EK'S TOOL FINDS AND I.D. HELP!!! (an ongoing sub-forum)

[ekegelmann]

Ebay is not "the plane collecting world". It's a gazillion amateurs peddling odds and ends they pick up at garage sales, swap meets, or find buried in their basements.

crguy, you're in a small market niche populated by guys who are seriously into the "plane" thing - I get that and I respect that. I just never got into the "plane" thing myself, which is why I offered those I have to you - (I need to go out and dig them out of that store room, btw -- send me your email addy.)

One thing I have learned about Ebay sellers in the very short period of time I've been on there buying tools: most of the sellers are rank amateurs who have absolutely no clue what they have, or any idea what is "good" or "bad" or "damaged" - they just see the item as a "vintage tool" - another widget to peddle and maybe make a buck.
Even some of the sellers who do tool sales only sometimes surprise me with their complete lack of knowledge about an item or a particular brand: I've bought rare-as-hen's-teeth items for a song because they just saw an old beat-up "vintage tool". On the flip side there are the ubiquitous Duro-Indestro hex-drive socket sets that some think are worth a fortune.

EK: Seven photos? Of one item? I'd say that's pretty good as far as "product description" or "disclosure" if at least half of them were in focus.

Move on... what's next on the menu?

Very true, I only started selling tools a year ago, collected so many I had to start getting rid of extras etc. You can find super rare items for very cheap. I got 4 new old stock knurled proto Los Angeles large sockets still in package for .99 plus shipping one time. I price items by looking at similar price then going lower or higher based on the exact item I've got and you're correct, sometimes the price becomes outrageous, but I always put the best offer on my listings for the people that have a clue and would offer an honest price. There is no set values on anything, just an idea. That's how the game works. I had to start selling things to stay off ghetto system of entitlements due to an injury from a car accident. Can't do my job of 14 years and had to figure out a way to still make money. This not only provides fun, but it's also educational and I can take breaks when I want lol

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[hsvtoolfool]

for the record i posted several photos of the plane.

Ugh. I should have known. I thought you were genuinely interested
in collecting and using old hand planes: a new hobbyist with a shared
interest in craftsmanship. Instead, you turn out to be a sorry JAEF
(Just Another Ebay Flipper). I regret that I helped you earlier.

Bye JAEF.

 

[ssdave]

I don't understand the hostility to ebay sellers. I love having ebay available. I have lived in fairly small, remote communities for all of my life. It used to be excruciating to find missing things for my collections, or parts for stuff I needed. Wait until a trip to the big city, and then spend days going to obscure places. Writing to parts companies, corresponding with other people I met or was referred to. Was extremely hard to find something that was needed, even if relatively common.

Now, instead of throwing the item away, someone posts it on ebay. I can go on there, search, look at the photo's, and find hundreds of things I want a year instead of a half dozen. They don't have to be an expert, they just have to post photo's, look up what the last item sold for and set a price, or start it at 99 cents and let it bring whatever it will.

And, when I buy lots at auctions or estate sales to get the one item I need, I don't have to let the extra items rot in the chicken coop out back until I die and my kids have to dispose of it, I put it on ebay with good pictures and pass it on to other enthusiasts. I don't have to become an expert on the item and trade in my limited group of friends, I can offer it to the entire country, or even the world if I want. What's not to like about that?

It's opened up huge opportunities, just like this website has, to share information, photo's, knowledge, and yes, parts and pieces. The fact that someone makes top dollar for doing so doesn't hurt my feelings in the least.

I've personally sold about 500 to 1000 tools in the past 3 months, with about half of that on ebay. I just moved, and am in a rental house with no shop and not much else to do. I've been sorting through stuff in my storage, and getting rid of the excess tools that I've accumulated for years. This is a continuation of several years of trying to winnow down stuff. I think I've plowed essentially all the money from doing that in the past few months back into my own collections; buying some nice Proto and Snap on and similar stuff and getting rid of all kinds of duplicates and obscure brands I don't collect. What was great about all this is that I just put them on; I don't have to extensively research and document what each item is worth, I just sell them, get decent value for them, and let the person buying them (who invariably is much more knowledgeable than I) be pleased that they could locate something they needed. And, I can do it in little enough time that it's worthwhile.

If I had a rusty old plane, that will sell for $10 to $20, I could spend hours or weeks researching it, and then sell it for $15. Be much better off to throw it in the scrap steel, and not invest the time. Or, put it on ebay, show it with photo's, and have a half hour in selling it for $20 minus the 15% or so fees. That makes it worthwhile enough to spend the half hour instead of thowing it in the scrap steel, and makes it available to collectors that want that particular item.

It might not be personally advantageous to us individually to help someone find out what an item is so they can ebay it, but to the overall collecting community, it is a great service to get this stuff into circulation instead of the landfill.

 

[ekegelmann]

Ugh. I should have known. I thought you were genuinely interested
in collecting and using old hand planes: a new hobbyist with a shared
interest in craftsmanship. Instead, you turn out to be a sorry JAEF
(Just Another Ebay Flipper). I regret that I helped you earlier.

Bye JAEF.

Um hello, I do collect planes, I sell ones I do not want. I collect so many tools I HAVE to sell some or my wife would leave. I don't understand the "taboo" here of selling things.

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[ekegelmann]

Thank you Dave, my sentiments exactly. At a lot of sales one is forced to buy an entire bin of tools to get that one thing you really want, so do I toss the rest in the trash? No, I sell it for the price the market dictates. The money goes into me getting my kids dental and college fund. Win win win in my eyes.

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[ekegelmann]

Ugh. I should have known. I thought you were genuinely interested
in collecting and using old hand planes: a new hobbyist with a shared
interest in craftsmanship. Instead, you turn out to be a sorry JAEF
(Just Another Ebay Flipper). I regret that I helped you earlier.

Bye JAEF.

Also the person I bought those planes from was going to throw them away. Instead I chose to save them from the trash so they could find the proper place. I would think anyone here would appreciate that.

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[four.cycle]

well put, dave.

it seems some are not aware of the fact that "everybody is selling something"

 

[ekegelmann]

And as a matter of fact id sell to anyone on here at very fair prices with extra items i have or stuff I don't want.

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[shanny19]

In the plane collecting world we expect ......

Oh my.
Does your club require tweed jackets and meerschaum pipes too?

I collect knives, vintage tools, seashells, and hockey cards.
In those "worlds" we don't buy anything unless we're comfortable with taking whatever risk the description and photos might leave open.

 

[crguy]

Um hello, I do collect planes,

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Statements like that make my BS meter go off.

If you were a plane collector, you wouldn't come on here asking basic questions about common planes like you did.

 

[crguy]

Oh my.
Does your club require tweed jackets and meerschaum pipes too?

I collect knives, vintage tools, seashells, and hockey cards.

If you have to ask a snarky question like that, you're surely not a vintage tool collector.

 

[countryroad82]

I think what's hurt you with a lot of people on here is while you may have lurked well before joining or just happened to find the site by accident, you pretty much began showing pics and asking what things were worth. As if we were your price guide. It kinda rubs some people the wrong way. That I feel is why there are some that call bs on your claims to collections and such, I've not looked yet but I don't think you have ever posted anything about what you have only more like what your wanting to sell. For all we know that's all you do. I will say there are a few things you have asked about that I felt were gimmes, like the brake pliers on this thread. Tool collectors and users know exactly what those are. Just saying, not trying to stir the pot anymore than it already is just be honest about it all. But yes we're all trying to sell something, heck I've got a Chevelle I would love to put in someone's life but I'm not going to give it away just to free up real estate in the shop. Anyway just giving you my take as to why you're catching so much flak.

