I have a beautiful white-watch-face Citizen vintage Exceed watch that a friend gave me. I sent it to Hurley's Factory Authorized Service for servicing. They checked everything out and changed some gaskets. I am looking at some black-watch-face E510 Exceed watches on Ebay. There are about 5 for sale, all from Japan, and ranging in price from about $165 to $250. There are no description indications of wear and tear or running condition and the watches all look to be in good shape with only minor scratches. Any suggestions on deciding which one to buy? I plan to send the watch to the Citizen Factory Service Center after I purchase the watch.
Vintage Citizen Watch
- Thread starter TinyTim
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Have any of you had any positive/negative experiences buying a used watch on EBay? Do you recommend any other sites that are more reliable to purchase a used watch?
I have only bought an old Seiko 5 rebuilt in India, so I knew the watch was in relatively poor condition to start with. I mostly got what I paid for, a running watch that needs regulation or servicing to be anything I would wear for more than a few days at a time.
If an ebay watch seller has a great rating and offers a money back return that should help minimize the risk. I think it depends on the price, age of the watch model, how much you like the watch, etc.
If an ebay watch seller has a great rating and offers a money back return that should help minimize the risk. I think it depends on the price, age of the watch model, how much you like the watch, etc.
Ebay is the wild wild west of used watch buying. Stillshaving is spot on.
I have bought 2 used with good results. One auto and one quartz. Both Seikos. Both from sellers with 200+ transactions as sellers and 100% satisfaction. Both under 200.00 USD
Watch oriented forums and grey market sellers like Jomashop are often better than ebay in terms of overall quality of the piece and recourse if there is a problem. Particularly at the 1000usd+ pricepoints.
I have bought 2 used with good results. One auto and one quartz. Both Seikos. Both from sellers with 200+ transactions as sellers and 100% satisfaction. Both under 200.00 USD
Watch oriented forums and grey market sellers like Jomashop are often better than ebay in terms of overall quality of the piece and recourse if there is a problem. Particularly at the 1000usd+ pricepoints.
Pfff, bit shocked to read these negative reviews about eBay. It's the only platform I use to have some razor flow. I have also sold about 5 (cheap automatic chinese, Russian and Seiko 5) watches through the bay that were all in perfect condition. As it stands I'm trying to sell two more. I have had both for less than 6 months, but cant find a buyer for a reasonable price. Possible because people don't trust it?
I don't like generalisations, and frankly it's a pitty that there seems to be a negative vibe around eBay watch sellers. I have bought a couple of watches through the bay myself and was always pleasantly surprised.
One rotten apple doesn't make for a failed harvest.
I would say look for a seller with good reviews, read descriptions carefully and look closely at the pictures and you should be fine. But perhaps I'm naive. eBay also has a pretty decent customer support. Pay with Paypal or a credit card and you have an extra layer of insurance.
Please don't just sucker punch all eBay sellers.
I don't like generalisations, and frankly it's a pitty that there seems to be a negative vibe around eBay watch sellers. I have bought a couple of watches through the bay myself and was always pleasantly surprised.
One rotten apple doesn't make for a failed harvest.
I would say look for a seller with good reviews, read descriptions carefully and look closely at the pictures and you should be fine. But perhaps I'm naive. eBay also has a pretty decent customer support. Pay with Paypal or a credit card and you have an extra layer of insurance.
Please don't just sucker punch all eBay sellers.
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The refrain I have heard is when buying a used watch, is to buy the seller not the watch. Which makes sense as the condition of older pieces is difficult for the average person to assess, and it is easy to get taken advantage of. Everyone has a different tolerance level, but I would hesitate to buy a watch of great value from an auction site. I would easily buy something like a used Seiko 5 or quartz as those are lower value and easier to assess. But if buying a vintage Hamilton, Citizen, Omega, etc. how does one even challenge the seller after the fact if it does not keep time within spec or turns out to have had the wrong movement installed greatly lowering its value. The purchaser is in a quandary; do they open the case back to inspect and possibly damage things in the process? I think used razors are much more straightforward to assess and test out. Where a vintage watch is closer to some antique vase or jewelry where there is an incentive to "cheat", maybe not by the last seller but from the seller before them.
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