Advice- bought a knife on a forum

[araneae]

I recently bought a knife on another forum. The knife was listed as New, never used. I got it tonight and the very tip is bent, the sheath is dirty and there is light surface rust on the handle. I was not too happy about it. To top it of I paid for priority mail and he sent it standard mail in a padded mailer.

Buying from a forumite I expect things to be as described or better. I am considering asking for a partial refund. Is that out of line? What do you think?

[cyberspyder]

Fair enough. Seller's fault for false advertising. He should actually give you a full refund, or offer to make it up.

[cedjunior]

It it were me, I'd send it back and put the seller through the ringer.

[jzmtl]

Fair enough. Seller's fault for false advertising. He should actually give you a full refund, or offer to make it up.

While the seller in the wrong, why should he offer a full refund unless buyer send the knife back?

[BuffaloBill]

chances are if they are the type of person that would list a knife in that condition as "New" then you may be looking at getting nothing back. even if you send the knife back.

[cyberspyder]

While the seller in the wrong, why should he offer a full refund unless buyer send the knife back?

I thought my meaning was clear, I meant he should offer to take the knife back and give you your money back, no questions asked.

[ClockWork]

I would contact the Seller and let him know. Chances are you wont get the refund/discount/response or whatever that your looking for.
But, I do not think that its out-of-line to ask politely for a partial refund.
Do not send back the knife though. Thats too risky IMO.

I bought and sold dozens of knives on BF and KFC, and only had one bad experience.
I bought a "New" Spydie Civilian. Well, It had minor surface rust and the Tip was chipped.
I let the guy know, and he was very apologetic. I paid a very good price, so it wasnt that big of a deal. I later sold it for the same price I bought it at.

Don't let this one bad experience turn you off from buying on the forums. Most of the guys on there are good guys that just like knives.

-Clock

[Shike]

That plain sucks!!!!!
Contact the seller and see if he makes it right, then go from there. I would take pictures of the knife and the package showing his name in case you have to dispute or report him.
Best of luck.

[GoMeR]

Make sure you post in the "good" or "bad" knife buying experience threads whatever happens. Assuming the forum has one, most of them do. Might help keep other buyers from doing business with a shady seller.

[Sequimite]

If he won't take it back, post the story with pictures on the forum - some have special feedback sections for this.

Give him a chance, but if he doesn't come through don't be too nice. You may get nothing out of exposing him but you could be saving others from going through the same experience.

[CombatGrappler]

Contact the seller. If he is on the up and up, he will offer to refund your money in full and pay for you to send the knife back to him. If he isn't on the level, you might be out of luck, depending on how you paid. You could open a PayPal dispute if you paid that way.

For most regular issue, non-rare knives, the typical price should be 1/2 to 2/3 of the price of a new one, depending on how hard it has been used. If you still want to keep the knife, see if you can negotiate an amount for him to refund to you.

The only other knife forum i go to is BFC, and most of the sellers there are interested in protecting their good reputation. Hopefully it will be the same at your other forum.

[Daniel]

Have you even communicated your dissatisfaction?

That would be the first step. See if he will make good on the deal. If not, then approach alternative resolution.

[Shagnasty]

I would say that you ask him to make it right in whatever way you think is fair, and then if he doesnt want to comply I would take pics of the knife and what you're saying is wrong and post it on whatever board you bought it from along with the original post of his ad selling and all of his information. There is a lot trust that goes into buying and selling, and reputation is extremely important. It would be foolish for him not to make it right... My 2 cents. :D

Larry

[araneae]

Thanks for all the input. I emailed the seller this morning. We'll see how he replies- I'll keep you all posted.

[araneae]

Seller quickly replied that I am negative and that I got a good deal and should enjoy the knife. The tip must have been damaged by the sheath as he never used it.:mad:

[bh49]

How did you pay him, if you used paypal, you can start dispute and get your money back.
Also, report in "good, bad & ugly". Anybody can make a mistake, but they have to be corrected.l

[Bluntrauma]

Seller quickly replied that I am negative and that I got a good deal and should enjoy the knife. The tip must have been damaged by the sheath as he never used it.:mad:

Well, there's your answer then. You gave him the benefit of the doubt. I would post about this over at BF in the GB&U. Sorry to hear about a deal where both parties are not satisfied.

[OuchThatsSharp]

Whatever forum you purchased the knife from, post the member's name and what happened in the transaction. Post the original ad/pics, post your response with pics and post his reply. If you can find what other sites he uses and his screenname on those sites, post there as well. It's still no consolation to you but it may keep others from dealing with him. Sorry for your bad experience. 99.9% of the members are usually on the up & up and it only takes one to make you think twice about buying from forum members. I've been wheeling & dealing online for years and have yet to have a bad experience. Hope things work out for you.

[jujigatame]

Seller quickly replied that I am negative and that I got a good deal and should enjoy the knife. The tip must have been damaged by the sheath as he never used it.:mad:

Do everyone a favor and out this person at the forum where the transaction took place. No excuse at all for the response you received, let alone a knife in the condition you got being described as "new."

