What is the purpose of an eBay "Private Auction?"

SOM · March 27, 2004 1:18PM

and, if I won the item at my exact maximum bid, have I likely been swindled? Help!

Thanks in advance!

Nick

paigowmichael · March 27, 2004 1:24PM

You're only swindled if you paid for it. It's a safe guess that if it was a private auction then you probably were bidding on something of little, if any, value.

SOM · March 27, 2004 1:29PM

are you suggesting that I be wary of paying for the item? (I just won it about an hour ago.)

Virtualizard · March 27, 2004 1:44PM

<< <i>What is the purpose of an eBay "Private Auction?" >>

In my experience, the only purpose, as far as cards go, is to deceive or hide something. I really can't see any benefit to ever listing an auction privately. Hopefully, you didn't spend too much on this auction.

JEB.

WinPitcher · March 27, 2004 1:46PM

what is the item number?

SOM · March 27, 2004 1:49PM

2796517158 Just ended tonight.

WinPitcher · March 27, 2004 1:53PM

Goodluck SOM in whatever you decide.

all i nose is I am WARY and I didnt bid on the thing!!

Virtualizard · March 27, 2004 2:18PM

SOM,

Coincidentally, I had been watching this auction. Unfortunately, it is in a PRO graded slab, sold by t2inc. This card is almost 100% guaranteed to be trimmed. The seller regularly sells PRO graded cards in private auctions and spams PSA's name in most of them. By utilizing the private auction, he disables the general public from warning uneducated bidders about the potential risk in bidding on these cards.

If you do like the card, you may be interested in his '64 Rose 9 Mint + PSA 50/50!

I hope this was a lesson learned.

JEB.

SOM · March 27, 2004 2:28PM

I might try to avoid paying him based upon his use of the misleading acronym "PSA" in the title line.

But, I'd hate to sacrifice 5 years and my 100% positive feedback rating over a couple hundred bucks...

I'm not sure what I'm going to do. Though, I did email him, asking for an explanation as to the card's legitimacy.

tony1844 · March 27, 2004 2:30PM

I would try and back out! altough you bought it. These guys would never hid the bidders names and their feedback otherwise.They PRO cards that won't grade PSA.

jaybyrd · March 27, 2004 2:41PM

He has a 66 rose graded a PRO 9 up on e-bay also. The sooner this guy knows people are on to him the better.

redsfan · March 27, 2004 2:43PM

Good luck with this... I made a similar mistake buying some GEM 10 graded cards at prices that were too good to be true. Those that didn't have corner damage measured smaller than other cards from that year. I'm out a little over $100, but consider it part of my education. I've been giving cards that didn't grade as well as expected to my nephews, so these will go into that pile.

From his auction description, "It's not often that you will see a vintage card so well centered". I wonder how it got to be so well centered??? I noticed he's also including another PSA card that allows him to use PSA in the auction title without technically be spamming.

It really doesn't make sense that EBay allows sellers to have "private" feedback. Kinda defeats the purpose of feedback, doesn't it??

sagard · March 27, 2004 2:43PM

Tell the seller you mistook it for a PSA card. He will likely just sell it to the next person on the list.

tony1844 · March 27, 2004 2:52PM

Look at the card left to right.The border on the right should be greater,because of the small left border.It may not have OC'd by PSA but it would have probably graded a 7 if it had gradedat all .PRO doesen't look for surface inclusions!

SOM · March 27, 2004 3:39PM

You're correct, redsfan. He slyly included that PSA mention because, in the item description, he promises to give the winner a PSA graded card too! So much for my theory of claiming the title was misleading...

I feel embarrassed and upset over this. How could I have missed all of these red flags?

Oh, well...I might as well check out his 64 Rose card while I'm at it, JEB. Thanks for the lead!

Nick

HammeringHank · March 27, 2004 3:55PM

Nick:

This guy will not do anything to your feedback...because he doesn't have a leg to stand on...send a fraud report to eBay...tell him that you are reporting him to the authorities...go to your look police and report him...file a fraud report with the FBI...check your local post office and ask about mail fraud and what you can do...also send a letter telling your story to your local newspaper and see if they will print it as a warning to others...

