Ebay? Anyone?

[American Patriot]

What's everyone's take on Ebay?

I'm messing with it big time in the last few days and wanted to know opinions.

Quick! This sextant I'm looking at expires in 41 minutes!

LOL

Seriously (it is) I really do want to know what folks think of it (I think I have enough common sense to know to use common sense, and I'm sure that's a suggestion) - what I really want to know is are there any tricks to getting what I want other than paying the MOST for it?

[Malsua]

Snipe it

I ebay all the time.

[Malsua]

Although I realize it's past now. heh

[Ryan Ruck]

Nothing but mostly good experiences with eBay. Had two scares where I didn't know if I was going to get my items but I did.

[Luke]

I have not had a bad experience with E-Bay,yet. I always try to watch what kind of ratings the sellers have. The most exspensive thing I have purchased was an 8track mini disc recorder,$400. The cheapest thing was a $30 filter. Shipping can be a rip-off, but most sellers will work with you on shipping. UPS can be insured. Good luck with the sextant.

[Backstop]

I probably purchased there 12 times or so - never had a problem.

I kicked them and their anti-gun attitude to the curb a few years back.

Probably shot myself in the foot with that act, but I'm still alive, so guess I adapted.

[American Patriot]

Thanks guys. I spend the weekend working on trying to get several items

No luck. I wasn't willing to snipe with a very high price and I kept getting beat out by the last minute folks who put in high prices.

I don't want to spend MORE than the items are worth used.

Like theres one coming up in about 9 hours thats got 16 bids on it already... at 198.50.

The sextant is worth probably 1300 NEW. But this one is pretty old, used but in good condition. I'd go up to about 375 on it. Problem is these people think these things are antiques and buying them as if they were, so they push the prices up sometimes higher than new.

Not worth that (plus shipping).

[Malsua]

There are a bunch of bid sniper web sites. I suggest you use one and let it do the work for you. Put in a fair price and let 'er rip.

I haven't used them simply because i'm more of a brute force type. Here's what I'm willing to pay, done. I have co-workers who use snipers regularly and have won some pretty decent bargains.

[Toad]

Ebay seems to do a surprisingly good job at ousting fraudulent sellers. That and buyer comments on sellers is a good heads up at risk. I myself have had good experiences with the couple manuals and books I've bought.

I bought a mechanics technical manual for a chainsaw I have. I literally could find it nowhere BUT Ebay for sale. $10. Hellofa deal considering it's scarcity.

[American Patriot]

Yeah, I'm not out for a lot of things. I'm just in this for one good item. I had my shot at three.

At this point, I'm about to give up.


here are my choices. Keep messing with eBay and hope I find a "good deal" on a working sextant, preferably a metal one.

Or I can buy new:

http://www.defender.com/product.jsp?...7|6626&id=6643

Chinese Astra IIIB above, 599 or so



Or I can go "cheap" and get a Davis Instruments, Mark 15:

http://www.celestaire.com/Davis/Mark-15-Sextant.html


Or the slightly higher cost one Mark 25 (which doesnt have a split mirror, which I'd prefer)....

http://www.celestaire.com/Davis/Mark-25-Sextant.html

I am considering saying "Screw it" and buying the 125 dollar item. It IS for practice, and I can still use it for real... it might not be quite as accurate as a metal one, but what the hell? I just need to be within a nautical mile of my "guess" anyway.

They say the plastic ones are less accurate but people who are experts have been saying "No, they aren't less accurate really, you just have to make sure you adjust them like you usually do NOT have to do to metal ones".

I can live with that.

Over all, it would really be nice to have a metal one. Maybe my family will chip in buy one when I sail out. who knows?

In the mean time, I'm strongly considering the plastic one. There's one on ebay going for 41 dollars today. Well, it's used. Why spend 41 bucks on a pig in a poke when I can buy a new one?

[Malsua]

Curious as to what's wrong with something like this...

http://cgi.ebay.com/BRASS-SEXTANT-8-...item3f04929f10

[American Patriot]

Curious as to what's wrong with something like this...

http://cgi.ebay.com/BRASS-SEXTANT-8-...item3f04929f10

That is not a real sextant.

It's fake.

There's a shit load of those damned things on there, they are "reproductions".

[American Patriot]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...=STRK:MEWAX:IT

Thats what I am watching. It's already got 19 bifs... 232.50.

It will go for around 500 - 575 is my bet. It's new worth abuot 1600 bucks.

Probably not even going to bother at this point

1h 18 m left as of now

[Backstop]

Everything I bought there was "Buy it Now."

I tried maybe 2 or 3 times to bid in an auction, but always lost at the last minute.

[American Patriot]

Yeah. Sniping is the only way to win it appears. lo

[American Patriot]

The one I was watching last evening....

I bid 380.01 on it in the last 10 seconds. Two someone's pushed it up over 450 I think it was.

/sigh.

[Malsua]

Give Bidnip.com a try.

[American Patriot]

I'm not so much interested in just getting an item. I'm interested in getting it for the right price.

The stuff on there, after researching this over the past few days, is simply too expensive. There's no "deals" really as far as I can see, at least not on the items I want.

Look at it this way.... you want a wrist watch. A particular wrist watch. It goes for 75 dollars new. You have 25 to spend, so you're looking for a used one.

Everyone else likes the watch and are willing to bid.... but the used watch, a year old is put up for 10 bucks. At last hour of bidding people push the price up to 24 bucks.

You think "Ok, I'll bid at the last second and get it".

You bid your 25.01 cent to be sure. Someone else has bid 50, someone 30, someone 28, someone 75.

Mr. 75 gets the watch (All bid in the last second) because he had the highest bid, and it was WELL OVER what the watch was worth new. Because he has to pay 30 in shipping TOO.

Did he get a deal? No. but neither did you or the others who bid over 25

That's what has been happening.

I actually had the high bid last night. The sextant is worth maybe, and I say MAYBE carefully, 400 dollars in its condition. People pushed the bids way over that. I think it actually went for more than 450 but I was both frustrated and kind of pissed that it went that high.

WHY did it go that high? Easy, these guys are DEALERS in antiques (I can tell this by looking at their previous bids). I am not buying an antique, and I won't buy one that is touted as an antique, because, simply put they are tools and aren't antiques.

So, my mind set for this is probably wrong, but I'm not changing my mind. I'll buy a fucking plastic cheap assed item to use for practice and I'll spend 600 bucks for a new Chinese metal sextant when I NEED one.

That's MY opinion of Ebay after my "extensive" (5 days) of indoctrination....