I've bought plenty from ebay. I got my rig for considerably less than what the going price was. So, I had to fly to Texas to drive it home. Luckily, I had to be in that part of texas (work) just about a week after the purchase. The seller dropped it off at a friends house, and I flew in to pick it up. Worked out pretty well for me. I've also sold stuff on there that I probably wouldn't have sold through normal 'local' channels.
My brother just bought a 99 cherokee from ebay, and sold his '86 sportster. In both cases, the deal worked out well.
It has its limitations, but I don't hate the place. It does take time to deal with the whole ebay seller thing (creating the ad, packaging up the stuff and shipping it out).