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ebaY's "Mr Helpful"

Started by Sargeguy, May 11, 2009, 09:33:57 PM

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Sargeguy

QuoteHe mentioned in his explanation of the higher opening bid that he'd keep it if it didn't sell at the new price. 

That makes perfect sense.  God forbid you sell it at fair market value to someone who actually wants it. ::)
Greg Sargeant
Providence, RI
TCI /ATCA #4409

Sargeguy

#61
Hah!!! Just as I suspected, Mr. Helpful doesn't have a clue what he is talking about! 

http://tinyurl.com/pw26cv   ( dead link 02-15-21 )

And, as a bonus,  I am now the proud owner of a Western Electric 410!!!
Greg Sargeant
Providence, RI
TCI /ATCA #4409

Dan

Thanks for the cord info Dennis, this info needs to be put in the technical section as a permanent link so new users will learn the little nuances.
"Imagine how weird telephones would look if our ears weren't so close to our mouths." - Steven Wright

JimH

Here's a nice quiet auction for a Mediterranean Blue 500 with a straight handset cord.  All was going well and the bidding was low until "Mr. Helpful" enlightened the seller with:

A FELLOW EBAYER PASSED ON THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION TO ME -- "THE CORRECT COLOR OF THIS PHONE IS KNOWN AS MEDITERRANEAN BLUE. THE STRAIGHT GRAY HANDSET CORD MAKES THE PHONE EXTRA SPECIAL AS COILED CORDS ARE MORE COMMON TO FIND. IT IS A SHAME THAT THERE IS NOT A TELEPHONE NUMBER CARD IN THE CENTER OF THE DIAL".

Here's the auction:

270407269081 

Jim H.

bingster

Trust me, Mr Helpful isn't going to have an effect on this particular auction.  It's already been viewed more than four hundred times, so it's already on everybody's radar screens.  Everybody who has seen it knows what it is without being tipped off.
= DARRIN =



Dennis Markham

It passed under my radar.  This is the first I've seen of it.  That is a nice phone.  The color looks very nice, not yellowed.  Over 400 viewers is a lot in the phone category. 

McHeath

Yeah I've been watching this phone for a week.  Sadly, baby needs new shoes or else I'd be in the running. 

Dan

He says he doesn't let his auctions end early. I put him to the test with a great buy it now 20 minutes after it was listed. He declined. The offer was $450. I would never probably pay it and was just being hypothetical , but he is a man of conviction.
"Imagine how weird telephones would look if our ears weren't so close to our mouths." - Steven Wright

Dennis Markham

I can't believe it ended with no further bids.  $202.50 is a really good price for that phone.  It's in very nice color condition with matching straight cords.  I remember paying $225 for a yellowed Med Blue a few years ago, with a gray coiled cord.  Good buy for someone.

Dan

It was a steal  @ that price. I still want that $35 one. I know they are out there ;)
"Imagine how weird telephones would look if our ears weren't so close to our mouths." - Steven Wright

McHeath

Surprising price.  E-bay remains a Byzantine mess of phone prices. 

HarrySmith

#71
I think Mr. Helpful got to this one:
http://tinyurl.com/39dfxbb   ( dead link 02-15-21 )
I saw it yesterday at $9.99 and put it on watch while the Black Mushroom was ending. This morning after I missed out on the mushroom I went to bid and it was ended.
It was relisted starting at $100.00 >:(
Harry Smith
ATCA 4434
TCI

"There is no try,
there is only
do or do not"

Dave F

It looks like yet another case of off-eBay meddling.  That sure isn't fair.  I would have liked an opportunity to bid on it as well.

Greg G.

This bothers me because as a buyer, I don't like others intervening if the seller hasn't taken the time to research the item they're selling.  Granted, it would have probably taken more time than they wanted to invest in order to get detailed info, but anybody interested in the phone would probably already know.  It's especially irritating in that the person who volunteered the info wasn't even interested in buying it (0 bids so far).

When I find something for sale, be it a phone or something else, I don't volunteer information, but neither do I bs them about it, I just keep my mouth shut.  That's the way buying/selling works - on ebay, CL, or anywhere else.  That may sound hard-nosed, but that's the way life is.

As a seller, I try to research items as much as I can, but if I'm not interested in it (which is why I would be selling something in the first place), I'll take what I think is a fair price and I'm not going to spend huge amounts of time getting very detailed info.  If I find out later that I could have gotten much more, oh well, now I know!

QuoteI stand corrected on my description of the phone from an ebayer who knows a lot more about this phone than I do.

The message sent was to me as follows:

Only the handset is Bakelite, the body is a thermoplastic called Tenite. Contrary to what many people believe, Western Electric never made any phone bodies from Bakelite. They felt it was too brittle when thinly cast. Yours is a model 5302. These were made in the early 1950's using older inside parts like yours from 1949, and a newer plastic housing. They looked like the new 500 models but this way Western Electric was able to use up their stock of surplus insides.
The idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane.
- Mike Row
e

gpo706

Do you think maybe Mr "Helpful" is a ruse by the seller to pretend they know little, then have someone (or themselves) post a detailed description to boost the listing?

Just a thought...
"now this should take five minutes, where's me screwdriver went now..?"