Why on Earth did I buy this?

[pokerplyr80]

Years back I had a similar deal, but on a much smaller scale. It was a Craigslist add (yes I know) and a bunch of raw 50s and 60s cards. The guy had several scans, and any time I asked for a specific scan of a card he produced it. I wound up sending him $8k, but PayPal goods and I made sure I itemized the list of the big cards with the payment. This was the only thing that saved me in the end.

A similar story followed, delays with excuses, pictures of him in the hospital, his "wife" started emailing me with the status of his condition. Finally his wife mailed me a box that he claimed as a bonus for the delay. It was a bunch of 90s cards worth maybe $5. I disputed the charge the day the box arrived, and recorded a video of me opening this box. Apparently when you file this type of dispute the other party has 10 days to submit their own evidence. This 10 day period was filled with increasingly aggressive emails with excuses that were more and more unbelievable. In the end he submitted nothing to PayPal and I got my $8k back. Lesson learned, if the deal sounds too good to be true, it is.

[Exhibitman]

Listening to some of these stories I don't feel like a lonely fool. I got ripped off last year by an eBay con artist from Mexico goes by barbacoa215. He sells fake cards and laser prints of real cards. He sends them from Mexico City to avoid authentication. When you file a claim to return the cards he accepts the return. You then discover that eBay won't give you an international return label and that tracked return shipping to him (NON-refundable) is so expensive that it practically costs as much as the cards. So I sent the cards regular, he claimed he never got them, and I ate my payment and my return shipping costs. I then found out he's pulled this scam repeatedly.

All I can say is that if barbacoa215 ever shows up at a National I will kick 100% of his ass.

[Leon]

I have bought several fakes on eBay. I think all of the bigger ones got remedied. The last one was a picture of an N173 I bought. IT would have only been an ok deal, even if real LOL...

Actually, I also bought a fake Mayo HOF'er not too long ago and had to go to ebay management for resolution...the guy guaranteed returns then opened a case when I did!

If you have been doing this 20+ yrs, you have some stories!!

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

Listening to some of these stories I don't feel like a lonely fool. I got ripped off last year by an eBay con artist from Mexico goes by barbacoa215. He sells fake cards and laser prints of real cards. He sends them from Mexico City to avoid authentication. When you file a claim to return the cards he accepts the return. You then discover that eBay won't give you an international return label and that tracked return shipping to him (NON-refundable) is so expensive that it practically costs as much as the cards. So I sent the cards regular, he claimed he never got them, and I ate my payment and my return shipping costs. I then found out he's pulled this scam repeatedly.

All I can say is that if barbacoa215 ever shows up at a National I will kick 100% of his ass.

[Tyruscobb]

In late February 2020, I consigned several items with an auction house. I was convinced Covid-19 would produce a significant recession and the card market would soon tank.

My plan was to sell before the crash and then buy back the same cards, but in better grades, for less money. Thus, I’d improve my collection and put some money in my pocket, or use the extra money to further expand the collection.

The card were all nice, but lower graded ones. The lot included a Ruth, a few Mantles, and a Mays rookie. Although I turned a profit, I didn’t gross enough to buy back the same cards, let alone nicer copies. I sold at the worst possible time - right before the boom. Impossible to predict, but still stings.