Out of state trade advice

[Dut4907]

Hello, about to do my first out of state trade in which both owners will be shipping.

I normally don’t ever do such a thing but it’s for a rare 2006 Taylor 410ce.

Does anybody have any advice to make everything run smoothly as best as it can?

[pagedr]

Read through a bit of this thread: https://www.acousticguitarforum.com/...d.php?t=514666

And then from the follow up:
https://www.acousticguitarforum.com/...d.php?t=520987

Should give you a pretty good idea of how to protect yourself. Not sharing those to scare you off from the trade, I know many here have completed successful trades, but it's usually helpful to see what went wrong in a bad situation like the one linked above to help avoid similar issues.

[Mbroady]

Decide on a trade value then send each other the agreed upon amount through pay pall (not friends and family payment). You will both have to eat the PayPal fee but it adds a layer of protection should something happen.

[drive-south]

Unless I can meet the other party in person, no deal. There are too many fish in the sea.

[RP]

Originally Posted by Mbroady

Decide on a trade value then send each other the agreed upon amount through pay pall (not friends and family payment). You will both have to eat the PayPal fee but it adds a layer of protection should something happen.

I agree. Don't do it as a trade; do it as two sale transactions...

[Dut4907]

Originally Posted by RP

I agree. Don't do it as a trade; do it as two sale transactions...

Care to elaborate?

[Laynej37]

Originally Posted by Dut4907

Care to elaborate?

I believe RP is just agreeing with what Mbroady said about sending each other the value through paypal. I would feel much more comfortable doing it this way as well.

[beatcomber]

About 15 years ago I arranged a guitar trade with someone via another forum. We sent each other photos of the instruments and we even had a nice conversation on the phone, and he seemed like a good guy.

I shipped my guitar as promised and sent the guy the tracking info, but didn't hear anything from the other guy. Communication went silent and he didn't respond to phone calls. Finally, after many days, he responded and sent me a tracking number.

The box arrived and what was inside was NOT the guitar I had traded for, but one that was worth about half as much. The photos he had sent earlier were not of his guitar. Through internet research, I discovered that the same guy had been ripping people off on several guitar forums, and that I was "lucky" to receive anything at all from him.

Again, I was unable to get a response from the guy, and I got the police involved. My local PD contacted his local PD, and they sent an officer over to his house. The guy's wife answered the door and feigned ignorance, and that was the end of it, there was nothing more the police could/would do.

I ended up selling the unwanted guitar on eBay (accurately described, of course) and ate about $800.

NEVER AGAIN.

[RP]

Originally Posted by Dut4907

Care to elaborate?

If Joe and Bill want to "trade" guitars, Joe actually purchases Bill's guitar and vice versa. If beatcomber had done a mutual sale rather than a mutual trade, he could have contacted PayPal, let's say, and requested a refund based on the guitar being different than what they'd discussed. He would hopefully have documentation to prove that. Chances are, beatcomber's scammer would not have agreed to my scenario, and that would have been telling in itself...

[zombywoof]

I have only done trades in person or long distance with somebody I know. I do like the idea of simply selling each other the respective guitars and taking the hit on fees. Just for grins though I looked on Reverb and something like 10 of those Taylors from various years quickly popped up. So unless I am missing something, it does appear there are more than a few of them out there up for grabs.

[3notes]

Personally, I wouldn't do it. That said, if you can afford a loss, go for it. I'm not saying it won't go well. I'm saying it might not. There's a certain amount of risk that I'm not willing to take.

[EverettWilliams]

Originally Posted by RP

If Joe and Bill want to "trade" guitars, Joe actually purchases Bill's guitar and vice versa. If beatcomber had done a mutual sale rather than a mutual trade, he could have contacted PayPal, let's say, and requested a refund based on the guitar being different than what they'd discussed. He would hopefully have documentation to prove that. Chances are, beatcomber's scammer would not have agreed to my scenario, and that would have been telling in itself...

This is a very sensible approach and one I would strongly consider in this position.

[seannx]

Originally Posted by EverettWilliams

This is a very sensible approach and one I would strongly consider in this position.

To the OP...
You’ve gotten very good advice. Make sure you get detailed photos through email from the person you are trading with, and send ones of your guitar, too. Don’t send the money with the friends or family PayPal option, or you will lose buyer protection. Use a credit card to pay, which will give you an added layer of protection. Ship insured with signature required to their verified PayPal address, so they can’t say it didn’t arrive. Document your packing with photos, so if damaged in shipping it will help validate your claim. Take photos of the condition of the box when it arrives, while unpacking, and the guitar. Good luck!