mjp
Founding member
I might be missing out on a cottage industry here...
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=8403753691
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=8403753691
$50 for a *copy* of a letter?!
- Thread starter mjp
- Start date
bospress.net
www.bospress.net
Hi,
Agreed. It is an interesting letter, but as a copy, it has no value.
I suspect that the only chance that it will sell is if the bidder misunderstands the description (or just does not read it) and thinks that this is an original letter... Weirder things have happened. Anyone remember when a bidder paid $202.50 for a CD copy of At Terror Street? At the time, you could buy them on Amazon.com for $30....
Bill
Agreed. It is an interesting letter, but as a copy, it has no value.
I suspect that the only chance that it will sell is if the bidder misunderstands the description (or just does not read it) and thinks that this is an original letter... Weirder things have happened. Anyone remember when a bidder paid $202.50 for a CD copy of At Terror Street? At the time, you could buy them on Amazon.com for $30....
Bill
mjp
Founding member
Yeah, we were recently amazed by a buy made by someone we dubbed "The Mad Frenchman," or TMF for short - after he paid a hundred bucks for a softcover Night Torn Mad: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=8771925682 Granted, it's a first edition, but $100?!
His subsequent buys have made more sense (you sold him a signed Last Night of the Earth Poems), but that first one was kind of a head scratcher.
His subsequent buys have made more sense (you sold him a signed Last Night of the Earth Poems), but that first one was kind of a head scratcher.
mjp
Founding member
Heh. Yeah, I don't know. Seems shady selling a copy. Not like attempting to defraud someone or anything -- I mean even if they know it's a copy. Seems wrong.
Maybe if it was some very early, very rare thing, but this letter is not unusual. It's slightly interesting in that I think he's talking about a period where Linda left him temporarily, but there are a lot of letters and poems written during that period.
Maybe if it was some very early, very rare thing, but this letter is not unusual. It's slightly interesting in that I think he's talking about a period where Linda left him temporarily, but there are a lot of letters and poems written during that period.
I saw this when it was originally posted and bookmarked it to see if anyone was stupid enough to cough up that kind of money for a xeroxed piece of paper. The truth is in the item description, so it's not as though the seller is misrepresenting his product or committing fraud. Buyer beware!
bospress.net
www.bospress.net
Hi,
The guy from France did buy that copy of "Last night" from me. Now for the interesting story...
I get an e-mail from him saying that it was help up in French customs. They were suspicious about the book and asked him to come to the airport to claim the "book". Their solution? They ripped the book to shreds..... Yes, they is what I hear. They thought that there were drugs hidden in the binding, so they removed the cover. Then they thought that they could be hidden UNDER the cover, so they ripped that.... A sad ending for a great book. It was sent insured, so I should be ok, but this is the first time, I have heard of a customs agent doing anything like this. Granted, I filled out all of the customes forms corrctly and sent it global priority insured. It was labeled as a book and the $200 value was clearly on the slip... Disturbing. That is one reason that I'm getting out of ebay SALES. Just too much of a pain having to worry about what crazy customs official will distroy what... I may still be out the money if the US insurance refuses to pay up....
Bill
The guy from France did buy that copy of "Last night" from me. Now for the interesting story...
I get an e-mail from him saying that it was help up in French customs. They were suspicious about the book and asked him to come to the airport to claim the "book". Their solution? They ripped the book to shreds..... Yes, they is what I hear. They thought that there were drugs hidden in the binding, so they removed the cover. Then they thought that they could be hidden UNDER the cover, so they ripped that.... A sad ending for a great book. It was sent insured, so I should be ok, but this is the first time, I have heard of a customs agent doing anything like this. Granted, I filled out all of the customes forms corrctly and sent it global priority insured. It was labeled as a book and the $200 value was clearly on the slip... Disturbing. That is one reason that I'm getting out of ebay SALES. Just too much of a pain having to worry about what crazy customs official will distroy what... I may still be out the money if the US insurance refuses to pay up....
