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Trade question when shipping...

drafter

drafter

Sergeant
Full Member
Minuteman
Nov 28, 2013
168
39
North Carolina
#1
How do 2 guys that don't know each other trade weapons when shipping out of state is required?
Say guys from North Carolina and Georgia agree to trade, how is it done without risk? Rifles, not handguns
 
#2
There’s always risk. Talk to them by phone, run your traps to mitigate as much as you can. I just recently traded with a guy in Washington. I’m in Oklahoma. I sent him my rifle first. Once received, he sent me his. Worked out fine, but I took all the risk.
 
#5
I knew we had to go thru an ffl, I just refuse to send my rifle first. Unless, maybe we can find an ffl that will agree to accept my rifle in shipment but NOT hand it over to the other guy until he surrenders his rifle to said ffl for shipment to me? Then I'm just having to trust an ffl dealer instead of a stranger from the internet. Not sure I can do it. Not sure it's worth the risk, or any risk as far as that goes.

Thanks to all.
 
#8
Nothing beats getting to know the guy prior to trade.
For years I have had no issues anywhere including SH.
Recently I have had two items valued at 500 and 2100 that were not as described. Both the sellers simply refused to accept returns and both said,
“I already spent the funds”. Odd that both said funds and not money. Guess that makes it better.
Now when I buy something I will start asking “Are you going to be able to pay me back if the item is unacceptable.” Just kidding I guess.

Most of my deals here are fine. Just going to need to be more careful going forward.
 
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#9
If you haven't already, a phone conversation may give all involved a better feeling or could tell you that you should not do the deal.
 
#10
A trade works like a sale. If I list my item for sale or trade and you offer a trade and I accept, to me the trade is the same as currency. If you pay cash, as soon as I receive payment I ship. If you trade, as soon as I receive your item, I ship. I do the same if I am responding to an ad.
 
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#11
If you are the one who was approached for the sale I'd expect for them to send you their gun first. This is because a lot of the time scammers will respond to ads rather than post them. Helps evade bans on websites. Not always the case though. A few days ago there were like 3 Barrett M107s for sale on GunsAmerica for $5k with optics... If it's too good to be true it is, the were recently deleted so someone caught on to their scheme.

I don't know if this is possible, but a solution I thought up was for you to choose their FFL for them, talk to the FFL on the phone and tell them the gun can't be picked up until you give the okay your rifle arrived at your FFL. The other guy chooses your FFL for you. Basically leaving them in jail until both guns can be seen in person.

And this may be obvious but google image search the photos they send you, I have tried to been scammed before and though just from their butchering of the english language I could tell I also searched the images to see if they just downloaded off a website.
 
#12
Small talk, building rapport with one another, and communication consistency are important. If the guy isn't willing to bullshit with me via text or email not a chance I'm doing business. If they don't know jack shit out guns, ammo, glass etc. not a chance I'm shipping anything. It is always a risk, but I legitimately try to build a relationship with the person. Recently shipped a pistol from North Carolina all the way to Commiefornia, and the guy shipped me a rifle. We both just went to the FFL same day turned over the weapons same day, and kept constant communication. Hell we still text back and forth to this day.

If the person doesn't wanna give you the time of day don't risk it. Arrangements will always vary from person to person. Do what you are comfortable with, and like said above if it seems to good to be true it is. I wanna get to know the person a little talk about guns see what they are into shooting wise or sports wise. I always strike up conversation and keep in contact with them. Puts my mind at ease.
 
#16
Did he reach out to you on your post or did you reach out to him on his post? I personally am not as comfortable with Armslist as I am with some other forums I use. Could be fine, but I would proceed with caution.
 
#19
I initiated a trade year’s ago w/ a fellow ‘Hider. We exchanged cell numbers, shot the breeze & negotiated terms. We put EVERYTHING in writing via PMs here on the Hide. There was 3K+ worth of rifle changing hands each way, so not a small investment. There was also a record if anything went sideways.

We shipped rifles cross country to our respective FFLs. We both got exactly what was promised & all was well. Almost five years later I still keep in touch w/ the guy now & then.

I’ve bought, sold & traded about a half dozen times over the years on this site & everyone has been above board. Offer tracking numbers, take plenty of pics of the item(s) showing the best & worst if said item. Honesty is very important here. The best advice I can offer is maintain your integrity as well as good comms.
 
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#20
WATERWALKER said:
I initiated a trade year’s ago w/ a fellow ‘Hider. We exchanged cell numbers, shot the breeze & negotiated terms. We put EVERYTHING in writing via PMs here on the Hide. There was 3K+ worth of rifle changing hands each way, so not a small investment. Tgere was also a record if anything went sideways.

We shipped rifles cross country to our respective FFLs. We both got exactly what was promised & all was well. Almost five years later I still keep in touch w/ the guy now & then.

I’ve bought, sold & traded about half dozen times over the years on this site & everyone has been above board. Offer tracking numbers, take plenty of pics of the item(s) showing the best & worst if said item. Honesty is very important here. The best advice I can offer is maintain your integrity as well as good comms.
Click to expand...
I’ve had these same types of exchanges in the short time I’ve been a Hide Member. I continue to chat with the people I’ve done business with even long after the sale is over. It pays to do business within a community like this of like minded individuals with similar hobbies. You make good friends, meet good people, and of course get some good deals.
 
#21
This is where the arfcom feedback system is invaluable. If both parties have a good amount of 100% positive feedback there's very little to worry about. I don't understand why other sites don't follow suit.

-Stooxie
 
#22
Cross your fingers and trust your gut.
That’s the just if it.
On the hide Ive prob bought about 15-20k in items maybe more, haven’t been burnt yet.
Guy tried on eBay, took six months but they smashed him down for me.
You never know
 
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#23
brianf said:
Cross your fingers and trust your gut.
That’s the just if it.
On the hide Ive prob bought about 15-20k in items maybe more, haven’t been burnt yet.
Guy tried on eBay, took six months but they smashed him down for me.
You never know
Click to expand...

There's a lot to be said for that. I've found that if someone can put a decent English sentence together with at least high school level punctuation that things go pretty smoothly. It's usually pretty easy to distinguish the tire kickers, low ballers and flakes.

Most expensive transaction I was involved with was the sale of a $6,000 thermal scope. We both had good feedback but we decided we'd share the risk-- He paid me half, I shipped and he paid me the other half upon receipt. We wrote up brief but clear terms and conditions and everything went perfect. There was no "eval" period, if the thing showed up in one piece and functioned as it should, payment was due within 72 hours. He paid the balance within a day. It's not that the Ts&Cs were enforceable at any practical level, but the fact that we were both comfortable with them and clear established some trust.

Most people out there are good folks.

-Stooxie
 
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#26
drafter said:
How do 2 guys that don't know each other trade weapons when shipping out of state is required?
Say guys from North Carolina and Georgia agree to trade, how is it done without risk? Rifles, not handguns
Click to expand...

OP, what happened? Did you decide to walk? Make the trade with no issues? Or get hosed? Don't leave us hanging here...
 
#27
Walked, as I figured I would. It was an Armslist trade and I've dealt on Armslist for 7 years, so I know how to handle local trades and I always refused to trade out of state, which I'm sticking to for now. Without a feedback system in place there I'm not sending my gun to an unknown.
And I'm 98% sure the guy was legit, but I work too hard for my $$$ to take a 2% risk. Even if a guy is legit, there's always a chance that HIS idea of "mint in box" and mY idea of the same can differ greatly.
Plus I can usually spot an Armslist scam a mile away. The first thing I look at is how long they've been a member of Armslist, that's a dead give away 95% of the time.
Thanks to all.
 
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