Are Irish flutes on Ebay generally worth the buy? I know that it mostly depends on the seller, but has anybody had good experiences buying Irish flutes off of Ebay?
Thanks.
Collin 
I donāt know about flutes specifically, but as long as the seller has a good bit of a history of positive feedback, ebay can be great. Be careful of course. My mother has had some bad experiences with ebay sellers who seemed good.
You can get some nice old flutes there, and an occasional name brand flute. But stay away from the Pakistan Irish flutes that are in abundence there. It may seem like a good deal, but the flutes are not in tune, and end up making great table lampsā¦
Jon
I have only bought 1 thing from ebay, so I donāt have much experience of knowing which person is selling a good product.
If you see something on ebay you might want, ask for opinions here. If itās somebody known to someone here, it might be fine. They might know the flute, in fact. If nobody knows them, then I wouldnāt risk it.
Probably safer to just wait until someone here posts a flute for sale.
If you know your flutes and ask the right questions you are in with a chance !
andrewK Know what he writeā¦ 
Some new Rudalls in here?
Frank
I have bought quite a few cheaper flutes on e-bay plus 3 expensive ones. I was very cautious with the expensive ones, insisting on speaking in person with the sellers and tracking them down well. I have also sold several on e-bay one at $4300. Got full money before sending. But there are con artists in the expensive range, it could be very risky. Below say $1000 I wouldnāt be too concerned but still would insist in talking to them.
No talk no money.
I recently bought an M&E R/R flute from eBay seller markie495. I sent email before I bid, and it turns out this is none other than Michael Cronnolly himself. He occasionally sells his flutes on eBay.
Bob
Thanks for the tips .
Iād say, if itās cheap, have fun. The Irish flute/whistle market has been over-hyped in the past few years, and people are paying exhorbitant amounts of money on eBay for flutes that have the right ācredentialsā (e.g.: Rudall). I think these days most antique English-made flutes from the 8-key period on eBay are overpriced; the good bargains are usually for flutes that need work. Firth/Pond American flutes are also overpriced, thanks to Grey Larsen!
However, you can still get good deals on small holed flutes (German, Austrian and French models) or Baroque flutes, or on modern flutes, sold by their makers or by players who are upgrading.
I have bought and sold good flutes on eBay, I sold a Hoza Rudall, discovering that Prattens work better for me. And I bought and later sold a Blackwood Copeland, because I didnāt give it enough use. Also bought a Metzler 8 key, in good shape too and a great price. Canā't handle the keys though, so Mr Copley will have it for his research.
I also sold two boxwood baroque flutes one there, one a Firth Hall and Pond.
Basically I got hosed once when I won and paid for two dixon flutes, and low and behold eBay actually never responded to my complaints.
So take care with it, the system sometimes breaks!
Interesting. I got the same thing, shipped, for $500 but with the extra-special cool touch of metal rings - specially designed to confuse the clueless into a) thinking itās wood and b) making me look like I know what Iām doing:)
I had the rings added as well. It looks too naked without them. 
He told me it was shipping today!
Bob
I played mine for about 5 hours yesterday.
Iāve bought many flutes, fifes, and piccolos on Ebay, and thereās a lot to be done with many of them - fixing cracks, broken keys, cleaning off built-up munge, etc. Expect to do these things yourself or pay a fair bit to have them done for you. Repadding anyone can do, cleaning as well. I have a couple of uncracked flutes from Ebay but they were definitely the exception.
Iāve seen flutes that had cracks that were pinned with thin blackwood ātoothpicksā - this seems like something you could do on your own if so inclined.
I just bought an M&E R/R off ebay direct from Mr. Cronnolly. It will be my first flute that I havenāt made myself, so I am fairly excited to see what it can do.
Caveat emptor, always always caveat emptor. I snatched up a Quinn & Koehler uilleann chanter for $800, which most people will tell you is a great dealā¦ even got bag & bellows for it. Then again, Iāve purchased an older German flute, newer Chinese flute and a piccolo, and all fell short of the mark. My advice: if you try your luck, (1) Know your brands (2) Buy a brand you know is worth repairing should it need any work. If youāre considering plunking down over a thousand for anything, ask yourself how willing you are to get something which doesnāt meet your standardsā¦in some cases thereās a REASON that itās up for sale. Me? In the future, Iām probably not going to buy an instrument on eBay unless Jesse puts up her Abell flute up and gives me ābuy it nowā rights for a price which indicates she has slipped a gear (okay Jesse, Iām waitingā¦ heh heh heh). Itās just as easy to buy on the C&F site, where I got my Copley, or from the makers themselves (of course, this can be a bit challenging in the case of Ruddal & Rose).
Dave
Iāve bought three, all antiques. Iām very pleased with two of them ā one needed to be brought into tune (this was pointed out in advance), which John Gallagher did very nicely. The second needed a crack repaired, which I did myself, and pads, which Iām working on. The third was not what was advertised, and I sent it back to the seller and received a refund. She listed it again a few months later with one correction, but still with one glaring error that I had pointed out (the head and the body were not by the same maker, as evidenced by their having two different marks and not fitting together properly).