Gunbroker Unscrupulous Sellers

[Joemolf]

I've used Gunbroker with reasonable success but I must admit I've been burned a time or two also. I look over ads closely and ask questions. Sometimes I get a response other times none, in which case I don't bid.

Currently there is a decent looking T/C Hawken, caplock model, being advertised as having an aftermarket .54 Green Mountain barrel. It seems Green Mountain aftermarket barrels bring a premium which to many might make this gun more attractive and likely sell for more than a gun with a factory barrel. The problem with this particular gun is the barrel left Green Mountain as a .50 but has been rebored to .54. It's fairly obvious since the zero in the .50 marked on the barrel has been over stamped with a 4 and the crowning on the barrel is not correct. So, I asked the question and was told the seller doesn't know history on the gun. I had bought a very nice early T/C Hawken from this guy a few years back but he didn't photograph the butt plate or disclose it was badly corroded. I suggested to him he update the description to let potential bidders know it was a rebore. His response, I'm permanently blocked from his auctions. Like I really care. Believe me, this guy knows what he's selling.

I ran across another seller I'd never done business with over a month ago advertising a Lyman Trade Rifle assembled from a kit by a gunsmith with a starting bid of $2,500. I asked if the starting bid was a mistake and might really be $250. His response, "your blocked", that was it, the only words in his response. He's since reduced his starting bid to $1,900 and the gun is still for sale. Good luck selling that piece.

Full disclosure, I was a little rough on the guy trying to pass off the rebored Green Mountain barrel having been burned by him before.

I watch Gunbroker pretty much daily but I rarely buy anymore. It's pretty interesting to see some of the guns that are misrepresented as to condition. The one that really gets me is "unfired" or "unfired condition" when it obvious from the photographs its untrue. I guess it's just a buyer beware situation.

Use extreme caution when shopping on Gunbroker. You're likely way safer buying here.

Yeah I had a similar situation with a unmentionable winchester 94 somewhere between when the pictures that were taken and when it arrived at my front door the butt stock was cracked. I don’t believe it happened in transit. He wanted me to file the shipping claim meanwhile he was the shipper. I ended up finding a replacement butt stock from that company upstate NY. So it ended up costing me a lot more but I was happy because I always wanted that model in 44 mag. It was a hairline crack front to rear the stock was walnut pretty stout wood. It wood had been noticeable if it was there while the pictures were taken. It was new old stock. On the flip side I myself am hard pressed and have not posted anything with an inspection period. Those are what you want to purchase but I don’t have trust of people to even do that. How are you protected. It would be nice if the FFL act as transfer agent and examiner. They mostly don’t want to get involved

 

[Joemolf]

The Green Mountain Hawken Seller

I went into this sellers feed back and in every case I looked at where the seller received a less than favorable review he blocked the buyer.

I should note this seller has mostly positive feedback but if you challenge him....

" NO SOUP FOR YOU!"

This seller is, The Gun Nazi, kind of like Seinfeld's Soup Nazi.

What a SOB!

 

[Joemolf]

During the liquidation of my late BILs estate we learned some hard lessons about bad Buyers. Some bid for fun and never pay. They use excuse after excuse and even send repetitive emails asking if the check they never sent has arrived. Then there's the parts swappers who send item back after exchanging their broken parts back for your good ones. The worst are the false damage claimers. Some ask for 50% refunds without providing pics or anything -- When that fails they threaten to leave bad feedback. Lastly those who do not honor the terms of sale insisting on PPFF, Venmo or personal checks when offer states these are not accepted. Most all wind up on the blocked bidder list and having accts disabled.

What ever happened to the American way! All trying to make a fast buck off someone else’s back. Thats my concern with offering an 3 day inspection your correct military rifle is going to come back with stamped Chinese parts.

 

[vintovka]

What ever happened to the American way! All trying to make a fast buck off someone else’s back. Thats my concern with offering an 3 day inspection your correct military rifle is going to come back with stamped Chinese parts.

Why most are forced to have a no return policy.

 

[ernbar]

Ask questions and for detailed pictures of the item. If a seller is annoyed by your questions or refuses or ignores posting the additional pictures one asked for then this is a good red flag so skip that one. Also pay with a credit card where you can file a grievance and get your cash back in case of any hanky panky.

 

[vintovka]

Ask questions and for detailed pictures of the item. If a seller is annoyed by your questions or refuses or ignores posting the additional pictures one asked for then this is a good red flag so skip that one. Also pay with a credit card where you can file a grievance and get your cash back in case of any hanky panky.

Unfortunately the number of those who will accept CC's is going down fast. Many CC's are regulating what can be bought and recording/reporting sales. Other issues include fees and taxes. Skillful "buyers" often use chargebacks to their advantage. Sellers accepting CC's literally need a paid team of employees to deal with them. All of this adds to the cost of the item. GB made a move to implement payment via CC's only recently. From what i gather it was a disaster. Just the proposal to implement it caused many good sellers to leave opening the door to bad ones.

 

[BEP]

Sold a few things on GunBroker, used to buy but rarely do anymore. They were forced to add state sales tax to the item and so charge a buyers fee (usually 1%) to cover the cost of administering the taxes, plus shipping costs have skyrocketed. When you add those things to your bid it really bumps the total up. I have always been careful to avoid the sellers that "don't know anything about these types of firearms" but seem to know what they think they're worth. Also, if I ask a question and get either no answer or an evasive one, that's a hard pass.

 

[Hermit Tim]

Why most are forced to have a no return policy.

I have an as is no returns policy on everything I list on there. But if there is anything wrong with it I will put it in the listing. No surprises. But I'm not fooling around with someone suffering buyers remorse and just wanting their money back. I always try to under promise and over deliver.

 

[Hermit Tim]

Been burned twice after probably more than 100 purchases. One was a 28 gauge flintlock. Seller didn't say the lock did not work. "It's in perfect condition". Once arrived the cock will not stay cocked. I didn't worry too much about it as it is a hard to come by gun that I only paid a tad over $100 for. Still have it, and have never fixed it, but it is in the project gun pile.

The next one was my beloved CVA .36 squirrel rifle. Seller offered it as new and never fired. Said it was built from a kit, put in the safe, and never fired. Perfect as new condition. I don't know how many patches I went through cleaning the caked on black powder funk out of the barrel. The hammer didn't line up with the nipple so bad that the edge of the skirt hit the center of the nipple. There is a regular bolt in the hole on the drum with a huge head on it. Then a crack in the bottom of the stock that runs from the nose cap to the trigger guard. That seller was a flat out liar. But, again, I won it so cheap that I just fixed everything except the stock. Turned it into a nice little rifle. But, for the most part, the sellers I've dealt with on there have been pretty straight and good to do business with.

 

[vintovka]

I get a kick out of some really bad buyers. Some think every seller is a Walmart like mega corporation to be taken advantage of. Best ones think none of the terms of sale apply to them and then throw a fit when they get negative feedback and blocked. They really blow a gasket when their unwarranted negative feedback gets deleted and their accounts are permanently disabled. Starting to believe auction sites share or sell lists of bad buyers (and sellers) reducing the gene pool somewhat.