There has been too much violence. Too much pain. But I have an honorable compromise. Just walk away and there will be an end to the horror.

H5.jpg

No one has suggested this giant strawman. But if the buyer paid in cash then he is going against ebay rules. Even if you pick up in person you must still pay through ebay/paypal.

I hate people like this on eBay. You've got his info. Find an image of him on Facebook and then post a "Men seeking men" ad on the "casual encounters" section of Craigslist. Ha ha. The power of the internets.

Totally incorrect. TOTALLY. Sellers have to offer PayPal *or* some type of credit card, but they are not banned against taking cash.

OP, you shot yourself in the foot buy not letting the buyer test the game. A day or two before the buyer was to come and pick up the game you should have had it ready for his inspection not in cold storage. How many years have you been in business?

Welcome to ebay. That is why it is a crap shoot. If he was local and wanted to see the machine before he bid on it, then he should have contacted the seller. Once you bid on it and buy it you are subject to the same rules as everyone. In other words game is "sold as is".

Buy games locally and go see them before you buy them. This idea that you can pay for something on ebay and then come over and chip off the price based on things you find is ludicrous. Go see the game and come up with a max price you are willing to pay. Once the auction goes beyond that price, you are out.

I do see two sides to this story and both have their points, but I side with the seller.

Man, this thread captures exactly my nightmare scenario of selling a pin o_O.... I'm keeping mine from now on....no more selling. I'm putting extra games in a closet....climate-controlled if you were wondering .

I just reread the auction. Didn't realize you were asking for cash in the event of a buyer pickup. Total red flag there. Im on the buyers side. If paypal was used the buyer had protection if the machine was a lemon. Cash?? Out as well ask for a Western Union money transfer.

If someone is not ok with paying cash upon pickup, why are they bidding on an item that explicitly states the game must be paid for in cash upon pickup?

He was not afraid of paying cash until he was told that he would have to buy the game without being allowed to turn it on.

The moral of this story?

Twister is a $2000 game folks!

Number of posts total between two threads: 340

Number of posts by OPs total in both threads: 3

Wait now, that's not right. The listing said "If picking up in person this item MUST be payed for in cash at pickup.....NO EXCEPTIONS!". The pushy buyer said he'd pay PayPal so he'd have protection, which to me as a seller would indicate if there was a light bulb out, he'd file a claim.

For me I'd not hand the cash over until I saw the game running and in great shape. As many have pointed out this transaction could have gone a lot differently, but it's not as simple as the seller demanding cash and refuses to let the buyer power on the game. It never got so far as they were in the same room. Buyer was pushy and demanding, literally threatening, and the seller so "bite me".

He achieved his goal.

He alerted the community to the seller's practices, and at the same time exposed many other sellers you would probably not want to buy a game from.

Mission Accomplished.

and some you would

And that if you buy from vid you will get served vodka and the best popcorn in town!

Vid, you may want to rethink that. You may want to insist on a legally binding agreement being signed before you serve said vodka or popcorn. You wouldn't want to be sued for cracking someone's tooth, or over-serving someone and they have an accident leaving your house.

You laugh, but I actually have a rider on my business policy covering guests who drink at parties.

All i want to know is what does it take to get invited to a vid party!?

You must be strong; like bull.

Check

I wouldn't laugh at that. It's actually a perfectly reasonable thing.

If they vid at a vid party, I want royalties!

Vid Party? Popcorn and Vodka???? What Ebay/Twister thread......

I want a vid of them playing vodka twister with popcorn at a vid party

I do actually applaud the fact that they both stated their cases and then let everyone discuss without resorting to fighting and name calling back and forth, shows maturity on both sides.

I haven't turned on Twister in a couple of weeks due to the swelling it caused on my left index finger the last time (damn left handed games!) and it's been a long time since vodka too. But I am all Jacked up and as soon as the nice porterhouse on the grill is eaten, I'm cranking that baby up!

Everybody under ground now!

Ok , so I have a question. How many people have been able to return a Super Auctions machine after it has been described as a 100% working machine??? .....crickets.....

Now let me make a point as a seller of video games & pinballs on Ebay, Craigslist, and even all the way back to RGVAC. I want my buyer to be happy with their purchase. The machine is up and running, waiting for the buyer to arrive to be able to see, touch, inspect and play. I then help break down, stretch wrap, load, or whatever else they need.

If it is an Ebay auction, I am very careful with many pictures and best description I can provide. However, it is an auction, and the hammer price is the price, it's not open for ANY sort of renegotiation. If the buyer does not like it, simple, cancel the auction(has never happened). If I grossly missed something, then I offer to fix/replace and make it right.

If I just sold a Twister on Ebay for $2K, I can offer a red carpet for your arrival to play your new game. Bring your tech, bring your friend, bring your yoga instructor...whatever.

Seller OP, you shot yourself in the foot by moving it to "cold storage". For $2K, the guy should have been able to plug and play to confirm your 100%. As a seller, you have the most powerful tool if the buyer comes and nit picks....it's called the word NO. As in No Sale, No Discounts, or No Way.
You could have just offered to set it back up , let him play it, but been very firm that's it still $2k(if you were that confident it was 100%) or NO sale. I think you caused your own headaches with the buyer.