Bill
cirerita
Founding member
how do you know that customs story is true? that's VERY unusual. I've received tons of INSURED and UNINSURED packages from the US and I've never had a single problem.
I suggest you get in touch with French customs to double-check that story. It does sound suspicious to me.
I suggest you get in touch with French customs to double-check that story. It does sound suspicious to me.
cirerita
Founding member
nymark,
I can't agree with you on this one. I mean, if you cater to a domestic audience only then us "foreigners" are really screwed. I couldn't possibly buy Bukowski bargains on eBay :D
Bill says it's the first time this happens to him and I kind of suspect that the TMF is not being 100% transparent here. I'm not saying that customs story is not possible, but it's sure weird and uncommon. But France is going through difficult times now, so who knows?
I can't agree with you on this one. I mean, if you cater to a domestic audience only then us "foreigners" are really screwed. I couldn't possibly buy Bukowski bargains on eBay :D
Bill says it's the first time this happens to him and I kind of suspect that the TMF is not being 100% transparent here. I'm not saying that customs story is not possible, but it's sure weird and uncommon. But France is going through difficult times now, so who knows?
bospress.net
www.bospress.net
HI,
I agree that it would not be friendly of me to only sell to those in the US. I have always appreciated business from all over the world. This time I put insurance on it because it scared me to send a $200 book without it. When sending domestic, it is not very expensive, but it cost me about $20 to send it insured to France. I only charged the buyer $10 shipping, but that is fine. If he says that it is destroyed, I'll file a claim and let the USPS worry about it. I would call the French customs, but do not speak French and would not even know where to begin.
I have had a few other smaller items go missing and it is always when being sent to outside the US. I have NEVER lost a package in the US in 8 years of doing this. One time I had a guy CLAIM that he never received the book, until I went in to file the claim and they pulled a signature. Then he changed his story. Always imoportant to send insuredd and save the receipts. hmmmm.... Again, it would not be fair to not sell anywhere in the world. Maybe I should just consider requiring insurance if it goes overseas and is valued at more than $50... That would not have helped in this case, but who knows.
For the auctions that are currently running on ebay, to all of those Buk fans in this forum that are outside the US, please feel free to bid.
Has anyone else ever had a problem like this one?
odd...
Bill
I agree that it would not be friendly of me to only sell to those in the US. I have always appreciated business from all over the world. This time I put insurance on it because it scared me to send a $200 book without it. When sending domestic, it is not very expensive, but it cost me about $20 to send it insured to France. I only charged the buyer $10 shipping, but that is fine. If he says that it is destroyed, I'll file a claim and let the USPS worry about it. I would call the French customs, but do not speak French and would not even know where to begin.
I have had a few other smaller items go missing and it is always when being sent to outside the US. I have NEVER lost a package in the US in 8 years of doing this. One time I had a guy CLAIM that he never received the book, until I went in to file the claim and they pulled a signature. Then he changed his story. Always imoportant to send insuredd and save the receipts. hmmmm.... Again, it would not be fair to not sell anywhere in the world. Maybe I should just consider requiring insurance if it goes overseas and is valued at more than $50... That would not have helped in this case, but who knows.
For the auctions that are currently running on ebay, to all of those Buk fans in this forum that are outside the US, please feel free to bid.
Has anyone else ever had a problem like this one?
odd...
Bill
cirerita
Founding member
my advice is to always INSURE packages when shipping them overseas. Always. I once ordered an iRiver player ($250) from an eBay seller and it got "lost". It never arrived here. I told the seller and she shipped it again and I received it 7 days later. I think she filled a claim for the lost one. Of course, the lost one was uninsured. Insured packages never get lost... unless some crazy customs agent destroys them :D
mjp
Founding member
Well, I never offer international shipping for inexpensive items, but not due to losses, etc. Rather because any time I have to stand in line for service at a Los Angeles post office I'm looking at 20 to 40 minutes of my time down the drain. For a $5 item, it's not worth it.nymark said:
Bill, let us know how that claim goes. I have a suspicion that the USPS will resist paying a claim made due to customs destroying the book.
