Question on bidding on GB

[NorthBorder]

If the seller has a A+ rating what would be the minimum number of prior transactions he has had to earn a A+ rating are you comfortable with? If the seller had less than 50 prior transactions but has a A+ rating would you bid on his item with confidence?

 

[Handshaker]

I typically never buy anywhere online from a private seller, only ffl's. As long as its an A with multiple transactions, Im good with it.

 

[jstert]

If the seller has a A+ rating what would be the minimum number of prior transactions he has had to earn a A+ rating are you comfortable with? If the seller had less than 50 prior transactions but has a A+ rating would you bid on his item with confidence?

yes, if seller offers an informative written description with plenty of photos. i would also initiate an email conversation to guage the seller’s integrity.

with one glaring exception i have enjoyed good luck buying online from gunbroker. as i recall that exception was an ffl. despite an informed look-see at my receiving ffl and a call then and there to the seller, i only learned of its timing issue after shooting it, which a local gunsmith was unable to fix (rossi 32 long, j-frame revolver, no parts. it’s now waiting for a gun “buy-back”).

adding 3% credit card, 1% transaction, shipping, sales tax and ffl fees put a sight-unseen, cheaper, gb.com firearm into lgs price territory. adding inevitably delayed shipping and “oops, sorry about that” inaccurate or incomplete written descriptions make initially pricier lgs deal even more attractive. gunbroker isn’t what it was.

 

[I6turbo]

I agree with jstert's POV. I also would not necessarily avoid sellers with only a few transactions, and have bought a coupe of times from sellers with no prior ratings (not sure if they'd sold but didn't receive feedback, or if it was their first time). Out of perhaps 50 transactions, I've never been burned on GB. But of course there will eventually be that first time at some point if I keep going. But as jstert also said, "GB isn't what it was" with the shipping costs (that have crept up in recent years), taxes, fees, etc. that can generally add a hundred bucks or so to a typical purchase, on top of the local FFL transfer fee. That can make the LGS option more attractive, IF the LGS has what you want. The huge advantage of GB is the massive selection.

 

[dh1633pm]

I had a private seller ship before I paid the week before last. It was a Sig P227. He gave me a UPS tracking number, I looked and UPS already had it in their system. I contacted him and made it right. You never know. Sometimes it's just cheaper to buy local. I do. Except when I can't find what I am looking for and the dealer can't get me one. I usually just email a friend who owns a shop. "Can you get me a". He replies with a price. If I like it, I buy, if not, I look elsewhere. I have also purchased from Buds Guns, Guns.com, and Eurooptic with good results. A+ rating is usually good for me on Gunbroker.

 

[Beck]

Less than 50 transactions doesn't bother me. I have less than 50 transactions on GB, but nearly 800 transaction on eBay as a buyer and seller... all with 100% positive feedback on both sites.

I never buy anything on GB without engaging the seller through the contact feature. If I don't get a reply at all or the seller can't answer a basic question about the item, I will pass.

I had a funny one a few months ago. A GB seller had a couple boxes of NOS Speer bullets I was interested in. The boxes were allegedly new, but he had a photo of open boxes. The boxes didn't look quite full to me, so I asked him if he had counted the bullets to make sure there were 100 in each box.

Rather than count the bullets he added a note to the description saying he was asked to count the bullets, but instead reminded potential buyers how much these bullets normally go for.

If he's too lazy to count 200 30 cal bullets, he's probably too lazy to complete the transaction in a reasonable manner. So I passed.

He also had ridiculously high shipping, so I gave him a friendly FYI that the two Speer boxes would fit nicely in a USPS small flat-rate box. He answered by saying he didn't think they would fit. I didn't ask for his opinion on whether the boxes would fit or not... I informed him that they do fit. He was a poor communicator.

^^^ You can learn a lot from a dummy. He's now my list of bad GB sellers.

 

[Lo-Profile]

I don't limit myself to 50 or more.
They must be all A+. I will place what I considered a fair bid and won't increase it. Seems to be a lot of NR rated bidders adding $1.00 at a time
With bigger sellers, some negative, because there's always the one or two people who can't be pleased.
GunBroker's fees have become ridiculous. My last purchase, $575 with almost another $100 for shipping, taxes add fees. Then they charge the seller more fees.

