Has anyone had any issues with ebay seller Macvanderstein?

[Yaha]

I was going to bid on a few coins that this ebayer Macvanderstein has and have noticed that he is listing the same type coins over and over with the same photo's.. His disclaimer states he will send you the coin in the photo of the auction you win. Well, I have counted at least 13 Frankins dated 1959d with the same photo,sold and recently listed.. Many other coins sold and listed the same way..

 

Looking at his toolhaus report, many negatives months ago states he switches coins and doesn't send the same coin a buyer wins..

 

Is this a hijacked account? Or just a dealer/collector running a legit business. Thanks for any imput, I almost pulled the plug on a coin the other day, but don't like what I see... Again this guy might be ok, but want to know if anyone has dealt with him good or bad.. G

 

Here are some recent auctions..

Ebay auction #'s

280650812447.

280651762087.

280650792385.

280651230866.

 

Many more of the same coin. thanks for any imput..

[dopy02]

I was going to bid on a few coins that this ebayer Macvanderstein has and have noticed that he is listing the same type coins over and over with the same photo's.. His disclaimer states he will send you the coin in the photo of the auction you win. Well, I have counted at least 13 Frankins dated 1959d with the same photo,sold and recently listed.. Many other coins sold and listed the same way..

 

Looking at his toolhaus report, many negatives months ago states he switches coins and doesn't send the same coin a buyer wins..

 

Is this a hijacked account? Or just a dealer/collector running a legit business. Thanks for any imput, I almost pulled the plug trigger on a coin the other day, but don't like what I see... Again this guy might be ok, but want to know if anyone has dealt with him good or bad.. G

 

Here are some recent auctions..

Ebay auction #'s

280650812447.

280651762087.

280650792385.

280651230866.

 

Many more of the same coin. thanks for any imput..

 

fixed that for you

[Neko]

I have no experience with this seller. He's probably using stock photos. My question is after seeing the many hundreds of threads here and ATS over the years about people getting ripped off by Ebay sellers with terrible feedback why even consider buying from them? Buy from dealers you trust and have had good experiences with in the past.

[Yaha]

I was going to bid on a few coins that this ebayer Macvanderstein has and have noticed that he is listing the same type coins over and over with the same photo's.. His disclaimer states he will send you the coin in the photo of the auction you win. Well, I have counted at least 13 Frankins dated 1959d with the same photo,sold and recently listed.. Many other coins sold and listed the same way..

 

Looking at his toolhaus report, many negatives months ago states he switches coins and doesn't send the same coin a buyer wins..

 

Is this a hijacked account? Or just a dealer/collector running a legit business. Thanks for any imput, I almost pulled the plug trigger on a coin the other day, but don't like what I see... Again this guy might be ok, but want to know if anyone has dealt with him good or bad.. G

 

 

Thanks...

 

Here are some recent auctions..

Ebay auction #'s

280650812447.

280651762087.

280650792385.

280651230866.

 

Many more of the same coin. thanks for any imput..

 

fixed that for you

[Mark T]

http://toolhaus.org/cgi-bin/negs?User=macvanderstein&Dirn=Received+by&ref=home

[bsshog40]

With the kind of feedback he has, I wouldn't buy from him in the first place!

[Brol]

I was trying to buy one Lincoln 1970 S Large Date in MS66 from him - BIN - after couple of days he returned my money, because he didn't find this coin in his inventory and send me a free 1972 Lincoln in MS66.

My experience with this seller.

[Brol]

I just checked - looks like I bought a 1970 S large date later from him again:

 

1970 S LD

 

And he send me the coin in picture.

[Chris1976]

I have never delt with the seller you speak of personally. Here is a link to the one I have been buying from and I love the quality of coins I have been recieving from him.

 

http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZqualitycollectiblecoinsQQhtZ-1

[nunfa0]

From my experience, if you have a bad feeling don't buy the coin. This seller may be totally legit but you should trust you gut.

[acan451]

What I don't understand, how can you charge $11.00 to ship

A single dime to Canada it fits in an envelope...

I have received a few slabbed coins for a lot less than that???

