Why-o-why-o-why-o...?

[Dr Chaos]

I got burnt a couple times on inexpensive "NM" books that were in pretty bad shape when I was too busy to return them before it was too late to do so.

 

The vast majority of my ebay purchases went very well so I would have no problem buying there again. While I prefer dealing with fellow boardies, ebay has lots of cool stuff that I can't always find here.

[ComicConnoisseur]

Why-o-why-o-why-o?

I wonder from Ohio...

 

Neg him already. Then quit buying off eBay.

 

This post in another thread got me thinking about this (again). Why do so many people here keep buying off eBay? (And I say this as a dealer who sells on eBay).

 

Not being snarky... serious question. I can understand, and even recommend, buying from established dealers that you already know and trust, or have good reviews here on the Boards. But say you stuck with a dozen or so top dealers that carry the kind of product you collect... that is likely acces to thousands, or even tens of thousands, of comics a year. How much stuff can you buy in a year?

 

I suspect more than half the complaints on these boards emanate from eBay dealings. It seems like buying from unknown dealers or private individuals is akin to going to the casinos. Are there really such a high number of great deals out there that it's worth all of the fuss and grief? Maybe so... that's why I'm asking.

 

It just seems a lot of problems go away if collectors stayed with known sources... it wouldn't matter about the Robojos of the world if everyone just stayed with dealers they'd already met and trusted, or came highly recommended by Boardees whom you also know and trust. No more bad packaging, no more failures to respond, no more empty boxes, etc., etc. Plus, if enough people lived by this rule, it would help trusted dealers acquire more collections, rather than so many private individuals selling books themselves that don't know how to grade, or spot restoration, or count pages, or simply destroy perfectly great books through mishandling or packaging.

 

EBay's great for picking up basic used stuff... office equipment, that certain replacement part you've been looking for, etc. But it just seems like for collectibles, the risks far outweigh the rewards.

Or not???

 

So true. I am a big time powerseller of non-collectible products on EBay,and it seems like the only times I ever have issues is when I try to sell a few comics every once in awhile on EBay. Seems like grading is always the big stickler.

thankfully I don`t sell comicbooks for a living.

[AJD]

This post in another thread got me thinking about this (again). Why do so many people here keep buying off eBay? (And I say this as a dealer who sells on eBay).

I'm primarily a golden age collector, and the vast majority of my GA books -- probably around 75-80% -- have come from ebay. I understand why a lot of folks have issues with ebay, but at the end of the day it's got a selection that no one dealer can come close to matching, and there are some real bargains to be had if you're patient.

 

Avoid obvious scams and auctions dotted with red flags, and ask questions about condition while auctions are in progress, and you've minimized at least some of the risk. In addition, ebay's policies are much more buyer-friendly than they used to be.

 

If you continue to sell on ebay despite all its pitfalls, seems like you see some value there as well.

 

 

Agreed - and I'd add that self-control goes a long way on eBay. Just because someone is selling a book you want, don't bid on something you aren't fairly confident about. In ten years on eBay I bought one book with colour touch (and got suckered by the seller into not negging them - long story) that I wasn't happy with. Otherwise, I've had some great deals. To get that ratio there's been quite a few where I ended up wondering how I might have gone, but just didn't have enough information or confidence to take the plunge.

 

Sorry to quote myself, but I wanted to add that you have to bid according to what you see - not what is described. I bid on a Four Color 199 last week that was described as VF. It clearly wasn't, but since I'm looking for books in the F range anyway, I bid about half the F price. Having won the book, it's around F with a front cover that presents higher. I'm well pleased with it.

[Ken Aldred]

I'd much prefer to spend my money with someone I know I won't have a problem with...

 

I'd gladly pay a few extra bucks rather than the crapshoot that eBay is. If I miss out on something on eBay, oh well.

I agree.  Being a very obsessive-compulsive type I prefer consistency, and eBay is simply too unpredictable for me.  I know my 'limitations'.