 

[ritestuff]

I think what's hurt you with a lot of people on here is while you may have lurked well before joining or just happened to find the site by accident, you pretty much began showing pics and asking what things were worth. As if we were your price guide. It kinda rubs some people the wrong way. That I feel is why there are some that call bs on your claims to collections and such, I've not looked yet but I don't think you have ever posted anything about what you have only more like what your wanting to sell. For all we know that's all you do. I will say there are a few things you have asked about that I felt were gimmes, like the brake pliers on this thread. Tool collectors and users know exactly what those are. Just saying, not trying to stir the pot anymore than it already is just be honest about it all. But yes we're all trying to sell something, heck I've got a Chevelle I would love to put in someone's life but I'm not going to give it away just to free up real estate in the shop. Anyway just giving you my take as to why you're catching so much flak.

And BOOM.....There it is folks, in a nutshell.

 

[ekegelmann]

Statements like that make my BS meter go off.

If you were a plane collector, you wouldn't come on here asking basic questions about common planes like you did.

Sorry, I never seen that one. I'm not calling myself an expert and all I was doing was asking for help. It's a forum....I thought that's what this was for? Are you angry about something. Should people be worried? I'm curious on why you're being nasty to me?

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[ekegelmann]

I've not looked yet but I don't think you have ever posted anything about what you have only more like what your wanting to sell. For all we know that's all you do. I will say there are a few things you have asked about that I felt were gimmes, like the brake pliers on this thread. [/QUOTE]


True, I have posted pics of things I want to sell except wrenches....if you want I can get out my wrench collection and sk collection and shoot photos for you. I don't understand why I have to validate my reasons. I'm handicapped, go to sales with my son and make a living selling things rather than collecting ssdi etc. I also collect things. What's the issue. If I need help asking experts is the right way to go correct? Also, I know nothing about auto tools, nothing. So, sorry...I had to ask. I thank the nice people who helped. If you are looking for any tools let me know. I've got 1000s and will sell anything I don't want to keep. Thank you.


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[shanny19]

.................

 

[hsvtoolfool]

Does your club require tweed jackets and meerschaum pipes too?

Fine cigars are also acceptable; Padron, Tatuaje, and Don Pepin Garcia are
preferred. What type of single malt do you prefer with your cigar? Islay,
Speyside, or Highland?

Seriously, hand planes are indeed a very special niche. In fact, they are the
pinnacle of antique tool collecting. While I am admittedly biased, I honestly
cannot think of another type of antique tool with remotely the same
complexity, variety, and value.

The most expensive antique tool ever sold at auction is a Sandusky center
wheel plow plane displayed at the 1876 Centennial International Exhibition.
The plane sold for $114,000 at auction in 2004...

http://rednersville.blogspot.com/2004/10/sandusky-plow-plane-in-ebony-ivory.html

Several other rare planes have sold for $10K and up at auction. When was the
last time you saw a pipe wrench or blacksmith's anvil selling for car prices?
Certain pre-WWII Norris infill planes easily bring $2K to $3K. By the time you
get to most desirable mass-produced planes from Stanley, the values are in
still the hundreds. Reproductions and modern improved designs are crazy
expensive. My avatar is a modern Holtey No. 98 smoother which is pure Work
Of Art and retails for about $4K.

Excluding tools either found at an archalogical dig in Rome or Egypt, or
tools that physically went on the moon and back, there simply are no other
collectible antique tool which brings the kind of money as hand planes.

 

[crguy]

Seriously, hand planes are indeed a very special niche. In fact, they are the
pinnacle of antique tool collecting. While I am admittedly biased, I honestly
cannot think of another type of antique tool with remotely the same
complexity, variety, and value.