And tell this yahoo all of that in your email to him...tell him we are all on to him...and we're coming to get him...his time is up...and there is no place to hid...

SOM · March 27, 2004 4:20PM

The main thing that makes me think I should just eat this, is the fact that the seller is simply stating that he has a PRO 8.5 card for sale, and unless he is PRO Grading Co, who indeed did trim the card, how has he done anything illegal? He states the card's grade, supplies a picture, and describes it rather colorfully, but not fraudulently. It sounds like "buyer beware" was simply not heeded by you-know-who.

I'm grinning over the fact that I began this thread asking about the concept of a Private Auction. I think I hit the Daily Double with this deal!

felix76 · March 27, 2004 9:30PM

SOM,

If everyone who bids on these auctions, "just grins and bears it". Then this scumbag continues to sell to unsuspecting bidders. Some kind of action needs to be taken.

jaybyrd · March 27, 2004 10:58PM

Here is his scheme - He will buy PSA 5 or 6 or ungraded cards for a nice price I'm sure. Then when he receives the card he will trim to make the card look centered and the corners sharp. He will then ship to his buddies at PRO who obviously do not check standard card sizes. Then the card will show up on e-bay as authenticated by a third party grading company. Unsuspecting buyers will purchase his crap and he has made a tidy profit for himself.

I cannot tell you what to do, but I would take the negative before I would support this crooks habit. If you have been trading on e-bay for years, one negative is not going to hurt you. If you do buy the card this swindler has won again.

Davino · March 28, 2004 1:44AM

The only purpose of this private auction was to defraud. If you allow this seller to profit off of your ignorance of Pro's "grading standards", or more accurately, lack therof, this cycle of ripping of buyers with altered cards will never cease. I would not pay for this no matter what. Make sure that you block this seller on your banned sellers list and move forward with your head held high.

WinPitcher · March 28, 2004 1:57AM

I'm grinning over the fact that I began this thread asking about the concept of a Private Auction. I think I hit the Daily Double with this deal!

now u know y I said "oh lord" before....hehe

pro may not have been the trimmer in this case, the seller quite possibly may have done the deed......

CW · March 28, 2004 6:46AM

<< <i>But, I'd hate to sacrifice 5 years and my 100% positive feedback rating over a couple hundred bucks... >>

ok, you mentioned that you feel embarassed and upset over this. The
smartest thing you've done is come on these boards and ask for advice.
You may have been uninformed or ignorant of the whole PRO/private
auction scam, but you now have the ability to prevent yourself from
making a stupid move and paying for this card. One negative feedback
is not worth $200, especially when you can follow up the negative
feedback with an explanation of this common ebay scam. This has been
a great learning experience for you - don't let it cost you $200!

SOM · March 28, 2004 7:03AM

Yeah, I agree. I slept on it, and it all seems clearer today.

I'm going to pretend I never even bid on that darned card. I'll ignore the guy. If he's as questionable a character as he seems to be, I doubt that he's going to post negative feedback. A legitmate seller can deal with a couple of explainable negatives, as some of you have indicated; a crook dealing in private auctions under the cover of private feedback can't afford to have any. And he'll sure get slammed by me if he fries me with bad feedback.

He'll probably just be pissed that somebody out-scammed him, and he'll move on.

It probably won't take him long to find the next sucker to whom he can sell the card...but, I hope that it does.

I'll let you know what action he chooses to pursue.

Nick

WinPitcher · March 28, 2004 8:17AM

do not ignore the guy.............tell him flat out "I no longer want this card as I have found out it is most probably an altered card" let him make the next move...

interchanges · March 28, 2004 10:38AM

to answer your question, (in my opinion) the purpose of a private auction is to hide something. And quite often it goes hand in hand with private feedback. Two things I think ebay should do away with.

RonD · March 28, 2004 11:23AM

I would love to know how this person wants payments made. SOM, if you could post that info here or e-mail it to me I would appreciate it. I have seen this persons auctions and would like to know who the guy is behind the id.

Ron

SOM · March 28, 2004 11:26AM

Ron: he takes PayPal, checks, MO, the works. And he charges sales tax!

