Ebay snafu :mad:

[Bigmuff]

I bought one of those crescent inlay SG's off Ebay a week ago. It's a beater that the previous owner(s) did some dumb stuff to. I thought it might be fun to fix it up, and possibly flip it, so I won the bid.

But, of course, the seller did a piss poor job boxing it, and the guitar sustained two cracks during shipping, radiating towards the neck from the upper corners of the neck humbucker routing. The cracks go all the way through the body - you can see the wood separating if you apply gentle pressure to the neck.

I informed the seller, while I was trying to figure out what it would cost to have fixed, as that sort of repair is beyond my ability. The seller's solution was to immediately refund the purchase, and have me send the guitar back. I thought he was going to petition FedEx for the insurance, but he must have given up on that. It's a pain in the neck process, and I'm sure FedEx will have no problem denying responsiblity once they see the flimsy Epiphone box the guitar was sent in.

So I'm kind of fed up with this project already, and will likely just return it.

But I have a few questions...

Is that sort of damage easy to fix? If it can be fixed...

EBay's return shipping policy is clear as mud. I called their support number, and talked to a nice lady from India who didn't know anything about anything. She suggested I request a return shipping label from the seller. So I've done that, but no response as of yet.

What do I do? Who's actually responsible for the cost of the return shipping when the item is 'not as described' due to shipping damage which was due to poor packing by the seller?

Yet another simple transaction made extremely difficult due to someone else's incompetence.

 

[Bigmuff]

Oh yeah, here's the guitar. Photobucket is blocked at work for some asinine reason, so here's an attachment. The case is mine.

 

[shredless]

I found the guitar on ebay, I see a crack in the body in his pic

I would have been leary of the way the cuts were made

I dont know where the cracks are in your pic, but I see what looks like one just right of the center of the neck extending thru the body, its in both his and your pictures

He doesnt offer returns, but you are covered by paypal just open a case on the item page in your ebay

In your ebay, under purchase history, click on return item or drop down menu arrow, click on return item. They used to say resolve dispute or report item... they always change the game

anyway, just follow the prompts, if he said return it, Id return it. Paypal will get your money back. MAKE sure you use a return tracking number.
You are going to have to foot the bill for the way back most likely. Dont even try to deal with ebay phone people

It should go easy, and paypal will get your money back if he follows his prompts or even if he doesnt. Only if he fights will it drag out, but you should win eventually. If he has agreed, thats half the battle

You can fix it, Id open the gaps and shoot super glue into the cracks and push back together, clamp if needed. You can wood glue, but its slow, super crazy glue, the cheap ****, is fine and works fast. Just sand any excess off and it will be strong as ever. That ****ty hack job is making places to crack from though and those guitars in great shap are only worth a couple hundred more than you paid...

 

[Vinsanitizer]

Bigmuff: I am deeply empathetic of your plight. Don't let this happen again.

 

[Bigmuff]

Just to clarify, the seller already refunded the money. So I don't have to worry about that. But I'm not happy about having to pay for return shipping. And this is where Ebay's policy is poorly defined.

I'll send it back, of course with a tracking number, and in the same lousy box it was sent in. I'll petition Ebay to refund the shipping cost if the seller doesn't offer soon. I don't want to be sitting on this thing.

Shredless, I looked, again, at the seller's photos, and still don't see the cracks in question. Here's a close-up of the crack I'm describing. My photo is much better than the seller's blurry ones. Same crack?

 

[shredless]

no not the same

 

[shredless]

Thats odd that he refunded already, usually you must return first

offer him way less to just keep it and not deal with fighting you over return shipping

is it worth a hundred bucks to you?

 

[BowerR64]

IMO e-bay and guitars isnt any fun any more. It use to be when shipping wasnt threw the roof but any more its a waste of time IMO.

Maybe if you buy $500-$600 guitars but even then you risk damage.

Before when shipping wasnt so bad and e-bay didnt rake you over the coals on fees you could really pack them well but now it seems they want $10. per foot or something crazy on shipping.

 

[shredless]

IMO e-bay and guitars isnt any fun any more. It use to be when shipping wasnt threw the roof but any more its a waste of time IMO.

Maybe if you buy $500-$600 guitars but even then you risk damage.

Before when shipping wasnt so bad and e-bay didnt rake you over the coals on fees you could really pack them well but now it seems they want $10. per foot or something crazy on shipping.

yeah a guitar via priority across country can run 80-100 bucks, + packing material, insurance fees and signature delivery

 

[MarshallDog]

He is responsible for shipping it back and you are the Buyer and ebay gives all rights and power to the Buyer, you may have to open a case if things dont go your way but be patient you are covered. Also, this must have been cracked before he shipped seeing it was in a case. When Gibson shios a guitar, they just loosen the strings and put it in a simple box with no additional packing material and rarely is one damaged.

 

[Bigmuff]

He is responsible for shipping it back and you are the Buyer and ebay gives all rights and power to the Buyer, you may have to open a case if things dont go your way but be patient you are covered. Also, this must have been cracked before he shipped seeing it was in a case. When Gibson shios a guitar, they just loosen the strings and put it in a simple box with no additional packing material and rarely is one damaged.

I did mention that the case in the photo is mine. That SG doesn't even fit in it. The seller sent it in a too-flexible Epiphone guitar box with some packing popcorn, and no case. Whatever Epi was originally in the box would have come with a case, I think, because it's pictured on the box.

Offering to re-purchase it minus the cost of repairing the damage might not be a bad idea. I have never personally shipped a guitar. For a lowly private seller, what would I realistically expect to have to shell out? $70?

I can get a repair quote from my local guitar shop, and use that as leverage. He's gonna have a hard time selling it now that it's actually broken.

 

[Biddlin]

Happened to me. I ate a 15 buck return shipping fee and gave the seller neutral feedback, even though I think he was running an insurance scam. I filed it in the "sh*t happens" drawer.
;>)