Has anyone purchased a PRS on eBay w/o OG papers?

[SGBK]

Hey all,

Might as well call me the Mira guy, because I'm looking to buy my third Mira, purchased one from GC pre-owned, one off Reverb, and now finding this beautiful '08 in Lilac on eBay. My first two are in great shape, sound amazing, and had the OG papers. This is the only one that doesn't have its OG papers. Am I crazy for wanting them?

Also regarding eBay in general. I know a lot of eBay sellers or e-sellers in general by profession have multiple accounts and will duplicate listings. I use PayPal so I know I'm insured, but would you please share any success or horror stories?

This new addition would mean a lot to me and I would like the qualitative satisfaction in knowing it's a "safe" purchase.

 

[SGBK]

Please be gentle and don't outbid me.

 

[dmatthews]

Only one Ebay purchase for me. it was in 2011 for a 2009 305.
No issues whatsoever.

 

[DISTORT6]

The papers are nice to have but are absolutely meaningless.
Just enjoy your Mira.

 

[watelessness]

The papers are nice to have but are absolutely meaningless.
Just enjoy your Mira.

100% agree. in all my years of buying PRS guitars have i not bought a guitar because it lacked paperwork. for that matter i've never had a sale fail because i didnt have the hang tag. buy the guitar, play them, post pictures of it, and enjoy it. then start looking for your next acquisition, perhaps a korina mira

wrt ebay, i havent bought anything from there for a while but over the years probably at least a dozen. only once did i have an issue and that was due to misrepresentation by the seller and ebay did right by me. just check the seller's history for anomalies and trust the system.

 

[rcsrich]

Papers would be important if they allowed a transfer of warranty or some other benefit. They’re icing on the cake for a used purchase in my book, but definitely don’t count toward reasons to buy.

 

[dogrocketp]

I’ve been buying and selling on the bay for over 20 years. Don’t be nervous, just do it.

 

[RC Mike]

The case candy is fun to look through once, but after that it isn’t so useful. It’s not something that would influence me on a guitar purchase.

I do get a kick out of the “certificate of authenticity” that some people tout. As though a piece of paper proves anything about a guitar, or somehow legitimizes a guitar. It’s the guitar that matters, not some wood pulp with a sticker on it.

 

[SGBK]

Thanks everyone! I'm just negotiating on price. They want $2500 with tax it'll be close to $2700, so I'm trying to work it all in to be closer to $2000. I got an '08 All Black Shadow Bird Fret Board Mira for around $2200 that was in EXCELLENT condition.

I know it's always about rarity and the price the buyer is willing to pay or not pay, but hoping they'll make a deal.

 

[RC Mike]

No offense, but that’s crazy money for a Mira. That’s way more than a maple-top should go for, let alone an all-hog.

 

[SGBK]

No offense, but that’s crazy money for a Mira. That’s way more than a maple-top should go for, let alone an all-hog.

None taken. They are instruments, art pieces, and therapy for me, some emotion attached to them for a lot of reasons, but it's like a beauty is in the eye of the beholder, the value vs. price paid, etc. All love.

 

[DISTORT6]

No offense, but that’s crazy money for a Mira. That’s way more than a maple-top should go for, let alone an all-hog.

Shhhhh! My Mira just went up in value! (I ain't sellin')

 

[RickP]

I’ve bought and sold several on EBay without issue. With your due diligence, it’s as safe as anywhere online. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but my recent maple-top Mira was about $1600 all in. Only you can decide what it’s worth to you, though!

 

[JasonE]

I think I am in a little different corner from others. I prefer to have all of the stuff with the guitar when it was bought new. I may steer clear of one that didn't have the hang tag. To me, if someone still has all of the stuff the guitar came with new, they probably took better care of the instrument. I bought most of mine new but I do have all of the stuff that came with the ones I bought used. If I ever change any parts on a guitar I keep the original parts. If I sell the guitar I will either put it back to stock or include the stock parts with it. If these ever get old enough to become worth more the original items, including the case candy, will make it worth more money.

As for buying from eBay, get good pictures. I had one purchase on there that turned into a bit if a nightmare. I bought a bass from a guy and the pictures were not all that great. There was no mention about some very light wear on it. When I received it an opened it about fell over. It had several serious dings in it where it broke the finish and went into the wood. It had buckle rash all over the back, through the finish. It even had buckle scratches on the metal neck plate. I reached out to the seller and told him it was nowhere near as good of condition as described and that none of this damaged showed in the pictures in the listing. After some tense back and forth he agreed so give me a partial refund. I then turned around and sold the bass with full disclosure on the damage and I lost money. The person that received it knew exactly what they were getting and was happy with it for the price they got it for. That was the last instrument I bought off of eBay.

The ones I have purchased used after that were purchased from other members on forums I have been on and there were plenty of high resolution pictures involved. I had someone that I could interact with before and after the sale to gauge how the person was to deal with. Just be cautious and get good pictures so you know exactly what you are getting. I would also ask if there is any damage on the instrument. I narrowly avoided a bad sale with an old forum member. The person didn't really reveal any damage on a PRS I was looking at. I was ready to purchase the guitar and since it didn't have any damage listed or pictured I figured it was like new. I told the seller I wanted it. I happened to ask the simple question of if there was any damage on the guitar as we were finalizing the sale. The seller came back with a short list of dings and scratches on the guitar. I had to tell him that I was not going to take it because I thought it was in like new condition from the pictures and listing and his response on the damage proved that to not be true. You really have to get good pictures and ask the right questions.

These types of things is why I tend to buy most of my instruments new.