Valrey Sports
P.O. Box 2806
Downey, CA 90242

email: valrey_sports@hotmail.com

Virtualizard · March 28, 2004 11:39AM

SOM,

Valrey Sports sounded familiar, so I searched through my spreadsheet of card purchases and found that I purchased a PSA graded card from this guy on 11-28-01. I received the card on 12-5-01. Fast shipping and I was happy with that purchase.

Maybe he's gone to the dark side since the transaction that I had with him.

In any case, I agree with previous posts. Contact him and let him know that you have decided not to follow through with your purchase because of undisclosed information prior to the end of the auction. Tell him you found out about his history on ebay after the auction ended, and you will not send payment and will do everything possible to stop him from selling to unsuspecting, uneducated bidders in the future. If you're willing to take the negative already, you may as well go all out. I'll send you the $20 to get squaretrade to remove the negative from your feedback if you'd like.

Just do what you can to stop this from happening again. If this happens to him regularly, he may give up on it.

JEB.

thebiddingstopshere · March 28, 2004 12:05PM

trimmed over hank allens head.

goodriddance189 · March 28, 2004 12:15PM

look everyone! its thebiddingstopshere! since youre finally on the forums (again), care to tell your side of the story? you know, the story about you selling high grade PSA cards, with fake serial numbers, and stolen Superior scans?

im sure everyone needs a good laugh!

purelyPSA · March 28, 2004 12:45PM

GR - I doubt that's him...if it is, he has to think we're all crazy. Someone's pulling your leg I'm guessing.

sandlot411 · March 28, 2004 12:57PM

Private auctions are not all fraud..Sometimes Power sellers who run 1,000's of auctions a week run into a jealous person who has an axe to grind..They then start harrasing the seller and their customers..Thus the seller runs private auctions to protect himself and customers against unwarranted harrasment..Alot of private auctions are run that are legit..

marz · March 28, 2004 1:57PM

<< <i>Ron: he takes PayPal, checks, MO, the works. And he charges sales tax!

Valrey Sports
P.O. Box 2806
Downey, CA 90242

"Downey California"!! isn't that where the greatest female vocalist of all time comes from????

thebiddingstopshere · March 28, 2004 4:30PM

thebiddingstopshere · March 28, 2004 4:33PM

murcerfan · March 28, 2004 4:43PM

caio

SOM · March 29, 2004 1:35AM

Friends - here is the response I received today:

Hello Nick, the card you won was purchased already graded and I cannot back up PRO's grading standards, or any other thrid party grading company. I realize that PRO's grading is not as credible as PSA's or BVG's, but their prices do indicate that. If you would like to pass on this card I have no problem with it, and I completely understand your position. I will be asking for a credit request through eBay stating that we mutually agreed not to complete the transaction. Your account will not be affected negatively in any way. If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to e-mail me.

Thanks,
Joe

LateBloomer · March 29, 2004 4:19AM

I've read this post with a fair amount of interest because I too have often wondered about this seller's cards although I've never bid on any. But I can't help bringing up these points that no one has addressed yet...

1) Couldn't a "private" auction be considered as a way to protect the seller's identity? After all, if I am buying collectibles do I really want the whole world to know what I am buying and the prices I am paying?

2) If this seller is scamming buyers, then why is his feedback rating 99%+ ? Even though the individual responses are kept private, the overall feedback percentage is still displayed on the listings.

This seller seems legitimate and (even though we may not agree at all with PRO grading standards) I don't see how this seller or what he is doing can be faulted.

Am I missing something?

Tom

SOM · March 29, 2004 7:16AM

Based upon the professional way he appears to be handling this, I tend to agree that he is legit, Tom.

However, I still don't like private auctions, private feedback and PRO Grading Co!

Nick

purelyPSA · March 29, 2004 7:19AM

If it's t2inc you're dealing with, he's legit all right. He legitimately sells trimmed PRO cards. He knows they're trimmed and tries to avoid problems with buyers beforehand, which is why he went right ahead and nixed the deal. I'm betting he figures it's better to try to find another mook than to fight with a customer who's been given a heads up. At least that customer is not you.

What is the purpose of an eBay &quot;Private Auction?&quot;

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What is the purpose of an eBay "Private Auction?"