Ebay Anyone???

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Okielawman28

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I have seen some trolling motors and fish finders on Ebay.

Can anyone share their experience if any on buying stuff on Ebay. I have found some fish finders, most likely older models on there for pretty cheap with everything you need to hoo em up.

I dont need the latest and greatest, just a depth finder and one that shows structure to locate channels and brush.

I also found some seats on there, but most of them are asking what I could by decent ones for at BP or at Academy. Anyways any imput on this would be greatly appreciated.

Chris
 
Find an ebay seller close to you and go look at what their selling.
 
I buy and sell on Ebay all the time: trucks, trailers, fishing tackle, things small and some things large. Most of the time its gone well. Be disciplined and stick to your maximum bid. Another unit will come along and if you are patient you can get great deals. If you get caught iin the frenzy of "winning" you will lose. Example: I wanted some Ambassadeur 6000's with the bait clicker for drifting live bait for stripes and wipes. Lots of them going on Ebay for over $50. I stuck to my maximum of about $30 and wound up with 2 of them while the going rate was about $50 with shipping. Ask the seller questions about anything you are unsure of: size, dimensions, does it have x y or z, condition, etc. Some folks will lower their shipping if you are buying a couple things from them so ask if they combine shipping. Yes once in a while you get screwed. If its something I'm spending alot of money on I am careful to buy from folks with at or near 100% positive feedback. I'm not going to buy a trolling motor or depth finder from a guy whos got 80% and when I look at his feedback hes got angry customers. Often with depth finders the guy yanks it off the boat and you are going to have to buy a power cord and transducer, factor that in your cost. Be careful of coastal states if you are worried the item was in salt water like a motor or reel. Bought a matching set of cam locks for my boat the other day (6 all keyed alike) for about $10....try that at an RV or boat store. Be WISE!

I hit flea markets alot as well, even garage sales. Time and again I've found an elderly gentleman selling off his collection of lures when hes become unable to fish. Probably half my raps, rebels, and other name brand lures came for $1 at garage sales. Bought a bunch of really large crank baits off a gentleman at his garage sale for $1 a piece Friday. He enjoyed me spending time to swap stories and ask about his fishing. Hit the flea market saturday when I couldn't fish and bought a slew of baits for $1/piece off of an addict (fishing addict) who needed some inventory reduction: again these were bombers, rebels, nice spinners, even some storage boxes from my soft sided tackle boxes for $1/piece. In fact I now go to these places with utter discipline and if its not a huge bargain I walk away. Too much stuff out there cheap to pay near retail.
 
Theres another place to look if you are so inclined. Pawn shops. Yeah I know we all think the stuff is stolen at pawn shops, but in many states they are very tightly regulated. Can not tell you how many times I've gone to this one pawn shop and found nice seldom used rods, reels, or combos for dirt cheap. Guy gets over his skiis on $ and needs cash quick. Purchased a couple of high end bait casters very cheap from one local pawn shop. To the point where he'll put a high end reel aside for a week just in case I come in. There again he'll make me a deal I "can't refuse" and many times I do. No one gets my dead presidents unless its a deal. Me n uncle benjamin have a tight relationship and I hate to give him up unless it really worth it. I like to fish nice equipment, but what good is paying $50 for a $60 reel if I can't put gas in the outboard? Now a $60 reel for $25 leaves me gas for the boat. I've seen trolling motors, but not sure I've found any depth finders there except maybe an old old falsher unit.
 
I didn't take the time to read the previous posts.. but here is how I go about buying stuff like that on ebay.

1. Look all over the internet for what you can get a NEW fish finder for - since you aren't looking for the latest and greatest, $100 can get you set up.
2. Look on ebay, and see what you are getting - BUT check the shipping... sometimes the Shipping costs more than the whole flipping thing. This is where people try to make their money for costs they have to pay for listing and payments.
3. If you're only $30-$50 off from buying a new one, just wait until you save up enough money to get the new one. Some used items on ebay have a way of working when they leave the sellers house, but when you go to use it, it mysteriously doesn't work anymore. And if they post "AS-IS Sale" in their description, I would look else where.
4. Check the sellers feedback compared to how many sales they have actually made. If they've sold 20,000 items, and only have 2 negatives, look to see what they are negative for. Sometimes it's shipping, and sometimes you'll get an honest answer like it wasn't working and the seller wouldn't make it right.

