The Energon Pub

Obviously you don't know much about Ebay. They dont start the price. The person selling starts the price OR SOMEBODY BIDS IT HIGH!!! Take into account higher shipping costs now because of OPEC and the the fact that Ebay just changed owners a few weeks and the new guy has raised listing and final sale fees %60 that should explain why EVERYTHING on ebay is listed at slightly more. BTW thanks for the link to the Transformer you were looking at to help explain the "over pricing"

If I see something I want I bid my top value and let it ride. Very rarely do I get into bid wars or wait till the end unless its something rare that I really want. Even then I'll jsut wait till the last minute to put my top bid then walk away.

I've gotten some great deals on Ebay partly because I am somewhat cheap and I'm not willing to go into bid wars.

If an item sells, is it not techncially impossible to overprice it. As long as there is one bidder it isn't overpriced.

Also, I see nothing wrong with an ebay store to buy up cheap product and resell it. Its not like store owners anywhere are getting shipments of G1s from a warehouse. All of the product, ebay or non ebay, is bought from a private seller, marked up and sold.

Not just TFs either, this pretty much applies to every single antique/collectible.

Actually, right now, there is a group buying and bidding on TF's. They have various names like "s**3", ot "r**6". Every TF I have bidded on in this week has had that type of name in there, conicedence, I think not.

ebay is the worst...but at least you know what you're getting into. Sometimes ebay (place countyr here) may find better deals. Also beware that the past TF lines, classics, Cybertron, and energon are high dollar now, with a mix of some Armada and R.I.D, will go up in price for the figure in demand. Thanks to the movie, TF business is boomming.

When I was dealing specifically with Brave TF's, I made considerable amounts of money buying from Hong Kong and Korea. Why?? The shipping is high, but when you buy multiple items, the shipping price stays the same.

EXAMPLE:

I had a seller who trusted me. He would have a bid price and a 'buy it now' price. Because I would buy 3 or 4 Brave TF's at a time, he would end the auction early on the bid price. Shipping for 1 item would be like $35 or more, but buy 3 or 4, and the combined shipping was $40. So I got lots of Takara boxed Brave toys for an average price of $20. With the shipping the average is $30. Brave TF were rare on ebay back between '99 and '02 before the SongKong reissues.

I would get up to $100 dollars for each boxed gift set I had. Legit Brave Toys have a good resale value, especially Takara boxed items.

I would make about $40 over the cost per item at times. I used to do this with import video games until the sellers upped the ani, then I stopped.

ebay is buyers remorse. If you want to catch a certain TF for cheap, it's a daily thing. I got all my TF's that way.

bvzxa wrote:Actually, right now, there is a group buying and bidding on TF's. They have various names like "s**3", ot "r**6". Every TF I have bidded on in this week has had that type of name in there, conicedence, I think not.

That's not a TF buying group or coincidence, it's just a security feature eBay implemented. Here's the email notification from eBay I received last week:

message from eBay wrote:Keeping eBay your trusted source for great deals and truly unique finds is important to all of us. Toward this end, we're making an important change:

Soon we will no longer display the complete user IDs of people bidding on any auction-style listing. Instead, we'll use asterisks such as x***y to protect our members' identities. Sellers will continue to see complete user IDs on their listings and the winning bidder's ID will be visible to everyone after the auction ends.

We haven't provided this information on listings of $200 or higher for some time and it's been a very effective fraud deterrent for those items. For safety reasons, we're now expanding this protection to all auction-style listings.

We know many of you like to see who you're bidding against. But displaying this information makes it too easy for scammers to send out fake offers that include convincing details of your actual bidding activity on a specific listing, such as the item number, description and exact amount you bid.

In recent weeks fraudulent email offers targeting listings under $200 has surged unacceptably. To keep eBay a top shopping destination we must choose safety over visibility and nip this in the bud. We recognize for some of you this may be an unwelcome limitation but we hope you'll support our putting more muscle into fraud prevention....