The most expensive antique tool ever sold at auction is a Sandusky center
wheel plow plane displayed at the 1876 Centennial International Exhibition.
The plane sold for $114,000 at auction in 2004...

http://rednersville.blogspot.com/2004/10/sandusky-plow-plane-in-ebony-ivory.html

Several other rare planes have sold for $10K and up at auction. When was the
last time you saw a pipe wrench or blacksmith's anvil selling for car prices?
Certain pre-WWII Norris infill planes easily bring $2K to $3K. By the time you
get to most desirable mass-produced planes from Stanley, the values are in
still the hundreds. Reproductions and modern improved designs are crazy
expensive. My avatar is a modern Holtey No. 98 smoother which is pure Work
Of Art and retails for about $4K.

Excluding tools either found at an archalogical dig in Rome or Egypt, or
tools that physically went on the moon and back, there simply are no other
collectible antique tool which brings the kind of money as hand planes.

I was there when the Sandusky was sold, and enjoyed watching the underbidder stomp out of the room after Andy showed him who had what it took to buy it.

Have enjoyed collecting the high end planes & levels myself.

 

[Rileysan]

Fascinating discussion about eBay, et al. Whether you collect tools or toys, you will find it on eBay.

I am a stamp collector.

For what it's worth, eBay is THE market for the common and uncommon. There's really no denying it. The beauty of this is that you are no longer held hostage by hoarders and unscrupulous dealers pretending to have the only one (name your collectable) in town.

What eBay is not, is THE market for rare and high-grade collectables. Buyers of high-end collectables like to touch and/or see these items in person. They like the thrill of the chase more than the touch of a button to find their wares.

If you're the average collector with a modest budget, eBay is for you. For the rest of you, keep putting it down - it won't change the fact that the average collector can find most everything they want on eBay without the need for snooty dealers. eBay is now king ...

Brian

 

[3baygarage]

I was watching a plane on Ebay several years ago. It was selling for over $1,000 when the auction mysteriously ended mid run. No I don't collect planes but pick them up on occasion to flip at the market. What interested me was this plane was selling not far from me so I wanted to see how the guy did/what it was worth.

Either someone made excellent offer to end the auction, or the seller got spooked. I don't recall the mfr. but it was not a common one like Stanley.

 

[four.cycle]

hsvtoolfool and rileysan -

certainly some interesting and salient points raised.

I think $114k for a hand tool makes clear that what I said above is true: Ebay is not (as Rileysan notes above) the marketplace for high-end specialty niche market items.
For those of us among the unwashed masses collecting our piddly little socket sets, pliers, or wrenches, however, it works just dandy: I just snagged a rare-as-hens-teeth ratchet yesterday, but yes, it would have probably been more fun had I been able to hear the underbidder gnashing his teeth at the last second.

 

[drivesitfar]

EK: Just an FYI. i don't think the members are trying to repremand or shame you, but just trying to TEACH you in their own way. we all have different ways of communicating. i had some of the best builders to work with over the years while selling their magnificent homes and if i didn't have a tough skin i would have left them long before i ever met them. Not everybody teaches or gives information the same way.

that said if you can tough it out i like the member's posts here better than any other thread talking about values and condition so don't make it seem like it's just about you.

you've posted little threads for months now that i barely paid attention to because either it was a $3 tool or less than $20 in most cases that you were wondering if it was rare. granted we all have certain levels of being a collector and i doubt i could be called a COLLECTOR yet especially compared to some of the members here that i've seen their COLLECTIONS. i'm more of a Picker that likes nice things and i'm thinking that's where you and i and a lot of other members are alike. i've always had a liking for quality whether it was cars, houses, golf clubs and now tools so if you can post up some more of your tools that maybe you don't even want to sell and just want to find out more information about if not much can be found by googling please do.

this could be one of my FAVORITE threads if you can handle some of the input and keep learning like me and all of us will.

