when is nos not nos?

I gradually collected two sets of Smiths automotive gauges via ebay auctions and it took quite a while as one set are an uncommon design from the early '70s. Through this process i viewed hundreds of auctions and purchased a number of them. I learned what NOS Smiths gauges look like, they come in a Smiths box with fitting instructions, a cardboard ring around the gauge, a little packet of nuts, washers, oil seals, adapters etc depending on the type of gauge, illimination bulb with wiring pre-stripped at the end, a type code and date stamp, inspection sticker and no corrosion unless stored in someone's leaky shed. You wouldn't believe the utter crap and obvious second hand rubbish found on ebay daily described as NOS. You can see pointers that don't zero, witness marks from prior installation, corrosion at the bottom where it's come out of a damp sportscar, wrong or no wiring, bits missing, bent bezels, wrong combination of faces and pointers, wrong or no packaging, oil residue on oil gauges etc. The genuinely NOS items are plainly obvious and stand out a mile. If you get familiar with an item you can easily identify real NOS. Anything without packaging (if it originally had some) is not NOS!
Here's a handy ebay translator:
NOS = still looks shiny.
RARE = I'm asking too much for it.
VINTAGE = worn out.
RETRO = old crap i was about to chuck out anyway.
LIGHT USE = second hand.
AS NEW = not new.
MINT = Gullible fools get your wallets out.
Many ebay sellers are excellent but there are some real idiots out there and as ever it's 'buyer beware' no matter it says NOS or not.

There was a guy on here that said if you cleaned an item, it would become NOS. Don't worry, I shot him down

I like the description "virtually" NOS or similar. That's like saying to someone I've just run over your dog and it's virtually alive. Something either is, or isn't NOS, there is no middle ground. I recently got offered a bike that was described to me as NOS, only to find out that it had covered "only" 500 miles and didn't have the standard brakes or handlebar because these had been changed by the owner!

RadNomad":3ehb2nyu said:

Here's a handy ebay translator:
NOS = still looks shiny.
RARE = I'm asking too much for it.
VINTAGE = worn out.
RETRO = old crap i was about to chuck out anyway.
LIGHT USE = second hand.
AS NEW = not new.
MINT = Gullible fools get your wallets out.

Click to expand...

You forgot:
Nearly/practically/virtually NOS = no longer looks shiny at all
Nearly/practically/virtually Mint = gullible fools get your wallets out and be prepared to be bitterly disappointed when a decayed pile of tat arrives woefully packaged in a manky old envelope

NOS, new old stock, therefore never fitted for it's intended use or any other function, doesn't mean it's in the same condition as when it was made and packaged in a factory, it's old so will quite possibly of moved from place to place and may of been damaged probably only lightly. Of course any seller worth their salt will say in their description if there are any marks or damage to a new but old stock item. That's how I view it anyway

The clue is in the title... :facepalm:

'New Old Stock'

...as in, unused and in the original packaging; I would allow a dealer some leeway if they had something sitting in a box on a shelf that came in bulk ( like BB's, brake pads, tubes, etc...) that they can sell individually as 'NOS' because it, quite literally, is...

...if it's something a private seller bought but never used it isn't 'NOS' it's 'Second Hand.' 'As new' maybe, even 'Mint' but definitely not 'NOS' because, quite simply, it isn't :roll:

If a private seller buys up a dealers' old stock then they can legitimately advertise it as 'NOS' because, in this instance, it is...

I will be selling some decent kit I bought as 'NOS' that was very 'NOS' and boy did I pay for the privilege! :facepalm:

I fitted some of it (it's on my Explosif in the link below...) then had a major rethink on the direction the build was going to take and removed it again. The parts have been ridden exactly 10 miles and do look unused, but I shall be selling them as 'Mint, as new condition...' because that is what they are; I shall also be taking a hit in the wallet due to my own impetuous ebay habit! :facepalm:

I bought a NOS M900 front mech on here. It was too cheap for NOS however when it turned up with some chain marks I got what that seller meant as NOS. I didn't even bother mentioning it because I was still happy with the price.

I think buyer beware of 'NOS', I'll stick with cheaper second hand stuff and know where I stand.

if its nos when i bought it and i want to move it on i will say, ex nos, and detail what use its had since as i think these parts need differentiating from 25 year old used parts even if in excellent condition, nice to know that ritchey seat has only had 30mins of bottom on it for instance, not one in similar excellent cond thats had lots of sweaty bums on it . bit of an idiom but i dont know how else to describe it.

crud":ik2mm4f5 said:

if its nos when i bought it and i want to move it on i will say, ex nos, and detail what use its had since as i think these parts need differentiating from 25 year old used parts even if in excellent condition, nice to know that ritchey seat has only had 30mins of bottom on it for instance, not one in similar excellent cond thats had lots of sweaty bums on it . bit of an
idiom but i dont know how else to describe it.

Click to expand...

I do...

'USED'

...'Ex NOS' is just extracting the urine! :roll: