Yippie!! I Won It Almost Fair and Square

I won an eBay auction yesterday for this S-100:[IMG:238:320]http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r106/capnjuan/GuildS-100Polara.jpg[/img] Seller sez it's 'Signed', 1970 model...signed by who I wonder and where. Despite my crabbing about no local Guilds (sorry West but we gotta be men about this), this one is in Ft Lauderdale. I'm going to try to pick it up to avoid the Zom Zom ordeal; it also has no case which increases shipping hazards.

In addition to the fact it's a Guild, it reviewed pretty well: http://reviews.harmony-central.com/revi ... S-100/10/1
I tried a different approach this time; gave eBay a 'bid-me-up-to' $450 number and also went to see the sniper and gave him my max amount; 'belts and suspenders'. Considering the recent remarks about sniping in general, I thought you all might find the bid tabs interesting; the auction ended at Apr-26-07 17:24:52 PDT You'll have to blow it up to follow along:[IMG:544:283]http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r106/capnjuan/snipe.jpg[/img]











Bidder 6 was 'inch-worming' along (not shown) to bump any eBay 'bid-me-ups' which he did when he knocked out my $450. Bidder 7 bumped #6 by $10.15 - manual bid? - but bidder #6 had apparently already posted $477.92, based on the time stamp, 5 hours earlier. Otherwise I have no explanation for the time / bid stamp differential, do any of you?

If bidder #7 had been bidding in real time, it's hard to believe that he only bid $.07 more than Bidder 6 with only 7 seconds left on the auction strongly suggestive that Bidder 7 was also using a sniper/proxy. My sniper's bid registered 3 seconds after Bidder #7's bid and 4 seconds before eBay closed the auction. My sniper also had the good sense to put a little more money in it; topping Bidder #7 by $5.00 to allow for the possibility of yet another sniper or even a real-time/on-line, inch-worm bidder.

I think the sniping software estimates a target and, through experience, knows how long it takes to register a bid; I wonder how they get through the Bid / Confirm Bid / Check-for-High-Bid page gates so quickly? Anyway, the skimpy auction text and the lone pic must have scared most of you off.

The sad fact is that if it's 'fun' you want bidding, then I think it's better to go to an auction house on Friday night and chase bric-a-brac. If you actually want to buy something on eBay, it's not about how much you're willing to pay but when your bid registers. I don't mind losing on purely financial grounds but I do mind being entangled in the electronics with a winning bid in my hand. I really like Coastie's/NZ's eBay model where auctions are held open until the bidding is done.

This guitar isn't at home yet; if it's in reasonable condition, at $485 I got it pretty cheap. Unless someone updated it along the line, chances are it's ready for a new set of Humbuckers. It may yet turn out that my sniping will be rewarded by my owning (another) crappy guitar. It's happened before...a sniped Yamaha SA30 (ES335)...seller still has to be laughing up his sleeve; 'think you got a good deal smartass?...wait'll you see the guitar...'

Nice price, Cap'n !

Provided it's structurally sound, you could spend a few bucks on it and still end up with a "cheap", top-notch guitar.

Bought a pair of NOS Tungsol 6550's yesterday on Trademe.
Paid the equivalent of U.S. $166.

The guy has more. Interested ?

Here's his offer...................

Hello Gin Minister - Thanks for the purchase! I took a quick look at your feedback and it is an interesting mix of stuff. Do you rebuild guitar amps or play?

Anyway, I have another pair of these available that would make a nice matched quad, another pair, and then another single if you are interested:

Pair 2:
NOS matched pair of Tung Sol 6550s is labelled as RCA, but they were definitely manufactured by Tung Sol. They have three-hole plates, strong triple getters, and date codes 6617 and 7552 (17th week of ?66 and 52nd week of '75). They come in a standard white box.

They both measure 9200 Gm on my recently calibrated Hickok 752 tester and both tubes passed leakage (shorts), gas and life tests.
$225/pr

Pair 3:
Very strong matched pair of Tung Sol 6550s labelled as Raytheon and Mullard, but they were definitely manufactured by Tung Sol. They have three-hole plates, strong triple getters, and no guide pins. The Mullard tube comes with its original box, and the other has a standard white box.

They measure an astounding 10,200 and 10,100 Gm on my recently calibrated Hickok 752 tester and both tubes passed leakage (shorts), gas and life tests.

$225/pr

Single:

Strong Tung Sol 6550 labelled as RCA, measures as new at 8500 Gm on my recently calibrated Hickok 752 tester and both tubes passed leakage (shorts), gas and life tests. It has three-hole plates, strong triple getters, no guide pin, and date code 6648 (48th week of ?66) and comes in a standard white box.

$100

My excitement is crumbling into anxiety. It turns out the (0 feedback) seller was 'fronting' for his pal. Seller wants me to PayPal his buddy directly. In the meantime, seller/eBay sent me an invoice including shipping for the guitar that I'm trying to pick up in person.

I don't want to pay another $25 for shipping that, if I can manage, won't be necessary. In fact, if I had to, I'd pay the D__ shipping and still pick it up to avoid the shipping risk. I sent an email to the 'real owner': How about it? and haven't heard anything back.

