eBay buys: Looks too good to be true - buying it anyway!

[insontis]

So I've taken a bunch of "risks" before on jewelry items that look too good to be true for the price. Some have turned out quite well. Some have turned out to be paper weights - not even the valuable kind !

This week.. today.. just now.. I decided to take a few more "gambles". I don't really consider them risks because, well, if they aren't as described, back they go!

So here is what I ended up buying:

Title: "Jewelry" Category: "Fine jewelry -> Gemstone" Price: $25 shipped

Seller claims it is an amethyst pendant on a gold chain. I'm sure if it's 10K its worth less than that in scrap - close if its 14K, but as a piece of jewelry I shouldn't have trouble flipping it... if it is real. Not a huge risk or expected return, but a gamble all the same.

Ok so this next one I was actually planning on keeping for me.. but I'm not exactly sure I will or not until I see it in person. Reason being seller did not... perfectly describe the size. "I do not know what thickness it is. I can explain it like this: The necklace is not thin. It's not going to break easily. It is of a medium thickness (judging from a men's thickest Figaro)."

Pictures didn't exactly do a great job of showing exact size, but I liked the look and length (22") & at $150 I felt it was a good deal that someone else may jump on if I didn't.

And last, but not least, the biggest flop or score of the lot.

Listing stated that these are solid 18K white gold rings. It also says these are diamonds. And New without tags. Assuming they live up to their claim, I'm fairly certain I can make money on this set as I paid basically $22 per ring.


I'll post the results as I receive the items, but in the meantime.. anyone else have experiences to share? Stories of great buys or complete flops? Anyone else anticipating to see how they made out?

 

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[VERMONTPACKRAT]

I buy coins on ebay. I look for auctions of better coins with really crappy pics. They must have a return policy. Usually these auctions don't get as many bids as auctions with clear, quality pics. A couple of years ago I scored really well on an 1806 Draped Bust Quarter. I paid a little under $200. I would put it on ebay now for $500 OBO.

VPR

 

[Nickleanddime]

I bought a lot of saws off a guy for .99 cents and in the picture they all looked good clean and usable. I get them open the box and just laught. They are all rusted up, some handles are broke and a few are jammed into each other and stuck toghter. Lol so there's a example of it looked to good to be true and it was. .99 for 30 pounds of steel junk lol.

 

[insontis]

I bought a lot of saws off a guy for .99 cents and in the picture they all looked good clean and usable. I get them open the box and just laught. They are all rusted up, some handles are broke and a few are jammed into each other and stuck toghter. Lol so there's a example of it looked to good to be true and it was. .99 for 30 pounds of steel junk lol.

Did you ever think he swapped out the saws when they only went for 0.99? Sounds pretty awful, but at least it was only a dollar.. Better than having to pay return shipping anyway.

 

[insontis]

I buy coins on ebay. I look for auctions of better coins with really crappy pics. They must have a return policy. Usually these auctions don't get as many bids as auctions with clear, quality pics. A couple of years ago I scored really well on an 1806 Draped Bust Quarter. I paid a little under $200. I would put it on ebay now for $500 OBO.

VPR

I've used that strategy a few times. I look for low priced items and make a move on them. I know that if they are legitimate and all is in good condition that I can flip the items with just better pictures alone.

 

[Nickleanddime]

Yeah that was my first thought, expecially since he had to ship them free since he owed me a free shipping, and he shipped a medium flat rate box label but was a huge box lol. Don't know how he got that?

When it was posted he had a $20 handling fee on it seeing how the actual shipping was 11.85 and he had it as 31.85. Oh we'll .99 we have a artist friend maybe she'll like to have them for art.

It's sad some people do that though. It happens everywhere though especially on the net. It's easy to do. Sorry to the original OP if this is hijacking a thread.

 

[insontis]

Yeah that was my first thought, expecially since he had to ship them free since he owed me a free shipping, and he shipped a medium flat rate box label but was a huge box lol. Don't know how he got that?

When it was posted he had a $20 handling fee on it seeing how the actual shipping was 11.85 and he had it as 31.85. Oh we'll .99 we have a artist friend maybe she'll like to have them for art.

It's sad some people do that though. It happens everywhere though especially on the net. It's easy to do. Sorry to the original OP if this is hijacking a thread.

Don't apologize! This is exactly the sort of thing I wanted to discuss here. Was hoping more would share their experiences as well. Maybe they will join in later. :P As for the OP - I'm still waiting for those items to arrive. May take a few days still as I had just purchased them prior to starting this thread.

 

[insontis]

Well there is already an interesting development with the amethyst necklace..