[Yaha]

From my experience, if you have a bad feeling don't buy the coin. This seller may be totally legit but you should trust you gut.

 

 

 

Yea, I am going to pass. The reason I started this thread is.... Every dealer or seller with this type of volumn will have issues with customers and inventory and was giving him that pass..

 

The other night I almost popped on the 1959d Franklin that he had with seconds to go and I know that's a no no to get caught up in last second deals.. The coin sold for $12.01, but I saw machine doubling in the letter B in the word Liberty on the obverse, also I saw over the ER some type of die problem.. On the reverse I saw some doubling in the word Half..

 

After checking this guy out, I found out his name was Rob Denis and heard this dealers name somewhere, checked out his feedback and also 14-20 same type auctions with the 59d photo being used and said I would never recieve that coin..

 

Thanks, this seller might be ok, wanted to find out from members on here if they had issues, maybe they can concur with him on misleading auction language.. George

[optiontrader567-migration]

He had listed a 1965 Proof Dime on ebay. Only SMS were minted in 1965. I contacted the seller before shipment about if this was really a SMS dime. I got not response. He shipped a SMS 1965 dime instead. He said it was a error in listing. After some time I did get a refund. Watch out for this one.

[1897 Barber-migration]

Ok, since you asked the question, I am going to relate my experience. I bought what I thought was a genuine 1897 O Barber half dollar from this guy on 8-1-13. I paid $600 plus 11.29 shipping on Ebay. I don't know much about Barbers. I put it up for resale and eventually Ebay flagged it as being a "cast fake". I wrote to the guy and he said call him, which I did. He claimed it is not a fake. He didn't want to take the coin back, but I talked him into it. He said he thought he could sell it at the FUN show. That went by, no word. I wrote again ad asked for my refund. He called me that day and said he had mailed me the coin back. It is indeed a cast fake, though he denies it. It weighs 4% less than what it is supposed to. It is not the right color. It has sand marks on it from the casting. It does not look like a pressed silver coin. He kept my $600 and cheated me, twice. I called and reported him to Ebay. It is against the rules to sell counterfeits on Ebay. I thought they would kick him off, they didn't. Too much time had elapsed to open a case against him on the sale. Here is my message to you all. Don't buy fakes from flakes. His name is Ron Denis. He goes by Macvanderstein. He is a coin dealer in Texas. Every word of this is true.

[jom]

I find it fascinating that someone would pay $600 for a raw Barber off eBay when they "don't know much about Barbers". Why would anyone do that?

 

jom

[yonico]

I find it fascinating that someone would pay $600 for a raw Barber off eBay when they "don't know much about Barbers". Why would anyone do that?

 

jom

 

i find it more fascinating that the guy's username is "1897 Barber" , yet he bought a fake 1897 barber half and couldn't identify it as a fake even when in hand

 

he didn't know it was a fake until he tried to resell it and ebay flagged him down???

[yonico]

With the kind of feedback he has, I wouldn't buy from him in the first place!

 

i'm not saying he's a great seller (or bad, i've never dealt with this seller before), but i don't understand your statement.. his feedback profile is great!

19 negative and 33 neutral, yes, but also 40,000 positive.

ok, so 1 out of 750 customers was not completely satisfied, but that is still quite impressive!!

[e1cnr]

I find it fascinating that someone would pay $600 for a raw Barber off eBay when they "don't know much about Barbers". Why would anyone do that?

 

jom

 

i find it more fascinating that the guy's username is "1897 Barber" , yet he bought a fake 1897 barber half and couldn't identify it as a fake even when in hand

 

he didn't know it was a fake until he tried to resell it and ebay flagged him down???

 

First post, they know a little more about 1897 Barber halves now...

[bsshog40]

With the kind of feedback he has, I wouldn't buy from him in the first place!

 

i'm not saying he's a great seller (or bad, i've never dealt with this seller before), but i don't understand your statement.. his feedback profile is great!

19 negative and 33 neutral, yes, but also 40,000 positive.

ok, so 1 out of 750 customers was not completely satisfied, but that is still quite impressive!!

I don't look at numbers so much as I do the negative references that are left. Many are consistent with each other. I steer clear of these!

