I just picked up a number of Mail Storage / Baggage Cars on E-pay for less then $25.00 @ (each). So, I'm not complaining all that much. Not at the moment. However, some of the sellers can't get the item information correct, over priced for what it is and some are asking today's production prices as though they are the crown jewels. Sigh.
I always like how sellers add “Vintage” to the title or “Rare”, or “Discontinued” and think it somehow suddenly is worth many times it’s actual value. If you really wanna see where this runs away look at Lego. There rarely is a piece that is only available in a single set that truly makes it rare. Also you can usually buy all the pieces from a Lego service called “pick-a-brick” for a fraction of the EBay price. Oh and in the N scale world that overpriced piece of rolling stock will be Bombardier Bi-Levels (Athearn mostly). How is a $60 set of 3 cars suddenly worth $300-$800
Massey said: ↑ I always like how sellers add “Vintage” to the title or “Rare”, or “Discontinued” and think it somehow suddenly is worth many times it’s actual value. ....and right below it is the same item from a different seller!! As always at either a Higher $ it may be to entice us to critique here , if lower $ to entice us to Buy! Tom
The true value of anything is in the beholder's eye. Then there's the trained eye or knowing eye, Our eyes as model railroad enthusiast. And, the realistic eye. Which most of us experienced assessor's of toy train stuff are capable of evaluating based on our own experience. So, many Estate Sales, handler's will always out price something just to see how far/high they can push it. Then they grin at each other as they discuss us poor suckers, like the fool's we can be at times. Then there's the need to win at an auction. Pardon me if I digress. But we don't win anything if we have to pay for it. Is the picture becoming any clearer.
Lima N-SCALE Chesapeake and Ohio diesel locomotive https://www.ebay.com/itm/Lima-N-SCALE-Chesapeake-and-Ohio-diesel-locomotive/402254622618?hash=item5da83e6f9a:g:MI0AAOSwpdpesyT~ I think the photo states other. Tom
Yup. The Seller's lousy photos point up a common failure. Six photos are shown and none of them has enough light to see much of anything. Maybe the Seller can't read the road name in the dimness.
^^^^^^^^Yeah, what he said\/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ \/ The price is acceptable, though. Usually I manage to get five dollars for junque.
Years ago I decided that if I can't net $25 or more on an eBay sale, I won't post it. For me, it's just not worth the trouble with photography, description writing, answering questions, packing and shipping for anything less. I've had the best luck selling low dollar items by bundling a bunch together. Everyone comes out happy and I open needed shelf space with less effort.
I agree. Many folks do not consider the time and effort to place a quality listing, and then follow through with everything required of a sale. The same goes for a web site. A fair amount of time can be involved...
Hardcoaler, that's me too. I enjoy the photography especially with a digital camera and the ability to transfer the pictures to a file in my computer. Then downloading to E-pay is as easy as can be. If you are going to sell junk it's better to put that up front. Better to say so then hide it. I agree with combining a bunch of stuff.
I take a lot of time with my descriptions, being extremely honest and often making things out to be worse than they are. I don't accept returns, but knowing eBay sides strongly with Buyers regardless, I'll trade off a few dollars as a Seller to better assure there are no complaints.
What raises my blood pressure are Buyers who delay payment for a week or more, sometimes with no notification. I put a lot of effort into my listings and it's unfortunate that some Buyers don't reciprocate with a timely payment or request something stupid like shipping the parcel to a different address than what shows on their account. No way I'm doing that.
I just recently bid on something on EBay for the first time. The seller advertised it as junk for repair or restoration and that was what I was looking for. Something I could use for a project I had in mind and not spend a bunch of money to have something not work out and toss in the trashcan. I surprisingly won the auction for a low price of $14. The listing was also accompanied by excellent photos and a detailed worded description.
Usually, I do group low value items into lots. Every once in a while, something just does not fit. I do have templates and make extensive use of copy and paste, to the photographs are what take the most time. As usually I have several auctions that end on the same day, it is just one more thing to pack up and schlepp to the post office. The low value items go in a bubble mailing envelope. If the stuff is junk, I state it at least three times in the text of the auction. I also state that I am selling "AS-IS". If it is really bad junque, I will add in CAPSLOCK "YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED, THIS THING___________________________________________ AND IS JUNK" FeePay has sided with me in every dispute. I get remarks such as "you told buyer three times that it did not run". As @Hardcoaler has remarked, I try to be too honest. In fact, several buyers have accused me of being too honest. I have had one or two cases where there was an adverse material change in circumstances. Something ran well when I put it back into its box. It sat. I finally came to the realisation that I was not going to run it, so, sell it. I take the photographs, list it. Three days into it, just for fun, I decide to test run it. It runs like garbage. I tinker with it, in vain. I realise that it is going to require more time than I am willing to put into it. As a result, I end the auction and re-list it at a lower price and with appropriate warnings. I did that with an LL Erie. Two bidders complained to FeePay. I explained both to FeePay and the disgruntled bidders that I could not, in good conscience, list something that did not run properly at so high an opening bid and without appropriate warnings. FeePay took my part. FeePay told them that the auction was live and if they still wanted it, bid on it. It actually sold for more than I paid for it, despite its running like garbage. I knew what it would have taken to fix it, I was just unwilling to put in the time. I know, I should have checked it before I listed it initially. Usually, I do, but, every once in a while, one does get by me. It also shows what the answer is to that question in the topic on this board about your favourite FM. For many, it is the Erie. Every time that one appears, it fetches a good price. I sold a NYC A-B set, another NYC A, a Penn A-B and another A, an undecorated A-B set and a painted/unlettered A all for far more than I thought that I would get. I did make sure to describe the condition and presence of the horn on the A, as that is a sticking point on the LLs. They were simply too large for the trains that i was running. Further, I realised that I was trying to run too many different roads on one pike.
That's an odd-looking GP-7... https://www.ebay.com/itm/N-Scale-Ba...161226?hash=item5da8df3e0a:g:zs4AAOSwUwVeugKp