Never ever ever ever ever EVER!!!!!!!!!!!! Buy from ebay. I cant tell you how many times i got riped off on there, And the funny thing is that when you get screwed from ebay and then you report it to ebay, They do nothing to help you. They dont even care. I spent 200 bucks on there once and the guy just took off and i never got what i payed for. I reported it to ebay and they just ignored my emails and never gave me a refund or anything. @#$* EBAY!

Megatron-Ron wrote:Never ever ever ever ever EVER!!!!!!!!!!!! Buy from ebay. I cant tell you how many times i got riped off on there, And the funny thing is that when you get screwed from ebay and then you report it to ebay, They do nothing to help you. They dont even care. I spent 200 bucks on there once and the guy just took off and i never got what i payed for. I reported it to ebay and they just ignored my emails and never gave me a refund or anything. @#$* EBAY!

Did you use paypal to pay? From what I read you're covered if the seller screws you and you used paypal. I haven't had a problem since returning to eBay a couple months ago so I can't vouch for it, but it sounds a lot safer these days. I'm sure there are others here that could confirm or deny the validity of paypal's buyer protection claims, though.

NotEnoughKibble wrote:

Megatron-Ron wrote:Never ever ever ever ever EVER!!!!!!!!!!!! Buy from ebay. I cant tell you how many times i got riped off on there, And the funny thing is that when you get screwed from ebay and then you report it to ebay, They do nothing to help you. They dont even care. I spent 200 bucks on there once and the guy just took off and i never got what i payed for. I reported it to ebay and they just ignored my emails and never gave me a refund or anything. @#$* EBAY!

Did you use paypal to pay? From what I read you're covered if the seller screws you and you used paypal. I haven't had a problem since returning to eBay a couple months ago so I can't vouch for it, but it sounds a lot safer these days. I'm sure there are others here that could confirm or deny the validity of paypal's buyer protection claims, though.

I did pay using paypal and they still wouldnt refund my money. Ebay is very shady.

Megatron-Ron wrote:

NotEnoughKibble wrote:

Megatron-Ron wrote:Never ever ever ever ever EVER!!!!!!!!!!!! Buy from ebay. I cant tell you how many times i got riped off on there, And the funny thing is that when you get screwed from ebay and then you report it to ebay, They do nothing to help you. They dont even care. I spent 200 bucks on there once and the guy just took off and i never got what i payed for. I reported it to ebay and they just ignored my emails and never gave me a refund or anything. @#$* EBAY!

Did you use paypal to pay? From what I read you're covered if the seller screws you and you used paypal. I haven't had a problem since returning to eBay a couple months ago so I can't vouch for it, but it sounds a lot safer these days. I'm sure there are others here that could confirm or deny the validity of paypal's buyer protection claims, though.

I did pay using paypal and they still wouldnt refund my money. Ebay is very shady.

You can get your money back from Paypal. I had to do it recently. I waited weeks and nothing came, so I started sending emails to the seller, but there was no reply. So I went to Paypal and initiated a claim. I told them that nothing had arrived and that I had tried to contact the seller to no avail. Paypal sent emails to the seller and then after a few weeks, it was resolved in my favour and I got a full refund.

Ebay is only as shady as the individuals who use it. If you stick to sellers who have established histories and above 99.5% feedback, you shouldn't have much trouble.

No i couldnt. Ebay said that i was just trying to get my money back claiming that i recived the item. Im telling you, They robbed my blind. I am actually in the process of getting a lawyer. I want to sue them and they say i have a good case. Ebay cant assume i got the item i bought when i really didnt.

I've never bought from Ebay, because it does seem like a risk sometimes. Unless you're buying form a person with a high seller rating and low negative feedback.

Megatron-Ron wrote:No i couldnt. Ebay said that i was just trying to get my money back claiming that i recived the item. Im telling you, They robbed my blind. I am actually in the process of getting a lawyer. I want to sue them and they say i have a good case. Ebay cant assume i got the item i bought when i really didnt.

In these disputes, it's up to Paypal to decide who's telling the truth. The buyer could be scamming the seller, the seller could be scamming the buyer. There could be a crooked postman in the middle. Or someone could've just slipped up somewhere and made a error.

It may not be clear who's in the right. Good luck getting your money back.

