Buying a used cartridge...tell us your tale.

Personaly, I have a VERY BIG reticence to buying NEW CARTS.
But I know why and when this started. To put it short:
thanks to Raul and his endless MM thread. Before I join the
club 7 years or so ago it never even corssed my mind that I
need more than just one cart. But then I discovered a kind
of Eldorado. The opportunity to experiment with all kinds of
carts for free. Even with some profit if I was fast. I was
able to sell the (byRaul) recommended carts for more than
I paid for. That is how the addiction started. Like getting
some 'stuff' from your friends for free first and then 'getting
the stuff' on your own by saving on your cloths first...
I am not sure how many I own but guess more as 50.
I also guess that about two of them are new carts.

I probably bought (and sold) some 10- 12 cartridges over a 6-7 year period (while I was learning and putting my system together). All but 2 were bought used, and right here on Agon.
Happy to report that all but one of my used purchases were just as described. A Clearaudio Virtosa Wood came delivered with a glob of dirt on the tip and slightly offset stylus. I specifically asked about the stylus being straight as I know this cart is know for that issue. Turns out the seller was totally unaware of what a dirty bent stylus looks like. Oh well, overall I can't complain about my used purchases here and would continue to do so, but I am done and very happy with my end results.
I will say it again, although not bullet proof, good feedback from sellers is very important to me.

Bought a few used carts, never had a problem till I bought a Dynavector 17D3 from a well known dealer (Audio***L)over on AA.
I figured he was trust worthy, well that was until I saw that the cantilever was jacked nearly sideways !! I wish I could post the pictures here that I took !
I immediately got in touch with him and sent him the requested pics only to have him tell me that I must have bent it..ABSOLUTELY NOT !!!

Interestingly, when I first inquired about the cart I was told that it was sold. But the next day I was informed that it was available again, they don`t come up very often so I bought it, sight unseen, after all this is coming from a well known 'supposed' reputable dealer and I had no reason not to have full trust in him (mistake).

Well after opening the box I then realized why the buyer before me backed out (the story being something about the buyer was from S America or whatever..)
Yeah, he probably asked for a picture or two, so that killed the deal at least for him anyway... I LEARNED A BIG LESSON on that one ! There`s always a first time I guess :(

I have purchased 2 used cartridges here on Audiogon and both experiences were good. There is no question that buying something like this entails taking some risk. I recommend sending a note and asking some questions along with requesting some pictures particularly of the cantilever. Getting a reply from a reasonable person is very reassuring, at least to me.

As an aside, I own an old Wild-Heerbrugg microscope set up specifically to look at phono stylii under high magnification. It is possible to assess wear/estimate hours of use with it. I know not everyone can do that, but if you have a dealer or know someone with a good microscope, a quick look is worth a thousand words. I wish I could figure out a way to offer to do that as a free service for this community.

Bill, that's interesting. Owning a microscope to look at the stylus is a great idea. This reminds me of a situation decades ago, wherein I acquired a used Koetsu Onyx for a fair price. The Seller was a local guy who had given up on audio. Anyway, after I took the cart to a local dealer, we were able to look at the stylus under a microscope. To my dismay, the stylus was completely worn and had basically no life left. The Seller was nice enough to take the cart back and refund me the money. I'm not sure in those days if Koetsu had a rebuild program, BUT on a students income, it would have been irrelevant.