[jpcienkus]

I agree with Bobby. Anytime I'm going to bid on a coin with a new seller, I check for negatives. Sometimes the negs are dismissable. Others show a pattern and this guys clearly show a buyer beware. I'd even hesitate to purchase a slabbed coin.

 

Edited: grammar

[1897 Barber-migration]

You asked about the seller, not the buyer. Short answer, the seller is a cheat. Would you buy an expensive coin from this man knowing that you might be getting a counterfeit? That is the point of the story and the answer to the question, has anyone had any issues with Macvanderstein. The rest is just snarky remarks.

[yonico]

With the kind of feedback he has, I wouldn't buy from him in the first place!

 

i'm not saying he's a great seller (or bad, i've never dealt with this seller before), but i don't understand your statement.. his feedback profile is great!

19 negative and 33 neutral, yes, but also 40,000 positive.

ok, so 1 out of 750 customers was not completely satisfied, but that is still quite impressive!!

I don't look at numbers so much as I do the negative references that are left. Many are consistent with each other. I steer clear of these!

 

Bobby, point well made. I wasn't reading the comment but just looking at numbers. I now totally agree with you.

I read some of the negative feedback and they sure show a pattern.

[yonico]

You asked about the seller, not the buyer. Short answer, the seller is a cheat. Would you buy an expensive coin from this man knowing that you might be getting a counterfeit? That is the point of the story and the answer to the question, has anyone had any issues with Macvanderstein. The rest is just snarky remarks.

 

I'm sorry if I offended you with my comment. I was maybe out of line.

All I meant is, really, when you're going to spend a considerable amount of money on a coin, some research and learning should be done beforehand, so that those cheats on eBay or anywhere else would NOT get you the way this seller did.

I apologize for my comment

 

[GoldFinger1969]

How about a list of TRUSTED and HONEST sellers on Ebay for those of us who may buy in the future ?

 

We can put them in our Favorite Sellers list.

 

[stldanceartist]

I'd like to chime in.

 

I have made two purchases from eBay user Macvanderstein, otherwise known as Ron Denis d/b/a Denis Trading of Marion, TX.

 

The first was a raw 1942 proof Jefferson nickel that I bought for a very good price. The coin in the photo was the exact coin I received, which is a good thing, because it was a WDDR-003. I left them positive feedback on this coin.

 

The second was discussed here recently. I believe the thread was titled "Fresh from the cherry tree," and the coin was a raw 1943 Washington quarter that was very obviously an FS-103. The coin was at $9 (I was the only bidder for an entire week) until 1 second left in the auction, at which point someone tried to snipe it. I ended up the high bidder at around $725. I won the coin on Friday and sent a message to Macvanderstein asking if they could upgrade the shipping to Priority if I paid the extra cost. No response. I paid for the coin on Saturday, again asking about Priority shipping. No response.

 

On Monday, the coin was marked shipped. I started getting excited...and that's when I got a phone call from Mr. Denis. Now, one might say that it was a personal touch - he called me personally. One might also say that a personal phone call outside of eBay's user messaging system means that nothing he said was in writing, like you're supposed to do.

 

Why is this important?

 

Because he told me that, unfortunately, the coin had sold within 48 hours prior to it being listed on eBay. He also told me that someone had asked if he would end the auction early for the sum of $3,000, so he looked the coin up and decided it was only worth $1,500, so he sold it to that person for $1,500. If I would like, he knew a couple other dealers who would sell me another coin of that variety.

 

A couple things with this story:

 

If someone saw it online (he does not have another online store that I could find) then that means that the listing was active, and agreeing to sell it to someone while its active is a violation of eBay's policy. Especially since I was the only bidder at that point, and I found it almost immediately after it was listed. This part of the story counters the story of the coin being sold BEFORE it was listed on eBay.

 

He also says that he researched the coin, and decided it was only a $1,500 coin. Now, the doubling on this coin is SO DRASTIC, and the coin I won matches the PCGS photo exactly...(not the same coin, but all the same doubling) that I find it very hard to believe he wouldn't figure out it was a $10,000 coin, and that he would sell such a coin for $1,500. I'll bet 9/10 coin dealers could figure out the true value of this coin given really good photos and a couple hours on Google/eBay/CPG. This part of the story doesn't make sense either.

