Pioneer LD-W1 eBay Mishap

I hope the refund came through in the end.

It's almost resolved but in a state of semi-limbo. eBay stepped in an would refund if I returned it (they also provided a shipping label). The seller's return address is a PO box and he hasn't picked it up yet. It's been there for like a week. The eBay resolution page shows it as "delivered" but I haven't gotten the refund yet. I just emailed eBay support looking for an update. It's possible it will get returned to me since he apparently has no intention of going to the post office to pick it up. Unless he picks it up by the 9th, it's on its way back to me. I just hope the refund doesn't fall through in that case.

Technology Connections

So how did it all play out?

Except there are likely zero repair part available. Parts for this machine (as with the old film cameras I restore) come from other, damaged "donor" machines. Tear up three to build one, in other words.

Roger Beal

Will ebay back the refund? You obviously use ebay a lot, so hopefully they can help get you refunded. Good luck.

CJ Carpenter

That's so sad. Thanks for showing it to us anyway Alec. I would not know the best way to sort out the money situation, but I hope it works out to everyone's satisfaction.

Stephen Bell

You able to look at talking to a repair shop, to see if they can breathe life back into it?

Paul Fisher

I'm not yet to the point where that's an option. eBay won't step in until after the 5th.

Technology Connections

Have you filed a dispute with eBay themselves?

Sam Blakey

Speaking as a person who happens to be employed by UPS, I did want to note we do stack boxes on boxes (read: semi-trailers between hubs and delivery centers) Big and heavy boxes on the bottom, light on top, box walls 10 feet high. NOW, that doesn't excuse it being delivered damaged but I point at the seller. Many sellers just don't understand the "industrial" environment the package delivery service is. They just pack it with "open air" and hope for the best, (I'm looking at you Wal-Mart and to a lesser extent Amazon!) If you put a DVD in a box that is 6" cubed, it will likely get beat up if the distance is more than 1 or 2 hops. William, you said it best regarding the styrofoam. That is exactly why they do it, a rigid box of styrofoam is an undamaged box. @TechnologyConnections I hate this for you! Even if no one else apologizes, I apologize on UPS's behalf. Unfortunately, it is the nature of the beast. Rant Over.

Christopher Bassett

It really is a shame that such a nice player was damaged. If you end up keeping the machine, it could be a fun restoration project to try to get it back in working order. I'm sure you have many other projects though, and probably don't need another. ;)

I think the bigger your box, the more likely someone at UPS is going to think they can stack 400 lbs of other boxes on top of it. We may hate all the styrofoam new stuff comes encased in, but that's why they do it.

Bill Huizinga

cool mechanism indeed, thanks for sharing, even if it's broken

At this point the seller is incommunicado. I sent him a long message describing everything that was wrong (along with photos) and asked what we could do about this. I even offered to ship the remote back to him on my own as he could maybe get some money out of that. His response was basically "Oh I didn't get extra insurance. I'm an idiot. I'm really sorry" and now he hasn't responded. I replied saying the machine had some life left, maybe we could do a partial refund, but still there's no response. At this point I want my money back because it sounds like he's brushing me off. But I will give him a chance and some more time. Going to Discover is my last resort.

Technology Connections

I don't know.. I would try hard to work with the seller first and see what he says and maybe come up with a mutually agreeable solution. Since he modified the unit, maybe he'll be able to fix it for you? Or find someone else who can repair it, as it's 'mostly' working. What about asking him to file a claim with UPS to see what they'll pay out for the damage? I've had a few shipments paid out in full by UPS even without 'extra' insurance when you can prove they caused the damage. Finally, I'd check with your homeowner's or renter's insurance about filing a claim -- most policies should cover something like this. I don't know Discover, but I'd also see if the credit card offers any insurance coverage. The *last* thing I would do is go after the seller, since it seems like he really didn't do anything wrong here. (What would you do if you were in his shoes?). Did you ask him how he packed it originally in the printer box, or double boxed? Having the seller eat the large loss, or issuing a chargeback and forcing him to, is just bad Karma all around. If you paid though Paypal, I know they HATE chargebacks, and will do anything in their power to prevent it from going through. I know the situation totally sucks, but there are better options than the nuclear option off the bat. Good luck, and please let us know how it works out.

Hank Lloyd Right

That really sucks, I'm sorry it's turned out this way. Good luck with the situation, and thanks for at least posting this on Patreon. It's a really neat machine.

Kasper the friendly ghost

It's already in process. I paid through my Discover card so I'll just issue a chargeback if I need to.

Technology Connections

Immediately file an "Item Significantly Not As Described" dispute on PayPal, and upgrade it to a "claim" if the seller won't play ball. PayPal practically always sides with the buyer on "not as described" claims.

Matt Whitlock