caveat emptor on craigslist

[Fire-medic]

I went to see a Yoshimura triangular stainless steel (it looked-like) exhaust canister, it looked good from the photo. Got there, and the only picture was because every other angle would have shown the viewer the thing looked like it had been used to drive railroad spikes into a slab of lignum vitae wood! What a piece of s****! I couldn't believe that someone would have the nerve to advertise it for-sale for ninety dollars!!!!:damn angry: I wouldn't have taken it for free! I didn't even bother to complain, I just said, "rougher than anything I can use," and left for work.

OK, what tales do any of you have?

 

[one2dmax]

Got an engine years ago that was advertised to be a good running engine. Looked immactulate from the outside. Stuck it in a frame and the engine make about a half revolution and stopped solid. Tried turning it by hand (with the bolt head under the stator cover) and it would only rock back and forth about 90 degrees.

Pulled it back out, flipped it over, and pulled the pan. The freaking rods had the caps removed and hadn't even bothered to reinstall them.

It had been a few months since I had bought the engine and installed it so couldn't get the guy to answer. About as much of a deception as you can get.

My work buddy had it even worse. His GF bought a privacy fence that was supposed to be removed. Met the "owner" at the house. Looked over the fence section and made the deal and gave him the deposit. Was supposed to go back later in the week to remove it. They get there and police are already there and the fence is half down.

Turns out the "owner" was not the owner and had sold the fence section to a lot of people. One of them had started to remove it when the correct owner showed up.

 

[customizedcreationz]

I drove 7 hours to buy a bike, got there and it was a chop shop that had posted pictures of another bike, not even the same bike. Needless to say , a quick thinking girlfriend got between the two of us before shit hit the fan. Was probably a good thing because there was four of them and one of me with 8 friends on my hip.......

Drove 8 hours to look at a Cumming Dually.... had $10,000 cash and around $10,000 in guns and ammo with me to trade.... my wife just got in the car, and then proceeded to time me on how long I chewed the guy out...20+ mins I think she said.

I almost took the truck for a drive so I could leave it 6 or 20 miles away and tell him it brokedown.....

 

[pjmac5]

When I was looking for a VMAX, I drove out to San Francisco to look at a 98 that the owner said looked great but had a little rust and corrosion. He was asking 4k. When I saw the bike, I couldn't believe it. I would say it wasn't even safe to drive, the frame was completely rusted through at every weld. Rust and corrosion was on every single part of this poor VMAX. I wouldn't offer him $500.

Seemed like a nice guy, but he was sloppy in appearance and in the way he presented himself. I think some people are dishonest but others simply have low standards for themselves and everything in their life. This guy thought that VMAX looked fine and just needed a little TLC. I didn't bother trying to explain it to him.:ummm: I just took my wife to a nice lunch.

 

[bumper]

My brother bought a Ford Ranger from a couple of guys. Truck looked good and he test drove it. Paid them $3000 cash they gave him the title all looked good. Went to dmv with the title it was forged and the truck stolen out of LA. Of course the guys were no longer around and the police confiscated the truck.

 

[98Redlne]

Not CL but I bought a Springfield 1911 from a guy awhile back from a local gun forum. Met the guy at the FFL, looked over the gun, seemed fine but dirty, did the transfer and away we went. When I got it back home, disassembled and cleaned it I found a massively bulged barrel. Guy wouldn't take it back, saying that it wasn't bulged when he sold it...yeah, right. :damn angry:

 

[customizedcreationz]

Not CL but I bought a Springfield 1911 from a guy awhile back from a local gun forum. Met the guy at the FFL, looked over the gun, seemed fine but dirty, did the transfer and away we went. When I got it back home, disassembled and cleaned it I found a massively bulged barrel. Guy wouldn't take it back, saying that it wasn't bulged when he sold it...yeah, right. :damn angry:

Just out of curiosity, you didn't function test it before you bought it? If the barrel was any bit bugled, even the slightest bit, it wouldn't function test properly. A massively bulged barrel wouldn't even allow you to cycle the slide, even a slightly bulged barrel wouldn't you cycle the slide completely.

