Strange Results On Ebay

[niall Y]

I spent some time, yesterday, ordering 'consumables' for my workshop. It was the usual things - drill bits, abrasive paper, glue etc. Amongst this list were some blades for a utility knife. And, on Ebay, here things started to become a bit puzzling. I couldn't find any to speak of - how strange. There were the odd one or two ,I could order from America, but no others .

I tried all the search terms I could think of - Utility knife blades, Stanley knife blades, Craft knife blades. Box cutter knife blades........ i then switched to Google - and there were hundreds of suppliers. However, when you pressed any link for any listing of them on Ebay UK, it showed plenty of pictures but no stock available.

I have subsequently ordered a box of a 100 from FFX, but I can't understand the blanket unavailability of suppliers in the UK, on Ebay

 

[Spectric]

Maybe it is something to do with age restriction and Ebay are not comfortable selling.

 

[Terry - Somerset]

Over-reaction to legislation - understandably they do not want to sell to underage, or potential weapons etc. They also seem to have stopped selling kitchen knives.

Strangely they still seem content to sell chisels and other woodworking kit.

 

[Jacob]

Recently sold an axe, some very sharp carving gouges on ebay no prob.
If you use their own post system they classify them as "collectables", presumably to avoid bans on sharp objects - you are supposed to be over 18, verified etc.
All very well having rules but stupid if they are so easy to dodge.
So watch out for a psychopath armed with an axe and two bowl carving gouges, all very very sharp!

 

[niall Y]

I think I am inclined to agree with Terry - Somerset , that it is an over-reaction, as Amazon seem to have no such problem offering knifes for sale. Also there are age verification services available for selling on-line where an e-mail is send out to you as confirmation.

 

[Dabop]

same with 18650 lithium batteries- Ebay seems to have stopped listing them altogether- but sells them in plastic housings called 'cordless batteries' for drills etc etc
But try and buy them separately, and Ebay says no....
Between that and the number of dodgy sellers on there these days, I rarely make it my first stop to buy stuff, had a lot better experience on Alibaba

(last thing I bought off ebay was literally the first time I had bought there in months, and surprise, surprise- got the runaround...)
I mean when they are selling a 'USB keyboard/mouse combo' and it has a picture of a mouse sitting on a keyboard- you really kinda expect to get a keyboard AND a mouse....
Nope- just a keyboard....
After contacting seller, ebay mediation etc etc for over a month, I got a 'partial refund' which has (lol) mysteriously not appeared yet (hey its only been two, nearly three months)
It's my 'last resort' these days...
:-(

 

[selectortone]

So watch out for a psychopath armed with an axe and two bowl carving gouges, all very very sharp!

Strangely enough, I know the chap who bought those. He said they were quite blunt, and the seller obviously didn't know the first thing about sharpening.

 

[niall Y]

In all fairness, it was probably to stop the buyer from injuring themselves

 

[artie]

Rubber bands out of stock in the local stationer this morning.

What is the world coming to?

 

[baldkev]

Rubber bands out of stock in the local stationer this morning.

What is the world coming to?

You still have a local stationer?!?

 

[artie]

You still have a local stationer?!?

Yes, and an office supplies which I forgot about to now. They would probably have had some.

 

[Sachakins]

Got pack of 50 mixed stanly blades on amazon last month.
Had to age verify on order age, photo ID needed to show delivery driver and a security code that amazon send separately to registered phone and email.

 

[Recky33]

Got pack of 50 mixed stanly blades on amazon last month.
Had to age verify on order age, photo ID needed to show delivery driver and a security code that amazon send separately to registered phone and email.

Did you know that if you order a silencer for an air rifle you have to do all that plus it has to be hand delivered by the shop that sold it , the mind boggles

 

[MikeJhn]

The young lady that delivered the utility knife blades to me wanted some kind of photo proof of age, I'm 75 and look it, what ever happened to common sense, who has the obituary, can't find it at the moment.

 

[D_W]

Did you know that if you order a silencer for an air rifle you have to do all that plus it has to be hand delivered by the shop that sold it , the mind boggles

we would refer to that as legislating enough convenience out of something to effectively ban it. that'll do for now. Once the group interested in such a thing is small enough, then they will just ban it outright.

never would imagine a rash of crime done by people with silenced air rifles.

maybe there's a rat and nuisance bird lobby who thinks they're an unfair means of pest control.

 

[MikeJhn]

Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, “Common Sense”, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as: Knowing when to come in out of the rain; Why the early bird gets the worm; Life isn’t always fair; and Maybe it was my fault. “Common Sense” lived by simple, sound financial policies (don’t spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge). His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6 -year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition. “Common Sense” lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children. It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer Panadol, sun lotion or a band-aid to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion. “Common Sense” lost the will to live as the Ten Commandments became contraband; churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims. “Common Sense” took a beating when you couldn’t defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault. “Common Sense” finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement. “Common Sense” was preceded in death by his parents, “Truth” and “Trust”; his wife, “Discretion”; his daughter, “Responsibility”; and his son, “Reason”. He is survived by his 3 stepbrothers; “I Know My Rights”, “Someone Else Is To Blame”, and “I’m A Victim”. Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing.

 

[nickds1]

The young lady that delivered the utility knife blades to me wanted some kind of photo proof of age, I'm 75 and look it, what ever happened to common sense, who has the obituary, can't find it at the moment.

Simply put: An old man open the door and accepts the parcel saying it's you,

How on earth does the delivery guy know he's handed it to the right person without photo ID?

 

[D_W]

Simply put: An old man open the door and accepts the parcel saying it's you,

How on earth does the delivery guy know he's handed it to the right person without photo ID?

I guess the point is, can this man not just go down to the hardware store and buy utility knife blades in the first place?

the postman will just hand me stuff when I'm standing at the front of my driveway. sometimes I think "how do they know that i'm the homeowner here and not just someone standing around or someone visiting for a chat" (postman is rotating person here, so I don't always recognize them). Same with parcel.

 

[stuart little]

I guess the point is, can this man not just go down to the hardware store and buy utility knife blades in the first place?

the postman will just hand me stuff when I'm standing at the front of my driveway. sometimes I think "how do they know that i'm the homeowner here and not just someone standing around or someone visiting for a chat" (postman is rotating person here, so I don't always recognize them). Same with parcel.

I believe that Royal Mail's system goes by the address regardless of name, unless one has a regular postie who has common knowledge & sense.

 

[D_W]

I believe that Royal Mail's system goes by the address regardless of name, unless one has a regular postie who has common knowledge & sense.

The same is generally true here - if the street address is your address but the name is someone else, you'll still get the mail. The postal guy will also give you the mail at the end of your sidewalk because that's probably their legal obligation - there's not much you can do to sue them as far as I know, unless they don't follow their own regulations. Not that I'd ever do that - it's a little more of an old school thing. If you're in the driveway and you say you live there, they'll take your word for it. Or hand you stuff and expect you'll say "oh, I don't live here".