One of the main rules of buying anything embroidery or sewing related on eBay should be: "If it's too good to be true, it probably is."

With many manufacturers of sewing and embroidery machines clamping down on how dealers sell machines, while it helps level the playing field for smaller dealers, it also opens a whole new game to unscrupulous sellers who want to make a quick buck, sometimes illegally.

There are four basic groups of machine sellers on eBay: authorized dealers (who are allowed by their dealer contract to sell certain machine models on eBay), unauthorized dealers (who aren't "illegal" by definition, but they may be trying to find a loophole), private individuals and companies who aren't dealers (selling their own machine, or an estate/auction find, etc. but the machine is legal), and illegal sellers who are trying to scam money.

Here are some rules to guide you through a machine purchse through eBay. They are not perfect, but they are a start.

• How long has the seller been a member in good standing on eBay?
  
• What is the seller's feedback rating?
• What kinds of items does the seller sell?
• What kind (see above) of seller do you think the seller is? Look carefully at the language in their ad -- are they an "authorized dealer" or are they a "reseller?"
• If they claim to be authorized, will you get a factory warranty good at your dealer or only through them?
• If they claim to be authorized, verify this with the manufacturer (the websites for the maker usually have dealer locaters on them).
• Do they have another website outside of eBay?
• If it's a private individual, is it their machine or a "find" from somewhere else? If it's a company, will they guarantee the machine works, or do they ONLY guarantee it won't be DOA (dead on arrival) but do not guarantee the working condition beyond that?
• Is the seller trying to get you to send a wire transfer or cash instead of PayPal, credit card, or other verifiable method?
• Note: NEVER SEND A WIRE TRANSFER FOR PAYMENT!!! ONLY use a method that you can get a reversal from the payment company if fraud is involved!!!!!
  
• If the machine is new, is it a too-good-to-be-true price?
• If the machine is "used," HOW used is it, and what kind of warranty will you get?
• Will YOU be able to use the machine without lessons? (A local dealer, if they will even help you with the machine, WILL charge you dearly for lessons, sometimes so much that you would have gotten a better deal buying locally.)
• READ the feedback ratings!!! Sometimes a person will have positives that are less than "glowing" but the customer didn't want to leave a neutral or negative feedback rating.
  

If in doubt, DON'T BUY IT! Too many people have been suckered in by the adrenaline rush of trying to beat an auction's end time or to keep from getting sniped by another bidder. There will ALWAYS be another deal.

Happy stitching!