Bumblethumper wrote:

Megatron-Ron wrote:No i couldnt. Ebay said that i was just trying to get my money back claiming that i recived the item. Im telling you, They robbed my blind. I am actually in the process of getting a lawyer. I want to sue them and they say i have a good case. Ebay cant assume i got the item i bought when i really didnt.

In these disputes, it's up to Paypal to decide who's telling the truth. The buyer could be scamming the seller, the seller could be scamming the buyer. There could be a crooked postman in the middle. Or someone could've just slipped up somewhere and made a error.

It may not be clear who's in the right. Good luck getting your money back.

Thanks Bumblethumper. I hope i can get it back to.

Megatron-Ron wrote:No i couldnt. Ebay said that i was just trying to get my money back claiming that i recived the item. Im telling you, They robbed my blind. I am actually in the process of getting a lawyer. I want to sue them and they say i have a good case. Ebay cant assume i got the item i bought when i really didnt.

Your posting sounds shady.

I have never heard of eBay accusing anybody.

While eBay should be more up front about the risks of buying online, for the most part it is safe.

I have also never heard of a lawyer willing to go to battle against eBay over a $200 claim. You do not have a good case. Read your eBay ToS. eBay did not take your $200, the seller did. eBay aka the middle man is not held responsible for transactions gone wrong.

If you claim non-delivery and the buyer provided tracking information that shows the package was delivered, you will lose the claim.

Unfortunately for sellers there is a last resort recourse that always wins. Pay with PayPal funded by a credit card. If the seller does not deliver and PayPal sides with the seller (or sides with you but can't collect from the seller's account), you can then dispute the charge with your credit card company. I did this once and got the charge reversed. Another time, I bought with PayPal funds (not backed by a CC) and the seller did not deliver. PayPal decided in my favor but since the seller's account was empty they did not recover any money for me. Unfortunately I did not use a CC so I am SOL.

Now, for any auction, no matter how small, I transfer any PayPal money to my bank then pay with funds backed by a CC.

His posting is shady. What did you try and buy a Ft. Max for 425 shipped from Japan? No $hit you got screwed. I've been doing Ebay for 10 years and have got nailed once. AND IT WAS MY FAULT!!! Your covered upto $1000 in Paypal, and no Ebay is not calling you a lier. Your distorting the facts and know it.

Cyberjet #7 wrote:I've never bought from Ebay, because it does seem like a risk sometimes. Unless you're buying form a person with a high seller rating and low negative feedback.

That's the trick! Picking sellers with "Power Seller" ratings and nothing less than a 98% positive feedback rating is one's best option to avoid being taken to the cleaners! I have heard some serious horror stories about eBay, but I have had nothing but totally positive experiences using them for all my collectibles.

Pyrostrata wrote:

Cyberjet #7 wrote:I've never bought from Ebay, because it does seem like a risk sometimes. Unless you're buying form a person with a high seller rating and low negative feedback.

That's the trick! Picking sellers with "Power Seller" ratings and nothing less than a 98% positive feedback rating is one's best option to avoid being taken to the cleaners! I have heard some serious horror stories about eBay, but I have had nothing but totally positive experiences using them for all my collectibles.

Agreed. If you're mildly intelligent about it, Ebay is very safe to use. Pay with an Amex via paypal and you are doubly protected.

Bonger wrote:Agreed. If you're mildly intelligent about it, Ebay is very safe to use. Pay with an Amex via paypal and you are doubly protected.

Nowadays, use ANY credit card and you should generally be protected against any sort of fraud issues. Just have to call them and tell them you got screwed, and they go after the screwer...Visa is EVIL about such things, and will get you your money back ASAP...at least in my experience!

Im telling you that this is true. Ebay dosent even respond to my emails. I dont care if it is 200 bucks or 2 bucks, Its my money and i want the damm money back. What do you mean my post is shady. Why the hell would i make this up. Think what you want but i WILL get my money back. Ebay and paypal is a joke and i got screwed bottom line.
Oh yeah and one more thing, It helps when my uncle is a lawyer and will go after ebay for me. He can make it happen. If not then oh well. But its my money and i want it back.

