Ordering Stuff from eBay

[Falcon Ranchero]

I've heard tell that one source of kits modelers use is eBay, and I've began looking more so myself and have seen quite a few things I'd like to order. Though I did find out you actually don't need an account to buy stuff, my dad is skeptical of ordering off there for credit card safety reasons. Might be a silly question but is eBay safe to order from? I must admit I am mildly unsure after hearing some scam stories from eBay so if there's any tips on how to know for sure an ad is genuine, that would be great to know. 

[sidcharles]

i've not had problems in over 25 years.

look for seller satisfaction and if it's less than 90%, don't buy. more BLAH_BLAH_BLAH_BLAH comes along every day.

if you have the luxury (desire/ time) make an offer. if it's accepted, good. if not, you need to decide what its value is to you.

ebay uses credit cards, so check with your cc company and ask them what their "insurance" policy is regarding purchases.

i've had good luck with Bank of America Visa, but maybe all cc companies have to abide by the same rules.

final advice?

 

caveat emptor!

[Volzfan59]

I’ve ordered a bunch of model kits, bass fishing tackle and stuff for my boat off of eBay. Never had an issue. Sold two bass boats on eBay, again no problem. 

[JollySipper]

Yes, definitely look at sellers ratings! I generally won't buy from anyone with less than about a 98%........ Also, it might be just me who does this, but I try to buy kits from someone who deals mostly in model stuff. Sellers like consignment shops might get one kit in a month/year whatever and don't really know much about them. A seller that deals mostly in model stuff will know more about what they have......

[stavanzer]

I used to buy a lot from eBay. I always had a separate credit card for purchases. That way we were protected from them getting our 'Main' account.

But, that was about 10 years ago, so things may have changed.

As others said, watch the vendors. If you have any doubts, you could always post a link to the auction in question to see if anybody here has dealt with the Seller.

Getting Good Deals on eBay is a matter, of Patience, Timing & Luck. Back when I was buying stuff every month, and winning 18-35 auctions a month, I won about 25% of the bids I placed. So, If you are bidding on only one or two auctions, don't be surprised if you don't win them often. I'm not saying bid lots of times. I'm just saying that winning bids is a percentage game, and often the only way to substantially change the odds is to bid Higher than you may be comfortable with. So, I don't recommend bidding more than feel like you can spend.

Since your past comments about your most wanted kits, seem to indicate that you really want some rare and potentially very spendy kits, patience will be your best tactic. You may bid and lose 7 or 8 times before you get the grail you want, at a price you can afford. Don't get discouraged. Play "eBay Grail Hunting" as a Video Game, rather than taking it too seriously, and you may be better off.

Good Luck.

[gtx6970]

I use Ebay on a regular basis  

And ALWAYS pay with Paypal . 

It pulls from an account I have setup strictly for Ebay purchases 

Ive never had a problem in over 20 years ( knocks on wood ) 

 

ps, ALWAYS ck the sellers feedback rating

Edited Wednesday at 04:30 PM by gtx6970

[iamsuperdan]

I've had mixed success on eBay. Msotly, things have been fine when purchasing. Arrives as described, and usually arrives quickly. Like others have said, pay attention to the buyer and their rating/reviews, and trust your gut. But I don;t use them much anymore.

Selling has been an absolute farce, and I'll never try selling on there again.

 

Two bad experiences. One as a buyer, one as a seller.

I purchased a kit from a seller in the UK. Seller and Ebay say it is showing as delivered.  My tracking number shows it as undelivered. It never arrived here, but EBay said too bad, so sad, it shows as delivered. So I'm out $100.

Then, I sold a slotcar to a buyer in the UK. Tracking number shows it is delivered. Buyer says he never received it. Ebay says the buyer never received it so I have to refund him. So I refund him $120, and I no longer have that slotcar.

And you can't argue it or discuss it with anyone. 

 

So I avoid EBay for the most part these days. There are other places to buy from.

 

[Rob Hall]

I've been buying models (built, unbuilt, old and new), promos, resin, 3D printed kits and parts, and die cast from eBay since 1997.   Only a handful of transactions went sideways.  

[Falcon Ranchero]

Thanks for all the good advice. I'd probably stick to cheap cheap cheap purchases if I do end up being able to order from eBay. Probably wouldn't bid on anything, rather just stick to items that are plainly being sold to whoever comes first. Right now I'm just trying to convince my dad to order a $14 1960 Plymouth sales brochure from a 99% rated seller that is only one province over so we'll see how that goes. No credit card for myself and even if I did have one it is a certain gaurentee my parents wouldn't let me use it for eBay until I'm moved out and I can do whatever.

