Ever traded a guitar on Jemsite? Post your experiences here.

[ScottB]

About 7 years ago (a few years before Trader ratings), I traded a RG570 for a RG550 with another jemsiter. We were supposed to ship our guitars on a specified day and trade tracking number e-mails. My end went smooth. The other guy had a problem getting to the shipping center that day because of a work issue. He shipped the gutar the next day, along with another that he was selling to another party on e-bay. The problem was, he shipped both guitars to the e-bayer out on the west coast. I didn't receive the RG550 until 2 weeks later. Sure, mistakes happen and luckily, the e-bayer on the other side of the country was honest. I also had the fortune of dealing with a jemsiter who had been around for a few years and I trusted him to make things right. In the end, everything turned out OK, but I was scared for a while that I had given away a guitar and had nothing to show for it.

Now I'm in the mood to sell or trade a $1500 - $2000 guitar. I just don't feel safe going the trade option, but I'm sure there are a few of you out there who have something that I would like to trade for.

I'd consider a high dollar trade, but only if the other party shipped first. I would ship mine after its satisfactory arrival. All would be fine on my end, but I'm sure the guy on the other end of the trade would be a bit apprehensive to say the least.

What are your personal experiences involving trades on jemsite? No need to mention names. Just state the overall trading / shipping details.

[elcid]

Never had a bad deal, even before the trader rating.

[ScottB]

Cid, can you go into details about how you worked out the shipping? Who shipped first, or were the guitars shipped on the same day, etc...

I'm trying to make this thread a model with details on how jemsite trades are conducted and finalized. Go into as much detail as you can without mentioning names of the other parties involved.

[CosmicDebris]

What ya got to trade. I live in VA.

[David McCarroll]

I've never done a "trade" (ie: my Corvette Stingray for your Ibanez Blazer style trade), but I have bought four guitars and a couple of small items off other Jemsiters - never had any issues with anyone - two were delivered to my door by the owner (thanks Tim!!!!), one came from Canada, and one from somewhere in the States - generally speaking postage has always been agreed upon before payment, but that's largely because I live in Australia, and posting a guitar sized box to Australia via UPS or USPS costs about $360USD. I have also bought two guitars via *Bay, and two from a dealer in Nevada - again, not a hitch so far - I suppose the lesson is, agree on the postage cost BEFORE you do the deal - it's part of cash price you are going to pay the seller.

Straight trades have to involve a level of trust on the part of both parties, unless you can strike a deal where the instrument is held in trust until the other one arrives (I know someone who did this via a local music store, who were happy to act as a sort of neutral intermediary) - or, obviously meeting face to face is ALWAYS going to be the safest way to go.

[Gary Qwa]

It's always wise to trade Your equipment for something equally valued. If You'll get a too good offer - a 3000$ item for your 1000$ - then it's most likely t o o g o o d t o b e t r u e.

.Common sense.

Plus, the longer You communication lasts with the other party the more likely is he/she also willing to play by the book.

Phonecalls are also good and the more the other party is willing to tell about ones "life" (work, family...) to me those are good things and the more You receive proper/valued/exact info of the item, the better.

I feel it's best that items are sent on the same day (can be agreed days before).

Use Jemsite - ask other members if they have any experiences of this particular trader. And ask if he/she has any recommendations from other sites.

.Be polite to one another and be patient.

[bammbamm]

I've made a couple trades but just pickups, and I've bought and sold a few items from a few hundred to over $1500.00.

As was said, keep open t he lines of communication, get the other party's info, name, address, phone #'s, etc.
I've gone out of my way to look some guys up when they didn't provide them, just to let them know the status of something I've shipped.

[ScottB]

I've sold several guitars here and bought one as well, so I know how that works.

I was also involved in a trade with a guy from e-bay. I traded an Epi '56 Goldtop LP for the RG570 that I described in my initial post. That trade started off with the seller not reaching his desired reserve on his auction of the RG570. I was the high bidder, so the dude shot me an e-mail, asking if I was interested in making an offer or a trade. I offered the Epi and he accepted. We traded emails, phone numbers and agreed on a mutual ship date. At the time, the company I worked for allowed me to use their UPS for shipments and deliveries as long as I reimbursed them. When the ship day arrived, I typed the info, printed the label and sent an e-mail with the tracking info, all before noon. I waited most of the day for a reply with a tracking # from his end. UPS picked up at 4:30, so I tried calling the guy at 3:45. No answer, left a voice mail. I got an e-mail at 4:00 saying all is well and he was going to the UPS store at 5:00. I got home at 7:00, expecting a tracking #, but there was none. I called the guy and now he tells me he has "reservations" about trading - shipping before he has my guitar. He wanted to check it out first or something like that. By that time, I couldn't hear a word he was speaking, because of the blood that was boiling inside my head! I had to maintain my composure with the guy, because he still had "my guitar", plus the Epi that I shipped earlier in the day. Luckily, the Epi was delivered in 3 days and the dude shipped the RG570 the day it arrived.

