The last thing I purchased on eBay was a copy of Eric Flint’s 1824: The Arkansas War. With shipping I got it for about 50% of the cover price - not a great bargain, but I didn’t want to wait for the price drop after the paperback edition comes out.
Very cool! Though I think it’s probably more accurate to assume that the seller didn’t know what he or she had, rather than he or she couldn’t be bothered to put in a keyword. (Now, if you want to claim laziness for not doing what I’d consider due research for market factors - I’ll be behind that 100%.)
And there’s always a sort of guilty feeling when you recognize something about an item being sold, that the seller doesn’t know. On the one hand, you’re meeting their asking price - on the other hand you know something that may not be common knowledge that explains why it’s far more valuable than the seller has guessed. (I’ve had the same experience with a first edition Ringworld, in mint condition. Normally paperback first editions are about as collectible as mud, but the book went on to become a huge bestseller, and the first print run was 2/3 destroyed after it was realized that the author had written the Earth rotating backwards.)
My last purchase was 5 stainless steel flasks. They are going to be presents to my Thanksgiving group, in honor of our 24th year together on that holiday.
Deal: Not really. Once you add in shipping I paid roughly retail or a little less for them. But I didn’t have to go shop for them at the mall, and that’s what counts.
An addition to my way-to-extensive collection of shell lamps (all acquired through eBay): a table lamp with a driftwood base, five metal “stems” with “leaves,” each of them topped with a dried sea urchin (globe-shaped shell), with the small nightlight-sized bulbs inside the sea urchins.
The seller miscaluclated how much postage would be, because they threw in a whole box of sea urchins (another dozen or so, nice specimens), so they wanted to add another $10 for shipping, but I said “sorry, not my problem,” and they didn’t give me any grief.
A cross-stitch kit with a Cuban cigar box design on it. I saw it in a catalog, and wanted to make it for my husband. I lost the catalog, so I went on ebay and found it. Hoping to have it delivered today. I won’t be able to get it done in time for Christmas, but maybe for his birthday in March.
A replica Walter Payton - Jackson State jersey. I’d seen them on some web site for up to $125. I found the exact same seller on Ebay, and got the thing shipped for less than $50 complete.
A hallmark ornament - Frosty Friends series - 1990, for my wife for Christmas. I think I won it for around $20.
The series goes back to 1980 and she has most of them, but has a few missing years. And she will not be getting the 1980 ornament until we win the lottery. $500+ for a hunk of plastic that hangs on a tree for 1 month :eek:
A Dell Axim x5–my only eBay purchase ever. Was it a deal? I dunno. It was a demo model, substantially reduced from a “new” price, so it seemed so to me. It didn’t have the software or manual, but both were easily downloaded.
I got a PS2 game - Shadows of Collosus or something to that effect. I loved the God of War games and it was recommended by a friend. I got it for about 25% of retail, plus $9 shipping, so about 50% retail.
A Brabantia 30L pedal bin. Our Brabantia-knockoff bin’s pedal broke (apparently a common problem with the knockoffs) and we needed a new bin because it was gross having to move the lid manually.
They retail for almost $200 and we got it for $20 which is pretty good.
A refurbished Matrox P750 video card, with dual digital monitor output heads. It came right quick and with no problems. That was last week.
I use eBay all the time, hundreds of times since the late 1990s, and have only ever had one bad transaction – it ended up being a misunderstanding (the Post Office lost my package, claimed they had sent it back to the sender, then found it in their mailroom).
A very well made reproduction WW2 flight jacket (a cowhide United Sheeplined by Good Wear Leathers, to be exact). It was a pre-production sample, deeply discounted, fits very nicely and the hide feels just yumptious, with loads of grain.
I used to collect items made by the Hagen-Renaker pottery, and once upon a time was a Big Name in that small pond. I’ve almost completely stopped collecting - in fact, I’m slowly selling off the accumulation and have stepped down from my duties as book author - but about three weeks ago someone in California, not far from where the factory was located during the 1950’s, listed two very odd pieces with BINs. Each was a rare plaque made only for about a year, but in an unfinished state that was in many respects prettier than the final released product. I’ve never seen anything like them. I imagine they were slightly flawed pieces that an employee took home rather than smash. I may never know, because the seller decided to ship parcel post instead of priority (as was listed on the auction), the package has disappeared into the postal system. Yes it was insured, and yes it has delivery confirmation, but so far, no luck. My only hope is that it was simply delayed because of the fires, and will eventually resume its journey east. The BINs were set at about half of what I would have been willing to pay, but even if I can collect on the insurance money, it’s not as though they could ever be replaced.
I bought a Flat Rate box full of vintage embroidery transfers. Judging from the variety I received, the seller didn’t want to go through them and do separate auctions, there was a lot of rare stuff there.
Why? Because I love to embroider, and 90% of the patterns I want aren’t being made any more.
Though technically I could sell them after I am ‘done’ with them. I scan them onto the computer take out any imperfections from discolored paper or whatnot, print out, and use a sulky pen to transfer. I just like having that piece of history that I can thumb through any time.
I bought a canon 22-55mm lens for my Rebel. ($80)
A new camper mirror for my '03 Chevy which I broke backing out of the garage (doh!) ($50)
Webkinz charm for my son. ($3)
the Webkinz charm was prolly the cheapest thing I have ever bought on Ebay.
Most expensive was three years ago: a BMW 325xi, shipped up from Texas to Maine.
Coolest? A 69 Charger, General Lee replica, shipped from Ohio to Maine. Yee haw.