But I also agree with cirerita that this is a crazy story. Airports have scanners that can detect a few microscopic grains of cocaine from a person's pant cuff, but customs has to tear apart a book looking for drugs?
mjp
Founding member
Gah, someone bid on that (relisted) letter copy.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=8406564762
Bidder doesn't seem to be a native English speaker, based on their feedback, so I wonder if they realize what they are bidding on...
No offense to 'thebukshop' if he reads this stuff, but selling a copy of a letter, I don't know man. And for $50. Damn.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=8406564762
Bidder doesn't seem to be a native English speaker, based on their feedback, so I wonder if they realize what they are bidding on...
No offense to 'thebukshop' if he reads this stuff, but selling a copy of a letter, I don't know man. And for $50. Damn.
50 bucks for a photocopy, that's just plain BRUTAL.
If you're not going to sell the 'actual' item, I'd say why bother...
but if someone is willing to DISH OUT 49.99, I understand why they spend 2 cents (or maybe less...) to photocopy a single sheet of paper. Nice profit for the seller, EMPTY purchase for the buyer.
If you're not going to sell the 'actual' item, I'd say why bother...
but if someone is willing to DISH OUT 49.99, I understand why they spend 2 cents (or maybe less...) to photocopy a single sheet of paper. Nice profit for the seller, EMPTY purchase for the buyer.
BilkoJoe
Founding member
Hi I'd like to set the record straight. I am thebukshop. Firstly this is not a photocopy that I have just banged out.. Secondly I have made it REALLY clear in the title and description that this is NOT an original letter.
Why am I selling it?
Well I had a couple of copies of Richard Wong's book by David Barker to sell. I noticed that the Water Row had a copy of this letter for sale (YOU MISSED IT FIRST TIME ROUND!) and I bought it (if memory serves me right for $50) My intention was to sell it cross promotion with the book - no xtra cost mind you I'd be happy to share my listing records among the sceptics- I thought it would be nice to tie the two items up. Since then one copy of the book has sold, the cross promotion has lapsed and I haven't been arsed to link em up again.
Two dullards have purchased the letter BIN thinking it was original and I have refunded each taking the listing fee on the chin.
As for : Money making scumbag...you obviously don't know me
Anyone who has dealt with me has will vouch for my honesty - I dare say I given away more BUK freebies and extras with my auctions than most . for me eBay isn't just about making money....
Ayway love the site.....hope this helps...cheers joe
Why am I selling it?
Well I had a couple of copies of Richard Wong's book by David Barker to sell. I noticed that the Water Row had a copy of this letter for sale (YOU MISSED IT FIRST TIME ROUND!) and I bought it (if memory serves me right for $50) My intention was to sell it cross promotion with the book - no xtra cost mind you I'd be happy to share my listing records among the sceptics- I thought it would be nice to tie the two items up. Since then one copy of the book has sold, the cross promotion has lapsed and I haven't been arsed to link em up again.
Two dullards have purchased the letter BIN thinking it was original and I have refunded each taking the listing fee on the chin.
As for : Money making scumbag...you obviously don't know me
Anyone who has dealt with me has will vouch for my honesty - I dare say I given away more BUK freebies and extras with my auctions than most . for me eBay isn't just about making money....
Ayway love the site.....hope this helps...cheers joe
mjp
Founding member
BilkoJoe, "money making scumbag" is harsh and uncalled for, but we try to let even the harsh among us have their say.
I called the auction "shady," and I stand by that. It took a bit of reading to determine it was a copy. It was not made clear from the outset (as your two buyers who did not know it was a copy should prove).
