Hi there,
I’m thinking about listing one of my more pricey ($90-ish) lights on here for trade, but I’ve never done a trade on BLF, or on any e-forum before.
I guess i’m looking for some advice from people who have done it. How did you go about it? Did you both mail on the same day? Send each other pictures? Have any of you had a bad experience trading on BLF before? How could it have been avoided?
Any suggestions or advice would be much appreciated.
Trading really isn’t ideal. I suggest if you’re trading with someone, ensure it’s someone you trust about not taking a $90 light and running.
We used to do this with cigars and booze back when the internet was still new. We had a thread dedicated to that purpose and I think we even had ratings in our profile. People with established trading reputation would send after receiving the package from the newbie and then rate them on speed and careful shipping. Anyone who screwed around would be banned from trading after a chance to fix the problem.
Sunnysunsun thank you for the info. I was actually going to start messaging the numerous people ive had good interactions with or sales with and ask them if they want to trade for the light i want if they have it, maybe i will…
jf_smm - that system sounds awesome, i could get behind that. at least the rating system.
i think ill just post a WTB thread and take the safer way out
There’s a reason why you’re never supposed to use adjectives in legal issues, because people can’t agree on the same meaning.
Your “primo condition spotless like brand new” whutzit might be “scratched and scuffed and what a ripoff!” to someone else, or v/v.
Unless you’re meeting in person where youse can each inspect the goodies, best to just take/post lots and lots of pix, agree on a price for each, then handle them as separate transactions, a→b and b→a.
I’ve been lucky that all the stuff I bought from people here have pretty much exceeded the descriptions, so I’ve got nothing but good experiences, but others here had people take their goodies then ghost on ’em.
excellent input as usual LB. thank you. im reading you loud and clear. makes sense
Selling stuff has its own set of issues. The buyer wants to make sure that he/she gets their item in the condition it was represented to be in and the seller wants to make sure that he/she gets paid. I’ve been selling reloading supplies the last few months and the few times that I’ve shipped I’ve asked the buyer to pay me using an Amazon gift card and also to send me a pre-paid USPS shipping label (shipping cost on their end was just part of the deal).
I asked for an Amazon gift card because from what I understand Paypal transfers even sent as “friends” can be reversed by the bank if a credit card was used. My middle daughter and son-in-law both were the victims of people reversing Paypal transactions hence my paranoia about using it.
I haven’t had issues on BLF - it’s easy enough to pay attention to who the buyer/seller is and make sure they look okay. There’s risk in every transaction, even face-to-face sales could be muggings! Be smart, take appropriate precautions relative to risk, and don’t be afraid to say “no” if things don’t add up.
I have sold some knives to (I think) three people on BLF.
I have also bought flashlights from several different BLF members.
Luckily, all transactions went very smoothly. 
Well, if the guys name is “Snake” or something then I wouldn’t bother.
thanks for the input everyone.
It looks like unless one of the people i see and know through association or conversation on here are willing to do a trade, i will just look to buy the item i want from a retailer or someone i can at least somewhat “vet”.
and yes, no sellers named snake. 
I did a trade on here and it worked out fine.
You have to trust someone you don’t know and have never met.
I sent a tracking # and they sent a tracking #
I’m Irish ( as in luck o 
the).
The only times I’ve done trades over the internet I send them the value of the goods via Paypal, they ship first, then they wire back either the same amount or an adjusted one if it’s a “+cash” deal vis Paypal and finally I ship.
That sounds like you can’t get hurt that way unless they play games with paypal. They could play games with a straight up sale so this seems equally safe.
Yea that’s a solid plan. Thanks!
Trading is tough. When selling, trust is pretty much one way. Trading involves a two way trust. Much more difficult.
I use a major card provider as my payment method on Paypal so that’s another layer if something unfortunate happens. If you get shipping with solid tracking and the option to cancel shipment in-transit that’s an additional security measure as well.
Really how much effort/money you put into it should be proportional to the value of the items though.
I appreciate the advice BPD- and your right about the value is proportionate to the money invested in the trade. Starting to make me think it’s only worth it for hard to find or valuable items, or maybe really cheap items where it doesn’t matter too much. My light falls in the middle somewhere. And unless one of my regular confidants or another trusted member has the light I want, and wants the light I have… I’ll probably just buy new like usual.