Trade gone bad.....ideas?

[okeem22]

Originally Posted by jojobean39

The couple are lawyers. They know what is going on. They’re not daft people. It is likely a really terrible time. But that doesn’t mean that they shouldn’t settle their payments. I bet they’re still paying their mortgage and electric bill.

The OP sounds more than reasonable, if we take what he said as an accurate depiction. He seems reasonable, so I have no reason to believe this isn’t really close to the real story.

They’re not unaware of it at this juncture. They know what’s up. They’ve chosen to ignore him. They’ve chosen to not return calls. They’ve chosen not to ship. They continue to lie to him. Whether they’re going through an awful time or not... those are not acceptable behaviors.

Thanks so much. That is exactly how I feel. I do feel I have really been patient, taken the high road. My Mom used to always joke
"No good deed goes unpunished!".

[v32 finish]

Originally Posted by okeem22

Thanks so much. That is exactly how I feel. I do feel I have really been patient, taken the high road. My Mom used to always joke
"No good deed goes unpunished!".

exactly. i would find a PI like the other former-investigator gentleman suggested. it would be costly, but cheaper than round-trip airfare, and certainly cheaper than eating a 7k guitar. the time for being patient has passed, and I fear at this point every day waiting just makes it less likely for resolution.

anyway, be sure to let us know how it turns out.. I have my fingers crossed for ya, that you get the guitar you were promised.

[Gjimmy]

Still confused about this...

So to set up a three way trade Bob is a forum member or Bob knows the “respected member” right?

How did you even manage to set up this convoluted trade?

[okeem22]

Originally Posted by Gjimmy

Still confused about this...

So to set up a three way trade Bob is a forum member or Bob knows the “respected member” right?

How did you even manage to set up this convoluted trade?

Lol. Sorry! Ok here it is.
I did a trade with Bob. In person though we live on opposite coasts.
He had another guitar that was really nice. I wanted it!
I was contacted by the "respected member" with a trade offer for my guitar.
He offered 2 very nice guitars. I had been conversing via email with Bob, my offer came up and he was interested in both but especially one. There it is. Values were comparable. I had dealt with both individuals and the triple swap was born. Mine to RM, his to Bob, and Bob's to me. I assured Bob of the integrity of RM, and that I personally would back whatever committment there was.

[Don Lampson]

Originally Posted by okeem22

Lol. Sorry! Ok here it is.
I did a trade with Bob. In person though we live on opposite coasts.
He had another guitar that was really nice. I wanted it!
I was contacted by the "respected member" with a trade offer for my guitar.
He offered 2 very nice guitars. I had been conversing via email with Bob, my offer came up and he was interested in both but especially one. There it is. Values were comparable. I had dealt with both individuals and the triple swap was born. Mine to RM, his to Bob, and Bob's to me. I assured Bob of the integrity of RM, and that I personally would back whatever committment there was.

How did you trade "in person" with "Bob", then ship your guitar to the "RFM"? How many guitars were involved in this trade? You haven't mentioned more than one guitar was involved until now? This is sounding almost like the old Abbot & Costello skit of "Who's on First?"

As I said several posts back, you don't know where the guitar's location is now, or who has it. FAICS, there is nothing you can do at all, until at least, those mysteries are solved? If I were you, I'd google both "Bob", and the "RFM"? (Who is beginning to sound like a slippery eel himself?)

Best of luck

Don

[pszy22]

Originally Posted by v32 finish

exactly. i would find a PI like the other former-investigator gentleman suggested. it would be costly, but cheaper than round-trip airfare, and certainly cheaper than eating a 7k guitar.

I'm curious, what exactly would be the expectation of the PI. I guess he could verify that Bob and his family exist, whether or not Bob is in the hospital. Would the PI approach the family and say give me the guitar or else? Would he try to snatch the guitar somehow? If some guy I didn't know showed up at my front door and said - I'm here to pick up Okeem's guitar, I'm not sure I'd just hand it over.

My TV based impression of a PI is that they are great at following people around, taking pictures of people doing things they shouldn't do, etc. Are they also skilled negotiators?

I honestly don't know.

[Jabberwocky]

okeem22, new week, old problem. What are YOU going to do about it? Continue ululating here and hoping that the guitar is going to magically appear-it won't- or take positive action towards recovering what is owed to you?

TAKE ACTION STARTING ON MONDAY.

You can continue to air it out here and the forum is happy to oblige but you are still out of a guitar. No more talk; you don't owe anybody an explanation as to what happened. Most of us get it now.

Hire a licensed PI and retrieve it. But if talking about it gives you relief from having to really do something to solve the problem then by all means, talk. You are still missing that $7 000 guitar.

It is way past the time for compassion and sympathy. You are getting the classic runaround. Why? I can only speculate that if the guitar even exists it is being held back for a sale just in case the family needs money for bills. The broken shipping promises are not reassuring. If one is unable to ship due to a family crisis, one simply says so.

Whatever it is, I wish you good luck. It is not a good situation to be in.

[okeem22]

Originally Posted by Don Lampson

How did you trade "in person" with "Bob", then ship your guitar to the "RFM"? How many guitars were involved in this trade? You haven't mentioned more than one guitar was involved until now? This is sounding almost like the old Abbot & Costello skit of "Who's on First?"

As I said several posts back, you don't know where the guitar's location is now, or who has it. FAICS, there is nothing you can do at all, until at least, those mysteries are solved? If I were you, I'd google both "Bob", and the "RFM"? (Who is beginning to sound like a slippery eel himself?)

Best of luck

Don

I am sorry for any confusion. I started the post and wanted to lay it out as simply as possible and that seems to have created confusion.