Good chance this thing will unravel; too bad, was getting excited; another proof that when playing cricket, the wicket sometimes goes where it shouldn't. OTOH: the $ is still in my pocket and my downside is crappy feedback and disappointment.


No, no valves right now. The only ones I'm buying these days are 6V6 / 6EU7 / 12AX7 / 5Y3 for the Gibbies and 6BM8 / 6GW8 for the T1 RVT. I wish I still had the AR D76 (4 X 6550) but it's gone. All 3 Gibson amps have tubes sets with under 15 hours; the T1 RVT is running a pair of old Tungsram 6GW8s that sound great and I have two pairs of used Mullards backing them up. Because of 'fixed' bias in the Gibbies, I need matched pairs of 6V6s. The good news is that the current crop of JJs can be bought matched for another buck and are, to my ear, very satisfactory.

What are the voltage characteristics of the NZ power grid; 230v(?) like the Euros? If so, what's the work-around for US 110V stuff; wall adaptor?

Has the young lady's guitar showed up?

Cap'n.

I have some 6V6's (RCA) that I'll test this morning.
I have a basic Avo tester.

Yes, 240V here: Haven't a clue how one would run a North American appliance.

No guitar yet; I expect it will arrive mid next week.

Sorry to hear about your deal going tits-up; hope you get it peacefully resolved.

Wickets ?? Cricket ??

Good heavens !!!

240V: I'll look it up. After all, if Americans can go to Europe and take their electric razors...

If the deal founders, it founders; what might get lost is a chance to buy something arguably for less than what it's really worth.

The older model S-100s go for +/- $1,200 on GBase...I was trying to score by paying a third of that. With my money still in my pocket, it won't necessarily a loss...it'll be a foregone gain... Not being clever, they really are two different things. Stuff like that happen in NZ?

Let me know about the 6V6s; the old RCA 'black plates' are supposed to be the 'holy grail' of 6V6s; otherwise all the Euros are in play; Siemens, Mullard, Telefunkens. Don't let this get around but, at times, the Euros actually can do stuff better than the you-know-whos.

So, here's what we have.............

5 RCA 6V6GT. All appear to have black plates.

Spec. on my Avo tester, 4 m/AV.

Tested: 5.6, 5.5, 4.8, 5.4, 5.3.

Codes: 59EX9, 5-29A, 60EXO, 5-29A, 6-29A.



2 RCA 6V6GTA. Grey plates.

Tested: 4.5, 5.8.

Codes: AJ, BW.


2 Tung Sol 6V6GT.

Tested: 4.8, 4.0

Codes: 322141,322130

Wouldn't guarantee that any or all of them are new, but they all test 100% for "goodness", and as you can see, they're all strong.


Look here for 12AX7.................

http://www.letstalkguild.com/phpBB2/vie ... php?t=3319

I've seen that picture before on someones blog. I sent him a letter and and confronted him about it. He responded with a cheap shot. Oh well, if you're still looking for a good S-100 maybe we can work something out. :wink:

Thanks Israel:

Not sure what to expect; seller keeps saying speak to the owner...if this doesn't pan out, I'll get back to you. My GAS is running towards a solid body and was impressed with the reviews of the S-100 because they were mostly written by adults and not by younger people...

Send me PM describing what you might let go and how much you want for them....Alaska.....that's near Canada, no? :wink:

Thanks again.

Could yet work out great for you, Capn. Perhaps just an inexperienced seller with the additional oddity of selling it for a friend.

I was the first bidder, BTW. And I was planning to be bidding at the end at the price you paid. I sent one message with questions. He replied with some of the answers but obviously knew little about the guitar. I messaged back for the serial number, indicating it would tell me the rest of what I needed to know. He did not respond and perhaps could not as he did not have possession of the guitar.

It sure looks nice in the single picture. My speculation was that it was a 90's reissue because it had that newish look.

Just thought I'd share this with you. I couldn't quite follow your story of what was happening down the stretch here. Are you concerned that bidders were acting at the request of the seller to drive up the price?

I'll go back and read it again.

Good luck (you rotten Gator you. :lol: )

Hey capnjuan,
I just spotted another S-100 on ebay. This guy looks legit. Just thought I'd tell ya. Happy hunting....err.. bidding!!


http://cgi.ebay.com/Vintage-Guild-s100- ... dZViewItem

Thanks Izzy and 'Zilla:

Now watching the new listing for an S-100. No 'Zilla, I didn't suspect 'shilling', I was just amazed at the 'time-slicing' by the snipers; my point was that by the end of auction, the snipers, and not people, were the only ones left in the auction. Had there been an on-line, real-time bidder, their getting a winning bid in before the auction closed would have been just dumb luck.

Apparently Kid 'A' agreed to auction a guitar owned by Kid 'B'. I finally heard back from the apparent owner B. If there really is a guitar to be had, it's only an hour's drive away. If this works, I'll have the opportunity to see the guitar in person before paying Kid B for it and avoid shipping risk.