To me, when the copy was made is irrelevant. It's a copy. A copy of the Declaration of Independence on yellow paper is worth about 15 cents, as is that Bukowski letter.
Like I said, I didn't consider the auction an attempt to defraud anyone. But selling a copy of a letter (for any price) just rubbed me the wrong way.
I said the same thing when someone tried to sell copies of poem manuscripts on eBay. Nothing personal.
I called the auction "shady," and I stand by that. It took a bit of reading to determine it was a copy. It was not made clear from the outset (as your two buyers who did not know it was a copy should prove).
To me, when the copy was made is irrelevant. It's a copy. A copy of the Declaration of Independence on yellow paper is worth about 15 cents, as is that Bukowski letter.
Like I said, I didn't consider the auction an attempt to defraud anyone. But selling a copy of a letter (for any price) just rubbed me the wrong way.
I said the same thing when someone tried to sell copies of poem manuscripts on eBay. Nothing personal.
Perhaps
You're right I don't know you and for the record I said made one look like a money making scumbag not that you were-but MJP is right it was uncalled for and harsh.
That said I imagine worse expletives may be heard by the poor guy (like most of us) who just paid to pay $50.00 for a copy.
Either way the ad hominum shouldn't have been used.
Mea Culpa
You're right I don't know you and for the record I said made one look like a money making scumbag not that you were-but MJP is right it was uncalled for and harsh.
That said I imagine worse expletives may be heard by the poor guy (like most of us) who just paid to pay $50.00 for a copy.
Either way the ad hominum shouldn't have been used.
Mea Culpa
Rekrab
Usually wrong.
I thought it was kind of strange. It says "copies" in the title, so it's not in the least misleading. But why even offer copies? It would make more sense to me if they had some history attached to them. But then, as mjp says, a copy is a copy is worth 15 cents (even on yellow paper). My impression was that it smacks of scraping the bottom of the barrel. And then there's the question of is it an allowable item under Ebay rules. I doubt it.
bospress.net
www.bospress.net
Hi,
I will say that thebukshop has always been very cool to work with. The same goes for Waterrow.
All best,
Bill
I will say that thebukshop has always been very cool to work with. The same goes for Waterrow.
All best,
Bill
mjp
Founding member
Well, it's very difficult to get your hands on poem manuscripts from the 60's, and those are notable titles. The letters and sketches, not such a big deal. But with an opening bid under $10, and considering that the stuff from the 60's is not readily available to see...I don't know. I wouldn't buy it and I wouldn't sell it, but it seems more reasonable than $50 for an unremarkable letter from the 80's.
Overall I think it's a bad practice to put these Xeroxes into the collective bloodstream, so to speak. They just muddy the waters when people decide to resell them. Why do it? I don't understand the motivation.
Someone from these forums recently sent me copies of 75 pages of early 60's unpublished letters from Bukowski to the Webbs. He didn't ask for anything in return, he even went so far as to say they were "of no value" but was sending them to me because he knew I would be interested.
Interested? Yeah, like Christmas morning when you're ten years old.
But it wasn't a transaction, and I think that is as it should be. It would never occur to me to profit from copies of this stuff.
BilkoJoe, this is not directed at you, you were reselling something you bought. And I have no beef with Mr. Weinberg. I'm just saying...
Overall I think it's a bad practice to put these Xeroxes into the collective bloodstream, so to speak. They just muddy the waters when people decide to resell them. Why do it? I don't understand the motivation.
Someone from these forums recently sent me copies of 75 pages of early 60's unpublished letters from Bukowski to the Webbs. He didn't ask for anything in return, he even went so far as to say they were "of no value" but was sending them to me because he knew I would be interested.
Interested? Yeah, like Christmas morning when you're ten years old.
But it wasn't a transaction, and I think that is as it should be. It would never occur to me to profit from copies of this stuff.
BilkoJoe, this is not directed at you, you were reselling something you bought. And I have no beef with Mr. Weinberg. I'm just saying...