A pointless rant about morons on the internet...

[Wade Lippman]

I have been looking for a ballasted 16' sailboat with a centerboard for 3 years now. There are a few companies that make them, but they aren't very popular, so used ones are rare; and I sure am not paying the price for a new one. In the interim I bought a crappy boat to use while I search for what I want.
A Compac 16 showed up on CL. It comes in 2 models; with and without the centerboard. It is $4,000; which is way too much for a used sailboat, but if is my dreamboat...
I sent him an email asking if it has a centerboard because the posting doesn't say. He replied that there was plenty of information on the internet; I should look it up. I told him there were 2 models. He told me I was an (Admin edit).

Presumably it does not have a centerboard or he would have said it did, so it is nothing of interest to me. But geez...
Just venting.

[Larry Edgerton]

I called on a BMW in Indiana a while ago and asked for a carfax. The guy, a dealer was rude, and said he did not have time even though the add says, "Clean Carfax". He said it would not be there long anyway so I was wasting his time. Okkkkkk.........

So its a month later and the car is still listed. I had cash.

Not everyone is a born salesman.

[Jim Koepke]

He replied that there was plenty of information on the internet

There are no intelligence tests issued before people are allowed to get on the internet.

Some people can make mud look smart.

I often see items of interest on ebay with missing information. If someone gives me static about my questions, I let them sell it without me being involved.

This person may not know anything about what he is selling. I have no idea what a centerboard, let alone know if a boat has one or not. Often with specifications which the smart as mud seller is totally clueless, they might throw out such a comment to deflect anyone from knowing how clueless they may be.

jtk

[glenn bradley]

Alas, these stories and reactions are far too numerous for those of us that were around before the world wide web turned into a giant toilet; you know, the 90's :rolleyes:. Just remember, you can't put it on the internet if it isn't true . . . it says so on the internet. :D:D:D

Sorry for your bad experience and I support your right to rant about it.

[Kent A Bathurst]

I like the bit where we can cuss someone out by calling them an Admin Edit.

I foresee a bright future for that term...............

[Myk Rian]

I like the bit where we can cuss someone out by calling them an Admin Edit.

I foresee a bright future for that term...............


LOL. That's too much. :D

[Kent A Bathurst]

LOL. That's too much. :D

Says the prototypical Admin Edit. :p :p


Myk, Myk, Myk........you can't - you cannot - set me up like that. Low hanging fruit, eh brudda?

[Moses Yoder]

I don't know what a centerboard is either, guess I am a (Admin Edit).

[Wade Lippman]

I don't know what a centerboard is either, guess I am a (Admin Edit).


But you aren't selling a $4,500 sailboat.
This guy was.

It is a board you put down the middle of the boat into the water to keep the wind from pushing the boat sideways.

[Myk Rian]

A removable keel, or dagger board.

[Shawn Pixley]

Keeps the boat from skidding across the water. It also resists the overturning moment of the mast, boom, and sail.

[Wade Lippman]

Keeps the boat from skidding across the water. It also resists the overturning moment of the mast, boom, and sail.

Actually it enhances the overturning moment. With the board up a strong gust will blow the boat sideways. With down the board will stick in the water and cause the boat to heel severely from torque on the sails.

[Jerome Stanek]

Is it his boat my niece bought a house and the old owners left a boat. They have no idea about it and just want it gone. I asked them about it and they said it is on a trailer

[Moses Yoder]

Okay, my brain has very limited memory. I was thinking about that today. A boss asked me to do something in the morning and I wrote it down and taped the paper to my bench so I would know to do it in the morning. I actually know very little; mostly I know where to find out. So I enter into my brain what a centerboard is; what has left my brain? See, I am still a (Admin Edit).

I sold my tablesaw on Craigslist recently for a bargain price. One guy wrote a note and asked if I would deliver it to Kalamazoo. I responded that I might be able to since a friend has a truck. About 2 hours later a guy told me he is picking up the saw the next day with cash in hand. What do you think happened?

[Roger Feeley]

Ha! Reminds me of the time I went into a Ford dealership. I thought I uttered the magic phrase, "I'm going to buy a car today". They looked at me like I was something they just dug out of their ear. I told them what I wanted. "I want a vehicle that can seat 4 people in relative comfort and can carry a 4x8 of plywood". They replied, "We don't think we have anything for you."

So I went elsewhere and bought a vehicle that day. The dealership was closed by the end of the year.