Edited Wednesday at 05:35 PM by Falcon Ranchero

[1930fordpickup]

I can not ad much more than other on here have. Read past bad feedback. If it looks unsure to you dont bid. Figure out a price you would pay and ad the shipping cost into the figure for whatever it is. 

I have purchased way to many kits, parts and supply's on ebay. Only a few problems and they were resolved but one. 

Being you live on a border town if you had a friend across the bridge things might be easier for you to purchase in the US. 

[Ace-Garageguy]

1) GET A PAYPAL ACCOUNT FIRST.

That way you have two levels of protection if you get a shrink-wrapped box of sprues that was listed as a sealed kit.

It happens.

BUT...in thousands of transactions on eBay using PayPal, I've never lost a nickel.

2) NEVER GET IN BIDDING WARS.

People who keep bidding the price up in $1 increments for a week and think they're going to win because everyone else will drop out are idiots.

 

 

[meechum68]

I got one of my grail kits off Ebay, and tbh, I will be buying another 1-2 of that kit off Ebay soon.  

I have bought truck parts, pc parts etc off there and had no issues! 

 

[Bills72sj]

I have most of my collection (about 300 kits) from ebay. I had minor issues with what came but never lost money. I do not sell on ebay, (I don't need the money). PayPal since day one. Isolates you CC info from sellers.

[slusher]

I have had no problems in 24 years and I use PayPal you have eBay’s you protected by PayPal and eBay and your credit card..

[Mark]

If the item you want is a typical eBay auction (as opposed to a fixed price "Buy it Now"), remember, you only need to be high bidder for one second.  The last one.  Don't get into a whizzing match with anyone three days before the thing ends, just watch, wait, and pounce at the end.

[Rob Hall]

6 minutes ago, Mark said:

If the item you want is a typical eBay auction (as opposed to a fixed price "Buy it Now"), remember, you only need to be high bidder for one second.  The last one.  Don't get into a whizzing match with anyone three days before the thing ends, just watch, wait, and pounce at the end.

Yeah, I always bid in the last 10 sec, usually successful.   

[peteski]

Been on eBay since 1999 and sold (in the past) and buy there.  It is a huge company and it is safe to use (just like amazon is, since eBay is slowly turning into amazon-like marketplace rather than an auction site).  But with tens of millions of transactions there bound to be a small fraction of problematic ones.   With few thousands of purchases I made there I might have had a problem or two (don't remember the specifics) but overall I think Bay is as safe as any other online company. I also only use PayPal.  I'm also not a fan of some of their more recent "features", but they are the largest marketplace of that kind after all, with the largest audience in the world.

BTW, there is a sticky eBay thread for this type of discussion in the General section

[Ace-Garageguy]

1 hour ago, peteski said:

 ...they are the largest marketplace of that kind after all, with the largest audience in the world...

Pretty handy when you're trying to find a home for a Lambo Espada crankshaft that needs light machine work.

It went to Spain, and I got the $10,000 I was after...20 years ago.  

Edited yesterday at 02:09 PM by Ace-Garageguy

[johnyrotten]

2 hours ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

It went to Spain, and I got the $10,000 I was after...20 years ago.  

That's a nice return on the investment, I hope.

[JollySipper]

One thing that hasn't been mentioned yet is ebay gift cards..... It's an easy way to pay for stuff without worrying about your info getting out! I've used them several times, and it's quite handy...... I get them at the local drugstore.........

[Falcon Ranchero]

5 minutes ago, JollySipper said:

One thing that hasn't been mentioned yet is ebay gift cards..... It's an easy way to pay for stuff without worrying about your info getting out! I've used them several times, and it's quite handy...... I get them at the local drugstore.........

That is a very good idea, never would’ve thought of that. Hopefully they sell those around here, don’t recall actually seeing an eBay gift card at the store but my just haven’t been paying attention.

[stitchdup]

if i'm bidding on ebay for an opened kit i always assume a major component is missing and bid accordingly. That way if it is, its less of an issue. I've had more issues with amazon than ebay but i've also found johan kits on amazon for 20 bucks so i guess its swings and roundabouts. if your looking at new buy it now kits you can probably find them cheaper elsewhere but for older kits i still like ebay. I'm one of those folk that puts in my bid at the start cos i dont have the patience to watch them count down. 

[Ace-Garageguy]

6 hours ago, johnyrotten said:

That's a nice return on the investment, I hope.

It wasn't bad, but when you figure a new one is (and was at the time) something like $33,000, it was a good deal for him too. All it needed was the crank journals cut to the first undersize.

[bobss396]

I'm a eBay member since 1999. I buy lots of things there. Model stuff, car parts, clothing, etc.

I use Pay Pal and pay using a debit card I have on file. Over the years my card has been hacked a few times.

I do have saved sellers that I trust. I've only been burned in a scant few transactions in over 1500 + of them.