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 Replies: 14 / Views: 1,619 |
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Valued Member
United States
136 Posts |
Okay, I guess I don't collect enough and I've been trying NOT to buy stuff but I am sick of daily getting NOTHING to put in my books for a while, so I decided that other than a couple mint proof sets and one gold coins and two silver Morgans, I'd take a chance on my first time buying "circulated coins" on ebay. I thought to buy Eisenhower dollars because as I kid, I have like 50 silver dollars (actual silver) my grandfather gave me, which was stolen when my sister at age 14 began smoking and decided she would steal these one at a time to support her habit. I had a book with NONE in it (Eisenhower/Susan B Anthonys). So I went to ebay. I bought a lot labled "20 Eisenhower dollars from the 70's). It implied it was a mixture - not searched but I figured probably not but I thought there must be a four or five different ones in there. I get them all today and they are all exactly the same. Every last one! Photo showed one 1972 (let me guess, the most common?) and the rest too close, or upside down you couldn't see any other dates. I should've been saavy to that and it did cross my mind they did that on purpose. But my first real purchase and so I took a shot, figuring I get most of my money back face value. I paid 28.98 with shipping. I guess if I resold them I get most of my money back but ebay nobody would buy all the same date right? So now I don't trust ebay. Here's what I would like people to chime in on: what do you look for in ebay to know people are hiding something? Here's all I learned so far: 1) Ask specifically what the stuff is (dates/mint marks) before bidding 2) don't trust photos 3) don't believe "not searched" Please give me more tips on what to look for!! Thanks. |
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
1248 Posts |
insist on images of both sides of the coins and insist on images showing ALL coins, both sides.
excuses will be:
scanner problems
camera problems
friend took pictures
no idea how to upload
away on holiday
coins in my bank vault
selling these for a friend
and many more....
STAY AWAY... go buy at an auction...
warnings should be:
just found them in the attic/ baserment/ old files etc...
sell for a friend
estate sale
selling old coin collection
selling my doubles
bought a whole bunch at an auction
1 day listing
no paypal
3 day listing etc.....
have no idea what they are worth ( though seller has many others close to list prices listed)
so. be careful, if in doubt, ask here
there are many very knowledgable people HERE eager to help and prevent rip offs
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Valued Member
 United States
136 Posts |
Boy that eliminates almost 3/4 of the auctions! Hope nobody here is doing these practices. Yeah, I stayed away from a few. One guy had a "jar" of coins, and he said jar not included; I just put them in there to show how I got them. Onlly before, he said in the same description he had not taken them out of the jar! I'd also say if they said "I haven't looked at them" is a huge flag. Who doesn't look at them? I thought "selling my doubles" would be a good thing... and don't people find things at estates and auctions? I also saw one today for Ikes "one day auction" 40% silver.... Oh man, I am soooo weary now! I am gonna not search ebay anymore. I'll just leave the holes or go to a coin show and look at them. Ugh. THANKS for your help. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2049 Posts |
Quote:
warnings should be:
just found them in the attic/ baserment/ old files etc...
sell for a friend
estate sale
selling old coin collection
selling my doubles
bought a whole bunch at an auction
1 day listing
no paypal
3 day listing etc.....
have no idea what they are worth ( though seller has many others close to list prices listed)
For the most part I agree with your listing, but there are a few I wonder why you have flagged: sell for a friend - I actively sell on ebay, and sell for friends because of my feedback/reputation tends to bring more than my friends would get (or some dont have ebay accounts and it would be counterproductive for them to try to sell as a brand new member) selling my doubles - dont see anything wrong with this...people upgrade parts of their collections all the time, and that leaves spares that need to find new homes 3-day listing - not sure what's wrong with this either...depending on my schedule, I may do 3-day listings to time it to end on a better day (i.e. Sunday night) or if I know something is coming up (going on vacation, business trip, friends/relatives coming into town). I dont consider 7-day auctions to be foolproof and conversely 3-day auctions to be something to be weary of. I'm not trying to rip your post apart, but rather see if I can get more info from you as to why you think these factors are reasons to stay away from auctions.  |
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Locked
822 Posts |
hhbkiddo, two-thirds of your "warnings" are perfectly legitimate reasons to sell.
I've never scammed anyone in my life and I've sold coins for friends, sold coins for estates, sold doubles, sold coins I've bought at an auction, and the list goes on.
Oh no! I've sold my friend's doubles! Ackkk! < hiding from the police >
Somebody's paranoid. Just use common sense and, as stated, ask here if you're not sure.
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
838 Posts |
The following is not deceitful, but it irritates me as a buyer.
How about the listings with two key/semi-key dates, starting bid 3 times trends, and "buy it now" for a few dollars more. I wish I could somehow filter those from my search.
Are they hoping people (1) can't look up fair market value, (2) can't add two numbers, and (3) think they're getting a great deal to "buy it now" for only a few dollars more than starting price?
It confuses me why so many sellers continue this tactic of $459.99 start price, $469.99 "buy it now". I notice a lot of these kind of auctions expire with no activity. You wonder why they aren't listed just $469.99 "buy it now", with no auction whatsoever. Sellers must lose money on the extra fees. Any ideas on why this is done?
PS: LQQK, would make a great addition to any collection!
