Folks, I have stumbled onto what I believe is seriously unethical behavior from a seller on EBay. So I was watching this auction (seller: livedog42) for Astro Train. Had him on my watchlist, but didn't bid because 1) I was concerned about condition of box as there were no other pictures, and 2) I couldn't tell if it was a fake or not because, again, only 1 picture was provided. Transformers G1 Triple Changer Astrotrain 100 Complete with Box | eBay Auction ended on 5/25 4:15PM PDT. Sold for $26.05 shipped (great deal) Two hours later, this listing (seller:drgnsden) pops up! RARE Astrotrain 100 Complete in Box 1985 Vintage Hasbro G1 Transformers Good | eBay The seller of this listing has the same feedback as the winner of the previous auction, and he is using the same pic. He does not even have the item in hand, and he is already trying to sell it! What if livedog42 decided not to ship the product or the toy was damaged during shipping? Unbelievable. I got no issues with making a buck or two selling toys, but man have the item in your hand first so you can inspect the effing thing before re-selling it. smh
I'm thinking it could be 2 sellers...1 is just stealing pics. That first one uses Pitney Bowes Inc (I avoid sellers with it), and the other "May not ship to Canada". The first one is from Knoxville, Tennessee, and the second is located in Epsom, New Hampshire. But it could also be family.
It's not entirely unethical - by their policies, you are allowed to pre-sell items if you can guarantee to ship them within 30 days. So, if the seller is confident he will be able to do that, there's not really a violation. The problem is, you are required to state that the item is not in hand, but will be available within 30 days. The new seller definitely didn't do that. I don't know if this is unethical or not (can speak for the seller's intentions or knowledge of rules), but it is in violation of ebay's policies.
