What would you do? vintage fender/ebay deal-Misleading?

[willsellout]

Originally Posted by narud

everything has to be taken into context. its not his bass that hes selling and its got a changed bridge. hes got his phone number up. not the marks of scam. theres some minor beef but its like a hundred bucks worth of beef if something as being sold as "all original except....." you should be going into it knowing its not a collector or high dollar piece. this bass doesnt look barely used from the pictures.

The context is that the seller sold a bass that is not what he advertised. As a buyer, he has every right (and should) return the bass to the seller as it isn't the bass he bought.

I'm not saying the seller is a scam artist. I'm saying it's not the bass that was described. The fault for that lies with the seller. There's no reason the buyer needs to accept it because it can be fixed. Especially when 70's Fender's are selling on craigslist for a few hundred less than what this one went for, at least around me.

[king_biscuit]

Originally Posted by willsellout

The context is that the seller sold a bass that is not what he advertised. As a buyer, he has every right (and should) return the bass to the seller as it isn't the bass he bought.

I'm not saying the seller is a scam artist. I'm saying it's not the bass that was described. The fault for that lies with the seller. There's no reason the buyer needs to accept it because it can be fixed. Especially when 70's Fender's are selling on craigslist for a few hundred less than what this one went for, at least around me.

If the buyer doesn't like the bass, he is probably justified in sending it back, but if it is an otherwise great bass, these seem like minor issues.

[A-Step-Towards]

I am not tearing the guy a new ******* or anything like that. I sent him a nice message stating what arrived, what I wasnt satisfied with and them told him Ebays policies and asked him to kindly give me # to his friend.

I am open to working out a partial reimbursement but if he isnt back it will go, I am not going to keep it as is with no exchange of money in my favor. I have been buying and selling for a long time and getting ripped off isnt something I bend over and take. I have excellent feedback here because I go out of my way to make sure the words I say are 100% accurate, not many Tb'ers have the track record I have (169 positive feedbacks and counting) and with his record on ebay I expect equal service. I feel he has a lesson to be learned in all of this as well.Saying they were minor issues is not something I would ever say to a unsatisifed customer.

[willsellout]

Originally Posted by king_biscuit

If the buyer doesn't like the bass, he is probably justified in sending it back, but if it is an otherwise great bass, these seem like minor issues.

It's not the size of the issues, it's that they weren't disclosed in the auction.

[king_biscuit]

Originally Posted by willsellout

It's not the size of the issues, it's that they weren't disclosed in the auction.

So? This doesn't look like fraud, but rather a simple mistake. If it's a great bass, and he gets some sort of compensation/refund, life will go on

[narud]

Originally Posted by A-Step-Towards

I am not tearing the guy a new ******* or anything like that. I sent him a nice message stating what arrived, what I wasnt satisfied with and them told him Ebays policies and asked him to kindly give me # to his friend.

I am open to working out a partial reimbursement but if he isnt back it will go, I am not going to keep it as is with no exchange of money in my favor. I have been buying and selling for a long time and getting ripped off isnt something I bend over and take. I have excellent feedback here because I go out of my way to make sure the words I say are 100% accurate, not many Tb'ers have the track record I have (169 positive feedbacks and counting) and with his record on ebay I expect equal service. I feel he has a lesson to be learned in all of this as well.Saying they were minor issues is not something I would ever say to a unsatisifed customer.

from what im seeing, no one really got ripped off. some of your complaints are clearly visible and those that arent, arent of the type that turn this into a bass worth stripped money.

[A-Step-Towards]

Originally Posted by narud

from what im seeing, no one really got ripped off. some of your complaints are clearly visible and those that arent, arent of the type that turn this into a bass worth stripped money.

You and I have different opinions on what a seller should disclose then. Issues should be discussed in the text not just shown in a poor photo. Unoriginal parts should be stated, claiming something is what it is not IMO is ripping someone off.

I have given him my thoughts and will wait for his explanation. If he is agreeable then no bad feedback or anything like that will be left , whether its in the form of a return or partial payment.

[narud]

Originally Posted by A-Step-Towards

You and I have different opinions on what a seller should disclose then. Issues should be discussed in the text not just shown in a poor photo. Unoriginal parts should be stated, claiming something is what it is not IMO is ripping someone off.

