Topic: ebay advise please

[devilclown]

I'll try and make this a short story. Sold a used brake caliper on ebay. I start my bids at $1 plus whatever shipping cost. I have a no return policy. So I sold this caliper to a guy for what I thought was too much, but hey, thats the free market right? So this guy gets ahold of me saying he sent the caliper to 2 different shops and they couldn't get the piston out and wants a refund. I write back and tell him thats not my problem and sorry the shops you sent it to sucked and directed him here for advise and possibly a member could do the work for him. He writes back threatening negative feedback and ebay resolution etc.. I contacted ebay about the feedback extortion.

So questions I have are
1. Can a piston be that stuck or is this guy full of crap and regretful purchasing remorse?

2. What should I do, tell him no means no, or what? Heard ebay always sides with the buyer, even if they cant read.

Thanks for any real world advise!

[seanbarney41]

did you describe the piston as stuck in the ebay posting?

[devilclown]

did you describe the piston as stuck in the ebay posting?

described as needing rebuilt.

[scottly]

1. Can a piston be that stuck or is this guy full of crap and regretful purchasing remorse?

Caliper pistons can be VERY stuck. Worst cases have to be pumped out with a grease-gun; 125 PSI air won't budge them. Just how much did you sell it for?

[Stev-o]

Maybe the moral thing comes into play here, do you really want another biker pissed off at you?

What if you bought it?

Not saying you're wrong, just things to consider.

[faux fiddy]

Ii got a  used one that came apart with a minor waste of brake fluid, the MC was as promised on e-bay I assume.  Maybe you can srill blast it apart. Tricks and tips has my homemade tool for getting the seal out. I hear soap and water only,  aND brake assembly lube for reassembly. Avoid solvents around your brake  seals if you reuse them. I do.

[devilclown]

1. Can a piston be that stuck or is this guy full of crap and regretful purchasing remorse?

Caliper pistons can be VERY stuck. Worst cases have to be pumped out with a grease-gun; 125 PSI air won't budge them. Just how much did you sell it for?

Yes they can be stuck, can they be "2 motorcycle shop" stuck? 

So the question is, is this guy full of regret cuz I find the 2 shop story fishy.

I sold it for 40 some dollars plus shipping caliper and junction only, no mc.

[devilclown]

Maybe the moral thing comes into play here, do you really want another biker pissed off at you?

What if you bought it?

Not saying you're wrong, just things to consider.

I considered all of that, came down to the fact I wouldn't have paid that much, and I would have known what I was getting into.

[seanbarney41]

1. Can a piston be that stuck or is this guy full of crap and regretful purchasing remorse?

Caliper pistons can be VERY stuck. Worst cases have to be pumped out with a grease-gun; 125 PSI air won't budge them. Just how much did you sell it for?

Yes they can be stuck, can they be "2 motorcycle shop" stuck? 

So the question is, is this guy full of regret cuz I find the 2 shop story fishy.

I sold it for 40 some dollars plus shipping caliper and junction only, no mc.

based on the current reported state of motorcycle shops lack of old bike knowledge, 2 motorcycle shop stuck probably means working perfectly but we are too dumb to know the difference...I would have spent a few moments un-sticking it myself before selling, otherwise you really just selling useless garbage for a dollar

[scottly]

1. Can a piston be that stuck or is this guy full of crap and regretful purchasing remorse?

Caliper pistons can be VERY stuck. Worst cases have to be pumped out with a grease-gun; 125 PSI air won't budge them. Just how much did you sell it for?

Yes they can be stuck, can they be "2 motorcycle shop" stuck? 

So the question is, is this guy full of regret cuz I find the 2 shop story fishy.

I sold it for 40 some dollars plus shipping caliper and junction only, no mc.

Many people don't know about the power of the grease-gun; I learned about it here, and was amazed about how well it worked. My training back in the early days of disc brakes only involved the compressed air method, which worked fine for normal maintenance, but not for pistons that had sat for decades.
It doesn't sound like an outrageous price; I've paid the same for a caliper, but the piston had already been removed. Now, the guy that was selling the caliper here for the "bargain" price of $700 was a bit out of line.

[tomkimberly]

+1 for the grease gun, even the most stubborn caliper piston can be removed with this method.

Do the math, 2000 PSI vs 120 PSI.

Tom

[2wheels]

Most (all) of the stuff I have bought on ebay is in pretty good shape.  I do contact the seller and ask questions though.
This buyer should have asked some questions.
I sort of doubt the buyer will have any luck with ebay resolution.
I would be expecting negative feedback though. 
My opinion, under 15 $ and the buyer got what they paid for.  Over 15$ and the caliper should be very close to working condition.  ( I know you didn't control the price )  (so it goes back to the buyer and there bidding)

[Stev-o]

$15 for a "very close to working" caliper, where? I'll buy three.

Devil - you're struck between a rock and a hard place.  Maybe suggest the grease gun method to the buyer and supply a link or offer a refund of purchase price, but he has to ship on his dime.
We're only talking 40 bucks here, ot a huge deal.

Good luck.

[Duke McDukiedook]

did you describe the piston as stuck in the ebay posting?

described as needing rebuilt.

That could be very misleading, you should have told him the caliper was seized and needed a rebuild, that would have been more accurate.
Grease gun method if 120psi compressed air did not work should wiggle the piston out.

