Marketing Hype
Thurs 10-16-2025 9:53 p.m.
I realize that marketing tactics (promotion, etc.) is an important part of selling merchandise on eBay. For example, you may not be able to afford a new or used Ferrari (or Lambourghini), so you settle for a new or used scale model of a Ferrari. Some car model marketer shows up on eBay with a used ("slightly used", "gently used", etc.) model of a Ferrari. There is a lengthy (or short) description of the full-size vehicle, engine displacement, top speed, gasoline consumption rate, etc. It is also advertised that it will be a great asset to your model car collection. The item is advertised as having a few paint chips. So, you purchase the model and figure you can do some cleaning and touch-up painting. When the model comes in, it is described accurately except it is missing a front wheel. So, you tear the shipping box apart hoping to find the missing wheel and there is no wheel to be found. Unfortunately, you have been looking for that particular model for a long period of time. You also know that finding a replacement wheel is going to be difficult. This leaves a bad taste in your mouth because you may not want to return the item for a full refund.
I have seen this scenario played out many times on eBay. What else is new. Having historically purchased used items at estate sales, flea markets, garage sales, thrift stores, auto salvage yards, yard sales, collector shows, etc., I should be used to this by now (...let the buyer beware...). By the way, it is the sales with the simplest signs (made with a paint can or marker pen on a piece of cardboard or plywood) that more often than not have the best goodies at reasonable prices.
However, it is the pursuit of the marketing tactics / marketing hype which bothers me the most. Something is touted as being better than sliced bread, and then you find green mold on the bread.
When I sell something on eBay, I work to provide complete and accurate descriptions of items. Sometimes this is painful because buyers may not bid, or buyers may not bid as much. However, I want buyers to know exactly what they are purchasing, and I don't want them to encounter any surprises. I also do not include information which is not related directly to what the item is. Buyers are not purchasing a full-size Ferrari. They are purchasing a model of a Ferrari. If the model squeaks when it is pushed around and needs some oil or there is glue poured on surface, I think it is important for buyers to know that.
Another thing that I find which is annoying is the use of tape to hold boxed items closed. If you try to remove the tape it may damage the surface of the box. Sometimes a heat gun or hair dryer is useful for carefully removing tape from boxes. I prefer to wrap boxed items in newsprint and tape the newsprint instead of the box. Alternately, a band can be made from paperboard or cardboard and taped as needed. Again, this is to protect the box surface. Sometimes a nicely boxed item will fetch more money than an items without a box. It also bothers me when folks put adhesive-back dots on items for pricing / labeling purposes. Again, this ruins the surface of the box.
Many eBay sellers market items with which they are not familiar. They often don't know the history of an item, whether the item is in good condition or how to repair the item. They say, "I don't know anything about (whatever the items is).
OK, but it is the "flowery" language which bothers me the most. "This item is beautiful." " This item will run circles around the competition." "It will be an infinitely outstanding addition to your collection."
Keep in mind that many US States have been encountering flooding as a result of severe weather. Some US states have very high humidity which can damage model materials or paint. US States with very dry weather (or prolonged sun exposure) may cause plastic or rubber features to crack, warp, dry out, etc. Flood-damaged, humidity-damaged, or heat-damaged items may be cleaned up, repainted and marketed by eBay sellers as something you can't live without.
After years of purchasing used items, I have found that it is the "plain Jane's" who are not marketing experts who appear to be the most trustworthy. They may be pretty good communicators and meticulous when it comes to packaging, too.
I wish you all the best in your buying adventures.
Regards,
ag01
reallynicestamps
·10 months agoAnd then there is AI slop that is totally uniformative.
Sigh.
Well, the AI bubble should burst soon. Less than a year?
articulatedgeared01
OP10 months agoThurs 10-16-2025 11:13 p.m.
