TB classifieds - twice bitten thrice shy

[krustwell]

i've not had the best of luck when it comes to buying basses on the old classifieds here on Talkbass.com. to be clear, i'm batting .500. if this were baseball, that would be awesome, but it ain't. it's me paying people money for a bass they have advertised "For Sale" and not receiving them half of the time*.

1st time:
TB'er "Buckminster" (banned as a result of this BS) made 1,000,000 excuses as to why he wouldn't/couldn't ship the bass after i paid him. seven months later has only paid me back $100 out of a $315 dollar payment. Sacramento PD says it's a Civil issue and they can't help me. awesome.

2nd time:
TB'er "acphipps" hooked me up with a great fretless G&L Lynx, shipped it quickly and was a pleasure to deal with. Thank you, Rocky!! faith in the system restored.

3rd time: - not factored into the statistical analysis
this just happened today, so i'll not mention the guys name. was stoked to find a G&L L-1000 put up for sale yesterday morning. with uncharacteristically good luck, i was 1st in line and jumped on it right away. i've wanted one of these for years. i went through communication with the guy, questions were answered, contact information exchanged and i sent him the money yesterday afternoon, looking forward to receiving the bass by the end of next week. well, he called me up today and said he had a change of heart and would i consider accepting a refund. it was kind of awkward and it totally caught me off guard. as we were talking, i honestly felt bad for him and, should i ever find myself in the same situation, would want the same treatment, so i told him it was his decision and i'd live with it either way. he immediately refunded my money.

that last one i realize was kind of on me, since i had the option of straight up telling him "screw you, send me the bass", but that's just not what i'm about. i want it to be a mutually beneficial transaction, which in this case, it was not.

word of advice to all you would be sellers out there who have a closet classic or bedroom beauty: before you advertise it for sale, take it out and play it first! you may change your mind. that's what got me on #3: he took it out to play it "one last time" and got all sentimental.

word of advice for buyers: if you are purchasing something from somebody on the other side of the country, you are essentially rolling the dice. there is not a lot of recourse you can take if someone decides to scam you over the internet. there just isn't. yes the Admins here will ban someone's account, but big deal. they can make another one with a different username. your local police will direct you to the police in the seller's jurisdiction and vice versa. at the end of the day, it's cheaper to just forget about it. or you could get a lawyer and spend $1,000 trying to collect the $200 owed you. i'm stubborn enough to do it, but i can't afford to.

i don't know, is it just me? i read the "how to not get ripped off on the internet" sticky and abided by it and still got ripped off.

that concludes my rant. thank you for reading.

*original post said i was 1 out of 3, but since the 3rd time was really my own doing, i edited this post to reflect that.

[bongomania]

Originally Posted by krustwell

should i ever find myself in the same situation, would want the same treatment, so i told him it was his decision and i'd live with it either way. he immediately refunded my money.

I completely and totally fail to see how you were screwed in any way with that one. Once in a while, every one of us gets "buyer's remorse" or "seller's remorse". It's natural, if unfortunate. In this case you were both lucky enough that he got his seller's remorse before shipping the bass. How you feel about it is not "kind of" on you, it is completely on you. Sucks that you didn't end up getting a bass you were hoping for, but it's not a "flaw" in TB's classifieds or in any notable percentage of TB'ers.

[JimB52]

While situation #3 is certainly frustrating, I'd have to call that one neutral, although I'd be mighty peeved to have someone back out after payment was sent.
One win, one loss, one no contest.

[bassrique]

I only deal with TBers that I've read many posts from. I kinda get a good feel for someone that way. And the feedback score helps too. My TB commerce experiences have been a pleasure.

[krustwell]

i know in an online community like this you aren't going to have too much predatorial type behavior. i think #1 was just bad luck. the guy had lost his job, yadda yadda, i am last on his list to get paid. the fact i'm over 3,000 miles away just made it easier for him to justify screwing me over.

the #3 just left me with a bad taste in my mouth. calling me on the phone and asking to renege on the deal isn't "cool", in my opinion. i stand beside the decision i made, i just don't think i should have been put in the position to have made it in the 1st place. the deal was done. man up and ship the bass, you know? it was BS.

what would i have done if he had gotten seller's remorse after he shipping the bass??? i would have kept the bass.

the point of my original post was to be careful when buying stuff in the classifieds b/c it's pretty easy to get ripped off if the seller decides to do so (item #1). your comment about gaining a certain level of trust before buying is a good one.

i don't feel like i got "ripped off" with #3, but i definitely feel like i got a bad beat. for all i know, he got a higher offer after i paid him and decided to sell it to someone else. he deleted the thread already, so it's like it never happened.

[Munjibunga]

Awww, cut 'im some slack.

[blendermassacre]

I would be pretty irritated if I thought I was buying the bass that I'd been looking for, just to have someone decide to keep it. On the other side of the coin, if you sent him the money, and you decided that you didn't want it, I'm sure people would be up in arms over it. Just write it off to bad luck, and try again. Such is life.

