Peridot purifies the subtle bodies and mind

It opens cleanses and activates the heart and solar plexus chakra.

Physically Peridot has assisted one with giving birth. When placed on the abdomen it is said to stimulate contractions and strengthen the muscles, while lessening pain. I would suggest not using this stone if pregnant until you already being the labor process because of this effect, but during the process it would
be a wonderful stone to have to assist with labor.

Peridot is said to regulate the cycles of ones life, be that menstrual cycles, emotional cycles, life cycles or intellectual cycles. It provides a shield around ones bodies. It should be removed before ones bodies are cleansed, aligned and purified but then replaced to prevent outside influences from affecting the cleansed, aligned and purified bodies. Of course this shield can be taken down by removing Peridot or constant outside influences invading and pressuring the shield but it is helpful at keeping that balance for a longer period once aligned.

Only spiritual or clear-minded persons should use Peridot. The person with too many earthly problems will not be able to understand the beauty of the Peridot. The very spiritual can wear Peridot in a necklace with the stone at the base of the throat to feel its soothing effect.

In healing Peridot has a tonic effect, it helps to regenerate tissues and organs like the heart, gallbladder, lungs, thymus and intestinal track. It is also said to strengthen ones eyesight.

Vion and Baury

Désiré Vion and Charles Baury took over Jean Gille's porcelain manufactory in 1868 after Gille died. The manufactory was located at 28 Rue Paradis-Poissonniére, Paris, France. In 1875 Vion and Baury moved the manufactory to Choisy Le Roi. In 1877 Charles Baury died and Désiré Vion continued as sole proprietor until 1889. Vion and Baury made a variety of items including statues, figurines, vases, and dinnerware. Vion and Baury exhibited at various international exhibitions and are probably best known for their bisque figurines.

Mark 1 was used until the mid-1870's.
Mark 2 was used until the mid-1870's. It's a capital "V" next to a capital "B" on a raised blue pad which is similar to the raised blue pad used by Jean Gille.
Mark 3 was used after 1875 and appears to be an earlier, more detailed version of the green anchor mark.
Mark 4 was used after 1875 and appears to be a more simplified version of the green anchor mark and appears more frequently on items of slightly lesser detail.
Mark 5 shows a Vion and Baury anchor mark with a Demartial & Tallandier, Limoges decorating mark circa mid-1870's to around 1880.
Mark 6 is a curiosity in that it appears to be a "PB" or possibly a small "D" inside the "V" next to the "B" on a raised blue pad. This mark is on a few items that are Vion and Baury molds. In mark 1 you see how "D. Vion" was used so this could be "DVB" rather than "PB" but this is my speculation.

Information about Vion and Baury can be found in the books, "Faience et Porcelaine de Paris" by Guillebon; "Marques et Signatures de la Porcelaine Francaise" by Le Duc and Curtil; "Histoire des Manufactures Francaises de Porcelaine" by Chavagnac and Grollier.

Thank you Big Sis Bee for all of your help! :)

Paranormal Lasers-Be Warned

The use of lasers for paranormal investigation has become very popular over the years, and who would not use one? With them being shown on popular paranormal television shows from T.A.P.S. to Ghost Adventures, their bright green allure is hard to resist. The potentail to capture a shadow or other anomolie when using one of these devices is indeed legitimate, but they do come with risks, some being as severe as blindness. Yes, that's right, I did say blindness! However, before we get into the health risks, let's talk about the legal & financial risks. Yep, there are legal risks, as well as risks of you wasting your money on these cheap items!

I have purchased many of these lasers found online, some from sellers here on eBay and some directly from manufacturers in China. If you are looking at these lasers, I am sure you will notice that most of them have a power rating of 5mw (milliwatts). The reason for this is simple; since laser pointers became readily available, they have been misused, leading to the development of laws and regulations. Anything over 5mw is illegal to sell and own in the United States, unless special permits are issued. In fact, the U.S. is not the only country to have restrictions on lasers. Canada, Australia, United Kingdom, Sweden and the Netherlands all join the family, some with wattage requirements as low as 1mw! The restrictions imposed are for our own safety, mainly our eyes, however, they are also imposed for the safety of others, such as pilots and public service officers. There have been reports of police officers drawing their weapons on those aiming lasers at them, in fear that a loaded weapon was being pointed. If you point anything over 5mw at an aircraft, they are bound by federal law to report you, and report you they will! Just last year, an Southern California man was sentenced to 2.5 years in federal prison for aiming his laser at an approaching commercial airliner, blinding the pilot.

Buyer be warned! While the lasers you find for paranormal use on eBay state a 5w rating, most are brighter. Just around a year ago, eBay (forced by federal law) removed all listings of lasers which stated power ratings higher than 5mw. Even Amazon was forced to remove their listings as well. Even some US sellers I had purchased from in the past, no longer offered them. Back then, most lasers being sold for paranormal use were 30mw and 50mw. Online stores specializing in paranormal equipment, also sold them as 50mw rated. So, in order for sellers to keep selling their lasers, all they simply did was fail to mention how bright they truly were in their listings, stated that they are just 5mw and policy makers looked the other way. Not at their fault of course, sites like eBay just simply can't police every listing, and generally take a seller's word that what they are listing does not violate eBay policy, even more so when the listing passes through the sites posting algorithm security measures. Look at the listings here and other places on the Internet, you will find them using terms like "5X Brighter" or Extremely Bright", even posting a video of the laser in action, with an output way brighter than 5mw. Sometimes the seller will not even post the rating, in fear that a 5mw rating will scare away a potential customer, giving it a fancy new name like "New & Improved" or "Upgraded". The fact is, after extensive investigation, I have found that over 90% of the lasers being sold for paranormal use, are over the 5mw limit, including those being sold right here! Another thing, the lasers that were sold with 30mw and 50mw ratings, were not even close to the claimed power output, but still dangerous and illegal!

A true laser with a power output of 30mw can light a match head on fire, pop a black balloon, even burn a hole in black plastic! Most of the high power lasers that were sold here and elsewhere, claimed a 30mw rating, but only really produced about 12mw to 15mw, and just did not pass the test. This was a clever trick for the manufacturers in China (where 99% of these cheap lasers are made) to use. Yes, it's true that the laser did produce 30mw, but for only 1/10th of a second, so quick that it can only be caught with special meters! Most sellers who were claiming 30mw or 50mw trusted what the manufacturer was telling them and listed them that way, not knowing the truth. I am even certain that China, manufacturers are putting lower wattage ratings on higher power lasers, making the problem even worse. It's not about safety or following the rules, it's about money, which is why many sellers on here and elsewhere, continue to sell them, knowing full well that it is against policy. I can find at least 3 listings right now that were selling these lasers at 50mw a year ago, and now state they are only 5mw with no loss in brightness! The simple truth is; a 5mw laser is not bright enough to be used for paranormal purposes! It is simply not enough light, and it's common sense. While these lasers currently being sold are really 12mw or so, they are still extremely bright...far brighter than a 5mw the law allows. Go to you local Walmart or pet store and purchase a 5mw laser, and compare them, you will see the difference for yourself.

So, now you know that if you are purchasing a laser bright enough to see a shadow or ghost, that your are purchasing an illegal item, and supporting dishonesty. You also need to know about the medical risks. A common trick used by manufacturers, and even some sellers online, is to perform what is called "POT MOD". They simply purchase a true 5mw pen laser, ( like those found on eBay) remove the laser module and adjust the pot (potentiometer) inside with a small screwdriver until the laser reaches a brighter level. This is extremely dangerous, and for good reasons. One, the laser's diode is not rated for this type of power and will eventually fail after prolonged use, and two, it can cause severe skin burns. I tried one of these pot mods myself on a 5mw laser, and after using it on an investigation for only 20 minutes, it burned the tips of 3 of my fingers when I attempted to pick it up! Not exactly the kind of item I wanted in my paranormal arsenal. Speaking of diodes failing, also be aware that laser pointers are not designed to be run for great amounts of time. They are pointers made for presentation purposes, designed to be used for 10-20 seconds, not 10-20 minutes like sellers would make you believe! If a seller is telling you you can use a laser pointer longer than 20 minutes, then make your purchase elsewhere! Most manufacturers will state in the owner's manual that they are not to be run longer than 20 minutes to avoid diode damage. I even had a few sellers forget to remove the included manufacture owner's manuals when they shipped my lasers, and the manual directly contradicted their listings! Not what I would call an honest seller! Sure, they will work for an hour, but wait and see how long that $30 laser is going to last you before you purchase another one! Quality control of manufacturing also leaves much to be desired. I purchase a shipment of 10 so called "30mw" lasers from china, and only 5 of them worked longer than a few weeks, with the 2 having issues after only 5 minutes and 3 of them not working at all. If you are purchasing these lasers for paranormal use, then be prepared to purchase a lot of them with frequent use.

These lasers are also bad for your eyes. The output of laser pointers available to the general public is limited (and varies by country) in order to prevent accidental damage to the retina. The U.K. Health Protection Agency recommended that laser pointers made generally available to the public should be restricted to less than 1mw as no injuries have been reported at this power, and even 5mw is still dangerous, although still legal. Studies have found that even laser beams of 5mw can cause permanent retinal damage in a few seconds, but in practice it is not possible to stare at such a bright light for more than an instant; laser pointers can cause afterimage burn, flash blindness and glare, but not permanent damage, and are generally safe to use unless looked at for longer than 10 seconds. Even the glare produced by a 5mw laser can be just as lethal. Prolonged exposure to laser glare, like that off of a white painted wall, can contribute to blindness. So, not only are these lasers bad for your eyes, they can be bad for your equipment as well! Any laser brighter that 5mw has the potential to burn out the CCD sensor in any camera, and I have even confirmed this! I once fried a CMOS CCD sensor in one of my static IR cameras with a laser rated for 30mw.

Hopefully this guide well help you decide if using a laser grid or ghost laser is right for you. Most being sold for paranormal purposes are illegal and dangerous, while at the same time not having good quality. If you are purchasing one of these, you are not only risking your money, but you are also risking your health and possible fines and or jail time. I would be willing to bet, that anybody offering these for paranormal use, regardless of the seller, who states only a 5mw rating, are selling lasers that are not the stated wattages, and would not have the documentation to prove otherwise. Ask the seller to make sure it has the legal 5mw rating sticker on it. If it states otherwise, or has no sticker, then the seller has removed it! Never buy any laser without the required power rating sticker applied, or one that looks like it has been removed and reapplied. Be careful when buying and using any laser! There is a reason we call them lasers; L.A.S.E.R. stands for Light Amplified Stimulation Emissions of Radiation, and if it has the words "High Power" or "Extremely Bright", then it can't be good for your eyes. Do the math; High Power+Radiation=Illegal & Dangerous! This risks of using such devices for paranormal investigation far outweigh the possible rewards, especially when most of our attempts to gather the type of evidence these lasers promise, results in wasted money and time anyway.

