It Came from EBAY! Trash or Treasure? Unboxing eBay Poorly Wrapped & Shipped Items

In this video, I share my most recent experiences ordering product from eBay, which, well... Ugh is the best way to describe it.

Since I got back into retro collecting I have occasionally turned to eBay to fill different holes in my collection. I have been lucky with some great deals, that's for sure. I've also had a few horror stories, for sure. I know that eBay can be somewhat of a crap shoot, and sometimes you get crap. I've gotten good deals on things like my Sharp Famicom Twin with 30 games and a bunch of spare belts for under $100, Virtual Boy from the original owner for only $135, and more. But then there was also the Model 2 Sega Genesis With Sega CD And Sega 32x Lot that was packed... well it was just thrown in a USPS box without any packing material. You can see that experience here: https://youtu.be/x_ZTVk0Lb8c

During one of eBay's December Promos, I was able to pick up a Nintendo Famicom, in the box. The unit was untested and I didn't know if it worked or not, which was clearly stated in the listing. I figured I could clean it, Retrobrite it, and sell the console itself to another local collector; I really just wanted the box. But, unfortunately, the box was not in the greatest shape, not at all what I expected, and sadly I don't know whether it was not represented well in the eBay photos or if it was damaged due to poor packing.

When I received the package from Japan, I knew I was going to be disappointed. The box was wrapped in brown wrapping paper, no exterior shipping box. This meant that during transit from Japan to the USA there was nothing of substance to protect it from exterior damage. Upon opening up the brown wrapping paper I did find that there were 2, very thin, layers of bubble wrap around the box. How could someone think this was adequate?

Looking at the box, there were definite signs of damage, but like I say it is impossible to tell if the damage was caused by the transit or was there previously. There were 2 significant marks near the Famicom logo in the top left corner of the box. The top right corner of the box was also dented in. Ugh, this broke my heart.

Inside the box, things looked better. The Styrofoam was in decent shape, and while severely yellowed, the console itself was is good shape too. It even had the accessory port plug, which my AV Modded Famicom was actually lacking. Score! The RF Modulator looked like it had been... tweaked... modified... adjusted several times, and like the system, it was severely yellowed it was intact. Score two! The listing indicated that a power supply wasn't included so I wasn't surprised to see it not included. The final piece of the listing was a Famicom version of Baseball, and, well, it needed some TLC.

Before I even thought about putting that cartridge in a system I cleaned it with my normal cleaning routine. I hit it with several treatments of Brite Boy, man these connectors were filthy! I did 3 normal cleanings and one where I let the Brite Boy sit for 15-minutes before removing it. I also used some 1Up Cleaning cards and cleaning solution to remove any lingering dirt and Brite Boy. I tossed the cartridge in my Sharp Famicom Twin, powered it up, and was pleased to hear the game startup music, right on cue.
I contacted the listing seller and he has agreed to a partial refund of the selling fee, which I have accepted. I've not left, and probably will not leave, feedback on the seller's listing. He made it right with the partial refund, but I'm still disappointed that I don't know where the damage came from. Oh well, now I'm off to clean up the system itself!

The footage used in this review are used under the Fair Use laws, referenced below:

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The fact that a work is unpublished shall not itself bar a finding of fair use if such finding is made upon consideration of all the above factors.
(Pub. L. 94–553, title I, § 101, Oct. 19, 1976, 90 Stat. 2546; Pub. L. 101–650, title VI, § 607, Dec. 1, 1990, 104 Stat. 5132; Pub. L. 102–492, Oct. 24, 1992, 106 Stat. 3145.)