Strapped4Cash

Thanks to anyone who can offer perspective or advice on 2 separate situations.

First I ordered the GI Joe: The Complete Collection Volume 2 hardcover https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1613776195/ New from an Amazon mp seller.

This is my first time ordering one of these sets, and was surprised that there was "just" the book, with no slipcover, shrinkwrap, etc. Is that correct? For how expensive it is ($50 msrp and I paid $46 shipped) then I'd have thought there'd be something to protect it. The corners were slightly dinged, but not enough to quibble over. The cover did open easily, not as if the spine were cracked, but not with the same tightness/resistance that many New HC's have. Is that normal?

Maybe it's fine and I'm overthinking things, but I hate buying even lightly Used stuff as New and I'd really appreciate feedback/reassurance from someone who was familiar with this series. Thanks.

My second question concerns the oop (and quickly rising in price) Huntress Dark Knight Daughter TPB. This is a $20 msrp book that I ordered from a mp seller for $31 shipped. He listed it as "New - Pristine". He shipped it in a soft manila bubble envelope. The book was not in any plastic or had anything else to protect it (like cardboard).

There was a strong stress mark on the spine, two corners had minor dings, the third had hit something hard and so crumpled and bent in 3 lines (though not as badly as most times I've seen that). There are around a dozen shelf wear spots and the paper around the edges of all the pages has yellowed/browned.

So definitely some issues, though most of it stuff that I might have overlooked absent the description, price, and the sellers' not seeming to have even tried to protect the book. So I'm wondering if people think I should complain about how the book arrived?

Thanks again for any thoughts on either of these orders.

dfmaverick2

I don't believe the gi joe hardcovers have a slip case or shrink wrap...unless you buy idw's red or black label versions which I think have slip covers. Can't recall how easily the covers opened.

Paul_SD

Geezus. Hearing stuff like this really burns my bacon. Absolutely you should complain. He was specific about condition as a selling point. To then not take the care to pack it well enough to arrive in that condition is inexcusable.
I would even be tempted to complain to amazon and return it. You'll lose money on shipping both ways, but there's a principle involved. Unless you are OK with keeping what is essentially a reading copy now. Even then I would still draft him a stern email and request a partial refund- even enclose pics of the condition of the book now along with the packing if you still have it.

Like a lot of people here I sell on AMP too, and this kind of stuff just makes it tough for everybody. I'm constantly having to kick in a little extra for shipping (above what Amazon collected) because I tend to over protect stuff and increase the weight.
Just last week I paid, out of my own pocket, $70 to ship a Sideshow Statue someone had bought on my Amazon store. I could have saved about $30 if I had just slapped a label on the Brown SS shipper and reused that, but I took pains to double box it in something else that seriously jacked the shipping charge up. Then I hear stuff like this and I just want to scream.

You definitely have a legitimate grievance.

Josh-da-man

This is pretty much par for the course when dealing with Amazon, Amazon Marketplace sellers, or eBay sellers, isn't it?

Hadrian7

Maybe I've been extremely lucky but I find that I always get what is described whether it is from Amazon Warehouse or marketplace sellers. If it wasn't as described I would definitely return it or use Amazon's A to Z guarantee. Crappy sellers like this make it bad for everyone.

And Paul, mind giving out your storefront? Am always looking for more SS or HT things to add.

PhantomStranger

This has certainly been my experience with most Marketplace sellers and some eBay sellers. Unless it's a comic book shop selling the item, individual sellers rarely grade anything accurately. I expect minor damage from trade paperbacks and hardcovers purchased through Amazon's marketplace, even if they say it's a new item or whatever. New to many individual sellers means they read it once or twice and then stored it away.

Searching Google, it appears that G.I. Joe collection did come shrinkwrapped. You can see them wrapped in Google Images. The TPB seller simply overgraded his book. That doesn't sound new or pristine, but it may have been damaged in the mail. Sending anything by media mail in an envelope is asking for trouble these days.

I would just chalk these things up to a learning experience for next time and move on.

kodave

Amazon is 1000% buyer friendly when it comes to Marketplace sellers. If the sellers you bought from won't make things right for you, just escalate it to Amazon and you'll absolutely get your full refund and not pay anything to return it. Just complain away if you're not happy.

Shipping in padded envelopes is fine IF the seller also secures the book between cardboard pieces. Most do not do that though. Especially Marketplace sellers. A lot of those Marketplace sellers are just overstock resellers. They make their money off volume sold, so they don't care if you're not pleased about the exact condition.

mrhan

I would complain. You should get what you paid for and it should be perfect; especially if it is stated as so.

Strapped4Cash

I really appreciate everyone's feedback and replies, thank you all very much!

Based on a past thread then I know that there are some members here who collect the G.I. Joe volumes, but it seems like none of them have been around to reply here. So I did some researching and driving and calling around to comic shops and what I think is the case is that they originally were shrinkwrapped, but more recent printings and volumes in the last few years haven't been.

That was the biggest thing I was worried about, the corner dings aren't bad and I can't expect Pristine Mint condition. The cover opening could be a negative indicator, but it might not and I can't accuse someone off a vague concern/suspicion. So hopefully this was New as advertised and I'll accept that it is.

As for the Huntress Trade then I think I agree with the consensus and will contact the seller and see what he says. I've returned stuff before, but I definitely try to avoid it and give people the benefit of the doubt.

You sound like a great seller Paul_SD. Thanks for helping to give mp sellers a good name. And I have had decent to great experiences with other GN mp sellers there in the past. Hopefully most others there are respectable too, and I just got a bad one.