I am running uBuntu 11.04 Natty as the primary OS even though it comes with Windows 7

I run Oracle Virtualbox for my old software on Windows XP, and will soon run Windows 7 the same way. The performance is great. Running XP this way is about 15 times as fast as my Toshiba that I bought in 2003. It was a 2.4GHZ single processor. And I have only allocated one CPU to the Virtualbox for XP! I can run my USB TV, Windows XP, development environment - Eclipse, Browser, and ham radio gear ALL at the same time with no performance problems. Simply amazing! I will be putting family VHS videos on DVD soon and that is why I bought this - I need the performance. 
There is only one problem - the nVidea GPU has no support for Linux OS. Fortunately, Bumblebee, an open source project is providing support to turn off the Optimus GPU when it is not used to save battery power. Mine runs about 7-8 hours on battery when not doing very much. nVideo really should support ALL OSes - you can't use the HDMI output unless the GPU is running! However, Dell is NOT alone in this regard. Many current generation machines with nVidea GPUs have the same problem. So if you run Linux - think about alternatives, although this machine still works great. If you do NOT run Linux - you really should. Performance has never been better, and if your Windows slow down it is really easy to get a virtual disk image of the way it was - without reloading the software! I'm very happy with this setup. I will not pay for Windows again if I am given a choice.

Mine does not have a multi-touch screen so you have to use the pen or the mouse

Using your finger for touch only works if it has a multi-touch screen. Overall I think its a great computer. I use it for travel and sometimes having a laptop is too big like on an airplane tray table so I can just swivel the top. I am old school and can't give up my keyboard yet. Also the thinkpad pointing stick (Red Dot) is my favorite. No trackpad on this model. 

Pro: computing power 
lots of outputs and inputs 
Stays pretty cool and easy on the battery although the 
LED screens are better 
Finger print reader (although I don't need it and most 
people probably don't either. 
well designed 

Con: Heavy 
full boot process to use. (unlike modern tablets that 
you just push a button and the thing is ready to use 
instantly.) 
no screen protectors avail. 
LCD screen

So impressed with the built of my recently purchased Lenovo Thinkpad x60 Tablet

Bought it in eBay from a reputable seller, my second purchase from them actually. My first one was a T400. X60 was much older than the T400 but in my opinion the built and plastics of this unit is way more impressive than the later. When you lift the x60 it feels solid and compact. Although I was looking for the presence of the thinklight and it was not there, still my overall impression of x60 exceeded my expectation. I'v read several reviews (or should I say complaints) on this unit but I guess it turned out to be the opposite. The keyboard is very, very comfortable to use - very minimal flex on the hand rest, but who is so heavy to flex it without really intentionally putting weight on it? This unit came with the WinXP Tablet edition which had a lot of features as is. Also I was able to use the charger of my T400 with this - worked fine. The only thing I notice is it's responsiveness- well I got use to my T400 which was 2.8ghz and this unit is 1.8ghz - one whole point down processor, but (there's always the but) gets me where I want to. The hard drive is actually very quiet and you really have to put your ear as close as possible to the hard drive to hear it working. The tablet screen has a lot of buttons that make your work easy when in the tablet mode and using it with the pen is surprisingly responsive. It's like writing on white paper. No lags at all. Not a bad purchase afterall!

The Dell Latitude D630 exceeded all my expectations -- and I am an extremely demanding computer user

it came with a 1.8 duo-core processer and only 1gig memory and 60 or a 80 gig harddrive with win vista busness,, 
ok for entry level but, 
i turned up the onboard video memory to max and jacked up the memory to max level of 4 gig pc2-6400 and added a faster processer T-7500 duo-core 2.2 and bought extra hardrive caddys for a switchout of the harddrives,1 came with it has vista on it ,1 has a 250 gig drive with xp on it and the other has a 620 gig drive with windows 7 on it and bought an extra drivebay caddy (put a 1 terbyte harddrive in it) that goes into the slot where the dvd burner goes and can swap out the dvd burner for the 1 terabyte harddrive when i need to save large files. 
also have a floppy drive that can be switched out for the dvd burner if needed. 
and can swap out the windows system harddrives by taking out 2 screws ,takes about 2 minutes/less from shutdown to boot back up.. 
i saw on ebay where they was some T-7700 2.4 duo-core processers for it also,,might upgrade it some more later on..

almost forgot ,changed out the onboard wi-fi card from 802:11b/g (54mbps) to faster 802:11n(300mbps) wireless . 

not much else you could want in a laptop if you take the time to do the upgrades to it..good luck with yours, i love mine after i did the upgrades..

Swarovski Optik Laser Guide 8x30 Rangefinder

What I like most about the Swarovski Optik Laser Guide 8x30 Rangefinder is that I can actually range an antelope or deer sized animal at 1200 yards with a good rest. I have also been able to range up to 1800 yards on a reflective target. All of my other 1500 yard rangefinders would only net about 500 yards on cow sized targets. I'm a longrange shooter so it is very important to me to know the range. It has very good glass and comes with a side holster that locks the rangefinder in place. The only improvement I can see is for the target circle to be a bit smaller and for the yardage numbers to stay bright; this current model fades in an out the yardages, but it has no effect on its accuracy. Very nice unit...

