david dufficy Posted January 26, 2005 Share Posted January 26, 2005 I was just wondering if there is a new sheriff in town. Lately every vintage concertina on Ebay is currently being won by Frank4983. Is he a new restorer, starting a concertina shop, or just a well off collector? I don't mind being outbid (well I do mind a little ) but I am sure curious. David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Chambers Posted January 26, 2005 Share Posted January 26, 2005 I don't know who he is, but I would be a bit concerned if he was bidding on anything of mine, as he has only been a "Member since: 07-Jan-05", has zero feedback and bids on no less than 9 concertinas and a rare Vintage Gibson Snakehead Model A Mandolin ca. 1922. He may well be a legitimate buyer, but it is a combination that sounds alarm bells on eBay these days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david dufficy Posted January 26, 2005 Author Share Posted January 26, 2005 That is what I thought. I didn't want to cast aspersions unfairly, but waht with the new registration, the bidding on every vintage instrument in sight, I must admit I had bad thoughts! Especially with some very interesting concertinas currently up for bid. Frank4983 has won at least one auction so it will be interesting to see what happens. David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david dufficy Posted January 27, 2005 Author Share Posted January 27, 2005 Well I just heard from one of the sellers of a concertina that frank4983 had won on ebay and he just received his payment via paypal. So it looks like I may have jumped to a hasty conclusion. So if Frank is reading this, I apologize. Looks like there is some more competion for concertinas now. David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandy Winters Posted January 28, 2005 Share Posted January 28, 2005 As of noon on Jan. 28th 'Frank' still has *0* feedback. Until I see positive feedback from a legitimate seller I would still be suspicious. How did you hear from a seller and when was the sale?? How come no feedback?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Chambers Posted January 28, 2005 Share Posted January 28, 2005 (edited) As of noon on Jan. 28th 'Frank' still has *0* feedback. Until I see positive feedback from a legitimate seller I would still be suspicious.<{POST_SNAPBACK}> Certainly some positive feedback would remove any concerns about the intentions, or bona fides, of a new bidder, especially one who dives in with bids on so many (and some of them expensive) instruments. How come no feedback?? But unfortunately these days many sellers wait until they receive positive feedback from the buyer, before they will do likewise themselves. On the other hand, negative feedback is often given very quickly, and he doesn't have any of that either. Edited January 28, 2005 by Stephen Chambers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david dufficy Posted January 29, 2005 Author Share Posted January 29, 2005 What I did was to email the seller of one of the first concertinas he won the bidding for. I got a reply back saying he had payed by paypal. I too look forward to seeing what the feedback will be. David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandy Winters Posted January 29, 2005 Share Posted January 29, 2005 I did a search for completed items and only found one concertina that he 'won', on Jan 24th, with a winning bid of $300. Still no feedback. I'm still a bit suspicious. He has current high bids totalling at least $5000, and that's just on items we know about, concertinas and the mandolin. Interestingly, he has not bid on any item posted by Chris Algar. The seller of the mandolin and one of the more expensive concertinas that 'Frank' is bidding on (totalling over $4000 in bids) is the same person and is a good friend of mine. We spoke yesterday about this issue and both agree that the sellers are not in any real financial jeopardy. However if Frank is a 'crank' bidder, it's a real pain in the butt. I recommended to him that he email Frank with a request of some sort of references and/or proof that he intends to, and is capable, of honoring all his bids. He's still waiting for a reply. Many sellers on ebay state very clearly that they will reject bids from '0' feedback bidders. Sounds like a plan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Chambers Posted January 29, 2005 Share Posted January 29, 2005 The seller of the mandolin and one of the more expensive concertinas that 'Frank' is bidding on (totalling over $4000 in bids) is the same person and is a good friend of mine.<{POST_SNAPBACK}> Then I can well understand your own concern, and that of your friend booseyflute. I did a search for completed items and only found one concertina that he 'won', on Jan 24th, with a winning bid of $300. Still no feedback.I have posted a list (below) of the twelve "Current and recent auctions bid on by frank4983( 0 )". In fact he has been the high bidder in four auctions so far, marked with asterisks. I'm still a bit suspicious. He has current high bids totalling at least $5000, and that's just on items we know about, concertinas and the mandolin.The list below is a complete one of everything he has bid on, and is currently bidding on. Interestingly, he has not bid on any item posted by Chris Algar.Actually he is bidding on one of Chris Algar's (cocoa111) instruments, a "Lachenal 20 Key Concertina", though I don't know why he would be wanting to buy so many 2-row anglos. Current and recent auctions bid on by frank4983( 0 ) 3776768495 17-Jan-05 24-Jan-05 20:03:44 US $300.00 Lachenal 20-button Anglo Concertina – no reserve – frank4983 (*) 390gk 3776355405 