Ebay

- Bid below CDN and pray the coin is good if you win.
- Never get in a bidding war, lock in your max bid and be done.
- Don't pay a low price and outrageous shipping. Shipping fees are non-refundable.

-Ask for good pictures, but to your email. This isn't the nicest thing to do, but it'll give you an advantage if the pictures in the auction are poor. Usually, they will put them up anyway.

-Try to bid at times when almost nobody is on, like the middle of the night. Choice is usually limited now. However, do not rule out 'on' times.

-Ignore NNC and nonsense 'certified', unless you are taking into account likely cleaning and a lower grade.

-Bid low if you are unsure. I have avoided being burned a few times this way. Didn't get a great deal like I hoped, but came out about even.

-Don't do business with people who respond to your questions in ALL CAPS or are rude, at least most of the time

Anbody now any really honest people on ebay who I should look at their store first?

bobby131313 was just wondering how you get such great coin pictures. I have had terible luck getting quality detailed pictures.

have you seen sellers with lots of coins for sale?

most have clear pictures... SOME DON'T! they even graded it! saying its uncirculated or BU or very nice coin or something like that.... why not show it in the picture?

AND WHY THE UNCLEAR PICTURE/S?

it's impossible not to get a clear picture of some coins while other coins have a clear pictures...

what's the catch... he he he... that/those seller/s is/are trying to get a few dollar over the actual price of the coin if ever the pictures are clear...

also if something looks to good to be true dont bid. Watch items from beginning to end and also Don't go for people with under 100 rep.

at first I got burned as well not bad I got my coins but paid way to much. Now I'm finding I win key dates for under 100 bucks recent result was a 1886 nickel for 31.00 and turns out to be a 150-200 dollar coin and my most prized pocession a ms64 1928 Peace dollar wich I got for a mear 67.39

My advise would be look for things like returns and guaruntees. I now don't purchase from a coin seller unless they have at least something like a 7 day grace period where you can inspect the coin and return if neccesary. No, shipping is not paid for by the seller but if it is a more expensive coin then I would look for these return details. The best one that I have seen is 30 days no questions asked returns.

Something else is I would try to steer clear from the sellers that sell in lots and it is a flat rate for a certain coin but you don't really know what the coin looks like or what date it is. For this there really isn't a whole lot of recoil on the seller because normally in the description is says something along the lines of no guaruntee or what-not. Hope I could help.

cabomhn

A couple more items:

1. Make sure they offer insurance. A lot of people add $5.00 for S&H and then put a single stamp on a cheap envelope and hope it gets there. A true collector will want the coin to get there and keep you happy.

2. Buy coins from sellers in your country. Sometimes the S&H can kill you and there are a lot less chances of someone taking advantage of you. Do NOT buy coins from China or other countries nearby with all the counterfeit 'coins' that are going around.

3. Research. Look into the things you are wanting to buy, this will help you get a better understanding of what you want and need.

4. Multiple bids. Find a coin you want and find multiple auctions of the same thing so your chances are better of getting at least one.

5. Mis-labeling. Find the items that people do not list properly and try to jump on these when you can. There actually are a few people that have no idea what they have and trying get a few bucks from it, these are the items you can clean up on.

7. PCGS or not PCGS. If someone quotes PCGS as the price of the coins then run. They usually slab their own coins and drag new collectors into the mix by thinking they are getting a great deal. If they really had $10,000 in coins, they would not let them go for $20.

6. Learn from mistakes. We all make them and learn from them. From the few threads you have started lately I am guessing that you bought a couple of silver coins from a seller on ebay that graded them in their basement and tried to pass them off as one of the major grading services. After getting your coins you quickly discovered this and found that there was no return policy so you did the next thing and went to your local dealer for help. He/she told you what you had (which was what you discovered) and that they really were not worth that much. If it was me, I would put those coins somewhere you can see them so you can remind yourself now and then of the mistake and hopefully not repeat it. I did this two years ago with some Lincoln Cents that were MS69 and 70 that turned out being MS63-65 which is a major price change. There was no return policy and the writing was very well done that there were a ton of loop holes to cover him and not me.