Yes.. true.. taking advantage of the bad resale value is one thing..

BUT...
Sometimes its possible to buy a lemon.. or.. a onece-good-now-lemon.

I personally wouldnt send a noob the e-bay route.. As long as your receive the product... E-bay or paypal will NOT help you.(I speak from experience.. I was screwed for over $1500 on Computer parts.. I didnt receive ANYTHING and I still got jipped)

And the other party can always say "This guy is a noob and he doesnt know how to tune the engine".
And thats that.. your screwed.
I think 50-100 bucks is worth the peace of mind for a noob.

ram