The Leupold RX-II Rangefinder has 3 bow modes with with true range

It also has several rifle combined with cal. functions. Both bow and rifle have the true range. The Leupold RX-II Rangefinder is easy to use and easy to figure out. It comes with both a manual and the pouch has a snap or d-ring for attaching to your hydration pak. comes in handy. I bought this product brand new still in a sealed box, for $200.40. That's with shipping. This is a 6x magnification tool. All in all you can spend more if you need more. This fills the bill for me. I think if you tool up on a budget and you want quality, this is the rangefinder for you. You can find them for 200-229$ if you shop around. Overall I am happy with the RXII Rangefinder, as it does give the line of sight distance and the point of aim distance at the same time. Out to 300 yards this will not change enough for the magnum calibers to honestly mattert. I do wish I would have looked a bit harder to find a rangefinder that is easier to see in low light. Also the unit itself has a ton of features for bow and rifle hunters. Too many in my opinion. As a person that is "technically challenged", prefer to aquire a target and get the range. Never claimed to be an electronic guru, and it is a bit confusing to get the proper settings. The information on the website for the settings for Bullet placement (BPX) is very limited in the choice of loads, but with a bit of long range trial and error it can be figured out. Would not want to by this a few days BEFORE the hunt for sure.
Just a few things I would look for if wanting a range finder for rifle shooting. The claimed distance is 700 yards... That is for reflective targets. I found it fairly accurate out to 500 yards on paper targets and about 340 on solid dark objects. In this case an angus bull standing in the pasture. have not tried the rain mode.. Yes, worth $200, but would prefer to pay a bit more and get more range, less features and something easier to see in low light.

buying baseball cards

I have learned from the school of hard knocks that there are two things you should always do when buying high end baseball cards off of EBAY:

1. Always ask for a reverse photo to make sure the back of the card is as nice as the front.

2. When dealing with graded cards, regardless of the grading company, remember that pictures of cards
in these sealed card cases normally do not photograph as well as those out of the cases.

Do not try and pay by PayPal w/o asking first

We are seeing a ton of people trying to use PayPal inappropriately by paying for an auction and then asking for the item to be shipped to another address other then the address on their account. We require the buyer to communicate first after an auction closes to ensure the are not trying to do something inappropriate. This is VERY confusing to a buyer when they go to pay and PayPal states yep you have paid for the auction when in fact they did not. This is a SERIOUS FLAW with PayPal but it is the only way to protect ourselves...sorry

Am I wrong or is ebay double charging its FVF??

The first FVF is suposed to be just for the selling price; check the math on yours.

Those transaction fees have nothing to do with the postage discount you get when printing your shipping labels through eBay/PayPal. If you want the shipping calculator to show the online rate (rather than the retail rate) you can choose that option in the shipping section of your Site Preferences.

I am a happy owner of the Dual Processor 2.66 Dual Core 1st generation Mac Pro (1,1)

These machines are getting up there in age. EEK! 3+ years old in computer terms is ancient. You can get something that's much faster, but these 1st gen Mac Pro's can still pull their considerable weight (40+ lbs).

If you must have the newest and fastest these aren't for you. I'm using my 2-2.66GHz Dual core Mac Pro as a second machine for rendering and doing some other crunching while I keep working on my main 2-2.8GHz Quad core Mac Pro.

I have installed a Sata card from OWC to use the extra Sata ports on the motherboard. I added a Matrox MX02 card to use this Mac Pro as an injest station for video production. I also added a CompressHD Matrox card to speed up h.264 compression. You can't get that functionality from an iMac (even a brnad new Core i7 one)and that's one of the reasons I like this machine so much - its expandability.

The great thing is you can add more RAM or faster/more hard drives to give these machines more life. I just added a new SSD drive to the mix to be my start up drive and am pleased with the new speed.

The options this Mac Pro gives you really make it a strong contender if you're looking for something that's a little cheaper than the brand new models. There's still plenty of tread on these tires even as the machine moves on from the Applecare years to year 4 and hopefully many more to come.

I have found that laptop PCs & Macbooks

The size of the Mac mini makes it useful for traveling and camping in an RV or camper. It fits easily on the smaller depth shelves that are necessary in the confined quarters of a camper.

I have found that laptop PCs & Macbooks, because of their integrated screens, are not as easy, as the mini, to use as a media center/workstation in an RV.

The mini plugs into a 21" wall mounted LCD, therefore, a smaller attached LCD, on a laptop is less than useful.

Also, the Mac mini remote makes it nice to control the OSX "Front Row" application. I use Front Row with the free media center plugin, "Sapphire".

The 1.83GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Processor works well for the small footprint that the desktop takes up.

I have found that the integrated Airport wireless is great for getting connected when we are in campgrounds with available WiFi.

Next, the bluetooth keyboard & mouse work well, for most of the same reasons that the mini works.

Finally, when we are not traveling we can simply unplug the little desktop and take it into the house and have a nice desktop for the kids.

So, the Mac mini has been a great solution to a "not so typical" need.

The Callaway X20 irons are straight and true

There is good launch even with the longer irons. Generally good feel for a cast head.
The heads do their job with a weighted feel to keep the clubs on like. The steel uniflex shafts are useful for a variety of swing speeds but compared to Taylormade T90s the uniflex feel archaic. The shafts are too heavy for those of us looking for the game improvemnt help.

Any USB mouse or keyboard plugs right in

Added 8 gig of memory and a 120G SSD drive. This little box moves!!! Photoshop pops right up. Easy to work on, check macsales.com for video's on how to upgrade the HD and memory.

Honma Driver 1 beres TW912

Compared to my AP-2 Titleists with steel shafts, the R11s with graphite shafts lack feel and distance control but are more forgiving and almost a club longer. They are very comparable to Titleist AP-1s in just about every way. I usually play 3-4 different sets of irons every season and play 60+ rounds per year.

