The Firing Line Forums

Go Back   The Firing Line Forums > The Firing Line Gun Show > Retail Deals and Feedback

Notices

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old July 24, 2008, 11:53 PM   #1
spamraiderjam
Member
 
Join Date: July 21, 2008
Location: phoenix, az
Posts: 15
what is the buying etiquette

Hey Guys,
Just poking around the site and noticed some stuff i might want to pick up and wondering what the etiquette or rules are.

If buying, i can trust if they have been vouched for in here? (the skeptic in me is wondering if they could make fake accounts and pump themselves up)

what if they are new, how does that transaction work? How do they trust me, since im new too. sorry to rant on, im just not sure how things work, wasn't sure if there is a forum to ask these sorts of questions; so i asked here

thanks guys!
__________________
*my glock is a lady just like my car and pretty much everything i have ever owned and really liked in life
spamraiderjam is offline  
Old July 25, 2008, 12:30 AM   #2
spamraiderjam
Member
 
Join Date: July 21, 2008
Location: phoenix, az
Posts: 15
your definitely helping me out. cause i would like to trust people, but your right. the interwebs are full of shady people. what is the proper payment method?
__________________
*my glock is a lady just like my car and pretty much everything i have ever owned and really liked in life
spamraiderjam is offline  
Old July 25, 2008, 01:27 AM   #3
spamraiderjam
Member
 
Join Date: July 21, 2008
Location: phoenix, az
Posts: 15
cool. thanks for the info guys. So pretty much any reputable seller will let me "call dibs" on a gun; check him out quickly (with the various web methods as mentioned above) send usps money order and all should be gravy.

*and if the seller is in an overt rush, i shouldnt feel pressured cause it might be an inkling of a shady deal. or i get a bad feeling etc. btw what sort of percentages of bad deals do you think there are (ball park or is the site pretty good for the most part)?
__________________
*my glock is a lady just like my car and pretty much everything i have ever owned and really liked in life
spamraiderjam is offline  
Old July 25, 2008, 10:20 PM   #4
HuntAndFish
Senior Member
 
Join Date: January 2, 2006
Location: Kansas City, MO.
Posts: 580
I also always send the MO or Check by Certified Mail with return receipt. This means that someone has to sign for it, so they can't receive it and later claim it never arrived.
__________________
NRA Benefactor
MSSA Life Member
HuntAndFish is offline  
Old July 26, 2008, 08:11 AM   #5
jmorris
Senior Member
 
Join Date: November 22, 2006
Posts: 3,076
the USPS MO would cover the "I didn't get it" part but I do the same just so I know when it got there.
jmorris is offline  
Old July 27, 2008, 03:35 AM   #6
spamraiderjam
Member
 
Join Date: July 21, 2008
Location: phoenix, az
Posts: 15
hey root, earlier in the post when i said thanks guys; it was pretty much out of habit (i like to get involved in different forums for my various hobbies

I feel pretty good with the crash course that you've given me. Plus the mail receipt that h&f mentioned is also pretty good advice. I feel much better equipped now about buying through the forum.

thanks!
__________________
*my glock is a lady just like my car and pretty much everything i have ever owned and really liked in life
spamraiderjam is offline  
Old July 27, 2008, 08:48 AM   #7
freddyfrogman
Junior Member
 
Join Date: June 28, 2008
Posts: 2
i'm a newbie to this forum but have only done one transaction with 1st sgt HARLIN AND IT WAS SMOTTH AND AS PROMISED even threw in a couple of boxes of ammo , i've conducted many purchases from others sites (guns america and gun broker ) and everything seemed to go as smooth for me here as there, i usualy throw in an exta 5 10 20 to cover any surprise shipping costs and it seems well appreciated in all forums and doesnt make seller feel bad if they get better offer after you commit and send payment , i always go usps mon ord or cash if face to face trans action, ftf offer will usually scare away any cons so i also look for something in same state if possible for xtra insurance
freddyfrogman is offline  
Old July 27, 2008, 03:41 PM   #8
spamraiderjam
Member
 
Join Date: July 21, 2008
Location: phoenix, az
Posts: 15
hahaha thanks guys

now its time to start building a collection
__________________
*my glock is a lady just like my car and pretty much everything i have ever owned and really liked in life
spamraiderjam is offline  
Old July 27, 2008, 11:28 PM   #9
spamraiderjam
Member
 
Join Date: July 21, 2008
Location: phoenix, az
Posts: 15
thanks root your an asset to the boards man! btw this thread is going to pretty much be my go to for all future net purchases. look at all those links!
__________________
*my glock is a lady just like my car and pretty much everything i have ever owned and really liked in life
spamraiderjam is offline  
Old July 29, 2008, 10:04 AM   #10
deercop
Senior Member
 