GOOD LUCK

 

[ekegelmann]

EK: Just an FYI. i don't think the members are trying to repremand or shame you, but just trying to TEACH you in their own way. we all have different ways of communicating. i had some of the best builders to work with over the years while selling their magnificent homes and if i didn't have a tough skin i would have left them long before i ever met them. Not everybody teaches or gives information the same way.

that said if you can tough it out i like the member's posts here better than any other thread talking about values and condition so don't make it seem like it's just about you.

you've posted little threads for months now that i barely paid attention to because either it was a $3 tool or less than $20 in most cases that you were wondering if it was rare. granted we all have certain levels of being a collector and i doubt i could be called a COLLECTOR yet especially compared to some of the members here that i've seen their COLLECTIONS. i'm more of a Picker that likes nice things and i'm thinking that's where you and i and a lot of other members are alike. i've always had a liking for quality whether it was cars, houses, golf clubs and now tools so if you can post up some more of your tools that maybe you don't even want to sell and just want to find out more information about if not much can be found by googling please do.

this could be one of my FAVORITE threads if you can handle some of the input and keep learning like me and all of us will.

GOOD LUCK

Thank you and yes, I am more of a picker. Not going for the biggest value item but something cool, sometimes that unknown $3 item I prefer over a $200 item. Today I found a circle H 15 pc craftsman socket set at a garage sale. I'm keeping it. It's the kind of thing I prefer, may be worth 100, but I'm not going to sell it because I love 20s -40s hand tools. Love the styling etc.

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[hsvtoolfool]

If you're the average collector with a modest budget, eBay is for you.

See, this where I disagree. I strongly believe it's much better for
beginners to spend a little more per plane from a well regarded,
knowledgeable dealer. In the long run, you save money by avoiding
getting ripped off by a passive-aggressive Ebay scammer hiding
behind claimed ignorance of what they sell coupled with standard
Caveat Emptor excuses.

In the original Stanley No. 8 thread, I was involved in exactly this
debate with another guy. In that thread, I stated my strong dislike
for typical Ebay flippers. I actually was not speaking about the
thread starter. Once my initial disappointment in his motives for
posting in this forum faded, I recognized the irony and laughed.

 

[ekegelmann]

I actually was not speaking about the
thread starter. Once my initial disappointment in his motives for
posting in this forum faded, I recognized the irony and laughed.[/QUOTE]


How do you know my motives? I think I s.p.e.l.l.e.d out exactly what I do and why. First off im trying to rebuild my grandfathers tool collection with my son, secondly I sell things we don't keep. What's the odd ironic thing about that? Need to know anything please ask.




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[ekegelmann]

Another reason I ask questions on things I sell is so I can give the buyer an exact description therefore being an honest ebayer. If I can learn something it helps me give that information to Ashley who wants a wagon part to go above her fireplace in her 750,000 home. Serving society is so nice.

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[crguy]

How do you know my motives? I think I s.p.e.l.l.e.d out exactly what I do and why. First off im trying to rebuild my grandfathers tool collection with my son, secondly I sell things we don't keep. What's the odd ironic thing about that? Need to know anything please ask.




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That's actually the First time you mentioned rebuilding your grandfather's tool collection. So, No you didn't spell out exactly what you do.
Once again, your own words don't add up.

 

[Bdgjr215]

Another reason I ask questions on things I sell is so I can give the buyer an exact description therefore being an honest ebayer. If I can learn something it helps me give that information to Ashley who wants a wagon part to go above her fireplace in her 750,000 home. Serving society is so nice.

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You asked questions about the value of that stanley no8 ,but still listed it at a
Buy it now for 120 bucks ,way above its real and fair value.i could tell you were
Fishing for buyers outside of the classifieds from your first couple threads.

Nothing wrong with selling on ebay ,i buy there ,but paging thru youre 5 pages
Of listings ,youre not a novice tool collector looking for advise,youre a pro seller
Fishing for customers,and thats not what this forum is about.my 2 cents

 

[hsvtoolfool]

No doubt there's a "Pickers" forum somewhere where people discuss
how to get the most profit from the least amount of genuine work or
effort. I loath that TV show.

 

[ekegelmann]

No doubt there's a "Pickers" forum somewhere where people discuss
how to get the most profit from the least amount of genuine work or
effort. I loath that TV show.

