Primarily Petroliana Shop Talk Forums Shop Talk Petroliana Forums Showcase and Stories, Petroliana Sad/MAD day for me yesterday.......

Hello All,
I was the high bidder on a set of Marathon lenses on Ebay, which I was very happy to win at a great price. These would be for a glass body, so I was happy to get them as I already have the matching Ethyl on glass so I would have the set on the same bodies. I already had the regular on a Capco, so I was thinking of my plans for what to do with that one, since I would have a pair of regulars.
Well, I don't have to worry with what to do with the Capco one now as this is what I received yesterday. We'll add this to DB's list of "how not to ship gas and oil items". I had emailed the seller several times with no response on making sure the lenses were insured, which he finally responded he would take care of. I should have taken that as a bad omen. Needless to say, I was tracking the package with great anticipation, and knew it was going to be delivered yesterday. I come walking in waiting to see a large box on my desk at work, when all I spy from a distance is a flat rate USPS mailing box! I was absolutely floored and knew before even picking up the box that the outcome would not be good. Sure enough, I shake the box and all I hear are shards grinding around in the box.
Now anyone who knows me or has met me knows I'm a very level headed, easy going guy, but believe me I fired off the most angry email to the seller I have ever sent in my life. I texted Dan McGuffey a pic of the box and said, hey look at what the Marathon lenses just arrived in, and said I thought I was going to have a stroke, lol. Just unbelievable to me that the seller thought this would be enough protection to send the lenses from South Carolina to Michigan. (Heck, this probably didn't make it out of the post office from which it was sent!) His response to my email was he was sorry I was upset (?!) and that although he had never shipped lenses before, he had shipped glass items this way in the past with no problems.
I guess I learned I better double check with sellers from now on and ask them if they know how to properly ship this type of item. I just get very frustrated when these items have been around for 60 or more years and are destroyed within a few days due to improper packing, and how do I put it nicely, clueless people.

Darin

I feel your pain Darin I had the same thing happen a couple of years ago

Man you weren't kidding when you txted me. Thats sucks!
eBay protection is your friend today. Sorry Darin

Thanks guys. I didn't even open the box until this afternoon because it was so audibly obvious these were toasted. I called the post office and they said to go ahead and open it as they would have to anyways with the claim process so I took a couple of pics for the post.
So here's a question, is the post office insurance the route I should be taking or not? I would still have Ebay as a back up correct?

That's a true shame, as said before common sense isn't that common any more. That seller if any kind of person should refund your money for doing such a terrible packing job .......I would be upset as well.

those lens's never stood a chance,
sorry to hear of your misfortune..

I wouldn't even open the box.....just returned to sender

Sucks when stuff like this happens. But the claim and entire insurance retrieval process is the responsibility of the SELLER! This is the same across all shippers. The money goes to the seller after the claim is completed.

Technically, you shouldnt even have to wait for the insurance claim to get your money back, I believe the seller is suppose to refund your money and then proceed with the claim themselves.

Claims are a pain for both parties... I have 2 that are in process right now, one as a buyer and one as a seller.

That's terrible. I feel your pain. I bought 9 globes a couple years ago from a guy in AZ & even though I told him how to pack them but he took them to the FedEx store to pack & I ended up getting 3 globes & 2 singles.

Remembered those from my eBay watch list. They deserved a better fate as did you as the winning bidder. What a shame the seller was so careless with some terrific lenses. I bought a globe this year and it was a ripple body and it wasn't double boxed from the seller and barely had packing peanuts in it. How it did not break I will never know. I also had been assured from the seller it would be double boxed during my many correspondences. My globe and I were lucky and I feel bad for your sellers lack of respect for history with regard to your great buy being spoiled

I thought about that Thermoman but the gal at the front counter accepted the package as delivered so I figured after that I was stuck with it. If I were there at the time I definitely would have refused delivery.

I agree Kevin.....just a sad situation and I'm sure just about all of us that buy globes on line have had some arrive that we have no idea how they made it in one piece. On the other hand, I have had my share of broken globes, even a few I thought were packed pretty well that didn't make it. It shouldn't have to be, but buying items like this online is almost always taking a risk I guess.

File a claim w/ PayPal & return items to seller for FOOL REFUND Including Postage BOTH WAYS & let them file a ins claim for DUMB A** Packing! Insurance is to Protect the Owner of an item, lenses are not yours till received in condition bought.

Man...that sucks!

