ebay vintagestarwarscollectibles aka Erik Sprague

[Hanslanda]

There was an afa 85 Luke Skywalker listed on ebay that was listed as sold. I messaged this seller about the item and he claimed he had it sold and there was a guy on a payment plan. I offered to buy it for 6200 and he said ok, sent me an invoice. I paid immediately. The listing on ebay had 3 photos. Front back and label. I asked about the condition again via email and he sent me the same photos and said its clean and straight 85's.

Today I received the item and the card is seriously warped:
https://postimg.cc/6TGC7G4k
https://postimg.cc/crhC6sTq

Im a collector and not a dealer and I was paying a fair price. I didnt ask for a reduction. In my opinion the seller should have disclosed this major flaw and it seems like he went out of his way to hide it. He didnt disclose it and didnt send photos displaying the defect. Ive bought a bit of 12 backs in the last couple of years and havent had a warped card so this is a first. People like this ruin it for everyone.

Now to make matters worse he is being incredulous and basically saying he sent me the label and that he didnt do anything wrong. He claims to have purchased it like this but i spoke to the person who he purchased it from and he claims he buys lots of figures cheap to flip and that if he wanted to return it, it wouldnt have been a problem. Ive seen numerous posts about Erik Sprague on here and how hes not well liked and I can see why.

My question is do you think a seller should disclose something like this? and if the buyer has a problem with it shouldnt he take the item back and issue a refund? I filed a paypal claim so im not too worried but the whole thing is annoying and this guy seems nuts.

 

[cichlidjedi]

I would expect a seller to notify the buyer on the condition and have pictures to back it up. How did it get an AFA 85 with a bend like that? Maybe there is a flaw in the case and during shipping it slipped somehow and caused the bend? Either way buyer should offer some compensation or offer you a refund if condition was not specified.

 

[Hanslanda]

Yea he didn’t mention it at all and used pictures that didn’t show the defects. I’m guessing it was graded and then stored somewhere with high humidity and it caused the card to be wavy like that. Definitely didn’t slip during shipping to cause that. And he won’t go through the PayPal dispute process. He told me to return the item and when I said I’d send it today shipped and insured if he goes through PayPal dispute process he responded that he would dispute my claim.

 

[Hanslanda]

He also claimed that he purchased the item like this from a reputable seller. Which I mentioned in my original post. I spoke to this seller and he claims that he’s not sure it was like that and that he would have happily taken the item back if Erik had a problem.

 

[Hoth_My_Fav]

Its really no big deal. If you dont like it and its not to your standards and dont believe the grade, just return it to him. Some one else is certainly going to buy that figure with that grade.

 

[Hanslanda]

https://ibb.co/Z8Y6f0B
https://ibb.co/j4Xs5Rw

Here is his response to my paypal claim. I disagree that its not a big deal. You pay 6200 for a figure and the guy goes out of his way to hide a huge defect like that and its not a big deal? And now hes disputing the claim? To me thats a scam artist.

 

[Hanslanda]

and its not that i dont believe the grade. I believe afa graded it and then it was probably stored in a humid place and ended up that way. The most important fact is that he knew this and didnt disclose it and now hes acting like im the one in the wrong.

 

[toyman941]

Paypal will look at the ended listing only, so be careful. You did mention this was a sold item. I hope he just relisted it with the same description . Otherwise, there can be an issue.

Now, if it was relisted and nothing in the description stated the warp on the card, you shouldn't have any issues with paypal. ITEM not received as described goes a long way with them . Even with low money items.

 

[Hanslanda]

It was done through email not ebay and he did not describe the defect and claimed it was fine. The ebay listing he had up prior didnt describe the warp on the card either. Thats probably why he took it down from ebay so he could scam someone.