If you find something you like, shoot me the link to it and I'll give you my honest opinion of whether it's a good or bad buy. Lord knows I've sold and bought enough on Ebay to figure out the good from the bad.

But - if you're looking for a good unit for just depth (and ok fish)... the Humminbird Piranha Max fish finders are good for the money. I've got one that's about 5 years old, a Pirahna Max 20 I think that I paid $100 for and I'm still using it on my older jon boat... actually, I've let a friend use it in our tournaments and side by side in the water, my $500 Lowrance shows the same depth as it.
 
Thanks for all the replies, I will keep them all in mind.

I do frequent pawn shops alot and will keep my eye out, never had my eye open for a trolling motor a a depth finder, but will from now on.

I got a great deal on a chain saw one time, so I will keep my eyes open. I live in the city and have never seen alot of stuff like that in a pawn shop though.

Thanks again for all the great ideas and imput.

Chris.

Oh yeah I started stripping all the old paint off my project, it is slow going but I am in no hurry, I have all winter.
 
Don't forget those flea markets. Now that I think about it I've seen several rear and bow TM's at flea markets over the summer. You can check them out off the guys car battery & of course no shipping.
 
Russ is dead on. You need to be careful but you can find good deals. Make sure to look for a reputable seller. I bought 2 laser rangefinders from guys last year that appeared to be good deals but both had issues. One guy took his back after threating to post negative feedback, the second was a paypal claim. I did eventually buy one on ebay that was new from a reputable company and I did get a good deal. The key is PATIENCE. I actually starting buying more off craiglist, as I can get things somewhat locally. You may also want to check cabela's bargin cave. I picked up a trolling motor for a great deal last year.

Good Luck.
 
I got burnt on ebay one too many times and don't use it much anymore. I use forums from were fishing people are and have done well. I also check craigslist and then I can look at it before I buy it. Always had good look on bassboatcentral.
 
alumacraftjoe said:
I got burnt on ebay one too many times and don't use it much anymore. I use forums from were fishing people are and have done well. I also check craigslist and then I can look at it before I buy it. Always had good look on bassboatcentral.

Thats me, Seller had good feedback, only a few negative feedbacks(which is norm with alot of sells)...paid via paypal, never recieved the item. Also never got all my money back....paypal only covered like 60-70% of it....paid what seems like $120+...ended up only getting maybe 70-80 bucks back. Since then I am always leary about buying items from there.
 
Here's a piece of advice that I would tell you to consider strongly - and no offense to our Canadian members here, so please don't take this the wrong way.

When you sell an EXPENSIVE item (to me, electronics or anything greater than $50).. don't sell to anyone except those in the states. I have had 2 occasions where I was burned in one, but was smart the second time around. Here's what happened....

I put a friends XBox on my eBay account 5 years ago - and this was with a ton of games. He wanted $200, but I told him I could get more for it on eBay and offered to sell it for him. Well, it ended up selling with "Buy it Now" (this is an option I'll use and put an outrageous price on to get buyers who want it to buy on impulse). Well, I had it listed for $450 with free shipping, or they could wait til the auction was over and pay actual shipping charges. Well, the first night I had it listed, a guy emailed me and asked if I'd sell it to him because he was in Canada. I told him no problem, that when he paid and it posted to my PayPal account, I'd send it out. Well he did it right when the auction ended and the next day I shipped it. I gave my buddy the money ($400, because I kept $50) and all was good. One week later, I checked my Paypal account, and instead of my current funds showing $0.00, it showed $-450. I contacted Paypal and they said the item was paid for with a stolen credit card. To make matters worse, since the buyer was out of the states, they had no authority in going after the crook. Needless to say, I was out $400 because I didn't know the "rules."