Izzy already suggested that the background of this guitar and the auction pic are questionable. Since Kid A acknowledged in the text of his eBay invoice that (1) he didn't own the guitar, and (2) I was to pay someone other than the owner (Kid B), then not paying the eBay invoice is of no concern to me. I can't be in breach of the eBay 'contract' to pay the seller when the seller says he doesn't own what he 'sold'. Otherwise, I could eBay auction off someone else's car and then demand payment.

Kid A acknowledged that he's new to eBay and may not understand how to cancel the invoice. In any event, if I don't hear from Kid B - the apparent owner - then there's no deal anyway; there's nothing to buy...

This may yet 'learn me' something about eBay bottom-fishing in the first place; had already told myself not to respond to one-pic auctions....now I'm messing with a pair of bungling HS kids. In any event, the money is still in my pocket; all that might get lost here is buying a good guitar at less than market...a foregone benefit, not a financial loss....two different things.

Let me know next time your bidding something 'Zilla....I'll let you win.

Regards, cj

Who knows where this is going: copy of my Notice to eBay regarding busted sale of the S100:

Buying and Finding > Problems with sellers > The problem you're having with your seller isn't listed

Member or Item being reported: 160109992007

Message: During bidding, I asked for, and received, permission to pick up the merchandise in person if I won the auction. I won the auction. The seller sent me an invoice. The invoice included shipping which, because I am 40 miles away and said I wouldn't pay, I didn't intend to pay. The invoice also contained the following note from the seller:

"ok heres the deal i sold the guitar for a friend, hes going to send it to you, like the discription said its missing some hardware, im not sure whhat though. heres is his email so you can get a hold of him to send the money to a paypal acount and give him your adress and email, thanks and good luck."

The seller didn't own the merchandise he was selling and he wanted me to pay someone other than himself; he was 'fronting' for a friend. The apparent 'owner' has failed, despite several emails, to make contact with me to arrange payment and pickup.

In the meantime, the seller's eBay invoice hangs there unpaid suggesting that I haven't paid. I haven't because of the reasons indicated. Please see all the email traffic between seller and I on this point. I'm not going to pay the invoice; the seller doesn't own what he sold and there is apparently no functional way to reach the real owner.

The seller is a zero-feedback beginner and doesn't understand that the 'contract' to buy and sell is between he and I; not between me and some 3rd party. If he can't produce the goods or show clear title, I can't be under an obligation to pay. Please take this up with the seller and void the invoice.

My name, My Phone #, My Email address. Thank you.

Click to expand...

As it stands, I look the bad guy because I defaulted on payment....ugly...but like the lottery, you can't win if you don't play :wink:

E-Bay customer service will be back at you within 2 weeks (tops!) with an irrelevant paragraph or two, followed by a suggestion that you negotiate a solution with the seller.

They are truly, truly useless. As if by design.

"Abandon all hope, Ye who enter here."

If this "kid" is underaged, or even under 21, have you tried to contact his parental unit?

Said parent could be legally responsible, and, perhaps, might be more willing to correct the situation to avoid possible litigation.

Especially since all you're asking for is the cancellation of the contract and the deletion of the Ebay invoice.

If you have the kids name, and city of residence, you might have to call everyone by that name in the phone book, but someone will know who his parents are.

Maybe they don't even know what he's up to.

Good luck.

Thanks GuildFS4612CE for the suggestion. This is just one of the many weird outcomes messing around on eBay. As it stands, I still have my money in my pocket; that's the good news. Otherwise, this is a matter of eBay and DorkyBoy getting together and voiding the invoice....

If DorkyBoy figures it out that his 'good name' is now at risk, it might put some pressure on him to push on the apparent owner to get in the game.

Hey Zilla: not holding my breath but would not like to have this ring-side seat in watching them blunder around aaaaarrrrrrrgggggghhhhhhh
:evil:

You're welcome.

Good thing you're not risking a financial loss at this point.

Perhaps it is just as it appears....2 clueless kids bungling.

Perhaps it is 2 clueless kids attempting their first scam....

But to protect YOUR good name:

What about printing out a copy of your letter to Ebay and bypassing customer service entirely by sending it addressed directly to their "LEGAL" Department....every big company has one. :lol:

Starting at the top sometimes works better.

Good luck

GuildFS4612CE said:

But to protect YOUR good name:

What about printing out a copy of your letter to Ebay and bypassing customer service entirely by sending it addressed directly to their "LEGAL" Department....every big company has one. :lol:

Starting at the top sometimes works better.

Good luck

Click to expand...

Good plan, 99.

Don't piss about wasting time with the flunkies !

Thanks Gary, don't intend to; just want eBay to dump the invoice so that it doesn't look like I stiffed the seller; that is, were I to treat it as paid, then the seller would ask: "Well fine, where's the money?" :shock:

It's over, no guitar.

Received notice from eBay this a.m. indicating that they finally 'got it' and have taken 'action' with the Seller who sold this guitar for friend but the friend didn't want to give it up.

Question: "How many eBay employees are needed to screw in a lightbulb?"
Answer: "Seven: Lottie, Fleming, Spence, Tamrah, Alfreda, Ernest, and Ira" :shock:

Question: "How many emails does it take?"
Answer: "39 including futile email to seller and owner" :shock: