Cougar Allen
Buccaneer (ret.)
- Joined
- Oct 9, 1998
- Messages
- 76,861
Some points to think about:
It is not easy to distinguish between professional dealers and collectors who occasionally sell a few items from their collections. Many of the people placing for sale ads all over the net and in newspapers etc. and not describing themselves as dealers are in fact running lucrative businesses, and many of the people who describe themselves as dealers are in fact part-timers who only make an occasional sale. Often the same individual posts the same ad in a dealer forum and in a forum where dealers aren't allowed -- is he a dealer or isn't he? Who knows? He may not know himself....
It's not easy to distinguish between buyers who get an item that's defective or not as advertised and buyers who "haven't done their research," either. When a buyer says, "The grind lines are uneven; I want my money back," and the seller says, "They're all like that. You should have done your research before buying" -- you might look through TGBU and see how much sympathy sellers who didn't want to refund a buyer's money got.
It's not easy to distinguish between sellers who are unethical and sellers who are sincerely ignorant of what buyers expect, things like what NIB means to a collector, and feel they shouldn't have to make a refund just because the knife they advertised as in new condition has a few little scratches, a slightly buggered screw, a little bit rusty blade, a little chip in one scale, you'd almost need a magnifying glass to see it ... hardly bigger than your thumbnail....
Many people say they wouldn't return a knife unless it was really defective -- we all say that, and mean it, too ... but what does "really defective" mean? If you look through the archives I think you'll find in every case where a buyer wanted a refund after seeing a knife and the seller didn't want to give it to him, the consensus was always with the buyer -- not just a consensus, everybody but the seller sympathized with the buyer.
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-Cougar Allen :{)
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This post is not merely the author's opinions; it is the trrrrrruth. This post is intended to cause dissension and unrest and upset people, and ultimately drive them mad. Please do not misinterpret my intentions in posting this.
It is not easy to distinguish between professional dealers and collectors who occasionally sell a few items from their collections. Many of the people placing for sale ads all over the net and in newspapers etc. and not describing themselves as dealers are in fact running lucrative businesses, and many of the people who describe themselves as dealers are in fact part-timers who only make an occasional sale. Often the same individual posts the same ad in a dealer forum and in a forum where dealers aren't allowed -- is he a dealer or isn't he? Who knows? He may not know himself....
It's not easy to distinguish between buyers who get an item that's defective or not as advertised and buyers who "haven't done their research," either. When a buyer says, "The grind lines are uneven; I want my money back," and the seller says, "They're all like that. You should have done your research before buying" -- you might look through TGBU and see how much sympathy sellers who didn't want to refund a buyer's money got.
It's not easy to distinguish between sellers who are unethical and sellers who are sincerely ignorant of what buyers expect, things like what NIB means to a collector, and feel they shouldn't have to make a refund just because the knife they advertised as in new condition has a few little scratches, a slightly buggered screw, a little bit rusty blade, a little chip in one scale, you'd almost need a magnifying glass to see it ... hardly bigger than your thumbnail....
Many people say they wouldn't return a knife unless it was really defective -- we all say that, and mean it, too ... but what does "really defective" mean? If you look through the archives I think you'll find in every case where a buyer wanted a refund after seeing a knife and the seller didn't want to give it to him, the consensus was always with the buyer -- not just a consensus, everybody but the seller sympathized with the buyer.
------------------
-Cougar Allen :{)
--------------------------------------
This post is not merely the author's opinions; it is the trrrrrruth. This post is intended to cause dissension and unrest and upset people, and ultimately drive them mad. Please do not misinterpret my intentions in posting this.