That makes 2 trades over the www that should have been a piece of cake, but both had snags that could have ended up bad on my end of the deal. The first was with a complete stranger on e-bay and the second was a jemsiter that I had "spoken" to for a couple years, but had never met face to face.

If and when I'm ready to sell or trade my guitar, I'll post it in the appropriate forum, not here.

~S.

[Gurj]

Never traded guitars on here. But have on fleabay, but always arranged to meet the other person. That way I'm sure I'm not getting ripped off. Tbh, I'm not sure I'd want to send someone a guitar with the risk of getting nothing back!

[ScottB]

My first trade was from Missouri to Maryland - 16 hour drive. The second came from Ohio - 8 hour drive.

[Gurj]

Luckily we don't have the same distances to travel in the UK as you guys do. But for the right deal, I'd be happy to drive a few hundred miles, but maybe not 16 hours though!

[ScottB]

I'd drive to the UK to pickup your PMC!

[JJEMMER777]

Originally Posted by Gary Qwa

Use Jemsite - ask other members if they have any experiences of this particular trader.

This point is HUGE!!

Plus you've been around a long time Scott, so you probably know many of the members and at least have a bit of an idea of the reputablity and trust factor of many of the members. Look at the trader rating comments and then PM the member(s) that left the comment(s) and ask their opinion Also a no-brainer is the amount of posts and how long (said person) has been a member.

Postage needs to be settled up front so there is no backlash! As in "I had no idea the shipping cost (or in the case of international sales/purchases/trades) customs would be so much". Get that resolved up front and in some cases if a lessor item is being traded for a greater item, you can even the trade and make it a part of the deal by designating who pays shipping/postage. In some countries the customs cost more than the item being transacted. You can also agree to split it down the middle 50/50 but make sure to find out the cost before you ship.

Listen to your gut feeling. Ask yourself if you feel that the trade/deal is on the up and up. Don't make the mistake of being blinded by your hopes and wishes and GAS of possibly aquiring your dream item and going for it even if you feel "iffy" about it

I've personally never had a problem with an transaction from any Jemsite member. IMHO - this place is a LOT safer than using da-bay

Good thread Scott

[Gurj]

Originally Posted by ScottB

I'd drive to the UK to pickup your PMC!

Nice one

[ScottB]

Originally Posted by JJEMMER777

...Plus you've been around a long time Scott, so you probably know many of the members and at least have a bit of an idea of the reputablity and trust factor of many of the members...

Listen to your gut feeling. Ask yourself if you feel that the trade/deal is on the up and up. Don't make the mistake of being blinded by your hopes and wishes and GAS of possibly aquiring your dream item and going for it even if you feel "iffy" about it

This is my whole reason for this thread in a nutshell.

Each of my prior trades took place over 3-5 days of negotiating, getting familiar with each other and working out the details and still in each instance I almost ended up with a sore a$$. No matter how much thought you put into planning the logistics, doing background checks, etc, there's always the possibility of the other party pulling a bonehead move by not shipping on time or skipping out altogether with your prized axe.

I know from reading several past threads in this area over the years, that there are or have been a few bad traders on jemsite. There are a gazillion more on e-bay and craigslist.

There has to be a better way of securely trading items from place to place without getting 3rd party escrow services involved. I was thinking about a paypal "deposit" system. The person responding to the "for trade" ad would be responsible for a deposit until the deal is complete on his end:

1 - I place a trade ad in the jemsite classifieds. We agree on a trade for guitars each valued at $1000.
2 - You send $1000 to my paypal account. I leave the money in the account.
3 - I send you my guitar. Up to this point, the scenario is modeled on a "for sale" basis.
4 - You receive my guitar and send your guitar to me.
5 - I receive your guitar and refund the $1000.

I realize that the $1000 deal isn't really a viable option. If we had the cash, we'd prolly just buy the guitar we wanted in the first place.

Any more trade stories or logistics suggestions?