Buying saws from ebay or craigslist ?

[kwikrp]

Anyone buy a saw from one of those sites ? Have you had any luck ? Good deal ? Happy With purchase?

 

[smokinj]

Ebay saws go high hard to buy there unless you just get lucky, Craglist if you know saws can be some good deals there.

 

[ikessky]

Unless you are buying something to rebuild, I doubt you'll score too many saw deals on ebay.

 

[Danno77]

Ebay saws go high hard to buy there unless you just get lucky.

I've noticed this to be the case as well. Bigger audience seems to jack up prices. Every once in a while I see something slip by at such a low price that I wonder if something was wrong with the saw that I just didn't pick up on, but all the other bidders did....

 

[HittinSteel]

I buy locally on Craigslist so I can check the saw out before buying.....ebay is a big gamble in my opinion

 

[Drifthopper]

Kw...ya gotta know what your buying. CL is nice cuz you can go and check out the saw, ads are usually local, just gotta know what to look for.

 

[CJRages]

I agree that it is tough to find a good deal. Deals are there - if your patient and willing to hold to a reasonable price level.

My saw is from E-bay, I purchased it last month - I've run about four tanks of gas through it and I have been very happy so far.

Including shipping I paid 60% of the price of a new saw at the dealer. This seemed fair for a lightly used saw with what appeared to be the original bar.

 

[kenny chaos]

used saw with what appeared to be the original bar.

How can you tell if it's an original bar?

 

[bsticks]

The MS250 you guys have been helping me with I purchased off ebay. The saw I purchased is running great, only have a couple bucks into a gasket. I picked it up for 130.00 plus 14.95 to ship it. I received the scabbard, saw, 16" bar, chain, tools.

The thing I noticed with ebay is that all the action is within the last 15 minutes of the auction, prices being driven higher, etc.

 

[CJRages]

How can you tell if it's an original bar?

There is no sure-fire 100% proof that I know of... I would be interested if anyone knows... However, if you are confident about how much the saw has been used (for example the owner tells you (the truth) that he only used the saw to cut 6 cords of wood over 2 years) unless the bar was destroyed in an accident the bar has most likely not worn out and is the original. Also take a good look at how much paint is worn off the bar and where the paint is most worn - that tells a lot about how often and how much the owner has used the saw.

 

[ikessky]

The thing I noticed with ebay is that all the action is within the last 15 minutes of the auction, prices being driven higher, etc.

I never bid with more than a minute or two left in the auction. If you are bidding, you need to be a sniper like this and have a number in mind that you don't want to go higher than. Just put that number in and it will either beat the auto bid of the current highest bidder or it will trigger their next highest number.

 

[kenny chaos]

I got a MS170 that blew on me the other day.
Free if anyone wants it.
Maybe I'll put it on e-bay; "Ran good last time I used it."

 

[Tony H]

I bid a few times on ebay but found saws going for more that I though they were worth many times. I have purchased a few things off CL no saws yet but a tractor , leaf vac, wheels and such for a good deal and I like thats it's local so you can go check the stuff out in person and make sure you know what you are getting. Plus no fees to pay but there are plenty of scams going on just like everywhere else .I did sell an poolan saw for a fair price of 70.00 one of the few times it started well was when the fellow was there looking to buy it guess it was tired of getting thrown across the yard.

 

[kenny chaos]

I got a MS170 that blew on me the other day.
Free if anyone wants it.
Maybe I'll put it on e-bay; "Ran good last time I used it."

Never mind. It's on its' way to a forum member in Ohio.

 

[CJRages]

One more bit of advise. Please don't buy through E-bay unless the seller has a return policy. Just in case the saw is DOA. You would probably still have to pay for return shipping.

 

[Danno77]

I got a MS170 that blew on me the other day.
Free if anyone wants it.
Maybe I'll put it on e-bay; "Ran good last time I used it."

Never mind. It's on its' way to a forum member in Ohio.

garsh darnit. I need a saw to play with.

 

[kenny chaos]

I got a MS170 that blew on me the other day.
Free if anyone wants it.
Maybe I'll put it on e-bay; "Ran good last time I used it."

