I'm looking at machines on Ebay and am nervous about buying. Has anyone had a really good/bad experience buying on Ebay? Has anyone had a machine destroyed in shipping, and how was that handled?

Thanks,
Linda

I'm afraid of the shipping issue, so I don't even look at E-bay.

Look at the dealers reputation and pay through pay pal, they ensure that you get your money back if there is a problem.

Miss MAM arrived with a broken handwheel. Seller didn't pack well. A few emails and pictures later he replaced it.

Just be very carefull!!! When a seller says a machine works that doesn't mean it sews!!! Only that the wheel turns and the needle goes up and down. My 2nd machine needs some parts before she will work. But she's pretty and the price was OK.

I've only bought one machine on ebay and it was a great purchase. OTOH, lots of people selling machines on ebay know nothing about sewing machines, so can't or won't tell you if it's missing parts, etc. It's just like any other ebay purchase - you have to know what to look for, check the seller's reputation, and don't pay more than you would for an item that needs some attention if you can't verify the other stuff.

Buyer feedback is best, and you can check to see what they've been selling. If they don't normally deal in sewing machines, take that into account. If they have included lots of pictures, you can check for missing parts, frayed electrical cords, dings and scratches, gunk in the works, etc.

You can also ask the seller questions, but you have to be careful. Questions and answers are posted on the listing. If you see a real bargain and ask a question that gets a favorable answer, you may encourage other bidders to jump in and run up the bid.

Darren

I have bought two machines from Ebay. My first was my 301A. It came with the case also. The seller did a good job of packing it. Both the machine and case arrived just like pictured. The machine sewed okay, but I still took it to be serviced since it hadn't been used in years.

The other machine I bought was a pink Atlas. It was packaged very well also. It also came with a case but the case had previous minor damage that the seller told about in the listing. It sewed nice also but I later sold it.

If I found a machine I liked on Ebay, I would take a chance and buy it.

I have bought many machines on Ebay and Craigs list. I have not been burned yet, knock on wood!!!

I have bought two embroidery machines off of Ebay with no problems.

I have bought several and had good experiences. It does help to request they pack it well. But the machines were as described, so I had no problems there.

I have purchased 5 machines since April. The 1st was a Singer Sphinx. In case but not packed well. took it to repairman had fixed. runs good. bought a singer FW. packed good no problems. ordered a juko babylock. not packed good --broken thread tree and bent spool holders-he said he thought since it was so heavy he didn't need to pack any better. 4th one a singer spartan-asked them to pack well--not --broken cover on belt and case bottom (that machine sets in) broken and a lot of little pieces in the box--don't know what for. 5h machine has not arrived yet. got a 301 in little case--big sister to FW. Looks good in the pics will see what it looks like when I get it. Have ordered needles in quantity, bobbins also thread everything as described. I have a gold star rating of 10. Leave feedback on all items. In process of Spartan seller to refund my money and shipping. He thinks I am going to sign his ins papers, but I will be going thru EBAY, because I don't know how much he insured her for, and try to beat me out of my money. the other guy is still looking for a thread tree to fit the Juko babylock. She is such a cute little machine. Spent $210 for FW w/shipping, $80 for Sphinx w/shipping, $62 for babylock w/shipping, $61 for spartan w/shipping, $88 for 301 w/shipping. So no reall high prices except FW and that was an offer on it that was accepted. All machines sew like a charm, just some damage.

I purchased a Viking Iris embroidery machine on Ebay and it came in nice condition. Works good. I have just recently purchased a Bernina 180 on ebay and have not received it. I hope it is nice. Will let ya know.

Thank you everyone for the responses. I am watching a Bernina that has one day left. So, I am sweating the decision, push buy it or not. :shock:

Same here, I bought Rosie, my 301 off ebay and she is perfect. I watched listings for quite a while and finally bid on one that offered free shipping. She was packaged well. Every seller has a feedback list and they're satisfaction percentage is listed right under their ebay name. If they are less than 97%, depending on the number of transactions, I will not buy from them. I have used ebay for about 15 years and have only been burned once. Ebay and paypal made it right.

Be very careful of Craigslist. Strange things happen to people. I have had good and bad on Ebay. I always check their Feedback record. I was scammed out of $700 on a sewing machine deal that is still being prosecuted in Florida. Paypal did nothing. Detective in FL has been the best help and he told me never to deal again with anyone from Miami. My money went into an account in Miami and was withdrawn 15 minutes later in Brazil. They have arrested someone and are trying to get our money back. He scammed several in the same day. I did have a broken case with a Featherweight I bought also that seller would not replace. My other Ebay deals have been good. Just be careful.

I have bought a couple on eBay and they're great. BUT I went with "larger" sellers with good feedback.