 

[drk1]

This is to second the sentiments of Mr. Beck above. It's not so much the number of transactions that a seller (or buyer) has, but rather those other "little" tell-tale things that tip you off that is something is just not right. For example, right now there is a seller with a item that interests me, but he has the same exact item listed twice -- one for $150 and again for $300. Now, that just tells me there may be a problem here, so I'm going to pass. I've been a member of GB since a few months after it started (1999). At that time, I was working in a shop and did lots of proxi bidding for folks that didn't have computers or the internet. Officially I have less than 30 transactions as a buyer, but in reality I've had more than 300 transactions! Over 1500 transactions on other sites and with other auction houses and only one complaint. The folks at GB have erased or simply not posted most of the feedback I've given to sellers. They dislike me so much that I've been blocked for over three years now. It doesn't slow me down much since I just use the account of a friend or a local shop. The latest disaster was several months ago, when there were very few primers available. I found some on GB with a "buy it now" price from a seller with more than 300 positive feedbacks and an A+ rating. So I had one of my local shops order some for me. When the box arrived all it contained was a piece of 2x4 and a hand written note that said "SUCKER". The actual risk is a little better now that more sellers are willing to accept credit cards, but back in the day when most folks wanted USPS money orders, it was always a risk. In this case I had given on of my local shops cash in order to save that 3 - 4% credit card fee. Over the last 20+ years, I estimate that I and some of my customers have lost somewhere north of twenty thousand dollars. The biggest single loss was $2700 and the smallest was probably less than $50. GB never did anythign about any of the countless problems other than suspend or ban me. There are still lots of other places for me to spend my money so I don't worry about it too much. As a result of my experience with sellers on GB, my own current rules are: 1) I've got to want it pretty bad to bid on it without actually seeing it in person and 2) never bid on anything where I'm not willing say goodbye to the money and never see the item. Best of luck -- let us know how it goes.

 

[I6turbo]

This is to second the sentiments of Mr. Beck above. It's not so much the number of transactions that a seller (or buyer) has, but rather those other "little" tell-tale things that tip you off that is something is just not right. For example, right now there is a seller with a item that interests me, but he has the same exact item listed twice -- one for $150 and again for $300. Now, that just tells me there may be a problem here, so I'm going to pass. I've been a member of GB since a few months after it started (1999). At that time, I was working in a shop and did lots of proxi bidding for folks that didn't have computers or the internet. Officially I have less than 30 transactions as a buyer, but in reality I've had more than 300 transactions! Over 1500 transactions on other sites and with other auction houses and only one complaint. The folks at GB have erased or simply not posted most of the feedback I've given to sellers. They dislike me so much that I've been blocked for over three years now. It doesn't slow me down much since I just use the account of a friend or a local shop. The latest disaster was several months ago, when there were very few primers available. I found some on GB with a "buy it now" price from a seller with more than 300 positive feedbacks and an A+ rating. So I had one of my local shops order some for me. When the box arrived all it contained was a piece of 2x4 and a hand written note that said "SUCKER". The actual risk is a little better now that more sellers are willing to accept credit cards, but back in the day when most folks wanted USPS money orders, it was always a risk. In this case I had given on of my local shops cash in order to save that 3 - 4% credit card fee. Over the last 20+ years, I estimate that I and some of my customers have lost somewhere north of twenty thousand dollars. The biggest single loss was $2700 and the smallest was probably less than $50. GB never did anythign about any of the countless problems other than suspend or ban me. There are still lots of other places for me to spend my money so I don't worry about it too much. As a result of my experience with sellers on GB, my own current rules are: 1) I've got to want it pretty bad to bid on it without actually seeing it in person and 2) never bid on anything where I'm not willing say goodbye to the money and never see the item. Best of luck -- let us know how it goes.

LOL North of $20K on a relatively few transactions? Wow. You seem to be very skilled at finding crooks to beat you and your customers out of your money.

I checked my Excel sheet and I've bought 33 guns on GB, and sold several. I paid for most of them with a USPS money order. Only once did I receive a gun that was not exactly as advertised; it was a shotgun that had had a couple of inches cut off of the barrel but not mentioned in the ad. It mattered not to me because I bought it with the plan to shorten the barrel by about 10" anyway. Otherwise, zero issues as a buyer or seller. No malfunctioning guns, none in worse condition than represented in the ad (most were in better condition), no issues other than a few were packed poorly but somehow still managed not to get damaged in shipping.

That said, I do scrutinize ads carefully and pay close attention to what I see in the photos. I've passed on a lot of guns that I expect would not have been satisfactory had I bought them.

 

[Ignition Override]

One possible problem is when the seller (over 200 items: A Plus) only —quotes— a previous owner, saying “It shoots fine!”