Never mind. It's on its' way to a forum member in Ohio.

garsh darnit. I need a saw to play with.

I got a 441 I'd love to have you come here and play with. :coolsmile:

 

[midwestcoast]

There are all those factory refurbished Husky Ranchers & similar on Ebay at fixed prices from stores with return policies. I picked one up for about 65% of new cost. No taxes more than made up for shipping cost.
Agree that the regular auction saws ussually go high. I've bid on a few, but they went over my ceiling price. Agree with the advice to snipe in the last minute or even last few seconds if your connection is fast enough. I think folks get excited @ the end of the auctions & just let the bids fly!

Everyone around here seems to want a mint for their old Stihls on CL & I never saw any other good brands.

 

[wendell]

Another good place is the Trading Post over on ArboristSite. Since most people over there know saws, the prices are usually quite fair.

 

[Nonprophet]

I've gotten some GREAT deals off of CL, i.e. low hours Stihl Magnum 440 w/32" bar for $200, Husky 55 very clean with 20" bar $150. I personally wouldn't buy a used saw off of feeBay, there's too many scammers (and you won't really know how it runs until you get your hands on it) and the prices are too high. If you're patient, you can find some great deals on CL.


NP

 

[zzr7ky]

One of the reasons I bought a second larger saw is I cut a good deal of timber and firewood in the '70s & 80's. I knew what I could accomplish in a given amount of time. This allows me to quote side jobs if I elect to, barter hunting lease, etc... Almost any of the saws mentioned can pay for themselves in 1/2 a days labor if you know what you are doing.

Getting with a local buddy who's cutting regularly would be a good place to start. I was brought along by family members who cut timber on occasion.

I wouldn't recommend anything under 50cc. I like 60+ better for 20" plus logs, and will likely go to 80cc soon. It will weigh the same, I just won't be cutting as long.

ATB,
Mike

 

[smokinj]

One of the reasons I bought a second larger saw is I cut a good deal of timber and firewood in the '70s & 80's. I knew what I could accomplish in a given amount of time. This allows me to quote side jobs if I elect to, barter hunting lease, etc... Almost any of the saws mentioned can pay for themselves in 1/2 a days labor if you know what you are doing.

Getting with a local buddy who's cutting regularly would be a good place to start. I was brought along by family members who cut timber on occasion.

I wouldn't recommend anything under 50cc. I like 60+ better for 20" plus logs, and will likely go to 80cc soon. It will weigh the same, I just won't be cutting as long.

ATB,
Mike

you will wonder why you didnt do it sooner! 70-80cc saw will cut anything that I have ever seen and you can keep 3 people running there butts of to keep up with one saw.

 

[Cowboy Billy]

I've had mostly good luck buying from ebay on saws. I tend to looks closely at the pictures and prefer to see one of the bottom of the saw. Look at how the feed back was written for the seller and go with my gut feeling.

490 jonsered got taken to the cleaners
490 /w heated handles runs fair needs a ring

535 runs good needs carb kit
535 #2 needs piston nla. Said it ran good?

2071 $280 w/ shipping. Don't know whats up with this saw. It rips! out cuts both of the 2171's
2171 $485 w/ shipping runs great my favrite saw
2171 $360 w/ shipping heated handles runs great too bad I bought it for my brother

2186 $475 w/ shipping 32" bar it flat out has power

2036 $135 Bad oiler probably needs a carb kit. I am going to give it to my uncles teenage boy and insist he thorough away the homelight ps33 without a chainbrake

2141 $175 Great compression nice little saw

Billy

 

[Kenster]

I bought a Stihl MS 390 from eBay. Brand new with muffler mod. The seller had good ratings. He posted a many photos from all angles as well as a video of him starting it up with one pull and running it for a while, then turning it off and holding up the saw so that you could get clear views of all sides, front, and back.
It arrived in perfect condition. I think I paid $425 plus about $25 shipping. A lot less than a new one would have cost around here.

 

[gzecc]

Anything complicated and hard to ship I search or sell locally on CL. Small simple items that need a larger market to sell, I would use ebay. If you look at the business reviews and ratings you can get a good idea of their trustworthyness. More than walking into a store front!
Ebay can be a PITA, compared to CL.