[Diamondback]

Seller quickly replied that I am negative and that I got a good deal and should enjoy the knife. The tip must have been damaged by the sheath as he never used it.:mad: WOW...that's just an unacceptable response in my opinion. I get the impression that his reputation as a trader doesn't mean much to him......how short sighted. If he won't make things right I don't see how you have much choice but to call him out publicly on the forum off of which you purchased the knife.....and if need be, elsewhere. Good luck......I can relate to the frustration you must be experiencing ! It just comes down to the "golden rule" doesn't it ?.....it almost always does.

- regards

[Daniel]

Now, it sounds like this person did not even take it out of the sheath before selling it. That is suspect at best.

It is no wonder that he did not see the rust or bent tip. I cannot believe that someone would post a knife for sale without even looking at it and then tell you that you should be happy with it!

I would ask for a return and full refund on the knife and shipping to return it. Then, I would "out" him--after I either got the refund or a refusal to make it right.

These situations are rare considering the number of exchanges on the forums. Luckily, I have not had an issue like this in any dealing with anyone-all have been above board. I try to do my best in describing a knife for sale after I inspect it, but a couple of times, the buyer did not agree with my assessment. Everyone has different criteria, I guess, but I did everything that I could to make it right.

Maybe it is me, but I feel bad about it when a buyer is not happy with a knife that I have sold to them.

This deal is pretty bad and the seller needs to resolve it to your satisfaction.

[OuchThatsSharp]

N
Maybe it is me, but I feel bad about it when a buyer is not happy with a knife that I have sold to them.


Ditto. If the person who bought one of my knives is unhappy with it for any reason (unless they damaged the knife in some way), I would ask that they send the knife back and I'll refund their money. I would expect the same. I try my best to describe the knife as best I can and with pics. So far I've never had that situation arise.

[OuchThatsSharp]

N
Maybe it is me, but I feel bad about it when a buyer is not happy with a knife that I have sold to them.


Ditto. If the person who bought one of my knives is unhappy with it for any reason (unless they damaged the knife in some way), I would ask that they send the knife back and I'll refund their money. I would expect the same. I try my best to describe the knife as best I can and with pics. So far I've never had that situation arise.

Just a side note: I bought a custom handmade knife from an individual who sent me the knife without payment to check out before laying out the cash. He said he would give me a week to check it out and it I didn't like to ship it back! Now that guy has a lot of faith in his fellow man. I sent him the payment the day I received the knife by the way.

[araneae]

Well, I just politely asked to return the knife for a refund we'll see how it turns out.:rolleyes:

[Lord vader]

Make sure you post in the "good" or "bad" knife buying experience threads whatever happens. Assuming the forum has one, most of them do. Might help keep other buyers from doing business with a shady seller.

He could start his thread on this subject.

[araneae]

Update- I received an unfriendly reply to my request to return the knife:
The seller called me a prick and told me to keep the knife and he would refund me. We'll see what happens.

In honesty at this point I don't even want the knife, but now that he has started calling names I don't want to send it back either. I have tried to be polite. This guy seems to think he has been wronged or that I am trying to screw him somehow.:confused:

[Bluntrauma]

Update- I received an unfriendly reply to my request to return the knife:
The seller called me a prick and told me to keep the knife and he would refund me. We'll see what happens.

In honesty at this point I don't even want the knife, but now that he has started calling names I don't want to send it back either. I have tried to be polite. This guy seems to think he has been wronged or that I am trying to screw him somehow.:confused:

Thats sounds like bravado from someone who knew what kind of knife they sold you. I wouls take the refund and send it back. I would also let him know that he can pick up the postage on sending it back. I would still take photo's of the knife in case you need them at a later date. What a jerk.

[Diamondback]

Update- I received an unfriendly reply to my request to return the knife:
The seller called me a prick and told me to keep the knife and he would refund me. We'll see what happens.

In honesty at this point I don't even want the knife, but now that he has started calling names I don't want to send it back either. I have tried to be polite. This guy seems to think he has been wronged or that I am trying to screw him somehow.:confused:Once/if you receive the refund send the knife back......with a polite note. Be the bigger man. As you already know you only have control over your own behavior. "Sticks and stones.....". Once this is over you can look in the mirror and see a shinning face. :)

Good idea to take photos before you send it back......this guy sounds pretty unethical.

- regards

[KBR]

I agree to send the knife back.....AFTER you recieve a refund if at all. Then, run him through the ringer here on these forums as well as other knife forums whom I will not mention here. IMHO

[TheKnifeCollector]

I thought my meaning was clear, I meant he should offer to take the knife back and give you your money back, no questions asked.
If both parties are NOT happy, then the deal should be reversed. That is how I work. I think you should E-mail the person and tell him you are not happy, and want ALL your $$ back. And that you will be returning the knife, AFTER you get your $$$$.. But that is just me.

[ghostrider]

Based on the seller's response, I'm guessing that he knew that he gave you a bad deal (providing your being honest with yourself and us). Aggressive behavior (like you report him demonstrating), is a sign that he is trying to intimidate you. I'll be surprised if he even returns your money, but he should also include return shipping. Most of the few forums that I've bought and sold on have sections for feedback on other members. You owe it to other members to let them know that he is doing this.