I agree with what you're saying. Along economic lines, my point would be to not count the ebay protections as worth much. The two times previously that I've tried to invoke them, neither time did I get anything but a big waste of my time. Both cases involved non-shipment and then a seller who disappeared. Ebay told me in each case that since they couldn't get the money back from the seller there was nothing they could do. That was about 5 years ago, perhaps they've changed, but my very recent experience does not look promising so far. Fortunately (at least for the items I buy) it seems the majority of sellers there are honest but I'd be careful with any expensive item.
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On 2/18/2016 4:54 PM, 'David I. Emery' die@... [hp_agilent_equipment] wrote:
On Thu, Feb 18, 2016 at 12:36:54PM -0500, Peter Gottlieb hpnpilot@... [hp_agilent_equipment] wrote:
Hamfests and these groups are looking better all the time.
But the chance that one might find something relatively rarely
sold that one really wants or needs at the hamfests one can find a way
to actually get oneself to is close to zero, while if it is on Ebay you
do have a chance of spotting and landing it even if the prices are much
higher and sometimes there are problems with the transaction.
And at its best, ebay is reasonably fair... hamfests and private
sales favor those who are good at playing the required games... the
"insiders" who know in advance who is selling what and where and how to
get them to give you first dibs ... and who to trust and who is trying
to cheat you in an anonymous cash only transaction where recourse may be
difficult..
I have many many many items bought from Ebay I have NEVER seen
at any hamfest I attended, and they were bought from the comfort of my
living room with a laptop and not after a 10 hour drive in frightening
traffic and a morning of wandering around in scorching heat and hot sun
or cold wet rain or other adverse conditions.
Remember a fundamental principle of economics... that absolutely
pertains to Ebay...
Risk and uncertainly reduces market price... more perfect the
information, the higher the selling price.
The way I see Ebay is much greater risk of problems results
(sometimes) in much lower prices - if one wants, needs or expects hard
guarantees and perfect luck with each and every transaction than buy
from traditional sales channels and expect to pay 10 times as much or
more.
But for a lot of us we simply cannot justify spending that kind
of MSRP full price bux for hobby or small business related items...
and it is nice to have an alternative.
--
Dave Emery N1PRE/AE, die@... DIE Consulting, Weston, Mass 02493
"An empty zombie mind with a forlorn barely readable weatherbeaten
'For Rent' sign still vainly flapping outside on the weed encrusted pole - in
celebration of what could have been, but wasn't and is not to be now either."