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2669 Posts |
Also, The ones that scream at you in unnaturally large and vibrant colors! blech! People who have to use that sort of tactic have nothing else in that auction worth attention  |
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Valued Member
United States
383 Posts |
Quote:
It confuses me why so many sellers continue this tactic of $459.99 start price, $469.99 "buy it now". I notice a lot of these kind of auctions expire with no activity. You wonder why they aren't listed just $469.99 "buy it now", with no auction whatsoever. Sellers must lose money on the extra fees. Any ideas on why this is done? Funny you mention this b/c I got burned by this once, albeit on a much smaller scale. There was something with a buy-it-now for $12.99 and a starting price of $7.99. I was willing to pay the $12.99, but I thought I'd try to save a few bucks. I set a max bid of $12.99, hoping nobody else would bid and I'd get it for $7.99. When the auction was over, it closed for over $20. I bet the seller was real shocked to see that one! Of course I was mad at not using the BIN feature, but what's done is done at that point. |
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Rest in Peace
United States
1729 Posts |
Speaking as one who has been on ebay since August 1997 ... indeed, there may be key terms ("unsearched" comes to mind) which are tipoffs to less-than-honest listings. But read the entire description to get a feel for what the seller is trying to do. If he's doing a "sales job" on potential bidders, he's in the same category as telemarketers. But if he lets the item speak for itself and describes it accurately, with few adjectives (sorry, English teacher here) and no unsubstantiated claims, you may have a winner. And try "what-if" on any listing ... as in "what if these '70's coins are all from the same year since he doesn't say they aren't?" In other words, assume that the worst-possible scenario is what you're looking at, not the best, and bid accordingly. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4085 Posts |
I think the advice to assume the worst is good. If you can't tell if the coin is cleaned or not, bid as if it is cleaned. If you can't tell if it is Fine or Very Fine condition, bid as if it were Fine at best and maybe a little less just in case it is just Very Good. In your case, I don't think the seller was probably trying to pull a fast one - "Never ascribe to malice that which is adequately explained by incompetence.". - Napoleon Bonaparte (et al). They may have listed them not even thinking someone would want different dates. You paid $9 over face amount to have them shipped. Sure, you don't need 20 1972's, but you're still only out a few bucks. Spend some time watching auctions and deciding what you would bid. Don't actually bid and see how they end up. It's good practice. ebay can be ok if you are particular and look at a lot of auctions. I've gotten some killer coins for good prices. And sometimes, you get a disappointing coin. The key is to have paid a price where the disappointment doesn't really cost you. Ken p.s. I see you listed the extras on the Trade forum. Great idea! Edited by KenKat
05/13/2009 4:14 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
608 Posts |
When looking at an item on E-bay I always check to see what else the seller is selling. It will give you a very good idea if he is a dealer or not. Just my Two Cent worth. Bill |
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Valued Member
United States
136 Posts |
Those are all great things to consider. I like the What if ... and the bid as it was the lower quality etc if you can't tell. I do tend to look at what they are selling. That's how I figured on a lot of auctions the "unsearched" was a lie because they are selling all coins. No way someone selling all coins didn't check their cents to see if a 1909vdb was in there! LOL Do they think we are THAT stupid? And though naive sometimes, I am not THAT stupid! And doesn't that HURT their own auctions?
Better to be honest and not sugar coat; I think you'll do better that way.
PS I also don't like auctions (not on just coins but ANYTHING) where there's not much of a description. I personally put all I know about the item . . . and I've oftentimes sold things others could not. And I know it's my honesty, my willingness to send scans and answer questions and all the extra info I provide.
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
1248 Posts |
hello, all I was trying to bring the excuses a seller has so he can "walk" away from giving any more info. I am not , by all means, stamp every seller as a "crook". there are many very fine sellers out there, but outnumbered by the not so fine sellers. I have been ripped off more than once. Now I look for the warning signs and ask questions. If I am not happy with the answers, I walk away. Since ebay has changed their very selfish, self serving conditions... things are worse. It is now impossible to contact a bidder and warn them about something funny while a auction is running. It is only possible if you know the bidder, or complain to ebay....and that takes 3 days for them to respond......(mmmm 24 hr listing or 3 day listing....forget it) so please honest sellers,,, I did not mean to step on your towes... HHB |
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
598 Posts |
Thailand 50 Satang Bronze/Aluminum Copper/Zinc Whatever(edit>>> 1957ish?)... NOT GOLD!  http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...290315714719A good example of how to be taken and then just let it slide cuz you as the buyer should have done some research... but I think the seller did just the rite amount of b.s. research(?) to scam someone.  The thing is worth less than 5-10 bucks. Correct me if I'm wrong on this coin, but as soon as its not gold, I couldn't give a flying rats...  >>> 2nd edit... I guess mistakes can happen. I notified the seller before posting this. The listing has now been removed. It was just an example of how things can go bad... even with a decent seller, who has sold/is selling other "similar" items. I thought I was wrong once, but I was mistaken.... don't you believe it!  Edited by IBGolden
05/14/2009 7:18 pm
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Valued Member
United States
136 Posts |
oh yeah, a lot of times I see that "gold" when it's gold plated or something. Bleh.
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Replies: 14 / Views: 1,619 |
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Posted 05/13/2009 11:20 am