 

[jedikman]

I have had a ton of stuff graded over the years and that looks like afa made the card support too tight...I have unfortunately had a couple buckle like
this. Not saying seller didn't know about it,just what I believe happened to it. Also if shipped from cold to warm climate this can happen! I wish you the best of luck w your refund,K

 

[Hanslanda]

Yea not sure what the cause is but the seller should notify the buyer of this defect. Its wavy in multiple directions. Bottom line I paid 6200 for what i thought was a clean straight card like all the others ive bought. I seriously doubt anyone would be satisfied receiving this without knowing the real condition beforehand.

 

[jedikman]

I absolutely agree w you,that price alone is enough to expect a nice card! I hate when people try and pull a fast one
on collectors! K

 

[PrimetimeJedi]

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/292890254782

Figure in question.

I like to ask why didn’t you request more pictures before making the purchase?
In the pictures posted to the auction you can see some kind of “warp” or bend to the card back, especially in picture 3 with the grade.

Also I like to know if this comment I highlighted is true:

I like to know what provoked the response you gave him “I’m not the kinda guy you wanna f*ck with I promise you. I have a lot of time and money”. That’s a serious threat over a figure that I can clearly see has a slight warp in the auction pictures.


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[PrimetimeJedi]

In case nobody can see the pics from the figure in question


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[Hanslanda]

In regards to the photos...it is not clear that the card is wavy in multiple directions. I have bought over 20 MOC afa 85 or higher figures and didnt even know that this happens. The point is he knew it was messed up but didnt disclose it. As a buyer I should be able to return the item. Hes supposedly a dealer and from reading on this forum I can see he is not too well liked.

In regards to me saying that, yes I did when I think im being scammed I will come after you tooth and nail. I called him on the phone and he answered and breathed heavily into the phone for 30 seconds while I repeatedly said hello is anyone there. He didnt respond to text messages and only responded after I filed a paypal claim.

Its crazy people are defending the guy when he basically admitted to not disclosing that the card was warped. This is a lesson learned for sure to ask for 100 pictures. Ive been dealing with really nice, honest people since collecting so I guess it was a matter of time before I ran into a scumbag.

 

[Hanslanda]

https://ibb.co/6bYp6ZV

here is a photo again showing how wavy the card is. See how it is bowed at the bottom and then the whole thing is wavy from the side angle.

 

[Hanslanda]

He is also selling this...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/STAR-WARS-LT-BLUE-UNPAINTED-KNEE-BOBA-FETT-AFA-90-90-90-90-SUPER-RARE-MOC/292911610489?hash=item4432e47a79:g:BXgAAOSweX5cMmP~:rk:1:pf:0

Card looks like it may be wavy and the gun is unattached. Appears he may have a humidity or flood issue.

 

[PrimetimeJedi]

I have dealt with Erik in the past, just like I have with many dealers throughout the years. TBH I never had any issues with him. I’m actually very picky on who I deal with because of issues like you’re dealing with right now. I am not new to this game. I am almost 46 years old and I’ve been collecting since the very beginning. Unfortunately bad transactions happen.

I look at it like this. 2 wrongs don’t make it right. You as a buyer should of dealt with this through communication via PayPal. Not texting. Not phones calls. Not even regular email. You admit of making hostile comments which can be deemed as a threat. If non communication and heavy breathing was an issue, instead of threatening him you should of contacted PayPal to open a dispute. As a seller he has to respond through PayPal to make sure to prove knowledge of these flaws you say he failed to inform you about and explain his lack of communication over this.

I see this as a fixable transaction. Let PayPal sort it out and in the end either you’ll be happy or mad. This could of all been avoided if dealt with via PayPal.



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[Hanslanda]

I cant disagree with you. Im new to this and lost my cool. I felt like i was being scammed out of a large sum of money. The first thing I did was open a dispute on paypal but i wanted to hear from him because I imagined he would try to rectify the situation. His shady behavior and lack of response led me to believe the worst. Its easy to stand on the side of the chess board and see the right move but when youre in the game its a little harder.