Today I went to the local landfill looking for some lumber. There is a pallet pile there and sometimes there is some very nice crate wood in the pile. Such was the case today. A truck wandered in about 4:00 p.m. and dropped off some 10 ft x 4 ft crate bases. The crates were constructed of some of the best 2x4 x 10 ft long lumber I have seen in a long time. I will be back at the landfill at 8:00 a.m. tomorrow morning and attempt to tear those crate bases apart.
What bothers me most is that the lumber will be sized-reduced into chips if I am not able to rescue the wood.
It also bothers me that the long-life trees which originally provided the 2x4's are cut down to make something (that is, wooden crates) which only have a temporary life span before being made into chips.
I have been reading about industry in my State. Around the 1880's everyone was trying to build a railroad to serve various industrial operations (for example, coal mines). As I studied the old photos of the mining operations, it became clear that every tree within sight of the mine had been cut down for railroad ties, trestles, mining timbers, etc. So, this has been going on for nearly 150 years. Similarly, coal has been burned for nearly 150 years.
It now appears that the Amazon produces more carbon dioxide than it consumes. Much timber has been cut down in the western US and the southern US states now provide most of the construction lumber these days.
I don't know if my salvaging efforts will save any trees, but I think the white pine pieces of wood are beautiful and deserve a second life.
Regards,
ag01
roccotacodad54
·10 months agoIf you ever have access to pallets from tropical countries look at them closely. I've found nice tropical woods in the past. A shame to use such beautiful wood for pallets but, that's what they have on hand. I know when I lived and worked in South America the only wood available where I lived were hardwoods. You couldn't drive a nail into most without drilling a hole first.
This practice may be curtailed somewhat due to awareness nowdays but I would bet alot of nice hardwoods are still used for pallets and crates..................
articulatedgeared01
OP10 months agoFri 10 10-17-2025 7:27 a.m.
You are spot on with your post. I have noticed the same thing for years. Alder, ash, willow, poplar, varieties of mahogany, white/red oak, walnut, etc. are being made into pallets. The hardwoods get discarded. On the other hand, too much furniture is made out of particle board these days. Talk about hype.
Too bad that we don't take all of our scrap plastic and make that into pallets instead. I understand that Africans are making bricks out of scrap plastic. The Chinese are experts at taking scrap plastic, processing it into recycle product No. 7, and selling it back to Americans as high-end consumer goods.
Talk about hype.
Regards,
ag01
participatrophy
·10 months agoThe proliferation of particle board furniture and luxury vinyl flooring just got about 1000 times more depressing than I previously thought possible. Meanwhile taking a closer look at pallet wood suddenly holds about 1000 times more appeal. You guys are kinda blowing my mind here. I had no idea. Time to try hunting down some pallets from tropical countries I guess.
Was the rescue mission successful? Hope so.
articulatedgeared01
OP10 months agoFri 10-17-2025 7:08 p.m.
My mission to rescue the crate pallet wood was a total success. I now have a huge pile of 10 ft long white pine 2x4's at my house (worth about $300 if they were new from the hardware store). I also brought home the 2x4 base pieces which were sistered together to make 4x4's. I will tear those down and make them into individual 2x4's again.
Initially, I used my crowbar to pry some of the 2x4's off the crate. I left a space between the longitudinally positioned 2x4's. Then I used a 10 ft long 2x4 like a long prybar to remove the other 2x4's. It was easier on my back and hands.
I have some splitting wedges that I use along with my sledge hammer for chopping up logs. However, the splinting wedges are useful for ripping apart crates. If the crate is upside down, all you have to do is hammer the sharp point of the wedge between the top pallet boards and the cross-support pieces. The top boards come off with relative ease. This is how I rescue 2x12's from large crates.
I recommend learning something about different kinds of wood. You need a listing which shows the name of the wood and a photo of the piece of wood.
Today I needed a 2x4 "prybar." I found a long piece of hardwood which was part of a pallet. The cross pieces or top pieces on the pallet were mahogany.
