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eBay or not eBay now there’s a question..


Swaffle88
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I often see lots of nice basses on eBay for reasonable prices but I’m not sure if I trust sending a lot of money incase it’s a scammer! 
My bass collection would be significantly larger if I had the balls to buy things on eBay 😂

Does anyone here buy basses from eBay without issue?

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Whenever I see something I want there, it’s always overpriced - a Japanese Ken Smith Burner 6 (they’re rare but the one there at the moment is higher money than I’ve seen American Smiths here on BC) and an old Musicman Sabre (they are all hugely over priced - same ones for sale for literally years).

I would buy something there though if the seller had great feedback.

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I bought a Baritone and a Bass VI off eBay, both Ibanez and fairly new so I reckoned they had a good chance of playing well, which they did. Neither were very expensive either. Oh, I had an Ibanez SR506 iirc as well, that was local so went and tried it. Pay by PayPal (not always an option if you collect in person though), check feedback, accept that it's eBay and occasionally things go wrong and it's not always easy to sort them out.

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Jean-luc pickguard - 🤣 awesome name!

I would get something if I could travel to collect it but a lot of the time it’s too far 👎

I shouldn’t even be looking or a new bass because I’m getting a new piano delivered today but you guys know scouring for basses is an addiction.. 

Edited by Swaffle88
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Bought quite a few basses from Ebay, never had any problems at all.

All the vendors have been pleasant, everythings been as described.

If I can I'll collect in person, but I've never had any issues with shipping or couriers.

Edited by ahpook
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1 hour ago, Swaffle88 said:

I would get something if I could travel to collect it but a lot of the time it’s too far 👎

 

These days most of the bargains on eBay are those listed as 'local collection only', simply because it reduces the market significantly (prohibitively in some places), and also because most people would prefer the bass to arrive by courier than have to drive to collect. Bummer if the item is in Penzance however!

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Bought a Warwick Star Bass from ebay about a month ago. No issues, it arrived as described and all through the transaction the Seller kept me up to date with things. He had good feedback  which helped my decision and after it arrived and  I mentioned it did not come with the strap part of the strap locks, he apologised  and posted on to me the relevant bits.

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EBay is nearly always safe as a buyer unless you’re unlucky enough to come up against a scammer who sells you a dud, and when you return it, claims you’ve returned a different item. Happened to me two years ago, took a long time to sort and has made me wary of high value purchases there. If I were going to buy a used bass these days it would be on BC or possibly from a reputable dealer

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I've bought numerous basses on eBay with mixed results. Thankfully eBay/ PayPal protect their buyers so will support most return claims.

Crossing the road can be risky...if you really want the item you'll have to take the risk

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20 hours ago, Swaffle88 said:

I often see lots of nice basses on eBay for reasonable prices but I’m not sure if I trust sending a lot of money incase it’s a scammer! 
My bass collection would be significantly larger if I had the balls to buy things on eBay 😂

Does anyone here buy basses from eBay without issue?

I have done several times, yes. 

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7 hours ago, Beedster said:

'local collection only'

Beware of this, unless you're ready and willing to fully test the bass when you collect it (including truss rod adjusting), and does the seller have an amp to try it with? Or can you take your own? Are you allowed to make a noise at the seller's home? Or are you prepared to take the bass back there if you find it's not right once you get it home?

It happened to me like this: I arrived at the very posh house as it was getting dark and spitting with rain... the homeowner (dad) was hovering around outside, clearly concerned about whomever the heck was turning up at his house...

Once I'd done a slightly awkward meet and greet with the father, then the seller (teenager) and his mum , I did a quick visual check on the bass as they all watched me play a few quiet notes via the lad's practice amp, before I thanked them, paid cash and left. The bass looked minty enough, and the controls worked OK.

Next day at home, I realised the TR adjuster was knackered when I attempted to tweak it.

Now, I may be an old softie, but I don't think the young lad was aware of the fault. He seemed so pleased about selling the bass, and it wasn't expensive, so I really couldn't be bothered with complaining and negotiating with his mum, and returning it the 30-odd miles.

