Three things

First, are there snipers that only just overbid previous bids? Snip, which is free, just puts in your bid, so if you were ready to go to GBP 200 and the bidding was only at GBP 100, you get to pay GBP 200 - not such a good idea.

Second, I'm about to phone that luthier again......

and back to the main issues,



Well, hope springs eternal and there's this guitar on ebay,

Title of item:          Acustic Guitar
Seller:                  timson23
Starts:                  14-Jul-03 19:45:43 BST
Ends:                   21-Jul-03 19:45:43 BST
Price:                   Starts at £30.00OK,


So I ask: -

"I'm near you and having bought a guitar
before on ebay and not had a nice experience (!) I wonder if it would be possible for me to come to you to inspect this before bidding on it?"

And they say: -

"Thank you for your email. Unfortunately, we do not wish people to inspect our items prior to bidding on them, imagine the amount of callers we would have if this was to be! If you look at our feedback, you will see that we are reputable sellers. The item is exactly as described and as seen in the photo. If you wish to ask us any questions, please feel free to do so. If you do wish to bid on this item and win, then please collect from us as you live locally."


So I said: -

"since you don't want me to inspect. But I will say that if after reading all the questions you think it would be easier for me to inspect, then I would still be keen to do so.

1.        Are all 6 machine heads the same, are they marked as being any make and if so what, and do they all work correctly?

2.        Is there a model number, if so what?

3.        Is there a serial number, if so what?

4.        What is the height of the action (ie how far in millimeters, fairly accurately please, do you have to depress the bottom E string (the fat one) at the 12th fret before it touches the fret), at the 12th fret?

5.        If you press the strings down as if to play them, string by string and fret-by-fret, are there any places, up as far as the 16th fret, where the string will not sound properly because it is touching another fret further up?

6.        Are any signs of it having been stored in the damp or got too wet?

7.        Is the neck straight?

8.        Are there any visible cracks in the wood or varnish, or any splits dents or dings?

9.        If you look inside the soundhole with a mirror, are there any cracked braces, or cracks in the top, or old repairs, and is the inner bridge plate original?

10.        Has the saddle (the white bone or plastic bit in the bridge) been filed? Is there still an adequate break angle where the strings cross the saddle, and do any of them touch the wooden part of the bridge on the soundhole side of the saddle?

11.        Is the top flat, and free from bellying (ie it does not bulge out behind the bridge, and dip in the soundhole side of the bridge)?

12.        Has it got an undersaddle pickup? (I'm expecting "no") If so where is the jack socket?

13.        Are any of the seams split? Is all the kerfing (the sort of seam round the front and back) flush and tidy?

14.        Has the missing string still got a peg?

Sorry to be awkward but the last guitar I bought on ebay was a real dog's breakfast!   I want one that is not too bad that I can take to folk festivals where I ought not to risk my fairly good one."

They replied with a pile of 8 jpegs (but not a close-up of the action), and the comments…

"Hi Richard

Wow what a lot of questions!!

I cannot believe that items put on Ebay for auction are inspected prior to bids being placed! It certainly is not our policy to do so. This guitar is being sold as we have described. We are not musicians or even able to play the instrument. We came by this guitar and are simply selling in on. I cannot believe that anybody selling a guitar on Ebay would go into such detail about the item they were selling.
I cannot even begin to answer some of your questions. I know that this is a real bargain of a guitar, and is certainly not a dogs dinner or been tarted up in any way by us. We are not out to con anybody and this is a fine looking guitar to us. The interest shown in it so far
has been phenomenal and to be quite honest with you, if we do not sell it on Ebay I am sure we will eventually sell it nearer to Christmas.

I am attaching some more pics for you and can answer the following:
Model no W 09004
Not been stored in damp or wet.
Neck looks straight.
Looks fine inside.
No repairs to the white bit.

If you are in any doubt, which I am sure you are, please do not bid on this one. I hope that you find what you are looking for soon."





What do we all think?