eBay sellers....hmmmm wonder who

[Jesse]

So I havent been on this forum for very long, but I have been here long enough to catch that when it comes to Bornagain and OrangeKing people are on the fence. Some like one compared to the other and some go both ways. I wanted to take a few lines and throw my hat into the ring.

Over the course of the past day and a half I have been working on a trade/purchase deal with mr BA himself (abbreviated on purpose because he really thinks he is a B A when it comes to OverPower). During the course of this deal he was constantly "checking his stocks" and he would remove a card from the deal - ironically the only OPD or Character that mattered at all. So when he would do this, I would alter what I wanted and propose a new offer. Anyway, this went on for Many MAny MANy MANY emails. Finally we nailed down a trade and a price and everything was good to go - except it wasn't. Stupid little me, I realized there were a couple C/UC cards that I forgot to put on my trade list, so I merely asked him if he wouldn't mind tossing them into the deal. To me it was no big deal - it was C/UC cards that didn't even total $3. So he adds the cards in and adds in the price for them  and adds some shipping because he can (even though he never charges shipping). So I tell him no dice that I didn't want to buy the cards because they were extra and guess what?? He got mad because he had already pulled the cards out and packaged them up before we every concreted the deal. Not my fault that he jumped the gun. So what happened next you ask? We diverted to childish namecalling and slander.  Not my proudest moment I will admit and if by chance he reads this - I do apologize for my words - I still mean them - but I apologize.  That leads me to my opinion. I think he is power hungry, greedy, and a bit of.......well insert your own fun noun here (______) <keeping it clean> 

[Onslaught]

There are a couple of other posts about him on here, he's an unprofessional weirdo who isn't worth dealing with. Examples of his business practices:

-Sending damaged cards (and insulting you when you point out that you received damaged cards)
-Sending the wrong cards (and insulting you when you point out that you recevied the wrong cards)
-Illegal eBay auctions
-Reverse engineering eBay user IDs by comparing feedback scores to past purchases, then soliciting you through emails "hey I saw you bought a Leech from Orange King, why not buy it from me instead..."
-Receives a list of cards you are interested in buying, actually goes and modifies the price list on his website to up the price of the cards you want, then sends you an invoice with the new increased prices

It was pretty hilarious watching the last one happen in real time. DRDEATH25 sent in an order list that included Protector of the Innocent x3, his website had that "last updated: _____" changed to the current day, and Protector of the Innocent had magically increased by 1 dollar each.

Anyway, I'm sure lots of other people will reply saying they have done business with him before and everything went fine. But, even if he didn't do shady crap like that, I'd still prefer for people to give their business to the Orange King instead. Those sleazy "I undercut anyone's prices!" and his general demeanor give off the feeling that he is just out to make a quick buck off the remaining playerbase. I'm sure the Orange King makes a nice profit himself, but he also still shows up to tournaments, was a well respected player, etc. - so you get the feeling he still cares about the game. On top of all that, he replaces incorrect orders instead of lying about it, he gives discounts on bulk orders for a deck instead of secretly upgrading his prices to gouge you, and he's just easier to deal with in general.

[gameplan.exe]

I agree with Onslaught on the respect for The Orange King. I gained a lot of it when I read about his own history with the game and the fact that he's an active player, still. It's alluring to be able to haggle (which Bornagain79 will do freely), but in the end, I feel better about buying from some one that I know respects the game.

[Jesse]

I'm right there with you! I've done business with OrangeKing and so far *knock on wood* I haven't had any issues at all. When everything went bad with Bornagain he actually went kind of nuts and started typing "Go do business with Orangey, he has higher prices, bad shipping, bad condiitoned cards....etc etc" I thought that was pretty hilarious myself!

I would've like to have seent he real time updates! That would have been an interesting scene to watch unfold: did he actually end up buying the cards?

It's alluring to be able to haggle (which Bornagain79 will do freely)

He got mad at me for quoting Orange Kings prices for some DC sets and kept saying that I was Nickle and Diming him  ...well Yeah I was - but he has the whole "Ill beat the price thing going on. He has to expect it every now and then.

[gameplan.exe]

It's alluring to be able to haggle (which Bornagain79 will do freely)

He got mad at me for quoting Orange Kings prices for some DC sets and kept saying that I was Nickle and Diming him  ...well Yeah I was - but he has the whole "Ill beat the price thing going on. He has to expect it every now and then.

Haggle = Hassle, but you get what you pay for. If it's worth your time and effort to talk a guy down a few dollars, then maybe Bornagain79 is the guy. For myself, though, I haven't spent enough $$ on Overpower cards to make haggling over a few bucks worth the hassle 

[Jesse]

[/quote]
If it's worth your time and effort to talk a guy down a few dollars, then maybe Bornagain79 is the guy.[/quote]

I've never seen a seller from any of the CCGs or table top minitures games that I have ever played, be as rude and unprofessional as Mark was/is when I was dealing with him.  His "crap" (for lack of a better word) may work for some people, but I'm out. To me spending $.50-$1 more from OrangeKing if I purchase and waiting to make trades with other traders is worth the wait to fullfill my set needs if it means I won't be dealing with him again.