I paid for the necklace, it was just marked as shipped today with a tracking number. Tracking hasn't been updated yet.

The interesting part is this:

"This listing was removed by eBay. If you already paid for the item, we recommend that you wait 10 days from the expected delivery date to see if the item arrives. If you did not pay,you are no longer obligated to pay for this item. If you have a problem with the purchase, you can resolve the problem by filing a claim through our resolution center."

Sooo... what does that mean? Does it mean they had some sort of eBay policy-violating listing? The seller has one other item for sale that does not seem to have been affected. I'm assuming that if I get the item that I'll be disappointed with its authenticity. Maybe there is still hope, though.

Anyone have any experience with this message? What causes it?

 

[FC-Treasure]

So I buy box lots of stamps on eBay. One of the strategies I use is to purchase a lot for about 30% below face value of the modern postage. I pick box lots that has a bit of value beyond the face value. I then use the modern postage for mailing letters and yank out any collectibles. Sometimes I will just re-list the face value postage to get my money back out of the auction.

A couple of years ago I won an auction where the buyer said, "$1000+ of unused/collectible stamps". The pictures showed that the stamps were in fairly poor shape. I messaged him prior to bidding and said, "I just wanted to verify this auction has $1,000 worth of unused postage". He didn't reply and I bid anyway. Stupid me... I won the auction for about $670. When I got the package, the condition was worse than I thought with clumps of clay from a large/broken desiccant bag scattered throughout. When I tallied the face value, it turned out to be about $830 bucks worth, so $170 short. When I questioned the seller, he said that the $1,000 bucks included the used stamps. There were no collectible used stamps in the lot, so I think he was tallying the face value of the used. After I threw away the severely damaged stamps, I ended up paying just under face value for the lot. I was hoping for treasure and ended up with a box of junk that is going to take me a couple more years to clear out through mailing letters/packages. My first thought was that the seller yanked back some of the postage when he didn't like the final price of the auction. My biggest mistake was how destructive I was when I was first reviewing the box lot. I was throwing stuff away, tearing stuff out, etc. About half way through I started to realize that it wasn't going to tally up, but by then I couldn't return the lot. Live and learn I guess.

 

[insontis]

So I buy box lots of stamps on eBay. One of the strategies I use is to purchase a lot for about 30% below face value of the modern postage. I pick box lots that has a bit of value beyond the face value. I then use the modern postage for mailing letters and yank out any collectibles. Sometimes I will just re-list the face value postage to get my money back out of the auction.

A couple of years ago I won an auction where the buyer said, "$1000+ of unused/collectible stamps". The pictures showed that the stamps were in fairly poor shape. I messaged him prior to bidding and said, "I just wanted to verify this auction has $1,000 worth of unused postage". He didn't reply and I bid anyway. Stupid me... I won the auction for about $670. When I got the package, the condition was worse than I thought with clumps of clay from a large/broken desiccant bag scattered throughout. When I tallied the face value, it turned out to be about $830 bucks worth, so $170 short. When I questioned the seller, he said that the $1,000 bucks included the used stamps. There were no collectible used stamps in the lot, so I think he was tallying the face value of the used. After I threw away the severely damaged stamps, I ended up paying just under face value for the lot. I was hoping for treasure and ended up with a box of junk that is going to take me a couple more years to clear out through mailing letters/packages. My first thought was that the seller yanked back some of the postage when he didn't like the final price of the auction. My biggest mistake was how destructive I was when I was first reviewing the box lot. I was throwing stuff away, tearing stuff out, etc. About half way through I started to realize that it wasn't going to tally up, but by then I couldn't return the lot. Live and learn I guess.

That sucks. At least you weren't burnt out of your money.. just invested in a ton of stamps. So that was a couple of years ago... how many do you have left? :P

 

[FC-Treasure]

...how many do you have left?

There were some modern stamps in multiples and in pretty good shape, e.g. could go into a modern collection. I sold those, perhaps $250 bucks worth of them years ago. The other $580 was more problematic as they were damaged in some small way that prevents me from getting more than 30% of face. Because I overpaid, I'm stuck with them. A lot of them are .13 cent and .15 cents. Right now I put 3 .13 cent stamps and a .10 cent stamp on a letter to make postage. I would say I have at least $280 dollars left... Here is a picture of some of them. Those are all .13 cent stamps.

 

[insontis]

There were some modern stamps in multiples and in pretty good shape, e.g. could go into a modern collection. I sold those, perhaps $250 bucks worth of them years ago. The other $580 was more problematic as they were damaged in some small way that prevents me from getting more than 30% of face. Because I overpaid, I'm stuck with them. A lot of them are .13 cent and .15 cents. Right now I put 3 .13 cent stamps and a .10 cent stamp on a letter to make postage. I would say I have at least $280 dollars left... Here is a picture of some of them. Those are all .13 cent stamps. View attachment 952131

That is a lot of stamps. Well at least you are able to knock down a bunch at a time.

