You know, I'm glad this thread got revitalized, but I have been wanting to vent for some time. I know it goes a bit against the light-hearted nature of the Thunderdome, but this is the place I can find for it, and I really, really have been wanting to call out a certain breed of people, one's that I can not absolutely stand, and it's a certain flavor of resellers.
I have no issue, and even appreciate, honest resellers. What do I classify as "honest?" Simple, those who make a living selling cards at fair prices. They take chances on Kickstarter, and/or buy in bulk hoping to make a profit, so sure, mark-ups are fine on decks that actually sell well. You take a risk, you should get a reward.
There are also resellers who are/were a collector and charge a premium for rare and valuable decks. Those are fine, too. I may not always be happy with the price, but I completely understand. If someone wants to separate me from one of my most valued decks, they better expect to pay for what that deck is worth to me. Those two categories make up about 99% of the reselling community, and once again, happy to have them and do business with them.
Then there are the resellers that are "less than." There are those will pull a bait-and-switch, waiting until the last moment to ship on eBay so you can't leave them negative feedback. You finally get the deck to find it a "standard" deck, not the "special edition" you originally paid for. Then, they will happily refund you the difference, essentially making you pay for a deck you already had. (Unrelated side-note: I am still looking for a Federal 52 v2 Letterpress. Also, I have a Federal 52 v2 I can sell for cheap.) Then, there's
this Ponzi-scheming guy, who is a class all on his own.
Then, there's the ones even worse. The ones I am calling out. The "resellers" I am talking about are the ones that attempt to take advantage of this community to try and lowball collectors about 50% of market value, and then try to sell the same deck(s) on eBay at a 50% mark-up of the market value. I hate you and everything you stand for.
I won't call anyone out by name just yet, but you few know who your are. Asking me for a set of my David Blaine Dell and Microsoft decks for $300 for the set, when I can put them up on eBay for $350 each and get that before the week's end? Or showing me links trying to act like $55 for a Dale Mathis is doing me a favor? I actually had to wipe a ton of my collection from Portofilio52 because I got tired of lowball offers for my Stockholm, Oath, and Kings Wild decks, ALL of which were completely unsolicited.
What, do you really think I don't keep up with market values of decks? I don't know the difference between the "Mechanical" and "Mechanized" decks? I buy a deck at retail that has gone up 500% and should sell to you at a bargain so you can sell to an actual collector for a huge mark-up the next day? Everyone gets a profit, is that it? Seriously, even if you were to give me a fair offer, give me one good reason I should sell to you instead of someone who wants the deck for their own collection. Essentially, all that I've done is give you money, while depriving someone a fair price for the deck. I'm not stupid when it comes to collecting cards, is my point.
Make no mistake, you are a plague on this community. We try to keep prices attainable to each other because most collectors know how hard collecting can be, especially when first starting out. All of us went through it, and the market has only gotten more complex since then, so we are usually willing to cut a small break to others. But to take advantage of that? Seriously, was there some sort of memo that went out reading something to the effect of "How to make easy money: Step 1: Go to UnitedCardists and buy from the collectors who have no idea what they can actually get for their decks. Look especially for the rarer decks made by guys named Lorenzo, Jackson, Lotrek, and Steve Minty. Step 2: Triple the price you bought it for, and sell it on eBay for that."
You have absolutely no respect for this community and the hobby itself. I don't see you participate in conversations regarding upcoming decks, or supporting the artists trying to make them. There isn't a single one of you to post a picture of your collection beyond the deck you're selling. You've been a member of the forum for two weeks, and yet you already have 50 posts, all of which are either "[Buy] Stockhlm17/ Kinds Widl/ Stave Menty/ Lortec" or "Check your PMs" in the Buy/Sell thread, which get more and more desperate and frustrated by the hour. Only to culminate in a whine when the seller sold the deck to someone else.
And you don't take any risks. The only decks you go after are guaranteed to get $300 on eBay, minimum. That's not just disrespecting the collectors, but the resellers who have cut deals with studios and distributors, lose sleep when a Kickstarter fails to fulfill, and have taken a bath with the current worldwide shipping distribution situation. They may not be that active on the forums, but they still contribute to the community. You do not.
So, I am calling you out. I want to hear your justification for this. Do you think you are doing us a favor and should get some sort of stipend for it? Is it all about the money? Seriously, what are your thoughts? If you actually respond, I will gladly respond back. I will be civil, but I will not be kind. This is the Thunderdome, and I want to obliterate you for your actions.
Obviously not that I feel that strongly about it or anything.