You're suggesting I don't work hard? I'm glad everyone seems to know me so well without even meeting me or having an actual discussion.

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[ekegelmann]

That's actually the First time you mentioned rebuilding your grandfather's tool collection. So, No you didn't spell out exactly what you do.
Once again, your own words don't add up.

Not true, I've mentioned it several times on other post. Growing up I used to spend every Saturday at my Grandfathers especially in his garage with all his old tools. I'd be assigned to break down machines he'd pick out of the garbage for useful parts. When he died no one got a chance due to legal issues to go through his things. Since then I has my son and have set forth trying to rebuild his collection.

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[crguy]

No doubt there's a "Pickers" forum somewhere where people discuss
how to get the most profit from the least amount of genuine work or
effort. I loath that TV show.

I think American Pickers is just about the best of that type of show out there. No arguing, yelling, name calling, etc. like is on the car builder shows, etc.
I'm an old car guy, but I won't watch any of those shows because of all the ****.

You need to realize everything on the Pickers' shows is staged, and they pay high prices, then quote even higher values because they have 2 retail outlets trying to get those inflated prices.

The show is still interesting because of the unusual things & people that show up, and the knowledge you gain about things.

AND - there is nothing wrong with making a good profit with little work involved. I bought an item at an antique show for $17. and sold it the next morning for $1000. I'm proud of that, and it's not the best deal I ever found.

 

[Rileysan]

See, this where I disagree. I strongly believe it's much better for
beginners to spend a little more per plane from a well regarded,
knowledgeable dealer. In the long run, you save money by avoiding
getting ripped off by a passive-aggressive Ebay scammer hiding
behind claimed ignorance of what they sell coupled with standard
Caveat Emptor excuses.

In the original Stanley No. 8 thread, I was involved in exactly this
debate with another guy. In that thread, I stated my strong dislike
for typical Ebay flippers. I actually was not speaking about the
thread starter. Once my initial disappointment in his motives for
posting in this forum faded, I recognized the irony and laughed.

I agree that it's beneficial, if not necessary, to learn from an experienced collector or dealer. This is probably best accomplished by finding a local collector club. Once a collector has learned enough to make intelligent decisions, eBay is the perfect place to start filling in the collection.

I have enough experience in the stamp collecting world to know for a fact there are just as many passive-aggressive scamming dealers in antique malls, collector shows, and the like, that are willing to tell you anything to make a sale.

I personally believe that collector shows are a more dangerous place than eBay, et al, because they lack the buyer protection given by eBay.

Brian

 

[Bdgjr215]

I agree that it's beneficial, if not necessary, to learn from an experienced collector or dealer. This is probably best accomplished by finding a local collector club. Once a collector has learned enough to make intelligent decisions, eBay is the perfect place to start filling in the collection.

I have enough experience in the stamp collecting world to know for a fact there are just as many passive-aggressive scamming dealers in antique malls, collector shows, and the like, that are willing to tell you anything to make a sale.

I personally believe that collector shows are a more dangerous place than eBay, et al, because they lack the buyer protection given by eBay.

Brian

Its naive to think that some ebay sellers dont have someone else bidding up their items.I stick to my price and bid at the very end,if I get outbid I'll find
Another one a week or two later, no harm no foul.

 

[crguy]

In the long run, you save money by avoiding
getting ripped off by a passive-aggressive Ebay scammer hiding
behind claimed ignorance of what they sell coupled with standard
Caveat Emptor excuses.

You obviously have a strong general bias towards Ebay sellers. If you have been taken advantage of by an Ebay seller I'm going to suppose you were partially to blame yourself.
Ebay has strong buyer protections in place, much more so than for sellers. It's usually the sellers that get taken advantage of.
If you do your "due diligence" before buying on Ebay, you have little to risk.

