Reply With QuoteGodzilla (06-04-20)
I feel your pain. In a past life, I was the service manager for a busy computer dealership. We were the service agents for a number of manufacturers, including Epson. Unlike the others, our contract with Epson stated that we had to sell spare parts to anyone who wanted them. Time and time again (like with George and his car parts experiences), people, including our competitors would want to buy parts to fix Epson printers. They'd ask for the weirdest, oddball part that we had never bought before. I'd tell them it wouldn't fix their problem and that they should check part "x" before placing the order.Originally Posted by Godzilla
No, they knew better than I did, so we'd specially order the part for them, they'd take it away, confirm that I was correct when the part didn't fix their problem and want to return it and get their money back. A variation on this was the buyer placing the order, then working out the real problem while waiting for the part to arrive and never coming back to buy the (sometimes expensive and always non-returnable) part we'd ordered specially for them. The fix for that was to demand payment up front.
It gave me great satisfaction to let that part of the business go and not renew the contract. The local HP service agent took it up, thinking he was getting a license to print money. About a year later, I remember leaning on his front counter, having a chat and he started complaining about Epson and all the problems they were causing him. I was so happy to see the back of them. The old saying about "20% of the business and 80% of the problems". Back in the day, they made great high end dot matrix printers, but so many people bought the crusty little cheap and nasty ones designed for home users for their business and then complained when they kept jamming and breaking down under a workload they had never been designed to handle.
Might be a good time to look at the Australia Post parcel lockers and "parcel collect" service... gives you a different shipping address.
Last edited by shred; 05-04-20 at 11:56 AM.
Godzilla (06-04-20)
Does anyone have a foolproof way to spot the scam artist eBay sellers who claim to be in Australia, but are actually in China? I've had a couple where I've paid extra because they're in Australia and I want the gear quickly, only to wait for 2-4 weeks when the lying bastards ship from China. I've learned that any eBay ad with the location of "Chullora" is always one where the location is actually China, but not all use this location
Here's a . The photo of the product even says "AU Stock", but the location "Botany" sounds fishy. Maybe some of the seller's items are kept in Australia and I've picked a bad example, but somehow I don't think so. No surprise to find a low reputation and numerous reviews complaining about the gear shipping from China.
Has anyone had any luck lodging a complaint against these dodgy vendors? You would think it's in eBay's best interest to bop these scam artists on the head, but they don't seem to care. Anyway, I've voted with my feet and I'm now avoiding eBay and using Aliexpress and other sites where possible
Last edited by shred; 05-04-20 at 11:59 AM.
george65 (05-04-20)
Found this pertaining to multiple accounts which may be a fly in the ointment to buying off the same seller under a different account:
IT would seem that I have been restricted from buying from that same seller again.Are there circumstances when creating another account isn't allowed?
We don't allow members to create a new account to get around buying or selling restrictions, or to avoid consequences of policy violations.
But my Daughter hasn't! :0)
Also found some interesting Info on returns:
Who pays for return postage
If the buyer is sending an item back because it doesn't match the listing or it arrived damaged or faulty:
- You're responsible for the cost of return postage, even if you don't offer returns.
- If you don't give the buyer a way to return the item and eBay is asked to step in on the return, we may refund the buyer (at your expense) and let them keep the item.
And then there was this one on PAYING the BUYER to return the goods. I have a long way to drive to get to a post office so I think either they should arrange pick up themselves, as is an obligation, or pay me to take them to the PO and pay me in advance for the return costs.
And then there is this Beauty pertaining to Overseas purchases; Customs obligations and fees. This would make it VERY expensive to return anything.Sending funds for the return postage cost
If you and the buyer agree that you'll send them funds to cover the cost of the return, you'll need to agree on the postage service and cost before they send the item back. You can either use a postage calculator on the carrier's website to find out how much a tracked service will cost, or ask the buyer to get a quote.
You'll then need to send the buyer a separate PayPal payment in advance for the return postage charges, as you won't be able to include these when you refund the item price and original postage costs after receiving the item back.
