More eBay Humor

OC Engineer JD Jan 16, 2009

  1. John Moore

    John Moore TrainBoard Supporter

    13,396
    12,182
    183
    Well if it is they are several days early. However I am of the belief that the April Fools are running the show there. The board room meetings of that outfit have to resemble the Gong Show. I have never bought anything there and never will with what I am seeing and certainly never list anything there for sale.
     
  2. umtrr-author

    umtrr-author TrainBoard Member

    2,835
    3,394
    78
    Not an April Fool's joke... changes take place in June.
     
  3. JMaurer1

    JMaurer1 TrainBoard Member

    2,310
    1,731
    53
    EBay is stepping up their efforts to go out of business.

    I actually do search inside of particular categories for specific items that I don't want to have to type too many search terms for. Example, I occasionally look for cheap Intermountain freight car kits whenever enough time has passed for me to forget how much I hate putting them together. I search 'kit' in the 'Intermountain' category. I guess I could search for 'Intermountain kit' but it's easier to do it the other way for me...or it used to be.
     
  4. JMaurer1

    JMaurer1 TrainBoard Member

    2,310
    1,731
    53
  5. Maletrain

    Maletrain TrainBoard Member

    734
    340
    18
    That particular wood car would probably have become a far-flung bunch of singed toothpicks, since it would have been carrying dynamite or gun powder.

    It amazes me that we are seeing so many melted cars. Maybe a hobby shop fire somewhere? Only use I can think of is a Dr. Suess themed layout where everything is warped-looking. Let me know if anybody sees an N scale grinche or a Whoville station.

    Steve
     
  6. SleeperN06

    SleeperN06 TrainBoard Member

    3,386
    50
    45
    My Coworker gave me an old HO train set that he found stored behind a furnace in a house he was buying. It was melted pretty bad, but dang I just never thought to put it up on eBay.:rats:
     
  7. Pete Steinmetz

    Pete Steinmetz TrainBoard Member

    735
    6
    22
    This is pretty hosed up. I also deal with On30. Their change will lump a lot of narrow gauge together and make it difficult to find.

    I suppose it would be bad to ask sellers and buyers in these categories to make suggestions on how to make model trains more user friendly?
     
  8. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    67,560
    22,735
    653
    They need guidance from people who know business. And then from people who know the products in those categories. Lacking both, we see the ever increasing mess they've become.
     
  9. umtrr-author

    umtrr-author TrainBoard Member

    2,835
    3,394
    78
    And it appears that all the category numbers change again, so if you have, as I do for example, a direct link to the N Scale listings, that bookmark stops working and you're directed to the main eBay page to start over. How many people won't bother?

    I suspect all of the "saved searches" will become non-functional also. So much for my "ignore list." Fortunately, I have my "banned sellers" in a plain text file for just such an occasion. I hope it works.
     
  10. umtrr-author

    umtrr-author TrainBoard Member

    2,835
    3,394
    78
    Of course you know that "they're making these changes to serve you better!"

    BUT WAIT! THERE'S MORE!

    You're going to be REQUIRED to add "item identifiers" to the eBay listing...

    http://pages.ebay.com/sellerinformation/news/springupdate2015/product-identifiers.html

    "All new listings of branded items in new condition will be required to include the item’s brand, MPN*, and GTIN** in select categories" - and that includes Toys and Hobbies.

    *MPN - Manufacturer's Part Number
    **GTIN - Global Trade Item Number - no, I've never heard of it either
     
  11. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    67,560
    22,735
    653
    I would not hesitate to wager that large numbers of people will walk, at that point.
     
  12. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    67,560
    22,735
    653
    Hmmm. Serving me better means making me work more and yet more??

    They're nuts. Simply deathly ill with a megalomania......
     
  13. ScaleCraft

    ScaleCraft TrainBoard Member

    2,176
    98
    26
    You do know what's happening, right?
    Like PayUp was tailored to ensure the sales were reported to the IRS (and they do...last year totals over $10K, this year I hears going to get real tight), and if NEXUS passes, to report sales to states so they can come knocking on your door to collect sales taxes and penalty fees.
    This is to put into the system a full identifier for foreign customs AND US tax collectors. They'll look it up, find out what it cost new, and tax you accordingly.
    Once you enter full manufacturer part numbers, it becomes part of the system, and you're hosed.
    Dave
     
  14. mtntrainman

    mtntrainman TrainBoard Supporter

    9,982
    10,821
    143
    E_BAY !!! PAY_PAL !!!

    I am glad I was one of the first to abandon that sinking ship 10 years ago !!!

    :sweat:
     
  15. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    67,560
    22,735
    653
    Yes. Exactly. Yet I run into too many who are blind.
     
  16. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    67,560
    22,735
    653
    It has absolutely no value. Is useful for nothing. Maybe the empty box could have a future purpose.
     
  17. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    67,560
    22,735
    653
  18. raysaron

    raysaron TrainBoard Supporter

    222
    35
    24
    Am I right? I've seen two listings recently for Overton passenger cars,
    but they are too long and are Overland cars.

    Overton = 34 foot and
    Overland = 50 foot. Right?
     
  19. umtrr-author

    umtrr-author TrainBoard Member

    2,835
    3,394
    78
    Very good points.

    I obviously wouldn't condone such activity :) but perhaps an approach to this would be to model one's entry of part numbers after the algorithm used by telemarketers to select their caller ID phone numbers.
    "Area Code 123? Where's that?"
    "How'd you get the phone number '000-000-0000'?"

    Also, apparently this only applies to "New" items. I see a major shift to the sale of "Used" items. I already call something "Used" if, for example, it's an assembled kit or the couplers have been changed.
     
  20. umtrr-author

    umtrr-author TrainBoard Member

    2,835
    3,394
    78
    A direct lift from the PayPal user agreement dated November, 2014, presented for information only:

    Note that the (i) and (ii) are an AND - $20,000 AND 200 payments. Changing that AND to an OR would have far-reaching implications, considering that other venues like "N Scale Yard Sale" and direct person-to-person transactions frequently utilize Paypal as the payment method.
     

Share This Page