Ping G15 3 wood

I had just finished buying the Ping G15 iron set, and hybrid. I didnt think I needed a 3 wood since I had the hybrid. After playing 2 rounds of golf, I was falling short on the par 5 with the hybrid. As soon as I got home I looked on ebay and found this 3 wood, that was pretty much brand new. Now when I go golf I feel much more confident, because now I have the clubs for any shot.

How and why can they do this?

My question is, when i list Cd's, records,or media mail type listings it says I can only charge $2.99 or $ 4.00 for this type of item. As I search through other sellers, I see that some are charging much more than this in the same catagory?

Some of you are legit here but are the rest just new and guessing at answers? ebay wont let you SELL media unless you offer free shipping / you can list all you want it wont sell -this is why:

you cant get seen on best match unless you are top rated.. you cant get top rated without free shipping to get the stars, you cant sell your stuff unless you list it for next to nothing.. if you are not high on Best match you better start them at 1 cent or get ready for a costly inventory soak.

You dont need to charge more that $4 for a single movie or CD they cost $2 almost everytime first class, a lot of the media rate costs more, and if you sell a huge lot you can put it in wholesale lots and charge WETFYW.. (you'll figure that one out..)

If you dont list single cds and dvds with prefilled info that are in the catalog they will pull your items eventually and give you violations which lead to account limitations that effect best match leading back to the first point.

Selling media is hard buyers only need to own your cds or dvds long enough to rip them.. 15 minutes after arrival you get a PP email saying YOU SENT ME BROKEN CRAP!! WHERES MY MONEY... GOOD LUCK!

I do not ship internationally and I have non US payments blocked

So after two BINS, I have a buyer who cannot pay for their items because they have a FL address but a Canadian bank.

I read the other thread about this, but I still do not understand how they were even able to buy my items if I have non US payments blocked. Or does ebay just look at the address?

I guess my main question is, if I lift the block, will I then be shipping to a confirmed address in FL, or will their confirmed address be in Canada and the FL address will be the non confirmed one?

It's totally your choice. The Cdn buyer will be registered in Canada, but will have a non-US paypal account and therefore cannot pay. I usually ship to them, as they are able to specify a US address in paypal when they make the payment. Probably spending the winter in Florida....

As long as they request the US shipping address, I unblock, ship and then reset the block.

Send them a message, and make sure that they are there long enough to receive the item, just in case, plus you will get confirmation in writing to ship to the US address.

Maxi Dresses for Petites

Do you always shy away from maxi dresses because they're way TOO long? Well you're definitely not alone, but don't let that stop you from wearing one of the most stylish & versatile looks of the season.

If the fit and style of a dress is otherwise perfect, but the length is your concern, a hem job from your tailor will be an easy and relatively inexpensive fix. Make sure you bring the shoes that you will be wearing with your dress, so the length ends up being just right. The same can be done if you can't find your exact size. If you're a medium and there is only a large available, get it altered to fit like a medium. You can sometimes score some great deals by buying items on sale/clearance in a size or 2 up (no more than that or it may end up being too costly) and having them altered to fit you.

Last but not least, don't forget to pair your maxi dress with great accessories. A cute pair of sandals, medium/large handbag, bangles and/or earrings can really make your dress pop!