THEY have to provide all the AUSTRALIAN customs forms and pay for any charges and Duties. OUCH! This is going to get expensive fast.Tips for international returns
Language barriers may make it difficult to buy an international return label online. If you need help, get in touch with your buyer. If they agree, you may be able to send them funds to cover the postage cost.
Customs forms and charges
If you haven't supplied your own return label, the buyer will need to fill out custom forms when sending the item back. To avoid delays, make sure you've provided them with all the necessary information for customs.
Since you're the recipient of the parcel, you'll be responsible for paying any customs, brokerage, service or duty fees. We recommend that you because it's against the law.
Might be better to just refund and not worry about getting the item back :0)
I would suggest the "Tip off" here to sellers is don't falsify the description of the goods you are selling!"What if these ebay sellers read the thread? Won't that tip them off?"
It doesn't matter if they do or not -- at the end of the day, what you are doing is enforcing ebay policies, nothing more, nothing less. When you enforce the policies to get a refund/return, that is your right --- likewise, if a seller comes here and reads this content, works out who you are (as a buyer) and subsequently blocks you, that is their right ... at the end of the day, what they are doing is enforcing ebay policies, nothing more, nothing less.
The only ones doing anything wrong here are the sellers trying to rip people off by advertising goods that do not live up to the specifications they promote them at.
None of the buyers are are ripping anyone off, all they are trying to do is get what they paid for or hold the seller liable whom are not fulfilling their basic obligations under Australian law let alone any ebay Policy's.
If they want to stop us doing what we are doing, the answer is very simple, Don't sell goods that don't match the description they are advertised as being.
I can only purchase on the info I am provided. I don't ask for a refund on anything that matches the description because I would be happy to pay the asking price for what they are offering. Instead, I'm getting sub par goods and that is a violation of the law and ebays policy's.
Under both I am entitled to refund or replacement with goods that do match the description.
It is the sellers whom are offering the refund. I'd be more than happy to get 200W Compact LED's or the Square lights that put out 48W instead of less than half or the 9 and 12 AH battery's I ordered instead of a 7Ah battery. IF they want to send me lower rated goods as is inevitably the case and I/we aren't as ignorant as everyone else and call them out on it, then that lawfully and rightfully is at their expense to make good on their attempted deception when called out on it.
I would be happy for these cheating sellers to see this thread. I'd be happier for a lot more buyers to see it and start calling these thieves out on their scams.
Might put the low life sellers on notice it's going to cost them money to try and scam people and the way to put us careful buyers out of " Business" is for them to be honest and abide by the law and the rules as they should be in the first place.
wotnot (05-04-20)
Foolproof? No.
I doubt if there are any 100% ways although the resident Ebay Master Guru may know better..
Some of the thing I have picked up on are:
Delivery Date.
If they are saying 2 weeks to get from one state to another, unless you live in the sticks, that's an alarm bell for me.
Aussie stock and a flag or similar.
Usualy means OS. Not always but all of these things are fairly meaningless on their own, you have to stack them together and see which way things lean.
Price.
IF every other Oz seller is much more exy and the one you are looking at is comprable to Chinese sellers, they probably are.
Feedback.
In the example you gave, this guy is a Doozy!
- Positive Feedback (last 12 months): 95.8%
- Member since: 11-Mar-19 in China
Says right there he's a Chinese registered seller.
On his crap feedback, only one account on this occasion but someone has already said their items came from China not OZ. rest of the feedback says in summation, stay well clear.
"Regents park" is another location to be wary of as there is a post centre there by virtue of the fact it's next to Chullora so that is often given as the address. Mind you, there are a lot of little warehouses/ units there that a lot of sellers work out of. Been there and it's like a Chinese market only with mail vans not people.
Wotnot can probably add to this list but these things taken together have given me a pretty fair idea of things.
If I get something from OS instead of Oz, I always not it in the feedback to alert others.
Thanks for the heads up on the lockers and post office pick up.
I am SURE I have seen those lockers at the local Shopping centre in the car park but after checking multiple times on the website it shows the only ones quite far from me. I'll pay closer attention when ( if ever) I get back there and verify.