Always ask the seller, specifically, to describe whether the SA and DA trigger feel about like other guns.

But this is subjective, as a /trigger bar, t.b. disconnector, possibly auto safety etc Anomaly might not be very apparent if the seller only quickly “Snaps” the SA trigger.

It is very difficult to explain—even for Most other owners of a surplus CZ-82 or 83: they will never experience it. These are pretty complex little handguns.

Very luckily this gun works perfectly
in DA, and then the SA also, As Long As the hammer is cocked by the recoiling slide.

Out of approx. seven used guns I bought via GB, this is the first with an odd anomaly- which is fairly common when a part wears inside a CZ-82/83. The other seven or so were “ nib” and perfect.

 

[hemiram]

I have had zero issues on GB purchases, and the only problems I had selling were caused by my soon to be former FFL sending guns to the wrong states! He isn't even an FFL holder anymore, he got himself in trouble several times due to total cluelessness. I had one buyer in VA, I think it was grinding his teeth in frustration, as the Beretta 92FS I sold him went to Nebraska, then sat at my FFL's store for about 15 days before he realized it had come back. That was it for me, no more using him, it wasn't worth the drive over there to save $5 a transfer.

Every gun was as good as, or in some cases MUCH better than the pics and description (A hint for sellers: CLEAN your gun before you take pics, you might have a superstar and don't know it). I have had a couple of weird sellers, but it all came out fine and I'm happy with all of the guns I bought on GB and other auction sites. I won't buy a gun from a seller with less than 12 good feedbacks, and with a low number, only pay with a CC. If they have a lot of transactions, I will pay with a money order, always a USPS one. The address always came back to the seller when I looked it up, I might have balked if it didn't.

 

[Styx]

If the seller has a A+ rating what would be the minimum number of prior transactions he has had to earn a A+ rating are you comfortable with? If the seller had less than 50 prior transactions but has a A+ rating would you bid on his item with confidence?

I have less than 10 transactions on Gunbroker. I all several out of the 10 have been from private sellers with only a few transactions. I look at their prior rating to make sure if they have purchased or sold to different established people, how long they been on Gunbroker, etc.

I had a case where a private seller me sold a Kahr MK9 on Gunbroker but listed it as a MKP Elite. I notified the sell after I got to my FFL. He refunded me $50, so I got a MK9 with a MSRP of $700+ new for $350 with aftermarket night sights installed.

I won a used Sig P239 from another private seller that was listed with having night sights for $400 as well, but the night sights were DOA. I complained about it, and he refunded me $25.

Other than those two issues, I have never had a problem with any private sellers on Gunbroker. I require years of membership and at least 5 to 10 transactions from different established sellers. Other than that, I just use common sense. If something feels off, I simply don't bid. I'd NEVER buy a high priced item from a "NR" seller.

 

[Ru4real]

Who doesn’t have an A+ rating on gunbroke?

LOL, based on my experiences, good and not so good all had A+ ratings.

 

[film495]

it all depends. there are other keys to look for and I've had good luck. this is not scientific or anything, but I just look for anything that seems off. well written description. I'll ask a basic question I think they shoulld be able to answer clearly and easily, and if they don't I pass. sometimes a smaller seller with less transactions isn't necessarily trying to maximize every penny out of every deal and you can get a better buy IMHO. my guess is most people buyers and sellers are on the up and up and my job is just to weed out the sellers I really don't want to deal with, and I assume they are doing the same to me, so I just want a nice easy transaction and to get what I want at a reasonable price.

 

[tarosean]

Look carefully at the dates the reviews were made. Hacked dormant A+ accounts is another issue that has popped up with GB lately.

 

[Madcap_Magician]

Also A+ ratings as a seller are worth more than as a buyer. As a buyer all you have to do is pay on time. As a seller there's a lot more into it. So if someone has good feedback as a seller, that counts more to me.

Although honestly I prefer Armslist. With Armslist you're limited to in-state, but on the other hand, all deals are cash in hand and you can see if someone is hinky in an in-person sale. Using Gunbroker has gotten expensive. There aren't really deals to be found with any frequency anymore. Gunbroker is like online dating. The odds of you finding what you're looking for go up a lot, but you're going to wade through a lot of garbage to get there, and you won't save any money on it when you find it. With Armslist I just pay $6.99 and list a gun for a month at a fair price, and it almost always sells, then I cancel the premium subscription. Seven dollars is a lot cheaper than the convoluted fee, tax, and credit card charge system on GB.