Simply put: just from these recent experiences alone, I agree with everything that Onslaught has posted. 

[garose74]

I've delt with both traders and in my opinion OK the the person I would go back to every time. I've never had any issues with him.

On the other hand BA fleeced me out of a load of cards. I sent him some cards on a trade but never recieved the cards he said he had sent me. I asked him to contact me when my cards reached him. He never replied. I asked him to contact me when he had sent the cards out to me. He never replied. After about 6 weeks I asked him to confirm that he had sent the cards out to me but all I got was: "they are prob' held up at customs". I never recieved the cards or any further replies from him. If you buy from him, make sure its on eBay and you pay with paypal, that way you will get your money back if he pulls a fast one on you.

[Jesse]

"they are prob' held up at customs

Thats got to be the worst line ever  I traded with a guy from England a couple weeks ago and his package made it to me in barely over a week.  I'm sorry to hear that he hosed you on your deal - I've been down that route with trades in the past so I know the feeling.

[gameplan.exe]

I've delt with both traders and in my opinion OK the the person I would go back to every time. I've never had any issues with him.

On the other hand BA fleeced me out of a load of cards. I sent him some cards on a trade but never recieved the cards he said he had sent me. I asked him to contact me when my cards reached him. He never replied. I asked him to contact me when he had sent the cards out to me. He never replied. After about 6 weeks I asked him to confirm that he had sent the cards out to me but all I got was: "they are prob' held up at customs". I never recieved the cards or any further replies from him. If you buy from him, make sure its on eBay and you pay with paypal, that way you will get your money back if he pulls a fast on on you.

Wow!! that's truly terrible! I might've been on the fence about BA79 in the past, but I think this just put the nail in the coffin.

OKFTW!

[Jack]

If you're doing a purchase/trade with a significant number of cards, always opt for the tracking (both ways if trading). It doesn't cost too much more in most cases.

The trade I did with BornAgain79 had about $800 of cards in total. I got my cards in early, his cards were delayed because of bad weather in New York. Without tracking, I would have a hard time explaining why cards weren't delivered to him in a timely fashion. But since I did opt for tracking, a simple call to USPS informed me the item was held in New York because of a snow storm and will continue the next day.

Also, don't be shy to ask for pictures of the real card and not some stock image from my site or the person's collection. To be 100% sure, I asked BornAgain79 to take a picture of the cards before they were sealed in the envelope, along with the tracking number, just to be safe. I didn't want to take ANY chances with a significant amount of cards.

-
To add, I have only ever received a "bad" card from Orange King, but he explicitly stated on his auction page that the card was indeed played with and in a worn condition (minor white edges, corners starting to fold in), he even had pictures of the card in question.

[Jesse]

If you're doing a purchase/trade with a significant number of cards, always opt for the tracking (both ways if trading). It doesn't cost too much more in most cases.

The trade I did with BornAgain79 had about $800 of cards in total. I got my cards in early, his cards were delayed because of bad weather in New York. Without tracking, I would have a hard time explaining why cards weren't delivered to him in a timely fashion. But since I did opt for tracking, a simple call to USPS informed me the item was held in New York because of a snow storm and will continue the next day.

Also, don't be shy to ask for pictures of the real card and not some stock image from my site or the person's collection. To be 100% sure, I asked BornAgain79 to take a picture of the cards before they were sealed in the envelope, along with the tracking number, just to be safe. I didn't want to take ANY chances with a significant amount of cards.

-
To add, I have only ever received a "bad" card from Orange King, but he explicitly stated on his auction page that the card was indeed played with and in a worn condition (minor white edges, corners starting to fold in), he even had pictures of the card in question.

Good Advice. So far when/if I ever make large trades I do always require tracking. And I'm on the same page with OK - the only "damaged" cards I have ever received were pretty much spelled out that way upfront. I'd recommend him any day of the week over BA now.

[Kal-el]

I bought a lot from BA back when he had boxes. Probably spent four to five hundred dollars on boxes. He was never as professional as I wanted, but it worked.

Later I tried to buy some other stuff from him, mainly a set of placards, and he just dicked me around. Lot's of crap about 'trying to talk down the seller' and stuff when I knew he had just bought a huge lot on eBay that included the placards.

I decided that the extra dollar to deal with a very professional and responsible seller in OrangeKing was definitely worth it, and I swore off BA.

[Jesse]

I decided that the extra dollar to deal with a very professional and responsible seller in OrangeKing was definitely worth it, and I swore off BA.