I did just find this on Ebays site, for future reference;

Important: If you refuse delivery of an item so you won't have to return it, the item isn't covered by eBay Buyer Protection.

So refusing delivery is not an option if you want buyer's protection as offered by Ebay. I understand you would still have USPS insurance if purchased, but it's better to have either option available.

Been there. I feel your pain. I have lost jukebox lid glasses, a globe lens, gumball machine globes, etc. I always offer to send a package that hopefully will increase the item's chances for survival if I have misgivings about the seller ability to package after communicating with him/her. Dave

That's is not the post offices' fault.
It's the senders,for inaccurately packaging it.He didn't allow any comfort zone around the glass to say the least.
File a claim through ebay/paypal and get the full price you paid including shipping refunded.
Show em the photos when you open the claim too...and open the claim RIGHT NOW..no matter the sender is telling you.

Money aside,it's a shame another collectible like that is no longer in circulation.

What the hell were they thinking??
They weren't thinking!!!! That is the problem!!!
To great pieces of history gone!!!

I had the same thing happen years ago and now if I have any doubt I send my own double box for them to ship in, costs a little but worth it on a rare item. It will all work out I'm sure but there's nothing I hate more than seeing something that's survived get destroyed through someones absolute ignorance, tragic.

Steve, you don't have to be a Smart Cookie or have a Brain to sell on ebay.
A RED FLAG should be realized when Seller states Buyer is Responsible for Insurance

You MUST specifically ask for your item to be double boxed and bubblewrapped!
You cant just ASSUME these people know how to ship fragile items!

I actually send the seller pictures of how the globe / lens needs to be packed; if there is any doubt I have boxes already set up and offer to ship to them to ensure the safe arrival. A real shame a nice set of lenses were destroyed by an ***** who assumed sending glass was all the same. Those who sell "stuff" like paper currency have absolutely no business touching, selling, or shipping glass lenses; these sellers need to stay with their area of expertise and stay away from Petroliana!

Good luck dealing with the post office. I gurantee they wont do anything and if they do, It wont be anytime soon. Im pretty sure they will say the parcel wasnt lost, damaged or destroyed by any wrong doing on their part. Since the box isnt dented or damaged in anyway, they will refuse to cover broken item. Responsibility will fall directly on the person who packaged the item. I would ask seller to simply refund all my money and the cost of shipping. If they refuse. Paypal dispute will be your only option. Everytime i have shipped or had glass shipped it has been nothing but a ***** shoot. So much so that i basically refuse to do it anymore. I had a couple hundred KY Derby glasses i sold on ebay. More than half were reported broken. Then some buyers actually refused to even return ship broken glasses claiming they were worthless at that point. Trust me, i had special boxes and everything to ship them in. You could have thrown the box against a wall and the glass wouldnt break. I felt i was getting had by the buyers. That is a shame such a nice set of lenses was destroyed. I hope the seller isnt a pri** and returns your money like an honest person would.

I bought a reverse painted clock face on ebay. The guy packed it great , put foam on the front of the glass and wrapped tape all the way around the glass. Got the face not broken but when I took the tape off it peeled the paint off. Pay pal did make him give me a full refund

Thank you all for the guidance. I have just finished sending the seller and email asking for a full refund, and if he does not I will be escalating the case to a dispute and have Ebay/Paypal take over the case. I said you and I both know this has little to do with USPS, it is your negligence to properly pack the item that resulted in the breakage. It should not be "my" problem that I am currently out the money and the item, and that he should be the one dealing with the claim, not me.
I said a bit more but that's it in a nutshell. I will keep you all informed what I hear back from him, though I don't expect it will be that soon.
Thanks again for the help,
Darin

MOST sellers WON'T refund postage EITHER WAY, PP WILL.
Seller will blame you for not buying ins on their Lousy packaging.
Start the ebay/PP Claim NOW.

Man that sucks! Im sorry!

Man... I hope this is resolved! I have had this happen before... IT SUCKS! Those were awesome pieces of history GONE.

I agree that is a shame.

I would file a claim via paypal.

I bought a complete original Skychief globe on a gill body off of e-Bay.

The body arrived broken, both lenses and metal rings were perfect. No damage to the box and it was packed well. I didn't file a claim with e-Bay or Paypal as I felt the seller wasn't responsible as he had done a good packing job.

Seller provided me with all the shipping info and I made a claim. The post office refused the claim stating there was no damage to the box and ample packing material. By now, it was to late to file a claim with e-Bay...needless to say I was the one who was out money on that deal. Next time, I'm going to skip the post office and make a claim directly with e-Bay or paypal. I work to hard for my money to be just throwing it out. You can't trust the post office to come up with the money!