Then again, bit wary of going anywhere atm but anyway, Thank you, it's good info to have. one of these things I have seen but never looked into... till now.
I did notice they have them close to where the Mrs works so seeing she will be out anyway.... Spose for a light bar they will hold it it the PO anyhow.
BTW, If you are looking for a battery charger, especially from solar, look at these:
They are actualy a Buck converter but work perfectly well. I am using 4 (5?) of them atm and they are working perfectly.
They will take anything up to 40V input which means you can use normal house type solar panels as I am. Presently running 190 and 250Watters on them.
There is a little trimpot and you let the battery charge up then with a Multimeter, use the trimmer to set the battery to the voltage you want. The controller will hold it there and that's what the battery will float at.
This one is 8A and I have similar modules that do 20 and 30 A as well. They are good if you want to run something off the panel Battery ( have 3 paralleled panels on my 30A Version) as they will supply the power more or less direct and use the battery really as ballast rather than eat into the charge. If a cloud or something comes over then you have the battery reserve and as soon as the load drops the battery soon comes back up.
These are cheaper and better than most chargers costing much more. You can put them on any battery you want, just set the max voltage you want them to go to and that's it.
I expected when starting this thread it would be read by at least some of them, and believe the change of wording about lumens output I mentioned previously could be a result of such reading.
Maybe these sellers' eyes glow?
I noticed some of the descriptions the guy with the 48/21W lights has seem to have been more " Hand done" .
That said, they also included a Voltage amperage rating for light bars which would make showing a not as described complaint SO much easier when that doesen't add up either.
From what wotnot has said, I am left to wonder if these people initially at least know if what they are selling is Bogus as it seems if this is a drop ship, shop in a box deal, they may have nothing to do with it. Seems it might be like those 0055 Sex talk numbers. You just sign up, promote the number and the other part provide all the operators etc and you get half the money. The only thing the " Owner" of the number has to do is get it out there and make the calls happen.
If these flabag setups are the same, they may not even touch or see the stock. Not that it makes a bit if difference to me. If they want to get into bed with crooks, which I'm sure they know all isn't Kosher, then that's to their detriment far as I'm concerned.
In previous conversations, it's clear to me that none of them have the first clue about electrical, engines or the machinery they sell. I have bought small engines and they don't even know the difference between a Petrol and a diesel engine and they are selling Hundreds of the things.
Look familiar?....how about the US listing ... ...or alibaba ...
Why do this? I'm trying to ascertain unit cost, I'm looking at things I *know* are in China. Usually if the expected deliver date is inside the timeframe austpost can deliver the thing, it's typically in AU. On small items they can get it from china to here in 10-14days ; sellers that don't reply/acknowledge shipping dispatch within 2 days of paypal purchase completion, are usually buying time. A lot of folks miss this ...
I'm an electronics technician, so I want to know a bit more about things at component level. I want to know who makes the IC's, and what they actually do... ..ebay listing doesn't spell it out, but you can see the chip markings. If I find any discrepancy between the datasheets and the item description, I know what's happening. I look at the ebay listing again...why does it say 3Amp, when the IC datasheet says chip does 4Amp? (I know..knockoff chip, skimp on inductor, use shitty diodes)...why does the TPC8107 switching FET look nothing like a Toshiba part? (because it's a knockoff)... then I see I can get a 10Amp unit for $2 less ... ...then I wonder if I really need that form factor, or stick my project electronics in the 10A charger case, or ditch the case and just pull the PCB out.. =)
How much is the base cost for that 3A charger?...I saw US$1.25/unit with MOQ of 22,000 ...so one can fork out US$27,500 for 22,000 of these things, sell them for $5 and make over $100K and there's still potential for a final price markup of 100-200% by onsellers. Umm...no, that's too greedy...I'd rather buy the $2 cheaper 10Amp job, get a case, LCD screen, terminal block, back of case is a finned heatsink. I get more product and less markup.