I've had wildly different experiences with Amazon mp sellers, but most of the obviously bad ones have been with DVD's. And feel like I've learned a lot and have done a good job avoiding many problems. I haven't ordered a lot of GN's, but before this the worst was getting a Trade in only a bag and backboard. Or one TPB I ordered was packaged well, but there was a little spot on the front cover that could have been from the manufacturer, but maybe wasn't. I couldn't tell for certain either way, so gave them the benefit of the doubt.

I haven't made a ton of GN orders from mp sellers. I guess I've been lucky, and I have noticed that some of them are obviously from comic shops (so that likely helps) and a couple others may be. I definitely appreciate your perspective though, and I'll be more careful in the future.

An extra thanks for doing the Google search. I did a little bit of searching through another engine, but maybe it and/or my terms weren't as good.

Thanks kodave. I've definitely experienced Amazon's buyer-friendly protection, but don't want to overdo it, abuse it, or get so suspicious that I accuse somebody when there's maybe an explanation I haven't though of.

I'm sure there are times when a couple pieces of cardboard and a padded envelope isn't enough, I've seen times when a regular box gets mangled. But I'm thinking that it at least shows effort and that the seller tried which didn't happen here. I didn't know about the overstock sellers, maybe that's the case here. Hopefully I'll get this resolved in a good way. Thanks again.

Paul_SD

Strapped, you're to be commended for taking a measured, thoughtful approach to this- at least in the case of the GI Joe book - rather than immediately lashing out and accusing the seller of malfeasance.
When I buy something from an LCS, it's rare that I'll have been the first person to ever crack it open and look through it. Even from dedicated collectible stores, some tiny amount of shelf wear is to be expected. The eagle eyed buyer who just laid down his hard earned cash is more likely to magnify it, while the seller is more likely to be looking through the other end of the telescope. When possible, I'll cherry pick to find the best copy of something, as much for my own OCD and because I may resell it later. But with the seismic shifts in retail towards more online distribution, those days are becoming a thing of the past. It's almost inevitable now if I have to buy a book from Amazon that Instock Trades or some other dedicated seller doesn't stock, I have to brace myself to expect some kind of bump, ding, dent or whatever. Just the way it is now.


Buyers need to check feedback, and in particular look for the negative feedback and see what the comments are. Packing and condition are basic things that, if the seller is consistently dropping the ball, are going to brought up more than once in the feedback comments. If it seems like you are the only one that's gotten stuck with a lousy packing job, something else might be going on. The seller might have had someone help him get orders processed who didn't know or didn't care to do it properly. It might be a one off thing. That's why it's helpful if you contact the seller first and let him know the situation, rather than just acting in a hasty reactionary way by posting scathing feedback.
At that point you've already poisoned the well. As conscientious as I try to be, I've definitely screwed up a few times. It happens.

As far as packing books- I go by the standard set by Bud Plant when I first stated using him 35 years ago. Sandwich the book(s) between two piece of corrugated cardboard that are overlap the books on all sides, preferably by an inch or more, and tape the middle of all sides shut so that it becomes one solid book block, which no shifting around inside. That way when the corners of the box get bumped, as they most likely will at some point in transit, it impacts the cardboard before touching the books.
Most sellers of collectible paper know to do this, but some don't. Some think wads of paper around the perimeter are plenty (sometimes it is). And sometimes now matter how well you pack it, the carrier still finds a way to screw it up.
I just got some expensive speakers delivered the other day. Even though the boxes clearly say "This end up" I still saw the UPS guy, right in front of me, roll the boxes end over end to get them onto a dolly rather than simply bend over and pick them up. I can just imagine the abuse they saw the other six days they were in transit.

Strapped4Cash

Thanks Paul_SD. I didn't want to assume the worst about the seller, I'd feel bad if I was taken advantage of but even worse if too much paranoia ended up in my taking advantage of someone else. As far as cracking the book open and flipping through some pages, then imho that actually does constitute Used, but I know that many don't look at things like that, and it can be tough to prove. That being said, there are scenarios where someone might go to pick it up, only grab the front cover and have it open on it's own and loosen the binding a little. And I don't know that the binding was extra tight to begin with, so it might be New and this is just how the binding is supposed to be. So, like I'd said, in the absence of anyone replying who owns the book then I'll just be optimistic and accept it as is.

Meanwhile, for the Huntress book the seller was actually extremely understanding. I wrote what I thought to be a measured e-mail saying that there were a few issues that obviously were present before shipping, and then a few others that maybe came during the shipping. I said that I didn't feel it to be Pristine, maybe Fine-to-Very Fine. That I didn't think it quite what was advertised and wanted to discuss it further. He replied that he was very sorry and would just give me a full refund. I sent back that it still had value, and maybe a compromise was in order, that I'd feel better with that. But he insisted on a full refund. So we wished each other a good evening and left it like that.

So now I have to consider if I should give feedback, and if so then what I should give. The description was off (maybe the seller was inexperienced with Trades, they seem to stock mostly DVD's) and the packaging was lacking, but the guy seemed very nice and the insistence on the full refund is definitely appreciated.

PhantomStranger

I usually leave perfect feedback in cases where the seller offers a full refund for a problem. I am not so charitable when I come across a seller that is clearly in the business of nickel and diming every problem.

jjcool

Yeah, sounds like the seller went out of his way to make sure you were happy. I would, and have, given positive feedback for that and focus the feedback on that. Something like "seller went out of his way to fix a problem".

Strapped4Cash

Thanks guys! That sounds like an especially good strategy jjcool, I'll do that.