You hit it on the head in my opinion, Mack -

I have the same trouble trying to find parts locally sometimes, and I live in a large metro area. You have to figure in all the money you spend going to shows, shops, etc looking for an odd part you never find, or to get a fair deal if you do find it. I can imaging how difficult it is for people who live in more isolated areas. There are some very good people, and outstanding sellers there too who are very honest and don't sell fake junk or give you a bad experience. I've gotten to know some I trust very much and have bought things from them for years.

I get ticked off at a lot of eBay's BS, but I still find myself going there when I need something (or even when I don't) and often find exactly what I wanted at a fair price. Sometimes fighting a cause is impractical when something becomes a standard and the only person you hurt is yourself. Kind of like fighting windmills -
I remember a time when I completely resisted anything to do with computers too!
* I did quit 'Paypal' though (and sometimes regret it because it became a practical standard) but I've been bull-headed and haven't gone back.

I think Ebay makes their ignorant PC 'rules' trying to appease certain segments, but in reality they don't/cannot police them, or even know what is what themselves. They're in it for a profit and try to play to all sides. It's unfair and hard on sellers sometimes what/when they enforce some rules but as a buyer looking for things you can't find anywhere else it's often the best deal around.

*I think most gun parts get pulled when someone private individual 'reports' them and ebay pulls the item so they look like they actually care about their posted rules. In reality it's common sense why they don't want to stop auctions if they don't have to - they lose money.

I can hardly search through GB anymore because of all the silly high prices where people are fishing for a mullet. The problem there is sellers can list items forever without having to pay fees each time they re-list, and some people keep posting the same items over and over with crazy priced items hoping the mullet finally strikes.