And like I said ive only dealt with nice, honest sellers since I started this and i had one other incident where the gun was not attached and it was not disclosed and the guy was really helpful and made it right and weve done business since where Ive bought around 40k plus from him. Im a collector and not a dealer so Im particular about the stuff I buy which is my right. And when buying online an experienced dealer like Erik should know that a collector paying top dollar wouldnt want that figure or he would at least mention it knowing it might be a problem. Selling it to someone with the hopes that you can screw them after the fact can turn away people like me with money to spend. Its just bad for the whole community.

 

[PrimetimeJedi]

He is also selling this...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/STAR-WARS-LT-BLUE-UNPAINTED-KNEE-BOBA-FETT-AFA-90-90-90-90-SUPER-RARE-MOC/292911610489?hash=item4432e47a79:g:BXgAAOSweX5cMmP~:rk:1:pf:0

Card looks like it may be wavy and the gun is unattached. Appears he may have a humidity or flood issue.

I see no tape on the side of where the gun would be taped at. No residue of glue either. Plus it’s a Palitoy carded Fett and I have seen ROTJ carded figures from Palitoy that didn’t tape the weapon to the inside of the bubble. Also if I were caused by flood damage the whole card would be wrecked.


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[Hanslanda]

https://ibb.co/mBtgzbQ
https://ibb.co/1dBRyjT

See how the card is not even at the bottom. I never dealt with a wavy or warped card before but now ill look for this type of thing. He doesnt disclose that it is a wavy card on this listing either. No photos from the sides??? I wonder why.

 

[Hanslanda]

He also lists the card as absolutely flawless on the listing. Its an afa 90...if you were buying that would you want to know it is warped? Its just shady man. You can defend it if you want but I think its odd to defend someone that is obviously going out of their way to deceive people to make a buck. You have to really inspect his listings and ask for a lot of photos. Most sellers are up front. Hypothetically, if the case is scratched and its not clear in the photos is that my fault too? The base argument is that huge flaws should be clearly outlined.

 

[PrimetimeJedi]

You know I’m not siding with Erik but I’m not siding with you either. You failed without asking for more pics and failed at properly going through PayPal to settle this dispute. Now it’s starting to look like you had buyers remorse because you got a figure that doesn’t meet your expectations and instead of handling it professionally you decided to call and text Erik on multiple occasions and you chose to throw your status of having “time and money” to threaten someone because he didn’t supply enough pics or respond to you in a timely fashion. Anyone with common sense would ask for more pics, especially for anything for over $6000.


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[Hanslanda]

Haha buyers remorse? Please man if you have a legit afa 85 a back like for the same price and it’s not wArped I’ll buy it now. The problem is he answered the phone and just breathed into it knowing it was me. That is odd behavior indicative of someone that’s trying to scam someone. And as I stated I did go through PayPal. He tried to get me to send it without him responding to my claim. Also shady behavior. It’s easy for you to say it’s common sense. I’m relatively new to this and was used to dealing with straight shooters. Everything about the transaction seemed straight up until I received the item. Now I know that you can screwed over and I’ll ask for more pictures. Your stance removes the onus from the seller and you’re saying if you don’t ask then oh well you’re a *******! If everyone was like that the market would collapse.

 

[Hanslanda]

I guess youre the type of guy that takes the side of a burglar in cases where the home owner is charged with murder for shooting the guy breaking into his house.

 

[toyman941]

I understand you're upset. I just saw the post where you said paypal sided with the seller.

I wouldn't let this get out of hand here though. Most members are more than willing to help you with info and feedback when it comes to buying or selling.

 

[Hanslanda]

No I didn’t lose. That post was a spelling correction. I’ll update the thread on the outcome. I’m upset but confident I’ll win. And most sellers are great I agree.

 

[PrimetimeJedi]

I guess youre the type of guy that takes the side of a burglar in cases where the home owner is charged with murder for shooting the guy breaking into his house.