It's always good to look for/search for like/same items in other marketplaces ~ never trust the ebay price at face value, so just like we did in the old days... shop around. These sellers who have non-ebay webstores as well, play on the fact people either don't know about or don't trust ebay purchases, and they think they're doing better by 'buying direct' ... as we saw with the alternator example, you end up paying twice as much -:- people who don't ebay and don't do product research, get stung.
Sellers who think they know or can BS with lux, apparently haven't read this --> You don't need to be a scientist, just read that, look at the table at the bottom & used measurement units, and what the difference in terms is ....whatever they've advertised, is BS...right?...so no scientific testing has been done, so whatever the seller's claim ... it *won't* be on that page. I usually give them a chance to hang themselves...ie; "I find your use of the word 'lux' in the item description can have various interpretations -- can you please read this page, and tell me which definition of lux measurement was used? --> "
They typically know nothing about the product, let alone there's reference pages on wikipedia about it ; it doesn't matter what they select on that wiki page, anything they do select will be wrong B^)
george65 (06-04-20)
This reminded me, My Multi thousand dollar Minolta Light meter does Lux!
Be a bit of a pain to measure a light output 500M away but I'm betting some of the over ratings on these things could be put to shame at far more workable Distances anyway. Those 200/6W lights would be lucky to have a few lux at 100m let alone half a KM.
Wouldn't a picture of a Light meter put them on the back burner? Bet they never had that before! :0)
They wouldn't know enough to argue with it and they would probably be rattled by someone showing them an instrument like that as well.
In the end though, as Wotnot has made clear, I don't think it's even the sellers we have to argue with. As in the case of the 200W Lights, they dodgy ones will just stop responding and you have to take it to the next level, Fleabag. I really doubt anyone there beans about anything technical either. Probably just a lot of call center people following a list of directives they are given. If the Buyer seems more Knowledgeable than they do, then I'd tend to think they will try to keep the customer happy. Add to that teh seller is now failing to respond..... Refund on it's way.
Have to wait till Tuesday to get fleabay Involved with my 3% of rating 200W lights. Most drawn out I have had anything go..... And one of the crappiest Products too!
I'll be making use of the follow up feedback as well!
That's good to hear! :0)
Would you have any recommendations for good places to get genuine FOD3182 opto isolated mosfet gate drivers and some FDA50N50 Mosfets at the right price?
Prices vary wildly on fleabay and while the cheapest are obviously fakes, it's hard to know what the right price is and when paying too much. Seen the same thing on ally and other sites.
Any recommendation would be greatly appreciated.
FOD3182 -- AU$3.50 each in a pack of 5
FDA50N50 -- AU$8.62 each -- price break to $7.32 in a tube (30 pieces) [if you didn't need 500v/48A rating, you could choose cheaper]
They're real ON Semi parts, quoted from RS Electronics cattledog, GST not included...free courier service, if AU stock, next day - if global stock, normally means UK, normally gets here in 7-10days ; these are not normal times =)
RS used to be a hell of an expensive place, not so much now ; delivery service is second to none ...I'm deadly serious ; order parts on Monday, stock in Sydney, here by Tuesday...and I'm near no major centers (110klms from Brissy).
Last edited by wotnot; 06-04-20 at 11:38 AM.
You're not wrong!!
I Used to run a commercial Photo Lab Right across the road from RS. Went over and got some Patch leads and the guy gave me the price and I thought he was joking. Took some time to realise that was the price. He was talking like $80 for leads any computer shop would sell for under $10. All their stuff was like that. I don't know how the hell they stayed in business. Clearly they had to revise the extortionist model to survive.
Thanks for the heads up . I wouldn't have even looked at them.
I want to use an arduino like a voltage level switch that Pulses power stored in caps from solar panels into water heating elements. When the voltage in the board gets to the level of the array of panels, It fires to keep the panels on VMP. Caps recharge and so it goes. Was going to use 2 fets to keep the power dissipation down and to keep the fets under driven. Max voltage will be about 300V. Amps from the caps... My guess is significant although short lived. Might throw on up to 2 KW of panels but could be be as little as 500W. Building it for others to build and vary as they need.
