Caveat Emptor

[Montesdad]

I am consistently impressed by the high quality of individuals who are a part of this community and board. The knowledge base here is pretty much second to none - I've bought and sold a few guitars thru members here and all of the transactions have gone quite well.

Recently I've posted to acquire a particular guitar in the classifieds - got a few messages from some of the regulars but just haven't found the one yet.

What I have also received are some communications from what appear to be new or non members, individuals with few to no posts, offering to sell me pretty much what I'm looking for. In each case, they can offer little in the way of specific information on the guitar but they are offering a very good deal as it was a gift to them or they got it in trade or some such - and they just didnt come across right. One seller didn't want to send me much more than a pic or two stating he was worried that his pictures could be used to scam others into buying a guitar and the most recent - sent me pics and general description of a guitar that is currently being listed for sale by a guitar shop in the southwest. I'd already seen pics of the guitar including the closeup of the serial number and makers label.

I called the shop and let them know that someone was using their internet pics to sell their consignment guitar - the shop owner was disappointed but indicated that the guitar was currently in his hand and that there was really nothing he could do once he posts pictures of the guitar for sale.

I got back to this particular email scammer and let him know that his info was being turned over to the mods and that in a few words, what he was doing was sad.

So, please be careful when buying, ask a lot of questions, check for some feedback on the seller, do your best due diligence. When selling, take the time to satisfy a buyers interest and questions on even the smallest of details.

Lot of good people here however, there are those who can and will take advantage if one is not careful

[brian a.]

Thank you for the heads up on this situation. I hope you find the "real" guitar you are looking to buy. Cheers

[00-28]

Thanks for stepping up and giving us the heads up. ...Mike

[Glennwillow]

Thanks for the info MD. I do hope you find the guitar you are looking for.

- Glenn

[kiva238]

Let me just add that if Forumites come across these obvious scams on eBay, send the report found in the lower right corner of the listing to report your suspicion to eBay. Without knowledgable feedback from folks like us, eBay has no way of knowing that Olsons and pre-war Martins don't actually sell for $2,000! If the scamming lister asks you to contact him by email prior to bidding a ridiculous BIN price, just file the report. Easy to spot the scam.
If enough of us report these scams, they lose their effectiveness and the Nigerian prince will move to something else more promising.
Sadly, in this case it takes a village. . . .
John

[Larry Pattis]

Any retailer that does not watermark their FS photos is IMO doing themselves and the entire community a disservice.

Yes, any image that is out on the web can typically be copied & pasted, but if there is a clear watermark on the substantive area of any photo it becomes completely useless for any scam-artist.

[fazool]

Apparently, a strategy is that people Google/troll for "Want To Buy" posts and then quickly respond that they have exactly what one wants to buy.

One month ago, I posted a WTB for a specific (rare) guitar and got an immediate reply that the new poster has exactly what I want and wishes to discuss it with me via email.

Suspicious, I searched for all posts by that person. They had three posts - all three were the same message posted to three different WTB postings.

[fazool]

I posted a similar warning thread here on AGF with similar cautions.

That said......I actually *DID* get a guitar this way once and, frankly it made me nervous.

I posted a WTB for the same rare guitar. A person in another state was selling that exact guitar and did a Goggle search on WTB that model and found my post.

The replied, with pictures.

To be safe (as I always try to be) I looked them up, did some consumer espionage and found out they were totally legit. I now have a guitar I love.

But, its very important to be careful.

[Ted @ LA Guitar Sales]

This kind of nonsense has been going on for quite some time so most members here will recognize a scam like this in short order, but it's always worth repeating. Thanks for taking the time to post this.