I Got Burned Buying a Used Guitar on eBay
By Nick Neumann - Updated September 11, 2025
Buying guitars online can be exciting! Sometimes you score a deal on a rare model you’d never see in a local shop. But it can also be risky and my most recent purchase on eBay reminded me of that.
The Guitar
I’d been hunting for a 2003 Fender Showmaster in Gloss Black for a while. When one popped up on eBay listed as “Good Condition overall,” I jumped on it.
The 2003–2009 Korean-made Showmasters aren’t the most expensive guitars, but they are somewhat rare. They feature 24 frets, a set neck, and dual humbuckers, which was a solid spec sheet for their era.
The photos showed normal scratches and scuffs, nothing alarming. At $550 before taxes and shipping ($648 total), it seemed like a fair deal for a guitar that doesn’t come up often.
The Surprise
When the guitar arrived, though, I knew something wasn’t right:
- The input jack barely worked.
- The tone pot was bad and needed replacing.
- There was a gouge in the back that went into the wood, something the photos didn’t make clear.
It's hard to tell in pictures due to the gloss black finish, but on top of that it had deeper scrapes, swirl marks, binding nicks, and the frets were grimy and the guitar simply wasn’t playable as-is. My local shop took care of the cleanup, setup, and repairs, which brought it back to life, but I was still out another $60–70 for the fixes, plus the setup fee. Realistically, this guitar should have been priced closer to $450.
Why It Stung
This isn’t a $4,000 Gibson, but when you overpay for a used guitar online and then immediately have to put more money into it just to make it playable, it hurts.
More than the money, though, it’s about trust and disclosure. When a guitar is listed as “Good Condition,” buyers should be able to assume it plays correctly and that any major issues are disclosed. Electronics problems and deep body damage aren’t minor details, they change both the value and the experience.
What I Took Away
I’ve bought and sold plenty of used guitars online and usually feel confident reading between the lines of listings. But this time, I got burned. It’s a reminder that buying guitars on eBay or any online marketplace comes with risks, no matter how careful you are.
What really bothers me is thinking about a beginner guitarist in this situation. Without a trusted shop or the knowledge of what’s wrong, getting a guitar that doesn’t work could be enough to make them give up playing altogether.
Final Thoughts
I’ll hang onto the Showmaster since it’s a model I’ve been chasing, and now that it’s been cleaned, repaired, and set up, it plays and looks pretty good all things considered. Especially after swapping in a Seymour Duncan Nazgul Rail in the bridge and a Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates Plus in the neck.
But the experience left a bad taste in my mouth.
Not every online seller is bad and most are great. However, my story shows why buying guitars on eBay or anywhere online can be risky. At the end of the day, it all comes back to disclosure and honesty.
Used Showmasters (Affiliate link to help support the the website)