My wife says that I have a super power. If a business makes me mad, they tend not to last. I think of it differently. I am so slow to burn that if a business manages to make me mad, they have already alienated just about everyone else. Such places are on borrowed time long before I arrive on the scene.

[Fred Perreault]

....or it's the board in the middle of my new 3 board dining table that turns out to stain a very different color than the boards on each side of it. Grrrhhhh

[ken masoumi]

Since we are talking about morons on the internet,here's new one:
a couple of months ago I was looking for a used small outboard motor, found this seller who lived in a small town not too far (~40 minute drive),he answered all my questions and I finally decided to buy the motor from him so I asked for his address, he ignored me and kept saying we should meet in a parking lot somewhere,I said no,I need to see the motor running ,look it over before buying it, he still would not give his address but suggested I drive to the town where he lives and call him when I get there!
He was obviously too paranoid to sell anything even though he had my name and address, etc. so I just told him to forget it,I wasn't going to drive that distance without knowing where I'm going.

[Brian Elfert]

I don't blame folks for not wanting to give out addresses with all the warnings about doing Craigslist transactions in public places so thieves aren't scoping out your house or whatever. A number of the police departments now have designated spots for selling/swapping that are recorded on camera. If it is a boat motor and he has a boat to put the motor on you could have met at a lake to demo it.

[ken masoumi]

You may have a valid point Brian but I could also be worried as a buyer to go to a strange town with $500 cash in my pocket and meet some strange guy or him and a couple of his friends ,well, you can guess where I'm going with this but the bottom line is,all I wanted was to buy a motor but after giving my name and address /phone #, I instead was offended for being treated like a predator.

[Jerome Stanek]

Since we are talking about morons on the internet,here's new one:
a couple of months ago I was looking for a used small outboard motor, found this seller who lived in a small town not too far (~40 minute drive),he answered all my questions and I finally decided to buy the motor from him so I asked for his address, he ignored me and kept saying we should meet in a parking lot somewhere,I said no,I need to see the motor running ,look it over before buying it, he still would not give his address but suggested I drive to the town where he lives and call him when I get there!
He was obviously too paranoid to sell anything even though he had my name and address, etc. so I just told him to forget it,I wasn't going to drive that distance without knowing where I'm going.

I was looking for some items on craigslist and we would not meet at the sellers house I requested a safe place to meet as we have had people killed answering craigslist ads here. Our police department recommends meeting in their parking lot it is what they call a safe haven. You could inspect that motor just as well at a place like that as at his house. I have some stuff to sell and I will insist on meeting at a safe haven.

[Tony Zona]

I have an antique sink on Craig's list right now.

One woman responded, with some form of cryptic wording, and I think she asked about the size. I wrote back with the size, but it's right in the ad. My mistake was in answering. It was a waste of time. She wanted me to haul a porcelain sink to a parking lot. Fat chance, I thought, if I break it at the parking lot, no sale. And from the tone, I knew there would no no sale anyway

I asked her to think about having somebody accompany her to meet my wife and me in the driveway.

Three or four days later, I received another response from a different email address, but it was the same cryptic wording. It was like fingerprints. You can't change that language easily. I said we talked before, and if she was interested read my previous response. That was the end of that.

Simultaneously another ad for my sailboat drew a protracted email exchange. I finally said we could exchange information better by telephone, and gave my number. Several more emails and he said he was coming to see the boat. No phone number. I knew he would not show. And sure enough a couple hours before meeting, he wrote an email and said his friend just been to his house and is going to give him a boat. Right.

Then three days ago another sailboat inquiry arrived. He said he'll be in town and would like to see it. He put in his phone number, and I called. Being bitten twice, I was reluctant, but thought I have his phone number. So I made an appointment to meet at the dock.

He showed up yesterday, early, with his wife and he looked the boat over. It was an excellent encounter, and we sat on deck chatting for quite a while. He's coming back to see the bottom when it's out of the water. I'm betting he is sincere.

Another ad for rough lumber was up for only two hours when I got a response and sold it that night.

So, as it stands:
Nitwits, 2; me, 2.

(The two happiest days in a boat owner's life: The day he buys his boat, and the day he sells it. And old saw, with some truth. But I will be sad to see the old girl leave. We've been together since 1976.)

[Wade Lippman]

Since we are talking about morons on the internet,here's new one:
a couple of months ago I was looking for a used small outboard motor, found this seller who lived in a small town not too far (~40 minute drive),he answered all my questions and I finally decided to buy the motor from him so I asked for his address, he ignored me and kept saying we should meet in a parking lot somewhere,I said no,I need to see the motor running ,look it over before buying it, he still would not give his address but suggested I drive to the town where he lives and call him when I get there!
He was obviously too paranoid to sell anything even though he had my name and address, etc. so I just told him to forget it,I wasn't going to drive that distance without knowing where I'm going.