Again, I mean this in no harm to our foreign friends - I know you guys would never do this... but I think everyone should be aware of what happens sometimes.

On the second occasion, I was selling my JL Audio Amp which was worth about $600 at the time. I put it on eBay and listed it as Buy it Now for $900. I should have known when something was up because the guy sent me an email asking could I send it to his church because he was there doing a mission trip. I said sure (This time I'm wise to the idea)... He paid, but this time I waited a week before sending it out. Sure enough, 1 week to the day I sold it I was contacted by Paypal that the buyer had used a stolen credit card.

So if you're a seller - here are my words of wisdom.
1. Only sell to members on eBay with a CONFIRMED ADDRESS - and ONLY SEND TO THAT CONFIRMED ADDRESS.
2. Only sell to members in the 48 states. You can sell to HI and AK, but make sure you know what it's going to cost to ship it there before hand... sometimes those prices are more than the item is worth.
3. If the buyer uses an unconfirmed shipping address, wait atleast 2 weeks before sending the item - take my word, PayPal will debit your account, and the only way to use paypal for any of your purchases is to make the negative number they give you a postitive, then you have to pay on top of that. So I wanted to buy a $30 flashlight, but I first had to pay $450 to get to $0, then another $30 for the flashlight.
 
I got a great deal on an Eagle fish finder. I priced it out new at Dick's for near 250. I was able to get it with a RAM mount and two transducers for $130 on eBay.
 
Ok ebay does have deals but be very cautious, Selling and buying off the forum has its downfalls as well, I have waited for commited buyers to show up, changed plans etc, Boxed up stuff, and the commited buyer is no were in sight... Gon has a feedback system, I am leary about posting negative feedback as it may bite me in the rump... But i am getting tired of the same ol bull were commitments are not honored...
 
I have an unconfirmed address on Ebay but still have know problems there.Cameras,hockey equipment and of coarse fishing stuff,,,never had a problem.I live in Canada and 95% of my stuff is bought from the states.I always look at the feedback score and how many tranactions,plus I like to ask atleast one question to see what the response is like.
 
I used to sell fishfinders on Ebay. I'd find them on closeout and sell them for more than they were worth new in the store to crazy bidders on Ebay. Made a good amount of spending money that way.

If you keep your eyes open in the stores and you can find some good/great deals, especially this time of year.
 
Zum said:
I have an unconfirmed address on Ebay but still have know problems there.Cameras,hockey equipment and of coarse fishing stuff,,,never had a problem.I live in Canada and 95% of my stuff is bought from the states.I always look at the feedback score and how many tranactions,plus I like to ask atleast one question to see what the response is like.

I wasn't talking about people like you Zum... there are just a few people out there that take things for granted.
 
I also have never had a problem with EBay. Check the seller out, and check out the price for the item in a retail store. I wont bid more than half the retail price for anything, including shipping.
 
Ebay is bad...So all you guys stay off it ..Don't be going near the fishing tackle.. rods ...reels.. electronics..TM's [-X [-X [-X ... or anything to do with fishing...To make sure that everyone is protected I'll keep an EYE out on Ebay for all that stuff...I'll do this just because I'm a nice guy :---) ... Okay....JIGGY
 
russ010 said:
Zum said:
I have an unconfirmed address on Ebay but still have know problems there.Cameras,hockey equipment and of coarse fishing stuff,,,never had a problem.I live in Canada and 95% of my stuff is bought from the states.I always look at the feedback score and how many tranactions,plus I like to ask atleast one question to see what the response is like.

I wasn't talking about people like you Zum... there are just a few people out there that take things for granted.
No problems russ,I never took offense.
Theres doorknobs everywhere,I was just telling him what I look for when buying,I have never sold anything.
I biggest pet peave in eBay is the shipping,takes me awhile to find people that are reasonable...and there are some out there.
 

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