Since I joined the forum,I have noticed that ebay is sometimes frowned upon . I can see some of the reasons why(fees, dead beat bidders etc..). however ,I feel that ebay is a very helpful place for us. For one, I have been able to find many rare parts for our restorations that normally would have been next to imposible to find. Ebay has allowed us to get in contact with so many sellers and buyers,ultimately helping our hobby in many ways. Many times I have found very hard to find items with just a click of the mouse. Also when I need to free up some cash by selling some parts,Ebay is the natural choise and usually gets good,quick results.Fees or not ,to me it is a valuable resourse.

Please give some feedback and your thoughts on this one.

 

I with you 100%. I have been using Ebay for my car hobbies for almost ten years now and have only had one or two bad experiences.

I buy and sell on Ebay and have been VERY happy with a lot of the great deals and sales on that auction site.

I think the reason people frown upon Ebay is because it's easy to be taken advantage of if you don't know how to carefully look at an auction and catch the signs of fraud and crap made to look like something valuable.

I like Ebay, and will continue to shop there.

 

eBay I love....Home Depot I hate!!!! I have 4 different easy to get to (all within 20 min of each other) stores here in Miami and they never ever have the bolt/nut/part that I need. Amazingly enough when I go it is always out of stock???? So I then drive to the next store which of course can't be laid out in similar fashion to the other stores so off I am wondering around just trying to find to the darn isle with the stuff I need. Sorry to run off course...but for me I like eBay and has worked great for selling old vette parts that I don't need.

 

I have purchased a number of items, mostly new, from Corvette items, to pet supplies and have never "yet" had any issues with the sellers on E-Bay...Like life, check things out before plunging in with your credit card....

 

I agree with both of you. I spend a lot of time(and money) on Ebay and have found some great deals. In addition to the corvettes, I am also restoring a '77 Monza Mirage(yea, the one with the V8) with my 12 year-old son. We have been able to find some very hard to find parts. If it weren't for Ebay, I don't know that I would even try to restore that car. I did get burned on one large($1500.00) deal. Luckily, I did a bank transfer and the FBI used his bank info to catch him. I'm out 1500 bucks, but he is doing 5-7!

 

I like E-Bay, but you need to be wary as a buyer. I don't believe in buying cars sight unseen. If I were interested in a car on E-Bay I would have to get there and inspect it. The sellers are a microcosm of society. There are honest sellers and there are dishonest ones. I steer clear of sellers with poor feedback ratings. You just need to be careful and do your homework just like you would on any private purchase. It is a good resource for parts. I have not been burned---YET

 

I have had great luck with Ebay, both as a buyer and a seller. I have purchased mostly inexpensive parts, but I sourced all my interior parts and my trailing arms through Ebay, and have never been burned. I even sold an 86 Corvette Vert a few years ago. Deal with frequent users with 95% or better feedback, and I think you will be okay. Scammers are everywhere, and Ebay is no exception. So, when you see that perfect 69 427-435 vert for $7500, run!!!!

Temvette72

 

eBay is great! You just have to know what you are doing to use it. I think a lot of people do not research eBay before jumping in and either get confused over a transaction or get burned by the scum of eBay. Those are the stories that get told the most and therefore people that don't know any better assume that everything on eBay is bad.

I've never been "burned" on eBay but I have had a coupe of mediocre experiences. I bought my '86 Vette on eBay, I bought my '56 Chevy pickup on eBay, I bought my wife's '98 Indy Pace Car from a fellow forum member but he too had it on eBay and I probably would have bought it there if he hadn't also advertised it here. I sold my Ski Boat on there with no problems as well. I've bought lots of low ticket items and quite a few big ticket items there.

You just have to watch for suspicious looking auctions and you have to do your homework about the item you are buying. Some things shouldn't be bought sight unseen unless the price justifies the potential negative outcome. My '56 pickup was in a little worse shape than I expected but I did get what I paid for so it was OK.

I forgot to mention I also bought my '63 SWC body off ebay. I bet I could sell it for twice what I paid for it now. Oh yeah, and my glass T-Tops for my '81...... Wonder what else I'm forgetting?

 

I got a hartop and seats on ebay. Paid 300 for a hartop, hard to beat that.

 

Some people say that there are not as many 'small' vendors at places like Carlisle because of E-Bay. I do think I've noticed a decline in vendors the last few years. I'm sorry about that.
Regards,
Alan

 

What prompted me to post this thread is a thread by another member who was looking for some NOS hubcaps.There was such a set on ebay(I was watching the auction as well since I love those things).He was very adamant about not buying them from ebay,and i just did not understand why? Since they are not reproduced, it was a good opportunity to get a really nice set.I ended up not picking them up because i already have a nice(not NOS set). I bought my set on ebay.

If that member sees this thread,join in this discussion.I think you might be missing out on some good stuff staying away from ebay.I agree there are some shady people on there but most tend to be good. EBAY is basicaly a reflection of our society.

 

Just go to ACE Hardware - problem solved.

 

I use it a lot. I buy and occasionally sell. You have to be careful (as in any transaction) but it's been a great option for me both in the car hobbby and other areas. I have been using it ~ 10 years.

 

Alan, I hear what you are saying. I love the small vendors my self. Normally I come back from Carlisle with a truck load. This year practicaly nothing. However it is probably to their advantage to sell on ebay.They probably get more $ for their product due to the larger exposure ,and they dont have to lug all their stuff there and wait to do it once a year.(At the same time ,I dont have to wait to find my stuff there.Hell,I dont have to leave my couch )

Stan

 

I've never been to a Corvette event where the vendors were charging reasonable prices for their stuff. Maybe I've just never been to the right events? All the ones I go to it seem like they up the prices with not just the "Corvette tax" but then they tack on the "event tax". Now I'm not talking about vendors with brand new stuff, I'm talking about used, swap meet type stuff. I know a lot of reputable vendors with brand new product actually give show discounts which is nice!

 

knock on wood, never been screwed over on EBAY. As said, it is great to use as a tool to get some cash when selling items that you don't need.

I bought my '76 off EBAY, and it ent very smooth.

 

I have bought and sold on Ebay with little or no problems. My wife sells there as her full time job and has almost 7000 feedback at 99.9%. As with any other purchase, do your research and compare items and sellers. Research your seller to minimize any problems. Pay careful attention to feedback, shipping costs, and auction item text. Look at the pictures carefully and suck them into your computer and expand them and lighten them so you can see details. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask well before the bidding ends.

 

I have over 800 transactions on ebay and have had very little problem. Bought and sold cars there. Sold so many parts so easily I have ceased to use swap meets to sell. And, there isn't a better bang for the buck in the way of putting your car out to a huge audience for sale. None.

Many people make sarcastic "evil-bay" or whatever references, and I have to doubt that they have ever even traded there. They don't know what they are talking about or understand the process so poorly they cry about everything. Some people whine because they don't know how to win bids. Whatever.

As far as links here go, the only issue is that its against the rules to link your ebay auction to the forum. I dont have a problem with that as long as everyone else, including supporting vendors, have to follow the same rules.

 

I've had very good luck as a buyer and seller on ebay.

Picked this up last January.

 

I love ebay not only for parts, but anything else you can think of.

-Shark Mann