The Best Ebay Tips and Tricks for the New & Old Ebayer

This guide is meant for anyone that buys anything on Ebay - especially those of you who are new to Ebay. Some of the things I will try to help you with is how to avoid making a bad purchase on Ebay. Also how to keep from getting outbid on the things you want, especially at the last minute. There are numerous guides on how to use Ebay, but I've never seen a quick and easy reference to use that gets right to the point. So here goes.
70 percent or more of bids are placed during the last few minutes of the auction
Place an odd bid amount - Never an even dollar amount
Avoid auctions that offer an item for 99 cents but they say in big bold words to email first
Don't fall for the word RARE on anything
Never buy anything from email offers outside of Ebay
Avoid auctions that ONLY accept payment by wire transfers, Western Union, or cash
Familiarize yourself with all Ebay features before bidding
Always check a users feedback rating
Research the item before you buy it
Be cautious of sellers from other countries
Never click on anything in an email from Ebay or Paypal
What to do if you receive a fake email?
Lastly - if it looks to good to be true, IT IS !!
As I think of more tips, I will update this guide. There's no sure fire way to avoid getting ripped off on Ebay, but hopefully these tips will help you avoid that headache. So here's the details....
70 percent or more of bids are placed during the last few minutes of the auction
TRUE - You're probably wondering how someone outbid you at the last second on an auction you bid on 3 days ago. To be like most people and place a last second bid, the best trick to use is go to the auction item. Then click on the web page address, highlight the whole address, then right click and select copy. Now open a new browser window and paste the address (right click and paste) and hit enter. Now you have two web pages open, both to the same auction.
Now here's the trick...In the second webpage, go ahead and enter your bid and click on the place bid button. If you go to a page that asks for your user name and password, go ahead and enter it and click submit. Now you should go to CONFIRMATION page. This is the final step before you actually place your bid. DO NOT CLICK SUBMIT just yet. You can leave this page open for as long as you want too. Now, go back to the other webpage you have opened - the first one. On this webpage, you can keep refreshing the webpage and watch the timer count down. Once the auction gets down under 30 seconds, rush back to the second webpage and click SUBMIT. You just placed a last second bid called a snipe bid.
Once under 30 seconds, you decide on when to hit the submit button on the second webpage. Depending on how daring you are, you can wait until the very last second. BUT, keep in mind that it takes about 3 - 5 seconds for Ebay to confirm your bid. So if you wait a little too long, you could still lose out and your bid not be accepted.
Place an odd bid amount - Never an even dollar amount
Never place an even bid such as $3.00 or $10.00. The trick use to be was to place your bid for one penny more. This way you would win over someone that placed an even dollar bid. But, most people have caught on to that trick. Now you have to bid an odd amount. If you're going to bid on something for $5, place an odd bid for $5.05 or $5.12 or something similar. You will have a better chance of winning the auction. The only people that place even dollar bids are people who are new to Ebay.
Avoid auctions that offer an item for 99 cents but they say in big bold words to email first
This is normally a scam. Look at the sellers other items by clicking on View Seller's Other Items. If all or most of their auctions have this same text, avoid this seller like the plague. It may say you have to be pre-approved before purchasing this auction. The auction may even contain text telling that they are selling you the purchase info only, not the actual item being sold. The only pre-approval needed for ebay auctions are normally in the Ebay Live auctions or in the Ebay vehicles categories.
Don't fall for the word RARE on anything
Very few things on Ebay are actually rare. It's all a marketing scheme. Words like rare, one of a kind, unique, the only one I've seen, etc... are all marketing words to pull you in and help cross that line of to buy or not to buy. I've written another guide specifically about this problem. But, the basics are, research what you're interested in. Email the seller. WHY is it rare? If they give you a vague answer, run. If they give you a specific answer and can even tell you a little bit of history on the item, then it probably is rare. Is everything the seller has listed marked as rare? Search Ebay and the internet. If you find more of the same item listed on Ebay, chances are it's not rare. Just put the word rare in the search engine on ebay and see how many listings come up. You should see at least 200,000 listings. Can there really be that many rare items for sale on Ebay?
Never buy anything from email offers outside of Ebay
If you bid on an auction and lost, you might receive an email from the seller offering a second item at the same winning bid. DO NOT go for this unless you know and have dealt with this buyer before. Ebay says to NEVER accept offers like this. This is one of the main reasons Ebay has offered a new service for sellers called Second Chance Offers. You can get a second chance email from the seller, but it will be for the highest bid you placed. Not for the highest bid in the auction. As long as you make a purchase through an Ebay auction, you have a very good chance of not getting ripped off.
Avoid auctions that ONLY accept payment by wire transfers, Western Union, or cash
If the seller only accepts these payment methods, run! You have a very good chance of getting ripped off. You can not get your money back by any of these payment methods. Once you send the money, it's gone. If you don't receive the auction item, there is nothing you can do to get your money back. The best way to protect yourself is use Paypal. There are no fees for sending money. All fees are charged to the seller. Most sellers on Ebay are legitimate and accept Paypal. If you've been ripped of and did make a payment this way, you can report the crime to the Internet Crime Complaint Center. Just look them up in any search engine and it will take you to their webpage. The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C).
Familiarize yourself with all Ebay features before bidding
Ebay has lots and lots of features that can help you with your buying experience. Everything from searching to discussion boards. For searching, make sure and use the Advanced Search feature. You would be surprised at the number of auctions you could miss by just using the normal search. Once you go to the advanced search feature, always put a check mark in Search Title and Description. This will make a huge difference. You can also search better by using a plus or minus sign in front of keywords. A plus sign means it MUST have that word. A minus sign means you're not interested in auctions that have that keyword. You can also search for phrases by using quotes. If you search for caterpillar model truck, it will bring up all auctions that have any one of those keywords in it. Such as automotive auctions for any kind of truck. But, if put the three words inside quotes it will ONLY bring up auctions that have this phrase in the auction.
The discussion boards can be a source of a huge amount of info and help. To get there, just click on the Community button at the top of any ebay webpage. This will take you to a page of different categories for discussion boards. The best one to click on is go to the first one - Discussion Boards. In here you can discussion boards on everything from buyer complaints to category specific questions. You can spend hours reading thorough all the comments. This is a good place to ask questions about anything.
Always check a users feedback rating
If a user has a lot of negative feedbacks recently, avoid this seller. But, you can take it with a grain of salt too. If the seller in question has 500 positives in the last 30 days and only one or two negatives, then that's probably from a few disgruntled buyers. More than likely these are difficult customers and there probably wasn't anything the seller could do to make them happy. Human nature is too ALWAYS try to blame someone else for their mistake. Ask any little kid if they did something wrong even when they did. The usual answer is "I didn't do it". Human nature at it's purest and most honest form.
Research the item before you buy it
If you're not sure what you're buying but it's something you want, research it. You have one of the most powerful research tools right at your fingertips. The INTERNET. Use the many different search engines to research your item. Find out if it's rare or really worth what the seller is asking. Use the internet to help you decide what you would pay for the item. You can also use Ebay as a research tool. It's one of the few places you can search past sales. You can't do that at a brick and mortar type store. Use the Advanced Search feature and put in your keywords for the auction item you’re interested in. Put a check mark in Completed Listings Only. This way you can search completed auctions only and see if this item has been selling and if so, for how much. The bad thing is Ebay only keeps closed auction on the books for 30 days. So you have to remember that you're search is only for the last 30 days. You can also email the seller. Most sellers are knowledgeable about what they are selling. There may even be a unique history behind the item you’re looking at. Just ask...
Be cautious of sellers from other countries
This one is tricky. Make sure and research the seller carefully. Look at his/her feedback rating. Email them any questions you have. Most sellers from other countries are just as honest as any other seller. But, you have to decide if you want to deal with someone in a foreign country. There may be language barriers, customs issues, extra shipping charges, etc. I've bought a lot of things from sellers outside the U.S. I've only been ripped off once. That one was my own fault too. I knew it might be a bad idea, but for the low dollar amount, I took the chance. At least I got the opportunity to leave the appropriate feedback for that seller.
Never click on any links in an email from Ebay or Paypal
There is a new security feature from Ebay now. When you receive an OFFICAL email from Ebay, it will also be sent to My Messages in your My Ebay page. NEVER click on any link in an email from Ebay or Paypal. Neither company with EVER send you a link inside their emails. Even if the link looks legitimate, there's a 100% chance it's not. If you do click on it, it will always take you to a webpage that will look exactly like an official Ebay page. If you think you have an official email or announcement from Ebay, open up a new browser window and type in www.Ebay.com. Then click on MyEbay and sign in. Then down on the left side, click on My Messages. If there is no copy of the same message in there, then the email you received is fake. It's called a spoof email. What the sender is trying to do is get you to go to their webpage and enter in your ebay id, password, credit card info, billing address, ccv # on the credit card, social security number, mothers maiden name, etc... for whatever reason. With this info, they can not only use your Ebay account to rip off other people, they can also steal your identity. With the power of the internet, once you enter this info, the fraudulent charges can start as quickly as within an hour. If I sent you a letter through the mail and asked you fill out all this same info and send it back to me. You would say "HELL NO". So why would you do it from an email? Again, to play it safe on the internet, NEVER EVER open a link in an email unless it's from someone you know such as a relative or friend. Other than that, NEVER click on a link in email. By following this simple rule, you will save yourself a ton of trouble.
What to do if you receive a fake email?
If you think you've received a fake email from either Ebay or Paypal, simply forward it to one of these addresses: For Ebay, forward the message to SPOOF at EBAY dot COM. For Paypal, forward the message to SPOOF at PAYPAL dot COM. (you have to change the words AT and DOT to the appropriate symbols). You should get a reply email usually within minutes telling you if it was a fake email or not.
Lastly - if it looks to good to be true, IT IS !!
This one works every time. There's a reason this saying has been around longer than you or I. It always works.
Hopefully you got at least one good tip out of this guide. If you have any questions, you can email me. I will always try to answer them to the best of my knowledge. Don't forget to vote below if you found this guide helpful of not. Just click on yes or no - that's it.
Ebay also has a great starter page with video tutorials as well. Just go to Ebay: Learning Center and start learning.