 

[ekegelmann]

You obviously have a strong general bias towards Ebay sellers. If you have been taken advantage of by an Ebay seller I'm going to suppose you were partially to blame yourself.
Ebay has strong buyer protections in place, much more so than for sellers. It's usually the sellers that get taken advantage of.
If you do your "due diligence" before buying on Ebay, you have little to risk.

Agreed the seller by far get ripped off way more than buyers.

 

[ekegelmann]

This weekend Im picking up that interesting craftsman art piece.

 

[hsvtoolfool]

Once a collector has learned enough to make intelligent decisions, eBay is the perfect place to start filling in the collection.

I just can't tell much about a hand plane from a photo other than the most
obvious defects. I can spot a bad plane from photos, but not a good one. I
have to eyeball the thing up close and take it apart to really assess condition
and value.

With any online seller, you have no choice but to trust their knowledge and
integrity. Obviously, I'm not a trusting person. When buying sight-unseen,
I need to know the seller is an ethical expert. To establish bone fides, I need
genuine, uncensored, testimony from his customers. The seller needs a
real name and history.

Do I really have to mention that Ebay's seller rating system is highly censored
and manipulated, which makes it worse than useless? The professional
scammer has a 100% positive rating with every Ebay account he runs. He
knows how to game Ebay's rule to his advantage, but you won't find that
out until he's got your money.

...there are just as many passive-aggressive scamming dealers in antique malls, collector shows, and the like, that are willing to tell you anything to make a sale.

True, but at a flea market or garage sale I'm examining the plane in person.
I do my homework and normally know more about any plane I want to buy
than a flea market seller.

I can also judge a seller's expertise after speaking to them in person. If they
know more than me, then I've found a fellow enthusiast and woodworker.
The kind of person who just might have some nice boxwood or ebony to
trade for some holly, wenge, or perhaps some nice walnut burl veneer.
Or they might know a local sawyer I don't who has walnut and black cherry
lumber at a decent price. Or has that fence I need for a #289 body I'm
slowly piecing together.

I personally believe that collector shows are a more dangerous place than eBay, et al, because they lack the buyer protection given by eBay.

I wouldn't buy there either. I've never attended a tool collector show, but
it sounds like fun. You can window shop and see what type of characters crawl
out of the wood shavings.

I've had a few good experiences with ethical Ebay sellers, but just as many
bad ones due to liars. And unlike Major League Baseball, .500 is a very poor
batting average for any type of commerce.

I think Ebay is a great place to buy small lots of raw materials like acrylic,
polycarbonate, delrin, wood veneer, neodymium magnets, and so forth. Raw
materials are safe bets because they're cheap, don't require close inspection
to verify they're genuine, and are unlikely to suffer damage in shipping. You're
usually buying from a small business selling off leftovers.

In contrast, buying new retail items from "trusted" Ebay stores has almost
always gone badly for me. My experiences with Ebay and PayPal's "buyer
protection" was worse than making loss claims to UPS, FedEx, or US Mail.
That's saying a lot. But this is only partially the reason of my strong bias
against Ebay, which is mainly due to policies that enable scammers to
operate freely.

It's no surprise I've never bought an old tool on Ebay. Just the thought of
buying a rare and expensive antique from a total stranger site-unseen with
little to no chance of a full refund gives me heebie-jeebies.

Certainly there may be Ebay antique tool dealers who know their stuff, have
a good outside reputation, and price their wares fairly. I posted a link to one
good Ebay tool resource in the other thread. Maybe there's a whole list of
these "Ebay Saints" somewhere. I strongly advise beginning tool hounds to
find that list before blindly clicking "BIN". Otherwise, you're trusting the
judgment of a guy who knows nothing about what he's selling, has no
idea how a plane works, has never made a shaving, and won't disclose
that what he's selling is good for nothing but spare parts.

 

[four.cycle]

It sounds like maybe Ebay is not the place for you.

