 SX's, one Jay Turser off of Ebay, as well as pickups, parts, etc.. Go to Harmony Central reviews, see how players with more than a couple years experience review a particular model guitar, buy that particular brand and model off of Ebay. If I get really good reviews on a particular knock-off/cheapo, I don't mind getting it. If you're buying a valuable name brand, you better know what you're buying. A lot of fakes, a lot of retro fitted (not original) etc.

Personally, I'd buy an SX and spend the money to get the frets filed and setup if I were you. They're the best guitar for the money.

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You do realize of course this is like trying crack for the first time? Pretty soon you will know your UPS guy by name and send his kids birthday cards. Ebay is like a 24 hour pawnshop used guitar store all rolled into one!!
Anyway yo, you can get some great deals now and again on the bay.u will do fine with the advice you have gotten here:D

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Originally posted by cadfael

You do realize of course this is like trying crack for the first time? ...

 

Yeah I signed up with ebay, won my first auction, then within a month and a half paypal was telling me "you've reached your $2000 limit, you must confirm your bank account". I never bought anything over $50 at the time either.

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