I did a seperate trade deal with Bob and we swapped guitars in person. A few months later the 3 way trade evolved. 3 people, 3 guitars. Picture 3 people facing each other with guitars in hand. Each person likes the guitar to their right better than the one they own and are holding. So they pass their guitars to the left. Everyone is happier with the new guitar they are holding. It is done. Problem is one person didnt pass his over.

RM did his part, not slippery in the least. I mailed my guitar to him. He mailed his guitar to Bob. That is the extent of his involvement. He did his part.

[PiousDevil]

Originally Posted by okeem22

I am sorry for any confusion. I started the post and wanted to lay it out as simply as possible and that seems to have created confusion.

I did a seperate trade deal with Bob and we swapped guitars in person. A few months later the 3 way trade evolved. 3 people, 3 guitars. Picture 3 people facing each other with guitars in hand. Each person likes the guitar to their right better than the one they own and are holding. So they pass their guitars to the left. Everyone is happier with the new guitar they are holding. It is done. Problem is one person didnt pass his over.

RM did his part, not slippery in the least. I mailed my guitar to him. He mailed his guitar to Bob. That is the extent of his involvement. He did his part.

And what evidence of the actual existence of Bob is there?

[v32 finish]

I thought he had been in contact with Bob, and met him in person on a previous trade?? I'm pretty sure there's correspondence between all 3 parties, no?

It was already a confusing trade, to begin with (or sounded like it )
and now everyone keeps confusing me further. But I agree that definitely the possibility of a scam should be the first thing determined.. not to be cynical, or lack of compassionate for health problems, but I think the first thing to do is to verify said health problems & the location of the guitar(s) .

[jojobean39]

Could someone draw a flowchart of this trade? Maybe a timeline chart? Then we could build an Ishikawa diagram to figure out where it all went wrong. :-)

This is a confusing scenario, all around. Part of it is confusing because there was a trade between two of them that occurred before this whole mess.

Here is how I see the cast of characters.

OP= Original Poster
Bob= Guy who has a heart attack
RFM= Respected forum member

1. OP and Bob meet in person many months ago to trade guitars, in a separate, unrelated deal.

2. Later, OP, Bob and RFM find out they each have guitars that the other wants:

OP wants Bob’s guitar
Bob wants RFM’s guitar
RFM wants OP’s guitar

3. Trade begins to happen. OP ships his guitar to RFM. RFM ships his guitar to Bob. Bob doesn’t ship his guitar to OP. Bob now has two guitars. At this point, the only part of the deal not done is Bob sending his guitar to OP.

4. Bob has heart attack. Bob can’t ship guitar. Bob’s family promises to, but they don’t.

5. OP is still without a guitar. He posts this thread. Gets mocked for difficult trade. Told he shouldn’t have done this- something I’m sure he’s just thrilled to hear right now.


Hopefully this synopsis helps. I’m intrigued by this story. I really hope this turns out well, without a lot of crap. Well, a lot more.

Originally Posted by PiousDevil

And what evidence of the actual existence of Bob is there?

He met him before, in person. See #1 above.

[Don Lampson]

Originally Posted by PiousDevil

And what evidence of the actual existence of Bob is there?

The OP met "Bob" in person, swapping another guitar with him wherever they met? The "three way trade deal", apparently began at a later date involving "RFM" in the "musical guitars" saga.... That's when the heart attack, stroke, son has the guitar, check is in the mail, stalling actions started... He can't hire a P.I., a lawyer, or go there himself, because he doesn't know, where the guitar is, or who has the guitar....

If I were the OP, I'd find out the address that the "RFM" shipped the guitar to for a clue to where the guitar might be? If it was picked up at some "will call" location, then it looks to me, he's simply out of luck, and that's the end of this sad story?

Don

[okeem22]

Originally Posted by jojobean39

Could someone draw a flowchart of this trade? Maybe a timeline chart? Then we could build an Ishikawa diagram to figure out where it all went wrong. :-)

This is a confusing scenario, all around. Part of it is confusing because there was a trade between two of them that occurred before this whole mess.

Here is how I see the cast of characters.

OP= Original Poster
Bob= Guy who has a heart attack
RFM= Respected forum member

1. OP and Bob meet in person many months ago to trade guitars, in a separate, unrelated deal.

2. Later, OP, Bob and RFM find out they each have guitars that the other wants:

OP wants Bob’s guitar
Bob wants RFM’s guitar
RFM wants OP’s guitar

3. Trade begins to happen. OP ships his guitar to RFM. RFM ships his guitar to Bob. Bob doesn’t ship his guitar to OP. Bob now has two guitars. At this point, the only part of the deal not done is Bob sending his guitar to OP.

4. Bob has heart attack. Bob can’t ship guitar. Bob’s family promises to, but they don’t.

5. OP is still without a guitar. He posts this thread. Gets mocked for difficult trade. Told he shouldn’t have done this- something I’m sure he’s just thrilled to hear right now.


Hopefully this synopsis helps. I’m intrigued by this story. I really hope this turns out well, without a lot of crap. Well, a lot more.







He met him before, in person. See #1 above.

ABSOLUTELY. You got it.

[Gjimmy]

Fascinating thread.

Have you googled “Bob” to see if he is actually a lawyer like he claimed? If he is, I am sure his address would be listed. Search results would probably yield an obituary if he did die. Can you verify social media to see if he is who he says he is?

You did meet him in person but that does not prove Bob is who he says he is. Would be a pretty elaborate scheme for him to do since you previously traded successfully with him, but I am a skeptical person.

[merlin666]

There is little to no verifiable info available on "Bob" but an abundance of stories and drama, and the "respectable member" has not been met in person. How sure is the OP that he actually dealt with two different individuals and that anything that he was told was true?