Easton Press Resellers Hall of Shame (2)

I created this extention so we can continue to call out and shame the eBay resellers.

>2 wailofatail:

There is market for anything. If someone wants the book now and this is the only copy, they can bite even on these prices.

Two questions, how does one keep up with all the recent publications if a book or books is a must have for a limited edition and budgets are tough to pay for all? Is there a cut off point, or is a second mortage needed?

Add dsjms13 to the hall of shame. This seller sold me a book that in the picture said "signed first edition" on the spine, but the book I received is a different copy of the book, not signed.

> 5
I agree indigosky. Dsjms13 has been on my list for a while now as one of the worst offenders in trying to "corner" the market by bidding on nearly every single Easton Press book listed. Even those he does not win end up selling for far more than they should because dsjms13's bid price can regularly be above market since he expects to sell at a huge markup. Though his strategy is interesting in that every new book he lists starts at $24.95 plus $4.00 S&H, even when he has paid $50 for it. That seems risky to me in the event that someone snags it for the opening bid price (though this does not often happen with his auctions if the title is in the least bit desirable). But there are enough books in his large volume of sales that sell very high (he seems to have a fan base that keeps coming back and bidding on his new listings) relative to what he pays for them that he has enough profit built in to afford a few losses now and then.

Well, as I said before, I think resellers are entitled to do what they do so long as they do it HONESTLY. In some ways the rest of us benefit from resellers since they drive the price of EP books up in value. However, the problem in my opinion is when resellers become dishonest. Look at ebay seller:

greatsharkhunt051977

He lists EP books as such:

London, Jack THE SEA WOLF Easton Press 1st
"London, Jack, Illustrated by Martin, Fletcher THE SEA-WOLF Easton Press Norwalk, Connecticut Easton Press 1979 1st Edition 1st Printing"

A first edition of the Sea Wolf from the 100 Greatest Books! That is completely bogus, since a 1st Edition means something entirely different to book collectors. Also, as for 1st EP printing, I think we've already discussed that this is difficult if not impossible to tell. And he lists the buy-it-now price as $275! Of course there is a make-offer button, and ALL his transactions are private, that way you can't contact the seller and say "hey buddy, sorry but you've been had"! I think other people may have discussed him previously, but it's still important to warn others.

Last year I subscribed to the Great Books of the 20th Century collection. I had about five of them or so and decided to end the subscription. I then decided to sell the ones I had bought. I put them on ebay with BINs at cost, to move them, a couple of them were still in shrinkwrap. greatsharkhunt bought one of the shrinkwrapped copies. When he received it, he relisted it as a 1st edition and jacked the price up to $275 or something ridiculous. Now, there is no way possible in the world to know if this was a 1st Easton printing, it was in shrinkwrap, and could have been printed in 2010. I don't know when the original Eastons were issued, but it was probably twenty years ago or more, so there wasn't even a 1% chance of it being a first.

Sometime last year I sent a question to another seller offering first editon Eastons. I asked how he knew it was a first. Of course he didn't bother to reply, but he did take first edition out of the title.

> 7
"In some ways the rest of us benefit from resellers since they drive the price of EP books up in value.

That is wholly untrue, unless of course, one has finished collecting books altogether and is just sitting around hoping that they increase in value or is hoping to eventually sell the collection someday. I think the vast majority of collectors, including I would guess almost everyone on here, except the eBay resellers trolling for tips and info, suffer greatly at the hands of the re-sellers who monopolize trade on eBay and prevent genuine collectors from nearly ever getting a decent and fair price. But then Wailofatail always manages to articulate this exact same opinion much better than I do so I would refer you to his posts in

http://www.librarything.com/topic/99352

especially, 255 and 262.

>10 wailofatail:

Is this the same edition as the Heritage Press original illustrated by Barnett Freedman?

>10 wailofatail: LOL...rreeeally? lmfao

> 10
No wonder he makes all feedback private. Even his stupid customers must realize they don't have a first edition Jane Eyre when they see a mid 70s copyright date. I wonder what his return rate is?

>13 UK_History_Fan: Any buyer or seller with a private listing or private feedback is hiding something. There has been a recent buyer who is now on that list this month. "spec-man". I have a good impression he is reading and posting on threads for this site complaining about others who he deems as competition.

I agree with the statement misrepresenting a first edition is unethical when it is confirmed a book is a later print, with a price far exceeding expectations.

Well another day, another reseller snatching up BIN bargains from genuine collectors. Though this time I have to wonder where the genuine collectors are since this only sold after its third listing. The auction was for the Easton Press DLE of Ovid's Metamorphoses (shrinkwrapped) which just recently (like the past few weeks) sold out at EP. The seller had it listed with a BIN price of $415 plus $11 S&H, compared to EP's $500 retail price. This set was snatched up within 28 minutes of its listing by c***f (715), which is the eBay disguise for franklinbooks.com. I cannot wait to see what exorbitant price franklinbooks relists this item for.

http://www.franklinbooks.com/servlet/StoreFront

Frankly, I am shocked that it sold for below original price (perhaps that should tell EP something about their pricing on the DLE sets...though most go for well over original price upon sell-out). Even more shocking to me was that it took three attempts to sell. The same seller listed it in an auction that ended Jan 12th with an opening bid of $375 and no BIN price. Where oh where was franklinbooks.com then? I am rather tickled they had to fork over $40 extra for being asleep at the wheel (though I am sure that means an additional mark-up of $100 at least when it gets relisted). The second attempt to sell it by the same seller was an auction/Buy-It-Now combo that ended on January 19th at prices of $340 and $374, respectively. Better yet, where was gilded-legacy or gabrielac or armando-guadalupe or engineer-13? Was there not sufficient profit expectation on this set since the $415, while less than EP retail, still isn't exactly bargain basement bottom prices?

So in this particular case I cannot really complain, the genuine collectors had ample opportunity to purchase at less than it finally sold for. But I bring it up to the group because c***f / franklinbooks.com is one of the annoying resellers that snatch up bargains and bid super high, knowing they can relist at outrageous prices later on. If I actually discover the relist price, I will update the group.