As for the Buyer.....he should have simply emailed that before he hands over $2K , he would like to confirm that the game plays as described. When you told him no, too bad, I have moved it already, he should have just said no thanks, keep it. All his other lawyer, tech, heated truck, breakfast and binding agreement crap was just the wrong reaction and quite over the top at that point. If it was his point to win the auction at any price, and then nit pick to get a lower price, well, it seems you dodged a major pain in the ass chiseler.

If your auction had stated as is, then you can put it in a shed for all I care(as a buyer), it's as is. The 100% is what got your auction to $2K, you should have been ready to back that up, especially since you are DEMANDING cash at pick up.

As for the automobile sales analogy....well, pinball machines do not have lemon laws, cars do. Any car dealership, used car dealer, or private sale worth a grain of salt will allow an independent inspection BEFORE the dotted line is signed and/or cash trades hands. If they do not, it's a red flag, it's not reputable place/person to buy a car. Now, if you fork over the cash and then take it to be inspected? GOOD LUCK with a return!!!

Auto auctions do not allow this..and lot's of people who think their auction purchase price was too good to be true often learn the hard way. But all auto auctions are strictly AS IS, all sales final.

Both sides are in the wrong. As a seller you can't expect a buyer to just show up and purchase your machine (that you are selling as 100% working) without testing it. If you're putting it in storage and unable to turn it on for the buyer, make that clear in your ad.

On the other side, the buyer seems like a difficult person to deal with in general. The aggressive nature of the e-mails and the fake "I'm calling my lawyer" gimmick solidifies that.

That aint the way it happened! E-bay auction means the game was purchased online. Done deal! Other routes may be different. But if an e-bay purchase goes sour, you should thank the seller for canceling the auction if he is willing to do so. I would.

Agree, but disagree. Seller would not accept paypal for an "online" transaction....CASH on pickup. If you expect cash, then the buyer better be able to have access to a power outlet.

Cash is king!

Cold storage can be a problem over say a longer period of time.
Cold storage will leave it up to fluctuating temps
(warmer to cooler again and again) inside the game is various metal
:lead,copper,steel,etc metals expand and contract,and differently by type. for example the circuit boards plugged pins are soldered in
(2 different metals expanding and contracting.) probably the cause of those so called halo cracks that is usually blamed on poor soldering at the factory that passed testing.
Suggest rescheduling with the buyer.
its obvious he wants the game and seems he does not want any surprises and or having to pay additional for repair services if for some reason something quits. set up the game and run it
"burn it in" all tests you are responsible for the listing working 100%
Every game I sold is running at pick up so buyer and seller both know its working and the bill is signed stating so.the compromise here would be then
cash on pick up after the game has been seen working.

Yeah me too, he doesn't post where he lives. There might be a good reason for that though.

I was wondering this earlier. Isn't it already cold enough outside that putting it in cold storage isn't really necessary? Or is it actually warmer in a freezer?

Probably more like "hit and runs".....they posted and left.

Last time I drank Vodka I drank a fifth of 80 proof then went skiing in -10 weather the next day. What hangover.

It was only an experiment to see how we all would react. Over a Twister.

A freezer is 0 degrees, outside at my place right now it's -3 going down to -8.

Did we pass?

Someone said do not use ebay. I do not agree with that. A few years ago I bought my Dredd off ebay. It was from a guy named Barry in New Jersey and is a person many people do not like. I did it anyway because the pics looked good and he seemed sincere on the phone. Received the pin and the mechanism for locking the back glass was gone and the DMD was missing a line. I phoned and emailed Barry and he said, "Go buy a new DMD and lock and send me the bill. Is that acceptable to you?" I said "sure". Bought a DMD for $155 and lock thingy for $5. He credited me $160. I paid $1,800 shipped to my door in Michigan before the credit.

Ebay worked fine for me. It depends on both the buyer and the seller being reasonable to each other when/if an issue arises. If either one blows their top or cops an attitude then things get crazy. It takes both parties to simply be fair to each other and then topics like this do not end up here on Pinside lol.

You can't expect someone to pay for a machine in cash without testing it. Buyer has no recourse if things go south.

To complicated for me to render a decision. But based on the insulting message from the buyer, I can't be on his side!

My post, a lil above yours, I was explaining that IMO the buyer can buy without testing and still have recourse. I did anyways. I know what you are saying though...there really is no guarantee and maybe I was lucky. Either way it really depends on both sides of the issue being mature and working together in a calm type manner. It does happen that way but room for improvement still exists around the world

Bottom line...
- I will never sell anything to the BUYER (Tech, Attorney... what's next? SWAT?).
- I could still buy something from the SELLER... assuming I can test the game before hand.

Given the distance, both cases are rhetorical questions anyway... and I am not an E-bay fan.

yep.

.

Sounds like cold storage is warmer than no storage.

How would have it been play tested if it was in cold storage with no electricity?

And it was not slanderous.