Ah, because he has an old motor, you will be robbing him rather than someone at random. The fact that he has seen your, and perhaps noted your license plate is unimportant. I just don't understand that.

I had someone call me from my driveway to tell he was here. Might have been a prudent thing to do; he was a young black man covered with tattoos and some of my neighbors probably would have shot him if he rang their doorbell. Sale went well.

[Moses Yoder]

I have let people directly to my house that I still own but when I was selling stuff for mom I would meet them in the CVS parking lot in Middlebury (public place) about 5 miles from the house and then take them to the house for larger items if they appeared to be honest. My sister insisted on this. A couple things about that. 1) She trusted my judgement 2) How do you tell if someone is dishonest? It's not like they have a DH tattoo on their forehead.

I think the best thing to do is to trust people until they prove themselves unworthy of your trust.

In the boat motor instance, look at it from the other view. He puts an ad on Craigslist and some guy responds with a number of questions he has to answer, going back and forth for weeks and then finally refusing to meet in a public place, insisting on meeting at the owner's house. He is probably posting a Craigslist thread of his own somewhere.

[Larry Edgerton]

I was about to place an ad for my 67 Amazon on craigslist, now you guys have me thinking twice about it.:cool:

[Kent Adams]

I've bought and sold several items on Craigslist. Only one time did I find someone "fishy". We were selling a car and this guy leaves a message on her voicemail asking to see the car. Something triggered me, my gut telling me there was something wrong, so I called back, left him a message saying I would be happy to show him the car but my wife would not be there. I never heard back from him. A lot of time our gut instinct can be right and we need to learn to trust it more.

[ken masoumi]

I think the best thing to do is to trust people until they prove themselves unworthy of your trust.
That's what I think should have happened although in some places/big cities etc. it may not not be a wise move but where I am(small city/mainly retired folks) is a common practice.


In the boat motor instance, look at it from the other view. He puts an ad on Craigslist and some guy responds with a number of questions he has to answer, going back and forth for weeks and then finally refusing to meet in a public place, insisting on meeting at the owner's house. He is probably posting a Craigslist thread of his own somewhere.
The only reason I insisted on meeting at his place was, the outboard motor had to be tested with water running through it (a pail of water/garden hose) in order to test the water pump,couldn't do it in a parking lot .

[Jerome Stanek]

That's what I think should have happened although in some places/big cities etc. it may not not be a wise move but where I am(small city/mainly retired folks) is a common practice.

The only reason I insisted on meeting at his place was, the outboard motor had to be tested with water running through it (a pail of water/garden hose) in order to test the water pump,couldn't do it in a parking lot .

Why not take a bucket of water with you? Like I said we always try to meet at a safe place even the time I bought from one fellow and I called him back about 3 days later to buy another item that he had he insisted on the safe place.

[george wilson]

I just rode to Richmond the other day in a pickup truck's rear seat. It can carry 4 people comfortably,and a sheet of 4x8' plywood with the tailgate down. It was a Chevy.

Re: Moron; A guy had a Swiss pattern watch maker's hammer on Ebay listed as a "salesman's sample",to jack up the price,probably. I told the guy what it was. His reply; "I never heard of a Swiss watch maker". I replied "Ever heard of Rolex?" You can't deal with idiots and con men.

[Eric DeSilva]

There are no intelligence tests issued before people are allowed to get on the internet.

Some people can make mud look smart.

I was looking at the "Q&A" for some inserts that go in a food dehydrator on Amazon this weekend, just to see if people had tried to use them in for the same thing I was. Ran across this gem... "Sheets are advertised as 14" x 14", what size are the other two sides?"

[Tom Stenzel]

Not about morons on the internet but my newest story on craigslist:

Last week I spotted an ad that had:

2 block planes
2 #4 smoothers (1 Craftsman and 1 Sargent)
1 #5 Sargent jack plane
a portable vise of some sort
some assorted wrenches

For $10.

I sent an email asking if it was still available and if the $10 was really for everything. In it I only wanted the #5 jack.

Turns out the seller was a civil engineer that I had worked with almost 25 years ago and ran into periodically ever since. He sent a message back that it had already been promised to someone, but if he had known I wanted the stuff he would have given it to me.