SELLERS BEWARE OF PAYPALS RESOLUTION POLICY

Please Read Carefully
Paypals resolution policy for buyers unrecieved items CLAIMS.
I recently had a buyer claim she did NOT recieve the movies i sent her . This was in retaliation for filing an unpaid items claim on 74 movies she did NOT pay for, which i won.
Paypal informed me of the case against me and i responded with what i THOUGHT was very good evidence against her claim.
1. The feedback she left me for all the movies, stating she was very happy with the purchase and had recieved her movies.
2. The copy's of the letters she had sent me on the EBAY site which showed she had recieved the movies and was going to buy many many more.
3. The postage reciept dated the day after her purchase which showed her ZIP code and price of the mailing.These items were purchased by media mail and she did NOT opt for any of the extras (Insurace or Confirmation)
4. The facts that she had recently had Both her accounts SUSPENDED at EBAY and had just recently got them back on somehow.
5. The fact that a yahoo people search on this person showed THREE different places of residence ALL with the same street address but in three different city's BUT all with the same Phone Number.
Thinking i had no problem with this claim i was soon to discover how very WRONG i was....!!! Seems like PAYPAL (which is also an EBAY company) has only ONE SIMPLE RULE...!!!
1. DO YOU HAVE A DELIVERY CONFIRMATION RECIEPT...!!!!
Thats it plain and simple, no checking with ebay no nothing.
She won her case BUT happy to report i did get her Kicked off of EBAY and she is NO longer able to pull her little games.
So just a little warning for all you out there ,unfortunately there are many unscrupulous people that use ebays and PAYPALS very LAX policy's to thier own Benefit.

New! Timing Belt For Machine knitting Brother KH-260

Mounting the timing belt
1.Put the timing belt over the clutch wheel and the pulley on both sides with the belt connecting pin kept inward.
-On the pulley side,pass the belt from the front side by fitting the belt connecting pin to the shallow concave part of the pulley
**Put the belt slot to the concave part indicated with the * mark on the pulley.
-On the clutch wheel sides,pass the belt from the front side by fitting the belt connecting hole to the shallow concave part of the clutch wheel.
2.loosen the left screw for pulley adjusting plate ,then the belt is stretched by the spring pressure.
3.Adjusted the pulley adjusting plate to 0.6-1.0mm and fix it with the screw.

Bud Hastin's Avon Collector's Encyclopedia: Avon and California Perfume Company Products-1886 to Present (2007, Paperback, Collectors)

Part 2 of 2 guides on this subject - I have split because eBay only allows 10 photos per guide.

Please ensure you have read Part 1.....

Now for some examples of really good packing.

Firstly a purchase from a quality supplier on eBay premierpottery

Photo 1- A good size sturdy box, well taped with “Fragile” tape, you can see box got slightly wet on the day of delivery which was no problem.

Photo 2 - The box was filled with good quality polystyrene chips.

Photo 3 - The bubble wrapped figurine was found in the centre of the polystyrene chips.

