Be friendly about the situation. Do whatever you can, within reason, to resolve it by peaceful means. Remember, leaving a negative feedback is putting the nail in the coffin of the transaction. -with the exception that the seller can also leave one for you. I have only given one negative feedback in my 5 years of ebaying, and it was for a buyer who was a deadbeat bidder on an $800 movie lens that belonged to my grandpa. She left me a negative feedback in retaliation, and in the text block she claimed that I had allowed her to 'bow-out' of the transaction, which I did not.

If the seller ships you an item not as described, and you don't want to keep it, ask them to refund your money and pay for an identical cost of return shipping (as you were required to pay). You shouldn't have to pay for someone elses mistake. -and this way, they'll make fewer mistakes in the future. Remember, the seller is probably hoping to resolve this peacefully and most people will accept responsibility for their mistakes when their reputation depends on it. Also, if they say "per ebay rules, all electronics items are as-is," then challenge them to show you this statement in the ebay rules. Myself and several friends have looked for it and it's not there.

If they are willing to refund your money, but are not willing to pay for shipping, I would consider leaving a Neutral feedback, but go with what the situation merits. No matter what, do not threaten them with negative feedback or any "or else..." statements. You risk loosing your own ebay account and ebay does not tolerate negative feedback threats against any of its members.

Lastly, if you're looking for a small 4-cyl tach, I've got a spare sitting here. It's yours for $12 (includes US Postal Service shipping to the lower-48). It came out of a '78 GT that was going to the crusher, and I hated to see a perfectly good (and rare) tach be wasted. Email me through my brickboard profile.

God bless,
Fitz Fitzgerald.
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'87 Blue 245, NA 225K