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eBay
Should I be wary of purchasing banjos on eBay or Craigslist? What are some of the things I should be looking for? I've used eBay a lot but not for banjo hunting per se.
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Re: eBay
Instruments on eBay are really "iffy"..I wouldn't normally do it..it pays to do your homework,,find a budget , then decide on some models,,and check the classifieds , or direct to a maker, I've had good luck like this...
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Re: eBay
Yes, I'd be very wary .
If I see something on ebay I gotta' have, I always send the seller a question and based on their response I get a small amount of insight into who I'm dealing with. A non-response or a poor response means I move on. I think you'll find better/safer hunting on this website!
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Re: eBay
Now that I think of it I have bought maybe two or three banjos on eBay. A banjolele and a minstrel banjo kit come to mind. While the main issue with other instruments has been the neck, it seems with banjos it's the tension on the head (or lack thereof.) These were both open-backs, of course. I know the head is the most easily replaceable part, but in my case that's been "in theory" only.
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Re: eBay
I've bought a number of banjos on eBay, but I have some rules:
If it's over five hundred dollars, I will only bid-for/purchase an item if I can pay cash for it in person and pick it up in person -- so I communicate with the seller to verify that; if the seller doesn't agree, it's over.
And if it's over a thousand dollars, I bring someone with me to witness the transaction and I let the seller know, so they also can have someone to witness if they want. Again, if the seller doesn't agree, it's over.
This pretty much keeps the big purchases within driving distance of home, and it leaves nothing to chance.
I've bought a number of pretty high dollar banjos this way, all of the deals have turned out well, and it has always been worth the extra travel and arrangements.
I'd much rather have the option to back out of a bad deal in person, and explain why in the eBay ratings, than get taken for a lot of money without any real contact with the perp.
I haven't purchased anything through Craig's List so I can't address that part of the question.
-- Don
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