Trade Only People?

[stchman]

Many times I go on Armslist and find a gun I want but the person says "trade only". I found a pistol I wanted a while back on Armslist and the guy refused to sell it, says he wanted to "trade only".

OK, I'll trade you cash for that gun.

What gives? How about take the cash I give you and go BUY the gun you really want.

 

[WestKentucky]

It's crazy, but I have gotten good deals from those folks. I traded a Ruger charger for a franchi 20ga once. Should have kept the franchi.

 

[GBExpat]

Trade Only People?????

I have run into a few of those folks over the years.

I must confess that it is as alien a mindset to me as, apparently, my Buying/Selling approach seems to be to them.

I quickly learned that it was best for me to not even stop at a Trade Only post ... waste of time.

With a Buy/Sell you are dealing with 2 set of Subjectives which often do not match. I can only imagine that turning that into 4 sets would not, normally, improve the odds of both parties being satisfied.

EDIT: F2F would greatly improve the chances of Trades to go smoothly ... I spend almost all of my Buy/Sell online.

 

[bannockburn]

stchman

In all my years of wheeling and dealing I have never encountered anyone who wanted to "trade only". Face to face, cash only, gun in trade and cash difference; these are normal requests but trying to do a trade only would be somewhat difficult and problematic in coming up with an agreed upon value for both guns.

 

[stchman]

I guess they think they'll get a better deal if they trade for a gun, I don't know.

 

[stchman]

I've done a one for one no cash either way trade in the past.

 

[WestKentucky]

If they are trying to gain value then trade only seems to work better. If I have 5 50 dollar junk drawer specials and a man has a 10/22 that I want, I am more likely to give him 5 for 1 whereas if I were trying to buy that 10/22 I wouldn't go over 200 cash.

In some cases a guy just has 1 gun and wants to own a gun. I have seen that too. They feel like if they sell and have to go buy then they are unprotected until they get their next gun. I once gave up a 45/410 ducktown tn junker for that very purpose. I wanted the guys revolver but he wouldn't do a straight sale.

 

[boricua9mm]

Here's another angle to consider: I tend to like pistols that are outside of the standard offerings. As it turns out, the types of firearms I usually seek are either not sold in local stores ("those don't sell as well as the standard model") or they are discontinued, where my only chance (prayer?) of getting one would be in a private transaction.

If I have a nice gun that I am willing to part with, sometimes it feels as though I'd be better off waiting for a good trade rather than having a fistful of cash and being unable to actually find/purchase what I'm after. In this particular scenario, sometimes keeping that nice handgun in the collection is more prudent than selling it off, unless of course you are strapped for cash and have no other options.

 

[BSA1]

For some it is the excitement and fun of good old fashion horse trading.

For me it is often hard for me to buy the gun I want when I have the cash. I run into another gun that is for sale at a good price and well. it goes home instead of the gun I set out to buy.

 

[Spats McGee]

I'm not usually a trade-only guy, but I do love a good horse-trade.

 

[FireInCairo]

You should make a cash offer and if he rejects it, go higher until he accepts it or you decide it isn't worth it.

Besides, trades can bring in a better value than a straight cash sale in an economy like ours.

 

[solman]

Let me offer another thought on this subject. If I have a gun and sell it to buy another, I have to justify spending that new gotten cash. However If I trade my gun for yours I am not actually buying a gun or spending my money for a gun. This is not my issue but some people may see it that way.

 

[desidog]

I'd chalk it up to the fact that half of the population is at or below median intelligence...

At least, that's what i thought when some guy traded me a Browning Superposed for a ($69) SKS right before Obummer got re-elected. He really wanted an "assault rifle."

 

[ApacheCoTodd]

Geeze folks, lighten up.

It's not like this is an affront to anyone.

Here're some things to consider in a trade only scenario:

With no money in hand, there's no money to get diverted elsewhere between one gun sale and another gun purchase.

With no money in hand, there's no money going out requiring justification or explanation to say, a spouse.

