All,

     I've been burned pretty hard by sellers with a "good reputation" on
eBay.  A few years back, a seller going by "strombusfan" who had 100%
positive feedback amongst a number of buyers offered up shells that he
did not possess.  In fact I later found out quite by chance that he had
stolen photos from off of Philippe Poppe's excellent website and used
them as his own to trap potential buyers.  With help from Philippe, I
was able to get "strombusfan" off of eBay.  Later I found out that this
seller had even committed identity theft in order to set up an account.
If anyone is interested in the actual identity of the former
strombusfan, e-mail me directly.  As I discovered he's an actual shell
collector who specializes in Strombidae, so he may still be within our
midst.

Best regards,
Dave

-----Original Message-----
From: Conchologists List [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of
Paul Mikkelsen
Sent: Sunday, June 25, 2006 4:10 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Grossly Fake and Painted Shells

Furthermore...
   Does anyone know absolutely and definitively that the subject eBay
seller does indeed sell fake/painted shells?  No names of people have
been mentioned that have actually been "burned" by fake/painted shells
purchased from this seller...    is this the forum to "point fingers"
without absolute data?

There are three sides to every story!  I don't know those who have
posted on this issue, nor do I know the eBay seller or the mysterious
bidder.  I offer some further thoughts simply for that purpose:
thought!    (and perhaps discussion and not to jump to conclusions
having heard one side of a story)

Other sellers (perhaps even "fake_and_painted_shell_connoisseur") COULD
be discouraging sales by "patricianashells" simply to assist in
directing sales to another/other shell dealers. It happens!...  it's
eBay!  Is it happening?  Who knows?

Playing the "devil's advocate", and looking at this story from a
different perspective, I offer some additional observations:

The eBay seller in question has sold items to 14 different eBay buyers.
The seller has also sold 34 items over the past 12 months.
The seller has a 100% positive feedback score...  100% of the sales went
satisfactorily according to the buyers!
The seller offers: "a very liberal return policy.  If you are not
entirely satisfied with our shells, you may return them to us within a
14-day period"

Having purchased 167 items on eBay, I feel that the seller has all the
features/attributes that I look for in a trusted eBay seller!  I do,
however, agree with Chris's statement "many bidders don't file in fear
of "negative" feedback reprisals"  ...the feedback system is a good one,
but not flawless.

Again, not knowing fake shells from others, and not knowing whether or
not the shells for sale by this seller are indeed fake/painted, and
perhaps to limit rumors, hearsay, and speculation...
   It seems that someone with "discretionary funds" [perhaps someone in
the industry wanting to help keep the market "clean"] could (or should!)
purchase one or more of these shells.   If they are fake/painted, you
could return them for a refund and knowledge gained (to share, first
hand!)   ...with some hassle, but perhaps no financial loss.  If they
are unaltered, perhaps you've purchased some nice shells!

Just a thought.
Paul

-------------------------

Chris Takahashi wrote:

>Aloha!
>Good questions. This collector has purchased shells from a friend here
in
>Hawaii on Ebay under his past name so he is legitimate. Some dealers
log
>onto Ebay using psedo-names to inspire bidding. Ebay refers to this as
>"shilling" and is frowned upon. This bidder has in fact placed minimum
bids
>on this same faked material before but was cautious never to go higher.
>
>Ebay has very strict rules regarding fakes & copies. If a purchase is
made
>through Paypal on a "faked" item a investigastion is done & in most
cases
>the money is refunded with the dealer's IP address being blocked from
Ebay.
>But many bidders don't file in fear of "negative" feedback reprisals.
Most
>seasoned Ebayers know who to avoid online & at times has been mentioned
by
>name(check past CONCH-L listings regarding Ebay).
>
>It's too bad some people out there use shell collecting as a dodge to
>rip-off trusting, honest collectors.                     Mahalo!
CHRIS:)
>
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