Sad! People can be idiots.Sorry to see that.

Dave,
Perfect example why sellers buy ins.! We have all seen how boxes are handled by delivery personnel.

If a seller doesn't mention insurance in the listing, I always email the seller and tell them I will pay for item after insurance is included and if they need to send me an updated invoice, I'll gladly wait. Due to the nature of globes/lenses, I have never risked buying even a single $100 lens that wasn't shipped insured. Like I mentioned in the original post, I sent a couple emails to the seller requesting insurance before he finally replied that he would include it in the price quoted. Good thing for him I insisted, although I doubt USPS will cover this one for him.

This is why I rarely buy on eBay. Shipper accepts all responsibility too, NOT THE BUYER! But when I do I always TELL THEM how to pack it. When I see shipping costs of under $35 I also TELL THEM you cannot safely ship a gas globe for under $35! Sometimes they listen, sometimes not. I got a complete globe in a mag wheel box the inserts were bulging out each side and yes, broken. Idiots!!! Scott B.

You emailed him 3 times asking for insurance...BUT NOT concerned with how he would ship Your GLASS globe lenses? The guy ONLY sells paper currency, HOW could you just ASSUME he knows how to ship fragile globes...This happens over and over again!
I hope others buying globes learn from YOUR mistake!
Good luck with paypal claim because a postal claim is a long drawn out nightmare!
Scott said it best, He rarely buys from ebay, But when he does he ALWAYS tell them how to pack it!!!!

Yes Tom....IF you or anyone else goes back to read my first post, in closing that was the point I was making that from now on I will make sure the seller makes an honest effort to securely pack the globe/lenses. I hope this will be a learning experience for everyone who has read the thread.
Darin

Darin, sorry to hear what happened to the lenses. Hope you receive your refund soon without too much trouble involved. Another piece of history lost. That sucks!!

Thought I'd share an experience I had. It might help others in the future.
I was the winning bidder of a highly valuable gas globe offered at auction. The auction company had never shipped a gas globe before. My biggest concern was how I would get what I purchased without it looking like a broken glass Christmas tree ornament when it arrived. The auction company had told me they would take the gas globe to the UPS store and have them pack and ship it. Having been around distribution for 25 years, just hearing the UPS name was enough for me to immediately take action. At first I tried contacting some collectors around the area in hopes of having it personally picked up and would worry about getting it from them at an upcoming show or have them pack and ship it to me. Strike one. Then I recall reading some where how to pack and ship gas globes, but couldn't remember if it was online or in one of my books. Well, page 25 from Scott Benjamin/Wayne Henderson Gas Globes book, Chapter 7 "Packing Gasoline Globes for Shipment". I took a photo of that page and emailed to the contact I had from the auction company, and also called to talk with them over the phone. They agreed to pack it themselves following the guidelines I had sent to them. The gas globe traveled over 800 miles via USPS with the lenses still on the glass body and arrived DAMAGE FREE! The lenses probably should have been removed, but they had enough crushed newspaper inside the body to prevent any vibration from glass lens to glass body. It was their very first attempt at packing a gas globe and they succeeded, so anyone else can do it too given some guidance and effort.

Must have been the blue ripple body from the Texas auction SS

Keep in mind if a globe is packed properly you can ship these all day long.
Don't be afraid of globes because of breaking. I shipped 15 globes in a month and half time period and only had a hull body break. hull bodies are fragile thin glass and that is the chance you take. But then again when properly packaged they will make it. Body broke but the $5000 lenses made it.

Proper packing is the key in shipping anything! Globes you can't sacrifice packing.

Its a shame, I've lost a few myself last one was a 15" coop with body, the box was only as big as the globe. Probably didn't make it out of the post office. It was a 3 hour drive I should of had taken one way. What I don't understand we the buyer pay for the shipping so it should be packed to our specs. I've shipped some globes to California which is a long distance from Ontario and triple boxed them to be safe from the handling of these shipping companies. Ted

ebay sellers ECONOMY POSTAGE on a Power-lube qt!
Bubble Pad Envelope;

I received notice that my refund is in process and will be completed within a couple days. Thanks to all who posted advice on what to do, I really appreciated it.
For the most part, this turned out to be a positive discussion and hopefully others will learn as I did from this unfortunate happening what we can do to try and prevent future losses to the hobby.
Darin

Darin, I sent you an email.