Buying a Reg Online

[redacted]

Buying something on eBay is no more reliable than buying something at a flea market. The individual sellers can be selling you absolutely anything or nothing.
Terry

That is a bit of a stretch. If you don't exercise some reasonable cautions, you can have problems with ebay. But the same is true with some LDSs. Ebay and Paypal do offer some protections like seller/buyer historys and limited complaint arbitration. But you do need to know what you are doing. I have purchased at least a half dozen regulators on ebay with nothing but great bargains and pleasant surprises.

If you want to be sure of a great price and a good buying experience and you are not very familiar with your LDS, go with Scubatoys or Dive Sports. They have great reputations and they bend over backwards to protect them.

 

[Arizona]

I bought the Mares Abyss, Proton & Airlab set up from Scuba Toys and could not be happier. The 1st stage is a bit heavy, but it breathes great in all positions, does not free flow in current and is easily repaired worldwide. After one year I just sent it in for service. No problem finding an authorized dealer. The Airlab handles Nitrox no problem and as you grow this will most likely be an issue. I also like the fact that the Airlab can easily be removed while your gear is set up, so that it does not get banged around in between dives.

AZ

 

[ReefHound]

That's exactly my point. Buying something on eBay is no more reliable than buying something at a flea market. The individual sellers can be selling you absolutely anything or nothing.

Terry

That's a totally invalid analogy. There are flea market sellers on Ebay BUT there are also established and reputable professional merchants. Shop the vendor not the venue. I don't have a problem with you warning that there are questionable sellers on Ebay selling questionable stuff, the problem I have is broadbrushing all of Ebay with that image.

I don't know what your Ebay experience is but I've found most of the Ebay bashing and stereotyping comes from those with little firsthand Ebay experience.

 

[Web Monkey]

I don't know what your Ebay experience is but I've found most of the Ebay bashing and stereotyping comes from those with little firsthand Ebay experience.

My experience is that the sellers (private) don't want to know anything once they've been paid and that eBay and Paypal are virtually impossible to contact and have little interest in resolving anything.

While I have no objection to online purchases, if you're dealing with someone who can't afford their own website and credit-card processing, you're pretty much on your own.

Terry

 

[ReefHound]

My experience is that the sellers (private) don't want to know anything once they've been paid and that eBay and Paypal are virtually impossible to contact and have little interest in resolving anything.

While I have no objection to online purchases, if you're dealing with someone who can't afford their own website and credit-card processing, you're pretty much on your own.

Terry

Why should Ebay intervene anymore than your local newspaper steps in if you make a bad buy through a classified ad? Paypal offers buyer protection in many cases. Many eBay sellers do have their own websites and cc-processing but use eBay to expand their audience. For example, LeisurePro lists on Amazon and eBay (scuba-equipments).

It isn't an issue of buying on eBay but one of buying from the right seller. Your post about the bad light causing a fire didn't even mention the actual seller. Instead you pinned it all on eBay. That's like telling people to beware the Yellow Pages because you got a bad meal from a restaurant you looked up in the phone book. I can look up Joe's Burgers and take my chances or I can look up Ruth Chris and know exactly what I'm getting. It isn't about the venue, it's about the actual seller.

 

[Web Monkey]

eBay promotes itself in print and on television as a store ("You can find it all on eBay") and therefore should be held to similar standards.

They also offer various "consumer protection" policies that make them appear to be a store, but in reality will do little or nothing if you're dissatisfied with the purchase.

They use a payment-processing service which promotes itself as consumer-friendly, but in reality does nothing to protect consumers and is as difficult/impossible to contact as eBay is.

They should either be responsible for what they sell, or put up a big disclaimer that says "You're on your own, don't call us if you get hosed"

Terry

Why should Ebay intervene anymore than your local newspaper steps in if you make a bad buy through a classified ad? Paypal offers buyer protection in many cases. Many eBay sellers do have their own websites and cc-processing but use eBay to expand their audience. For example, LeisurePro lists on Amazon and eBay (scuba-equipments).

It isn't an issue of buying on eBay but one of buying from the right seller. Your post about the bad light causing a fire didn't even mention the actual seller. Instead you pinned it all on eBay. That's like telling people to beware the Yellow Pages because you got a bad meal from a restaurant you looked up in the phone book. I can look up Joe's Burgers and take my chances or I can look up Ruth Chris and know exactly what I'm getting. It isn't about the venue, it's about the actual seller.

 

[ReefHound]

eBay promotes itself in print and on television as a store ("You can find it all on eBay") and therefore should be held to similar standards.

They also offer various "consumer protection" policies that make them appear to be a store, but in reality will do little or nothing if you're dissatisfied with the purchase.

They use a payment-processing service which promotes itself as consumer-friendly, but in reality does nothing to protect consumers and is as difficult/impossible to contact as eBay is.

They should either be responsible for what they sell, or put up a big disclaimer that says "You're on your own, don't call us if you get hosed"

Terry

Nonsense. They don't promote themselves as an actual vendor but as a marketplace. Do you think the "let your fingers do the walking" ads implies the Yellow Pages are a mail order catalog? Ebay is quite clear on their policies and conditions. They offer more consumer protection than they have to yet are explicit that you are dealing directly with another seller. Amazing that you criticize their buyer protections, you seem to suggest that if they can't offer a 100% guarantee they should offer no protection at all.

 

[Web Monkey]

Nonsense. They don't promote themselves as an actual vendor but as a marketplace. Do you think the "let your fingers do the walking" ads implies the Yellow Pages are a mail order catalog? Ebay is quite clear on their policies and conditions. They offer more consumer protection than they have to yet are explicit that you are dealing directly with another seller. Amazing that you criticize their buyer protections, you seem to suggest that if they can't offer a 100% guarantee they should offer no protection at all.

They should offer 100% of something. If they imply consumer protection of some sort, they should have a well-defined public policy that they implement fully and staff at any level to acheive their stated protections.

Otherwise they should make it very clear that it's every man for himself, and not bother with easy-to-fake "user feedback" or "consumer protection" policies that are virtually impossible to for the buyer to activate.

Terry

 

[vwdennis]

I have been very happy with the Tusa RS-130 I bought from ScubaToys last year, and would recommend it to anyone looking for a good reg at an affordable price. DiveSports also has a good price on this reg.

My Tusa Platina Evolution BC came used from E-bay, and I like it also.

3mil Akona wetsuit from LP was a great deal.

7mil wetsuit from tommydsports.com is also nice.

There are many good deals to be found if you take your time and study what you are buying.

 

[jsmharley]

Not sure on the Ebay issues floating here , but I will personally recommend scubatoys.com . I have purchased from them several times over the last year and have been nothing but satisfied with the customer service, attention to detail, and quick delivery times. You cannot go wrong with them in my book. Jeremy