Photo 4 - A perfect undamaged figure.

Secondly, a purchase from another quality supplier on eBay powertools.etc

Photo 1 - A good strong box.

Photo 2 - The box was stuffed with plenty of paper which was good enough to hold the figure in the centre of the box.

Photo 3 - The figure was well bubble wrapped; expanded polystyrene has been cut and used to hold the figure in the centre of the box. The seller had even constructed a polystyrene base for the figure to offer even more protection and support.

Photo 4 - A perfect undamaged piece.

I hope these examples have given you plenty ideas of good and bad packing.

An additional word of warning – I have seen some eBay sellers who say they will not take responsibility for the transit of their items. They will say things like, they will support the seller in a claim. Claiming on insurance doesn’t work like that – the seller has to make the claim. Do not buy from any seller that negates their responsibility for customer service.

Top Tips:-

1. Use a good sturdy large box and use plenty of quality filling, preferably polystyrene chips.

2. If using the older type of original Lladro box make sure the figure is secured using the cardboard and tape, then fill with tissue paper (or another suitable soft filler). Make sure the piece can’t move.

3. If you have no box make sure the figure is well wrapped in bubble wrap and that this is taped.

4. Ensure the original Lladro box or wrapped figure is in the in the centre of the bigger box. If possible use expanded polystyrene to hold it in the centre.

5. Test for any movement within the inner and outer boxes.

6. Only post the item if you feel 100% confident it will protect the figure.

7. Remember a small box (like a shoe box) is absolutely of no use. Small boxes will be thrown around, like passing a rugby ball – think of bigger boxes, they don’t tend to be thrown around so often and are more likely to be picked up and placed.

8. Make sure that there is insurance on transit of the item.

9. Don’t buy from any seller who says they will not take responsibility for the safe transit of an item or suggests that any claim will be for the buyer to pursue.

Danelectro N-10 Honeytone Guitar Amp

The vintage blackface fender vibro champ is a unique, lightweight gem. The vibrato is rich, and luscious sounding. These are low-watt treasures that are perfect for recording, keeping stage volumes manageable, and jamming or practicing around the house. They are ok on their own for very small gigs, and are very useful miked when a bigger sound is needed out front. The trend these days is to play low-watt amps that can be pushed a bit. Most venues can't accommodate the beastly loud amps that many guitarists used to think they needed, only to be told repeatedly: "Turn it DOWN!" Your soundman, bandmates and audience will thank you.

The circuit is fender's only Class-A circuit. All of their other combos are Class-AB. Class-A amps are prized for their single-ended tone. Mesa Boogie and many boutique manufacturers go to great lengths to make Class-A amps due to the rich sound produced. This is not to say Class-AB amps are inferior-not in the least. But the tone and responsiveness/feel are different.

Like most vintage fender amps, the tone is beautifully clean up to around vol 4-5. The tonal character of these amps is very rich, because of the circuit, and also because of the 8" speaker. Interestingly, the 8" speaker rolls off a bit of lows in such a way that the guitar sits in the mix perfectly without clashing with the other instruments. Replacing the speakers with modern upgrades can further increase their versatility at minimal cost. Jensen and Weber make very inexpensive 8" speakers.

When you increase the volume beyond 5 you get an additional beautiful grit that is very touch sensitive. When you crank these amps you realize why these were used in the studio by Clapton so often. This is a very expressive instrument.

Paypal refund not showing

I had an international buyer pay for an item before i was able to send an invoice. The buyer ended up not paying enough to cover the 1st Class International shipping so I emailed him and refunded his payment through paypal in the hopes that I would be able to send a new invoice. I have done this in the past and it works fine. I refunded the payment through Paypal (and Paypal is showing that the refund is complete) but now ebay is not letting me send a new invoice and is still showing that the item has been paid for. Marking the item as "payment not received" does not let me send an invoice either. Any idea what's going on or what i might be able to do?? Thanks in advance!

Fake Memory SDHC cards and other memory sticks

I ordered and received a fake Samsung 16gb memory stick which when formatted by Windows7 produced a card with 200mbs. This was most unnerving and I began to read that many memory cards are now faked with wrong information written in the mbr (master boot record). I found a way to fix the card which did have 16gb of good space on the card. Here's my fix which will take downloading two free programs on the net.

The first program needed HDDGuru's LLF (Low Level Format) tool. This program is available for download from softpedia and is free to use. The next program you need is MiniTool Partition Wizard. They have a website and free download. Now all you have to do is run a wipe and clean off of the old formatting of the card so it is pristine fresh. Next run a slow low level format of the card which should now give you a fresh card that sees all of the sectors available. This format process will take several hours so make sure your computer does not time out. When finished, just fire up the MiniTool Partition Wizard and create a new partition that allocated all of the available space. At that time, the software will assign a new drive letter and you name the card and all is repaired.

This should work on 8gb, 16gb & 32gb cards or memory sticks. Oh, and be sure when you format and set the partition to use Fat32. My Windows 7x64 now reads all of the space with no problems.

Unless you have IPR (instant payment required) option on your listing then buyers basically have 8 days to pay.

I don't think the buyer opts to make payment by eCheck and I'm not sure all buyers are even aware that their transaction will be made via eCheck at the time they bid/buy.

I believe PayPal uses the eCheck if the buyer doesn't have ample funds in their PayPal account at the time of purchase and has not backed up their account with a credit card.

So...not really sure you can enforce a "No eCheck" stipulation since PayPal determines when an eCheck is used.

Echecks are not always a bad thing. I've sold several items by eCheck and never had a problem