Excluding money, for the most part, excludes the objective issue of mathematics and returns things to the more fun and subjective issue of - "seems right to me".

I had a rocking good time negotiating a trade for some of my firearms into a '46 Willys. I had no intention of following through on the transaction if it weren't a trade and if it did not work out, no foul.

Recently did a dead straight trade between a Llama .38 Super and a SAA clone. I had no desire to "sell" my pistol, but turning it into the other one was more than acceptable to me.


Todd.

 

[Teachu2]

Let me offer another thought on this subject. If I have a gun and sell it to buy another, I have to justify spending that new gotten cash. However If I trade my gun for yours I am not actually buying a gun or spending my money for a gun. This is not my issue but some people may see it that way.

Or their spouse might...

 

[TimSr]

I won't deal with them. I assume right off that they have some kind of angle that is not going to be to my benefit. The only logical explanation is that they are hoping to hose somebody who has something that they don't know what it's worth.

It's like saying "I won't accept a $20 bill, but Ill take $20 store gift certificates"

 

[BSA1]

TimSR,

Does that mean you don't buy used guns also?

I mean with your way of thinking they are only selling it because it has problems that they want to dump on someone else.

 

[yugorpk]

Ive traded lots of guns over the years on a "trade only " basis. Usually its because I'm looking for something specific and would like to cut out the middle man and was able to come to an equitable trade with the other party. I don't see what the controversy is about.

 

[mokin]

I'm with ApacheCoTodd. There was a time in my life when I bought, sold, and traded firearms on a regular and frequent basis. I didn't have much money (still don't) but I had time and connections to make deals. I always felt like I got a better deal when I traded for goods or services than cash.

I assume right off that they have some kind of angle that is not going to be to my benefit.

I wouldn't go that far but I always assumed that the person I was dealing with was in it for their best interest and hoped I was in for mine. Like Todd wrote, if you don't like the deal back away.

 

[X-Rap]

I don't know why it matters, if a guy doesn't like the way the deal is presented just move on.


Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

 

[ApacheCoTodd]

I don't know why it matters, if a guy doesn't like the way the deal is presented just move on.


Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

Mostly because so many people these days approach all interactions as though they're gonna get "screwed", taken advantage of, hustled or gouged.

Part of the overriding victim mentality coupled with the entitlement mentality these days.


Todd.

 

[whatever]

I've posted some trade only ads on my local boards. Usually it's because I have a gun that I like but want to see if there is something out there that would interest me a bit more. In those situations I am not looking for anything in particular so I'd rather keep the gun than deal with the cash/buying hassle.

 

[tarosean]

OK, I'll trade you cash for that gun.

What gives? How about take the cash I give you and go BUY the gun you really want.

cause sometimes the gun you want isnt available in any LGS. Cash wont solve that problem. A good sounding trade might bring one out of the woodwork.


now if they are only wanting to trade for something commonly available at any LGS... not sure.

 

[MedWheeler]

I've wondered about this while browsing truck/4x4/car ads as well... but I've never tried it simply because I haven't come across a trader-only who had what I really wanted right then..

 

[thewillweeks]

I post a lot of trade only posts. The reason? Well let me give you an example or two.

Paid $140 for a 30-06 Mauser, bad condition. Honestly, that's what it was worth. But I traded it for a brand new SCCY CPX2 that was least at least $200.

Paid $355 for an absolutely brand new Glock 43 just a month or two after they came out. Traded that for a Glock 26 with a sight and trigger upgrade in almost new condition.

Point being, sometimes I have something someone else really really really really wants. Or they're really really really bored with their current firearm. So I trade, and I get a heck of a deal out of it. If I sold that 43 for cash I'd of got $400 or so. But the 26 I got is valued at around $440 around these parts. The Mauser wouldn't have went for more than $175, but that SCCY later got traded in to another gun that was worth even more than the SCCY was.

Trade only is a way to get ahead, and to limit the amount of cash involved. Plus, if I trade one gun for another, I have a reasonable assurance the other person isn't a prohibited possessor, and if they are, a leg to stand on in court hopefully.