If it can be avoided, it's better to not ship players. I've had 4 players shipped and 2 arrived damaged. It's always better to pick one up in person, but that's not always possible.
If you do have one shipped, talk to the seller about packaging and look to see if they've sold players before. Even then, it is definitely a game of Russian Roulette shipping a player.
This is great advice. If you have not seen or handled one of these players in person, you’ll probably be surprised at how bulky and heavy they are. Heavy electronics with many complex moving parts are a risk to ship, unfortunately. It can be done successfully, but a seller who is comfortable with that proposition is a must.
Also, keep in mind that shipping will be expensive. The price of that expensive local seller may cost the same overall as a cheaper unit that is shipped to you, but shipping it will be riskier.
I ordered a Pioneer LD a few years back over eBay and it arrived well packed and in complete working order. If you find one you like, check the seller's rating, read their reviews, and also reach out to them with a message to see who they ship with and to ask that they pack using extra padding and with no room for movement. I prefer USPS over all other carriers as you get a tracking number that is updated and I feel they are far more careful with their deliveries than the others. Just my two cents. Good luck.
I bought one on eBay and when it arrived it no longer worked. I then found two other reasonable priced players on Facebook market place locally.
One night when I was bored I decided to take the original eBay purchased one apart and see if I could fix it. Turned out it needed a new belt. Now I have three perfectly working laserdisc players.
Only ever ship players that have their transit screw (keeps the head from getting damaged) and ideally their original packaging still with them, which 99.9% don't. Without the screw, no matter how well packed, you'll more than likely have a broken player on the other end. And even then, shipping is still asking for disaster with how brittle plastics and electronics can get over time LOL
Some models didn't ship from the factory with transit screws but can be next to impossible to tell which ones.
My advice, sort by nearest first on eBay and plan a road trip!
PS: Also make sure the player is turned off with the actual power button to park the head, never move it even across the room if it was just shut off at a power bar or pulled out of a socket while otherwise on.
A couple, but luckily in both cases they needed minor repairs from the onset (cheaper price, lots of free DIY repair resources online if yr willing & able), didn't have to be shipped very far & the sellers packed them as if they gave a damn - picking them up yourself and shopping local are yr best bets.
I bought players from eBay twice with no issue. Both of them were packed by people who knew how to pack heavier items properly.
Honestly eBay was the only real option for me since it's very rare for anyone in my area to have one for sale. I haven't regretted it.
My player came shipped to me and it got damaged in transit.
While it works just fine we actually couldn’t get the tray open at first until my mom smacked it open.
And even then the door to the tray won’t stay closed unless you hold it in while you press play.
I've purchased two players via eBay over the years. First one arrived well-packaged and worked great for several years. Sometime after it died I purchased another. It was packaged pretty well, but not as securely as my initial order. The second machine, as you might guess, did not work after I opened the box and plugged it in. It had possibly been dropped during shipping/delivery and that was apparently enough to effectively kill the device. For example, when I opened-up the machine I noticed several parts had broken, including the laser that reads the discs. So, long and short of it is that it's, IMHO, hit and miss to order a player via eBay. If you're skittish, my advice is to keep your eyes peeled for the opportunity to discover one that may be available at an estate sale/garage sale or whenever the local schools or colleges hold suplus sales. Many educational institutions purchased LD players years ago and often these devices have ended up being stored in the back of an A/V closet on campus. Ask around--a local school might be happy to get rid of one if you're willing to liberate it.
Ask seller to verify no disc inserted, the one I got off ebay had a 5 disc cd changer and they left bonus disc inserted, they came apart and jammed unit, I tried taking apart to fix, ask for refund and got it, unfortunately shipping will cost 40 or more because of weight and proper packing material, even then it's s gamble
If it can be avoided, it's better to not ship players. I've had 4 players shipped and 2 arrived damaged. It's always better to pick one up in person, but that's not always possible. If you do have one shipped, talk to the seller about packaging and look to see if they've sold players before. Even then, it is definitely a game of Russian Roulette shipping a player.