Still haven't received my "too good to be true items". Hopefully they'll start popping up tomorrow.. I hate having to wait out Sundays.

 

[insontis]

Ok so I just received the 14K figaro chain that I had ordered for $150 shipped..

I felt some weight in the palm of my hand when I took it out of the package. I carefully placed it on the scale. 12.4 grams!!!! Worth $309 in scrap alone! *dances*

As excited as I am, I still have to have it tested to be sure. I'll get it electronically tested later as I don't wish to carve this baby up. It's in beautiful condition and I'm guessing could resell a bit higher than just scrap!

 

[insontis]

Also received the amethyst pendant/chain today. The chain it came on is garbage. Worthless costume. The pendant's hallmark is faded but acid tests 14K. I may attempt to get a partial refund, but it may be hopeless anyway. The seller has a feedback rating of 0. It's not the end of the world so long as I can flip the pendant a little higher than I planned to. I figure adding a decent box link chain to it I can at make at least some money.

 

[insontis]

Alright so here's the update so far on my items. The figaro chain is a fake. Figures. So I contacted the seller to explain the situation and clearly stated the item was tested by a qualified jeweler. The seller of course is confused or, at the very least, believes that I am confused because "if an item is marked 14K it is 14K and that 14K is 14 of 24 parts gold." Oh boy. So I figure that eBay will rule in my favor regardless as this item is listed as genuine 14K gold. Just to be sure though I went back to the jeweler and had them initial that the item was fake on the back of their business card. The seller doesn't deal in jewelry much, clearly, and it's no surprise that they were mislead in believing that the necklace was genuine. I'm sure the fact that they are now out a buck and a half because of this mistake is a hard pill to swallow. I'll have to go through eBay, but I can't help but feel sorry for them finding out this way.

In other news, the seller that provided a faux gold necklace with the 14K amethyst pendant did courteously accept a partial refund request.

The diamond rings should arrive today or tomorrow.

 

[FC-Treasure]

How did the diamond rings turn out?

Here's a story for you... Back in the late 90's, before we had so many great resources on the Internet, I didn't really understand how to grade/certify jewelry. I had a close friend who owned a thrift shop and he wasn't interested in jewelry for some reason. He would basically set aside interesting jewelry that came in box lots and give it to me to sell on eBay. Most of it was costume jewelry but there would be the occasional high end item. (the thrift store was in a VERY affluent neighborhood). The problem being that I didn't know how to grade the jewelry and I had a very busy day job. So I would take pictures and mention any markings I saw on the jewelry and leave it at that. A lot of times I would list bulk lots because I was in a hurry.

So I could always tell when I let a valuable item slip through by the buyer feedback. A couple of times the buyers went crazy with their positive feedback... It makes me wonder what I let go for a pittance..

 

[insontis]

How did the diamond rings turn out?

Here's a story for you... Back in the late 90's, before we had so many great resources on the Internet, I didn't really understand how to grade/certify jewelry. I had a close friend who owned a thrift shop and he wasn't interested in jewelry for some reason. He would basically set aside interesting jewelry that came in box lots and give it to me to sell on eBay. Most of it was costume jewelry but there would be the occasional high end item. (the thrift store was in a VERY affluent neighborhood). The problem being that I didn't know how to grade the jewelry and I had a very busy day job. So I would take pictures and mention any markings I saw on the jewelry and leave it at that. A lot of times I would list bulk lots because I was in a hurry.

So I could always tell when I let a valuable item slip through by the buyer feedback. A couple of times the buyers went crazy with their positive feedback... It makes me wonder what I let go for a pittance..

Hah yeah. We learn from our mistakes though . The rings were clinkers. As in that is the sound they made when I took my magnet to them. Not even marked. Seller cooperated with those and I already shipped them back. eBay had to step up for the chain, though, and I've sent it back for a refund as well. So I struck out three times, but I figured the risk was worth it. I knew I was covered by eBay. The price seemed too good to be true for the description, but sometimes it works out well.

 

[randazzo1]

Be careful. As a buyer you don't get unlimited protection cases. After a good number of them they stop honoring them and side with the seller. I used to buy gold for smelting on ebay. 3 or 4 our of ten were junk. Never worried because of buyer protection. Then one day on an 1100 lot that was gold filled rather than solid, ebay said too bad so sad - you have a demonstrated pattern of buying PM lots then claiming fake.