A.D. Homan Posted April 25, 2005 Share Posted April 25, 2005 With hidden _seller_ feedback as well as hidden buyer IDs, it's amazing they're getting such early bids... Is it for real or another scam? http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...item=7317821536 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malcolm clapp Posted April 25, 2005 Share Posted April 25, 2005 Looks OK to me. They had a few negatives a while back, which probably is making them a bit cautious, but quite a few other current listings at reasonable starting prices where you wouldn't think it worth trying a scam. And a reasonably long eBay history. Can't recall ever seeing this concertina up for auction before either. I think we have to be a bit careful about jumping at shadows...but of course, caveat emptor as always! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Chambers Posted April 25, 2005 Share Posted April 25, 2005 With hidden _seller_ feedback as well as hidden buyer IDs, it's amazing they're getting such early bids...Is it for real or another scam? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Andy, I think its for real. The seller has been registered with eBay since 29th December 1999 and, with a Feedback Score of 1,786, 98.2% of which is positive (though private), the seller looks extremely legitimate (though maybe they got some very nasty comments that they wanted to keep private ?). Scammers typically have no feedback, and have usually only just registered with eBay, though some might buy a few cheap items, to get some positive feedback, before attempting to sell something expensive that they don't have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Read Posted April 25, 2005 Share Posted April 25, 2005 some scammers have been known to hijack identities. However, why would they hijack an indifferent feedback such as this. Risky but may be OK. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.D. Homan Posted April 25, 2005 Author Share Posted April 25, 2005 some scammers have been known to hijack identities. However, why would they hijack an indifferent feedback such as this. Risky but may be OK. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Usually, when I'm considering putting a bid on an eBay concertina or button accordion, I write to the seller and request further info: how long has the seller owned it, who was the previous owner, do they have other pics, and some other questions. I'm trying to get a sense about whether the auction is "for real." 100% of the time, until now, real sellers have responded with courtesy; the only auctions where I got no response, or a minimal response that evaded my questions, were cases where the auction was determined to be questionable and ended by eBay. In this case, yesterday evening I got a response from the seller, simply stating that it was "real" and completely avoiding all the (easy) questions I posed. So, if this is not a scam, then at the very least the seller is somewhat rude! I'm eager to see what the final price will be on this auction, since the concealed IDs and feedback might scare off some bidders. -Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Chambers Posted April 25, 2005 Share Posted April 25, 2005 Risky but may be OK.<{POST_SNAPBACK}> Well, I have "put my money where my mouth is", and started to bid on it anyway ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malcolm clapp Posted April 25, 2005 Share Posted April 25, 2005 In this case, yesterday evening I got a response from the seller, simply stating that it was "real" and completely avoiding all the (easy) questions I posed. So, if this is not a scam, then at the very least the seller is somewhat rude! Maybe the seller was offended by any suggestion that this auction might not be genuine. Some people can take offence more easily than others. Perhaps he/she reads these posts.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.D. Homan Posted April 25, 2005 Author Share Posted April 25, 2005 Maybe the seller was offended by any suggestion that this auction might not be genuine. Some people can take offence more easily than others. Perhaps he/she reads these posts.... <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Well, considering that she is also effectively concealing her negative feedback comments from being read, I'll take a wild guess that buyers have had trouble interacting with her... Hope she does read this: at least there will be some feedback about her that _can_ be read. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael01612 Posted April 25, 2005 Share Posted April 25, 2005 (edited) Simple suggestions to rout out a scam....email the seller and ask for the concertina to be played over the telephone...or ask for a specific picture to be taken (say with the bellows open and a penny placed on the bellows). These simple techniques will at least prove the seller has the item, but doesn't say anything about the quality of the item for sale. The methods of payment being accepted...are all without recourse. A PowerSeller not taking PayPal makes me wonder a little. Surely they have a PayPal account, but don't choose to offer it as a means for this particular auction. Edited April 25, 2005 by michael01612 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.D. Homan Posted April 25, 2005 Author Share Posted April 25, 2005 Simple suggestions to rout out a scam....email the seller and ask for the concertina to be played over the telephone...or ask for a specific picture to be taken (say with the bellows open and a penny placed on the bellows). These simple techniques will at least prove the seller has the item, but doesn't say anything about the quality of the item for sale. Exactly -- those are the types of questions I usually ask -- and they are _always_ answered by legit sellers. The only times I got unsatisfactory response to requests like those above coincided with auctions being "disappeared" by eBay. Hence my suspicion about this auction. Again, the high feedback would generally indicate that the seller is indeed legit; the hidden negative feedback does give me cause for concern and I am not likely to bid on this item... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael01612 Posted April 25, 2005 Share Posted April 25, 2005 As it is an estate sale....and you follow the "About Me" link on the ID....the link goes to a "Love One Another" obituary for her Aunt Florence Brown Lamson. If you google that name, you can find the obituary. http://www.cabinet.com/obituaries/2005/Obit04.07.05.html Aunt Florence had many neices...I would gess sleeping dragoness is one. She is not wasting anytime selling off Aunties estate as she just died at the end of March. The seller's other items are all from the same estate, apparently. In one picture on another item...I can even spot the same rug as in the concertina photo. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...6526418324&rd=1 All the items are listed with the same payment options...so maybe nothing particularly wrong with the concertina that would cause it to be listed with these payment options. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Chambers Posted April 26, 2005 Share Posted April 26, 2005 The methods of payment being accepted...are all without recourse. A PowerSeller not taking PayPal makes me wonder a little. Surely they have a PayPal account, but don't choose to offer it as a means for this particular auction.<{POST_SNAPBACK}> Plenty of sellers have had bad experiences with PayPal, or find it too expensive (especially when selling high value items), and are no longer prepared to accept it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Read Posted April 30, 2005 Share Posted April 30, 2005 I've been trying to get information from this seller and I have to say this is the most evasive individual I've encountered. e.g. Q 'do all the end bolts turn with a screwdriver?" A " I haven't tampered with the screws" Regarding why they have hidden feedback, they asked me to confine my questions to the item! I'm feeling we should beware of this one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.D. Homan Posted May 1, 2005 Author Share Posted May 1, 2005 I've been trying to get information from this seller and I have to say this is the most evasive individual I've encountered. e.g. Q 'do all the end bolts turn with a screwdriver?" A " I haven't tampered with the screws" Regarding why they have hidden feedback, they asked me to confine my questions to the item! I'm feeling we should beware of this one. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I'm glad I'm not the only one getting this type of response from her. Oh well. She set a low reserve for the instrument, and this is her only concertina sale, and she probably didn't do her homework, she doesn't know that by responding with more specific info, she could inspire confidence for higher bid. I was prepared to bid up to a fairly high price for this one, but due to the lack of sufficient responses to my questions, I won't place a single bid. If I'm not the only one who feels that way, she might get considerably less money for this item, which had potential to go higher. It's her loss -- not to mention that she already has quite a bit of negative feedback -- not just one or two negatives, but many. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Read Posted May 4, 2005 Share Posted May 4, 2005 So I decided to put in a bid and guess what? I was banned by seller for asking a question! if anybody on C.Net won it, I'd be most interested in finding out how the transaction goes. She must be one crazy dragoness! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now