Any other cheaper suggestions for the fets?
No worries ~ you ought to see the looks I get sometimes when someone asks 'where could I get this?', and I reply 'Try RS' ...they think I've lost my marbles! For so many decades it was the case that -of-course- RS will have it, but they charge like wounded bulls, and want options on your first born as well .. times change. They're now a manufacturing entity in their own right, and compete against name brands they also carry.
Some of the newer IGBT devices are pretty sexy, depends a lot on the exact circuit implementation, what switching frequency etc ..but just for example, FGA25N120ANTDTU is rated 1200v/50A @ 315w ptot ... $5 ...you'd have to hit the selection guide on element14/mouser/RS and have a look at the options, same goes for the MOSFETs really.
That's getting off topic here tho', but to drag it back ..it's probably the wisest advice ever to really think about it when it comes to buying electronic components off ebay....and especially things out of china. You mention the arduino platform, but same goes for any of the diy/maker/tinkering stuffs. Time ago, I bought some DS1307 RTC chips off ebay ...the +/- time drift was atrocious, eventually divined is was temperature related..seems the temp compensation on the silicon was NFG or not even there. What was another..oh, 74hc595 shift registers that had different off time across the gates in the device...useless for multiplexing.
There are exceptions of course, but -really- think about it and check what reputable suppliers like element14/mouser/RS want for the same thing.
It's extremely frustrating when you build something, I doesn't work as expected, and you think you've done something wrong, but it turns out to be the ICs you bought are off spec.
It's also difficult to argue this on ebay, because you have to prove you case without leaving the door open for them to claim 'improper anti-static handling procedures' or 'user error' being the problem ~ they know it's easy for people to connect things wrongly and blow the device up or damage it.
I think that IS pretty much the Topic. The amount of fakes and misrepresentations makes fleabag the LATE place I would buy components.
When Looking for mosfets you can see some in the pictures that show they are clearly fakes/ Refurbs. Legs that have been solder dipped instead of the plating, Ic's that have been sanded and then re printed or laser etched and feed back where people bought 10 of something and 7 were no good.
If we thought LEDs were a risky proposition.... Components and ICs are a mine field.
And I think this relates back to everything here and on ebay. It's already known for Chinese Rubbish. IF something isn't done to clean it up of the fakes and Bullshit, people won't touch it for anything other than cheap Junk. It already has the reputation with anything used, " Untested" means it's Farked. There was something I was looking at the other week (An Urn) I was interested in. The description seemed rather thin so I contacted the seller to Confirm it was working correctly.
The repy was " I haven't tested it" I got back to him and said "You mean you couldn't be bothered to fill it up, turn it on and see if the thing boiled water"?
Moron!
There was a scam going years ago with Photo gear. Small, high value and able to be posted. Gear would be advertised in Sydney and then when you went to arrange pick up ( as I would never hand over money without seeing anything) the seller would say they were a Miner / in the army/ etc and were now in the back of Buttfark but would post the gear to you. My reply always was " Oh, that's no problem, My brother is a truck driver and goes through there twice a week. Give me your address and I'll have him come round and pay you cash and pick it up save you posting it. "
NEVER did one of the scamming low lifes get back to me and I must have won about 30 Auctions like this because it was a pretty easy scam to spot after a while.
I have found repeatedly that Dumbtree is a much cheaper place to buy used items than fleabag even though they own them.
There is no foolproof way ~ as said, if the stated delivery time is inside the timeframe austpost can get it to you, it's usually AU stock....that in iself, is not quite the whole picture though.
A lot of them (ebay seller names) are drop-shippers/drop-sellers or as mentioned, bots (not people at all). I'm still involved with the seller about those lights for example, which are advertised as ;
Remember, a lot of this stuff is sociology -- you see 'Express Postage' ... how many readers' brains immediately leaped to 'expresspost' ..the product austpost sell? The man clicks on the link...