No. I’m the type who takes idol threats serious. You sir made a THREAT towards the seller when it’s clear in the 3 pictures that there’s a slight warp. If you can see curving of the card back in his Boba Fett Auction then surely you can see that from the pics in the Luke Auction. The pictures you supplied aren’t clear enough to warrant your complaint. You are basically calling Erik AND the original owner,Tom Derby, scam artists. Just from your posts I can say you are an unstable individual. Instead of directing your frustrations through PayPal to handle this in the first place you personally contacted Mr. Sprague and took to RS Forums to grieve your situation.


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[Hanslanda]

Tom derby is not a scam artist. He would have taken the return back no questions asked.youre obviously biased and friends with Erik. To claim I have buyers remorse is Ridiculous. Yea I received an item that wasn’t as described of course I have buyers remorse. Any reputable seller would have said just return it.

 

[Hanslanda]

As for boba fett I posted this on another thread and a member pointed out how it’s defected. Erik mentioned he had a lot of friends on here and you must be one of them. I’m an easy going guy but if you steal from me then I’m coming after you

 

[PrimetimeJedi]

Tom derby is not a scam artist. He would have taken the return back no questions asked.youre obviously biased and friends with Erik. To claim I have buyers remorse is Ridiculous. Yea I received an item that wasn’t as described of course I have buyers remorse. Any reputable seller would have said just return it.

And any reputable buyer would of handled it professionally and wouldn’t of made threats, to of which you acknowledged to have made because the seller didn’t respond to you in a timely fashion.

Be honest I don’t care if he took a crap inside of an acrylic case and sold it to you as a fossilized dinosaur turd. You went the wrong way of handling it. I have no remorse for you one bit. Next time you’re not happy with a purchase don’t threaten the person who you’re dealing with. It makes you look unstable and someone I wouldn’t want to deal with.


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[Hanslanda]

I understand where youre coming from. The reality is yes some people are unstable and thats why you shouldnt scam people because one day you might scam the wrong one. I spoke to Tom on the phone about this as I mentioned earlier and he claims he doesnt remember selling it but that he would have taken it back if Erik had a problem with it. I bought stuff off of Tom, a 21 back afa 85 Boba fett where the gun is starting to come away from the tape and he sent a picture of it and disclosed it. He didnt have to do that because that defect is not obvious in the photos. He did it because hes a good guy and a reputable seller. Erik knows hes wrong and basically admitted it. He probably bought it on the cheap because it was defected and tried to pass it off as gold.

I searched Erik's name on here and clearly hes not well liked and I can see why. Most people on here feel for my situation as a fellow collector so thats good. I knew you were biased from the start so im not surprised. And for the tenth time the first thing I did was open a paypal claim. He didnt want to go that route and asked me to return the item with no record of anything. I said i wanted to do paypal claim process and then he said he would dispute the claim. Thats really shady.

 

[Hanslanda]

And at this point me and you are locked in a chicken/egg argument. If he didnt scam me I wouldnt be pissed. whereas youre mad that I got pissed off that he scammed me.

 

[PrimetimeJedi]

And at this point me and you are locked in a chicken/egg argument. If he didnt scam me I wouldnt be pissed. whereas youre mad that I got pissed off that he scammed me.

I’m not mad that you are pissed. I don’t think he scammed you from the way you are acting. I see you as a spoiled collector who didn’t do their research and that should of asked questions and for more pictures. You haven’t given any evidence such as screenshots of conversations of him misleading you or lying about the description. please show me where Erik admitted where it wasn't straight 85's unpunched.

TBH I have been informed about this matter after I see someone I know being blasted on RS forums. I have read and seen what has been said between y’all and for you to think you can threaten people because you’re a “big fish” in our collecting community you’re sadly mistaken. You were not scammed.