 

I told Mr. Denis that, no, I wasn't happy with his story and that I wanted the coin that was, by eBay's terms, supposedly a "legally binding contract." He is supposed to be responsible for his listings. He said sorry, it was sold before the listing went up, and it was a mistake. He again tried to get me to contact his friends to buy some other coins. I said, "No, thank you, I want the coin I won for the price I paid, and your story doesn't make sense. I am not happy."

 

Now, this is what he did:

 

He hung up on me. He refunded my money. He blocked me from bidding or contacting him on eBay (yes, now I can't file a case because I can't attempt to contact him first.) I couldn't even leave feedback for two weeks or so because of his block.

 

I called eBay and told them what had happened. (Now, let me say that Macvanderstein does VOLUME business with eBay. Why on earth would they do anything to anger a customer like that?) They did what eBay always does: lip service. Every time I've had an issue on eBay (people trying to scam me, people breaking rules, etc) and I've called, they pretend to listen and then write absolutely nothing down. If I call again, they can never find any record of my calls or "notes" on issues. So they pretended to listen and then suggested I leave a Negative feedback if I choose.

 

So, basically, here's what probably happened (and this is my opinion, based on what Mr. Denis said during our phone conversation:)

 

The coin probably would have been mine if it had gone for $9. Since it spiked at the last second, this guy decided to look up what he'd sold me and figured out how valuable it was. Then he made up a story he thought I'd believe without thinking it through, and made sure to call me to make sure none of it was in writing where eBay or a lawyer could read it. He probably walked it to PCGS/NGC at the FUN show for same day grading, or sold it to someone there. He also figured out that someone was cherry picking his listings for varieties and then blocked them from even contacting him.

 

Now, another option is that maybe, after I'd posted excitedly about my win both here and at another coin forum, someone could have found the listing, told Mr. Denis what the coin was worth, and sniped it after the auction ended. Now, I'm not saying I'm accusing anyone of this...but I was warned by a couple people to take my pictures and info down before something like this happened, so it might have happened before.

 

I left Macvanderstein a well-deserved Negative feedback, and I'm out a very rare variety that legally should be mine. Yes, I got my money back, after a week and a half of processing time through eBay and then PayPal. Macvanderstein, rather smartly, left a nondescript response to my neg. I have tried (once) to email him directly and to call and see if we could straighten the story out - you know, maybe it really WAS a mistake - neither method got a response. But for someone who sells so many coins, a negative is like fining Mark Cuban $1,000.

 

Now - would you lie to someone for $10,000 or more? (I say this because his listing said Brilliant Uncirculated, at which point this variety hits the $20-30k mark. The coin was at least a high AU, which have sold for between $9k-11k in the last two years when they have been sold at auction.)

 

Can I say I blame him? No. Do I think he should be a member of ANY coin dealer association that has a code of ethics? Absolutely not. His refusal to contact me and his actions after our phone conversation are very suspicious. And I'd like to say this: I was polite on the phone. I wasn't happy, but at no point did I start raving or screaming. I was very firm - I am not happy with what you are telling me and I don't believe you, and I want the item I paid you for.

 

How would you feel if this happened to you? I think I have reason to be angry. I know eBay won't do anything. They're not going to punish a high-volume seller, or enforce their own rules. I've considered writing letters to numismatic publications, TPG, the ANA...but really...how long do I need to carry this around with me? And will all this effort actually get me the coin? Probably not. And it will just waste my time, my money, and my energy.

 

But since this thread is opened, I feel it is well within my right to say this:

 

If you want to buy a junk coin from Macvanderstein, yeah, you'll probably get what you order.

 

If you find some hidden gem, do I think you'll actually get it? Probably not. Be warned.

 

And the great thing about the Internet is this: people can Google Macvanderstein and find this thread. And if it gets removed, I'll post it again somewhere else, so people can hear what actually happened. Thanks Internet, for at least allowing my story to be heard.

 

And if you see a 1943 Washington Quarter FS-103 for sale, by all means, let me know. Because I'm keeping an eye out for it.