I have given him my thoughts and will wait for his explanation. If he is agreeable then no bad feedback or anything like that will be left , whether its in the form of a return or partial payment.

i definitely think everything should always be disclosed, but at face value this looks like an honest mistake. if youre bidding based on poor photos, youre taking a gamble. when you bid like that, sometimes you lose.

[A-Step-Towards]

Originally Posted by narud

i definitely think everything should always be disclosed, but at face value this looks like an honest mistake. if youre bidding based on poor photos, youre taking a gamble. when you bid like that, sometimes you lose.

Like I said i didnt flip out on the guy or jump directly to a paypal claim as others said. I didnt get angry or anything as others did for me. I simply sent him a nice message stating my findings , included my number and asked him to pass it along to his friend.

Shipping was $130, I only paid $75 of it. If I sent it back ebay would ding them return shipping, they would have to relist , maybe make less, have to pay futher shipping and cause alot of headache. I didnt lay that on them as some others said to do and instead asked to speak with them. The more I look at the bass I can see it suffered from slight water damage when it was sitting, thats why the face has changed a weird color, the case also has mildew inside it thats blackend the orange where the body was.

[Mind Eroded]

OP, you took a gamble on a vintage jazz presumably to flip it for profit as your end goal, judging by your history on this site. With those profit margins in your mind, you thought you got a great deal, turns out it was just an OK deal and the buyer's remorse is settling in. The Description might not be 100% accurate but seems alittle nit-picky to me to get hung up on some of the real or perceived 'flaws' on this 40 year old instrument. I don't see any gross or material misrepresentations on behalf of the seller here(assuming pickups are indeed original) which would warrant any refund. That's just me(sorry.)

This is exactly the kind of risks you assume buying vintage guitars sight unseen on ebay, although many here will probably disagree with me.

goodluck with whatever decision you choose to make on this bass.

[A-Step-Towards]

Originally Posted by Mind Eroded

OP, you took a gamble on a vintage jazz presumably to flip it for profit as your end goal, judging by your history on this site. With those profit margins in your mind, you thought you got a great deal, turns out it was just an OK deal and the buyer's remorse is settling in. The Description might not be 100% accurate but seems alittle nit-picky to me to get hung up on some of the real or perceived 'flaws' on this 40 year old instrument. I don't see any gross or material misrepresentations on behalf of the seller here(assuming pickups are indeed original) which would warrant any refund. That's just me(sorry.)

This is exactly the kind of risks you assume buying vintage guitars sight unseen on ebay, although many here will probably disagree with me.

goodluck with whatever decision you choose to make on this bass.

That post was straight up full of assumptions. As I said I have been looking for one of these a long time. As for flipping for profit the last 2 basses I have sold on here I lost money on, have I made money of basses in the past ? yep, does that mean I solely buy to make money? nope. So thanks for assuming that I bought this to flip and in turn thats why I am disappointed.

It couldn’t just be the fact I paid a fair price for a bass and got something not as described. Its perceived that the pots are replaced and its been rewired by a monkey right? or that it has water damage to the finish? or that someone replaced every screw with oversized ones to where normal screws cant thread in correctly?

Wow your post is completely ignorant. If I sold gear here that misrepresented I would have negative feedback.

[ShowLow]

Originally Posted by king_biscuit

That used to be the case, but I don't think sellers can leave negative feedback for buyers anymore -- which prevents that sort of retaliatory feedback.

I stand corrected, thank you sir! Good to know.

[DeanT]

I would definitely send it back and complain to eBay and PayPal. He sold you something that was not as described. Maybe he really doesn't know anything about basses, but that doesn't matter. He sold the bass as all original except for the bridge, and it isn't.

You have your hard-earned money involved, so dont settle for crap. Get what you paid for.

[smcd]

Originally Posted by king_biscuit

SMCD, please put the Ernest Borgnine photo back up, that new one is scaring me! ...Please!!

LOL!

[gjbassist]

I have bought and sold several basses on Ebay with no issues. However I just don't think I could buy a vintage instrument through Ebay sight unseen. My expectations of originality, condition, etc. could be much different than the seller's, which may have been the case with your experience as well. If it were me I would send it back for a full refund. There are enough 70's jazz basses out there for sale that you should be able to find one you like better.

