Be careful of fraudulent sellers!

[XII-19]

There are many people out there who pry on beginners by selling fakes/clones on sites like ebay.

for example.... this jjscasey.
jjscasey on eBay

- selling a clone innokin 134 and listing it as "innokin 134"
- also selling a clone PANZER listed as "the PANZER by MCV"

Also notice how the seller's pictures are not clear and it is as if some sort of filter was added to remove detailed lighting so they are able to pass them off as the real deal? Honestly, i feel disgusted. Sometimes after reports and discussions with sellers like these.... they lie to me telling me its how they feed their family when they are somehow able to spend money on buying clones and passing them off as authentic also living in chirnside park with houses of an average value of a million dollars. trust me they just want you to feel bad. It just hurts knowing those who really earned their money (possibly on minimum wage and relies on analogues to keep calm through the stress of work) and are helplessly taken advantage of when they could have purchases a clone straight from a vendor at a lesser price rather than what they believe is genuine and a cheap deal until.... they are embarassed.

So lads and laddettes, be careful out there.

P.S. Not sure if this post should be here but i figured it'll help the noobies to spend some time on research before they commit on their purchases.

 

[realsis]

Yes I suggest people to familiarize themselves with what a genuine product looks like and this way they can compare the genuine products with what are being sold. There are usually subtle clues by the way the products are made and you will be able to recognize the clues if your familiar with the product. Take the ego twist for example. Genuine joyetech will have the joyetech emblem etched on the bottom of the products, fakes will not. Subtle clues can help you see if your products are genuine or not.

 

[DEAc23]

I only browsed his page for a few seconds and I could already tell I would never order anything from him, for a few different reasons:

1. Short descriptions
2. Has good feedback, but if you look closer 95% of it is from purchases not sales
3. All of his positive sales feedback are for small items like Blunt Tip Needles and empty E-Juice Bottles

There are definitely a lot of sellers to avoid on eBay, but it's also rather easy to find good/reputable sellers, and it usually only takes 30 seconds if you know what to look for. In other words one minute of research can save you a lot of future hassle!

 

[XII-19]

yep thats true! thank you guys for your input! and thanks for being supportive on this thread.

 

[Mogy]

I like the vendor section on ecf

 

[Jugband]

Great advice! And much needed thread! Thanks for posting XII-19

 

[StrafeMalone]

As a person that has been around the vapeing community for a long time I would really like to suggest to first time buyers (or people wanting to take the next step in mods) to find a local shop that they are comfortable with and talk to them. Their product might be more expensive then online sales, but there expertise and knowledge will be invaluable.

 

[Amraann]

I would not buy e-cigs from ebay.

 

[XII-19]

i agree as mentioned above.

 

[oplholik]

I don't buy anything from anybody w/o a good clear pic. A blurry, or dark pic just raises a flag for me.

 

[BadTrainDriver]

Yes I suggest people to familiarize themselves with what a genuine product looks like and this way they can compare the genuine products with what are being sold. There are usually subtle clues by the way the products are made and you will be able to recognize the clues if your familiar with the product. Take the ego twist for example. Genuine joyetech will have the joyetech emblem etched on the bottom of the products, fakes will not. Subtle clues can help you see if your products are genuine or not.

This isn't necessarily true, FYI.
MVS has their logo on the bottom of the legitimate Ego Twist they sell.
Joyetech Joye eGo-C Twist Variable Voltage 650mAh Battery

 

[PoPoPoP]

eBay takes this fraudulent activity very seriously, so when a fake seller is caught, his account goes bye bye for good. If you know one, all you need to do is to report him / her with indisputable evidence.

Tips on buying things from eBay:

Always look for feedbacks (98~99% is good) but make sure his/her feedbacks are mostly sales (ecig related), not purchases.
But if he has some negatives regarding his / her sales, check em out.
Make your choice...

And on the plus side, eBay favors buyers more than sellers. So, if you've got a fake thing, just dispute it with eBay. Show them with pictures, description and explanation. There will be a good chance that they will send you money back.

P.S if you ever find a seller that has low feedback (positive) that sells items cheaper, ask him / her to take pictures of the items with a paper with his / her eBay name on and see if they are 100% convincing. I don't know 100% about e-cigs, but I'm sure there are stuff inside or outside of items that will prove authenticity or not. Then compare them with the reputable sites and see if the stuff match.

 

[Dayglow]

I stopped using eBay almost entirely for reasons like this, also because it's little more than "Buy it Now" storefronts. The eBay of old is long gone.

 

[SleeZy]

I never ever buy stuff from ebay or our swedish site called tradera (same as ebay but our own)
Better buy from reputable vendors instead.
You might have to pay alittle bit more, but that's worth it.
And when i'm looking for clones i buy all that stuff on fasttech.

 

[Harlen]

eBay have a great return policy .

 

[Kilz]

I sell on ebay, not ecigs, but I know the sites good and bad points. Bad sellers give good sellers a bad name on ebay. Its possible to find a good seller.
Feedback is very important. But its possible to manipulate the feedback score that shows up in the listings so make sure to click on the number of sales by the sellers name. On that page you will see a lot of telling info. Any more than 2 or 3 negatives in a month find another seller.
If they sell hundreds or thousands of cheap items the seller rating will stay high if they have 20 or more negatives. Few people give negative feedback on things under a dollar. Also click on the number in the negatives column in the Recent Feedback ratings and it will show only negitive feedback in the list. Then read the negative feedback. Avoid sellers who dont answer messages or give people problems returning things. If there is a problem you can bet you will have similar problems.

 

[anavidfan]

Buying Vaping supplies and devices on Ebay are all dependant on the same cautions as any unknown site. You HAVE TO KNOW what you are buying. Do your homework and look things up on other sites to see if it is genuine or really a good price.

I went back to the page and I have to apologize. I read the information WRONG.....LOL, talk about not heeding ones warnings..... Those prices were for bulk pieces, not just one item......OOOOPS........

 

[ElmosRevenge]

didn't think of that. Thanks.

 

[punksfirstbeer]

Anyone had any problems with Focalecig?

They're really testing my patience at the moment.

 

[heatedthorns]

Yea! I have faced people selling a normal ego for $50 ! Absurd pricing ...