Listing Valves on Popular Auction Site - UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum

northwind · 10th Jul 2014, 11:20 am

Hello...

A friend of mine's dad passed away a few months ago and I've been left a lot of his electronics equipment. He used to work for Hawker Siddley in the 60s (mostly radar stuff from what I'm told).

Anyway, I have a couple of boxes of valves that I know virtually nothing about and have little use for, so I need to move them on to people who do.

I want to list them on a popular auction site, but not sure if I should sell as "used" or "spares or repair". I don't have a valve tester and am also a little concerned about the safety aspect - I don't want to sell something that's a potential safety hazard.

If anyone can offer a bit of advice, I'm all ears.

Thanks.

paulsherwin · 10th Jul 2014, 11:44 am

Just give an honest description. You aren't able to test them, so say as much. If you have a simple test meter which can measure resistance, check between the heater pins and say that the heater reads good if that is the case. If the valves are obviously used and ex equipment, describe them as used. If they appear to be new, describe them as 'believed to be new old stock'.

You can look up the heater connections here: http://tdsl.duncanamps.com/tubesearch.php

There are no safety implications for your buyers.

Please note that forum rules do not allow you to promote your eBay auctions here.

Good luck

northwind · 10th Jul 2014, 12:06 pm

OK, great - I'll do that.

It's mostly low value stuff I'm sure, but there are a few nice looking pieces.

I also inherited an old oscilloscope (which I'm keeping) that turned out to have a cathode-heater short that had blown the transformer. Fixing that made me think of the safety aspect of selling the tubes untested.

vidjoman · 10th Jul 2014, 12:22 pm

Be aware that the term "used" is described by the auction site as "The item may have some signs of cosmetic wear, but is fully operational and functions as intended." That seems to mean that it MUST work correctly or should not have that term used in the description. Not sure what you can describe a 'possibly' used valve as.

paulsherwin · 10th Jul 2014, 1:05 pm

The important thing is that the description should be honest and clear.

davidgem1406 · 11th Jul 2014, 4:45 pm

It could be described as "Used, working condition unknown as unable to test"

Skywave · 11th Jul 2014, 7:04 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by vidjoman

Be aware that the term "used" is described by the auction site as "The item may have some signs of cosmetic wear, but is fully operational and functions as intended." That seems to mean that it MUST work correctly or should not have that term used in the description.

Which is also my understanding, but if any auction - on the 'Net or the more traditional type of auction - doesn't give you the choices that you feel are adequate for you to initially categorize your item, just list it as 'Not working / for spares or repair'. Then, in the full descriptive test, you can be more specific, e.g. "Only main functions tested". Regular users of any auction who are familiar with such a restricted 'initial definition' choice will simply read the descriptive text to discover the full story.
As an added bonus, should the item, once sold, actually appear to be 'not working', then you do have the safe fall-back position of being able to say "I listed it as "Not working / for spares or repair".

Al.

HamishBoxer · 11th Jul 2014, 7:16 pm

List as untested and no returns.

David G4EBT · 11th Jul 2014, 9:07 pm

If you've got quite a lot of valves you might like to list them as job lots of say five or ten, which people often do as it's a lot of hassle photographing, listing, packing and posting individual valves (assuming that they sell). If you state the valve I.D. numbers it increases the chances of someone bidding as there might be one or two in the batch that they'd like. As has been said, at least if you test the heaters you can discard any that are open circuit which reduces the risk of disputes, and it also means that for anyone who might be interested in that valve, at least they know that there's a fighting chance that the valve may still have some life left in it.

As others have said, just make sure that what you state is unambiguous. EG: "The valve heater tests good, but the valve is otherwise untested as I have no means of testing, and it is offered for sale on that understanding". If there are any other shortcomings such as a loose base or top cap, or flaking paint, you can make that clear too. I've bought about fifty untested valves over recent years, often at keen prices, and they've all tested good on my Taylor 45D valve tester. Had they been duds, that's a gamble I was prepared to take and it wouldn't have kept me awake at night. The only one-off problem I've had was when a valve failed to arrive. I contacted the seller (who had proof of posting) and he immediately refunded the amount in full - just one of those things.

I wouldn't personally bother listing any unmarked valves as they're unlikely to sell.

Hope that helps.

Good luck with the disposal.

GrimJosef · 11th Jul 2014, 10:50 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by vidjoman

Be aware that the term "used" is described by the auction site as "The item may have some signs of cosmetic wear, but is fully operational and functions as intended." That seems to mean that it MUST work correctly or should not have that term used in the description. Not sure what you can describe a 'possibly' used valve as.