[krustwell]

Originally Posted by blendermassacre

Just write it off to bad luck, and try again. Such is life.

i am and will. this is just a frustration thread b/c my wife doesn't want to hear me cry about it. it is what it is. if it's meant to be there will be another. if not, it ain't like i'm hurtin' for basses.

thanks for listening.

[FL Knifemaker]

Originally Posted by krustwell

this is just a frustration thread b/c my wife doesn't want to hear me cry about it.

Here's a word of advice from experience.............

Your wife shouldn't even KNOW about your bass deals, what they cost and how many you have

[XtreO]

Originally Posted by bongomania

I completely and totally fail to see how you were screwed in any way with that one. Once in a while, every one of us gets "buyer's remorse" or "seller's remorse". It's natural, if unfortunate. In this case you were both lucky enough that he got his seller's remorse before shipping the bass. How you feel about it is not "kind of" on you, it is completely on you. Sucks that you didn't end up getting a bass you were hoping for, but it's not a "flaw" in TB's classifieds or in any notable percentage of TB'ers.

If a seller gives a buyer an offer and the buyer accepts it, the seller cannot, by law, decide to not uphold his part of the deal.

[baba]

Originally Posted by XtreO

If a seller gives a buyer an offer and the buyer accepts it, the seller cannot, by law, decide to not uphold his part of the deal.

In Norway?

[Mark Latimour]

Originally Posted by XtreO

If a seller gives a buyer an offer and the buyer accepts it, the seller cannot, by law, decide to not uphold his part of the deal.

That's not quite correct. The two parties can mutually agree to vary or rescind the contract (which is what happened here). If one party unlawfully rescinds the contract or doesn't perform their obligations then the other party can sue for damages. In some jurisdictions that could also mean specific performance of the terms is an available remedy which can be requseted, but courts do not generally award specific performance except in unusual circumstances where mere damages would not suffice.

[Jeff K]

Originally Posted by FL Knifemaker

Here's a word of advice from experience.............

Your wife shouldn't even KNOW about your bass deals, what they cost and how many you have

Now THAT is some sage advice...

[krustwell]

Originally Posted by FL Knifemaker

Here's a word of advice from experience.............

Your wife shouldn't even KNOW about your bass deals, what they cost and how many you have

HAHA!

and yes, he didn't just decide not to fulfill his obligation as seller: i let him off the hook b/c i felt bad for him and am dealing with that. i don't regret my decision, even though i was upset it all went south at the very last minute.

hey, if it were me i wouldn't want to sell it, either. it was a stunning bass.

[FL Knifemaker]

Somehow, I just don't see this deal or lack there of, going to court. Then again, if you find a lawyer that's skilled at legal blovitaion, anything's possible.

[PSPookie]

I can sympathize somewhat with #3. I recently sold my L-1000 (1981 mahogany, ebony, SB) and instantly regretted it. As soon as the money hit my paypal I started to wish I hadn't done it. However, I shipped the bass promptly, as promised. Did I cry a bit? Sure, but I held up my end of the bargain.

To make matters worse, I had been operating on a "sell before you buy" system based on an agreement with Mrs. Pookie. When she saw how upset I was about sending the bass off she offered to make an exception but it was too late

It's almost a month later and the pain is beginning to fade (this was facilitated by the purchase of some new-to-me gear). Maybe someday I can look at pictures of that bass without getting choked up.

Sorry for the derail, I just needed to tell my sad tale.

[FL Knifemaker]

Originally Posted by PSPookie

I can sympathize somewhat with #3. I recently sold my L-1000 and instantly regretted it. As soon as the money hit my paypal I started to wish I hadn't done it. However, I shipped the bass promptly, as promised. Did I cry a bit? Sure, but I held up my end of the bargain.

Been there, done that. Basses, Cars, Boats, Guns, Knives.........it's all the same.

[MakiSupaStar]

I don't understand the reason for this thread. All my experiences here have been like number 2. You're not unhappy with results of number 3, and you guys were communicating clearly, so what was we discussing exactly?

[krustwell]

A - this is the "Off topic" forum, so it technically doesn't need a point.

B -

Originally Posted by krustwell

word of advice to all you would be sellers out there who have a closet classic or bedroom beauty: before you advertise it for sale, take it out and play it first! you may change your mind. that's what got me on #3: he took it out to play it "one last time" and got all sentimental.

word of advice for buyers: if you are purchasing something from somebody on the other side of the country, you are essentially rolling the dice. there is not a lot of recourse you can take if someone decides to scam you over the internet. there just isn't. yes the Admins here will ban someone's account, but big deal. they can make another one with a different username. your local police will direct you to the police in the seller's jurisdiction and vice versa. at the end of the day, it's cheaper to just forget about it. or you could get a lawyer and spend $1,000 trying to collect the $200 owed you. i'm stubborn enough to do it, but i can't afford to.

[tZer]

I think you just need to revise your stats to reflect what their statsifying: "My personal satisfaction" vs. "TB Classifieds generating unwanted results".

Sounds to me like your .333 in being happy, but a solid .500 with regard to TB classifieds and their ability to broker a transaction.