I just looked at my Ebay transaction history, and the percentage of purchases on which I had any issues is .00512%

One of those was because the seller simply wrapped an old steel socket box up with clear packing tape and shipped it without putting it inside a box, and the other one was because the seller apparently just dropped off the planet immediately after the transaction. (Something tells me on the latter something happened to the seller, who was elderly. Ebay issued a refund on the sale without any problems.)

And while my "feedback" as a buyer is 100.00%, as a former buyer for a retail chain of stores I wouldn't consider myself an "easy" customer.

There's a little button down toward the bottom of the Ebay page that says "Ask a Question", which I use with great frequency. If I don't get the answers I want, I simply move on to the next item.

Easy!

 

[crguy]

I just can't tell much about a hand plane from a photo other than the most
obvious defects. I can spot a bad plane from photos, but not a good one. I
have to eyeball the thing up close and take it apart to really assess condition
and value.

With any online seller, you have no choice but to trust their knowledge and
integrity. Obviously, I'm not a trusting person. When buying sight-unseen,
I need to know the seller is an ethical expert. To establish bone fides, I need
genuine, uncensored, testimony from his customers. The seller needs a
real name and history.

Do I really have to mention that Ebay's seller rating system is highly censored
and manipulated, which makes it worse than useless? The professional
scammer has a 100% positive rating with every Ebay account he runs. He
knows how to game Ebay's rule to his advantage, but you won't find that
out until he's got your money.



True, but at a flea market or garage sale I'm examining the plane in person.
I do my homework and normally know more about any plane I want to buy
than a flea market seller.

I can also judge a seller's expertise after speaking to them in person. If they
know more than me, then I've found a fellow enthusiast and woodworker.
The kind of person who just might have some nice boxwood or ebony to
trade for some holly, wenge, or perhaps some nice walnut burl veneer.
Or they might know a local sawyer I don't who has walnut and black cherry
lumber at a decent price. Or has that fence I need for a #289 body I'm
slowly piecing together.



I wouldn't buy there either. I've never attended a tool collector show, but
it sounds like fun. You can window shop and see what type of characters crawl
out of the wood shavings.

I've had a few good experiences with ethical Ebay sellers, but just as many
bad ones due to liars. And unlike Major League Baseball, .500 is a very poor
batting average for any type of commerce.

I think Ebay is a great place to buy small lots of raw materials like acrylic,
polycarbonate, delrin, wood veneer, neodymium magnets, and so forth. Raw
materials are safe bets because they're cheap, don't require close inspection
to verify they're genuine, and are unlikely to suffer damage in shipping. You're
usually buying from a small business selling off leftovers.

In contrast, buying new retail items from "trusted" Ebay stores has almost
always gone badly for me. My experiences with Ebay and PayPal's "buyer
protection" was worse than making loss claims to UPS, FedEx, or US Mail.
That's saying a lot. But this is only partially the reason of my strong bias
against Ebay, which is mainly due to policies that enable scammers to
operate freely.

It's no surprise I've never bought an old tool on Ebay. Just the thought of
buying a rare and expensive antique from a total stranger site-unseen with
little to no chance of a full refund gives me heebie-jeebies.

Certainly there may be Ebay antique tool dealers who know their stuff, have
a good outside reputation, and price their wares fairly. I posted a link to one
good Ebay tool resource in the other thread. Maybe there's a whole list of
these "Ebay Saints" somewhere. I strongly advise beginning tool hounds to
find that list before blindly clicking "BIN". Otherwise, you're trusting the
judgment of a guy who knows nothing about what he's selling, has no
idea how a plane works, has never made a shaving, and won't disclose
that what he's selling is good for nothing but spare parts.

Your paranoia of Ebay sellers is astounding!

"Never bought an old tool on Ebay", and "Never attended a tool collector show" How did you gain all that insight as to how things work?

I think you should stay completely away from Ebay, and leave it to the rest of us that know how to look at pictures, read descriptions, check feedback, ask additional questions, and ask for more pictures if needed.

We will do fine without you.