I bought a Pfaff 7510 from Brubaker's Sewing Center eBay store. Packed to perfection, everything fine. Brubakers has an impeccable reputation. I later bought a Bernina Activa 240 from an individual seller. Poorly packed, but also thrown by UPS, in front of me. Took a huge hassle with UPS-waiting at home 5 days for them to come get the machine, phone tag with their claims dept. About a month to get fully refunded. Longer for the seller. I decided to pay much more for one of the last available new ones. I won't use eBay again for anything but less expensive, mechanical machines, from dealers.

I buy and sell on ebay. I have never got burned nor have I burned anyone. It is like any business there are always a few that make all of us look bad. I did buy one sewing machine that was not packed well but it was a parts machine.

There is a difference between buying from an individual and buying from a business. Most people who have a high end machine keep all their original packing and the box. I bought my Janome 2007DCLE from an individual. The machine was new, still in the box and had all the styrofoam packing. To this day, it is still the best invested $200 I ever spent. It was the Rose O'Donnell machine that Janome made specifically to suit her needs and wants. Everyone in the audience on The View that day was given a free machine. Several were place on Ebay and I bought one. Ken's Sewing Center is a great place to buy machines as well as other items from and he has great customer service.

I have purchased several on eBay. All transactions were pleasant and the items were shipped promptly, packaged well and arrived safely with the exception of one.

The sellers just put it in a box with a few pieces of foam popcorn and called it a day. The machine was very heavy and it bounced around smashing the popcorn in no time. When the cushioning gave way so did the bottom of the case. There was further damage, as you can imagine, to the rest of the machine as well.

He totally ignored me and I had to file a claim with eBay. I won but had to pay return postage. The machine was beyond repair so I think the seller wanted it back out of spite. He had been provided pictures of the damage.

I've bought only one machine and probably won't ever do that again via ebay. Totally destroyed in shipping and I had to file a claim with ebay as the seller was trying to get out of refunding my money. With shipping costs so high, I can ALWAYS get the machine locally for less. It would have to be a one of a kind machine for me to try that again, I think. I won't say never again, but I can get almost any type of machine locally if I'm patient, so why risk it.

Not eBay, but I purchased a white featherweight in its case off the net years ago. Most people don't know how to properly ship a sewing machine. Mine was shipped inside its case (bad, bad, bad) so it arrived with the case damaged from the machine moving inside it. I had paid for insurance, so I had to file a claim with the shipper (can't remember now which shipper it was) to get some compensation for the case. It really was the seller's problem for not packing correctly, but the shipper did pay for the damage.

I think it's okay to buy a machine off eBay provided the seller has excellent feedback. Before ever bidding, you need to email the seller to find out how the machine will be packaged. If it comes with a case, the case should be shipped as a separate package. The machine itself should be "double boxed" with lots of padding. Sellers who routinely ship machines are much more likely to know how to properly package a machine for shipment. Others may be willing to package properly once they understand the need.

Don't buy unless you can have the shipment insured.

i bought one older machine on ebay and the seller did not accurately describe the condition of the machine. i returned it to the tune of almost $30.00 shipping charges but did get my money back.

i have bought many things on ebay and for the most part have been very satisfied. i have sold many things on ebay and had only 1 bad review but that jerk did something to the product and would not tell me what.

when you buy product unseen you will always be taking a chance. but ebay offers you protection and promises to refund your money. so i would say give it a try.

I want to see and sew on any machine I buy so no Ebay for me.

I bought my Bernina 630e on e-bay about 4 1/2 years ago. Had a great experience. I was scared to death. It was sold thru an "I Sold It" shop in Florida. I am in California. It was shipped in the original boxes that were packed in additional boxes. The machine had hardly been used. No time on the Embroidery and only a couple hours on the sewing machine itself. Got a great deal on it. But it was a scary time waiting for it to arrive after spending $2,700 on it.

Thank you for asking this question. I am looking at getting an embroidery machine with a bigger hoop size. Have been looking on ebay to see what prices are like. After seeing all the responses, I am still scared. but looks like for the most part good turn out. Just need to get insurance for sure. I need to go to the sewing store to check them out too. I also found good prices at overstock.com

I have bought machines on ebay. One in particular was a Singer 99 in a bentwood case. It was poorly packed and arrived damaged. The case itself was damaged, and the machine was not working. I ended up replacing the needle bar and painting the machine. It works now.

I did notify the seller, telling him that I could not leave positive feedback because of how the machine arrived. He did not respond.

The last machine from ebay was an early birthday present from DH. It arrived very well packed with no damage.

I bought 3 Brother VX machines on Ebay, 2 were in terrible condition, I had one rebuilt and use the other for parts. The sellers in both cases gave me a full refund on the machine (I still paid the shipping) and that worked out ok for me since they were pretty inexpensive. The 3rd machine arrived in excellent condition. I also purchased a Singer Rocketeer which arrived in excellent condition and 2 Bernina Deco embroidery machines, also in excellent condition.