[jamesb]

be careful on telling him tough luck (figuratively speaking) if he paid with pay pal it could be a bad outcome for you. even if you put not returns, as is,ect ect.. if the item wasn't described as the piston being stuck.but he could have had buyers remorse he looked at other auctions and seen he could've bought one cheaper. but like i said if the deal went down with pay pal good luck.they usually go with the purchaser. i bought a makita battery charger the auction ad stated no returns as is well when i got it the guts where missing out of it.emailed him he said not his problem as is and sent me the auction ad with his policy highlighted. well in his ad he said it was off the shelf brand new should work. turned it over to pay pal they decided with me and sent me the refund so be careful try to work it out with him

[Gordon]

I'll try and make this a short story. Sold a used brake caliper on ebay. I start my bids at $1 plus whatever shipping cost. I have a no return policy. So I sold this caliper to a guy for what I thought was too much, but hey, thats the free market right? So this guy gets ahold of me saying he sent the caliper to 2 different shops and they couldn't get the piston out and wants a refund. I write back and tell him thats not my problem and sorry the shops you sent it to sucked and directed him here for advise and possibly a member could do the work for him. He writes back threatening negative feedback and ebay resolution etc.. I contacted ebay about the feedback extortion.

It doesn't matter if you have a no return policy.  Ebay/Paypal allows returns and refunds based on their own criteria and they don't recognize individual seller's policies.  If the buyer opens a dispute he will most likely get a refund after he's proven he shipped the caliper back to you.  The way ebay works now, it's almost always in your best interest to just do the refund if there's a problem, regardless of whether or not you agree with the buyer.  It's geared toward larger-volume sellers who can take the occasional hit.  Smaller sellers just have to hope the number of smooth transactions outweighs the bad ones. 

[madmtnmotors]

I'll try and make this a short story. Sold a used brake caliper on ebay. I start my bids at $1 plus whatever shipping cost. I have a no return policy. So I sold this caliper to a guy for what I thought was too much, but hey, thats the free market right? So this guy gets ahold of me saying he sent the caliper to 2 different shops and they couldn't get the piston out and wants a refund. I write back and tell him thats not my problem and sorry the shops you sent it to sucked and directed him here for advise and possibly a member could do the work for him. He writes back threatening negative feedback and ebay resolution etc.. I contacted ebay about the feedback extortion.

It doesn't matter if you have a no return policy.  Ebay/Paypal allows returns and refunds based on their own criteria and they don't recognize individual seller's policies.  If the buyer opens a dispute he will most likely get a refund after he's proven he shipped the caliper back to you.  The way ebay works now, it's almost always in your best interest to just do the refund if there's a problem, regardless of whether or not you agree with the buyer.  It's geared toward larger-volume sellers who can take the occasional hit.  Smaller sellers just have to hope the number of smooth transactions outweighs the bad ones. 

I concur. I would start by asking the buyer to return it. Since you're doing this in spite of your "as-is" and "no refunds" policy clearly stated in the ad, I would put return shipping cost on the buyer. If the buyer makes a big deal about it you may have to cover return shipping in order to cut your losses. Once you get it back, a new piston seal and bleeder screw are cheap. If you can free the piston, polish everything up with a new seal and bleeder screw and you can resell it as a "Freshly Rebuilt" caliper. Might double your money!

[CrankyOldGuy]

+1 for the grease gun, even the most stubborn caliper piston can be removed with this method.

Do the math, 2000 PSI vs 120 PSI.

Tom

Not trying to hijack the thread but I don't think its safe to use 120 psi compressed air to free the piston.  If the piston doesn't budge at 120 psi there is a tremendous force (800 lbs or so based on a 2 inch diameter pad) trying to force the piston out, and if the piston suddenly releases I hate to think where the piston and caliper may end up (insert air gun here).  The grease gun at 2000 psi would be must safer as a very small movement will decrease the force substantially.

My 0.02

Harry O.

[scottly]

Compressed air CAN send an un-stuck piston flying. When demonstrating the use of air to pop out a piston, the instructor made a point of how dangerous it could be. I recall him saying that if you held the caliper with your fingers in the way of the piston, you would never do it again. No more fingers.

[devilclown]

Hey all I sincerely appreciate the advise. I'll go the refund route. He says the shops tried air, grease gun and heat and still didnt move. I dont know if I can believe that as i sold another one in worse condition and the buyer was happy, so who really knows. Told him if he returns it in the same condition as when I mailed it out it'll be OK.

Again thanks all for the much needed advise!

[tomkimberly]

Not trying to hijack the thread but I don't think its safe to use 120 psi compressed air to free the piston.  If the piston doesn't budge at 120 psi there is a tremendous force (800 lbs or so based on a 2 inch diameter pad) trying to force the piston out, and if the piston suddenly releases I hate to think where the piston and caliper may end up (insert air gun here).  The grease gun at 2000 psi would be must safer as a very small movement will decrease the force substantially.

My 0.02

Harry O.
[/quote]

That's why I only use the grease gun. To safely use air, one should place a piece of wood between the puck and the caliper body and and wrap the caliper in a rag.

Tom

[tomkimberly]

As already mentioned, rebuild it yourself and sell it as rebuilt for much more money.

Tom

[Raul CB750K1]

I would do this:

Offer the buyer to send it back to me. I would return the caliper with the piston removed, and I would pay both shipping.

If I can't manage to get the piston out, I would give a full refund.

I could not really do much more to satisfy a customer.

[Duke McDukiedook]

Not trying to hijack the thread but I don't think its safe to use 120 psi compressed air to free the piston.  If the piston doesn't budge at 120 psi there is a tremendous force (800 lbs or so based on a 2 inch diameter pad) trying to force the piston out, and if the piston suddenly releases I hate to think where the piston and caliper may end up (insert air gun here).  The grease gun at 2000 psi would be must safer as a very small movement will decrease the force substantially.

My 0.02

Harry O.

That's why I only use the grease gun. To safely use air, one should place a piece of wood between the puck and the caliper body and and wrap the caliper in a rag.

Tom
[/quote]

If you place it face down on your bench or facing a bock of wood on the ground you need not worry about pistons flying around your domicile.

[Elan]

point piston toward enemy