Ebay madness. A good place for LF stuff?

[John Kasaian]

The last three items I bought on ebay were real steals---a Seal 150 press from a high school photo lab (I'm hoping that the platen is in better shape than my ex-Georgia Dept of Health & Human Services Seal 200 with a platen that looks like the lunar surface,) an Opemus 4x4 enlarger (for enlarging my 127 negatives,) and another bag mag for my Keystone F8 aerial camera (since cutting down 9-1/2" wide Kodak film to 7" wide seems so wasteful as well as being time consuming and pretty much impossible with my dark room currently out of commission anyway.) Each of these items cost less than $10 so for less than $30 I got all this neat, useful stuff.

Of course shipping cost me an extra $100. but still thats not too bad since most of this stuff came from the eastern seaboard (I live in Calif) and dry mount presses are notoriously heavy and enlargers are awkward, fragile affairs (I've long held the notion that a good price guage is if the enlarger costs more than the shipping I'll have paid too much ) Heck, a used Seal press would normally go for for twice the price of the whole kaboodle including shipping.

Anyway, I'm not knocking ebay or any of the sellers there (I've been very lucky/careful.) In fact I was giving serious consideration to putting my Gowland 8x10 aerial on the block to recoup some of the expense. I went to Peter Gowland's website to see what the new ones were going for when I saw some nocturnals shot with one (the Santa Monica pier!) Now I've got to try some nocturnals with the old beast---I've already got some tmax 400 loaded and ready to go So the Gowland has a new lease on life thanks in part, to the lure of ebay.

So whats my point? The point is that ebay is a delightful resource. While I haven't found my 270mm $40 Schnieder G Claron barrel or any of those really big slip on series filter rings for my 10" and 14" ektars on ebay (yet) I have picked up some pretty cool stuff without breaking the bank---stuff I'd never find in the local pawn shops and thrift stores (none of the digi camera stores would, I'm afraid, even know what I'm talking about. I'm sure you've gotten that "deer in the headlights" stare, haven't you?)

A lot of people here have asked about where to buy a "first" field camera and I don't think I'd recommend ebay because it is after all a gamble and I'd hate for someone's first time with a field camera to be unpleasant simply because the camera was worn out. There are too many good stores (like Mid West) and private sellers (like Jim Galli) to service that segment of the market. But for wierd old junk and serendipity, I think ebay is great fun and entertainment. What is your experience?

Oh yes, my old Seal press, the one with the lunar landscape platen, was off ebay

So what is your experience? I've heard all the horror stories. Got any good ones?

[Sandeha]

Not necessarily large format, but still, it's photography ...

A Stitz 35mm ... in reality a Retina II. Stitz was a dealer label - nice price.

A Zeiss Ikonta listed in the film section ... one pound twenty pence - one of the best condition oldies I've bought.

Oh, and a Gerard & Co whole plate camera ... in reality a Thornton Pickard. Gerard was the dealer label.

The "I don't know anything about it" eBay sellers can be a valuable resource.

[claudiocambon]

I think EBay is great, and generally, the pitfalls are avoidable. I've never gotten anything that didn't match its description, knock on wood, and I've always had good communication with sellers, as far as I remember. Buyers on the other hand can be a pain at times, no matter how explicit one is. On the other hand I've bought lenses from places like KEH and other dealers that did not match their descriptions, and which were a disappointment. Every now and then I get ahead of myself and pay too much for something because I am being impulsive, but otherwise feel I have gotten great deals, and also enjoyed the convenience of selling things for decent prices.

I think this site is pretty great for finding things as well!

[kevin kelly]

I agree with the above, Ebay is an excellent resource as long as you keep your head and not get in a bidding war! Be patient and slightly tightfisted. Have not been dissapointed. Also find FFordes in Scotland A+.

I live out in the sticks in the west of Ireland and without the internets possibilities, LF would only be a pipe dream.

KK

[Ole Tjugen]

... But for wierd old junk and serendipity, I think ebay is great fun and entertainment. What is your experience?

"Weird old junk and serendipity" - that just about sums up my Ebay experience. I have a room full of "weird old junk", and my three "main" LF cameras were expensive, yet serendipitous: A Gandolfi traditional 5x7", another in 8x10", and a Carbon Infinity are serendipitous enough - just finding them for sale anywhere is hard enough, getting them at an affordable price is pure serendipity.

[Nick_3536]

I haven't bought much on Ebay lately [last year +] Most things I look at end up higher priced then somebody like KEH. Adding shipping costs. The wait for the auction to end. Plus everything else just makes me less then excited about Ebay.

I've managed to buy cameras for a fraction of what the included lens is worth. Plus more then a few other great deals. But in general today I see more over priced stuff then fairly priced and not many "deals". Sure they happen but it's not worth it for me. OTOH I'm not looking for much anymore either so that might be part of it.

Most of what I even consider on Ebay now is buy now small items like step up rings.

[eric black]

If you have patience, you can do well there- like anyplace prices seem to rise and fall there and if you know what you want and know how much youre willing to spend, deals can be found

[Jrewt]

I got my burke and james 8x10 with mint condition bellows for 150$ on ebay. It was the best decision I ever made (in terms of photography), for my budget at the time was 1,000$.. I had money for a GOOD lens and not some ratty thing from KEH, plus holders and a expert jobo drum. Allowed me to start shooting instead of saving..

[Brian Ellis]

I've had good experiences when I was the buyer, I can't offhand think of any problems with anything I've bought. My worst problems in buying have come from one supposedly reputable dealer (no longer in business I don't believe), who on two occasions totally misrepresented the condition of a lens and a 5x7 camera. I've had mostly good experiences when I was the seller on ebay (again, my one bad experience as a seller came from selling to a dealer years ago) but I've run into an occasional overly-finicky/ignorant buyer (at least I thought they were overly finicky). But all in all I think ebay is a great resource, it sure makes the old days of selling gear through classified ads in Shutterbug seem antiquated though I agree that it isn't necessarily the place for first time buyers of gear they know little about.

[Oren Grad]

I've gotten a few bargains on eBay over the years, though not really if you place any value on the time I had to spend watching the listings to find them. If all you want is a garden variety 4x5 field camera or a common lens at a decent price, then if your time is worth anything at all you might as well just call MPEX and be done with it.

The real value of eBay for me has been as a place to find weird and obscure stuff, like odd-format or relatively scarce items. Although some of the action has now moved to discussion boards like LFF and APUG, eBay remains indispensable if you're hunting for anything out of the mainstream.

As far as experiences as a buyer on eBay, I've made a number of purchases where I felt the item description was unreasonably optimistic, but on balance feel that I've done OK.