software

I was looking at guitars on ebay and was wondering if anyone was bought a guitar on ebay. was it in good shape? I don't want to buy a $500 dollar guitar and then spend another $500 just to make it playable.

It depends on if you buy from a seller with good feedback. Your pretty safe if you buy from a seller who has good feedback. Refer to the sellers feedback and if you have a bad feeling about buying from them due to a few negative feedbacks than don't buy from them. As I said before, If they have good feedback it should leave you with minimal worries or no worries at all..... Hope that helps....

Also... ALWAYS check the seller's feedback rating before you place a bid. Some people make the mistake of bidding before they check feedback because they are so eager to hurry up and buy what they want, and after they place their bid they find out the seller has horrible feedback and regret bidding. You have a bid contract with Ebay, so once you place a bid your commited to follow through with the transaction reguardless of the seller's bad feedback record. If by chance the seller is a new user and doesn't have any feedback it is best to pass up their offer to be on the safe side because you have no way of figuring out if they are gonna screw you over or not.

Basically, what I'm getting at is that if you buy from a seller with bad feedback theres a pretty big chance that what you buy is gonna be a piece of $hit. On the other hand though, if the seller has a good feedback record, its pretty safe to say that they are reliable, honest, and you shouldn't have to worry about buying from them.

i wouldnt accept a shipped guitar unless in a hardcase....


Originally Posted by Quencho092i wouldnt accept a shipped guitar unless in a hardcase....

I definitely agree with this. I've seen too many banged up boxes. I've bought and sold guitars on ebay and when buying, multiple positive feedback is a must. Also, demand that they ship insured. It's only a few bucks more.

I have bought three guitars from sellers on Ebay. I have been happy with the condition of all of them. I have yet to have a probelm, but I may just be lucky. I think most people that sell on Ebay, and on the forums are honest. You would think there would be more fraud out there, but I have yet to encounter any. Just be wise, and if it looks too good, stay away. I too would never buy a guitar and have it shipped, not in a hardcase.

I've bought several guitars from ebay, and other online sources (Gbase gear mall has real deal '59 LPs and other hard to find goodies). So far I've done pretty well, but I think my electronic shopping days are over. For one thing, you forget to ask the really important question and you end up with something that is exactly as advertized, except they didn't advertize what you really wanted top know ! My biggest goof was buying a guitar with schaller tuners : I thought they were factory original but didn't even think to ask (they weren't). On the other hand I got a collectable Fender amp for $1045 and sold it for $3200. Be careful.

A picture is worth a thousand words.....that´s why good poics of the axe are essential to any online sale

Has anyone bought an acoustic on ebay?

I bought a neck, a pedal and a preamp from ebay, and all turned out great. I might buy a guitar (or parts) from ebay eventually. Most people on ebay selling guitars are trustworthy.

i got my les paul through ebay, couldnt be happier with her.

just make sure they got good pics, a lot of good feedback (anything under 10 and 20 and ya should be wary) and be especially wary of negative feedback, but dont discount the seller all together if they only have one or two negatives out of a whole load of positives.

There are some reall a**holes out there who try to flog broken gear, that happened to one of my friends once. The guy only had one fuzzy picture of the guitar and barely any feedback.

So...if you follow some basic rules ebay shopping can be cool. The only real problem is that you dont get to play or hear the guitar beforehand, so...you might be taking a little bit of a chance in that respect.


Originally Posted by TwitchHas anyone bought an acoustic on ebay?

Good question, I wouldn't risk it though...

The very first ebay auction I won was for a Charvel Fusion. It's still the greatest thing I've ever bought from ebay.

Well I'll let you know by the end of next week. I just got a great deal on a brand new used Hamer Monaco Elite on ebay. With the HSC. The seller has a 99.5% positve rating with about 1500 or so feedbacks doing business on ebay for the last 7 years. I'm relatively comfortable with buying from them. If you think about it, they would have no reason to screw up their ebay rep. I also have a warranty from Hamer and from this guitar shop. So my comfort level with them was really good. But there are some I've seen where I'm just a little leary. Not just because of low score. (or bad score) But guitars with no serial numbers, or very iffy ones, no pics or fake pics (or that look fake), etc. Yeah definately be careful, and just take each case by itself. All my ebay experiences have been very good personally.

Thanks for all the input.

i got my MIJ strat from a 0 feedback seller, with a crap photo. i met them in person though, and i got the deal of the century ..

personally, i think it pays to take risks. if they reply quickly to questions and willing to meet in person, they're usually pretty genuine. to be sure, ask them for the serial number and check it against the description.. just find out as much as you can!

tom

personally i would only buy amps, pedals, and other electronics off ebay because for the most part it either works or it doesnt with guitars u start noticing flaws over time which is usually not caught by the 2 days they usually give u or worse they have no refund policy i dont even like buying a guitar from a reputable guitar store because i dont know its full history its ur axe ur baby an extension of urself i want the probability of problems as minimal as possible

i'd be more concerned about buying an amp than a guitar on ebay, if i ever did i'd have to have it apart and check all the earth connections and solder joints.. the volts hanging around a tube amp especially are enough to kill, and i dont trust anyone selling me an amp to have it totally right

if i am really interested un something, i get the following photos if i can of the seller:

1) the neck joint, lets you see hairline cracks and its easier to spot a dud truss rod
2) the headstock, so you can look into the serial number and check it matches the one on the back of the neck (im really going on strats here)
3) the back of the guitar with a flash - buckle rash shows up.

as always, its best to meet. you're generally well in the clear with something like Boss pedals, but a genuine seller will want to bombard you with good quality photographs, remember they want the highest price for it too..

tom

I buy them here and there on ebay.. but I sell them every week. I always like some pics to see just what i'm getting... but this is computer choking overkill!