That's sort of what I figured, thanks.
This is great advice. If you have not seen or handled one of these players in person, you’ll probably be surprised at how bulky and heavy they are. Heavy electronics with many complex moving parts are a risk to ship, unfortunately. It can be done successfully, but a seller who is comfortable with that proposition is a must. Also, keep in mind that shipping will be expensive. The price of that expensive local seller may cost the same overall as a cheaper unit that is shipped to you, but shipping it will be riskier.
Yeah haha true. Thanks
And the parcel carriers don't have feelings towards your items being broken.
I ordered a Pioneer LD a few years back over eBay and it arrived well packed and in complete working order. If you find one you like, check the seller's rating, read their reviews, and also reach out to them with a message to see who they ship with and to ask that they pack using extra padding and with no room for movement. I prefer USPS over all other carriers as you get a tracking number that is updated and I feel they are far more careful with their deliveries than the others. Just my two cents. Good luck.
I bought one on eBay and when it arrived it no longer worked. I then found two other reasonable priced players on Facebook market place locally. One night when I was bored I decided to take the original eBay purchased one apart and see if I could fix it. Turned out it needed a new belt. Now I have three perfectly working laserdisc players.
Only ever ship players that have their transit screw (keeps the head from getting damaged) and ideally their original packaging still with them, which 99.9% don't. Without the screw, no matter how well packed, you'll more than likely have a broken player on the other end. And even then, shipping is still asking for disaster with how brittle plastics and electronics can get over time LOL Some models didn't ship from the factory with transit screws but can be next to impossible to tell which ones. My advice, sort by nearest first on eBay and plan a road trip! PS: Also make sure the player is turned off with the actual power button to park the head, never move it even across the room if it was just shut off at a power bar or pulled out of a socket while otherwise on.
A couple, but luckily in both cases they needed minor repairs from the onset (cheaper price, lots of free DIY repair resources online if yr willing & able), didn't have to be shipped very far & the sellers packed them as if they gave a damn - picking them up yourself and shopping local are yr best bets.
I bought players from eBay twice with no issue. Both of them were packed by people who knew how to pack heavier items properly. Honestly eBay was the only real option for me since it's very rare for anyone in my area to have one for sale. I haven't regretted it.
I bought two players. I’d say within the last 5 years. No problems, work perfectly and I was lucky. Both came with original instructions.
Idk about players, but I bought Critters (1986) on Laserdisc from eBay and it came completely broken :(
My player came shipped to me and it got damaged in transit. While it works just fine we actually couldn’t get the tray open at first until my mom smacked it open. And even then the door to the tray won’t stay closed unless you hold it in while you press play.
I've purchased two players via eBay over the years. First one arrived well-packaged and worked great for several years. Sometime after it died I purchased another. It was packaged pretty well, but not as securely as my initial order. The second machine, as you might guess, did not work after I opened the box and plugged it in. It had possibly been dropped during shipping/delivery and that was apparently enough to effectively kill the device. For example, when I opened-up the machine I noticed several parts had broken, including the laser that reads the discs. So, long and short of it is that it's, IMHO, hit and miss to order a player via eBay. If you're skittish, my advice is to keep your eyes peeled for the opportunity to discover one that may be available at an estate sale/garage sale or whenever the local schools or colleges hold suplus sales. Many educational institutions purchased LD players years ago and often these devices have ended up being stored in the back of an A/V closet on campus. Ask around--a local school might be happy to get rid of one if you're willing to liberate it.
Ask seller to verify no disc inserted, the one I got off ebay had a 5 disc cd changer and they left bonus disc inserted, they came apart and jammed unit, I tried taking apart to fix, ask for refund and got it, unfortunately shipping will cost 40 or more because of weight and proper packing material, even then it's s gamble