Anyone know how this scam works?

Pull up his feedback and email some of people who gave him negative feedback after they bought it. They may tell you what the scoop is. As the saying goes "It it looks too good to be true, it probably is.

 

A lot of the feedback, even the positive comments, says that it might work if you have the time and patience to do it. I'm curious, but not enough to pay for it.

 

I wouldn't waste a penny on it. These kind of things are on eBay all the time and i have emailed people who have been suckered by it. I'm yet to see someone that actually got free stuff. Its a long and complicated process, and you have to "work the system" to get it to work.

 

Procedure for getting Free Basses

1. Attend a secret Ninja school deep in the woods of Japan.

2. Learn and Master the art of Ninjitsu.

3. Travel to the factory of the luthier/company of your choice.

4. Infiltrate, neutalize resistance, find bass, leave a Thank-You note.

5. Make off with the bass in the dead of night.


That'll be $10.00

 

I skimmed the feedback and nobody seems to have actually got a free bass - he seems to give some very rude responses to complaints - touchy!!

Here's a negative :

"Value exagerated Info not detailed or supportive enough Responses were insulting"


and another :

"INFORMATION WAS TESTED AT GREAT LENGTH AND FAILED, BEWARE OF THIS RIP OFF"

But hundreds of people seem to have fallen for it...

 

I remember when I was a kid there was a similar scam to get free records. A buddy of mine got one of the information pamphlets from the back of Circus magazine. What he got was a little brochure (about 2-3 full typed pages) that describe how to get the free stuff.
What you have to do is tell the record company or whatever company that you are trying to get free stuff from that you are a radio station, magazine, fan club, store, etc. From there you try to get them to send you free stuff as promotional items. For example, you tell Warwick that you are a bass magazine and that you would like a Thumb 5 for review in your magazine. Warwick says thanks for the review and advertising by letting you keep the bass.
So if you want to spend the time to create some type of legitimate outlet for receiving promotional items, I guess it would work. I'd rather buy a bass rather than open up a music store. Also this is a scam to sell you a scam. If you pretend to have a store or magazine when you don't you are committing fraud. In short either you have to pull a scam on someone else, and/or do more work than you need to get a bass.

BTW, I sent a link to this thread to my friend who bought the brochure. He couldn't believe that this kind of scam is still going on. But, we did get a good laugh at his attempt to get free stuff.

 

Interesting. Thanks for that info.

"Dear Sony Electronics,
I run a successful eBay business that provides information on how to scam free stuff from companies like you. Please send me some free gear so I can photograph it and put it in my ads that will be seen by thousands of people. Sincerely, f. carnivore"

 

I'm an optimist, but the decades have taught me the old adage always hangs true...


"They're is no free lunch." (This came from the 1920's when bars offered a "free lunch" IF you bought a drink....and the lunch was typically crap).

No one "gives" away what they can sell for much more.

 

hmm- reminds me of that story in the Jeff Berlin forum that someone phoned up a bass company claiming to be him, and asked for a bass to be shipped to him to try out.
a few days later the real Jeff Berlin gets a call from said company asking what he thinks of the bass...

 

SWEET!

*Polly sends in ten bucks*

 

The problem with free stuff is that you usually get your money's worth.

 

But this guy is charging for it!!

 

Looks like it's all gone now.



I was about to send him 10 bucks too......

 

WOW!! Shock horror - maybe somebody at eBay has a "Social Conscience" ?


The times they are a changing.....??!!!

 

On the other hand - this guy scammed hundreds of people before getting shut down - how many complaints does it take, before eBay pulls the plug?

 

how about this-
advertise a booklet of special info on how to spot ebay scams?

-just send $10.

 

SWEET!

*Polly sends 10 bucks, waits for info.*