I have consumated several hundred eBay transactions over the last 5 years, and every single one ended satisfactorily.

The most difficult situation was a rear wheel I bought, paid for and two months later never arrived. I complained to the seller who assured me he shipped the wheel timely. Finally I threatened negative feedback, so he refunded me my money. I bought another wheel. A few days later I found the first wheel in the service elevator of my office building. Apparently the delivery man was too lazy to walk the box to me, so he just stuck it in the elevator and no one had gone in the elevator for weeks. I really had egg on my face. I emailed the original seller explaining the situation and sent the payment to him with an additional $20 for his troubles.

I've sold camera equipment (I'm an amateur photographer, too) to Japan, Singapore, Iceland, Norway and all over the US. I've bought photography equipment, bikes, bike components, power tools, and assorted other stuff via eBay. While I've heard eBay disaster stories, I've never experienced one.