Ebay - have you ever bought anything?

applecruncher

applecruncher

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Location
Ohio USA
I bought a couple things last year and I was EXTREMELY pleased. :)

I thought I'd have to go thru all the bidding, etc. and didn't wan to - then a friend who uses ebay a lot explained I could just order things.

Price, shipping time, packaging, quality were all great.

What are your experiences?
 

Back before cell phones and internet phone service, I purchased AT&T phone cards for long distance minutes really cheap. I think I paid around $3.00 for 100 minute cards. (Or was it $5.00?)
 
Yes, I have bought fitness dvds mostly, some through "auction" and some "buy now". For the most part good sellers and no complaints. Usually lower prices than Amazon, in my experience.
 

I've bought literally Hundreds of items off EBAY...over a span of over 15 years. I've only had one item that wasn't as described, and upon contacting the seller, my money was immediately refunded. If it's not something I need right now, EBAY is the first place I look. On average, I pay about half of what the same item would cost in the stores, and usually substantially less than anything Amazon has to offer. Generally, I go for the "Buy it Now" item, rather than waiting a week for an "auction" to end. I also sometimes sell items on EBAY, and usually make far more than I ever would by putting some of my old stuff into an auction, or on Craigslist. I recently sold a WWI Remington bayonet, which I picked up at a garage sale for $20....a buyer in Japan paid me $240, plus shipping. This Winter, I plan to go through all my old fishing stuff....I have several old Ambassadeur fishing reels, that might have cost me $25 years ago, when I was still fishing actively....some of which now sell for well over $100 on EBAY.
 
I've bought and sold loads of items on Ebay over the last 15 years...hundreds probably... but in recent years Ebay Uk has become a site mainly where people sell their junk at over inflated prices, and the rest are businesses and companies whose stock is available elsewhere online at the same prices.. generally.. so no bargains any more to be had. I don't sell any more either due to the high sellers fees. I'm sure there's still the odd bargain to be had , but not enough now to have me tempted to search through thousands of auctions to find it..

I have looked at Ebay.com, and the quality of goods by individual sellers is much more superior to the rubbish that's mainly for sale on Ebay uk these days ...so Amazon is my go to online website now.. before I compare prices online with other business .. but no more Ebay
 
Yes, between ebay and craigslist I buy all kinds of stuff. Bicycles (two or three), shoes - numbers of them (because of narrow foot, I can't buy in stores), Overcoat (cashmere), leather (bomber type) jacket, jewelry (for wife), numerous bicycle outfits (all made in China), golf clubs, and others. I've even looked for mobility scooters (for handicapped brother), stair chair lifts, and used cars on ebay. They have some very good deals, but one has to exercise care.
 
I've bought several hundred items from ebay and I've only gotten skunked or had a problem a couple of times. One of the features that I like about ebay is being able to have them run a daily search on certain items and notify me by email of any new listings that I might be interested in.

These days the cost of the shipping has slowed my enthusiasm and I do much more shopping than actual buying.

The other day I ordered some kitchen towels from Georgia Towel with free shipping and also a set of 800 thread count Egyptian cotton sheets from a manufacturer in India with free shipping. If it had not been for the free shipping I would have passed on both items. According to ebay both shipments are on the way, I'm curious to see the quality of the items when they arrive.

I've also had good results buying collectibles on Etsy and Bonanza.
 
Yes I’ve had a eBay account since 2005 I dont buy a lot from them the most recent purchase was a disaster I ordered white linen look sheer curtains ..I got ones that the the top,half was white .,the bottom half purple ( wasn’t happy ) I always pay via pay pal and got a refund ( I use pay pal,for all online purchases, that way I have buyer protection )
 
I've bought a lot of things on eBay for years, both auction and straight out purchases. Quit for a few years back when they started requiring PayPal---the old version, where you had to set up an account and deposit sufficient money to cover bids, etc. Now PayPal can go through a credit card charge, possibly only MasterCard, not sure if other cards work or not.
 
I have bought and sold on Ebay. I have a charm bracelet from the 50's. I like to keep it up to date but those old charms are hard to find. A few years back when my Grandsons where born I bought a nice vintage Grandchild charm. My sister in law just purchased a German nut cracker for my Brother in laws collection.
 
That reminds me, years ago I was able to locate a vintage hubcap on eBay for a friend who lost one. Just realized yesterday, I lost one. I'll probably start looking for a replacement there.

I know, I know, it's more fun to believe someone stole it. :rolleyes: I see those stolen hubcaps laying along the roadside a lot.
 
I've bought quite a few things on eBay over the years, including a rather pricey motorcycle (via eBay Motors) that was 800 miles away. I went and got it with my trailer. But the vast majority of my purchases have been low cost and since eBay will show just 'buy it now' items.
My most recent purchase was an extending monopod camera holder - it's like an over-sized, telescoping radio antenna. I got it to clean the cobwebs from the ceiling corners (with a disinfectant wipe attached with a wire twist tie).
This thread has made me realize I haven't had a bad experience (that I can recall), so I will use eBay more often.

A big help to finding things on eBay is: searchtempest.com. It's made for searching CraigsList, but it allows you to only show eBay items (after you do the search).
 
RadishRose said:
I have never used Ebay for anything.
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I used it a couple of times years ago to try and find out what an old item I had was worth. But like you, I never did buy anything, back then I saw it as an auction site and didn't have an interest in bidding for something. And if I remember, I think to buy something there you had to use PayPal, which I was unfamiliar with, so I never really bought anything from Ebay either. Maybe it's time for me to revisit the website.
 
I bought a few things several years ago when the sellers would accept USPS money orders......after it went to credit cards and PayPal I quit.
 
I bought a few items on Ebay, but I avoided the bidding baloney and use only the "Buy It Now" choice.

Ebay is like any other Auction system...all the bidders are your enemies, and they will assure you that you'll have to pay more than you intended to for the item you want.

Hal
 
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I buy lots on Ebay all the time, cosmetics, vitamins, sunglasses, socks, accessories, gifts, and the like. It saves me tons of money and that's a big help. :sentimental:
 
I bought an antique scale [kitchen]...just had to have it...:)

I bought a motorcycle, due to geography it took some time, but went fine. Then when I decided i liked [it] I sold two others...this went more smoothly because the buyer happened to be in the same state.

Bought a few other things....too much to type...Point being no issues , no complaints.
 
A number of years ago I bought several pieces of specialized electronic equipment via eBay. I didn't want to do the auction process so I used the buy it now option. I had shopped around and already knew what I wanted, and the eBay price was by far the best I had seen. I got exactly what I ordered and was very pleased.

Thanks for the searchtempest tip, HipGnosis. I would probably use eBay more if their search engine worked better.
 
Macfan said:
I'm leery of Ebay, Craigslist and sites like those, so Amazon gets the bulk of my online business.
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It depends upon what you are shopping for, I guess. I look at Amazon for much of the stuff I buy, but their prices aren't much better than the stores. I can almost Always find what I need on EBAY for substantially less. Plus, I use PayPal for nearly all of my online purchases...that way, my credit card number is better protected....and in recent years, more an more online stores are using PayPal.
 
I've only bought one thing from craigslist, and had no problem......but I was very careful and took precautions. I thought about selling a few things on CL, but .....heard too many horror stories. I used to look at CL but not anymore. Too bizarre....people pretending to sell something then posting pics of their *******s. No thanks.
 
I joined ebay as a seller/buyer in Feb. 1999. I am a "starred" member now having bought and sold many items with a 100% official record..
 

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