Turned out that the TR adjuster was not only rounded out, but also seized solid on the TR, so it snapped when I used the 'last resort' (an easy-out)... so the neck was (is) firewood unless I manage to open it up and change the TR one day.

So to sum up my thoughts -- P&P would have been a whole lot better. I probably won't be doing the 'collection only' thing again.

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Sounds like a gutter mate and a bit awkward with the young guys parents watching you 🤦‍♂️ To be honest I didn’t even consider checking the TR that’s a fair shout. I think I’ll just stick to shops for the time being.. or maybe even a trustworthy seller from here 😃


Out of interest which bass was it? 

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20 years, and thousands of Pounds worth of transactions, buying a selling musical instruments on eBay and I've only ever had a few problems all of which were the fault of the courier and were sorted out under the insurance.

Most of the instruments I'm interested in are only available by either buying a new one direct from the luthier or finding a second hand one one eBay. I'm happy to buy on the basis of some photos and a brief description, and often from an entirely different continent, because I know that if I can't get on with what I've bought I'll be able to move it on without much difficulty and no significant loss.

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I've bought basses of eBay. Valuable ones I've collected if within 100 miles or so and paid cash after testing (hadn't occurred to me to check that the TR is working or not - useful advice). I had a problem with one bass off eBay where the truss rod was broken (bought delivered, not collected) and simply returned it and got my money back - simples.  Buy from sellers with 100% feedback and where the listing has been done with some thought with decent photos. Ask plenty of questions and ask for extra photos - a genuine seller won't mind this. 

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I have successfully bought two basses on ebay.  Dropping £500 on an instrument, unseen, and delivered by UPS, is scary.  My fears were made less, when I got into contact with the seller, and saw that he seemed to be a decent chap.

The other bass, I picked up in person from a new seller.  ("Great buyer! Gave me the full asking price!" was his feedback).

All good so far. 

   

   

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Bought 4 or 5 basses on eBay, all from existing shops that sell through there. Some of these basses cost nearly 3,000 quid. All deals were perfect.
In this I've assumed the shop is not nearly broke, and will still be there when there's a warranty issue.

Back then I'd not throw 3,000 quid towards a person I don't know. Their feedback might have been carefully built up just to scam their last customer.
Though of course these days PayPal protection is my friend (and making some buyers the scammers).

Edited by BassTractor
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On 09/07/2020 at 00:13, Jean-Luc Pickguard said:

I have bought quite a few instruments on ebay. I have not had any problems worth mentioning and have managed to pick up a few decent bargains.

Me too.  Check feedback is a must and also whether the seller routinely sells music gear.

eBay is also dead easy to search for sold items to see what price any particular bass seems to be going for.  Reverb has a similar price guide too.

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On 09/07/2020 at 22:40, Swaffle88 said:

Sounds like a gutter mate and a bit awkward with the young guys parents watching you 🤦‍♂️ To be honest I didn’t even consider checking the TR that’s a fair shout. I think I’ll just stick to shops for the time being.. or maybe even a trustworthy seller from here 😃


Out of interest which bass was it? 

It's a Vintage brand Icon Jazz bass.

It's not a terrible problem mate, just a shame really, because I liked the neck a lot, but the position where the TR was seized, was just short of the right tension. With hindsight, if I knew it would snap before adjusting, I probably could have fitted a set of lower tension strings and it might have been alright!

WP_20190110_22_22_23_Pro.thumb.jpg.7114cc4cfa1ff9bc1203f8b16b3fd010.jpg  

I bought a cheap fleabay 'maple & blocks' neck to fit as a replacement, but it's horribly chunky compared to the original neck.

👍

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I've never had a single problem buying anything from eBay, and I've bought hundreds of things over the years. You just have to use a bit of common sense and check feedback scores. For example, if it's a high value item and the seller has zero feedback, I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole. If it's a high value bass, I'd check out the sellers previously bought and sold items via their feedback, and if there's other musically related stuff on there, or even just random day to day things a normal person wound buy and sell, then it's must likely genuine. 

If anything ever says something along the lines of untested, or can't test because I don't have a plug / charger / amp / cable or anything else along those lines. Run a mile. It's knackered! 

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