I think I just got scammed on eBay

[Chruser]

Or so it would appear. I recently purchased "Oblagon" by Syd Mead for $270.77; one of his rarest illustration books which was released in a limited edition in 1985:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=270197143011&ssPageName=STRK:MEWN:IT&ih=017


I won the auction on December 23, and I have monitored the sales of books by Syd Mead on eBay after that as well, hoping to find some of his other works.

As it turns out, there is a total of FOUR Oblagon books on sale today:

http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?from=R40&_trksid=m37&satitle=oblagon&category0=

I found this number a bit large, so I decided to investigate the auctions. Two of the them are held by the same person who sold my copy of Oblagon. Aside for the difference in initial price, the auctions are identical as far as their description and images go. So, maybe he just happened to keep three first-edition "MINT CONDITION UNUSED BRAND NEW [copies] OF SYD MEAD'S BOOK" in his secret airlock vault until this very day to sell them, no big deal. What worries me is that:


The two sellers involved (both selling two copies of Oblagon each) use remarkably similar grammar and consistent capitalization throughout their descriptions, and feedback left for other eBay members.

Both sellers' feedback records rely heavily on the sales of inexpensive movie posters, in stark contrast to selling expensive collectors' items. (Good way to establish lots of positive feedback in as little time as possible).

Both sellers use several, identical scans of Oblagon pages, at slightly different resolutions. (Look at the scan lines and scanner defects).

Both sellers use the same image host, with similar watermarks.

One of the auctions, by the person I purchased my book from, utilizes the "buy it now" feature, priced at $180. If he previously sold me one of his extremely "rare" books for $270.77 after an intensive fight amongst bidders, why would he accept a quick sale for $180 for an item of the same quality?



This just doesn't add up. What other reason is there to divide your sales of rare books amongst two different accounts, than to take a negative feedback impact as small as possible? Governing the fact that only a few days have passed since I purchased my copy of Oblagon, I may be able to get my money back if I can prove my case. My guess is that the sellers' plan is to reassure his buyers that the items have been shipped, and hope they don't invoke the 45 day fraud protection rule.

Thoughts? Advice? If you see any patterns that I missed, let me know.


Also, here are the links to the four, current auctions, in case they don't show up in the link above:

http://cgi.ebay.com/OBLAGON-CONCEPT-OF-SYD-MEAD-BOOK_W0QQitemZ270198945476QQihZ017QQcategoryZ60334 QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.com/OBLAGON-CONCEPTS-OF-SYD-MEAD-BOOK-BLADERUNNER-ARTIST_W0QQitemZ130185131151QQihZ003QQcategoryZ378 QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.com/OBLAGON-CONCEPTS-OF-SYD-MEAD-BOOK-BLADERUNNER-ARTIST_W0QQitemZ130185963883QQihZ003QQcategoryZ378 QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.com/OBLAGON-CONCEPT-OF-SYD-MEAD-BOOK_W0QQitemZ270199427299QQihZ017QQcategoryZ60334 QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Oh, and please leave the seller and his to-be buyers alone. Even if you would convince one of his current high bidders to withdraw from the auctions, someone else is most certain to win the auction with the "last 20 seconds surprise bid" strategy anyway. eBay is more likely to take fraud reports seriously if several buyers file them.

[Chruser]

Also, what pisses me off about this is not the risk of losing the money I spent, but the likelihood of not getting a book that will (or would) most definitely change my life due to the massive inspiration it offers.

[Grav]

Feedback from this seller:
Excellent communication, Item exact as described. A pleasure to buy from! Buyer: wurschlinger ( 1 )
Dec-27-07 22:59
OBLAGON CONCEPT OF SYD MEAD BOOK (#270196733022)

The buyer only has 1 feedback and could potentially be the same person, but the seller has enough rep to make me think you will get the book. It may not be an original, but perhaps a well done copy. The inexpensive items/posters thing is a good point but I'm not convinced someone would put that much time and effort into scamming a swede for $200.

Overall: Not sure.

[!King_Amazon!]

Can't you just tell ebay if you don't get it? I mean, that would suck that you don't get the book, but at least you'd get your money back.

The account has been active since '04 and has great feedback. Even if they did fake a lot of the feedback, they can't fake the age of the account. Also, it looks like they use a template for their auctions, which is why they all look the same. They say "poster" quite a few times but they do make it clear that it's an auction for the book, not a poster.

The only really fishy thing is the price. You say it's a very rare book, and this particular copy is brand new and in mint condition, for a relatively low price. It tickles my "if it's too good to be true, it isn't" sensor.

Also, have you tried contacting the seller? They have a phone number on the auction, perhaps you should just try to get in touch with them and voice your concerns.

[Grav]

I don't know if he can speak English well.

[!King_Amazon!]

Chruser? Of course he can.

[-Spector-]

So any updates Chruser? What did Ebay say? Did you receive your book? Does the seller have competent communcation?

[Kaneda]

Ebay can't get your money back. Paypal has some buyer protection I think..? Aside from that there is always a risk. Ebay just penalizes the seller.

[KagomJack]

I believe, though, if it's done strictly through PayPal for both, you can get money back.

[Chruser]

I received the book a few days ago, which looks authentic. The images are high quality, with text overlayed on top of some of them, which would have been a pain to copy without seeing raster around some of the high-contrast edges.

The book also has small signs of wear, including tiny scratches on some of its pages, and some dents and worn edges on its soft-cover. There is a 1.5 inch dent on the back of the book, which wouldn't make me say the book is in mint condition as described.

However, for being a 23-year old book, it is in great condition. Its images are some of the most inspiring ones I have ever seen.

[Grav]

Sounds good enough to me! CLOSED!

[-Spector-]

Congratulations, now post some of these pictures now that you have caught my interest.....