...see?...only the free postage uses austpost, the express postage has now become 'Express delivery' ...you'll match that terminology if you hunt about a bit. We all know, for instance with these lights, the AustPost expresspost for these would be the cost of a 5kg expresspost bag... we know how much that costs, right? Take your best guess now at what's going on here, all the background story has already been typed into this thread =)
I'm still involved with negotiations with this seller, and as such I'm keeping that content away from general view until negotiations are complete, and I cast my feedback vote. It's called 'etiquette' ; just because they aren't playing the game that way, doesn't mean you have to lower yourself into the gutter - keep your scruples up, yeah? That said, this seller by the name you see below, has finally replied to my first serve (which I pretended got called out, so had to 2nd serve), and straight away notice the item location is being replied to from a different seller location ;
"Are we having fun yet?" (Zippy the Pinhead ..perhaps I should ask Bill Griffith if he's done ebay with Zippy...YoW! =) ...when you see the full exchange later (after negotiations have concluded), you'll have an idea why if there was an aussie seller, they've dropped my message like a hot potato and forwarded it on higher up, straight off the bat. They're interested in a specific point of detail right the now, I'll deal with that directly ...but what I'm typing about here, is part of what's going on in real life...and what the detail they want, actually relates to...Zathras says, this present will make more sense in the future where we can view it as the past..
M'kay, how did you go with your guess above? Recall in a previous post, I touched upon the skimped out 'standard rate postage' they negotiate with AustPost for the delivery of all these chinabay goods with exactly the same plastic shrinkwrap packaging/plastic gray postbag we know all so well? Well, that's all negotiated before the items are even shipped to AU. When the items get to AU ...in a cardboard box, all individually shrink wrapped, ready for the final delivery step to begin... which is you, the buyer, purchasing the item, and the drop shipper/seller printing out the address label to stick on...the point to point delivery cost has already been paid for. The business/operational structure is such, that you don't 'divert' local AU stock items with standard free postage already accounted for, to meet an 'express postage' demand ; 'express delivery' means they'll meet the delivery date specified, straight from Hong Kong or what have you. Most drop selling/shipping schemes come out of HK & SG ...CN use a different structure (unsurprisingly) In most cases, the carrier is ..EMS is often used for the AU destination.
Incidentally, often the reason I'll relate data by use of images rather than text, is to avoid the scraper-bots I know they use ; I'm not justifiably paranoid, merely respectful of the software tools they use, and like to make it hard for them =)
Last edited by wotnot; 07-04-20 at 04:27 PM.
geo65 I would suggest that you look around for used motor speed controllers they have really shit hot transistors in them and they also have the drivers in the same pack . I built a fancy welder out of secondhand ones and they wont allow it out of their sight they go at 3000v and 600amps easily on the bigger ones
The 7 days is up to get fleabay Involved for the refund of the 200/ 6W lights but I can't see anyway to do that?
Perhaps I'll have to wait till tomorrow as it runs off US time?
Only links I can see now are to tutorials that explain how to do what is already done and the return procedure. as they haven't followed that, seems to run out.
I'll give it another 24 Hours and see what happens.
Do you mean VFD'S?
I have been using some out of old Solar Inverters I have been scrapping. Get the fets, the caps and a few other bits and pieces. I have picked up multiple units of a couple of the same brand and size inverter and notice the components vary even on the same board. Getting better deals from other suppliers during production runs I assume.
They are good Fets but I want to standardise on something for some future Builds.
Are there any Skilled arduino Programmers in the house that would be willing to do a simple, short Sketch for me?
Full path to the link is My Ebay -> Activity -> find item, 'More options' dropdown menu -> View Paypal transaction -> gives you a pop-up to login to the paypal account you bought the item with, then at the bottom of that page;
... which will send you here -->
Okidoki? B^)
igbpt
every time a vsd or freq drive or what ever others call it . blows up! i grab it as they have great components in them , most will work up over 20khz under half load so wit a little design skill they could be used as a 1kw audio amp on a single device . built a BIG electromagnet out of two of them npn/pnp as the magnet wouldnt let go with out a reverse pulse
picked up a 8x4 1-1/2 plate steel easily , all single devices out of industrial drives
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