 

[Styx]

Also A+ ratings as a seller are worth more than as a buyer. As a buyer all you have to do is pay on time. As a seller there's a lot more into it. So if someone has good feedback as a seller, that counts more to me.

Although honestly I prefer Armslist. With Armslist you're limited to in-state, but on the other hand, all deals are cash in hand and you can see if someone is hinky in an in-person sale. Using Gunbroker has gotten expensive. There aren't really deals to be found with any frequency anymore. Gunbroker is like online dating. The odds of you finding what you're looking for go up a lot, but you're going to wade through a lot of garbage to get there, and you won't save any money on it when you find it. With Armslist I just pay $6.99 and list a gun for a month at a fair price, and it almost always sells, then I cancel the premium subscription. Seven dollars is a lot cheaper than the convoluted fee, tax, and credit card charge system on GB.

Depending on what you're looking for, you can find deals on Gunbroker. Whether you pay credit card fees or not depends on the seller. I have often not had to pay any taxes especially when dealing with private sellers.

I use ArmsList too, but that also comes with it's on headaches, pros, and cons. You are also not limited to in state sales with ArmsList. I have purchased accessories, mags, and even my Walther Q4 SF from a guy in Colorado (which is a $1400 gun that I got LNIB with extra mags for $800 shipped).

 

[I6turbo]

Every gun was as good as, or in some cases MUCH better than the pics and description (A hint for sellers: CLEAN your gun before you take pics, you might have a superstar and don't know it).

Clean your gun AND post plenty of GOOD, CLEAR photos. Crappy photos are an almost certain way to get a low price for your gun. The "secret" is to start it at a penny, let it run for about 2 weeks (and I believe in ending it on a Sunday night, but I haven't proven that part out), and post GREAT photos so that the buyer is confident that he knows what he's getting. Every gun I've sold this way on GB has brought at the very top of the range for whatever it was.

The other thing I love to see a seller do with a gun that I'm wanting to buy is to leave a nice scope mounted on the gun. I think this is most often done by newbies or by sellers (often consignment shops) who don't want to mess with selling the scope separately. A rifle that would normally bring $800 on GB with a scope that would bring $500 on E-bay (far and away the best place to sell a desirable scope) will typically bring about $900 on GB. I've bought several guns like this -- a Weaver or Leupold or Nikon Scope that will bring $300 - $550 on E-bay, mounted on a rifle that would bring $700 - $900, and I pay approximately the price of the naked rifle. Then I sell the scope on E-bay if it's not something that I want.

Here's a CZ that came with a Leupold that I sold for $348, and ended up with $440 in the rifle. Properly advertised, the rifle alone would have brought at least $800 at the time.



Below is one that came with another Leupold that I sold for $549 and ended up with $214 in the rifle. (Shown below with a different scope that I later added, and with refinished wood. The wood was perfect, but I refinish almost all of my walnut-stocked rifles.) Properly advertised, the rifle alone would have brought about $700 at the time.


With regard to mounted scopes, I sometimes think that a nice rifle will actually bring MORE without a scope if the scope is a cheap/low-end brand. I think it subconsciously tarnishes the image of the rifle that's being sold. I don't have proof of this, but it seems to me to be the case sometimes.

 

[hemiram]

Yeah, there is a lot of scope "snobbery" out there. It seems like if the scope doesn't cost $400, it's worthless to some, and the seller should be ashamed to even have it on the gun at all. I like high buck scopes as we all do, but I have had great luck with quite a few cheapo ones too.

 

[Ks5shooter]

If Im selling a gun with scope.I take it off and use on another one of my guns(future build)etc.If the scope is on one of my guns its a good scope I dont buy junk.Or I sell it seperately as people will generally take it of anyway for their personal preference in optics .I DO NOT warranty scopes sold with a gun in any way.Manufactures if a good quality scope will have a lifetime warranty that is transferrable any way. If not the buyer knows no scope warranty is a condition of sale.

 

[Catpop]

Clean your gun AND post plenty of GOOD, CLEAR photos. Crappy photos are an almost certain way to get a low price for your gun. The "secret" is to start it at a penny, let it run for about 2 weeks (and I believe in ending it on a Sunday night, but I haven't proven that part out), and post GREAT photos so that the buyer is confident that he knows what he's getting. Every gun I've sold this way on GB has brought at the very top of the range for whatever it was.

