I still shop on ebay, yes I do. Why you ask? I like Old electronics, I like the way it sounds, feels, looks, smells, etc. Because the way I see it as far as electronics I can either buy new junk, or old junk. That’s right…it’s all junk. New junk many times works amazingly well but is usually made like, you guessed it junk. When it breaks you toss it. Old junk has to be serviced/repaired/reconditioned, restored, etc. so that it becomes a little reliable/dependable. Since it’s old junk there is some thing else always to break on it that you didn’t replace in your restoration. Yes, new junk, old junk, in between junk, it’s all JUNK. New stuff many times is made out of flimsy synthetic plastics, components that are so small you need the hubble telescope to identify them. Irreparable throw away junk in the eyes of many. Occasionally you cross paths with a meat head and his twenty year old car that has 350,000 miles and is still running getting 45 miles per gallon out of his 5.7 liter motor. The thing he forgot to tell you is that the only part he hasn’t replaced on the car five times is the little pop up door lock on the passenger side. Basically a liar who believes his own fibs and sometimes gets an erection telling the same story over and over again. Or you have the fella who tells you his new Kia, the one that weighs less then your 50 year old Schwinn Orange Crate bike rides better then a 1978 Cadillac. Again…it’s all Junk.
Ok, since the new up is down and the new hot is cold, bad is good, etc. etc. it reflects what’s going on with eBay. Has anyone but me noticed what happened to the “new” ebay? I am talking about in the past few years? Sellers check off “for parts, or non-working” on the “sell it form” but state that it works in the description. I find it amazing no one even questions this B.S. double talk. Why is this happening???? I’ll tell you why. Ebay has a return policy where anything goes, you can return toilet paper if your not happy with it. You can buy a window ac unit, use it and return it, maybe even a wedding dress, lol. Sellers in order to protect themselves from eBay’s rent and return policy check off “for parts/repair.” so the possible unscrupulous serial returner can’t return an item that is already stated as broken. But…in the sellers description he will state how wonderful it works and all of it’s positive features. This can best be seen in electronics, especially in radio communications. I am a Ham Radio operator and enjoy browsing the linear amplifier section. Almost every single auction/buy it now has the condition checked as parts/ repair yet as previously stated how wonderful it works in the description. Does it work, or doesn’t it work. Is it cosmetically damaged or not? I understand the sellers frustration. Selling something almost a half century old and having to give a guarantee? NO DICE, it’s OLD JUNK that needs to be restored regardless of the present working condition.
What some of these auctions should look like on the bay is: I am selling my Grandpa’s Sansuzzi 9090db. It doesn’t work, wait it does work because it powers up. I saw a light go on so yes it works. Being the honest seller I am I will be troofull wit you. It doesn’t work, in fact it doesn’t work more then anyone else’s. The last time Grandpappy played this unit it did work but that was before I was born in the 1940’s. I can guarantee this Stansuzzy doesn’t work better then any other one on ebay. You have never seen another 9090db not work like this one itz very special. Cosmetically it shows some freezer burn on face plate with broken glass and much of the wood cabinet has been gnawed away by stray feral animals looking for a winter meal. Oh yeah, free shipping since you have to pick it up in Nome Alaska.
I mean mine as well right? When you see this on an ebay auction: Item condition:
“For parts or not working”
That means you can’t complain even if the seller states it works great in his or her description. Your stuck with it…
If you see this: Item Condition: “Used”
That means you can return it for a full refund whether it’s working or not regardless of what the seller states in the description.
What was the point of this whole ramble? I like buying “old junk.” I like fixing it, repairing it, using for parts, or even looking at it. When I bid on or buy something I like to get a basic idea of what I am buying. If it states non working on one part of the auction and then the seller goes into this rant about how wonderful it is and how well it works in the description then states no returns or ignore “for parts or not working” above what does that tell me? Exactly, it tells me a bunch of nothing. A GOOD seller will always try and describe an items faults and imperfections. And that goes with anything, electronics, collectables, garments, instruments, anything. NO ONE wants to read how wonderful your item is, we know that since we are looking for that particular item. We want to know what’s wrong with it, not what’s right with it. And yes, if your Not sure of the working condition it’s the right or safe thing to do checking off “parts or repair” and then agreeing or elaborating in the description with that pre-selected statement. I must be getting really old, up is still up, hot is still hot, and bad is still bad.
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