So all in all, I've had really good luck and wouldn't hesitate to purchased more.

I purchased 1 machine off EBay- a lovely Damascus head. Well- it was poorly packed for shipping so the the base broke completely from front to back through the feed dogs, and torqued the mechanism below. I was heartbroken, but after a bit of pestering the seller refunded the purchase and shipping. Have been afraid of shipping since. I'd previously purchased 2 treadles as pickups-not quite as nice as pictured, but considering the price acceptable since I'd driven over an hour for each.

Check seller feedback. It is there for a reason. Then follow your gut feeling when purchaseing.

Insurance does nothing for you if it's pre-packaged incorrectly by the seller. USPS will deny 90% of insurance claims because packages aren't packaged to their checklist(long and very specific) and will deny most claims. So, be sure to pay via paypal and they will refund your money if ebay won't.

Don't buy unless you can have the shipment insured.[/quote]

DITTO!! Don't be cheap, pay for that insurance. You'll be glad you did!!

I bought a sewing machine from Ebay and it was packed very well and no damages! I think Fed Ex takes better care of merchandise than UPS does!
I have a Pfaff 2140 Sewing/Embroidery machine that I am wanting to sell. If anyone interested, pm me. Thanks

I bought an old Singer awhile back that was cracked when it arrived. Contacted Sellar, ebay, and PayPal. Took awhile, but Sellar refunded all my money and paid for S & H back to him. We left no feedback on each other, better that way.

Sellar blamed Post Office for damage. I looked more closely at the pics and after enlargeing them to the nth degree, I discovered the machine was cracked in the pics.

I am even more careful when bidding on something, but this is the only time I have received damaged goods.

PS: Just curious - what do you think it means to have the insurance? What good is it for?
I had insurance on the above machine, but it was a real hassle. If I had made a claim with the PO (insurance), I had to place the machine in the original package with all the original packing inside another box, turn over the machine to my PO, they in turn would get it to the PO General (or whoever) in my state. At that time, the PO would make a decision of whether the original box was damaged by PO according to some criteria previously set up by PO. If they thought it was, then they would open the box and decide if the damage to machine was done by them. If they decided it was then I would get the original purchase price minus S & H back, but the PO would keep the machine. Yep, they would keep the machine. Now the worst - if they said the damage was not done by them, they still keep the machine and I get no money.
So, I am still wondering what good insurance is.

I have bought 7 sewing machines from ebay. I haven't had any problems with any of them. A few weren't packed as well as I would like, but they still worked very well. I always check the feed back before buying.

Get shipping insurance - can't loose.
Also, my daughter checked prices for me, a sewing machine
30lbs. Was cheaper with ups than the reg. mail, we checked
it twice. The larger package and heavy package. Almost
1/2 the price.

AGAIN....insurance does NOTHING for you if the seller doesn't package it per USPS rules and regulations.

I've bought several on ebay. The first, my Bernina 830 record. No problems at all, and it was from a private seller. I bought a Janome serger, a pfaff serger, an Elna air electronic, and a brother embroidery machine. The UPS guy dropped the embroidery machine walking up to the house.

All in all, they were all packed well and arrived safely.
I did have to have the Elna serviced, but it was like brand new and had been used to little that it was "seized" up. They fixed 'er up and she purrs like a kitten. All in all, I have had good results with ebay. However, I do check their feedback scores and if they don't have 99% or above I'll pass them up. Also absolutely make sure that it is insured.

You do need to check the shipping price carefully. I have bought some machines on eBay and it's been fine. One thing in your favor is that eBay purchases have to be paid through PayPal now, and if you are unhappy with the deal for whatever reason you can file a complaint through PayPal and they will mediate. If you win, you have to return the item, but they will get your money back from the seller. So the risk is really a lot smaller. Just be sure you read all the information, ask questions if you want to, and look at the pictures carefully.

Very pleased with the Singer 201-2 I purchased on ebay. The seller packed it extremely well for me, double-boxed w/ lots of batting and a clean old blanket for padding. She had tried to sell as "pick-up only" in a large cabinet. After I explained I just wanted the machine - already have the old "art deco" writing table/cabinet - she sold it to me, kept the cabinet to use for herself.
She even sent attachments and a fistful of notions 2 weeks later when she found them in the seat that went with the cabinet.
Her hubby accidently cut the cord taking it out of the cabinet, so she replaced that and had it serviced while it was in the shop - overall, I couldn't be happier.
Good luck in your search.

Make sure your seller has stellar feedback ratings, insures the item and is instructed to double-box and pad very well, especially around knobs and presser foot arm.

i brought a featherwight from them good fast service ,but i would check out who seller is you can see how many stars they have with coustomars feed backs i always do