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Grandfather Clock eBay

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Posted December 12, 2012

Going once, going twice, sold to the lucky or unlucky winner in an eBay grandfather clock auction.

As a seasoned buyer and seller on eBay, the writer of this blog post knows the ups and downs and pros and cons of buying almost anything on eBay. If there is anything eBay is not, it is not what it used to be. Many would view some of the changes for the better, and many would have other opinions. One thing eBay has clearly been doing, and this is as true as luxury goods like grandfather clocks and wall clocks as well as electronics and other home furnishings, more of the big box retailers and larger sellers of all kinds has made eBay a lot more like the way Amazon is now.

There are fewer antique grandfather clocks and antique pocket watches and antique wall clocks and antique mantel clocks, particularly when it comes to people listing items at low starting prices in a true auction format with no reserves. Now Buy It Now and Best Offer seem to rule the day for the large majority of listings. Worthy of note is that this is an empirical impression, so if anyone has any other eBay sales information or trends, please feel free to share and make comments.

One age old question in the purchase of any item, and separate from antiques which have their own distinct appeal, is whether to buy the grandfather clock new or whether to buy a used grandfather clock, as but one example. Let us stick with that one. If a consumer has decided that they are in the market for a Howard Miller Grandfather Clock, or a Ridgeway Grandfather Clock or Hermle Grandfather or Grandmother Clock, and they start looking on eBay, they will see at least 3 categories of sellers. One of the 3 types is individual owners of grandfather clocks who are selling their own grandfather clock, or one that they might have purchased at a yard sale, or perhaps passed on to them by a relative. The second of the three types are individuals or shady companies who are pretending to or suggesting that the brand new clocks they are selling are coming from an Authorized Dealer for the brand, such as Howard Miller Clocks. This is a critical distinction for a number of reasons, including that the Manufacturer’s Warranty is not valid if the grandfather clock was purchased from a Seller which is not also an Authorized Dealer. More on that later. The third type of Seller is one like the eBay Stores run by 1-800-4CLOCKS.com, which include New eBay Items and Antique eBay Items, such as new Howard Miller and Ridgeway Grandfather, Grandmother. Wall and Mantle Clocks, as well as antique clocks of many kinds, from regulators, to ships bell clocks to antique grandfather clocks and barometers and sundials and much much more.

The advantage of buying from an Authorized Dealer for the clock and brand you are purchasing are several-fold:

1. You know what you are getting and that you are dealing with an established company that will back its product and address any issues that may arise.

2. You know that the manufacturer’s warranty against defects, for example 2 years with Howard Miller Grandfather Clocks and Ridgeway Grandfather Clocks, and 4 years with Americana Grandfather Clocks, will also be there in case any problems arise.

3. Shipping should not be either a problem or cost prohibitive if you are dealing with an established Grandfather Clocks Dealer. At 1-800-4CLOCKS.com, we always make sure our in-store and catalog and online customers are protected 100% against any shipping damage that may occur. Furthermore, if an individual were attempting to ship a grandfather clock, they would likely be in for a rude awakening in several ways, including the cost to an individual for shipping a grandfather clock, packing the grandfather clock up safely to begin with, dealing with any damage that may occur anywhere along the way, and unpacking the grandfather clock and setting it up. Most individuals don’t realize how it can easily top $1,000 for an individual simply to ship a grandfather clock, much less hire an expert to pack it, and pay for the grandfather clock container and fillers to cushion the clock.

4. Setting up the clock can be a challenge under the best of circumstances, and one may end up needing to hire a clock professional. And that assumes that all was well with the clock when it left its original location.

5. Throwing good money after bad is always a risk when buying either a used grandfather clock or one from an unauthorized dealer or at an auction or some similar such thing. Buying a used grandfather clock can be like buying a used car. It can become a money pit, both inside and out. Inside for the mechanical grandfather clock movement and all the accessories, such as the pendulum and weights and suspension spring, as well as outside, if glass is broken or the wood gets broken or dented or scratched, or even the grandfather clocks finish has a problem which requires furniture restoration. Grandfather clocks with inlay are especially susceptible to this kind of risk.

So if you are an individual thinking about buying a pre-owned grandfather clock, or even a Floor Model from a local furniture store, it would be wise to consider the above points in your overall grandfather clock purchase strategy and calculation.