Trouble with Selling my Firearms

[Joosh]

Hello, AOF-goers,
A little while back, I was trying to sell off some of my firearms and ran into some red-tape here on the Alberta Outdoorsmen Forums (something about a minimum number of posts and such). Anyway, I'm just working on that right now, but I thought I would ask the experienced ones here how they go about selling their firearms and what advice they can lend me on the matter. I tried out Canadian Gun Nutz but was constantly being contacted by people out-of-Province and I just didn't want to deal with that.

[double gun]

Why not specify "local sale only"?

[Dick284]

Meet the criteria.
Post your items, and follow the tips thread sticky in the buy sell forum.

Ask a reasonable price.

I've bought and sold numerous firearms through this site and CGN, I've never had a raw deal, but I've always dealt with folks who have solid trader ratings, and have always set up a phone call at a minimum.

If the deal looks too good to be true, take whatever steps you feel is necessary to ensure the deal isn't bogus.

[Joosh]

Originally Posted by Dick284

Meet the criteria.
Post your items, and follow the tips thread sticky in the buy sell forum.

Ask a reasonable price.

I've bought and sold numerous firearms through this site and CGN, I've never had a raw deal, but I've always dealt with folks who have solid trader ratings, and have always set up a phone call at a minimum.

If the deal looks too good to be true, take whatever steps you feel is necessary to ensure the deal isn't bogus.

Thank you! How do you decide the person's trader ratings are sufficient enough to be trusted? One guy seemed genuine enough, but there were only 2 or 3 ratings on his profile and I felt that wasn't much to go off of.

[Dick284]

Originally Posted by Joosh

Thank you! How do you decide the person's trader ratings are sufficient enough to be trusted? One guy seemed genuine enough, but there were only 2 or 3 ratings on his profile and I felt that wasn't much to go off of.

PM the folks who left the ratings, check those persons ratings too, you'll figure it out.

If you yourself are a suspicious type, expect to never be comfortable.
Mutual trust is what is needed.

Again if you start smelling fish, take the next step. I've gone as far as asking friends in the persons locale to do a hands on inspection, if they bok, a one on one, it's obvious what your next step is......

[vcmm]

Cash first then buyer gets gun.

[elkhunter11]

Between this forum, and CGN, I have bought and sold over 100 firearms. If you post pictures, and ask a reasonable price, it's usually quite easy to sell firearms. That being said, the majority of my transactions were with out of province people, it really isn't a big deal.

[nelsonob1]

Originally Posted by elkhunter11

Between this forum, and CGN, I have bought and sold over 100 firearms. If you post pictures, and ask a reasonable price, it's usually quite easy to sell firearms. That being said, the majority of my transactions were with out of province people, it really isn't a big deal.

Exactly....

Plus you are the seller - typically the money comes first then you ship. There is no risk to you. I think the bigger problem you will face is that you do not have any trading references and fewer experienced buyers will want to deal with you. I would suggest being prepared to provide additional ID and references.

[Dick284]

Use that ringy dingy thingy.......
Hearing a persons voice imparts a whole lot more than an online alias.

[Joosh]

Okay, that's good to know.

[CaberTosser]

Selling online to distant buyers is easy, just be sure to verify receipt of your funds before shipping. Use EMT, not Paypal, as Paypal specifically excludes firearms and ammo in their acceptable use policy, if you have a transaction go south they won't back either party with the protections they usually offer, but they'll sure as heck keep their commission. When shipping box it up well and don't leave any indications of the contents of the outside, work out shipping & insurance costs with the buyer ahead of time so as to include it with payment.

[ghostguy6]

Personally I do local sales only but that doesn't stop a lot of people from sending me messages asking to ship. If you are well known member in good standing or if we have done a transaction before I will consider it.

If I'm buying I want to see the firearm first, inspect it and verify it. If I'm the seller I want to see the buyers PAL in hand so I can verify who's buying it and make sure they are of good character, but I also want the buyer to be happy with the firearm before they make the final purchase. You don't need anyone coming back and saying they found something that you didn't disclose and wrecking your reputation.

When you sell online, post pictures and disclose any defects or flaws up front so the potential buyer knows exactly what they are getting. Do some research on the firearm you are selling, don't just assume because you paid $1000 for it at your local shop that it is worth $1000, Cabela's may have it for less and that will scare away potential buyers.

Lastly trust your gut. Ill give you an example, I had a shotgun up for sale and had a few inquiries and agreed to meet a fellow at a local Tim Horton's. He showed up looking really sketchy, handed me cash right away without even wanting to see the firearm and when a police car drove by he turned his head away. At that point I had already made up my mind that I wasn't going to sell him the firearm but asked to see his PAL anyways to get his name. He couldn't produce a PAL but had plenty of excuses as to why he didn't have it on him. I just got into my truck and drove around the building to watch him leave. My gut told me something was really wrong so I got his license plate and called the police, they told me the vehicle had been reported stolen and to wait there so they could collect a statement from me. About 15 minutes after the first officer showed another car arrived with the suspect in the back and they asked me to identify their suspect. I hate to think what kind of trouble I might have gotten into had I sold him that firearm.

[bat119]

Originally Posted by double gun

Why not specify "local sale only"?

Please add an approximate location in your ad, the people that don't just waste everybody's time

[bagwan]

Originally Posted by bat119

Please add an approximate location in your ad, the people that don't just waste everybody's time

This is a valid point. I've seen many ads saying local sale only and it takes PM's to sort out the location. Also if you're willing to meet someone halfway
to facilitate a sale it won't take long to get a trader rating.

[dmac]

If you limit sales to persons living in Alberta, you have eliminated 80% of potential buyers. Selling out of province is no big deal. Simply a different address on the package you mail.