Todd

 

[BigIke]

I bought a 1995 Four Winns Horizon 240 Bowrider off craigslist. The consignment place said all it needed was a windshield (1500$!!!) Drive to lake Travis from Conroe and the floor was rotted in front of the ski locker.

They asked 7k, i offered 5k to the owner, he laughed and agreed to 6k... Got it home after the engine cover blew off and all four tires disenigrated while driving home to find more rot.

Fix the floor and find that the u-joint bellows didn't fix and was only installed in one spot and not on the outdrive. Buy a new one and install it to find that the u-joint had failed at some point and the transom assembly was destroyed.

Being an obsolete King Cobra (Great OD) the transome assembly is 1.5k (if you can find one)... I fixed it with JB weld and a 4" diesel exhaust pipe and it is leak free.

The jerk knew of these issues and didn't tell me, a good man would have told me and taken the 5k... 12k total investment and it is a rock solid boat now.

Todd, helped to restore my faith in humanity! HAHA

 

[Fire-medic]

I bought a 1995 Four Winns Horizon 240 Bowrider off craigslist. The consignment place said all it needed was a windshield (1500$!!!) Drive to lake Travis from Conroe and the floor was rotted in front of the ski locker.

They asked 7k, i offered 5k to the owner, he laughed and agreed to 6k... Got it home after the engine cover blew off and all four tires disenigrated (sic) while driving home to find more rot.

Fix the floor and find that the u-joint bellows didn't fix and was only installed in one spot and not on the outdrive. Buy a new one and install it to find that the u-joint had failed at some point and the transom assembly was destroyed.

Being an obsolete King Cobra (Great OD) the transome assembly is 1.5k (if you can find one)... I fixed it with JB weld and a 4" diesel exhaust pipe and it is leak free.

The jerk knew of these issues and didn't tell me, a good man would have told me and taken the 5k... 12k total investment and it is a rock solid boat now.

Todd, helped to restore my faith in humanity! HAHA

A bad deal, that-one!

When I take my single-axle trailer > 50 miles from home, I carry a spare bearing set and two spare wheels/tires. And a proper jack to lift it with. :confused2: I've had a made-in the-USA trailer tire fail after < 50 miles, beginning a journey from south Florida to the Hudson River valley, and then to Montreal and back, and the offshore replacement did the 4000 mile trip w/no problems. Yeah, it could have been a road hazard, but failing so-soon I think it was a defective tire, more-likely. There wasn't enough left on the wheel by the time I got stopped on the interstate, to do a pneumatic necroscopy/forensic exam.

 

[98Redlne]

Just out of curiosity, you didn't function test it before you bought it? If the barrel was any bit bugled, even the slightest bit, it wouldn't function test properly. A massively bulged barrel wouldn't even allow you to cycle the slide, even a slightly bulged barrel wouldn't you cycle the slide completely.

Todd

I did function test it. The slide moves as it should, due to the fact that it is one of the bushingless bull barrels. A standrd 45 barrel/bushing setup would have been locked up tight with that bulge. The bulge was at the beginning of the taper and didn't impede the functioning of the slide, nor was it apparent visually when I looked at it at the FFL. Running my fingers along the barrel you couldn't tell the difference between the beginning of the taper and the bulge in the barrel.

Once the barrel was cleaned the bulge was clearly visible inside. Caliper measurement confirmed the bulge on the outside, slugging the bore confirmed it on the inside.

 

[Biker Dash]

I have bought one item off of Craigslist, and I got just what I was looking for. (Dyna3000 for a 98 Shadow 750 ACE) Normally, if I am considering anything I see online, I only consider stuff that is local. I have heard too many horror stories.

 

[dwarf717]

The owner of M2R Helmets, after they went tits up, was selling helmets on Ebay. I bought one. I never got the helmet, and he got my money. Douchebag