 

 

 

 

 

[wdrob]

After Ben mentioned him saying the coin was sold prior to being listed I checked through my eBay history and what do you know; the very same thing happened to me.

 

I saw 20 people watching a certain coin that had a higher BIN than I would have liked but I didn't want to fight 20 or more people for it so I swooped in and bought it. After it failed to ship I contacted him and he finally told me that he must have already sold it in his store and 'an employee' forgot to take the listing down.

 

As a consolation he offered me 20% off anything else he had. I bought a Franklin and was done with him. The name did not ring a bell with me at first. Not till Ben's story.

 

Makes you wonder

 

 

 

 

[jpcienkus]

Thanks Ben and Bill for sharing your experiences with that seller Ben, all I can say is that I feel for you. I'd like to think that I'd handle it the way you did and I certainly agree with your actions and conclussions. At this point, you've said your peace, it's now documented on the internet, and any further steps you take will do absolutely nothing to further your cause. I think you handled your situation very well.

 

I know I won't be purchasing from that seller.

[Raisethis2]

I'd love to see a lawyer weigh in on this. I think you should be able to prove that:

 

1. you won the auction.

2. you paid for the item

3. the item was marked shipped

4. apparently no E-Mail with tracking number was forwarded to you.

 

Even with the contents of your telephone conversation being heresay, the fact that the coin never shipped is a clear indication of fraud. Combine that with the fact that (his) photo's are evidence the coin has value well beyond it's sale price and you have "proof" that your loss was substancial.

 

The fact that he re-imbursed your payment then blocked you clearly indicates that he has no appetite for further discussions.

 

The claim that the coin was sold prior to it's being listed is a matter I'd make him try to prove rather than you just taking his word for it.

 

Imagine if at a live auction the Auctioneer started the bidding at $5 and it suddenly escalated to $700, then (puzzled and in shock) the Auctioneer pulled the lot. What kind of integrity does that indicate?

 

I'd grab this guy by the lapels if he were in front of me right now.

 

 

[MarkFeld]

I'd love to see a lawyer weigh in on this. I think you should be able to prove that:

 

1. you won the auction.

2. you paid for the item

3. the item was marked shipped

4. apparently no E-Mail with tracking number was forwarded to you.

 

Even with the contents of your telephone conversation being heresay, the fact that the coin never shipped is a clear indication of fraud. Combine that with the fact that (his) photo's are evidence the coin has value well beyond it's sale price and you have "proof" that your loss was substancial.

 

The fact that he re-imbursed your payment then blocked you clearly indicates that he has no appetite for further discussions.

 

The claim that the coin was sold prior to it's being listed is a matter I'd make him try to prove rather than you just taking his word for it.

 

Imagine if at a live auction the Auctioneer started the bidding at $5 and it suddenly escalated to $700, then (puzzled and in shock) the Auctioneer pulled the lot. What kind of integrity does that indicate?

 

I'd grab this guy by the lapels if he were in front of me right now.

 

 

Personally, I wouldn't do business with the seller. However, the fact that the coin never shipped is NOT "a clear indication of fraud".

[stldanceartist]

For clarification, the coin was marked as shipped with a tracking number. It was at that point that I received a phone call.

 

Yes, I can prove that I won the auction, that I paid for it, and I have pretty decent photos of the coin, so proving beyond a reasonable doubt what it was worth might be easy. I'd have to get an expert to weigh in and provide testimony. The burden of proof would lie on me - but I, too, would love to hear a lawyer weigh in on whether or not this would be frivolous or a worthwhile breach of contract case.

 

Since the coin was purchased on eBay, though, it's not the same as winning a coin at a local auction. I believe I would need to file suit in Marion County, as opposed to where I live, because Mr. Denis (as far as I know) does not advertise in any local publications. So we're talking a trip down to Texas, lawyer's fees, etc.

 

Personally...I was raised in a church (although I'm no longer religious) and then went though the military, so I just want people to do what's right and treat me with fairness and respect. eBay failed. Macvanderstein failed. Ron Denis failed to do that.

 

So, I would have to recommend against doing business with him/them.