16-Jan-05 26-Jan-05 02:51:57 US $260.00 Concertina - anglo - Lachenal - Butler frank4983 (*) thesoundpost 3777114601 19-Jan-05 26-Jan-05 09:14:13 £156.00 Old Vintage Concertina Squeezebox Accordion frank4983 (*) joebhabra 3776864327 18-Jan-05 28-Jan-05 03:31:20 US $610.00 Lachenal Concertina no 127806 frank4983 (*) bobsug 3776930677 19-Jan-05 29-Jan-05 18:00:00 £335.00 Vintage Concertina "Lachenal & Co." London cocoa111 johnbingleyantiques 3777735192 22-Jan-05 29-Jan-05 21:00:00 £600.00 Anglo Concertina by George Jones - 26 key in G/D frank4983 billcro5 3777845233 22-Jan-05 29-Jan-05 22:10:06 US $1,925.00 Vintage Lachenal-Boyd 56-key English Concertina frank4983 booseyflute 3778489241 25-Jan-05 30-Jan-05 17:43:08 US $350.00 52 Button Anglo Concertina frank4983 seatigersell 3778078074 23-Jan-05 30-Jan-05 21:04:29 US $2,026.00 Vintage Gibson Snakehead Model A Mandolin ca. 1922 frank4983 booseyflute 3778099176 23-Jan-05 30-Jan-05 22:10:58 £74.00 VINTAGE LACHENAL & Co ANGLO CONCERTINA frank4983 20wahs 3778345215 24-Jan-05 31-Jan-05 22:48:44 £121.02 Lachenal 20 Key Concertina frank4983 cocoa111 3778776740 26-Jan-05 02-Feb-05 23:07:56 £51.00 WARD VINTAGE CONCERTINA.VERY OLD COLLECTABLE. WITH BOX frank4983 destiny-uk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimLucas Posted January 29, 2005 Share Posted January 29, 2005 ...I don't know why he would be wanting to buy so many 2-row anglos. Hoping to corner the market? Only slightly more seriously... maybe he's trying to amass enough instruments to open a sales shop? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Read Posted January 29, 2005 Share Posted January 29, 2005 He doesn't seem to be bidding too intelligently. Lots of increasing bids. I guess he is driving the market up. Perhaps he's after the reeds? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Timson Posted January 29, 2005 Share Posted January 29, 2005 Well, he's just won the Jones 26 button G/D at 600 pounds. I have been following this auction since I bought an identical concertina (right down to the SA in the fretwork) 2 years ago for 600 pounds (!). I hope it's going to a good home since those little Jones's are quite nice boxes, within their limits (mine is currently with my nephew). Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandy Winters Posted January 30, 2005 Share Posted January 30, 2005 My friend 'Booseyflute' did get a response from 'Frank' indicating that he was legitimate and would be able and willing to pay for any won items. He was outbid on the Lachenal/Boyd, by about $500. He is still bidding on the mandolin. Perhaps his intentions are not sinister, just naive. Steven, how did you get a complete list of *everything* he is bidding on??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Chambers Posted January 30, 2005 Share Posted January 30, 2005 Steven, how did you get a complete list of *everything* he is bidding on???<{POST_SNAPBACK}> Sandy, It is quite simple, just go to the header of any eBay page and click on the blue link Advanced Search , below the "Search" box. That will bring you to the Search: Find Items page. On the left hand side is a box headed Search, subheading Items . Find Items, click on the second link down Items by Bidder. That brings you to the Search: Items by Bidder page. Enter the Bidder's User ID and tick the box "Include completed listings (last 30 days)". You will then get *everything* in the last 30 days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandy Winters Posted January 30, 2005 Share Posted January 30, 2005 Thanks, that's good info to know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helen Posted January 30, 2005 Share Posted January 30, 2005 I've always been a little afraid of Ebay. What I don't understand, having never bid on Ebay, is how someone gets feedback if they have never bid? In other words, if some sellers won't sell to bidders with 0 feedback, does this mean a new person wouldn't be able to bid successfully to them? And how do you get feedback? Do you win and pay and the seller puts up positive feedback? Do all sellers bother to do so? Sorry for all the questions, but you all are so knowledgeable about this stuff. And I wasn't always sure I was accurately following what was being discussed. Thanks, Helen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Read Posted January 30, 2005 Share Posted January 30, 2005 I see our friend just missed out on a pretty sad lachenal 20-button although somebody paid GBP155 - about GBP50 more than it would have gone for last year. This for an instrument that will probably need about GBP250 worth of work (the seller notes that one end bolt sheared off when he tried to open it!). The odds are that the reeds are brass too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Read Posted January 30, 2005 Share Posted January 30, 2005 Hi Helen, When you sell or buy, the other party leaves feedback after completion of the deal. You can leave positive, negative or neutral plus a comment. Feedback is important as it is the best way of knowing how scrupulous someone is. The reluctance to deal with zero feedback people is due to some idiots who try to cheat the system or waste people's time. If you have zero feedback, it is probably a good idea to start with low-price items to build up your reputation. Usually people will agree to your bidding if you contact them and seem genuine. You do have to be careful buying on ebay as most concertinas are from antique dealers who have no idea what they've got. Most of these (in my experience) are unplayable and/or need a lot of work. Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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