Join Date: May 27, 2004
Location: Alabama
Posts: 134
I have had much worse luck than some, to the point that I guess I'm a "crook magnet". It has gotten so bad, that I now only deal face-to-face, unless I happen to know the person and have had successful dealings in the past. Perhaps the culmination of my bad dealings is : http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=159053

You've received lots of good advice in this thread. It still won't protect you 100%. The guy in the above thread had a great feedback on gunbroker (found out he was selling to himself to pump up ratings), no negatives were found on the gunboard in question (he had screwed others over, but threatened the owner with a lawsuit if he let them continue to damage his reputation), and found nothing negative on a internet search (he had other usernames).
__________________
NRA Life Member
Certified GLOCK Armorer
deercop is offline  
Old July 30, 2008, 02:16 AM   #11
spamraiderjam
Member
 
Join Date: July 21, 2008
Location: phoenix, az
Posts: 15
man there are all sorts of people out there. I guess the adage that has been thrown around already "buyer beware" is the only way to put it.

but i'll be extra careful in my dealings... you guys actually scared me into buying from a local shop. I figure i'll buy online once i feel more comfortable with the boards.
__________________
*my glock is a lady just like my car and pretty much everything i have ever owned and really liked in life
spamraiderjam is offline  
Old August 2, 2008, 05:28 PM   #12
D.A.Clark
Member
 
Join Date: July 18, 2008
Location: Space Coast of Fl..
Posts: 28
Even a badge doesn't mean the guy is on the up & up, I have a ham radio guy near me that is also an officer and he has a great deal of bad/rip-off history, most police are very good sources, and just because someone says they are a police officer doesn't mean they actually are, occasionally there is a bad apple.

I like to get as much info about a seller as I can, land line phone numbers were mentioned, use one of the many "reverse lookup" sites to run the number through and see if they are the actual registered owner of the number.
Google their email address, name, home address, their actual base IP internet address can be very valuable.

I like a picture of the item with a distinguishing item in the pic, say him holding the item in front of his face, and close ups of the item, the face pic will run off many badguys quickly, they don't want their face involved, but the could get someone else to pose, it does prove one thing though, that they actually have the item.
Google will return many phone numbers with addresses.
Serial numbers are a great source of info as well, call the manufacturer and ask about the serial number, they may tell you that item wasn't stainless as it is being advertised, that would be a deal breaker, and don't forget a pic of the serial number, they are often difficult to get clear images, but a serious seller should be happy to take the extra time, though some folks don't like to send serial numbers, bad guys can probably find a use for them.
Just a few ideas, get creative, it will greatly limit your exposure to rip-offs!
D.A.Clark is offline  
Old August 4, 2008, 09:13 AM   #13
mikenbarb
Senior Member
 
Join Date: October 10, 2007
Location: N.J.
Posts: 1,111
I have bought and sold alot of items here on TFL and always make sure the person has a great reputation first. I made the mistake of starting to purchase a long gun from a new member here a few months ago and almost got taken bigtime! It was listed as something it wasnt and a totaly different model than was being sold as. But that was only 1 bad experience from here and if the member has a good feedback with references then I would trust them. Trust is hard to come by nowadays and alot of internet fraud is out there but if you follow some common sense precautions you should be ok. I buy almost all of my guns from a local store because I like to see what im getting and alot can be hidden in pictures. And like I said, I almost bought a gun online and got the shaft. It was a learning experence for me and would never again try to buy a gun online unless it was from a well known reputable person that can be trusted. As far as trust goes here, Alot of TFL members are great people and I would trust them if I knew them but there are alot of new members here to just look around that theres not too much info on and thats what would raise a flag with me. With members I know well, I have gone as far as to send items out and tell them that if they didnt like it, just send it back to me trusting that they will. I have never gotten or given a bad deal here but I know who I would or wouldnt deal with and the terms of the item being bought or sold. I always get an address and phone number and contact the person if its a big dollar sale and its nice to have just in case. Always verify the info you are given to be sure its correct and not a scam. If you cant verify info, Run the other way and dont look back. Good luck, Mike
__________________
Mike B.
Gun control= Being able to hit your target.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/pifinnercircle
mikenbarb is offline  
Old August 4, 2008, 06:33 PM   #14
spamraiderjam
Member
 
Join Date: July 21, 2008
Location: phoenix, az
Posts: 15
you know this site is like when i first started using ebay... it took a while before i felt comfortable enough to start ordering, and know what to look for in sellers. so i'll probably order once i get a feel for the ebb and flow of TFL. thanks for all the great info!
__________________
*my glock is a lady just like my car and pretty much everything i have ever owned and really liked in life
spamraiderjam is offline  
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 03:31 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
This site and contents, including all posts, Copyright © 1998-2021 S.W.A.T. Magazine
Copyright Complaints: Please direct DMCA Takedown Notices to the registered agent: thefiringline.com
Page generated in 0.05498 seconds with 10 queries