Another type of wood that I see from time to time is gum. There are some interesting and colorful woods such as ebony (jet black) and purple heart (purple).
The primary problem when salvaging wood is: 1) watching out for nails sticking up out of boards, 2) walking on uneven surfaces (that is, loose pallets), and 3) tripping over metal or plastic packing strap. I suggest wearing gloves and safety goggles.
A dangerous but useful tool is an Alaskan Mill. It is a chain saw mounted on a fixture and is operated by two people. The mill allows a couple of guys to turn a tree into a pile of wood slabs. You really need to watch your hands and feet when using the mill.
Be careful and happy hunting.
Regards,
ag01
articulatedgeared01
OP10 months agoFri 10-17-2025 8:14 p.m.
Although salvaging hardwood from pallets is a useful activity, there are some problems to consider.
Due to the increased cost (value) of lumber, the top pieces on pallets have gone from being 3/4 in thick to 1/2 inch thick. The thinner wood has more of a tendency to split / shatter during harvesting efforts. Sometimes I end up using a handsaw or tree trimming saw to cut pallets apart so I can salvage the wood.
However, the real key to salvaging pallet wood is knowing how to remove fasteners (that is, nails, screws, and staples from the wood). So here are some tips - many of which I learned by accident or the hard way.
Most pieces of dimensional lumber have 6 sides / surfaces. If you don't get all the fasteners out the wood (or make the wood new again), you may end up damaging saw blades when you hit a fastener. It can be very hard to locate fasteners which broke off or are buried deep inside the wood.
There are a variety of "pallet" nails. Some are smooth, some are screw type and some have rings.
Smooth fasteners / nails come out of wood easily, but most pallets utilize screw nails or ring nails.
To remove a screw faster from a support piece of wood on a pallet, I start by cutting out the top boards. This typically leaves a 1-1/2 inch piece of wood with a nail in the middle of it. I use a chisel to chop out the wood, and this leaves the nail.
To remove a screw nail, I use a claw hammer (with a sharp nail removal claw groove) and bend the nail over. Then I turn the hammer. The screws nails have a righthand thread, so I turn the claw hammer counterclockwise to remove the screw nail. You may be able to just pull up on a screw nail for removal purposes. However, the head on the nail may break off or the shank of the nail may break off. If the nail breaks off below the surface of the wood support piece, I use a chisel and chop around the nail hole until I find the screw nail. Then I use a pair of diagonal pliers to twist out the remaining piece of screw.
I used to drill holes around screw nails embedded in oak (as many as 5 holes parallel to the nails). I found it was time consuming. That was when I began to experiment with turning screw nails out with my claw hammer. I have also tried hammering the screw nails into the wood a little bit and removed the screw nail by turning it out. I think that this effort helps break up the rust around the nail which causes the nails to adhere to the wood.
To remove a ring nail, you have to do something that is counter intuitive. You have to hammer the nail into the wood a little bit before trying to remove it with a claw hammer. Once the nail is hammered in a bit, you simply use the claw hammer to pull directly up on the nail for removal.
Many nails are installed with air nailers. If the pressure is too high (that is, above 90 psig) the air nailer will bury the head of the nail below the surface of the wood. When this happens, you have to use a chisel to chop away the wood to get to the nail head. Enough wood needs to be removed to get the hammer claws below the nail head. If you have trouble pounding the shank of a nail out of a piece of wood, try chopping any wood away from around the nail head using a chisel.
If a screw has a head which is located below the surface of the wood, you have to use a chisel to chop away the wood to get at the screw head.
Staples can be very frustrating to remove. I use a variety of pliers to straighten out the staples. Then I tap the staples out of the holes. If the staple is long, I may hold the middle of the staple with pliers while tapping out the staple. Another trick I have learned is to use a long, thick nail and push it through the staple loop on top of the board. Then I can put the hammer claws under the nail and pull out the staple.
Regards,
ag01