[hsech]

If you are an EBay frequent flyer they will help you resolve the dispute with the seller. They are also helpful if you are a seller. I sold a Gibson SJ200 Acoustic on EBay that the buyer didn't like. It was pristine, but it had a professionally added strap button at the heel of the neck. The buyer said I didn't describe it properly because of the strap button not being original to the guitar. Long story short, EBay refunded the buyer, I got the guitar back and got to sell it again (for more) with no cost to me. I didn't refund the buyer, EBay did. They said I was not at fault. If they are willing to do that, I think they will help you with your problem.

[1SHOT1HIT]

AStep, sorry you're in this position, I didn't have the chance to read the thread but damn, that sucks.

I hope it gets resolved man! $1700+ is a pretty chunk of cash no matter how you look at it. If you're not happy, the only way to make it right is to get your money refunded to you.
I mean even if he refunds $500 you're still just at what you seem to think it'll be worth. Knowing you, lol at some point you're gonna want to pass it on, and that leaves minimal room for you later to make anything at all on it.

I'd just go for full refund if possible.
But for all I know it's already been worked out, again I only read the first few posts.

Good luck!

[narud]

Originally Posted by gjbassist

I have bought and sold several basses on Ebay with no issues. However I just don't think I could buy a vintage instrument through Ebay sight unseen. My expectations of originality, condition, etc. could be much different than the seller's, which may have been the case with your experience as well. If it were me I would send it back for a full refund. There are enough 70's jazz basses out there for sale that you should be able to find one you like better.

which is why you ask a ton of questions if you have those type expectations. ive purchased all but one of my vintage fenders ive owned over the years sight unseen over the internet. i havent felt ripped off once. you might come off as a pain in the ass and you might miss out on a good deal because of it but at least your own standards will be bet.

[Mind Eroded]

Originally Posted by A-Step-Towards

That post was straight up full of assumptions. As I said I have been looking for one of these a long time. As for flipping for profit the last 2 basses I have sold on here I lost money on, have I made money of basses in the past ? yep, does that mean I solely buy to make money? nope. So thanks for assuming that I bought this to flip and in turn thats why I am disappointed.

It couldn’t just be the fact I paid a fair price for a bass and got something not as described. Its perceived that the pots are replaced and its been rewired by a monkey right? or that it has water damage to the finish? or that someone replaced every screw with oversized ones to where normal screws cant thread in correctly?

Wow your post is completely ignorant. If I sold gear here that misrepresented I would have negative feedback.

seems like you took my post the wrong way, as I figured you probably would. Any person who has feedback in the high 100's and claims to have "80 basses and counting" is in my view, in the gear trade/business and i'm sure these thoughts at least crossed your mind when you were purchasing the bass. I'm on this site often. I've come across threads of you boasting about how much you paid for a particular bass, then come across said bass in the classifieds for considerably higher. Again let me reiterate, theres NOTHING wrong with that, but I'm just going by what I know/have seen in the past.

All the things you mention, with the exception of the supposed water damage are non issues in my opinion, or at the very least easy and cheap to correct(Stew mac kit = 15 bucks). You should expect some kind of wear on an instrument that is almost have a century old.. A couple of non original screws also doesn't make the bass worth $500 less than what you payed.

just my .02. take care.

[gimmeagig]

yeah,the finish doesn't look right.Almost like it was sanded off.Could still be a nice bass though.The seller had 100% positive feedback. He'll probably work with you to keep that good rating.basses of that vintage in perfect condition sell for a bit more that what you paid for the bass.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Fend...item20c98e0ef0

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1978-Fender-...tem27cf7ad728l


I bought a 74 Jazz about 10 years ago from a store. When I took it home and disassembled it to really check it out, I found that it had been routed for a P Bass neck pickup. I still liked the bass and it was no real big deal for me. But I mentioned it to the store owner and without any hassles I got a 200.- refund. Sylvan Music in Santa Cruz, a great bass store!
Most basses that old are going to have flaws, it just depends on what you are willing to live with.If you are a collector of course you want an original instrument but if you are a player and you are looking for that 70s mojo then originality might not be at the top of the list.
Anyway,
If you contact the seller in a nice way and ask him for a partial refund without making threats or accusations you might be able to work something out.