Thread: Ebay has ruined people chances for people who want a good razor to get one

Ebay bugs me. Actually, the instability bugs me ... and the inflated shipping ... poor pics ... etc ... What really gets my goat about Ebay is when an Antique shop uses Ebay to set their prices instead of an industry accepted book or catalogue. Of course, the prices are set by the most expensive piece they can find, regardless of the condition of their own piece. Grrrr.... Of course, these shop owners really dont know anything about the razors at all so the attitude of 'The Price is the Price' abounds. Double Grrr...

That being said, I've gotten some good deals from the 'bay as well. The maximum I've paid for a completely functional meat chopper for $35 w/ s/h. Most of the razors I've won on ebay .. well .. I was the only bidder, so I picked them up at something like $10 + $5 s/h. I see a clunker no-name rusty chipped up blade at a shop somewhere in my travels for +$50 ... all I do is laugh.


The amount of razors I have now .. well, honestly I dont get a chance to use them all .. and I go through phases of enjoying one vs. the other. I have some that I havent even used yet and I bought them last year some time.

Ebay is ok if you are willing to hold out and/or wait for the right auction to come up. Just keep looking, thats all I can say. When you dont see the right one for you, just sock that money away. Save the dough for the right auction. You might be suprised at how just little money you will fork over when patience is excersized.

The secret to good deals on ebay is misspellings.....

Oh stop the whining. Like it or not, ebay brought daylight to the murky waters of second hand trade. If you dislike one seller's shipping costs, ignore him.

I can't say I share your same experience Enigma. I have gotten some good R.J. Torreys and Genevas from e-bay at very reasonable prices, then restored them and they make dandy shavers.

Rich

I wanna revive the Craigslist thing. I developed a bargaining trick, and was able to get a DD Goldedge with a little missing gold quite cheap ($75? can't remember) and an almost NOS FWE Leader ($40 I think, only thing not NOS was it had been honed ONCE, and had like <.25mm hone wear). Trick is to be patient and search surrounding areas, not just your town. Someone might not list something in NYC for example, but maybe in bumblehum NJ...

I think part of the problem with eBay, and its the same with all the car boot sales you get in the UK, is that people think that the junk from the loft is worth something.

There are so many daytime TV antiques shows when someone brings a random vase or something along to be valued and find out its actually worth a few hundred quid so people have got the message that their "junk" is worth a few bob, hence the silly prices and people posting totally useless razors with stupid reserve prices.

That said, as per other posts here, you can find some good stuff if you look! I guess its just a case of not losing heart and not minding too much if you lose a bid. There does seem to be a bit of an interest in straight razors at the moment though... Wonder what started that off?

Here are a few of my thoughts:

• Every one of us wants a deal on everything. A deal. What's a razor "deal" on Ebay for us? A $5 razor in very good condition. Trying to put myself in a seller's shoes, subtract the Ebay and Paypal fees and the time to list that razor and what's left for the seller? A few bucks. I can tell you I sure wouldn't waste my time if I was a seller getting paid a few dollars per razor.
• I've sold very few razors through the years on Ebay and a few recently. There are lots and lots of yooze lookin at razor listings, let me tell you! . Not in the hundreds from the listings I've done, but some razors, easily have 40-50 people watching the auction (sellers see how many people have flagged a listing as being watched and even listings that are simply viewed for those who don't know). Yeah right if any of us think we're the only one that spots a particular listing. Lots and lots and lots of competition.
• I've heard the antique dealers come back with the "A razor like that sold for $$$ on Ebay last week......" more times than I can count. That is frustrating and I think it's a totally bunk argument and have told some dealers just that. Ebay is a worldwide venue. Mr. Antique dealer in Anytown, USA population 3,500 is one location; moreover, I'm IN your location Mr. Antique Dealer with money in hand interested in something most people who saunter on in to your store are not. It would behoove you, in my opinion, to deal with me now and try to make a sale rather than have me walk out. In my opinion, the antique dealer's logic then could be applied to a local small town paper and what they charge for placing a classified ad. Could that local small town gazette charge people hundreds or even thousands of dollars to put a classified ad in their paper with a circulation of 3,500 with the rationale that the Wall Street Journal or the New York Times gets $$$ for classifieds with an exponentially higher circulation than that small town gazette? Of course not.

As vintage razors get more scarce, prices are only going to go up, not down.

Chris L

I managed to get a Wonderedge for $65 but I took a risk because the pics weren't great. If you are comfortable that the description states there is no damage, I say go for it. Most sellers will take it back if it's beyond repair, like say a crack or something.

I agree though, just try and get a 1" W&B or a Filly Barbas Duras for less than a small fortune.

ChayesFSS is not local to Dallas/Forth Worth, and he mentioned difficulty connecting with a "local" selling a set of straight razors in this (my) area. I can help him, and sent him a private message. If anyone knows another way to contact, let me know.

Originally Posted by LarryAndro

ChayesFSS is not local to Dallas/Forth Worth, and he mentioned difficulty connecting with a "local" selling a set of straight razors in this (my) area. I can help him, and sent him a private message. If anyone knows another way to contact, let me know.

NOoooooo, I was fully prepared to pay for shipping!