P.S. Another Ovid Metamorphoses (unsealed) sold on eBay in the past 2 weeks for about the same as EP ($503.77). Since I think this is the nicest EP DLE published, certainly the nicest one I personally own, I am more than a little disheartened by the lack of interest / price points, not because I intend to part with my copy, but because it is one of those rare EP books still deserving of a fine reputation.

> 16
Thanks for the link. Those are amazingly beautiful pictures, but still I have next to no interest in this title, and did not purchase the EP version of it. Correct me if I am misremembering, but wasn't it one of the faster-selling DLEs?

I like the fact that EP releases a DLE every month or so :)
If you have around 10 DLE a year, I don't see the problem. It is expensive if you feel you must own every single DLE, but for most of us that pick and choose, it's not to big an issue. I just hope EP releases more obscure and hard to find titles.

>5 indigosky:
Did you leave feedback? Even leaving positive feedback but a 1 or a 2 for accuracy of description greatly impacts the bottom line of these sellers, both directly in terms of their discount (20% off of fees for top rated sellers) and indirectly when and if they lose top rated seller status because of negative feedback (or enough 1s and 2s on their DSRs).

If I had the resources, I'd buy some of these inaccurately described books and send them back for a refund, along with appropriate feedback. That would probably change some behavior.

Well the first order of business is a warm and hearty welcome to new members:

ASTROPI - welcome to the eBay Resellers Hall of Shame!

It is most interesting to re-read some of your posts now that your extracirricular activities have been so convincingly revealed. For example:

> 7 "Well, as I said before, I think resellers are entitled to do what they do so long as they do it HONESTLY. In some ways the rest of us benefit from resellers since they drive the price of EP books up in value ."

And again: > 19 "I like the fact that EP releases a DLE every month or so :)." "I just hope EP releases more obscure and hard to find titles."

Oh gee, I just cannot imagine the motivation behind any of those statements.

Anyway, back to new business.

PTWGASIOR631 - welcome to the eBay Resellers Hall of Shame!

Although your prices are not exorbitant like some of the others we have shamed on this board, the fact that you are selling multiple copies of The Princess Bride for more than Easton Press is charging directly, while it is still in stock, clears your path to the podium to accept your Hall of Shame certificate. Four sales of this title in the past 9 days (with another currently listed) at prices ranging from $63.70 to $72.70 suggests you have been buying up EP inventory with abandon in the hopes of making some quick profit. I pity the poor colletors who are trying to find this book once you have purchased the remaining copies for sale. I wonder how much you will price it for then?

15-16- $895.00

>21 UK_History_Fan:

Coming to think of it hasn`t astropi been the one who has been keen on setting up poll's when asking about who will be buying a DLE when offered from EP?

I must say this leaves me disapointed to read about.

> 22
I forgot to check his pricing after he won the auction and took delivery so thanks for updating us. It is about what I would expect. I might have even predicted $995.

Good Morning Everyone. This is Larry and I am the owner of FranklinBooks.com. Someone suggested that I read this thread because I had been inducted into something called “The Easton Resellers Hall of Shame”. After reading the posts, I feel compelled to respond to the musings of “UK_History_Fan” which I find so intellectually dishonest that they cannot go unchallenged. I gather that the basic tenet of your argument is that predatory book sellers “The Shamed” purchase books at prices that are artificially high because they want to resell them at unreasonable prices either through deception or to an unknowledgeable group of buyers or something else that I might not have understood. As a result of their buying practices, the “serious collector” is deprived of buying a book at a price that would not exist if it were not for “The Shamed”. There are a few major problems with this argument but first I have to separate the part of your argument on deception from what I believe is the main focus of your position. I am a member of the IOBA and run a significant book business. My reputation is everything. Without it, I might as well sell apples from a cart on a street corner. I believe that most legitimate book sellers feel the same way. Suffice it to say, if someone is selling books with misleading information it warrants criticism and should be addressed appropriately. On to the meat of your argument. What makes you think that “The Shamed” are not also “Serious Collectors”? I have never purchased a book that I would not be happy to keep in my book collection which numbers in the tens of thousands. What makes you assume that I’m interested in an instant sale of a particular title as opposed to holding onto a book for 5 to 10 years with the knowledge that my experience and guesstimate on how a book will appreciate over time will eventually lead to a sale or at the worse leave me with a great book to have as part of my collection? Why are certain select titles of the Easton Press any more or less sacred than any other book that is bought and sold in the marketplace? I obtain my books through auction houses, people contacting me to buy their collections, customers, and Ebay. My Ebay purchases account for less that 2% of my inventory. The reality is that if someone wants to purchase books there are numerous avenues they can explore to build up their collections. I’ll take a wild guess and say 100% of the serious book sellers in the world obtain their books in the same way. Regardless of where they get them, the marketplace is a very unforgiving place to be if you purchase books for inflated prices with the hope that you can make a profit in the short term. If your time horizon is long enough and you are knowledgeable about what will appreciate over time, that is another story.

At the end of the day, my major problem with your argument is that I fail to see what is wrong with anyone purchasing something in an open market regardless of their motivation. You are assuming that there is something inherently wrong with buying something and selling it for more money than you paid for it or more money than you think is appropriate because it is depriving “real people” from the obtaining what should rightfully be theirs at a lower price. I am sure you are well intentioned but you might want to rethink your position.

>26 larryos: Welcome to the forum Larry and kudos to you for defending your position.

28- "No one as far as I can remember has argued that any of the people in the thread are trying to sell anything that's not as described, which would be a valid complaint"

greatsharkhunt051977 lies about his 1st editons.

>28 the_bb: Just wanted to add that I've also made purchases and later found out that I overpaid, but I also know that this was completely my fault because had I done my research properly I'd have known better.

And is not a reason to go after a seller. :) When there is a sell, there are always a seller and a buyer. I had over-payed occasionally - mainly when I was looking to finish a set or when I just wanted the book fast. Never regretted any of those purchases. But then I am also the person that will buy a new book directly from the publisher even if it is more expensive (to some extent at least) -- because if I buy the book, I want to support the publisher and that won't happen if I go for a second hand copy...

>26 larryos:

Larryos, I completely agree with your tenet that a free market has no right or wrong price. If people want to pay a higher price than others for something, then they are free to do so. I don't think anyone has accused franklinbooks.com of dishonesty, only of selling at high prices, which you are free to do, as you please. However, this being a message board on the Internet....information can also be freely provided to buyers.

I tend to think the purpose of these threads on LibraryThing (Easton Press Collectors, in particular) are meant to provide others with information about Easton Press books. So, in that line of thought, I will provide some information to anyone who comes across this thread when learning about Easton Press books; as I did over a year ago.

Information for Easton Press buyers: If you are looking for an Easton Press book, FranklinBooks.com is probably going to have a higher price than you have to pay. For example, you could order this used copy of Don Quixote from FranklinBooks for $79.00. Or, if you would rather have a brand new, cheaper copy of the same book, you can order it directly from Easton Press for $45.00.

Of course, this may not always be true; so be sure do your own price comparisons.

Well said Larry, point taken. Agreed

It was intruiging to me a number of the biggest contributors on here who complain about others have one foot in the water themselves. They have an impression all 'serious collector's ' who want to have a return on investment should be blocked or protested in groups. Many earlier comments by a few were quite obvious they were referring to items they wanted, trashing threads about Bidders who crossed their path beyond the limit of competition.

As one would say, it takes one to know one.

I don't think it's fair to "shame" a seller just for putting the price high. If people will actually pay that, there's no reason they shouldn't do it. On the other hand, it is definitely wrong to falsely advertise a book as being a first edition and charges ridiculous prices on that pretence.
Incidentally, does anyone know where I can find Howard Pyle's 4-volume King Arthur set at a reasonable price? Sellers on AbeBooks all have them selling for over $800. I have seen it advertised for roughly $300, but they wouldn't ship to Australia...

Agreed, the highest any person on Abe should offer no higher than $325 for the set of four with the King Arthur, not $800.

Talk about testing the market! Our dear friend over at gilded-legacy-books just sold a copy of the EP DLE The Romance of King Arthur this week for $999.99 plus $6.99 S&H, a book which originally cost $356 direct from Easton Press. Nearly triple price is quite the mark-up, even if it is sold out at Easton. Now he has boldly listed his next copy for $1,999.99! I can't wait to see how fast this gets snatched up by some desperate buyer.

And before all of the secret re-sellers lurking on LT and other short-sighted individuals start piling on, yes he has a right to ask whatever price he wants, but I still have the right to call it what it is: SHAMELESS, SHAMELESS, SHAMELESS!!!!

> 37

I second you. These shameless re-sellers deprive book lovers like you and me from getting the books at a reasonable price. How much our friend from Franklin Books may try to justify his point, to me, he or such resellers are no better than those evil merchants from the medieval ages who would hoard food grains in their inventory just to initiate a shortage in supply leading to escalating food grain prices. They are SHAMELESS!!!

That's an absurd mark-up. There is nothing wrong with capitalism and buying and selling at a profit is what makes the world go around. But this is naked opportunism. Will some one buy at that price? All they have to do is run a search to see the price at which the last copy sold.

Has anybody noticed on AbeBooks there is constantly a listing for "Never Get Your Dog Stuffed (Signed, Limited, Leather)" by Alan Alda, published by Easton Press at a price of about $1 plus delivery? A while ago I decided to buy it because I figured that if it is what it says it is, it's an insanely good price (despite not being at all interested in the contents of the book), and if it's not, I've only wasted $5. I received it and it was just an ordinary hardback. Maybe it's only a waste of a few dollars, but it's still false advertising.

Return it and report them to ABE, who seem more diligent at policing and less motivated solely by profit than eBay. I believe ABE guarantees money back on all items for 30 days.

I never buy something that looks that obviously mispriced / mislabeled because I know it will end in disappointment. Some sellers truly have no clue.

It doesn't really seem worth the effort of returning, given the price.

Maybe that's what they're counting on.

The problem with eBay is that almost no-one on there will ship to Australia, and when they do, shipping is incredibly expensive and it makes it not worth it. I've never actually bought any EP books from anywhere but their site because it's usually not possible to find them cheaper second-hand after shipping, and when you do it's not by much.

>44 wailofatail:

I see this problem on Amazon all the time. I usually email the seller first and ask for a picture or text description. I recently lucked out with a book from a bookseller who informed me the book cost left if I purchased it directly from his bookstore website. I saved about $45.00 :)

Last month bought an EP Superman Classics 1939-43 on Amazon for 69.00 that was supposed to be new and sealed. Guess what? It was. Don't get discouraged. There are a lot of honest sellers out there. And an incredible deal now and then.

Considering I was going to order it from EP for 135.00 I consider half price pretty good. Especially on a newer release. On moby dick or last of the mohicans not so much.

OK, I realize this is an Ebay auction for a Franklin Library book, but as a Vonnegut collector this kind of thing just drives me nuts. (Plus, this guy is selling Easton Press books, so -- technically, I guess -- he qualifies for the hall of shame)
This guy is selling Jailbird as a signed copy. Franklin Library did not issue Jailbird in a signed edition. The "signature" he is referring to is just a copy of Vonnegut's signature reprinted as a normal part of the book. There is no way he could look at that "signature" and mistake it for a hand-signed edition. It's a blatant misrepresentation. Unfortunately, some newbie Vonnegut collector will probably jump all over this thing. Plus, he misidentifies the book as a First Edition Society publication.
Do some people have no shame?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/KURT-VONNEGUT-JAILBIRD-SIGNED-FIRST-EDITION-EASTON-PRESS...

> 50
Actually, and I in no way am defending him, but it is a Franklin Library First Edition Society publication where the signature was only (as you rightly point out) a facsimile of the author's signature on an introduction specifically published only for this edition. His misidentification is both as to the authenticity of the signature and the fact that the title of his auction suggests it is an Easton Press publication. He does appear to be a newbie though based on low feedback. Perhaps you could send him an email educating him.

And the Reseller Hall Of Shame is not exclusive to, though hosted by, the Easton Press group :-) So your contribution is welcome.

>51 UK_History_Fan:
Good idea about the e-mail. I once called an Ebay seller on his authentic, hand-signed copy of the posthumously published Answered Prayers by Capote. He apologized and cancelled the auction.

> 52
I recently encountered two seller mistakes which did turn out to be innocent rather than malicious. In one example, the seller (with an equally low feedback number) listed the Folio Society 3-volume H.G. Wells set for a starting price of $2500. As I suspected, he forgot the decimal and immediately corrected it since there were clearly no bids on the book (alas I still lost the auction!). In another, a seller mistakenly listed a book as EP when the spine picture provided clearly stated International Collectors Edition (I know nothing about them or whether they bind in genuine leather). Though I had no interest in the book, I was in a feisty mood so I contacted the seller and received a very pleasant reply thanking me for taking the time to contact her and provide the correct information. She also amended the auction description listing. So I guess I don't always presume nefarious intent in these matters (unless you are already a member of the Resellers Hall of Shame, then I can imagine nearly any misleading behavior).

.

.

My favorite movie of all time is.......Avatar! Not really.

I hereby add spec-man to the Hall of shame as a buyer. He used to sell a year or two earlier on the same account. I prefer not to complain of any one person, he however has nabbed many items many collectors also were intending to bid on, both buy it now and auction. There is not much of a difference between a pack rat and a buyer who resells frequently when it involves profit. Both are guilty of targeting bargains and taking away from the public. Buy it nows that came up he scrupulously bought underpriced listings, a few I remember were duplicates, with his ID coming up after a quick check at end of sales. One duplicate in particular was the Count of Monte Cristo. How many pure collectors buy duplicates may I ask? If one bidder crosses wailofatail's path one too many times he will become angry. Isn't that right, spec-man.

One does not have to be a dealer as a reseller to interfere with a 'pure collector enthusiast'. If one consistently hoards countless books and targets any deals they have the same result, interfering with others on eBay. This goes for you, Michael.

"interfere with a 'pure collector enthusiast". I almost spit up on my screen when I read that. Too funny. I do hope you were trying to be funny. Otherwise one might offer you some cheese to go with that....

With all the ranting since last spring, it was intended to be funny in a serious way. Wailofatail is in my opinion not a pure collector (I recall at one time by wail for reference to one who will never sell the books even when tempted) he is in my opinion but a pack rat scrapping up bargains and growling at anyone who discovers an item minutes before he can. The term pure collector is non existent, everyone eventually will sell the higher end books who purchases hundreds of titles by EP including duplicates. I remember a number of items spec-man has purchased far undervalued, a number that the seller refused to ship and received a negative for refusing the order.

I might need coffee (lots of it I suspect) but this last exchange make no sense to me... Anyone is after bargains - I would even buy a book I do not want that much if the price is right. So where is the problem in that?

(>56 wailofatail:: I thought I just did. I wish I understood your lunatic mind or that you understood very plain, very simple English.)

>58 wailofatail:: You call me a lunatic? Sorry brother, but I am in no way related to you.

Pure: free from contamination or admixture, free from moral guilt, pure intentions

>64 AnnieMod:: The big part of the exchange wailofatail acts like a dealer and rants about anyone who crosses his path between him and bargains. I discovered multiple times deception with spec-man (wailo)

Nothing wrong with targeting bargains, what is so disturbing are agressive complaints complaining about others who discover them.

The environment on this forum is indeed getting polluted to some extent courtesy this brick-batting. Personally, I don't support a reseller trying to make a fortune on a book and thereby depriving genuine collectors of it.

This term "genuine collectors" is a steaming crock of crap. Everyone is looking for a good deal whether they intend to keep the books or resell them. That's just how commerce works. Nothing nefarious about it. Unless you are looking for a non capitalist society to live in, don't whine because someone beat you to the punch on an ebay deal or are willing to pay more than you are. If I want someting bad enough I will pay whatever that item is worth to me. I would much rather a reseller got one and made it available for an inflated price than it it sits with a "my books are going to be buried with me" collector. Now inflated and gouging are certainly different things and are subjective. No one likes to get gouged, but the recent complaints on here are just silly. "He did a buy it now before I could and I checked. He already owns 2!!!!" Sounds to me like someone was not breast fed long enough. Grow up.

I don't mind the whine. There are genuine, middle-of-the-road collectors out there, I used to be one. But yes, you can't let it eat you up.

Ha ha, Tugar, you made my day. I was thinking the same thing. At first I wasn't sure if this was a joke since no one has seen fit to invent a sarcasm font but as it seems to be serious I would like to add that I think many of these recent complaints are in very poor taste. I'd like to add more but I need to get ready for work. Just wanted to give kudos to Tugar. So, kudos Tugar.

>70 Tugar:

"Sounds to me like someone was not breast fed long enough. Grow up."

Rightly said. Take a bow....:-)

I never said I wanted to bid on the Monte Cristo books, Tugar. It was an example and not a missed item, on all three. Two happened to end within days of each other checking ended listings. It happened to be the same person who has private feedback, the same one posting messages about specific other Bidders online when he missed an item and posted about it with web links. His reference of a true collector is one who doesn't sell any books at any time for growth in their collection.

wails idea between a collector and a so called reseller seems very odd considering his back ground bid patterns and duplicates. I did point out there were inconsistencies with some prior messages. A so called "pure collector enthusiast" is non existent. There is a reason why it was quoted earlier. Any items listed are open to the public, one or two on here post half they were intending to bid on that are known to be worth more, knowing very well they would bid on the same.

I am more pointing to the idea of ones ethical honesty of their speech of what they say and what they do, for or against their own words. That is where the term hypocrite comes from.

Plain and simple for those new on here, Spec-man targets profitable items frequently and when one is bidding against him too often, he will complain about them. Especially if the competitor also has an interest in a profit short term and/or he loses an offer because of the person. There have been some very aggressive comments in the previous thread on the sellers hall of shame. The main reason why I posted multiple comments on this thread, hidden clues connected to the previous thread. If I didn't know better, he is selling the books privately to avoid controversy. Regarding a comment from last year, the personal collection of wail is over 2k volumes. However with an apparent habit of buying hundreds of books each month, there will be a pressure point of either a drop off bidding, or a sell off equivalent to a seller on eBay that does sell hundreds monthly. Sounds more like a dealer complaining about dealers. I can't imagine a buyer who could maintain a library in the thousands and continue to bid on anything that comes up at auction.

You wail are one of the top ten who buy targeted buy it nows for personal and for profit. As of this year there are only a few with private feedback and the idea for privacy, leaving minimal trace of feedback comments on ones you purchase from. With your 2011 comment rants about half a dozen eBay members I am not surprised about your desire to be the best for bidding, and for thread replies after decades of experience in the book business.

It was on but deleted by I presume yourself, I read it clearly earlier with others who in their own words 'envied' would love to match your library.

You admitted being on eBay buying hundreds if not thousands of books within 12 months, duplicates or not, I can only think of a dozen members who match your bidding patterns on eBay. It seemed very odd you mentioned in previous messages you were a pure collector, yet have the experience of a professional dealer. I am not aware of any repeat bargain hunters duplicates or not by your first name in the class I considered skilled watchers. Name one if you can. One in thirty or less are named Michael and another one in a hundred would have similar expertise considered prolific. As an example there was a recent book I wanted to buy (Never intending to sell because of the subject) and you bought the item within minutes once again which I presume you do have duplicates. Frequently your id comes up continually bidding on specific ones within minutes of a listing. Added with your privacy setting and circumstances on the site, it gives me the idea you are not entirely honest with your account(s).

Thread:

How many Easton Press book do you own and how long have you been collecting them?

68: wailofatail
Edited: Mar 19, 2011, 9:43pm ... 1,213, 1,214, 1,215, 1,216, 1,217, 1,218, 1,219 ...

read last year your floor was feeling the force of so many books stacked together. Plus some who commented about your personal collection.

added to I can't think of anyone who would be watching eBay so frequently and post about specific listings. It would be confusing for one to talk so much about it and deny bidding on a number of listings.

74wailofatail
Apr 10, 2011, 12:10am >73 Neil77:: I'm still counting, indigo. Don't be jealous. I've been collecting a long time and truthfully, I don't have a lot of other stuff, including a decent library in which to put my books. Due to space limitations, only about 250 of them are currently on display. As for the rest, imagine 40'+ of floor-to-ceiling, steel, utility shelves tightly packed with EP books with a leather upholstered Eames lounge chair and ottoman beside them. Someday I hope to have a traditional library similar to some of those I admire of yours but for now its Sam's Club aesthetic for me.

128wailofatail
Sep 29, 2011, 12:55pm ... 1,520, 1,521, 1,522, 1523, 1524, 1,525 ...

"I AM SPEC-MAN!"

No, I am Spec-man!

Well thank you for only posting a picture of your tattoo logo and not the acid neutral tights and moire fabric cape! Lol

>89 SilentInAWay:: I love that Silentinaway, good one!

>89 SilentInAWay:: You have to prove it, you know who you are for the real identity. Also, there is a lot to explain why spec-man would deny ever being on a blog site in the first place when it appears that is a false statement. (regarding a message on eBay)

Silentinaway, there is no way you are spec, you're not even from the same State.

You would think that the time tested and revered hobby of collecting books would attract the emotionally stable, mature segment of the populace. As shown, you would be sadly mistaken.

>95 Tugar:: Already have the idea of whom you are Tugar, have a very good idea which ID it would be.

Apparently need to explain more about how this came to a possible conclusion of who is who.

You are clueless in more ways than one. I am nobody. Nobody you would have reason to know anyway. I don't sell books and I buy them on ebay seldom. Only when I can find a good deal. BTW, your grammer, spelling and sentence structure needs serious work. I would suggest you let someone read and help edit your ramblings before you doom yourself by hitting the post message button. There is no need for me to explain that which you clarify every time you post.

Tugar, your eBay ID is Onesixthstuff

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Enough, already!!! Easton and Wail, some of us are getting tired of this. Keep in mind that there are others on this forum not interested in your little feud. Have some consideration for us. -Or maybe start a new thread titled "Continuation of Our Joint Hijacking of the 'Easton Press Resellers...' Thread".

Will stop messaging when the harassment stops, this has gone far beyond what I ever imagined. Seems very childish for any critiscism of others regarding sellers on auctions. Added to accusing others about false accusations. Would rather not be involved with this entire subject and wish others would stay with helping others with questions instead of badgering buyers or sellers. I said enough. Threads related to this thread should not even be allowed, too much controversy.

"Threads related to this thread should not even be allowed, too much controversy."
Freedom of speech, anyone?

Freedom of speech is one thing, personal attacks on another are something else. Even then, no one is saying you can't make make personal attacks on another, but expect the rest of society, who are offended by such behavior, to shun you. When I went to school, such behavior would send the offending parties to the cloakroom.

I'm not defending their saying of some of the things they have been saying, but to then decide that people should not even be allowed to discuss a topic because it could lead to that sort of thing...

It seemed an appropriate time to restart this thread since with the passing of Margaret Thatcher it was inevitable that the Easton Press reseller vultures would begin circling her corpse looking for an unseemly profit. They showed their colors a bit last week with Roger Ebert, but these opportunists are truly spectacular and worthy of public shame. Lady Thatcher (of whom I am not a fan politically, though I do respect her accomplishments and her breaking the glass ceiling in British politics) personally signed at least four different books published in an Easton Press edition. I list them below as well as their price ranges (average) over the past several years:

Downing Street Years (1993) - $134 to $542 ($263)
Path To Power (1995) - $133 to $313 ($224)
Collected Speeches (1997) - $267 to $310 ($288)
Statecraft (2002) - $91 to $310 ($174)

If you check out the US version of eBay, you will find the following outrageous prices:

$2,490 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/Signed-MARGARET-THATCHER-Easton-Press-Leather-Bound-Coll...
$995 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/MARGARET-THATCHER-BOOK-PATH-TO-POWER-HAND-SIGNED-EASTON-...
$921 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/MARGARET-THATCHER-STATECRAFT-SIGNED-EASTON-PRESS-ED-1ST-...
$875 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/Signed-MARGARET-THATCHER-Easton-Press-BOOK-DOWNING-STREE...
$844 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/MARGARET-THATCHER-STATECRAFT-SIGNED-EASTON-PRESS-ED-1ST-...
$766 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/Statecraft-By-Margaret-Thatcher-SIGNED-Easton-Press-Leat...
$595 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/Signed-MARGARET-THATCHER-1st-Easton-Press-Sealed-BOOK-ST...
$499 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/Margaret-Thatcher-The-Path-to-Power-leather-signed-2129-...
$499 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/Signed-Margaret-Thatcher-Easton-Press-Book-STATECRAFT-/2...
$425 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/EASTON-PRESS-MARGARET-THATCHER-SIGNED-STATECRAFT-SEALED-...
$420 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/Signed-MARGARET-THATCHER-Easton-Press-Leather-Bound-Coll...
$400 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/Margaret-Thatcher-The-Path-to-Power-leather-signed-2129-...
$399 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/Easton-Press-STATECRAFT-Margaret-Thatcher-SIGNED-SEALED-...
$388 - http://www.ebay.com/itm/Margaret-Thatcher-signed-Easton-Press-Book-Statecraft-/1...

And here I thought we left the ambulance chasing to the lawyers!

Half the items that sell on eBay are likely fake buys, I don't trust one third of the ended listings with bids. There are a number of ended items that don't match prior postings for quality and price.

As a note, this includes you spec-man; Do not post defamation comments that you will regret. Making up stories / criminal records was a severe problem last year and I do insist deleting comments that had nothing to do with the thread. If you delete your offensive posting I will delete my response I had to post to explain why it was 100% false. I have yet to hear from you after sending a message on eBay requesting a reply to clear up the problem. The HOS thread is to point out outrageous, high priced, above average listings It is not about badgering your competition and portray yourself as 'only' a buyer, when you know it is untrue.

Gabrielac, our friendly neighborhood eBay notorious reseller/price gouger, recently purchased the EP DLE Picturesque America at auction for $457.55. It was still shrink-wrapped and obviously a little less than EP's direct purchase price of $580. Any guess as to how much he will list it for? I'm thinking he'll start at $999, but it would not surprise me if he actually goes even higher since he is also selling the still available Les Miserable 5-volume set for $1,750 (but, hey, he'll entertain your best offer!). As a joke, I'm almost tempted to offer him exactly the $645 that EP is charging.

Called EP customer service on July 1, was told Les Miserable sold out on June 21. Checked with Danbury Mint UK, still available in UK but they will not ship to USA.

I wanted to commend the fine people here who have taken the time to call out the unsavory and sometimes unethical practices of some booksellers. I am a bookseller (as well as an erstwhile author of Easton and other price guides) and it galls me to see the misrepresentation of "First Edition First Printing" books.

I blogged about this and received a good deal of push-back from my colleagues, mostly via private messages:

http://collectedfirsts.com/?p=70

I think that there is a good deal of confusion about this among booksellers, who are simply playing follow-the-leader, and the shameful resellers attract imitators because of their obvious (financial) success.

greatsharkhunt is notorious for posting prices 'twenty times' higher than normal, I do consider it highly unethical and dishonest.
Example; Mystery Edwin Drood Franklin Library w/faux leather from a series $8-12 retail, greatsharkhunt's store priced at $225/best offer.

As for LT/eBay members, I find it not unsual for a few to post hypocritical comments when they are targeting the same items constantly, that includes books they already purchased multiple times. I do suspect a few own or consign at a book store down their street, or as always online selling their duplicates in a private manner.

>120 EastonQuality: What is hypocritical about bargain-hunting? Unless they are using duplicitous tactics *selling* their books, where is the hypocrisy?

The hypocrisy here is referring to those who complain about bargain hunters considerably when they are in fact one of the biggest around. There are a few that do exactly what they are against and critique about it on many levels, many times ignoring their own rules. Basically, a bookstore owner complaining about all competitors he comes across.

Aren't we all bargain hunters? If I want a book and there are more than one to choose from in conditions acceptable to me, I'll likely choose the least expensive one. Wouldn't you?

I haven't seen any post here stating how excited they were to have finally had the honor of purchasing an outrageously priced fake 1st edition from greatsharkhunt or anything. While I find greatsharkhunt annoying and wish I could filter him out of searches, it is a free market and if an impatient, uninformed, wealthy spender wants to feed that fire, what business is it of ours? Although, if his false advertising (1st, 1st, 1st) is truly affecting book prices across the board, then it is an issue for us. Is there any possible recourse with eBay? Or is the only way to stop his tactics to buy his books and then file complaints to eBay about false advertising? (Collect enough complaints, maybe they'll slap him...)

Stockpiling the same book is a different issue. The person could be a hoarder, a reseller (trying to influence supply), or just looking for the one in perfect condition. In any case, I'm patient and EP printed enough copies of everything I'd ever want, so eventually I'll have opportunities to grab the rare stuff and fair prices. I've got more than I can read to keep me busy in the mean time...

I find it hard to believe that people are really this stupid. Greatsharkhunt051977 is still lying about his listings, claiming this as a First Edition, First Printing. And some fool snapped it up for $578.95. Not even shrink-wrapped, and not even free shipping. Unbelievable.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Fitzgerald-F-Scott-THE-GREAT-GATSBY-Easton-Press-1st-Edi...

Speaking of which, how does one filter out specific users from searches? I'm sick of greatsharkhunt and a few others showing up in my searches. Their posts just waste my time. I know I can filter keywords with a minus (-) but it doesn't seem to work on user names. Any ideas?

>125 treereader: You can use the advanced search and include the 'Exclude' or 'Include' option for sellers.

As for greatsharkhunt $550+ for a book of Great Gatsby is insane, you can bet if one brought the book to a professional bookstore and mentioned the offer they would shake their head in disbelief. Would not be surprised of most potential buyers with direct previous purchases from Easton Press offering no more than $35. You can bet greatshark has many complaints in his mail box and to eBay complaint department.

> 124-126

His name says it all - he's a predator.

His ebay feedback is largely positive. Only one buyer in the last 6 months has posted a negative complaining that the book was not a first edition/ first print. He has a lot of feedback as a buyer from Guilded Legacy. He probably buys overpriced books from him then has to sell at an even higher mark up to get his money back. These guys feed of each other.

Depressing how naive so many purchasers are on ebay.

> 127
Depressing only until I get around to actually culling my overstuffed library of unwanted books. I will sell superfluous Easton Press books all day every day if I can get $575 a pop for them!

I am surprised not more have left a negative, the books are obviously reprints printed decades after the originals. First publication of Easton I also highly doubt that; paper quality, leather binding and title date page should have given this away.

Theory:
Gilded Legacy sells a lot of sealed books - unscathed, so to speak. Not a huge proportion of shark's books seem to be sealed, though. Perhaps shark is modifying the books - matching the typeface and printing something to indicate a 1st edition. Unenlightened buyers would assume the text is authentic and leave positive feedback.

>126 EastonQuality: Thanks for the tip. I'll try that.

I'm pretty new to book collecting and I recently found greatsharkhunt051977 selling The Adventures of Tom Sawyer first ed. for $50. Who in their right mind would sell a book like that for 50 dollars. I decided to dig around and found this message board and thought I'd add that this must be fraud. It's so fishy...

I just wanted to add a comment about the "first edition" issue on ebay. There is a pull-down for one field that only has about 3 options, one of them being "First Edition". It isn't verified, and sellers are encouraged to fill in these fields so people can "find" their listings. Almost every book I see listed is marked as first edition, which is just meaningless. I wanted to point out that it wasn't necessarily the sellers' intent to be deceiving, they are just choosing from the limited options that are available. Ebay is certainly not the best place to buy/sell a lot of things, especially collector's items.

>133 Emmijay: But you don't actually have to check the first edition box. It's a choice made by the seller. I'm not sure how misrepresenting an item could help bidders find what they are really looking for. Intentionally or not, they are drawing uneducated bidders in to their auctions based on an inaccurate description. Those options are for special edition books; if yours doesn't fit the description, there is no need to select from them. Also, the Easton sellers I have seen stating their books as firsts actually type in "First Edition" into the listing title—they are not just checking a box.

The pull down isn't the issue. Out right saying 1st edition 1st printing in the title is.

> 135

Exactly. In the Great Gatsby listing linked by UK History he repeats "First Edition, First Printing" in the item title and in the text description.

You can bet his response is one of three or all of them; "If one doesn't do their research it's not my problem", "Lies happen online all the time, why should I worry about what is posted?" and "1st ed 1st printing posted refers to the publisher and not the original".

It is a mystery on how the store can stay on, the 10k items in greatshark's inventory with at least 10 fold above retail per volume is unreal.

"IF" he would add the word "thus" to First Edition First Printing, then it would be acceptable, if, in fact there was any way to determine first printings on common Eastons, which of course we have talked about here many times, and there is no sure way. Of course with most of them still in shrinkwrap, he certainly can not look at copyright pages etc. in order to determine printing. Of course this is his excuse with the common books, no one can ascertain which printing it is, so who is to say it isn't a first print.

Egad! The misrepresenting of Easton Press books disease appears to be catching. Either that, or Greatsharkhunt also sells under other names, entirely possible. Here is a listing for the Easton Press Collector's Library of Famous Editions version of Dostoevsky's The Idiot, listed misleadingly and incorrectly as a "1st Edition, 1st Printing" for a mere $349!!! Moreover, it has an attached bookplate to the faux silk moire endpapers and possibly even some color fading on those same endpapers, judging from the pictures. The seller name is "gilty01" which is as appropriate a seller name as "greatsharkhunt." AVOID!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/130989386962

Is there a way to block an eBay seller's items from appearing in your searches because I am tired of having to skip past a page of $275.00 false First Edition, First Prints from greatsharkhunt051977.

I found that you can add multiple sellers to the exclude list, separating them with commas. Be sure to spell the whole name. Shark's damn name is so long it truncates on my screen. Also be sure to use the user id and not the store front name.

Please check this scammer on ebay. His User ID is: rare-book-cellar. He consistently receives the highest prices on ebay for Easton Press books by calling them 1st Edition First Printing. I have reported him to ebay by filing reports on individual auctions; as well as having a long and in depth phone call, where the ebay trust and safety agent understood about the 1st ed 1st print problem and is going to take action; though if more folks like you also complain, we might be able to eradicate people like rare-book-cellar from ebay. Also Rare Book Cellar is the name of his business in Nyack or Pomona New York. Google it and call him and email him like I did.

I'm fairly certain rare-book-cellar is (was) also greatsharkhunt051977.

Yes, greatsharkhunt051977 is now rare-book-cellar. Check out his Ayn Rand paperback from 2004 that he has priced out $75.00 on abe and $60 on ebay, which can be purchased on abe for $10.00. Below is a response from him when I called him out on his "1st edition/first printing Easton Press books:

"Many titles are true first editions and are signed by the author. The rest are first edition of sorts or Thus. This is widely know and practiced. Buyers should do due dilagnce.

If a buyer thinks a book from the 1800's is a true first from Easton press or Franklin library they should not be buying books! Du-diligence."

Best Regards,

Ben Moss

So it appears he thinks commiting fraud is okay if the buyer is ignorant enough to go along with his deception.

We could all just buy his items and then dispute the purchases since the item is "not as described" and force him to refund us on all our purchases and pay for return shipping all while leaving negative feedback regarding his fraudulent behavior. Maybe there would be some breaking point in which he would go out of business.

> 146
Interesting thought, but doubtful it would force him to go out of business, particularly if he also is selling on ABE and through other web sites.

File a "report a problem" with ebay located down a bit on the right of each auction page, that the item is a replica, and not an original. I have filed several reports on his 1st edition First printing EP auctions. If enough people file reports on him ebay will take action. I have been in touch with ebay by phone and email ovr the past two days reporting his fraud in much detail. I have even sent them the link to this thread and given them both of his scammer ids: greatsharkhunt051977 & rare-book-cellar. I think i am getting through to them with the extent of his fraud. I will get on them, and do no give up easily, since rarebookcellar's deceptive selling practices make me sick.

The one problem with UK's suggestion is that rare-shark-hunt-cellar would catch on to the same people ordering and then returning based on the not-1st/1st premise: our names and addresses are all static, and even then there are only so many of us here. Hell, this newsgroup has been relatively dead for the last few months, so there are even fewer reading these messages.

(On a side note, I wonder if our favorite two quarrelers got kicked off LT or something...which would be a shame as they both know a ton about EP, FL, LEC, FS, etc... (Also, also, wik: that wasn't an invitation to rekindle any old arguments!))

Also, aren't AbeBook's seller ratings based on the number of returns customers undergo? UK's idea would probably have the most effect at Abe over the likes of eBay, rarebookcellar.com, and probably Amazon if he's there.

Greatsharkhunt/rare-book-cellar's books showing up in my queries bothers me more than his fraudulent selling practices - I know not to buy from him. As for others buying from him...that's their problem. If he somehow had something I wanted for sale that was rare enough that no one else had it, then I'd be frustrated...but I'd be patient and wait for someone else to sell.

> 149
Thanks for the name check, but it wasn't my suggestion at all. In fact I questioned its effectiveness. You can thank mortalalliance in post 146 :-)

Sorry about that...I was reading messages backwards and stopped at yours.

"The rest are first edition of sorts..." What the hell does he mean by that? Sounds like an obvious "CYA" job to me!!

What troubles me is that a burden of proof probably resides with the buyer and that he's up against an established book seller. If Sharky says it's a 1st/1st and the buyer says 'no it can't be', since most EP volumes have no copyright or edition information printed inside of them, how can the buyer present a solid argument to the likes of the uninformed customer support personnel at eBay/Abe/Amazon/wherever? It's Sharky's word against the buyer's because the book itself can't provide a definitive answer.

What the heck --- a plethora of common EP titles --- all listed at $295!

http://www.ebay.com/sch/m.html?_odkw=&_ssn=smith.house.antiques&item=181...

I wish eBay made it easier to filter out sellers from searches (i.e., in the search box, not in the depths of the advanced search options).

>154 sdawson:

And impeccable feedback to boot. He hasn't sold any at those prices yet.....at least he's not employing the "first-printing" shenanigans.

I have no problem with eBay dealers selling an OOP book at a markup especially when it is a gift for someone.

But I absolutely have disdain for those dealers who label every single EP and Franklin Library book as First Edition First Printing and sell all for $275-$475. Even EP's Moby Dick, which they used to give away for $5.95. I feel bad for the consumer because They are not aware they can get the same book direct from EP for $40. When I find criminal book dealers like this I report them to eBay and Easton Press. Please do this also. I also marked 100 books of a dealer recently as FRAUD and sent to eBay. I will continue to do this every time I see this crook's listing (there are only a couple bad dealers out there).

>157 HugoDumas: I'm glad you're doing this. However, it remains to be seen if Ebay will actually ban them. I'm sure these sellers generate lots of revenue forEbay, and they may not want to do anything.

The problem with eBay is they say they will investigate but are under no obligation to tell me the results. I know the results since you can see this dealer greedily selling another Moby Dick for $275 to some naive consumer. I also harass them by bidding $1 on over a hundred books.

Have the same problem with eBay members who lie, cheat or steal on rare occasions. Tracking is not always safe and secure, when there is a glitch or way to deceive, a few take advantage of situations. One transaction in particular not related to books was shipped foreign with insurance. An eBay member claimed it never arrived and received a full refund even with insurance by Priority Mail. Six months later after they attempted to re sell the stolen item, a report was filed with shipping customs and eBay. Since it was insured and reported, it was covered. No way to tell if anything was ever done to the eBay member.

As for sellers posting an item falsely as a first edition with excessive prices, avoid them as much as possible. No matter how many times you try to evade ridiculous overpriced listings they will come up. Best to live and learn, don't let them bother you or it will affect the best parts in the online community.

We should not be surprised with dishonesty on eBay considering what we see in politics, banking, Wall Street, corporate world, etc. When we find it, I think it is good to point it out hoping we can help a community member avoid fraud. I am thankful though for eBay guarantee. One guy sold me a new signed first edition. When it arrived it was not new, not signed, not a first edition and had water stains and mold on every page. He refused to communicate with me. EBay stepped in got me a refund.

I think everyone has to realize it's e-bay and an online sale. I am VERY cautious about e-bay purchases. I buy most of my books either directly from EP or through ABE books. Also, this is not limited to EP books, or books in general. Inflating prices and hoping you hook someone is very present in other markets on e-bay. I also collect Lionel trains, and there are many listings at very inflated prices. Some of them sell eventually. Some may be fake sales to get a high price for an item later. I think it's just the state of things in online buying/selling. I mean, it's a buying/selling marketplace. Something is worth what someone is willing to pay. When I search past sales, I too am surprised what some EP books sell for that are still available new from EP, if they are real sales. If the sale is real, then "a fool and his money are soon parted."

Be very cautious! Know what you are doing. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.

I see people throw money down the drain all the time. Why do you expect e-bay to be any different? "There's nothing new under the sun."

I guess you can get mad at inflated prices from specific sellers on e-bay, but do you also get mad when one local store charges more for an item than another store? Keep it in perspective.

I see in the thread above that you have identified the fraudster as rare-book-cellar who calls every EP and Franklin Library book 1st Edition First Printing and sells them for $275-$475 each even if you can buy them now for $40 from EP. This is the one I am talking about too. The only thing we can do is report him as a fraud to eBay. He is big with close to 42,000 items in his eBay store. If we all pick 25 of his items and report them as frauds to eBay eventually eBay would shut him down.

>163 HugoDumas:

Honestly, eBay don't care at all. So long as they are getting revenue from the seller and lots of not-as-described cases aren't being raised by buyers, they couldn't give a rat's ass. eBay is completely unethical and always has been.

You are probably correct since it is 10% commission on eBay and 3% on PayPal.