This really makes me angry how stupid some sellers are.
#1 Obviously EOL metal halide lamps being sold as new
#2 Some people don't know what they're selling. Case in point; People selling type af wire who don't realize that means its insulated with asbestos.

Sometimes it does work in your favour though, we managed to snag six B22d-3 lamp holders for under five pounds including postage.

There was also a different seller listing halogen ballasted mercury lamps as self ballasted metal halide ones. 

I know its not illegal to sell or use asbestos in most cases. In fact, the chloralkali industry imports a few hundred tons a year for the construction of diaphragms in chloralkali cells.
I’m all for being able to buy dangerous materials like asbestos if you want to. The part that bugs me is that the seller doesn’t know its asbestos, or does and hasn’t indicated it in the listing, which could put an unsuspecting person at risk because they don’t know and therefore can’t use safe handling practices for asbestos. They should indicate what it is, especially considering that it’s branded techbestos, you should be able to tell anything with “bestos” in its name is an asbestos product.

I’m in the us, so there is little restriction on asbestos use. With the exception of spray asbestos insulation and fireproofing, and I believe two other products, the courts here ruled the EPA could not ban asbestos, and so they allowed its use in products that traditionally contained asbestos. Recently, the rule changed so that you have to get approval to make an asbestos product, even if it was already used in that application, however, the language of the rule actually could allow the development of new uses for asbestos and new products, if they could get approval, which was not possible before.

Sometimes it does work in your favour though, we managed to snag six B22d-3 lamp holders for under five pounds including postage.

There was also a different seller listing halogen ballasted mercury lamps as self ballasted metal halide ones. 

Exactly.

I saw some EOL MH lamps at Restore once too. They were trying to sell them at a price at what the Restore normally sells new in box MH lamps for. I suspect some contractor didn't want to pay to dispose of them and decided to "donate" them to Restore to get rid of them.

Of course sometimes this could come in handy, years ago there was a bunch of lightly used 1960s GE Bonusline clear mercury lamps in the original sleeves. I bought one of each wattage (175, 250 and 400) but I kinda wish I got more if only for trades.

I was at a restore a few months ago and there was a used 400w MH bulb being sold for 20$, the funny part about this was they also had brand new 400w MH lamps they were selling for LESS than the cost for the used lamp.

I was able to get the used lamp for free after pointing out the fact it was used.

I was at a restore a few months ago and there was a used 400w MH bulb being sold for 20$, the funny part about this was they also had brand new 400w MH lamps they were selling for LESS than the cost for the used lamp.

I was able to get the used lamp for free after pointing out the fact it was used.

You lucky man.!!

I’ve had some trouble with eBay sellers before. Thankfully, everything lighting related I’ve bought on eBay has been accurately described and arrived in perfect condition. From my experience, sellers try to mark up the price for incandescent light bulbs and rip you off with shipping fees. My standard for a good value is 50 cents per bulb or less.

I’ve been collecting model cars for longer than incandescent and halogen lamps. Lately, eBay sellers are trying to sell damaged models with missing pieces, broken parts etc. at full price. I’ve been shopping online for model cars enough to know what is a good value for a new condition car, and what is an appropriate price for preowned or damaged cars. Mostly, sellers overprice their models and don’t package them safely. My most recent model car purchase arrived with a broken wheel. I had to send it back and request a refund which was a slow and confusing process.

I have good experiences on eBay 95% of the time, but I’ve learned my lesson about buying model cars without original packaging or bulbs that are priced much higher than in ReStores.

I just started updating all of my eBay listings with international shipping as an option through the eBay global shipping program. I heard being open to ship internationally increases your sales because you have that many more potential customers.

However I have also been increasing all of my prices quite a bit. Some of the prices I have doubled or tripled what I was originally asking for the item. I feel eBay takes too much out in seller fees so between that and the "free shipping" I offer I often don't make much profit. Sometimes I lose money and don't even break even. It's too much hassle running an eBay store to not make profit. It's pretty time consuming to take the photos of the item, go through and list all the item specifics such as make/model, weight, dimensions. So I have decided I am no longer going to be giving my items away on eBay.  Especially my street lights. Too much cost goes into packing material and shipping cost in a large, fragile item like a street light.

If a collector really wants a classic piece, he/she will pay a fair price for it. If they want a havey wallbanger, they won't.

Yep. The problem is that, in the past, I have been adjusting/lowering my prices in an attempt to get an item to sell quicker. Because I was trying to get rid of stuff to make money and space for new stuff I want to buy. Well I've dropped my prices so low many times that it barely covered the shipping. The kicker is the item still didn't sell. It would sit there for days, weeks, months at that price. So that's why I've decided to raise my prices. I figured if people aren't gonna jump on a good deal when I provide a good deal then I might as well just make as much money as I can on my items. Since dropping the prices didn't seem to help much with moving items any quicker.

I have watched scarce items listed that were in great shape with high end prices on them. They sometimes sell quickly but sometimes not but they will eventually. You will find the right buyer. I would rather wait and get a decent price than sell it for a bargain basement amount. There was a A/E 327 that had been listed for months @ 499.00 and I see it has sold this week.
Cost of packing paper, boxes, (I buy large rolls of bubble wrap at a wholesaler), tape, FRAGILE stickers on all 6 sides and it all cuts your profit. At one time I placed a 10.00 "handling fee" to cover packing expenses and they sold just as quick.
Once I got Joslyn clam shell and it was packed in a flimsy box with empty dog food bags as packing . The glass was busted. No joke.  

copy copy copy  lol

Yeah I agree. I prefer to get as much as I can out of what I'm selling. At the time though I needed the money and the space for other things. When dropping prices didn't help much I decided I'm going to just raise my prices. I saw there is an option for a handling fee on the full desktop eBay site. I take pictures of my items and list them on the eBay mobile app. Which has a lot less options. It won't let you put a handling fee on items with "free shipping" though. I thought about starting to charge exact shipping but I don't know if I can. I think I will lose my power seller status if I stop offering free shipping.

If a collector really wants a classic piece, he/she will pay a fair price for it. If they want a harvey wallbanger, they won't.
Here "they" come again...copy copy copy...So obvious...

Or find it! I have quite a few abandoned lights I need to recover. I need a darn scissor lift for some.


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