Buying from online with no return?

[eastshores]

I have been looking to purchase a good mandolin (well better than the sub 1k mandolins) and I've really taken a liking to the Weber Yellowstone Traditional F. I've never held one, only talked to people and read online.

I have found a couple now on ebay.. one of which the gentleman was selling for 4k but he has a 14 day return policy. I called and spoke with him, he agreed to wave his 3% restocking fee because he could tell I am serious about purchasing and not getting a two week rental.

What I am curious about is whether any of you would trust the build quality of a Weber Yellowstone enough to spend 3-4k online without a return policy, if you can see good photos of the instrument and the seller sends a sound clip? Personally a sound clip is better than nothing but I really feel like it would be a gamble. Any thoughts are appreciate, I live in Florida and we have so few decent mandolins in the state that my options are limited to about a 2 hr drive for 3 mandolins, and a 4 hr drive for maybe 4-5 mandolins.. none of which are finished as I would like.

[mrmando]

The general build quality of Webers is not in question, but I would hesitate to buy ANY mandolin, high-end or otherwise, without some buyer protection. Suppose it shows up, sounds great, but you discover the neck is just a wee bit too clubby for your taste, or the neck angle isn't quite right, or there's a loose brace? (FWIW, I ignored the advice I have just given, earlier this week, for the sake of an apparent good deal ... and now I am sweating bullets, hoping there is indeed nothing wrong with the instrument when it gets here.)

Weber will recertify the warranty on an instrument if you send it to them and pay a fee, which might offer you some peace of mind.

[eastshores]

Thanks for that. I honestly wouldn't consider it if it weren't for it being a good deal. I have scoured craigslist and other listing sites and the prices seem to bounce around but this one is well under the average. If I had more experience with what makes a 4g, 7g, 10-20g mandolin I might feel safer in judging the buy. I've found the top names to be weber, collings, givens, and gibson. The seller is a private seller and they did record a sample of the instrument for me, but how much can you tell from a cell phone recording.. only that the intonation and noting was in good shape.. I have no real idea of it's tone from that.

I bought a Morgan Monroe a year ago that at the time I thought sounded good.. but when I got it back home after dropping ~800 on it, and compared it to my friends A model Washburn that is 20 yrs old, I was very sad about the lack of tone. I certainly don't want to make that mistake again and buying blindly online gives me real pause.

[George R. Lane]

Look in the classifieds - Bruce Graybill is selling a new Yellowstone for $3,300. It is new and unplayed and with the old woods. That would be the one I would buy, if I did not already own a 2010 Yellowstone.

[eastshores]

I appreciate that. I will check out the classifieds, I just signed up here today but have browsed the forum before. The one I found is actually under that price. Is there a particular reason why you would go with that instrument? Do you guys think buying an older instrument (the one I'm looking at is an 08) has some benefit in terms of the instrument "opening up" some?

[Nonprophet]

I really don't think you'll be disappointed with build quality, volume, or tone of a Weber mandolin--especially not one of their higher end models like the Yellowstone. I now own two Webers, and I've got 3 friends that own them--anything from a Hyalite to a Fern. Their build and wood quality is IMHO excellent.

However, that's not to say that a Weber can't have issues. I know of one person who needed a neck reset on his Weber (which was covered by warranty) and each instrument is only as good as the care it has received by it's owners....Most sellers here seem to offer a 48 hour trial period, though many sellers on feebay don't.

If there's undisclosed damage to an instrument you buy on ebay, then you are entitled to a refund (because the item description was inaccurate) but you will have to document this carefully. Most sellers with work with you (especially if they have a good feedback rating and want to maintain that) but if the neck was cracked and they sold it anyway then they're probably not very honest people and you'd have to file a dispute with Ebay.

If the only issue is whether you'll like the tone and playability of the instrument, then yes, you are taking somewhat of a risk but i get the feeling here from many other highly satisfied Weber owners that the fit and finish, build quality, and tone and volume of the Weber mandolins is very consistent.

My suggestion would be to try and buy a nice used Weber through the classifieds here--just a few days ago there was a gorgeous Weber Fern for only $3,300 which was an excellent deal. I think the MC classifieds are a friendly place to do business and the vast majority of the sellers allow for at least a 48 hour no-questions-asked review period after which you just have to pay the return shipping and will get a full refund.

NP

[Nonprophet]

I don't know if this Yellowstone is still for sale or not (NFI) but that's a heck of a deal and a gorgeous mandolin!!

NP

[George R. Lane]

eastshores,
No matter which one you buy it would be worth the $200,00 to have it recertified, if you plan on keeping it for a long time. The reason I suggested the one from Bruce is it was built with wood that was cut back in the 60's, which improves the tone.

[eastshores]

Thanks guys.. it's really awesome to have a community like this that is so responsive. I will definitely look at buying from someone in the classifieds. George, what determines from one Yellowstone to another whether the older woods are used? Is it one of the customizations that can be made when they are ordered from sound to earth?

[George R. Lane]

Eastshores,
A few years ago the folks at Weber bought a stockpile of wood from a luthier. Most of this wood was cut 50-60 years ago and was well seasoned. The wood was used in their Vintage models as well as some of the higher end instruments or could be special ordered for a custom build. The Yellowstones have two models the 'Traditional" and the HT (Honey Tortise) the only difference is color and binding. I have a friend, Jeff May, who has HT with the old woods (red spruce top) and that is a killer bluegrass mando. My Yellowstone has an Engleman top and quilted back-sides, it doesn't have quite the pop of Jeff's, but it has a very sweet tone and losts of sustain (I'm not much of a bluegrasser). As I said before if you plan on keeping it for some time the re-certification is well worth it.

[George R. Lane]

Eastshores,
Make sure you enter the Weber contest on the homepage. You might get lucky.

[Denny Gies]

I wouldn't touch it with a ten foot pole without the return policy.

[eastshores]

Done! Thanks for the heads up.. maybe I should hold off on any decisions until after the 15th

[allenhopkins]

I've spent a couple hundred buxx or so on eBay instruments with no return policy, but I surely wouldn't pop for what that Weber's gonna cost, without the chance to send it back if there were issues, or if it weren't what I expected it to be in terms of sound and feel.

[eastshores]

Thanks I think the consensus is pretty clear. I won't be purchasing something without a return policy online!

[JEStanek]

A return policy is your protection. When I did sales I allowed returns with refund but the "buyer" paid shipping both ways and the mandolin had to come back in the same condition it went out. Harping about a "two week rental" on an instrument that will cost over $1-2K is silly. Perhaps he doesn't really want to sell it. "See, Honey, I tried but nobody bit..."

Jamie

[delsbrother]

Have you ever had a return that didn't come back in the same shape that it went out?

[JEStanek]

I have never had a return. It's just nice to have terms listed. It lets everyone know what is expected. I've also only sold a handfull of instruments.

Jamie