Thats pretty much exactly what I decided on. And several times you can get the card you need +more for close to the same price from Orange King.  For instance to complete my Flash set all I need was the OPD. BA had it for a little over $2, but OK had the entire Flash Set for $2.99. This gave me my card plus extras for either trade or friends that want to play.

It may take me longer to complete my sets without dealing with someone that has everything, but he is such a TOOL that I dont mind the little extra wait I will have to endeavor.

[KObossy]

Here is a recent failed transaction with BA. I was looking for some cards I needed on craigslist and he responded. Lets just say it wasnt the fairest offer in the world. I edited out the 1st 100 emails where he tries to get me to check for every card ever made that is worth money. Im already wanting out of this deal by this time:

In a message dated 4/13/2012 12:39:38 P.M. US Eastern Daylight Time, kobossy writes:
I got 3 of them from another guy 2 days ago. Now Im looking for Backsnap & Mist Body.

Let me know if you have those 2 cards and what your offer is.

From: Bornagain79@aol.com
Sent: Friday, April 13, 2012 10:20 AM
To: kobossy
Subject: Re: interested in trading overpower...

I have both.  What are you willing to trade, and would you sell the others?

This is my list in order of priority:

Devour of worlds,
Spider-man IQ hero
Starjammers-Prof X special
Supersonic,
X-man character
Jean grey: Dark phoenix

In a message dated 4/13/2012 2:35:32 P.M. US Eastern Daylight Time, kobossy writes:
I am willing to trade/sell all of them...please make an offer of the 2 cards I want and an offer of the 2 cards plus cash.

From: Bornagain79@aol.com
Sent: Friday, April 13, 2012 11:36 AM
To: kobossy
Subject: Re: interested in trading overpower...

Before I do, do you want to see if you have any other of my wants?  I can send you a complete list

In a message dated 4/13/2012 3:04:40 P.M. US Eastern Daylight Time, kobossy writes:
No thanks...boxes are all put back in storage and I do not want to get them out again

From: Bornagain79@aol.com
Sent: Friday, April 13, 2012 2:33 PM
To: kobossy
Subject: interested in trading overpower...

Do you have a cash number in mind?

In a message dated 4/13/2012 5:40:38 P.M. US Eastern Daylight Time, kobossy writes:
Make 2 offers...one for just cards and one for your 2 cards plus cash. Please make sure it is your best offer. I do not want to go back and forth with counter offers. I really need to conclude this.

thx

From: Bornagain79@aol.com
Sent: Friday, April 13, 2012 2:42 PM
To: kobossy
Subject: Re: interested in trading overpower...

As for cash and trade, how about the trade + $5?

Devourer of worlds,
Spider-man IQ hero
Starjammers-Prof X special
Supersonic,
X-man character
Jean grey: Dark phoenix

In a message dated 4/13/2012 5:58:35 P.M. US Eastern Daylight Time, kobossy writes:
Im looking to make a fair trade...that's not even close...I wouldn't do DOW alone for those 2 cards...if you have a fair trade in mind let me know...there are fewer and fewer OverpoweR people out there and I would hope we are old enough now (if you played the game your at least 32yrs old) to not try an rip each other off.

From: Bornagain79@aol.com
Sent: Friday, April 13, 2012 3:04 PM
To: kobossy
Subject: Re: interested in trading overpower...

I told you to make an offer.  Id be willing to buy the others, but you obviously have a price in your mind.

I've traded for a DOW for less before.  X-men rare for image rare.  Image was made less than x-men.

In a message dated 4/13/2012 6:35:44 P.M. US Eastern Daylight Time, kobossy writes:
Its not about which set was in less supply its which cards are in more demand (but you know that). By your logic ill take a Power leach(IQ) for Serious arsenal(Image). Taking advantage of a fellow collector for DOW is nothing to brag about. How much do you sell DOW for? I know its more than the 2 cards I'm asking for. Hope your conscious doesn't bother you pretending you don't know about the cards you sell or trade for. Its disappointing someone who is recognized as arguably the biggest collector of overpower deals like this. Please reflect on your dishonesty before stating to people thru your email address that you are Born Again. Take care

From: Bornagain79@aol.com
Sent: Friday, April 13, 2012 3:46 PM
To: kobossy
Subject: Re: interested in trading overpower...

wow. 

I just bought a DOW this week for $10 off another dealer.

Like I said, I gave you the option to give a price, but you didn't, so there is no need to get upset.

As for demand, I have had more requests for mist body in the last year than DOW. 

As the world's largest dealer, I think I know very well what is in demand.

I'm sorry you got easily offended.  No worries here

[breadmaster]

'As the world's largest dealer, I think I know very well what is in demand.'

used that one on me too...we all know he's trying to run a business, but he's always looking to gouge