What's with all the mislabeled and broken mudbuckers on ebay right now?

Granny Gremlin · June 21, 2021, 10:02:05 AM

Some guy wants $250 for a "low impedance" mudbucker "designed by Les Paul" with a DCR of 1.175k (so obviously a shorted coil).
https://www.ebay.com/itm/292901484083?hash=item443249f633:g:LgsAAOSwj91cLkL0

What kills me is the same seller has a working mudbucker with a DCR of 29k in another listing ($495) so he should be aware he's holding poop.

Another dude also asking $250 for a mudbucker with a 14k DCR. But fair enough 14k seems like a reasonable DCrR for a humbucker, just not a mudbucker in particular.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/202643617423?hash=item2f2e80368f:g:9isAAOSw5cNYknLG

And my favorite is this guy selling what I believe is a Marauder bridge pup as a LoZ LP Rec pup. At least he's only asking $140.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/174809144811?hash=item28b36fddeb:g:btMAAOSwGAZgonvJ

One honest guy who did the most basic research:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/202843558204?hash=item2f3a6b113c:g:gi4AAOSwpUtd6W8U

Bloody caveat emptor

uwe · June 21, 2021, 05:03:46 PM

Bloody Caveat Emptor ...

What a brilliant band name, Jake!

amptech · June 22, 2021, 12:21:19 AM

Bullsh**ters on ebay is nothing new?

Granny Gremlin · June 22, 2021, 05:59:58 AM

I swear it was never quite this bad/ridiculous, but I have had my head down for a bit.

Grog · June 22, 2021, 07:57:57 AM

Those are Maurader bridge pickups. I bought two on Reverb just like it with the protective film still on them.
My favorite score are the Les Paul Recording pickups, "For parts only, not working". They sell them as defective because they have no ohm reading. 10 ohms isn't much of a reading for a pickup these days. I've never found a bad one yet......

amptech · June 23, 2021, 08:22:48 AM

Quote from: Grog on June 22, 2021, 07:57:57 AM
My favorite score are the Les Paul Recording pickups, "For parts only, not working". They sell them as defective because they have no ohm reading. 10 ohms isn't much of a reading for a pickup these days. I've never found a bad one yet......

Same here, bought 4 recording pickups about 10 years ago very cheap, from a claimed ex gibson employee. Listing said 'defective', but two of them vere like new and measured perfect (about 10-15 ohms). Two of them were actually open, but they had nice big alnico magnets👍

Granny Gremlin · June 23, 2021, 05:11:04 PM

Yeah, judging by that one dreaming muducker seller in my first pot (as well as the MArauder pup seller), I'd say the jig is up on the loZ pickups. The best deal I ever got on one (before I owned a Triumph) I shipped off to Rob. The high end vintage shop close to my house at the time - they had no idea what it was but it said Gibson on it.

Basvarken · June 24, 2021, 11:26:08 AM

I'm very happy you helped me out purchasing that pickup.
It is still in my beloved Les Paul Bass.

Granny Gremlin · June 25, 2021, 07:59:56 AM

No worries man, I was happy to help and hold one for a bit to examine before sending it off in the bargain. Made me really want a hobbit, and luckily my formerly-white Triumph came up for a song in Montreal a year later and karma came full circle when George bowed out to let me have it. The dudes at the shop where I got the pickup where like "it's got 8 wires - good luck with that" - I never took no condescending shit from them again (they were the snootiest shop in town, I swear everybody complains).

Alanko · June 26, 2021, 04:16:33 PM

Quote from: Granny Gremlin on June 22, 2021, 05:59:58 AM
I swear it was never quite this bad/ridiculous, but I have had my head down for a bit.

Reverb has made it worse. Any old battered-to-shit gear is now advertised at extortionate prices. Even USSR instruments that will be badly built and unplayable. Anything old is magical, even if totally broken.

Dave W · June 26, 2021, 11:40:29 PM

Quote from: Alanko on June 26, 2021, 04:16:33 PM
Reverb has made it worse. Any old battered-to-shit gear is now advertised at extortionate prices. Even USSR instruments that will be badly built and unplayable. Anything old is magical, even if totally broken.

It's not just Reverb. The shortage of mew instruments because of all the supply chain disruptions is driving up used prices. OTOH asking prices don't necessarily translate to sold prices. Especially on broken gear.

Rob · June 27, 2021, 06:17:27 AM

Quote from: Alanko on June 26, 2021, 04:16:33 PM
Anything old is magical, even if totally broken.

OLD - Check
Partially Broken - Check

In that case I stand ready to grant your wishes!

Alanko · June 27, 2021, 01:59:43 PM

Quote from: Rob on June 27, 2021, 06:17:27 AM
OLD - Check
Partially Broken - Check

In that case I stand ready to grant your wishes!

You're a wizard, Robby!

eb2 · June 29, 2021, 01:02:46 PM

People are moving everything. Cooped up covid reaction maybe but between people cleaning out the closets and batty demand for anything reasonable, you can see all manner of misinformation and lunacy. And anytime inflation hits people in the face, you can expect the price tag to be a way to recoup some of the economic sting. We live in interesting times.

Granny Gremlin · June 30, 2021, 07:38:56 AM

Quote from: eb2 on June 29, 2021, 01:02:46 PM
People are moving everything. Cooped up covid reaction maybe but between people cleaning out the closets and batty demand for anything reasonable, you can see all manner of misinformation and lunacy. And anytime inflation hits people in the face, you can expect the price tag to be a way to recoup some of the economic sting. We live in interesting times.

I am finding the opposite - less of the things I usually search for. Wrote a whole thing about it on another forum:

Quote

[some other dude] said:
Asking prices still seem up there but a lot of stuff is definitely sitting on the market longer than it was a year ago.

I also see less stuff on the market. Like there used to be piles of some things at any given moment; I think people reassessed whether to break out the old toys due to isolation boredom and re-fell in love.... or at least found it fun, better than just TV all the time. Then again there are people in desperate financial straights due to covid so also could be some deals because of that but that feels like minority to me. Then again again some people may not be listing cuz not into dealing with people, for either psyche or straight up covid reasons.

I dunno if people have been taking reasonable offers on things, because I haven't even been trying, but the asks are waaaaaay up in general. I see a lot of it just relisted ad nauseum with the same 1.5 to 3 times the going rate I remember pre pandemic. Maybe it also depends on what you're looking at; I guess my tastes are atypical in some ways.

The problem is that this sort of thing is viral; people see others asking that much, don't bother checking what stuff actually sells for (you can't on kijiji but you can on ebay, and kinda on Reverb) so give a what-the-heck go for their similar thing at a similar ask. More people see that now there's 2 listings at that price point and you get the snowball effect from there. Some of these people are stupid / dreamers ( this existed pre pandemic), but also there is the problem, due to the lower volume of sales I mentioned (fewer items listed at any one time + high asks) I can no longer find eg ebay completed listings for some things, and when I can they're sometimes 6+ months back, or as is for parts/ repair, or something that makes them not entirely valid/useful.