
Ebay. I have settings so I get notices when a new listing shows up under a certain thing.
I saw an ad for a Marine HF SSB Radio ICOM M800. It was auction style...bid...
I am used to never using auction (seller/buyer rare to sell/buy anything but the other bidder 100% of transactions are with the same ?) BUT I dropped a bid. I would never get it so....
I end up winning as the only bidder and a low bid at that. I thought a M800 was a good radio but never really saw one. o-I did ask seller to get rid of my bid before closing but ---- (one reason was I would ask a question about the cut wires in sales picture and he'd keep updating pictures hiding any cut wires)
The M800 was made to be an excellent radio. Original cost thousands. It was sort of like the present ICOM IC-7100. A transceiver unit and the whole operation with a remote section. BUT it seems the M800 was sort of a disaster. The remote cable was fiber-optic and it was a total lemon when it was new. Everybody fiber-optic problems and the cable was an ICOM 'unique'.
Allot of searching and lemon/lemon/lemon except somebody did have some solution long ago. (complicated)
I bid and won. I don't want it !!!! BUT I paid via PayPal thinking about ratings.
I get a big heavy box and all cables/connections on the radio were cut down to zero. Like you might do before the garbage can.
Ah..the guy vouches 'it works' !!!! 'it works' !!! It did have some fiber-optic cable. OK..lets try it ? Re-wire to connect 12v. WHAT ? The remote is powered not by that cable but a special 12v line. That line is in package but the connector is cut off. So I try various ICOM connectors and none fit. (long search for a connector that fit ?)The other side of this has a whole collection of special ICOM ribbon cable soldered to the various parts of the connector.
Hey...I believe Ebay definition of USED is it works. (?) o-- 'it works' !!!!
I did a return request and accepted and got the 50 lb box sent back. I don't know what is next.
For any normal boat owner they expect a radio they can connect and learn how to use it. I think.
I don't know when I am wrong but ---- now Ebay USED equals an unsolvable lemon with all cables cut to zero ?