Alembic Club

Connecting => Swap Shop and Wish Lists => Seen on craigslist, eBay, and elsewhere => Topic started by: BeenDown139 on December 24, 2025, 06:57:51 PM

Title: it's baaackkkk!
Post by: BeenDown139 on December 24, 2025, 06:57:51 PM
https://reverb.com/item/93713855-alembic-series-ii-the-roman-conqueror-2004-cocobolo


i'm just gonna go ahead and call horsefeathers on this one.  so sue me.  ymmv.  imho.  merry xmas.  good luck to all!
Title: Re: it's baaackkkk!
Post by: matbard on December 25, 2025, 01:26:42 AM
Why a price so low???
Title: Re: it's baaackkkk!
Post by: edwardofhuncote on December 25, 2025, 04:33:48 AM

Quote from: matbard on December 25, 2025, 01:26:42 AM
Why a price so low???

It's likely a scam.
Title: Re: it's baaackkkk!
Post by: BeenDown139 on December 25, 2025, 06:06:10 AM
listing terminated with extreme prejudice it seems.  doesn't even show up in the ended listings.   first red flag was item location in milliken colorado for those of you in the know.  merry xmas!
Title: Re: it's baaackkkk!
Post by: cozmik_cowboy on December 25, 2025, 08:03:28 AM
I just clicked on it, and it was live, at $7500.

Peter
Title: Re: it's baaackkkk!
Post by: garyhead on December 25, 2025, 08:39:00 AM
Me too.  But when I went to the Reverb site and searched for "Alembic" all categories, it isn't there.  Funny how it is listed as "mint" when there is obvious cracks in the finish in the lower bout.
Title: Re: it's baaackkkk!
Post by: BeenDown139 on December 25, 2025, 10:19:20 AM
yeah all of a sudden it's live on my machine again.   strange. click on tessa's shop and nothing shows.  last item sold in in 2021.  i can't remember where this bass popped up last but i think it was down south somewheres. if ya look at the pictures of the back you can see the last guy that had it listed reflected in it.  FYI milliken is a podunk farm town on the NE colorado plains better known for cow flops and wyoming wind than as a hotbed for high-end basses.  also described by the seller as a minor outlying US island.  might be best to let this fish swim away.
pretty sure the finish condition of this bass has come up before.  merry xmas.  good luck to all!
Title: Re: it's baaackkkk!
Post by: sonofa_lembic on December 29, 2025, 08:00:14 PM
This was a scam.  I contacted the previous owner, and he said it was a load o crap.  The ad also was pulled shortly after.  The bass has major checking in the cocobolo, so it was really dried out at some point.  That wood combo is also crazy heavy, and with a triple omega that does not sit comfortably on your leg, it is downright dangerous.  The previous owner told me it was the heaviest bass he had ever seen and virtually impossible to play.  Even still I would love to restore the bass and even own it if I could.
Title: Re: it's baaackkkk!
Post by: BeenDown139 on March 13, 2026, 02:55:37 AM
hadda get up at 0-dark:30, did a little doom scrolling, looks like a bunch of fraudulent listings jsut popped up on reverb. here she is again.  and again.  good luck to all!
  https://reverb.com/item/95007658-alembic-series-ii-the-roman-conqueror-2004-cocobolo
Title: Re: it's baaackkkk!
Post by: edwardofhuncote on March 13, 2026, 04:52:02 AM
Nah... scam. It was in Japan a week ago with the same pictures. If Reverb can't police their platform any better than currently, they are headed for the heap of irrelevance.
Title: Re: it's baaackkkk!
Post by: matbard on March 13, 2026, 05:14:37 AM
Quote from: edwardofhuncote on March 13, 2026, 04:52:02 AM
Nah... scam. It was in Japan a week ago with the same pictures. If Reverb can't police their platform any better than currently, they are headed for the heap of irrelevance.

This.

Reverb seems to have problems with scammers
Title: Re: it's baaackkkk!
Post by: matbard on March 13, 2026, 06:48:54 AM
I can confirm that Reverb has been under attack by some scammers that are listing a lot of cool gear, usually from accounts located in Switzerland.

Today an accounts listed a 5 String Signature Deluxe MK14882 that was sold some week ago. That account is now deactivated.
Title: Re: it's baaackkkk!
Post by: BeenDown139 on March 13, 2026, 08:07:13 AM
yeah, here's another one that i'd been watching, seems like it sold for $20k USD not too long ago here it just popped up in my feed  at $9950 USD, kinda like a reverse flip.  plus free shipping.  yay! i used to think reverb was halfway trustworthy,  now it's starting to look like evilBay.  all it needs now it the same bass listed at multiple prices from multiple sellers.  wait.  i think we're there.  :-(

makes a strong argument for only buying an alembic from the club.

https://reverb.com/item/95003735-2024-alembic-series-i-5-string-cocobolo-premium-build-near-new
Title: Re: it's baaackkkk!
Post by: jazzyvee on March 13, 2026, 08:22:31 AM
That one sure is a beauty though. Well both that and the conqueror are gorgeous.
Title: Re: it's baaackkkk!
Post by: petcat on March 13, 2026, 12:53:38 PM
I'm glad my spidey-sense was tingling over that last month. I was close to pulling the trigger. I hope the (Sunflower) one that sold (vanished at 22.5K) in Ohio was legit.
That said, anyone got a similar six, hit me up.
Title: Re: it's baaackkkk!
Post by: edwardofhuncote on March 14, 2026, 05:14:05 AM
Quote from: petcat on March 13, 2026, 12:53:38 PM
I'm glad my spidey-sense was tingling over that last month. I was close to pulling the trigger. I hope the (Sunflower) one that sold (vanished at 22.5K) in Ohio was legit.
That said, anyone got a similar six, hit me up.

Well, the Sunflower Series bass was legitimate, at least the listing in Cleveland, Ohio was. I think it even got jacked and used for scam ads on Reverb though.

One of the other channels I subscribe to tried to explain the plot, I still don't get it though. It's like they just flood the platform with so many scam ads that there's no way all of them get reported. And it has something to do with the time of day they post. Like when BeenDown and some more of us (we know who we are...) are doom-scrolling, mysteriously just the stuff we like pops up in our feeds. At 'Wow Man!' prices. Believable, tempting prices.

And again I say, if Reverb doesn't get a handle on it, they're done. No one will trust them. I wouldn't buy a pack of string offa' there right now. I hate to say it, because I used to enjoy the site, but they plumb suck at security.