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[porkinsred6]

Hello! I see you're relatively new here. One of the problem with us old timers not being around much is the oral history of bad sellers is lost. Erik Sprague (BobaFett34) is banned from Rebelscum for flipping items he bought here from fellow collectors for cheap and then jacking the price up a lot and selling to unsuspecting people on ebay and being a jerk in general. He has many threads about him:

https://forum.rebelscum.com/showthread.php?t=1104436

https://forum.rebelscum.com/showthread.php?t=1105186

 

[Hanslanda]

How I’m acting? The only thing that matters are the facts. The fact is he didn’t make it clear that this figure had a very warped card. For collectors some flaw may be nothing but to another collector it’s a big deal. I’m not bragging about being a big fish. I mention the volume I buy because I’ve never had a bad experience in all the deals I’ve done. This whole thing has been an eye opener. You defending Erik at all costs and parroting the same line he keeps saying proves to me that he’s the one that told you to reply. His dispute is that he said “its straight 85’s unpunched!” Your logic is that I should have noticed that the item was damaged from the photos provided and if you don’t notice it then oh well you’re screwed! Tell Erik I said hi because you’re clearly in his circle.

 

[Hanslanda]

Wow that explains a lot porkinsred. Thanks for that info. Pretty wild he’s banned here. Yea well I guess you can’t beat a dead horse but don’t buy from vintagestarwarscollectibles on eBay. Because that’s him.

 

[vtoys]

Amazing timing - we just mentioned Erik on a recent podcast for his past antics... go figure he's still involved in questionable transactions

 

[PrimetimeJedi]

How I’m acting? The only thing that matters are the facts. The fact is he didn’t make it clear that this figure had a very warped card. For collectors some flaw may be nothing but to another collector it’s a big deal. I’m not bragging about being a big fish. I mention the volume I buy because I’ve never had a bad experience in all the deals I’ve done. This whole thing has been an eye opener. You defending Erik at all costs and parroting the same line he keeps saying proves to me that he’s the one that told you to reply. His dispute is that he said “its straight 85’s unpunched!” Your logic is that I should have noticed that the item was damaged from the photos provided and if you don’t notice it then oh well you’re screwed! Tell Erik I said hi because you’re clearly in his circle.

Since you know me so well to say I’m in Erik’s circle you forgot to mention something about this matter. Did you inform Erik of the flaw in the 12 back Vader you traded towards the Luke? Wasn’t that part of the deal to trade the Vader and $4200? Yes I know Erik through Facebook and eBay. I do know of the matter at hand because I saw this thread and we discussed it. I even saw your threat you made in the text you sent (which you admitted to saying) and the 10 times you tried to called him in a half hours time while he was at work. You handled this wrong and your story is full of holes. Ive been on these forums since 2001. I think I have earned my stripes to call out a BS matter when I see it. This whole matter should of been handled off RS forums. You filed a claim and you will have your answer if you get refunded or you don’t.


Erik has every right to flip whatever he buys. Do I care for that practice? No. Yeah he should of had items in hand before he lists and not use the pics supplied by others but it’s still his to sell and if some schmuck is willing to pay the price he asks then it’s their problem. TBH It’s no different what he does than any of these dealers at cons. They lowball anyone so they can make a profit. You’ll see it coming up this April in Chicago at Celebration.


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[Hanslanda]

I sent closeups and pics of all angles of the vader. I also told him to return it if he didn’t like it. It was an afa 80 and I don’t even notice the staining on the cape. I’ll post my evidence here to prove so. The important distinction between me and him is that he didn’t say anything about the vader until I got the luke and had a problem with it. The even more important distinction is I told him I’d pay for the shipping for him to send it back. He on the other hand will not take back the damaged Luke and he is fighting my claim on PayPal so that I can’t get a refund on it. You have a funny way of seeing things. I never scammed anyone since I’ve been collecting. He’s been banned for questionable practices and you’re defending him. Essentially you’re putting your reputation on the line by doing so because I have to assume that you would do the same as him since you’re defending him.