Which is why if I could still drink beer I'd be crying in it.

On Craiglist I've sold my Trek 520, Mongoose mountain bike ( buyer spotted the Tange tubing sticker in the picture), two tandems, Burley Duet trailer, a utility trailer, Plymouth minivan, and a bunch of other stuff.

A guy drove from Windsor to my front door to buy my Brooks Pro saddle- and didn't even try to dicker with the price. I at least expected him to ask for something to pay the Ambassador Bridge fare for two crossings.

We've bought several bicycles, my Invacare handcycle, Ikea chairs and other things I don't remember. The handcycle came from the other side of the state, I was close to Moses Yoder's stomping grounds.

For the handcycle I told the seller that it would be a cash sale, and he didn't have to talk to my Nigerian brother in law who had 2 1/2 million British Pounds Sterling that nobody seemed to want. He laughed about it.

I can't say we've had a bad experience so far. Except we just ignore the scam emails and anything where the person wants me to send them some money when I'm the one selling something.

-Tom

[Larry Browning]

Ok, call me an old geezer if you want, cause that is what I am. But, I must say it is a sad commentary about who we are as a society if we can't even trust each other to conduct a simple buy/sell transaction without fearing for our safety. What is our world coming to? Sheesh!!!!! It makes me glad I only have 20-30 years left on this earth. I feel sorry for the rest of you though.

[Wade Lippman]

A guy drove from Windsor to my front door to buy my Brooks Pro saddle- and didn't even try to dicker with the price. I at least expected him to ask for something to pay the Ambassador Bridge fare for two crossings.


I put my sailboat on CL for $1,200. A guy 620 miles away wanted to buy it. He said he would leave at 6am, so should be here about 3pm. My phone was in my car and I went out to get it at noon. There were 15 messages from him on it. He couldn't sleep, so he left home at midnight and has been waiting at my boat for 3 hours. It took me an hour to get out there, but he paid me, lubed the wheels, hitched the trailer up and left for his 9 hour drive home. By that time snow was coming down and blowing pretty hard. He thought the interstate that he came on was the long way, so he was going to take lessor roads home. I've always wondered if he ever made it. (bear in mind that I had been trying to sell the boat at that price for 2 months, so it wasn't much of a bargain; I've never understood how it could have been worth driving 18 hours for)

[Curt Harms]

Ok, call me an old geezer if you want, cause that is what I am. But, I must say it is a sad commentary about who we are as a society if we can't even trust each other to conduct a simple buy/sell transaction without fearing for our safety. What is our world coming to? Sheesh!!!!! It makes me glad I only have 20-30 years left on this earth. I feel sorry for the rest of you though.


You obviously don't live in a large city, Larry:). Though I suspect the media makes it worse than it is. There are parts of Philadelphia I'd have reservations about venturing into without someone versed in the 'local culture'.

[Larry Browning]

You obviously don't live in a large city, Larry:). Though I suspect the media makes it worse than it is. There are parts of Philadelphia I'd have reservations about venturing into without someone versed in the 'local culture'.
I don't live in a city at all. The closest city with a population greater than 100,000 is 2 hours away. But there are still people around here that want to meet in a parking lot to do business. I still say it is a very sad thing that we as a society are scared (with reason to be) to conduct a simple legal transaction with a stranger at our home. It's just makes me shake my head. It is just pitiful.

[Chris Padilla]

I've sold a lot of stuff on CL. The largest/priciest item was a car. The woman who wanted it was a few hours north of me and she was trying to figure out how to see it when a stroke of luck hit: I had to go about half the distance to her town because I needed to pick my daughter up from a school-sponsored science camp so we did meet in a parking lot. She left me her car with her 1 year old son it and took my car for a spin. 3 days later she came down to my house with her mother and handed me $5k in cash. It all went smooth as silk and she still texts me every once in while letting me know how great the car is and that it will be painted soon, etc.

I think that was the only time I met at a 'safe place' for CL buy or purchase and eventually, she came to my house anyway.

The only issue I've ever had was when I posted something for free...two guys nearly had a fist fight in my front yard. That was the last 'free' item I've posted. Now if I want something gone fast, I'll put in on for a dollar and when I get a hit, I let them know that they can have it for free. Still no issue that I can think of with folks coming to my house...so far. But the world can be a scary place unfortunately so I understand the trepidation.

[Malcolm McLeod]

CL is like any marketplace, except its 'remote'. This remote anonymity lets people commit fraud. Fraud makes people ask for cash. Cash gets the bad guy's attention, "I can get the sap to deliver the cash."