The other thing I love to see a seller do with a gun that I'm wanting to buy is to leave a nice scope mounted on the gun. I think this is most often done by newbies or by sellers (often consignment shops) who don't want to mess with selling the scope separately. A rifle that would normally bring $800 on GB with a scope that would bring $500 on E-bay (far and away the best place to sell a desirable scope) will typically bring about $900 on GB. I've bought several guns like this -- a Weaver or Leupold or Nikon Scope that will bring $300 - $550 on E-bay, mounted on a rifle that would bring $700 - $900, and I pay approximately the price of the naked rifle. Then I sell the scope on E-bay if it's not something that I want.

Here's a CZ that came with a Leupold that I sold for $348, and ended up with $440 in the rifle. Properly advertised, the rifle would have brought at least $800 at the time.
View attachment 1123891


Here's one that came with another Leupold that I sold for $549 and ended up with $214 in the rifle. (Shown below with a different scope that I later added, and with refinished wood. The wood was perfect, but I refinish almost all of my walnut-stocked rifles.) Properly advertised, the rifle alone would have brought about $700 at the time.
View attachment 1123892

With regard to mounted scopes, I sometimes think that a nice rifle will actually bring MORE without a scope if the scope is a cheap/low-end brand. I think it subconsciously tarnishes the image of the rifle that's being sold. I don't have proof of this, but it seems to me to be the case sometimes.

Beautiful refinish job!!!!

 

[John G C 1]

I would need at least a dozen positive transactions. I would also look at the ad for photos that are clear and focus on possible problem areas. I would write the person and see if they respond and how they respond. Also, check out the reviews.

Some times a person may have a few bad reviews for pretty minor problems. I want my gun shipped right away but I can not wet my pants over a few days delay. On the same note I would not tank a seller because a few of the ammo boxes were scratched up or a few rounds fell out during transport or because the delivery service lost the order.

On the other hand, I once had a pistol sent to my dealer after winning it and it just showed up at the store sent through USPS without any packing or paperwork and sent by regular post. I left negative feedback. The gun was from Miami, and the store owner was sure it was a gun used in a crime or something but he called the authorities and they told him to register it and let me have it even though it did not come with proof of prior ownership. (This was maybe ten years ago.) For the next year, the gun ship owner kept asking me if the feds had come to see me about the gun. My point is I would not purchase from someone if the feedback indicated something serious.

 

[I6turbo]

View attachment 1124578

Beautiful refinish job!!!!

Thanks. It's just a matter of preference, but I like to see the grain and feature of the wood without the factory-applied stain. Here's the refinished version of the other gun above.


Here's another before and after:

After is the bottom gun in the photo below:

 

[I6turbo]

Yeah, there is a lot of scope "snobbery" out there. It seems like if the scope doesn't cost $400, it's worthless to some, and the seller should be ashamed to even have it on the gun at all. I like high buck scopes as we all do, but I have had great luck with quite a few cheapo ones too.

That's definitely true, and I've proven it out to myself via a lot of side-by-side testing of my almost 50 scopes. But I think what's going on with the low resale of a rifle/nice scope combo is that people want what they want in a scope, and if they're buying a gun they often aren't looking for a scope too, or if they are looking for a scope, they aren't looking for the exact scope that's on the gun in question. At that point *I think* a lot of people just kind of move on and don't give much thought to buying a gun with a scope that they aren't really wanting, even if they can get it for a bargain.

For example, take the 2nd rifle I pictured above. The rifle was a discontinued CZ that was then-currently in demand and worth at least $700 by itself. The scope was a Leupold 3-9x33 EFR that I sold for the then-currently going rate of $549 on E-bay. That's a scope that a LOT of people (even a lot of scope snobs) think very highly of, and a rifle that a lot of people wanted. Yet the pair together brought about $800. Chances are, people looking to buy a CZ 452 Varmint weren't also looking to buy a 3-9x scope for it. They'd be like me and want something with more magnification power.

And as I said, I've seen this happen a number of times, and have taken advantage of it several times, including the CZ Full Stock above. I also bought my Winchester 52 the same way; it had a $400-450 (on E-bay) scope on it and I bought the gun plus scope for no more than I could sell the gun alone for. (But I wouldn't sell the 52 -- I love that rifle and wish I'd bought one decades earlier. )

 

[MachIVshooter]

I've probably bought around 40 guns on GB, both FFL and private sellers, can't say I've ever had any issues.

Few ratings doesn't necessarily deter me, and in point of fact, you can often score some really good deals from sellers with few ratings because so many buyers are leery of it.