EBAY Muzzleloading Overloaded With Junk

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Four hours of scrolling Ebay for a couple of small items has me seeing spots and "red". Far too many horribly priced absolute junk, mislabelled, and obvious fakes are to say the least - disappointing. Added to the beyond stupid asking prices sky-high "Shipping and handling" costs, it's a wonder anything listed is ever sold. All I needed was a pair of wedge plates and perhaps a ramrod. I looked at over 900 listed items, killed an entire evening. Won't do that again.
 
Yup, I will have to agree! Every once in a while you can find a gem on there, but you have to wade through a ton of junk! The "Knives, swords, and blades" category is pretty much the same.
 
Four hours of scrolling Ebay,,
,,Far too many horribly priced absolute junk, mislabelled, and obvious fakes are to say the least - disappointing.

It shouldn't be writin off,, refine your search, be vigilante and know the value.
Nobody ever said ebay is the God-send of parts for ML items at bargain prices.
It may behoove you sheriff john,, to become an educated consumer.
If your done with ebay that's great! One less bidder for me to deal with!! ;) 😇
 
If it's anything like searching Facebook marketplace for some item( aside from guns) I feel your pain. Tons of turds, but priced as though their owners are selling rough diamonds.
 
It shouldn't be writin off,, refine your search, be vigilante and know the value.
Nobody ever said ebay is the God-send of parts for ML items at bargain prices.
It may behoove you sheriff john,, to become an educated consumer.
If your done with ebay that's great! One less bidder for me to deal with!! ;) 😇
I typically refine searches but get few results out of the thousands of items in "gun parts", "black powder", etc. so I thought - "look at everything". Boy Howdy, that was an eye opener. I did manage to get maybe a dozen "favorite sellers" to check back on, so it was't all bad. Looks like some take a $250 gun, part it out, and ask/make several times it's original value from parts - which is smart, profitable. same thing auto salvage dealers do and that's ok, fine by me.

But ...labelling/trying to sell items fraudulently hurts everyone.
 
I still look on eBay, in the past its been great for reloading equipment, dies, molds etc, seems like the last couple of years I seldom find what I’m looking for and if I do its priced as if the seller wants to keep it.
 
I use PicClick to search Ebay for double barrel shotgun parts constantly. Filters out and brings forth the available stuff by description. There are two TC wedge plates, wedges and screws for same, black finish listed. Not gimmes, not priced off the scale. Several ramrods, aftermarket and others. Most listers will accept a reasonable offer if you contact them.
 
What drives me crazy, is all the T/C parts pieced out on ebay. I understand that's how you make more money.
I used to do it myself, not any more. If I sell a T/C firearm or any muzzleloader for that matter I do it on this site and keep the gun intact.
Thank you.
 
Four hours of scrolling Ebay for a couple of small items has me seeing spots and "red". Far too many horribly priced absolute junk, mislabelled, and obvious fakes are to say the least - disappointing. Added to the beyond stupid asking prices sky-high "Shipping and handling" costs, it's a wonder anything listed is ever sold. All I needed was a pair of wedge plates and perhaps a ramrod. I looked at over 900 listed items, killed an entire evening. Won't do that again.
Yeah, best to go with the know dealers in BP stuff. Many people on e-bay are blowhards trying to make a quick buck, just sayin...
 
My latest recent foray into the internet bidding world was to replace my Italian Zouave flask for the bird season. My old one served me well, but the sides were gradually coming unsoldered. The idea of 1/3 lb of 2f getting flashed and going off at my side, while unlikely, did not exactly appeal to me either. It was entertaining. I found the same flask in the same condition for around $10. The lister was honest enough to admit that his was coming unsoldered too. I saw the same flask offered as "Italian Antique" for sale for as much as $350 on some sites. Finally I found a slightly earlier version of the same flask in good shape for $9, on another site similar to ETSY. I wrote the guy, he said the solder lines were tight, so I bought it. Shipping and tax brought the purchase up to $17+, but I am happy and good to go. I switched spouts, and am busy hanging this "new" flask into my kit where the old one resided for so long. Say what you will about internet shopping, but I would have searched yard sales and flea markets til Kingdom Come for a suitable replacement flask, wihout paying the $50 for a new one of even lesser quality today.
 
My latest recent foray into the internet bidding world was to replace my Italian Zouave flask for the bird season. My old one served me well, but the sides were gradually coming unsoldered. The idea of 1/3 lb of 2f getting flashed and going off at my side, while unlikely, did not exactly appeal to me either. It was entertaining. I found the same flask in the same condition for around $10. The lister was honest enough to admit that his was coming unsoldered too. I saw the same flask offered as "Italian Antique" for sale for as much as $350 on some sites. Finally I found a slightly earlier version of the same flask in good shape for $9, on another site similar to ETSY. I wrote the guy, he said the solder lines were tight, so I bought it. Shipping and tax brought the purchase up to $17+, but I am happy and good to go. I switched spouts, and am busy hanging this "new" flask into my kit where the old one resided for so long. Say what you will about internet shopping, but I would have searched yard sales and flea markets til Kingdom Come for a suitable replacement flask, wihout paying the $50 for a new one of even lesser quality today.
Interesting; but if I had a loose seam, I know guys who would re-solder it for me. I guess I'd use silver solder, maybe? But your shopping around did pay off! good luck hunting!
 
Well the old closed container instruction that I had in a welding course kept coming back to me. My soldering usually works out, but it is very much experimental thing til it does. That old flask has been full of 2fg for 30+ years, and since there is no such thing as quick in and out with my soldering I would have had the thing hot enough to fry bread a dozen times. Sure I am smart enough to drain the powder out, but you never get the last grain, and I did not want to introduce any water to it.
 
Latest "project" is a Navy Arms Buffalo Hunter from an online auction missing ramrod, wedge, and left wedgeplate which prompted my foray into the morass of "rare", "Vintage", "Antique", "Nos" internet offerings of all things "muzzleloading" and "black powder". DGW,TOTW, GB, AL, GA, - even the Old Western Scrounger and a few others have graced my screen and heated up my mouse in the past week.

Bargains are out there to be found, but just like the elusive WWII Harley in a crate, I stared at a whole lot of sucker bait between them. Judging from my cache of plastic totes, ammo cans, and unlabelled boxes of "un needed but too good to toss" stuff and internet askin' prices, my fire insurance limit is wayyyy too low.
 
I built a TC from random parts and found a few things on eBay that I needed like an under rib. About 10 years ago I picked up a new Rice barrel for $125 (I think) and 4 years ago a new GM 13/16 .40 barrel for $75. On the GM barrel I saw the ad just a few minutes after it was posted or I am sure I would have missed out.

I suspect the real bargains still come up regularly but are gone in the blink of an eye.

Here is where that GM barrel rests now.

squirrel rifle done 009.JPG
 
I built a TC from random parts and found a few things on eBay that I needed like an under rib. About 10 years ago I picked up a new Rice barrel for $125 (I think) and 4 years ago a new GM 13/16 .40 barrel for $75. On the GM barrel I saw the ad just a few minutes after it was posted or I am sure I would have missed out.

I suspect the real bargains still come up regularly but are gone in the blink of an eye.

Here is where that GM barrel rests now.

View attachment 90187
Beautiful rifle. Iron-mounted furniture is elegant.
 
One of my New Englanders has the awful Tupperware stock. i have a nice New Englander wood stock. One thing is preventing me from having another nice New Englander; the wood stock is minus the escutcheons. The escutcheons on the Tupperware stock are different.

i've bought five or six muzzleloader barrels on ebay, all except one had trashed bores and were returned.
 
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