If you're buying with cash, offer to meet at the nearest police station. If they agree, odds are they are legit. IMHO (Yes, this thread FINALLY sucked me in!!)

[Karl Andersson]

I think the truly dangerous people are few and far-between, but then again, the Internet does seem to attract predators. Baltimore County where I live is mostly working-class suburban, with a few neighborhoods that are better and some that are worse; when buying, I always look at the map to get an idea of what neighborhood I'm going to, and if possible, get the person to talk on the phone so I can hear what they sound like. That has worked when I've sold things too - the items always seem too big to take to the nearest parking lot, so I have the person call and can tell from conversation if I'd rather find somewhere to sell other than my home (hasn't happened yet). Of course, my digs aren't encouraging to thieves and the old Lab can still bark like a hellhound even if she can't walk real well.
I've found that the really cheap things are either sold by people who have no idea what it is worth, or people in a real need for cash. That second group usually sounds kinda weird on the phone, saying things like "um, yeah, it works, I promise" without giving any idea if it's in the "excellent shape" they advertised. They are also willing to have you come over any time of night or day. I have a hellish commute, so I've bought three things on weekdays at 8:00 pm- in winter when it's more than dark. I guess I sound trustworthy enough that the sellers didn't balk at having me come over, plus the things I bought were all working person's tools (ladder, anvil, truck box) - not the kind of thing that attracts thieves who want to grab and run.
The only really weird experience was when I bought the truck box. I could only get the guy to text, and we were meeting at about 8 at his house in a lower-cost neighborhood. I would say that I do not appear to be easily robbed or even attacked, so I normally don't worry (but I do have a nice 4" sapper knife I carry to buys as my "Craigslist protector" for peace of mind) but this time I asked my wife to come along. This was after I finally talked to him on the phone and he sounded a little shaky. In addition to my knife in my pocket, I had my wife keep her phone ready to call 911 and placed an antique Civil War-era, non-working Colt Navy model revolver under her seat in case she had to point it (it has a garishly nickeled barrel - easy to see) if I needed a distraction to escape. So, we got there and it was the only house on the street that had a broken-down truck out front, overgrown bushes, and piles of junk in the side yard. Everyone else had neat yards and vehicles denoting tradespeople (plumbing vans, cable trucks, etc.). As I left my truck (running), "dude" comes rambling down his steps, talking a mile a minute about weather, work that day, trying to find work, how the box is in great condition, hey is that my truck, hey is that my wife - all with minimal eye contact. Dude was obviously on something, likely meth, so I made sure I could see the box from the truck and proceeded to look it over. Tweeker Dude forgot to mention it had been in a fire (only on one side), but the damage was superficial and the dent he had mentioned was not too bad. Problem was, he hadn't cleaned it out, so it was full of junk and broken tools - but he wanted to keep all of them, down to the last socket, so he could sell them for more cash (wonder why). While he unloaded his crap into a collection of empty paint buckets, I went to my wife, told her he was wired, and said just to keep an eye on him. I helped him get the last things out, keeping him in front of me so I could see him, then hauled the box over to my truck and paid him under the street light. After watching him tremble while I counted out the cash (exact amount), I jumped in the truck and got out of there as fast as possible. It was an interesting experience, and aside from not getting murdered, I did get a Weatherguard side-door truck box (retail about $700) for $60, only needed to polish it up, hammer the dent, and spend about $150 on new locks and struts.
My advice, if buying at someone's house, would be to always check the map, then show up early and drive through the neighborhood to get a feel for the environment, and if you feel uneasy, call from your car and get the person to come out before making any decisions.
Karl

[Tony Zona]

Ah . . . I don't need a Weatherguard side-door truck box (retail about $700) for $60 that bad.

I could just see the police roll by my house with a warrant for receiving stolen property. If you had reason to believe it was stolen, you are just as guilty as the thief. (I learned that on jury duty a couple years ago.)

Not you, Karl. That was a generic "you."

:)

[Mike Henderson]

She left me her car with her 1 year old son it and took my car for a spin. 3 days later she came down to my house with her mother and handed me $5k in cash.

When I first read this I thought she left the kid with you for three days:) I was thinking: "Well, that's an interesting way to get someone to babysit."

Mike

[Karl Andersson]

yeah, this wasn't so much stolen as probably someone let the guy have it after they had an accident. I can imagine what he traded for it at the time... but hey, it made for an interesting experience and maybe after meeting me, his life took a turn for the better.:D