Julia,
unless it say's "just CLA'd" (or even then...), ask about EVERYTHING. You
can't be too cautious. I once got a Canonet in which all shutter speeds
worked, but the aperture blades didn't move, and the seller's ad said
"shutter speeds work". Not a word about the aperture!
And don't believe people that say they are unable to check something obvious
("I have no battery, so I cannot test it" - even if the batteries are
unavailable [i.e. discontinued]
to check if a meter works one can use something with a bit different
voltage; all it takes is a bit of good will on the part of the seller).
Having said that - do not think all Ebay sellers are trying to screw you
('scuse my language) - most of them are really honest, nice people. But some
of them don't know much about cameras (as Frank already pointed out), and it
is up to you whether you buy junk or a mint Super A body.
So ASK, ASK, and ASK, and if you don't get straight answers - back up and
wait for the next one. You won't have to wait long.
Good luck with your bidding.
Lukasz
-----Original Message-----
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]On
Behalf Of frank theriault
Sent: Thursday, April 18, 2002 2:18 AM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Re: Do you ever buy from E-bay?Hi, Julia, Ask questions if you're not sure about everything. If it just says "seems to work well", or something vague like that, write the vendor and ask specifically if the meter works, for instance. Ask if all the shutter speeds work, how many rolls he's put through the camera, if it was his, or if he's "selling for a friend". If his answer is vague, or not forthcoming, beware! Ask if the lenses have fungus, or spots or haze on them. Not that all vendors are trying to screw you, but many people selling camera equipment don't know much about them, for instance, if they are selling from an estate or something. Know what you're bidding for, what the value is, and don't get sucked into bidding wars. If you don't get what you want, another one will come up sooner or later. Check the guy's feedback. Not that you should never buy from anyone with negative feedback, or no feedback at all, but at least know what you're getting into, and adjust your maximum bid accordingly. Personally, I don't buy anything expensive on eBay - so far my biggest purchase has been around $60US. Remember, eBay is Caveat Emptor. If you get screwed, your remedies are limited - yeah, you can give the guy bad feedback, complain to eBay and get them removed as a vender (so they can log on as a different user, and sell some more). At least if you don't spend much, you can't lose much, either. That being said, you can get some great bargains there - I have, and so have many others on this list. regards, frank "J. Gerace" wrote: > Hi Everyone, > > Really enjoying the conversations here. Just reading a lot right now. > But....you all got me thinking about buying lenses and stuff, so I've > been checking out E-Bay. There's a couple of K1000 packages that come > with a few lenses (that seem nice to me) and a SP1000 with a few as > well. Would it be reasonable to try for one of these? Probably the K's, > because of the lens mount...plus, then I'll have a spare body..... > > I was wondering too if you all wind up bidding against eachother? : ) > Oh, and I saw an LX body for sale too...... > > Thanks, > > Julia > - > This message is from the Pentax-Discuss Mail List. To unsubscribe, > go to http://www.pdml.net and follow the directions. Don't forget to > visit the Pentax Users' Gallery at http://pug.komkon.org . -- "The optimist thinks this is the best of all possible worlds. The pessimist fears it is true." -J. Robert Oppenheimer - This message is from the Pentax-Discuss Mail List. To unsubscribe, go to http://www.pdml.net and follow the directions. Don't forget to visit the Pentax Users' Gallery at http://pug.komkon.org . - This message is from the Pentax-Discuss Mail List. To unsubscribe, go to http://www.pdml.net and follow the directions. Don't forget to visit the Pentax Users' Gallery at http://pug.komkon.org .