Megatron-Ron wrote:Im telling you that this is true. Ebay dosent even respond to my emails. I dont care if it is 200 bucks or 2 bucks, Its my money and i want the damm money back. What do you mean my post is shady. Why the hell would i make this up. Think what you want but i WILL get my money back. Ebay and paypal is a joke and i got screwed bottom line.
Oh yeah and one more thing, It helps when my uncle is a lawyer and will go after ebay for me. He can make it happen. If not then oh well. But its my money and i want it back.

In your defense megatron-ron I believe you. I also had the same problem with ebay. I bought something with paypal and the seller took the money and ran. I contacted ebay and they never answered my emails eather. Paypal never refunded my money and so i also scared them with a lawyer. They got scared and refunded my money with no questions asked. So people who are doubting that a lawyer would not take on a case for 200 dollars dont know what there talking about. They love going after companys that are a big name. Tell me why ebay never answered my emails and when they got a letter from a lawyers office all of a sudden i get a check in the mail from ebay, And the amount was for less then megatron-rons amount of money. I got screwed 150 dollars.

Thanks you longarm77. Im happy to see someone has had the same problem so that we can put a end to crooked sellers on ebay. I am done with this discusion because i never wanted to turn this topic in to a ebay related topic. I want to say sorry to the moderators of this site. And one more thing, I will be sure to post my refund check when i get it.

I actually found a good seller on eBay... I bought a First Strike Optimus Prime from him for the normal $19.99 price.

And of course, every now and then you get lucky and find people selling their child's old toys and don't really know what it is they have so you get it at extremely cheap prices. Sometimes I actually feel bad that the people are getting ripped off, but then I think about how I got an original Blaster (with working tape deck) for $10 and I don't feel so bad for them anymore. lol

Canned Pasta wrote:I actually found a good seller on eBay... I bought a First Strike Optimus Prime from him for the normal $19.99 price.

And of course, every now and then you get lucky and find people selling their child's old toys and don't really know what it is they have so you get it at extremely cheap prices. Sometimes I actually feel bad that the people are getting ripped off, but then I think about how I got an original Blaster (with working tape deck) for $10 and I don't feel so bad for them anymore. lol

LOL, I here you on that, But i didnt buy transformers, I bought a crib for my baby daughter who is on the way. My wife wanted a white wood finish to her crib and the only reasonable price was on ebay. If it was for figures i wouldnt be all that mad but its because its a crib for my daughter that i am pissed off.

Part of the reason people jack up the ebay costs is because there have been many many collectors that are willing to pay those prices.
Unfortunately, I'd say the number of collectors who aren't willing to pay those prices is much much greater.

Then you have the situation where there are lots of people in the world who are,
for lack of a better phrase, "too lazy" to go out and find what they want.
Cause I think the argument of "gas is so expensive" only goes so far...
Most of the time when I look for figures, I'm at Walmart or Target buying other things too,
or have made a run out to the grocery store which maybe a half mile from those others.

Unless you live in a really small town where the Walmart literally only gets new toys in once a month, and the Target is 45 minutes away, I don't know why anyone would be buying movie figures from ebay. I guess it's a lack of patience.
I think the only exceptions would be the metallic finish Megatron and Ratchet
(but if you really want those figures, be smart enough to not bid over what the cost is at BBTS).


I mean, I haven't seen Big Daddy or Grindcore in the last 3 trips to Walmart, but I'm not going to pay almost 3 times what they're worth just to have them 2-3 weeks early...
I'm guessing they've only been in this area MAYBE 2 weeks as it is.
I'll eventually see them.
Even with early waves, there are online retailers that have them for almost original cost, plus the shipping isn't outrageous either.

Canned Pasta wrote:I actually found a good seller on eBay... I bought a First Strike Optimus Prime from him for the normal $19.99 price.

And of course, every now and then you get lucky and find people selling their child's old toys and don't really know what it is they have so you get it at extremely cheap prices. Sometimes I actually feel bad that the people are getting ripped off, but then I think about how I got an original Blaster (with working tape deck) for $10 and I don't feel so bad for them anymore. lol

Just curious, what was the shipping charge for that Prime figure?