Yes. These are eBay's rules. If you choose to use eBay then you must agree to abide by their rules, as with a lot of internet activities (and a lot of non-internet ones come to think of it

). If you list them as 'Used' and they turn out not to meet eBay's definition of what 'Used' means then you will have opened yourself up to the buyer returning them and getting their money back on the basis of 'Item not as described'. They could also legitimately leave you negative feedback for mis-describing the item. If you don't want to take that risk then you must list them as 'Spares or Repair'.

Cheers,

GJ

10th Jul 2014, 11:20 am	#1
northwind Retired Dormant Member Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: London Posts: 7	Listing Valves on Popular Auction Site Hello... A friend of mine's dad passed away a few months ago and I've been left a lot of his electronics equipment. He used to work for Hawker Siddley in the 60s (mostly radar stuff from what I'm told). Anyway, I have a couple of boxes of valves that I know virtually nothing about and have little use for, so I need to move them on to people who do. I want to list them on a popular auction site, but not sure if I should sell as "used" or "spares or repair". I don't have a valve tester and am also a little concerned about the safety aspect - I don't want to sell something that's a potential safety hazard. If anyone can offer a bit of advice, I'm all ears. Thanks.

10th Jul 2014, 11:44 am	#2
paulsherwin Moderator Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Oxford, UK Posts: 27,931	Re: Listing Valves on Popular Auction Site Just give an honest description. You aren't able to test them, so say as much. If you have a simple test meter which can measure resistance, check between the heater pins and say that the heater reads good if that is the case. If the valves are obviously used and ex equipment, describe them as used. If they appear to be new, describe them as 'believed to be new old stock'. You can look up the heater connections here: http://tdsl.duncanamps.com/tubesearch.php There are no safety implications for your buyers. Please note that forum rules do not allow you to promote your eBay auctions here. Good luck

10th Jul 2014, 12:06 pm	#3
northwind Retired Dormant Member Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: London Posts: 7	Re: Listing Valves on Popular Auction Site OK, great - I'll do that. It's mostly low value stuff I'm sure, but there are a few nice looking pieces. I also inherited an old oscilloscope (which I'm keeping) that turned out to have a cathode-heater short that had blown the transformer. Fixing that made me think of the safety aspect of selling the tubes untested. Last edited by northwind; 10th Jul 2014 at 12:26 pm.

10th Jul 2014, 12:22 pm	#4
vidjoman Dekatron Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: East Sussex, UK. Posts: 3,323	Re: Listing Valves on Popular Auction Site Be aware that the term "used" is described by the auction site as "The item may have some signs of cosmetic wear, but is fully operational and functions as intended." That seems to mean that it MUST work correctly or should not have that term used in the description. Not sure what you can describe a 'possibly' used valve as.

10th Jul 2014, 1:05 pm	#5
paulsherwin Moderator Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Oxford, UK Posts: 27,931	Re: Listing Valves on Popular Auction Site The important thing is that the description should be honest and clear.

11th Jul 2014, 4:45 pm	#6
davidgem1406 Heptode Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Sheerness, Kent, UK. Posts: 936	Re: Listing Valves on Popular Auction Site It could be described as "Used, working condition unknown as unable to test"

11th Jul 2014, 7:16 pm	#8
HamishBoxer Dekatron Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: W.Butterwick, near Doncaster UK. Posts: 8,931	Re: Listing Valves on Popular Auction Site List as untested and no returns. __________________ G8JET BVWS Archivist and Member V.M.A.R.S

11th Jul 2014, 9:07 pm	#9
David G4EBT Dekatron Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Cottingham, East Yorkshire, UK. Posts: 5,760	Re: Listing Valves on Popular Auction Site If you've got quite a lot of valves you might like to list them as job lots of say five or ten, which people often do as it's a lot of hassle photographing, listing, packing and posting individual valves (assuming that they sell). If you state the valve I.D. numbers it increases the chances of someone bidding as there might be one or two in the batch that they'd like. As has been said, at least if you test the heaters you can discard any that are open circuit which reduces the risk of disputes, and it also means that for anyone who might be interested in that valve, at least they know that there's a fighting chance that the valve may still have some life left in it. As others have said, just make sure that what you state is unambiguous. EG: "The valve heater tests good, but the valve is otherwise untested as I have no means of testing, and it is offered for sale on that understanding". If there are any other shortcomings such as a loose base or top cap, or flaking paint, you can make that clear too. I've bought about fifty untested valves over recent years, often at keen prices, and they've all tested good on my Taylor 45D valve tester. Had they been duds, that's a gamble I was prepared to take and it wouldn't have kept me awake at night. The only one-off problem I've had was when a valve failed to arrive. I contacted the seller (who had proof of posting) and he immediately refunded the amount in full - just one of those things. I wouldn't personally bother listing any unmarked valves as they're unlikely to sell. Hope that helps. Good luck with the disposal. __________________ David. BVWS Member. G-QRP Club member 1339.