eBay has some "features" that are merely a paper tiger. Moreover, they've recently (within the last couple of years) weakened their search tools, even to the extent of eliminating the use of the asterisk '*' so that you can't use it to search, for example, for 74HC133* when you were prepared to use any package. Moreover, their "resolution center" is entirely useless for resolving non-delivery of an item, and, often enough, sellers are allowed to claim an item is shipped once the label is printed.

I recently received a CD I'd ordered in advance of Christmas, yet didn't receive it until late January. Apparently, the USPS had misrouted it and marked it as delivered. The "resolution center" simply encouraged the seller and me to communicate. Since the seller believed he'd done what he should, there was nothing he figured he could do. I had already paid for the CD ... so there wasn't much I could do.

These things happen, and there's no real way of dealing with them.

However, I've obtained parts and equipment with success rates exceeding those achieved with Newark, DigiKey, Mouser, and other more conventional distributors. If you're buying for production, the "normal" channels work better, but eBay is the cheapest and quickest way to get the widgets you need for a one-off that I've ever encountered.

RE