Look at this "NOS" hood hinge on ebay. Mine have been on the car for 32 years and look better! http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=33642&item=7929049590&rd=1 I'll tell you what I know happens on ebay. When I worked in a shop, we would stick the old, removed parts into the nice box that the new parts came in. They would then get put into a back room or up above the office area where the furnace was "just in case" we ever needed the old one. Back then, unless the customer really wanted the old stuff bad, we kept it. So now on ebay there are all these "treasure hunters" pulling junk like this out of the back rooms to sell as "NOS", just because it is in a Ford package. Well if I'm getting something NEW, it should look NEW, even if it is OLD STOCK. Sorry, I just had to vent
the bolts look good i was thinking they take there old part off there car and put the NOS on..put the old part it in the NOS box a relist it
Alot of people don`t understand though that NOS doesn`t always mean,and rarely ever does mean that the part is in perfect condition,alot can happen laying around for 30+years.
Yes, that is totally true, especially when it comes to rubber parts that have sat around for a long time. And to be fair to this seller, he does have a bunch of nice parts in his other auctions. My beef is that I have seen HUNDREDS of ebay listings for obviously used parts that are listed as NOS. Lucas fog lamps with a cut wiring harness attached to it, sun faded plastic parts, tool or bolt marks on the parts, ect. It makes me nuts! I also see many aftermarket and remanufactured parts listed as NOS. NOS means (according to Hemmings) any FACTORY ORIGINAL part that has not been placed into service EVER. NORS means any aftermarket, reproduction or remanufactured parts that have never been placed into service, as long as they are old stock, out of production. I personally don't think anything should be sold as NOS or NORS that needs restoration. I can understand why, under the NOS car hobby definition, that a part can be sold as NOS, even if it is in rough shape. My beef again is that used stuff pops up all the time as NOS. Having worked for years in a shop, having put hundreds of used parts in original boxes up on a shelf and in the storage area, I know that much of this sort of stuff is being past off as new.
Agreed, folks throw the term around without knowing what it means. I think, in general, folks think NOS means the part is original, no matter it was well used on a car. I do notice some folks though, that should know better, using it to describe used parts in "good" condition. Even if the lister doesn't know the actual meaning of NOS, if they make a living selling parts and list large numbers of parts on ebay, then ignorance is NOT a defense. Joe Blow that is cleaning out his garage, sure... not the folks with ebay stores. In the end, I can think of several sayings/quotes that fit, I like this one best: Dave
